Shadow Spell

The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy, Book 2

By: Nora Roberts

Narrated by: Alan Smyth

Length: 11 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

From number-one New York Times best-selling author Nora Roberts comes a trilogy about the land we’re drawn to, the family we learn to cherish, and the people we long to love.…

With the legends and lore of Ireland running through his blood, falconer Connor O’Dwyer is proud to call County Mayo home. It’s where his sister, Branna, lives and works, where his cousin, Iona, has found true love, and where his childhood friends form a circle that can’t be broken.…

A circle that is about to be stretched out of shape - by a long-awaited kiss.

Meara Quinn is Branna’s best friend, a sister in all but blood. Her and Connor’s paths cross almost daily, as Connor takes tourists on hawk walks and Meara guides them on horseback across the lush countryside. She has the eyes of a gypsy and the body of a goddess…things Connor has always taken for granted - until his brush with death propels them into a quick, hot tangle.

Plenty of women have found their way to Connor’s bed, but none to his heart until now. Frustratingly, Meara is okay with just the heat, afraid to lose herself - and their friendship - to something more. But soon, Connor will see the full force and fury of what runs in his blood. And he will need his family and friends around him when his past rolls in like the fog, threatening an end to all he loves.…

©2014 Nora Roberts (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Love the trilogies

Love the story, hated this narrator. Iona's part made me cringe every time! Oh well.

Great story, but narrator lacking

The narrator doesn't distinguish enough between characters. I had to listen closely to the "Connor said," cues to know who was speaking.

couldn't stop listening!

great story, modern and connected to ancestors from hundreds of years ago, magic and love and friendship.

Shadow Spell

Second book in the series. A continuing story of witchcraft and love. Can't wait to hear hear the final in the series.

Narration

Did not care for the narrator on book two. It was difficult to figure out who was suppose to be speaking. It just seem to be monotone.

Narrator accent sounded more Oriental

What made the experience of listening to Shadow Spell the most enjoyable?

I enjoyed the storyline.

How could the performance have been better?

A completely different narrator. I had increase the narrator speed to get through the story and because otherwise, the accent sounded more Oriental than Irish and he didn't seem to be able to read a complete sentence without taking a break. Horrible, absolutely horrible narration.

Terrible Narrator!

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

No. Had to give up on it. Can't continue to listen to this terrible narrator!

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Bad narrator... Can't do an Irish accent & his timing is slow & choppy. Just painful.

What would have made this romance irresistible?

A completely different narrator.

Any additional comments?

Don't let Alan Smyth record any more books! Ugh! I'm sad because I was really looking forward to this book.

The narrator is horrible!

What did you like best about Shadow Spell? What did you like least?

I like the story. The narrator is absolutely terrible though! I can't imagine how on earth this was approved for production. It is incredibly slow, I'm listening at a higher speed. It is stilted, odd pauses, and the accent keeps changing. It's inconsistent. I will finish it, just because I want to know what happened when I listen to the next book. If the narrator for the next one was the same as this one, I wouldn't even bother. It's really irritating.

What did you like best about this story?

The story itself was good.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

His narration is irritating and distracting. It's hard to pay attention to the story because the narrator keeps changing accents, occasionally speaking with a lisp on some words, not on others, and he is very slow. I keep falling asleep trying to listen to it.

Was Shadow Spell worth the listening time?

No. I am struggling to finish this one. I am only finishing it because I want to know what's going on when I read the next book.

Any additional comments?

I won't listen to books performed by this narrator again.

Great Story!

I love the O'Dwyers! The storyline was fantastic, but the narrator was a bit choppy in his presentation, so it was hard to imagine the scenes. The previous narrator for book 1 literally pulled you into the scenes, by giving each character a distinct persona.

Terrible Narration

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

No, I wish I had just bought the kindle version and read the book. The narratation was terrible: not a good irish accent, so many pegnant pauses it was very choppy and didn't flow well. The narrator was difficult to listen to. Not sure if it was the narrator or the director who ruined the performance.

Would you be willing to try another book from Nora Roberts? Why or why not?

Yes. The story was good.

Would you be willing to try another one of Alan Smyth’s performances?

Not a chance.

Was Shadow Spell worth the listening time?

I'm not finished the audio book but may ditch it for the kindle version.