The Duke's Blackmailed Bride

By: Leigh D' Ansey

Narrated by: Allison Cope

Vanessa Fitzwilliam is in dire straits. Her father's death a year ago left her with a crumbling manor and a handful of old retainers relying on her for support. When the Duke of Northbridge sweeps into her life with a surprise proposal, Vanessa is tempted - but the arrogant duke believes her to be something she's not.

Hardened by the ravages of war, Northbridge seeks a wife who will provide him with an heir but make no demands on his emotions. The scandalously experienced Vanessa, neither clinging nor innocent, seems the perfect choice. But Northbridge isn't prepared for her reluctance to accept him, or his own fierce reaction to her beauty.

To fulfill his desires, Northbridge is prepared to be ruthless, but can he bend Vanessa to his will? Or has the Duke met his match?

©2011 Leigh D'Ansey (P)2012 Leigh D'Ansey

Narrator & Audio Terrible, but good story

I like the story and the author's story, but the narrator needs to find better recording equipment or a better room to record from.

The audio recording is horrible this narrator's voice is not the problem, wherever or whatever she's recording from the Acoustics is terrible, sounds like an echo in the background, like she's talking on a speaker phone. Would have enjoyed better if the recording was clearer.

poor story worse narration

What disappointed you about The Duke's Blackmailed Bride?

The accent of the narrator was almost unintelligable. This was so heavily accented as to be straight from outside the ton and certainly not"quality".

What was most disappointing about Leigh D' Ansey’s story?

There was no story buildup so who cared about either character.

How could the performance have been better?

If the spoken word was in English and not heavy Irish it would have been understandable.

Any additional comments?

BAD

Good story line but not so good narration.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would for the story itself.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Duke's Blackmailed Bride?

The kitchen scene at the beginning of the story.

What aspect of Allison Cope’s performance would you have changed?

Her harsh voice that lacked grabbing the moods of the characters.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Then ending and the scene at the log.

Any additional comments?

I wish the story was longer.

Almost A Good Story

Annoying flute between chapters took away my enjoyment. I think it was there to lengthen the recording. It would've been better if it had been read without the long transition flute. The narrator needs more practice, especially because she mispronounced so many.

Lovely voice, but not right for this genre.

Narrator had a rich, beautiful voice, but it only seemed to fit with the servants or other working class characters. Not sophisticated enough for members of the aristocracy.

Also, recording quality was TERRIBLE!!! Sounded like she was in an echoing room but worse. Made a sound engineer I know listen to it and he said the narrator was, "off mic". I'm very surprised it was published that way.

Dire Narration - the worst in my 800 audio books

Would you try another book from Leigh D' Ansey and/or Allison Cope?

No

What do you think your next listen will be?

Don't know

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Awful phrasing. Pauses in totally inappropriate places Extremely strong accent made several words incomprehensible. I have over 800 titles in my Audible collections and this is the worst ever narration by a country mile. I am sorry to say this, but even I could do better! I usually don't leave negative feed back but this truly deserves in.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Anger at the thought that the narrator (a) might have been paid for this and (b) that Audible inflicted this on the public

Horrible!

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I would not know, it certainly was not for me!

Would you ever listen to anything by Leigh D' Ansey again?

I do not think so. The story was so simple and short, it was over before it really started!

Would you be willing to try another one of Allison Cope’s performances?

No, I did not like her voice and her accent.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Big disappointment

Don't waste your time or money

First off, this is like a play with an act missing. Everything is too compressed. The premise isn't too bad, but the characters need to have some redeeming qualities, and the plot needs development. This was more like an outline for a book.
The narration doesn't give life to the characters, and the very WORST thing about this waste of time is the production values. It sounds like it was recorded in a bathroom through a tin can. Ugh! Audible must have been paid to take this on, but didn't give it a listen before putting it out there for us.

Terrible

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

No one I can think of... Very disappointing

What was most disappointing about Leigh D' Ansey’s story?

The narration was terrible, poorly spoken with a very odd accent and inflection in the voice. The characters did not feel real.

Would you be willing to try another one of Allison Cope’s performances?

Definately not

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

None, story and narration were terrible.

Any additional comments?

Do not waste your time and money there are a lot better books out there.