Narrated by Veida Dehmlow
Many people suffer from the misconception that romance novels are predictable. True, we always end up with a HEA, but there are many ways to achieve the coveted outcome. In My Lady, My Lord, Katharine Ashe takes listeners on a unique and somewhat quirky journey.
Lady Corrina Mowbray is most definitely a bluestocking. She has no desire to get married. She hosts gatherings of the city’s most intellectual people, and has made quite a reputation for herself. In her opinion, marriage would ruin a perfectly good thing.
Ian, the Earl of Chance, has no use for Corinna or herlofty pursuits. Instead, he enjoys a string of beautiful mistresses, and attends tons of society’s more risque gatherings.
As different as these two are, it’s no surprise they don’t get along. What is surprising is the great lengths each will go to in order to insult the other. Their families have been neighbors since Corinna and Ian were children, and things have always been this way.
Aphrodite, Goddess of Love, wants things to be different for our hero and heroine. When they stand arguing in front of an ancient sculpture of the Greek deity, she does something to ensure that Ian and Corinna will not be able to manage without one another. The next morning, Ian finds himself inhabiting Corinna’s body, and Corinna finds that she is now living Ian’s life. Now that they can see things from the other’s point of view, is it possible that love will triumph?
I’m a fan of narrator Veida Dehmlow. As usual, she gave a very solid performance. However, this could not have been an easy book to narrate, due to the changing bodies.
Ms. Dehmlow distinctly voiced each character. Still, there were a few times when she seemed a bit confused about who was actually speaking. Sometimes, Ian would speak in the somewhat gravelly way he had before becoming Corinna rather than with the softer, lighter tones Ms. Dehmlow used to portray Corinna. The reverse also happened. This made dialogue tags essential, but I still found myself struggling to understand some of the conversational flow.
I love the way Ms. Dehmlow reads sex scenes. Many narrators seem uncomfortable reading steamy books, and, upon first hearing Ms. Dehmlow’s cultured English accent, one might expect the same of her, but don’t be fooled. She may sound like British royalty, but she excels at portraying the sexual tension coursing through the story.
When I first realized that Ian and Corinna actually changed into one another, I must admit to being a bit skeptical. I wondered how I could enjoy a book with a plot that seemed silly. However, as I continued to listen, what started off as silly soon turned whimsical.
If you’re looking for a European historical with a twist, I recommend My Lady, My Lord. Parts of it made me laugh out loud, and it definitely reaffirmed my belief that romances don’t have to be predictable.
Shannon
Narration: B-
Book Content: B
Steam Factor: For your burning ears only
Violence: Minimal
Genre: Historical Romance
Publisher: Tantor Audio
My Lady, My Lord was provided to AudioGals by Tantor Audio for review.
Thank you for your review, Shannon. I have this Audible book and when I got to the switching bodies part I thought, “REALLY?” and stopped listening. Now I’ll go back and try it again based upon your review. I’ll let you know how it feel about it after I finish!
I read the book and enjoyed it. Thanks for the review!
That is an interesting twist! and it would be a first for me for both author and narrator – ok, it goes on the TBL.