Taurus

The Zodiac Queen, Book 2

By: Gemma James

Narrated by: Alina Turnipseed

Length: 2 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

Twelve men. A virgin queen. One arranged marriage.

Twelve diamonds.

That’s the number of precious stones in my crown.

And when I break one of Heath Bordeaux’s stringent rules, I lose one.

Earning it back entails pain and degradation.

No one can save me from his reign.

Not even Liam Castle.

Part two of the Zodiac Queen. Intended for mature listeners who enjoy dark and explicit themes. Listener discretion is advised.

©2019 Gemma James (P)2023 Gemma James

Difficult to say

I’m still at a loss. At the end of the second book, I feel like we haven’t gotten to the meat of the story. Given each “book” is fewer than 3 hours, it’s impossible to get a read on any aspect of the story.
The plot has some interesting points, but honestly, unless this speeds up I don’t think I’m going to pursue the rest. I still haven’t come to terms with the narrator; I can’t tell if she’s unintentionally mispronouncing words or if the author didn’t edit and left misspelled words on the page. Aside from that, the narrator made a mood choice that is fitting for the character is some scenes, but she drags it through the entire work. Normally, I would speed it up, but the book is already so short it seems pointless.

These easily could’ve been done in parts and series of 3 or groups of seasons rather than pieced out in 12 mini sessions. Or if the author was dedicated to the idea of 12 separate books, there were ample opportunities to beef up the narrative and give more to the story.