Wish it was longer

This is a new-to-me author and narrator combo.

The story seems captivating. Also realistic. There’s triggers for those who’ve been in an abusive family relationship and past sexual assault.

For the most part, I love the relationship development between Liam and Pete. There’s low angst on that department. The angst came mostly from Liam’s personal struggle and his douchebag of a brother. And also from Pete’s divorce/custody issues.

I enjoyed the process of them falling in love. Even though there was that horrendous moment between them, I’m glad they were able to move past it.

The story seemed a little rushed towards the end though. I wish it was a bit longer. It really doesn’t explain why Karla changed her mind about the custody battle — which was the biggest cause of Pete’s struggle. Even the epilogue felt rushed. Like the author was fastly tying up all the lose ends.

The narrator did well.

Looking forward to reading/listening to more of the either of their works.

3 people found this helpful

over all i enjoyed it.

i found the characters well rounded, amusing and entertaining i liked their reactions to each other. this book has drama, mystery, suspense, heat and romance. over all, i found it to be an pleasant listen.

1 person found this helpful

Good but not great

I got a promo code for the audiobook and now leaving my honest review.

The blurb made me want to read this book, but I was a bit hesitant to start it because I didn’t really feel like reading about violence and angst right now, and boy, there’s a lot of that in this book. Be prepared for that.

With that said, this was a good book with it’s strongest element being the writing. It was nice and easy going and easy to follow. Pete and Liam are two flawed characters, both having their own problems and secrets, which makes them human. I felt so much for both of them. All I wanted for them was to find happiness and love. The love they both really deserved. There was a lot of drama for the sake of drama and sometimes I felt like I would've needed a bit more background to know why the characters acted the way they did.

While there was a lot of angst and violence in this book (almost too much for me at time), they finally get their HFN/HEA, don’t worry.

The narration of this audiobook was... fine. It was my first one of this narrator and he did a good job. Not perfect, but good enough. I had some problems with how he did some of the secondary characters voices.
There’s was some kind of background sound in the first chapters which kind of annoyed me.

I will check out more work of this author.

1 person found this helpful

Good story

This audiobook was nice and sweet but much tamer than I prefer to listen to. The narration was fair. There was very little variation in the different characters voices. It was an okay listen.

1 person found this helpful

New to me author

This was the new to me author and narrator. The story was quite nice and I enjoyed it. The narration was fine but for me lacked a bit of life. There was a high hum in the background of the recording that I had to try to ignore. This detracted from the over all experience. The narrators accents were good. There just needs to be some improvement in the base narration to really make the characters come alive, less monotone and more emotion behind the words. The narrator does have some good potential.

1 person found this helpful

Drama and Steam

Tainted Life is a short, sweet and angst filled gay romance novella by Mel Gough. Pete is a Metropolitan Police detective who is facing a difficult life change. He goes to a bar to drawn some sorrows and meets a sexy photographer Liam. Together they are on fire... but the secrets they hide and their pasts may not let them have a future.

Pete and Liam are interesting and entertaining characters. I liked their interactions together. Their story has drama, mystery, suspense, heat and romance. Overall, a satisfying read.

Narration of the story is done by Brian Meslar. The characters have their own voices and really stand out. The story comes to life and adds to the enjoyment of the story. Minor sound issues on recording that did not interfere with my listening experience.

1 person found this helpful

Good story

This is a good but quick story. I do wish we had more of the background with Pete and his ex and partner and I wish we had more of Pete and Liam as a couple and with Noah But overall it was a well written story with good characters. Narration for me was done well.

Tainted Life

A really good story. If you’re wanting light and fluffy this isn’t it. If you want a realistic story then this is a good one.

My heart goes out to Liam and all the suffering he went through but don’t worry too much. He does get his HEA.

Brian’s narration was really good and I loved his accents.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the author and am voluntarily leaving a review.

TOUCHING

Pete is going through some deep personal trouble. His wife leaving and taking his young son. Stopping for a drink he meets Liam. A stunning young man. Liam seeing Pete was struggling tries to be kind to this lost soul. These two seem an unlikely pair considering their occupations. I liked this Book. This is my first time for this author MEL GOUGH. I love finding a new Author. BRIAN MESLAR'S narration was perfect for this story. His narrative gave it just what it needed to send it over the top. I'm looking forward to more by this Author. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS AUDIBLE!!

Great story and wonderful narration

M/M
Short story
HFN

I was given a free audio copy from the author in a giveaway for review.

The narrator had a pleasant reading voice and kept a good pace. He used different voices for the diffetent characters and gave Liam a very nice English accent. He expressed the emotions well and made the story come to life. It was a fabulous performance.

Story = 4.5 stars

Pete is a police detective. He is newly divorced and his wife is trying to keep their son from him. He goes to a bar to drown his sorrows and meets a photographer named Liam who notices he could use some cheering up. Pete is bi but hasn't been with a man since Uni due to his marriage so he is definitely interested in atleast one night together but Liams life is bursting with drama that keeps them together.

This was a very sweet and very angsty story with a little steam. It was a very quick read/listen and it kept my interest the entire time. The main characters were both well developed and were both really likeable. They had amazing chemistry and made a great couple. This is a new to me author but I thought that it was well written and I really enjoyed it, so I would definitely read their work again and I would definitely recommend this one. My only complaint is I wish the epilogue was further into the future to allow for a HEA.