• Matter of Time: Vol. 1

  • By: Mary Calmes
  • Narrated by: Paul Morey
  • Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (1,050 ratings)

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Matter of Time: Vol. 1  By  cover art

Matter of Time: Vol. 1

By: Mary Calmes
Narrated by: Paul Morey
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Publisher's summary

Jory Keyes leads a normal life as an architect’s assistant until he is witness to a brutal murder. Though initially saved by police Detective Sam Kage, Jory refuses protective custody - he has a life he loves that he won’t give up no matter who is after him. But Jory’s life is in real jeopardy, especially after he agrees to testify about what he saw.

While dealing with attempts on his life, well-meaning friends who want to see him happy, an overly protective boss, and a slowly unfolding mystery that is much more sinister than he could ever imagine, the young gay man finds himself getting involved with Sam, the conflicted and closeted detective. And though Jory may survive the danger, he may not survive a broken heart.

©2010 Mary Calmes (P)2012 Mary Calmes

What listeners say about Matter of Time: Vol. 1

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • 2 Stars
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Performance
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    670
  • 4 Stars
    184
  • 3 Stars
    87
  • 2 Stars
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  • 1 Stars
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Time is the answer...

I enjoyed the story for the most part. The backstory was a bit confusing. I am not sure if it was because of the main character Jory's ADD or what but I found myself lost on a couple of occasions and I had to go back to pick up the story. Perhaps it's my own ADD kicking in. Additionally, I found it difficult to relate to Detective Kage or even like him for that matter. However, as the end of book 2 drew to a close, I finally began appreciating Sam Kage. The ending was exciting and engaging with a typical cliff hanger...now I have to get started on Volume two.

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12 people found this helpful

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

JUST WOW!

I did not expect this. I was totally blown away. This was my first gay romance and let me tell you, I am so glad I picked a Mary Calmes book. Jory is simply an amazing character, and Sam... gush gush*** is just all alpha cop male!

I loved how Jory and Sam's relationship started. I just simply blushed all night as I listen to this... I thought it would be weird or something... all hardcore male domination or something... or gushy girly male romance. But let me tell you...this was drama, action, undercover cop stake out and totally real deal male/male relationship. I wonder how Calmes did it. I mean...how to write from a gay male perspective and do it so well was simply amazing. Plus... Jory was just FUNNY!!! I totally laughed out loud...like ALOT! LOVED IT!!!

Narrator was great. I loved his voice for Jory and Sam... so great.

Great Buy b/c I am hooked... but a good credit too.

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11 people found this helpful

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

Many characters but very little story.

What did you like best about Matter of Time: Vol. 1? What did you like least?

Sam is a great character. His internal conflict is believable. Jory is a weak character who needs to get over himself. The lesser characters are nearly all well written but there are far too many of them. When we meet a secondary character we also meet his coworkers and most of his family. However, few of them contribute to the actual story line.The exciting thread of the book is supposed to be that hit men are after Jory. Apparently they are all bumbling idiots. Jory freely follows all his standard routines of home, work, and clubbing, but is seldom threatened by those who are chasing him.Jory's interactions with the people who love him, are bitchy at best.The narrator is great. He creates believable, likable voices for each character and accurately switches to the correct voices throughout the dialogs.

Would you ever listen to anything by Mary Calmes again?

Probably not.

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10 people found this helpful

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

LOVE this story!

Would you consider the audio edition of Matter of Time: Vol. 1 to be better than the print version?

No not really - but it is not a bad performance. The voice of the storyteller was a little bit different in my head - younger sounding and lighter.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The main character, who also tells the story - Jory. He is weird, flawed and absolutely perfect at the same time. His personality is actualy the main reason why this is an amazing story. You cant help loving him and the way his mind work. It makes you listen to the story with a smile on your face.

What does Paul Morey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Cant really tell you - nothing?

Who was the most memorable character of Matter of Time: Vol. 1 and why?

se above...

Any additional comments?

Best book by Mary Calmes by far - but you might want to wait until you can listen to all of the books in the "Matter of time" series - because this book is only the begining of the story.

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10 people found this helpful

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

what? seriously?

Toxic relationship? Check.
Gays that uphold traditional gender roles? Check.
Least observant mob target ever (seriously, this was funny in the first act, but dear gods, what part of 'on the take' doesn't clue your bad guy senses)? Check.
Completely unnecessary and prolific use of f---t to prove your character is a bad guy? Check.
Completely unnecessary rape scene? Check.

The tonal whiplash of this story made me seasick. The narrator's insistence that all the dudes Jory finds attractive talk like they've smoked a pack of cigarettes before speaking was weird. Gay guys he didn't find attractive lisped and straight ones all had a sinus infection. Chicks were all beautiful and all talked like they had a case of sexy laryngitis. Jory's easy public displays of affection and the way he let people paw all over him was really weird. The narrator took awkward pauses like he was reading to a third grade class and checking for comprehension between each sentence.
By the time I realized I got suckered on the setup, I still held out hope for an interesting conclusion. Instead, nothing is resolved, the case is ongoing, and the relationship isn't even solid. This -sucked-.

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8 people found this helpful

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

So Much Promise But !!!

I'm afraid this book irritated me quite a bit. I really do try and give a story a chance and I liked the way this one began but all of a sudden the good intro gave way to what seemed like another story entirely - one that seemed to be about this character called Dane and from what was being presented I couldn't find anything to like about the guy (read, boring). Nor did I like all the whining the author had the women characters going thru. Actually both the women who liked Dane and the men who liked Jory were irritatingly needy - it was ridiculous. I was like ENOUGH ALREADY! If I heard them say "Jory" one more time - it all just seemed like "filler." Its kind of like in horror movies when the girl gets the call from the stalker she keeps talking to the guy rather than hanging up! I felt that same frustration about Jory and Dane. I noticed other reviewers had similar impressions. (For better character interaction I'd suggest another author's books about Ty and Zane in the Cut and Run series. They are funny, delicious, angst ridden and sexy.) Maybe I'm not being fair because I simply couldn't get thru the book - I just couldn't stomach all the self glorification of Jory and Dane - everyone else appeared pathetic. And like I said a lot of the "dialogue" was monotonous, just different characters saying the same thing. I don't have a soap opera mentality and I would rather have an author stick with the main characters than populate it with boring ones. I hate half written sex scenes, either have a sex scene or don't. Don't give some estimate details then say after that.
Overall I will try the next book and at under 10 bucks is it was OK but far from anything great.
The narrator was bland with Jory's voice but OK with others so I not sure about the whole delivery of the story.

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

Abusive relationship

What disappointed you about Matter of Time: Vol. 1?

Right from the beginning, I did not find Jory particularly likeable. Add to that the three main characters are sooooo beautiful that people are constantly, obsessively, asking the three of them out. Many of them having a very hard time taking 'no' for an answer. I was able to over look most of that (even though it was annoying) but Sam (the love interest) showed abusive behavior a couple times. I know they were supposed to have kind of a half assed, not really legit, dominant and submissive relationship, but there was one point where Sam told Jory that if he ever left him, he'd kill him. That is a red flag, run far far away. It pretty much lost me permanently there.

Sorry I just can't ignore domestic abuse.

What do you think your next listen will be?

In From the Cold: The I Spy Stories

Which character – as performed by Paul Morey – was your favorite?

Dane. I actually was hoping Jory would dump Sam and get together with him.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Nope.

Any additional comments?

When I first listened to this audiobook, I was binge listening to anything and everything I could find on Audible that sounded even ½ decent. I do remember that I didn't particularly care for it. But recently I just gave the Sinner's Gin series a second go (the first time around I only listened to the first book) and I ended up marathoning the whole thing.

So, I figured I might have been a little too harsh on A Matter of Time. Nope. Nopenopenopenope. I will be straight up and say this was a DNF (did not finish) for me, but out of the 12hrs and 13min, I only left the last 15 min. I just could not do it.

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7 people found this helpful

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

Time Out

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Someone who likes characters that are shallow and vapid, who care nothing about endangering their lives, and who lives up to every 'Mary Sue' trope in the book.

Has Matter of Time: Vol. 1 turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, but it has made me resolve never to purchase another book by Ms. Calmes.

What does Paul Morey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I love his characterizations and will usually listen to anything he narrates, but this story is so bad, even he can't save it.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

IMHO, I'd have to say no. I know Ms. Calmes has a large number of fans, but I am not amongst them.

Any additional comments?

The book had the potential to be so much better, but I have no compassion or love for any of the characters. Mr. Morey is the best thing about it.

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

Kudos to Morey's characterization of Det Sam Kaje!

An enjoyable series made better by the narrator. Morey's characterization of Sam Kaje is incomparable!

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

Love the story!!

What did you love best about Matter of Time: Vol. 1?

I loved the whole concept of the story. I loved how it showed the way true love should be..

What did you like best about this story?

Everything it kept me interested the entire time. I couldn't out it down.

What does Paul Morey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The voices were great he really brought out the story..

If you could take any character from Matter of Time: Vol. 1 out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Jory's brother and Sam

Any additional comments?

Everyone should try this book. It took me a while I kept going back in forth reading comments but i took the plunge and glad I did. Mary Calmes is a wonderful writer and I love all her books. I can't wait for Volume 6 to be released to audio.

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