Awesome narration.

Awesome narrator! Impressive Duke. Heroine with too many secrets and mistrust in said Duke.

This started so well. Sure, the "compromise" was a bit contrived but it worked. The later part of the book bogged down way too much with keeping secrets and all of those ramifications. It became tiresome and I disliked Adeline a lot.

The saving grace was the narrator. I could listen to Alex Wyndham read a cereal box!

18 people found this helpful

The first half was great but......

Would you try another book from Stella Riley and/or Alex Wyndham?

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Minimized the misunderstandings

What does Alex Wyndham bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Everything. He's great.

Was The Mésalliance worth the listening time?

Eh... Yes

Any additional comments?

This story had such great characters. For the first half of the book or so, it was great and showed great potential. Then, the author made a turn onto MISUNDERSTANDING LANE which happened to be a dead end. I can't understand why this particular misunderstanding consumed the entire second half of the book. It became tedious and repetitive.

The author could have shortened the book to bring the issue to a head faster or she could have exposed the reason for the misunderstanding and masterfully created a rouse to expose the villain which would have allowed a longer book without all of the angst. Rockliffe deserved so much better than what he got. I fell in love with his character in The Parfait Knight and I still love him. Adeline had potential at the beginning and I really liked her.. she was sharp tongued and charming but by the end, she was a shell of the character I fell in love with.

Of course every romance book has a HEA but be warned it'll come after chapters of tedium.

The narrator is AMAZING. No complaints about Alex Wyndham's performance. He's masterful. I could listen to him all day!

First half of the story: 5

Second half of the story: 1

Overall story: 3

Narration: 5

26 people found this helpful

Started well then became aggravating

I thought I was going to like this book. The first part where the Duke and his sister Nell were at the house party was interesting. I thought I was going to like the lead female - can't spell her name - but changed my mind as the book went on. The Duke was a very good character and the cousin, Diana, was a wonderful villain but the lead female turned out to be too stupid to breathe and the book fell apart when she began lying to her husband the Duke and concealing things from him, I also thought he was too forgiving. The deceit by the lead female and her estrangement from the Duke were just too aggravating and went on way too long. II ended up not liking the book so much after all.

6 people found this helpful

Emotionally gripping, intense Georgian love story

Any additional comments?

This is the story of the title character of the series (I recommend to read the books in order: although the main stories are standalones, the secondary characters make more sense that way), the Duke of Rockliffe. The mesalliance of the title is even worse than just that: it appears a forced marriage based on a compromise scene - but in truth, the two protagonists are intensely drawn to each other from the first, and are soon head over heels in love with each other. The problem is, neither dares to tell the other so. There is the threat of a scandal, a blackmail from an unscrupulous uncle, two other secondary and tertiary couples whose problems heap even more difficulties on Rockliffe and Adeline, and only a spectacular showdown of scandal and the acutest misery of hurting and being hurt by their beloved one can break down their barriers to finaly talk to each other.
Rockliffe is compared to Georgette Heyer's heroes by many readers, and in fact, he is very much like them: sharp intellect and strength of character veiled by ducal arrogance and fashionable ennui, a cutting wit, suaveness and self-possession. However, I have never seen this type of hero to fall apart so completely, to be so vulnerable to the woman he loves as he is shown in this book.
Many readers complain that the Adeline makes so many stupid mistakes that she doesn't deserve Rockliffe. I'd argue that he makes equally bad mistakes which aren't so spelled out as hers. Yes, she falls prey easily to the blackmail, she fails to trust her husband and the reason is somewhat weak.nBut he is also so immersed in his own hurt of feeling rejected by her, that he doesn't notice her torment and her being threatened. He accuses her of confiding in his friends rather than in him, and is jealous of his own friends making improper advances on her - when in fact, they are only giving her the help and comfort he denies her. The part of distrust and estrangement goes on for rather long, I even doubted the possibility of creditable resolution, but their stark admissions on love and their instant forgiveness when it came to the reconciliation truly carried the day and was convincing as well as satisfying.
I listened to the audio version, and the narrator is really excellent - he brings all characters to life, gives them their own voice and conveys all nuances of the elaborate urbaneness of the Georgian aristocracy, the humor and the emotional intensity - which is beautifully formulated in the author's excellent style.
I loved it and recommend it to all fans of historical romance.

5 people found this helpful

More to it than the average romance

This series really appeals to me for a couple of reasons. Alex Wyndham is a wonderful narrator. Also the hero and heroine are surrounded by a cast of friends and family, some of whom appear in other books. This gives it more depth and I really enjoy the importance of friendship. In some romances, the main characters seem to live in a vacuum. There also is some humor, which I always enjoy. I'm looking forward to the next book.

5 people found this helpful

Prepare to be Frustrated

For most of the book I really enjoyed the story and Adeline. However, the second half of the book, the last 4 hours specifically, is full of so much trouble that could all be easily solved with simple communication. Because of this, I found myself incredibly frustrated with both the main characters, but especially Adeline. I am not even really sure why Rock ended up forgiving her. I really enjoy Stella Riley and love Alex Wyndham, but this storyline started strong and ended up unnecessarily disagreeable.

4 people found this helpful

Marvelously Written With Nary a Moment of Ennui

Any additional comments?

A blogger colleague of mine suggested I read Stella Riley. I was privileged to win a copy of book two of the Rockcliffe series. This exciting listening went beyond my expectations and I'm delighted to be introduced to Stella Riley.

Quickly, we are caught up in the times. With the stifling necessity of being polite, Duke of Rockliffe’s tongue is so well laced with sarcasm expressed in a calm, mild tone, one wonders if the sarcasm is real! Rockliffe’s wit and humor are well-played by narrator Alex Wyndham, always delivered in a sang froid tone.

Rockliffe is creative with his own enjoyment when invited to a house-party accompanying his sister Nell. She is a handful and must keep her out of her usual mischief.

The ton prize themselves in speaking with complete ennui, particularly, the upper-crust gentlemen. I certainly didn’t have a drop listening to this lively, spirited story sweeping me into events of the times!

It seems Nell’s best friend Diana is in the market for a groom. She is a conniving little thing, annoying and eventually becomes quite desperate to catch someone in her first Season. Her eye is on Rockcliffe.

Conversely, her twin, is amiable, mild-mannered, trying to keep Diana from doing too much mischief. She has a softer heart and treats Adeline with more civility.

Adeline Kendrick is a bit like a Cinderella. She is relegated to an upper servant in her aunt’s home, mother to Diana and Althea. Once Rockcliffe catches on about her position in the family, he’s a bit put off by the snobbishness of Lady Franklin and Diana. He goes out of his way to be nice to her—the story takes off from there.

I love the duke’s fetish of snuff boxes – how they become a focal point in awkward or annoying conversations. I actually snickered during the read.

Narrator Alex Wyndham makes the total experience of this book one of perfection. His timing, tone, pacing and his completely believable performance rates him in my opinion as one go-to narrator. I’ve listened to his work before with other authors – he’s simply marvelous.

And now I need to back track to read book one of the series. I highly recommend this author and what I've read in reviews, this series. Her writing style is lively, not heavily laden with description. Her character development are the driving force of the read.

4 people found this helpful

Couldn't stop listening

I thouroughly enjoyed this book! I loved the plot, the side stories and the excellent performance of the narrator.

4 people found this helpful

ABFAB

I loved the continuation of the series, wonderful characters, superb writing and amazing narration. One of the things I enjoy about Stella Riley's writing is the thoughtfulness of the main male character. Although Rockcliffe has a temper, he cools down and works out other possible reasons for Adeline's behavior and trusts in her inherent goodness (most of the time) . So often male characters in HR novels are total idiots until the very end and never think logically at all. I find a thinking man with an ironic sense of humour much more appealing and interesting. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it highly. I could also listen to Alex Wyndham recite the phone book - he is that good.

4 people found this helpful

What a headache! Way to frustrating

This was definitely NOT a romance type novel. He kissed her once through the entire book even though they were married through most of the book. That's it! The heroine was awful. The Duke was VERY understanding. He should have just dumped her and kept it moving! She basically acted like he didn't exist due to her own selfishness. I REALLY didn't like it. On the bright side the narrator IS amazing!

3 people found this helpful