• When the Rogue Returns

  • The Duke's Men, Book 2
  • By: Sabrina Jeffries
  • Narrated by: Corrie James
  • Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (265 ratings)

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When the Rogue Returns  By  cover art

When the Rogue Returns

By: Sabrina Jeffries
Narrated by: Corrie James
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Publisher's summary

It had been a decade since Victor Cale, first cousin to the Duke of Lyons, had seen his wife. After some royal jewelry went missing from the jeweler's shop where they worked, Isabel Mertens disappeared. When Victor gets word of a woman who fits his wife's description, he sets out to confront her. But he discovers that nothing is as it seems-and revenge is never as sweet as true love.

©2014 Deborah Gonzales (P)2014 Tantor

What listeners say about When the Rogue Returns

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

Refreshingly Different Storyline

This is not the conventional romance story at all. This book doesn't follow the usual formula of "boy meets girl....then the story begins". In this addition to "The Dukes Men" series we find newlyweds Victor and Isa who are torn apart because of a crime scandal. Victor searches for Isa and an adventure with danger, heartache, mystery, crime, family tragedy and romance unfold.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It's a simple easy romance to listen to especially if you enjoy regency romances. (You might want to skip this one if regency romances aren't to your liking).

Also, Corrie James did a wonderful job with the narration. ;-)

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9 people found this helpful

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

Awful.

Spoilers galore, but you might want to read them anyway if you want to avoid wasting your time and money on this stinker. Just saying.

The book begins in a weird place. The h, Sophie, is hiding under her covers pretending to be sick because she's afraid to tell her new husband, Victor, that her sister and her husband plan to rob the jeweler where he works as a guard. Rather than getting out of bed and warning him about the impending crime, she wimps out because she's afraid he'll be mad -- because she's the one who made the fake jewels they would be planting in the safe. Huh. Yeah, I pretty much hated her from the get go.

After the robbery, Sophie is told that Victor took part in it. She already knows she can't trust her sister and brother-in-law, but of course, she believes them. They tell her Victor will be meeting them in Paris, but when Victor doesn't show up, she believes he's abandoned her. Naturally, Victor was innocent, and because his stupid wife didn't warn him, he took the blame for the robbery, believing she was in on it.

Tens years later, Sophie is hiding out in Scotland when Victor finally finds her again. He thinks she left him to rot in jail, and she still believes he ran off with his share of the booty.

What makes this a bore is that none of the characters is very likeable. Sophie is a gullible weakling who can't stand up to her sister and her husband. Victor is out for revenge. Even after they each finally explain what happened from their point of view, they still don't trust each other. Chapter after chapter they have these repetitive conversations about what happened, about the lies the sister and her husband told, about how each thought the other was at fault. Every time some new information comes to light, we have to hear them go on and on again and again about what happened and why that made them think they couldn't trust each other. And then they have to stop and explain it to the secondary characters. It's un-freaking-believably boring.

This is a melodramatic mess of repetitious scenes of digressions, lengthy and unnecessary explanations and expositions that NEVER SEEM TO END!!!!

By the 15th Chapter I started skipping from chapter to chapter and sampling, just to get it over with.

It didn't help that the characters were meant to be Dutch, which meant that Corrie James did much of the dialogue with this weird accent reminiscent of Ingrid Bergman. She made the MC's sound old and creepy, with each word enunciated like she had a mouth full of square marbles, which only made the sex scenes feel nasty. As a counterpoint to this, there are some campy characters like the goofy Baron and his sexually aggressive mother, that feel so out of place in this melodrama that they stick out like cartoons. Otherwise there is no humor or lightness at all.

I know I didn't love the first book, but only because it could have been great if only the author had addressed the unresolved plot points in that book. I had hoped they might be explained in this follow up, but they were not even mentioned.

This book was a tedious experience and I hated every minute of it. I could use it for toilet paper if only it wasn't an audiobook. Otherwise, I can't imagine a use for it.

Returning it for a refund.

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3 people found this helpful

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

Interesting & Heartwarming

I loved this book. It was different! The story was a little bit different - it held my interest and I was definitely looking forward to what was going to happen next. There were a few times in the book that I was a little bit frustrated and I felt like it was dragging just a bit... but I feel like that's probably because I was so excited for the characters to get together.

Issa and Victor are great together. I wasn't sure I was going to like Victor as much as I ended up liking him.

There were many times in this book fit my heart clenched for this couple and I got choked up a couple of times - so it definitely had a moving affect every now and again. I think it was better than the first book and I can't wait to move on to the third and fourth and see how it stacks up in this wonderful series.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Good, but not going to be a favorite

A good story, but definitely not my favorite from this author. The two main characters took way too long to be honest with each other--their initial hesitation made sense, but after a while it got to be ridiculous, especially since they both got hugely upset when they found out the other one was hiding something from them. (Hello? Pot? Kettle? You're equal in your blackness, so get over it already!) Other than that, Victor and Isa/Sofie were likable characters overall.

Ultimately, the last third or so redeemed the book for me. At one point I was afraid they were reverting back to their old ways, but they proved me wrong so nothing got tossed across the room (I was listening on audio, so book tossing would have involved earbuds being ripped out of my ears. I was very glad to have my fears proven wrong, believe me!) The ending is immensely satisfying, and helped me to get over much of my frustration with the book.

Some of the secondary characters' immense likability helps matters as well--Amalie, their daughter, is charming; Rupert and Mary Grace's secondary romance is adorable; and Sofie's business partner Mr. Gordon is an all-around great guy. Tristan and Dominick, the brothers who run Manton Investigations, are as entertaining as ever, and I cannot wait until they have their own books.

The science too was interesting, both of Sofie's artificial gems and Rupert's studies. I didn't quite "get" it all, but it sounded impressive. ;) Ms. Jeffries's afterword showed that she had clearly done her research in that arena.

Part of my dissatisfaction with this novel stemmed from the audio performance--I couldn't stand the voice the narrator used for Isa/Sofie. It always sounded as if she had a mouthful of marbles when she spoke, and it was distracting. Perhaps if I'd have read it instead of listening, I would have rated it higher.

So far the first book in the series is still my favorite. I wouldn't go so far as to say this one was a disappointment, it just didn't quite live up to the standards of book one. Hopefully the next offering from The Duke's Men will be more consistent in its execution.

Rating: C+/ 3.5 stars

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1 person found this helpful

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

A good read to continue the series.

Genre: Historical Romance

Main characters:Victor Cale & Isabel Mertens

Isabel: She is meek during the first chapter in the book (when she and Victor first marry), however after years of fending for herself, she has grown a spine and has made a comfortable living with her talents as a jewelry maker.

Victor: In the first book, he finds that he is cousin to a Duke and is now considered a peer. However, his life spent as a working-class citizen makes him uneasy to the privileges and expectations of the upper-class.

Synopsis:
Newly weds, Victor leaves his wife, sick in bed, with a promise to return once his shift as a security guard is over. When he comes to collect his wife, he finds she has deserted him. Years later, Victor has not forgotten his missing bride and her deception. When a case surfaces regarding a viscount(?) interested in an older lady who fits Isabel's description, Victor follows the lead and comes face to face with his wife.

What does this book have?
I loved the first book in the series because I enjoyed the banter between the main characters. This book didn't hold the same awe for me and I found it to be okay. What does set this book apart is that the main characters were already married and have spent the majority of their married life apart. They were married young and didn't fully understand each other. When they come together, they are matured and experienced in life and are able to appreciate the better qualities in each other. Although there is resolution to the romance (and a twist in the tale to add to the story), I felt it could have been done better. Overall, I anticipate the next installment as it revolves around Tristan and Lady Zoe and as brief an exchange as these two had in this book, it promises to be feisty and rude with lots of fun banter.

Narration
Narrator: Corrie James
Performance: 4/5
Speed: 1.25x
Consistent narration with good character distinction and accents. Her pace was good and the tone and volume of the narrator's voice was steady and clear.

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1 person found this helpful

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

SJ KNOWS JUST HOW TO WRITE A CAPTIVATING HR

SJ has delivered yet another all consuming, action-packed, heartbreaking romance and this time it's about true love, betrayal, revenge and the gift of second chances. Victor and Isa (Isabel) were very young and happily in love but a couple of greedy family members had an evil scheme which tore them apart and deprived them of 10 years of being together and so much more..... that is until fate stepped in.

Within the many hours of this enjoyable, tense and frustrating listen you will be captivated by the drama, mystery and intrigue as all the secrets, lies and treachery eventually comes pouring out when an older Victor and Isa finally come face to face. They are suspicious of each other through no fault of their own, they're very likeable, there's once again instant attraction and great chemistry between the two as they both learn to trust each other as the true devastating events are painfully unearthed. Old passions ignite, there's sex (not too explicit) and they finally take a chance at love again because there's just too much for either of them to lose.

But they must stand together as old enemies return to threaten their new found love and try, once again, to tear them apart with yet another scheme and this time they resort to kidnapping too. Luckily Victor and Isa are helped by the love and support of willing friends and the loveable members of The Duke's Men ride to the rescue to help in a plan that will deliver justice and vengeance so the lovers can eventually get their hard won HEA.

Worth a credit? Predictable? sometimes, historically correct? doubtful, but for any HR lover (such as myself) SJ's books are an auto download because you know that she'll give you just what you want - an unusual plot that will chill you and a romance that will thrill you. Held in the Netherlands then Edinburgh there's no fancy Balls, no colorful gowns, no ton and no virginal Lady or scandalous Rake to save but despite this it is still an enjoyable and creditworthy listen. Finally, although this is book 2 of a series this could easily be a stand-alone listen.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Enjoyed but...

This time around the narration was a burr in my foot!! She tried her best and it was as good as she could get, but her voice for Isa was so full of "sh" sounds that it was distracting. And again, as I wrote in my review of the first in this series, she often sounded like she had spit in her mouth that she needed to swallow. It too was distracting. But, not bad enough to quit the book. The story was fun. I thought that there was going to be a significant amount of conflict between Isa and Victor but once they finally got around to realizing what happened, they worked well together. I really prefer that in a story vs constant relationship conflict. Secondary characters were great and it will be fun to read about them in the next book, which I do intend to purchase if it's ever on sale.

I got this book on sale for $3.11 and it was definitely worth it. I would not have been disappointed if it had been a 2/1 sale either. I would not have been happy had I paid a full credit for it but that's partially because I very very very rarely purchase anything with a full credit. I'm extremely picky on where i spend a full value.

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

Not bad

This book wasn't bad. It is a little different from the other historical romance novels I've read. I like the way the heroin took charge of her life and go away from her horrible sister and brother in law.

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

I couldn't finish it

Really disliked the protagonist and narrator character voices. Conflict in the story just stretched too far and I couldn't "suspend my disbelief," the number one job of any author of fiction. Too much trust-distrust back and forth between the H/H, and lots of questions about why the protagonist kept making the same decisions for someone who is supposed to be so smart. Narrator character voices sound like she's talking after eating a lemon, or is changing her mouth shape to make the voice. Made me uncomfortable listening.

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

Lovey story and great narration

This is a great story. Just when you think the heroine is going to make a stupid move - she doesn’t. That doesn’t always happen. I liked how both came to reconcile the past. The accent may not have been authentic but it was different enough to be entertaining

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