Audio Book Review: Broken Dove by Kristen Ashley

Broken Dove
(Fantasyland Series, Bk 4
By Kristen Ashley
Narrated by Tillie Hooper

Blurb: 

Far too young, Apollo Ulfr lost Ilsa, his wife, the love of his life and the mother of his two children. The grief of her loss does not settle in his soul; it solders to it. But when he discovers there is a parallel universe where his wife may have a twin, he feels there's hope and sets about bringing her to his world, so he can have her back.

But Ilsa Ulfr of our world is married to the parallel universe's twin, Pol, who is not a good man. Not in any way. She's on the run from him, and the last thing she wants is to be transported to a fantastical world and be forced to take his side as his wife, even if he is not Pol. And Apollo finds the broken Ilsa nothing like his beloved, and further wants nothing to do with her. But darkness is looming, and evil is amassing. Apollo must protect his land and keep his family safe, including the new Ilsa.

Available for purchase at 

            

Viviana's Review: 

This one was going to be an interesting read due to the nature that the hero (H) Apollo lost the "love of his life" and is aware of the different worlds and that they have twins. He's purpose in bringing Ilsa from our world to his is to basically "get back" (I don't want to use the replace, but it comes across that way from the previous books) what he has lost and hoping it will be the same. We, the readers, KNOW that there are vast differences between the "twins" from each world. Knowing both of these things, I wondered how things would "work out" between the Hero and heroine. Part of this is trusting the author and I so totally trust Kristen Ashley! She doesn't disappoint and her writing style is one that captures the readers' attention and makes them want more.

Both the Hero and heroine grow as characters throughout the entire story. As we have seen Apollo and gotten to know a bit about him in the previous books, I really enjoyed that we got to know Ilsa from our world at the beginning and the "how" we got to get to her know. This also established that she was very different from what everyone knew of the other Ilsa. It's also done respectfully for both the Ilsa of that world and ours.

This is the only story where one of the twins has died, everyone knows and now we have a spitting image of her in the new Ilsa. However, with that said, there are several slight differences between the women's appearances and the story to explain to the similarity is a good one.

BROKEN DOVE was a bit of a slow burn until some meddling occurs and things begin to move at a faster pace. Maddie (as the Ilsa of our world is now known as) gets to know the Apollo of the other world and come to terms that they are not the same person.

The overall danger we learned about in the previous books, continues in this story and helps the plot move forward. There are struggles and emotional moments where Maddie is conflicted about how things are progressing and Apollo's true feelings for her (i.e. I'm not HER! I'm not your dead wife - like any woman would, right?). There is a situation where Apollo's reaction is seen as very harsh and even a tad over the top, especially him knowing of Maddie's past with abusive males. Yet, Kristen, the author, uses every moment, every event, every word to grow the characters and move the story along.

The Narrator's Review: 
The wait to ensure Tillie Hooper was available and had sufficient time to narrate the remaining books in the series was right on! Totally worth it! She brings life to characters you will fall for. Providing each character with their own tones, voices, accents, etc. When characters from previous books appear, you will recognize them easily.


Overall, this was a great "ending" to the series and overarching arch of the story. Things were tied up nicely and we all got to see what has been "up" with all the previous couples. Things were not solved too easily nor were there any things left open/unexplained. The good news is that we still have one more story and its about people we all have been curious about!

Disclaimer:

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Audible in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

Audio Book Review: Wildest Dreams by Kristen Ashley

Wildest Dreams
(Fantasyland Series, Bk #1)
By Kristen Ashley
Narrated by Tillie Hooper

Blurb: 
Seoafin "Finnie" Wilde was taught by her parents that every breath was a treasure and to seek every adventure she could find. And she learns this lesson the hard way when they perish in a plane crash. But she never forgets, and when she discovers there is a parallel universe where every person has a twin, she finds a witch who can send her there so she can have the adventure of a lifetime. But upon arrival in the Winter Wonderland of Lunwyn, she realizes she's been played by her twin and finds herself walking down the aisle to be wed to The Drakkar.

Thrown into inauspicious circumstances, with years of practice, Finnie bests the challenges and digs into her adventure. But as Frey Drakkar discovers the woman who is his new wife is not Princess Sjofn, a woman he dislikes, but instead his Finnie, a free spirit with a thirst for adventure just like him, without her knowledge he orders his new bride bound to his frozen world, everlasting. But at the same time, Frey plunges Finnie into a web of political intrigue that includes assassination plots, poison, magic, mystery and...dragons.

   

Viviana's Review: Wow... uhm... where to start? It's all good though... it's just that there's A LOT going on and it was listening 18 hrs and 49 mins ... It's all worth it though!. This is my first dive into this series from Kristen Ashley and while I originally didn't think I'd be into this series when I first learned about it... my interest peaked after I read her book BOUNTY... here's the truth... I've read her UNFINISHED HEROES series and LOVED IT. She has her other series the ROCK CHICKS.... I hear mix reviews but always willing to give things a try... just not yet. I had the opportunity to review the audio book of BOUNTY from Colorado Mountain. Bounty is book 7 in the series and this cemented that I am TOTALLY GooGooGaga over Kristen (okay, lets be honest... more than I already was). So when the opportunity arose to listen to WILDEST DREAMS, book 1 of a five book series, I jumped at the chance and I'm so happy I did!

There is a LOT of world building and lots of descriptive narrative (Kristen likes to paint you the picture) however, this is done from the POV of the heroine, Finnie, who is experiencing this world for the first time as well as ours! Yet, the manner in which it's described and the performance of the narrator, it doesn't feel like the story is 'dragging'. There were a few times where I did shake my head at Finnie's describing how "gorgeous" Frey was or how 'handsome', but I get that goes along with the territory...

I really enjoyed reading (well listening) to this story because the heroine is strong, smart, independent and adventurous! She seeks out the adventure and that's how she ended up in Lunwyn. I loved how she didn't complained or succumb to the situation or circumstances, instead she thrives and blossoms.

Ah... Frey Drakkar... typical of Kristen's males... he's a complete Alpha, YET.... can be a complete sweetheart to his Finnie! It was a breathe of fresh air to get to know him as a character, because he was true to himself but never an ass to the heroine. Granted... certain events when they first met he may not have been pleasant, but this was due to his knowledge of the original Sjofn. Upon learning the truth... he does everything within his powers to make things right between them and goes above and beyond to make things easier for her.

There was definitely the attraction between the Hero and Heroine, but the passion grows further as they get to know each other. While not a complete "slow burn" type of story, it isn't an "instant jump into your bed" sort of story either.

There is loss and heartache and moments that are joyous. It's a great mix of going through the emotions of a reader as they get to know new characters and of course some of the topics included such as "living life to its fullest" as well as "loving those you have in your life while you have them".

Narrator's Review: 
Tillie Hooper NAILED IT! Her performance is great and provides the reader with ease of listening! She utilizes different tones and voices for each character and the narrative allowing the readers to follow along easily! She not only tells the story but keeps you engaged as well. I'm happy to see she's also narrating the second audio book in this series and look forward to seeing how she manages the different sets of characters.

Overall, I'm so happy I picked up this book as I now have another series to continue to discover and fall in love with. If you like/love Kristen Ashley's writing style, you'll fall for this series hard. Alpha Males, Strong Women, creative bantering, interesting worlds, I could go on and on.

Rating: LOVED IT!

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the audio publisher Audible in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.