The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen

The Doomsday Books, Book 1

By: KJ Charles

Narrated by: Martyn Swain

Abandoned by his father, Gareth Inglis grew up lonely, prickly, and used to disappointment. Still, he longs for a connection. When he meets a charming stranger, he falls head over heels—until everything goes wrong and he's left alone again.

Then Gareth's father dies, turning the shabby London clerk into Sir Gareth, with a grand house on the remote Romney Marsh and a family he doesn't know. The Marsh is another world, a strange, empty place notorious for its ruthless gangs of smugglers. And one of them is dangerously familiar…

Joss Doomsday has run the Doomsday smuggling clan since he was a boy. When the new baronet—his old lover—agrees to testify against Joss's sister, Joss acts fast to stop him. Their reunion is anything but happy, yet after the dust settles, neither can stay away. Soon, all Joss and Gareth want is the chance to be together. But the bleak, bare Marsh holds deadly secrets. And when Gareth finds himself threatened from every side, the gentleman and the smuggler must trust one another not just with their hearts but also with their lives.

©2023 KJ Charles (P)2023 Dreamscape Media

Another superb book from KJ Charles!

Another superb book from KJ Charles! The narrator does a fantastic job as well. The emotional arc and the action are well balanced and both are compelling in their own rights. Highly recommend.

Loved it!

I loved the story! I loved the narration!

I have loved KJ Charles other books and look forward to reading more of them!

Christmas in April

This novel was a surprise gift to me from the universe. How have I never found KJ Charles before? I was riveted all the way through.The novel has a gripping plot, main characters who grow and heal each other in the course of the story, a passionate romance, not to mention competent historical detail and a nail-biting finish. I agree with the listeners who found the narration an obstacle to enjoyment. Long pauses between words are unnatural. However, I was able to overlook the weird narration as I got more caught up in the story. Thank goodness the dialogue didn't get the same treatment and the voices were good. I count this a lucky find. I hope to be reading a lot more KJ Charles in future.

A delightful listen

I have long since learned that I should always just read novels by KJ Charles regardless of the summery; somehow the plot always steps elegantly around my pet peeve pitfalls!
The atmosphere is sublime, the world just feels very textural to me; the excellent narration definitely supports this. Both the language and local flair feel authentic. It is just a delight to be immersed in a world with people very different from me yet recognisable.
Aside from world building and characters, the story is interesting and engaging. It moves fast and stays interesting without spinning out of control.
I loved this book and can't wait for the sequel (the plot of which I am already speculating about)

Kj Charles never disappoints

I loved this story - like all the others! It did take a second to get used to an unfamiliar-to-me narrator, but really hardly any time at all & I thought it was very well narrated overall & fit the setting.

Great Story, Narration is excruciatingly slow

the story is very entertaining and interesting, but I had to listen at 1.25x to get a more natural pace, but this does create awkward dialog at points.

Engaging and dynamic story

Perfect for a long drive. Kept me engaged and entertained. Narrator made me a bit crazy at first but playing him at 1.2x speed helped. A few chapters in he seems to speed up so I played him at 1x. And then on the last chapter those long pauses returned. He’s an excellent narrator other than the constant dramatic pauses.

Enjoyed the characters, Narration was hard to adjust to

I’m not the only one to say it, the narration almost ruined this audio book for me. At the start I actually wondered if it was being read by some kind of faulty audio program rather than a human being. I didn’t find that changing the speed helped, as others suggest. It says a lot about the storylines that i gritted my teeth through the delivery to find out what happens. I’ve heard other narrators who had severe pacing problems before, but not in a professional production. It’s baffling to me. I’m not sure the time to edit the audio would cost more than re-recording it.

To be clear: unless using a deliberately regional accent the reading is clear and easy to understand. The pacing and disregard of normal punctuation convention is the problem. The accents were distinct, the characters were clearly depicted and some emotion was well-dramatized. It wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t get through it for the story’s sake, but it was a close call. If your enjoyment of audiobooks hangs partly on sensible delivery, please be warned that this one may not be tolerable. I got used to it perhaps before the last half hour.

It’s a good story. Didn’t rely on long separations between the love interests, at least not as much as usual, which was delightful. The pacing of the writing was nicely gauged. I enjoy the author and their work.

It’s hard not to sympathize with the voice actor. It’s not an easy job, and there may have been technical problems. Nearly rendering this newest book useless was a real waste and honestly hard to fathom.

I am not sure I want to buy the next audio book in this series if it’s the same reader. Considering what a fan I’ve become of the author, that says a great deal.

Another superb KJ Charles

After listening this for a second time (something I rarely do) I am again delighted with this book. I listened again in preparation for her newest book, the sequel to this one. This is a fun book with masterful narration.

Great Action & Strong Romance

I liked the character description. I like everyone is a hero. Great compassion description. Performance excellent.