Silver-Tongued Devil

That Blake is a smooth Southern dude!

I really enjoy this new series from Rosalind James. She writes entertaining, smart heroines, and decent, sexy guys that are believable. The narrator easily switches between male/female and isn't distracting. She is very relaxing to listen to after work. I highly recommend this for commuters!! However, Dakota's stepdad may make you cry. This story was so engaging and I really can't wait for the next book in the series.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated for my review, and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

A GOOD LISTEN.. AS OPPOSITES ATTRACT & REACT

Well ex football star Blake Orbison isn't just a silver tongued devil.. he's a dirty talker too and, because of a knee injury which ended his lucrative NFL football career, he's now got marriage on his mind and is looking for something quite specific from his bride-to-be. But, when the rich businessman crosses paths with Dakota Savage a few times at his yet to be opened Wild Horse Resort, he finds that the pull in her direction is very hard to ignore. However, Dakota is everything that's not on his wish list for his future bride and he figures that his burning attraction will eventually fizzle out when they get physical.. how wrong he was.

Dakota has returned to small town Idaho to take over her step Dad's failing painting business due to his work related injury while painting the new resort.. a debilitating injury which he didn't get help with or compensated for. They're now quite poor and Dakota also does beautiful and sometimes erotic stained glass artwork which she tries to sell. She's the town's pariah who is still suffering emotional scars from something that happened to her years previously which wrongly earned her the reputation of being easy.. and anybody's. It's given her a bit of an inferiority complex riddled with self-doubt and a mistrust of men, their intent.. and their true feelings. But when she meets a stranger while swimming in a private lake she's intrigued and attracted to him.. until she puts her glasses on and sees it's none other than her enemy - the famous Blake Orbison - owner of the new resort. This starts a push/pull slow-burn relationship as these two simmer and dance around attraction, sexual desire, complications and their deepest truest feelings.

An enjoyable dual POV slow-build romance that drew me right in as each of the characters battle prejudice of one sort or another which causes angst, a mystery and deadly drama.. but together they saved each other. There's sexy times, good character development, varied nasty and nice secondary characters, strong family values and a bit of a mystery. These two headstrong badasses didn't want to be drawn to each other and fought hard against it.. but resistance, they eventually found out, was futile. Tanya Eby never fails to deliver a great performance which made this listen even more enjoyable.

Worth a credit? Yes a good solid contemporary romance.

13 of 15 people found this review helpful

Bad A--

What a great ride. The story was good but I would have liked a different narrator to bring the carrector to life.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Interrupted Plans

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Blake has a plan after his football career abruptly ends - build a resort and marry a nice proper lady to help him grow up. Enter Dakota, a little wild, devoted to her family, and a budding talented stained glass artist. Everything Blake is not looking for, but is drawn to like a bee to honey.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Dakota is a wonderful character. Not perfect with her glasses and troubled past; but lovable with her devotion to her family, doing what is right, and not falling easily for Blake's silver-tongue.

Have you listened to any of Tanya Eby’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Tanya is definitely one of the better narrators. I enjoyed that she tried to give each of the characters their own voice and presence.

Any additional comments?

I was given a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated nor was I required to write a positive review. The opinions stated are solely my own.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Great listen and great story!

I enjoyed the book version of "Silver-Tongued Devil" y by Rosalind James, and the audiobook does not disappoint. The characters came alive for me with the narration, and I really enjoyed the relationship that develops between Dakota and Blake, as well as all of the intertwining family dynamics. The suspenseful story line was a surprise addition that I enjoyed as well!

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Another Great Listen from Rosalind James

Any additional comments?

Rosalind James once again proves that she is the queen of writing romances with heart, character and underlying messages while stressing the value of family, character and sense of one’s own self worth. For fans of Rosalind James, Silver-Tongued Devil is reliably enjoyable and heart warming filled with a wide cast of characters beginning with the insecure, emotionally scarred Dakota Savage (great name) and former NFL star quarterback Blake Orbison, who seems to have it all but is still floundering a bit to find his footing in life after a knee injury has prematurely ended his football career. For readers new to Ms. James, this book will have them scampering to find her previous books. For what it’s worth, for those readers, I recommend starting with Just This Once, Escape to New Zealand. 

This book includes not only the expected romance, but a small mystery which lends more dimension and darkness to the book. Of the secondary characters, I was especially fond of Dakota’s stepfather, Russell Matthews, a man who had taken some wrong terms earlier in life but who turned his life around. He has strong character and hard-earned wisdom. I’m not as big a fan of her friend Evan, who while a good man, looks out for Dakota’s best interests so carefully as to be as demeaning to her as her detractors. Just as in real life, there are some less likable characters for balance and depth, though some of these are very one dimensional.

Tanya Eby is an excellent narrator. I have listened to many other books that she has narrated, so it took me a few minutes to “orient” my ears to her reading a new book outside of the series I am familiar with. Once done, I very much enjoyed her reading of this book. She does a great job. 

I recommend this book for those readers who enjoy a romance that has some depth and shading and, of course, fans of Rosalind James. Her writing style is quite distinctive.

I was given a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated nor was I required to write a positive review. The opinions stated are solely my own.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

Great Story! Lots of Details!

My first Rosalind James story, and this new to me author captivated me with the level of details she used in each scene. Her writing is very descriptive, vivid, and made it easy to visualize the back drop, the characters and their mannerisms. Both the plot and characters were well developed; however, due to the abundance of details, this story's on the longer side, and some scenes were dragged out, but overall, it was a satisfying story.

Silver-Tongued Devil has a little of everything drama, chemistry, sexual tension, mild suspense, humor, and a little danger. The majority of the drama comes from the push / pull relationship between Blake and Dakota. Blake's a rich ex-NFL player who was forced into early retirement due to an injury. He's changed his focus in life, and has thrown himself into his business endeavors, but feels its time to start searching for a wife. Blake thinks he knows the type of women he would like to marry; however, after meeting Dakota he longs for something different. His character had charisma, was down to earth and just an all around likeable guy. Dakota's character was more complex, strong, smart, independent, and I loved her devotion to her stepfather. Unfortunately, her past collided with her future. The secondary characters were great and well developed. While they didn't have their own POV's, they had a strong presence in the story. I especially loved Russell, Dakota's stepdad. 

Rosalind did an excellent job developing the relationship between Blake and Dakota. It wasn't instant, forced or rushed. In the beginning, Dakota doesn't even like Blake but the more time she spends around him, the more she realizes she was wrong about him. The chemistry and sexual tension between them was flirty, sweet, and hot, which made the sex scenes steamier and more erotic. 

The narration was really good! Tanya Eby is a great narrator; however, it took me awhile to adjust to her voice and narrating style. She did an excellent job with the female characters, and I absolutely loved how she portrayed the older male character Russell; however, I didn't care for Blake's voice. His character sounded too old. I think this would have been perfect if it was a dual narrated story. We hear a lot of Blake's POV and I felt he deserved his own voice.

Silver Tongue Devil is a vivid sweet romance with excellent plot and character development. At times, the romance bordered on too sweet, and at other times the story could be long winded. It was still a great story, and I do look forward to listening to other audios by Rosalind. Trigger warning; sexual assault. Another awesome KU/whispersync deal! 

10 of 12 people found this review helpful

Unforgettable!

When you’re raised in a small town, perceptions can be hard to change. Despite a rough upbringing and the stigma of being half Native American, Dakota Savage has carved out a decent life for herself. Dakota is summoned back home to help run the painting business of her injured step-father. Returning home brings back all the insecurities that Dakota thought she had overcome long ago.

Blake Obrison’s football career is over. One too many injuries on the field have put an end to his dreams. Fortunately, Blake has plans for his post-football life. The first part of his plan is to maintain and expand his business empire. That part of his plan is in full swing with the imminent opening of his resort, in Dakota’s small town. Now, Blake’s thinking about settling down, but he needs the perfect wife. When he meets Dakota, the chemistry is immediate, but she is just a distraction in his quest for perfection.

This story was amazing! Author Rosalind James outdid herself on this book! The emotions, the strong feelings that she penned in this story got to me. From the backstory of Dakota’s life to the close and heartbreaking relationship with her step-father, to her feelings of inadequacy in dealing with her attraction to Blake. It all works together to make an unforgettable audiobook.

I need to take a moment and pay homage to Narrator Tanya Eby. Tanya takes what was already a fantastic book and makes it great! There is no one better at fully voiced productions in the romance genre than Ms. Eby. There is absolutely no one better than Tanya at voicing the opposite gender! A swoon worthy hero is her forte, but she is also fantastic at voicing gruff old men, women, children, anything! You name it and she can voice it and do it with a wealth of emotion and energy!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

The Beginning of a Great New Series? Oh, My, YES!

Any additional comments?

First, I purchased, read and reviewed the book. As soon as I was finished, I COULD NOT WAIT to listen to it. I was NOT disappointed!

The story is fun (with a little mystery), filled with really wonderful characters and family. Rosalind's characters are devoted to family and that makes this story as fabulous as her other books/series. Oh- and the romantic scenes are HOT! She also takes us to beautiful locales, allowing us to go on an adventure without leaving home.

This is the first book I have listened to that was narrated by Taya Eby. When I first started listening, I was not sure I liked her style or her voice. Well, that lasted about five minutes. She totally won me over by the sixth minute. Her narration, accents, and voices made the characters come to life. Blake's slight Southern drawl was positively toe-curling- and I am not a huge fan of Southern accents. Ms. Eby was awesome!

Do yourself a favor and give a listen to this new, sexy, fun series. You will thank me!

I received a free copy of this audible book in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated for my review, nor was I required to write a positive review. The opinion here is my own.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Small town with big romance

What did you love best about Silver-Tongued Devil?

Overcoming obstacles I guess I'd call it. I really enjoy when characters in books seem to find each other, even though they aren't what one of them is typically looking for. Blake wants to find a classy woman that'll fit his billionaire image, and he finds Dakota, who's a tough, strong-willed, witty person. I like how they interact with each other.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Silver-Tongued Devil?

The love scenes, definitely. They aren't the typical cookie cutter love scenes that are in most books. They're beautifully written and pretty creative.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes! I couldn't stop listening to it once I started. I had to hear more about them and where the story was taking them. Also, the love scenes were pretty steamy.

Any additional comments?

I really enjoyed this story. James writes sportsmen really well, especially the good guys. I love all her heroes because they are so genuine and charming. I really like James' stories set in a small town because it really captures the picturesque side of small town life.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated for my review; and i was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful