Good story - well worth the listen.

This is a pre-story to Master Schiavo. If you've read that, this is the story of how they met and ended up together.

And wow, what a pre-story it is. Giovanni is a wounded, deeply traumatised young man who has been abused for years.

Valentino is an older gentleman who decides that he will be the one to nurse Giovanni back to health.

Great backstory to both characters and a good read. The narration by Danial Carter was good, but as usual, I did have to speed it up to 1.20 on audible.

Giovanni
By: Laura Lascarso
Narrated by: Daniel Carter
Length: 8 hrs and 24 mins

❤❤❤❤ Overall
🎧🎧🎧🎧 Narration
📚📚📚📚 Story
Read at 1.25 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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Lovely

Giovanni is the first book in the Giovanni series, but was written after Master’s Schiavo. I prefer reading the series in order, but other readers advocate for reading it in publishing order. Either way, the entire series is amazing and emotional.

Giovanni is a beautifully written book filled with erotic kink, deep bonds, angst, and love. Most of all love. The love and trust that develops between Valentin and Giovanni makes the angst bearable. I adore their relationship and really like seeing Giovanni’s growth from Valentin’s point of view. I was captivated by this lovely, steamy story.

The audiobook was narrated smoothly by Daniel Carter who has a melted chocolate type of voice. His voice paired well with the style of this book. The audiobook production was well done and was enjoyable to listen to.

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Heartbreaking

I had already read Giovanni and love this story and character. Listening to Daniel Carter gave me parts that either I had forgot or didn’t catch the first time. This is just one of those stories that once you start it, it is impossible to set it down. There is nothing light about this story yet it is so easy to visualize it. I think Daniel Carter did a great job with these characters.
I wish I had read Master’s Schiavo after Giovanni rather than first. This really answers some of the questions from that story such as why Valentin’s health is such a concern. It also explains more of Valentin and Giovanni’s background and insecurities. This story, while their relationship is strong and solid, is heartbreaking. Giovanni has suffered so much and has permanent personality issues that make his day to day impossible to be “normal”. Yet these two have a strong devotion to each other. Now I’m hoping the author goes a bit further and addresses where these two and Signore permanently settle.

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Recommended

Audio review:

I actually really enjoyed this d/s story. It was a deep dive into what both roles were about and how the relationship benefitted from the clarity and communication that is centered around BDSM.

I thoroughly enjoyed the narration, even though this was a new to me narrator. Absolutely recommended.

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What a read!

What a read! I chose this book to get out of my comfort zone and explore something new and wow it did deliver! I am not very knowledgeable in BDSM and don't read many mafia romances, so this was a journey into the unknown for me and, while I didn't fully understand or expect all of what happened in the book, I felt like it was very well written and the more I was reading, the more I enjoyed it.

I honestly didn't fully understand either of the main characters, but that didn't detract from my enjoyment of the book, so I think this is a testament to the author and her storytelling ability.

Beautiful audiobook rendition as well, I hadn't heard anything from Daniel Carter before, but he did an amazing job.

I would say it's mildly dark with discussion of sexual assault and suicide attempts, so if this is something that triggers you, please be careful.

I would like to thank the author and GRR for a gifted copy of the audiobook, these are my own opinions.

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Beautiful story

Since I love reading Laura Lascarso's books and I love listening to audiobooks even more, I was delighted when I saw that Giovanni's audiobook was available. This book is the prequel to Master's Schiavo, a book I absolutely love.
Here you learn how the story of Valentin, who runs the family criminal business on a transitional basis, and Giovanni, the heir to the business, begins. The two have known each the other for a very long time and after a dramatic event, the world is a different place for Matthew aka Giovanni. Valentin takes care of Giovanni and this relationship soon becomes more intense.
I was captivated by the story and found it very entertaining. It was nice to see how the master/slave relationship slowly develops and there are setbacks in between.
Giovanni is a sympathetic character who has already experienced a lot in his young life. He finds peace of mind with Valentin.
The story is entertaining, in between very emotional, sometimes dramatic, but it also has heartwarming moments.
The story is told exclusively from Valentin's point of view, which is basically fitting. However, I would have been happy to hear some chapters from Giovanni's point of view.

Daniel Carter did a great job narrating the audio book. He has a pleasant voice and brought the story to life. He skillfully portrayed the emotions of the protagonists. Daniel Carter is a versatile and talented narrator. It was a pleasure to listen to him.

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1 person found this helpful

Intense

Giovanni has been through several traumatic experiences and when he and Valentin decide that Valentin will be the man to try to help him heal and get some of his equilibrium back, they begin an extremely intense relationship with both of them having to be very careful about boundaries and yet push things to the max. Daniel Carter brings all the intensity to his performance. You'll feel the pain, the controls shredding almost to the breaking point and the emotional connections as well. An incredibly story and performance.

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Stunning D/s Romance, D. Carter is Wonderful

Laura Lascarso's Giovanni is such a compelling story! And in the audio version, Daniel Carter delivers an absoutely stunning performance.

I didn't even realize this book existed. I listened to Master's Schiavo last year and it stood up wonderfully well as a standalone. But now, getting all this background information - and in the first person, from Master's point of view - I'm simply wowed.

Giovanni's story is amazing, and I highly recommend this powerful series to fans of D/s relationships. Laura Sascarso delves deeply into both characters' emotions and motivations. It's a truly beautiful story.

an audiobook copy of Giovanni was provided to me for the purpose of my honest review, all opinions are my own

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Giovanni

This was a good, heavily emotional listen. There's a lot to delve into and unpack. The dynamic between the characters is well done, and I liked the relationship—a promising series starter. The narration was well preformed.

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Giovanni

Giovanni is a prequel to the book Master Schiavo which I was asked to review a few weeks ago. This is the story of of how Valentino and Giovanni met. It gives you a lot more understanding of how the master/slave relationship slowly developed.
It is entirely from Valentines pov, Master’s Schiavo being entirely Giovanni’s pov.
Daniel Carter continue to be a competent narrator throughout and brings both characters to life.

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