Disappointing

My first Audrey Howard book and I suspect my last. To begin with it was promising. I liked the characters and was quite absorbed. But the second half was disappointing; it began running out of steam almost immediately, trundled downhill and out of sight. When a story is so repetitive, you just know it?s not taking you anywhere you want to go. I got the impression the conclusion was weak; by then I was so fed up, I fast forwarded, listened to the end and we parted company. That said, it is quite well written and the narrator does a good job in an ?aye-up lass? kind of way. Only go for it if you are prepared to sleep through the second half.

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Disturbing reading

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Maybe if the protagonist Charlotte didn't repeatedly finf that she only achieves orgasm when she sex is aggressive, at one point after to an argument with her husband he strikes her hard twice (hard enough to leave a bad bruise on her cheek for several days) then rapes her, she describes the experience as exhillerating and becomes pregnant that night after months of trying (a cure for infertility has been found it seems!).
Despite this the husband is portrayed as a kind caring loving almost perfect man.
I know as a guy I'm not the target audience but I like books set in this period and a woman I know told me to try this. I have to say it made for uncomfortable reading, the girls father caning her bare bum at 16 and being described as enjoying this immensely was pure titillation. Personally I don't think light romance is the proper area to comment on incestuous child abuse.

What could Audrey Howard have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

A less submissive heroine, she is described as lion hearted but fails to see that her partner is only kind and caring when all is going his way.

What does Carole Boyd bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

I gave it 2 stars only because of the excellent narration.

What character would you cut from The Flight of Swallows?

The mustache twitching villainous father. The abusive husband, the stereotyped peasents, the clichéd doctor, all doctors in these times appear to be progressive and unconventional.

Any additional comments?

like the love many women seem to have for Heathcliff types I fail to see the attraction to abusive behaviour from the hero, I realize he will come to some sort of realization at the end about the way things should be but by two thirds of the way I no longer cared.

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2 people found this helpful