• Sweet Revenge

  • A Lady Arianna Regency Mystery Series, Book 1
  • By: Andrea Penrose
  • Narrated by: Mary Sarah
  • Length: 8 hrs and 50 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (233 ratings)

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Sweet Revenge  By  cover art

Sweet Revenge

By: Andrea Penrose
Narrated by: Mary Sarah
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Publisher's summary

Lady Arianna Hadley's desire for revenge has brought her back to London from exile in the West Indies. Determined to find the men responsible for her disgraced father's murder, she disguises herself as a man and contrives to be hired as a chef in one of London's aristocratic households. But when the prince regent is poisoned by Arianna's special chocolate dessert, she finds her own quest has become intertwined with a far more deadly intrigue.

Because of his expertise in chocolate, the earl of Saybrook is asked by the government to investigate the crime. Though he, too, is fighting inner demons, he reluctantly agrees. His first confrontation with Arianna has them at daggers drawn. But when someone tries to kill them both, they become reluctant allies in the hunt to discover what evil is afoot.

As their investigation takes them from the glittering ballrooms of Mayfair to the slums of St. Giles, they uncover a cunning plan of fraud that could throw the government into chaos. Determined to bring the culprits to justice, they set an elaborate trap, but they find themselves dancing on a razor's edge - and one false step will prove fatal....

©2011 Andrea DaRif (P)2018 Tantor

What listeners say about Sweet Revenge

Average customer ratings
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  • 4 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Ugh! Horrible narration

Narration swings from whispering so low you cannot hear to shouting. Narrator struggles with male voices. The ‘hero’ sounds as if he has a vocal impediment. I think he was supposed to sound soft, gruff and masculine ....NOT!! The heroine sounds like a shrew... the roller coaster of conversation volume combined with the monotone of descriptive passages is very annoying. I have lost interest in how this one ends ....good luck!

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24 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

I couldn't get past the narrator's voice

I tried....I really did....but, I just couldn't get past the narration. Half the time I couldn't hear what the narrator was saying and the other times I couldn't understand what the narrator was saying. I just cut it off.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Captivating Complex Story

Andrea Penrose created fully developed characters, each of whom not only has their own story but their own life. These lives entwine like a basket of snakes, yet as they wrap around each other they maintain their individuality. The life experience of these characters compliments or conflicts with the others to various degrees, advancing the plot. This is not a simple story and if the references to Shakespear's As You Like It and the character of Rosalind is missed by an unfocused reader, much of the early story will appear fuzzy; through no fault of the author. This book rewards a conscientious reader. The intricate plot is masterfully created.

Mary Smith's narration is a theatrical force. I was warned by a few of the reviews so I listened to the sample. The characters do have foreign accents. After the first and second chapter my ear was attuned and I understood every word. Mary Smith uses expression and some volume to portray stress and excitement, this is theatrical not annoying. Since the characters are not only English, French, Scottish and Spanish, they also speak those languages with the Caribbean island lilt. These accents are unusual, not incorrect.

Do not be put off by other reviews, listen to the sample. If you enjoy an intelligent reading experience and are willing to be involved with the story, you will be rewarded.

I will recommend this book to my friends who love to read.

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Interesting story horrible narrator

The story is good but the narrator is horrible. She drags out every word and the accents are horrible. I plodded through it but found my mind wandering and fast forwarding because the narrator was so boring

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great Story

Loves the book and the characters- was only slightly annoyed by the terrible Spanish accent used for Dona Maria Castellano- otherwise- excellent!

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

good story, but distracting narration

I've never left a negative review before, but the narration here was so dramatic that it distracted from the story. Alternatively whispered, then shouting. If you do choose to listen to this book, may I recommend speakers (with remote control) rather than ear buds? I'm fairly sure the book itself is worth reading...but I kept finding myself so annoyed with the volume and theatrical hysteria; I couldn't concentrate on the words.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Terrible Narrator - Breathy and awful accent

Narrator speaks like she's in a perpetual asthma attack or she's never taken a deep breath in her life. Obviously, American trying to play British voices. Ugh. And, Henning for the surgeon. Henning the same surgeon name as the Lord Wrexford novels by the same author? Not much originality. Also, Henning is Scottish in those books, and aupposedly in this one, but half the time sounds Irish in these books. If yiu can't do an accent, don't.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Hard to get used to the narrator

I’ve read many books by Andrea Penrose and have enjoyed them all so I was anxious to start this series. I was disappointed with the narrator. She tries to be “breathy” and mysterious. I finally got used to it enough to finish the book. Not sure I will finish the series if the same reader continues.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Dreadful

Absolutely the worst narration. The reader had terrible inflection and her accent was wavering everywhere which completely destroyed the story. Trying to understand her gave me a headache and I had to stop listening. If I could get a refund on this I would.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Horrible Narration

This is actually a decent story, but the narrator drove me crazy. Her voice was so calm and consciously mellifluous that it became its own distraction. No matter what was going on in the story, the narrator never varied her tone or her speed of delivery. Also, each chapter begins with an excerpt from the memoirs of a Spanish countess who was an expert in chocolate. The voice the narrator used for these excerpts was cringeworthy -- a fake Spanish accent that was like listening to fingernails on a blackboard. Halfway through the book, I gave up on the audible and read the kindle edition. Much better!

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1 person found this helpful