Excellent story and narration!

New to me author and narrators, this hardly ever happens. I'm picky about narrations, & I would gladly listen to either/both of these narrators again. Wonderfully performed by both, bringing Riley's amazing characters to life. Author & performers alike gave these lost boys voices & emotion that broke my heart for all of them, made me fall in love with & cheer for all of them. Love the BDSM elements & how Scout learned as he went, leading up to THAT SCENE that cemented my love for him and Roman both. I'm invested in their HEA, and I'm so glad they found each other & their way in this world together. Riley (and performers) made me cry a couple times, sad-happy-hopeful-anxious tears, then made me giggle in the next breath. Excellent story, well-told, loved it so much. Looking forward to the next one.

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Such a great listen!

Once again Riley is 4 for 4 on choosing the best narrators for each of his characters in every book! I originally read this when it released on ebook, and when the audio was announced I knew I would have to give it a re-listen!

And even though I’d already read it previously, I was still fully engrossed in this story from start to finish.

But seriously no one writes broken down & codependent characters that need each other like they need oxygen like Riley Nash. And I love it!

Plus a size difference + cuddling/all the cute comfort moments? Mega-swoon!

Also this book does a great job of softly teeing up the next two books, without the introduction of the side characters feeling like it’s taken over the whole book. Dallas and Beck were great additions to their found family!

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1 person found this helpful

What a heartbreaker

What an amazing story full of heartbreak, hope and found family. I found this book to be incredible it was well written and the narration gave so much more emotion to the story.

The story flowed well and there was so much that I could not put it down. It was so surprising each time i returned to the real world. An incredible story from an author that rips my heart out each time and then helps me rebuild it.

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Not the normal romance

This is the first in the series about three boys pretty much alone in the world except for each other. They live in poverty and do whatever they have to for survival.
This story centers mainly on Scout and Roman. Scout is the self-appointed leader of him, Beck and Dallas. They live in a dilapidated trailer that Scout’s family owned and he grew up in. He has dreams of a better life for them and does videos in hopes of getting enough money for them to move up.
Roman mostly doesn’t speak. He has had problems since he was young. Before he had his grandparents to look after him but when the grandfather is died and the grandmother is unable to care for herself, his brother Travis shows up and gives Roman a abusive home.
How Scout and Roman meet and the development of their relationship made me sad. This story really seems sad from the beginning through the end. For me the relationship just doesn’t really click because I felt in the beginning it was a way for Scout to make money and Roman to get away from the abuse. They form a sort of relationship but it isn’t the hea normally in a romance story but then not all stories should be. The way Travis is dealt with is a little startling but then there is karma. I feel this is an interesting beginning to the series and I’ll be interested to see where it goes from here.
The narration by Devon Ryder and Bryant Walker gave life to these characters and events. I enjoyed listening.

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An emotional journey

When I read this it was an an emotional read, all four of these guys; Roman, Scout, Dallas & Beck made my heart ache. But adding in the narration upped that another notch took me even deeper into the story.

This is Roman and Scout's story and these two broken young men together, well, they evoked many emotions as I read/listened to Bad Dogs. These guys needed each other in ways neither could have known when they first met. What starts as a BDSM Dom/sub kink and a way to make money through porn videos brings out desperate need and emotions from both Roman and Scout. Roman needed what Scout could give him so badly I could feel that need and that pain as they bumbled their way through exploring and playing out their roles. They are both on a major learning journey and mistakes are made but they both come out stronger in the end. This is a hurt/comfort read, where both parties need healing and comfort.

The abuse Roman suffers at the hands of his brother and his uncle is hard to read and the despair Roman feels living in that situation is heartbreaking. His mutism made his life harder and allowed his brother to take advantage of him and abuse him more. I loved seeing him grow stronger because of the three men who become his found family, the way they accepted him and learned how to use signs to make things easier for him was lovely. Scout's life hasn't been much better, but at least he has his friends Dallas and Beck. I loved how easily the three of them drew Roman into their fold and claimed him as one of them.

I look forward to reading Beck and Dallas' story next.

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Good start to a new series

Roman is emotionally withdrawn and bullied by everyone.
Then Scout sees him, and life starts to change, but is it for the better?
The emotional ups and downs you go through as a reader can be intense, but Roman. I either felt sorry for him or got a little mad at him. This book did pull at the emotions. The side characters were also well-written; I look forward to book two.

Great narration by both narrators. They did exceptional jobs, but I had to speed up to 1.30 on Audible, which is usual for me.

Bad Dogs
Dirty Strays, Book 1
By: Riley Nash
Narrated by: Devon Ryder, Bryant Walker
Length: 8 hrs and 1 min

❤❤❤❤ Overall
🎧🎧🎧🎧🎧 Narration
📚📚📚📚 Story
Read at 1.30 speed on Audible

I received this audiobook for free from GRR at my request. My review is my opinion and an honest review - neither the author nor GRR influenced my opinion.

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Fantastic

A fantastic start to the series by Riley Nash. Roman and Scout takes you on an emotional journey, that you jave to see to the end. Devon Ryder and Bryant Walker did a super job with the narration.
This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

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Riveting & Emotional! Terrific Story & Narration🎧

Riley Nash is a master at writing stories that touch you like no other and bring out every one of your emotions, including some gut-wrenching ones. He had my heart hurting for Roman, one of the lead characters, who had a terrible home life and was treated like garbage by his own brother, Travis, who I despised immediately. Roman missed living with his grandmother, the last person who cared about him. He has been living with Travis, a cop who is on the take and sells confiscated products and drugs. Having to leave his old department, he moves them from California to Colorado, where he will continue to do the same and he has Roman to help sell his goods, including drugs. Roman’s life could not get any worse, or so he thought, but something finally gives or rather someone, he meets Scout and his two friends, Beck and Dallas. Scout lives in a trailer in Paradise Park, not far from the place where Roman is staying. The moment Scout saw Roman, he felt an instant attraction, and he felt it even more once he met him and got to know him. Roman is not like anyone he has met before, he struggles to talk, communicate and has anger issues, but Scout sees him for who he really is as a person and becomes protective of him. Scout is into kink, despite being on the small side, he is a Dom and he sees Roman, who is muscular and built as his sub, and he pitches his idea to him, one that will make them both money. Scout has his work cut out for him, he can reach Roman, but can he get him out of his crappy life and living situation? I admired Scout for his ability to see the good in people and to make the best out of what he has. I loved the camaraderie amongst his friends and how they accepted Roman with open arms. I also loved the originality of the story, the writing and plotting is fantastic and has plenty of drama, angst, heartfelt emotions, some kink and romance. Riley Nash, thank you for another fantastic story and emotional rollercoaster ride.

🎧📚🎧 Devon Ryder and Bryant Walker did a fantastic job bringing these characters to life and did so with a complete understanding of who they were portraying, giving each their own voice and was believable in every role they played. They set the perfect tone for the story, captured all the characters’ emotions and had you feeling every single one. Their voices and performances complemented each other’s, and the quality of the audio was top-notch. They are entertaining storytellers and a pleasure to listen to. Thank you for another great listen.

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Meh story

M/M
Dom/Sub
Cam boys

TW: mentions of family deaths previously off page, abusive treatment from brother who happens to be a cop, poor living conditions including hunger, stealing, selling drugs.

This was ok. I think the overall storyline could have been great had the characters and relationship been better developed. I found myself more interested in the protective friend than the 2 MCs.

I love Dom/Sub stories but this one didn't work for me. Neither person knew what they were doing and it was just really awkward to read those parts. It made me not really like the chatacters or their relationship. Their chemistry felt forced. It wasn't overly steamy even with the BDSM element and I found it overly angsty due to both characters being a mess.

I didn't hate it though. It was easy to read. I didn't have to force myself to keep reading and I was interesting enough to keep reading to find out how it ends. It just wasn't a page turner and had a lot of areas that fell short and frustrated me. I may read the next book because I did really like the friends.

The dual narration was good. They both did a good job but I kind of prefered the voice of the narrator that did Ronans chapters. I also think that they should have swapped povs as the one that did Romans pov had a voice more suited for what I pictured of a Dom and the one that did Scouts pov had a lighter voice more suited for what I pictured of a Sub, especially one as timid as Roman.

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