The Taming of Annabelle

The Six Sisters, Book 2

By: M. C. Beaton

Narrated by: Charlotte Anne Dore

Length: 6 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

His feelings toward her were warm. She turned their conversation over and over in her mind, reading into every casual answer a double meaning, hints of a growing passion that were held in check.

From the moment young Annabelle met her sister Minerva's intended, Lord Sylvester, she developed a secret passion for him that obsessed her. Now she was determined to take him away from Minerva, no matter what. But she hadn't reckoned on Sylvester's best friend, Peter, who fell in love with Annabelle and decided to tame her.

©1994 Marion Chesney (P)2012 AudioGO

Great Quick Read

Young Annabelle is about to come out in society following her oldest sister. Annabelle has always been jealous of Manirva and this includes her recent engagement. Annabelle finds her self rushing to the alter to “best” her sister and after she’s married, she still finds her self in love with her brother in law. Deception and misunderstandings follow as she works through her recent marriage.

pretty good

the female lead was pretty annoying for most of it but it had a happy ending. maybe 3.5 stars

Worth the listen

Like I said with book 1, the girls in this series is as naive and gullible as you can get. I am still up in smoke on whether to love them or barely like them. I believe back in this century, some women were too sheltered. Besides being young, Annabel was contrite and vain. It was all about her and what she wanted and I believe that is the idea because as much as you want to put it down, you also want to keep listening so that you know what happens in the end. Onward to book 3 for me. The narrator I have not mentioned because I am barely tolerating her and I have no choice as she is the narrator for all the books in the series.

Getting to Know the characters as the series progresses

I LOVE the unlikely "cupids" in these books (so far) and really got a good laugh when someone got his comeuppance. The author managed to transform what seemed like a spoiled brat ultimately into a human just learning how to make her way in life.

I think the only thing I feel is missing in these stories is more description or some more suggestion of how the love grows between the protagonists. There is VERY little insight into the hero's thoughts and so his growth is especially lacking. I noticed this trait, too, in The Traveling Matchmaker series by this same author and wonder if it has to do with having that outside person(s) assisting with the relationship.

Annabelle is tedious.

The main character is even more tedious and annoying than her sister was in the beginning of the first book.

Good story, but performance not so much

The person performing the reading would put a lot of emphasis in places it didn't belong. The feelings emitted didn't match the conversation.

Misunderstood

Marriage made from a misunderstanding becomes a love story. Annabelle grows up in a mater of days but some work against her.

While the Heroine you love to Hate, there’s a surprising fabulous character

While Annabelle is childish from start to finish and her beau, the Vicount, never gets fleshed out enough to truly love….

There’s a surprisingly fabulous character duo: the father, the Reverend Charles Armitage and his bff the Squire Radford.

The reverend was introduced in the first book (Minerva’s story) as a petty and self-centered man being his only personality trait. Part of his complexity comes out by the end of that book, but he was in rare form in this one and stole the show for me.

The silly innocence of him and his chum and their odyssey to set things straight had some particularly entertaining moments that left me guffawing out loud.

They had just the right tinge of surface self-centered balanced with big hearts, old man silliness, bravado, and a tweedle-dee tweedle-dum duo that is actually why I will be listening to the next book.

Cute story

Cute fast read for just a flash of Romance. I would recommend this book if you just looking for some light listing.

Too slow and not enough voice differentiation...

The story is too detailed and slow for a regency love story. Also, the narrator can't differentiate the voices enough not to be irritating. Maybe worth the credit, but not as good as the first book in the series.