Beneath This Man

By: Jodi Ellen Malpas

Narrated by: Edita Brychta

Length: 19 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

Book two of the number one New York Times best-selling This Man trilogy.

Jesse Ward drowned her with his intensity and blindsided her with his passion, but he kept her away from his dark secrets and broken soul. Leaving him was the only way Ava O'Shea could survive. She should have known that Jesse Ward is impossible to escape - and now he's back in her life, determined to remind her of the sensual pleasures they had shared.

Ava is equally determined to get at the truth beneath this man's steely exterior. That means letting herself get close to the Lord of the Manor once more. And it's exactly where Jesse wants her - within touching distance....

©2013 Jodi Ellen Malpas (P)2013 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"I couldn't tear myself away." (FictionVixen.com)

"This Man by Jodi Ellen Malpas really hooked me right from the beginning. It's erotic and passionate and romantic...it'll also leave you wanting more." (BookishTemptations.com)

"This Man was a sexy, infuriating, wild ride. The back and forth in this book gave me whiplash...I cannot wait for Beneath This Man!" (TheBookListReviews.blogspot.com)

Cool but Co-dependent. A little Spoiler-ish. ;)

I really love this series, and the overall story arc is cool. I also love an alpha, but this is a bit over the line for me. This Man (pun intended) isolates her from her friends, suggests she quit her job or interferes with it while she is at work. He dictates what she can wear, as well as where she can go. He withholds basic information from her, and sometimes uses sex as a weapon to control her. That’s typical of some abuser behavior. To make it worse, when there is a crisis and they have a huge confrontation, she decides that she is the one responsible for his bad decisions. If she didn’t make him crazy, he wouldn’t have had to cheat on her, manipulate her, stalk her. She is trapped and can’t leave because he will kill himself whether with Vodka or other means. The “Those women meant nothing to me, it was just sex, you’re the one I love” excuse is said by so many people having affairs and I was astounded that after discovering betrayal after betrayal, when he tells her that she will never understand his point of view… instead of advocating for herself and saying “Sorry, I deserve better” or even “You get a one time pass on this buddy, but if you pull this $h!t again, we’re done” she decides to go take a beating.

The narrator is stellar, one of the best. Like I said, I love an alpha as much as the next person. Playing around with power roles in a relationship can be very sexy. Grace and forgiveness when a partner screws up can strengthen a relationship. For me though, this alpha crosses the line into dangerous territory and I think there is still a lot of work to do to show women that the behaviors I listed above are not acceptable. His drinking, sleeping around, asking for a beating and general poor decisions are NOT her fault. He’s a grownup and those choices are HIS and his alone.

There are times when one partner can totally alter the trajectory of a person’s life in the best of ways, but it is so unfair for him to put the responsibility for saving him on her. Go to counseling, confide in a trusted friend, even ask a partner to support you while you try to make better choices.

I will listen to the next book because I want to see where the story goes. But I just felt like I wanted to add a word of caution. A book the tells the story of a toxic relationship, co-dependent relationship and the redemption of it, that is cool. But this is a romance novel, and I guess I am concerned that people will see this tortured alpha and his behavior as romantic and the primary audience is women. We women need to stand up for ourselves. We deserve better. We have the right to expect better. Any partner does, make or female.

Also a word of caution: the sex scenes are very spicy and yummy. Probably the best written I have come across, and you can feel the emotions the characters are feelIng but it isn’t for the faint of heart 😉 I’m not sure the rowing machine situation would even work…

Amazing!

I loved this book and I can’t wait to read the last and final one. I can’t wait to hear the other two from his perspective either!

I'm so involved

I have to admit this series has taken me. From the first book, to this one, I'm useless. I pay no attention to the outside world. This world has captivated me. Now I must wait until the next book. It's an amazing series and well worth you credit's; time; money; family/friend irritation due to your lack of inattention.... need I say more?

Still Swooning....

If you could sum up Beneath This Man in three words, what would they be?

Roller Coaster Ride

What other book might you compare Beneath This Man to and why?

This book series is a bit similar to "50 Shades" in the rich, obsessive and possessive playboy chasing the woman. The most noticeable difference is the lead female character from this book compared to the lead female from "50 Shades". The differences between the two women is that the lead female character from this book is older and way more independent. Ava tries to escape from the rich playboy but eventually gives in as he is quite overbearing without completely relinquishing who she is. I love strong women. I also love it when the strong woman sometimes allows a man to be a man. There are definitely enough differences between the two books to keep me interested and anxious to see what will happen next.

Which scene was your favorite?

The most note worthy scene for me is after Jesse gets lashed in his office and Ava in her own way tries to show Jesse how what he did made her feel by enduring the same punishment intentionally. Again - "Good Girl"

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Crazy Love

Any additional comments?

I was extremely disappointed to find that the third book to this series is currently unavailable for Audio. I did some homework to find out that the third book "This Man Confessed" is going to be released for Audio in the United States on January 21st 2014.
Be patient ladies "IT'S COMING"

LOVE, LOVE, LOVED IT!!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes!! This book was so captivating. The first book was good, I became as involved as I had ever be in a book. This second book was even better. I become emotionally involved crying, laughing and feeling the couples pain going through their trials with them. This second installment really had me hoping they would find a way to be together.

What other book might you compare Beneath This Man to and why?

I can't compare it to any other book as this was the best love story I have read.

What about Edita Brychta’s performance did you like?

Her exquisite detailing and the ease of creating the story so that the reader is able to visualize everything happening. It's impossible not to become inthralled in the story.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The moment that moved me the most was Jesse's whipping and then the whipping of Ava herself. Her love so deep that she would hurt herself for Jesse. But this wasn't the first time the book caused me to cry. It was so easy to become emotionally tied to this book.

Any additional comments?

I can't wait for the next book. I'm so glad I purchased the second one as soon as I did.

Crazy couple!

Narrator Review:
Edits Brychta continues to do an awesome job of narrating this series. I highly recommend!

Story Review:
What a freakin' train wreck this book was. I'm not sure I even have the words to express. If you managed to get through book one and wanted to continue, then you already know this couple is messed up. I admit, it was more messed up than I was expecting.

I listened to the audio version and I had to keep stopping and walk away to calm down. This book was so frustrating and I can't tell you how many times I wanted to shake the both of them. There were so many times Ava needed to stand up to Jesse and demand answers and draw a line.

The constant women showing up was ridiculous. The author overdid this, in my opinion. I'm sorry but no man can be that good, in every way that every single woman falls in love with him. I hate it when authors do this. Just once I want to find a book where the woman has every man fawning over the woman and the Hero has to deal with it.

I'm sure this won't be a popular opinion but I don't even blame Jesse all that much. He's been a playboy for 20 years, having complete access to all kinds of women at his sex club. He's never been in a relationship and has no clue what one is. He needs a strong woman to rein him in and show him how she wants to be treated. He's so completely in love with Ava, he just doesn't see any other woman as a threat. That is the one thing the author expressed without a doubt and truly saved this book for me. If she hadn't expressed that, I think I would have chucked this series out the window.

Jesse did trample and bulldoze his way, no doubt about it, but Ava was not left without her own weapons. And Sara. Man am I tired of Sara. Finally towards the end Ava started to grow a backbone and I did a little victory dance when she put Sara firmly in place. It was a little too late if you ask me, but still necessary. I loved that last scene and felt like finally we are getting somewhere. I look forward to book 3.

Awesome book!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. It was definitely one that you don't want to stop listening to or put on pause.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Ava. Even though she is younger than Jessie she learns how to stand up for herself.

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

Narration was perfect. Great voice. Perfect fit for this book.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The ending, when Jessie's personal thoughts are revealed.

Any additional comments?

The book ended much too soon. I believe that some more loose ends should have been tied up. For instance, the meeting of her parents, what happened to the person that slipped something into her drink, what did she do about her job. I believe that more could have been added, but the book was wonderful.

JUST WOW

What did you love best about Beneath This Man?

Every word spoken in this trilogy I loved especially Jesse Ward. What an awsome character and I just love Ava!

What other book might you compare Beneath This Man to and why?

I think this triolgy is better than 50 Shades because it's so much less of BDSM and more loving and sparks!!! I love this there really isn't anything to compare it to.

Which character – as performed by Edita Brychta – was your favorite?

I love that it's a British narration because the story is written that way and it makes the characters and the feels so alive. Just beyond good!!

Exhausting

Exhausting at times holding your breath at times but couldn’t wait to keep listening. Lots of sex

Not my first listen and not my last

The This Man series is one of the first books in what I call alpha-crazy-mad-intense genre I’ve enjoyed and it was past time to add the books to my Audible library.
Although I prefer American English, I do enjoy Edita Brychta’s crisp British accented voice and I think she’s perfect for the female part of this book. I would have loved for this to be a duet with a male voice for Jesse and the other male characters.