Compromised

By: Kate Noble

Narrated by: Rosalind Ashford

Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's Summary

From a dazzling new voice in historical fiction comes a "delectable and delightful debut" about a pair of mismatched lovers who unwillingly find themselves engaged in a most scandalous position....

Miss Gail Alton was not having a good day. Or a good year. First, she's strong-armed into attending the Season as a foil to her beautiful sister,Evangeline. Then, while riding her mare in the park, she gets toppled by a stuffy, self-important, too-handsome-by-half "gentleman" who has the audacity to blame her for their fall into the chilly lake! Little does Gail know that the very same man will soon be found in a compromising position with her sister....

Forced into asking for Evangeline's hand in marriage, Maximillian, Viscount Fontaine, can't take his mind off the irksome girl who threw him from his horse and who can match wits with him at every turn. He's determined to follow through with his best intentions, yet he can't deny that Gail makes him want to cast propriety aside - and whisk away the sister of his soon-to-be bride....

©2008 Kate Noble (P)2014 Audible Inc.

The “hero” is awful

I can’t understand how ANYONE likes the H in this book. In the first introductions, we learn he abuses his horse. And I think the author expects us to think it’s funny! When he discovers that there is someone attempting to drug/spike the drink of a young lady at a ball, he is fully prepared to IGNORE IT because it is not worth his while to bother with until his friend basically makes him do it by threatening to leave him to talk to a young lady who had a gap between her front teeth. The horror. When he “rescues” the h from an attacker, he wants to know what kind of an imbecile lets herself get attacked—-and this EVEN AFTER he knew she had been drugged/given excess alcohol.

He’s the MOST awful character, and largely because he doesn’t even know he’s an evil ass, and as a reader we are just supposed to find him amusing.

I did not find him amusing. I found him so awful that if I had been the h, I would have wanted to punch him in the face. He is disgusting trash.

I can’t enjoy a romance with a hero I hate.

Great fun

The writer (and sadly her editor) does not seem to know her “I” from her “me” and that grammatical mistake several times was jarring given the time and class of the heroes and heroines but it was a wonderful 18/19th century feeling drawing room comedy romance and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Predictable of course but totally held my interest. I have to wonder at all these regency writers who can’t get the I and me to be correct and often mess up who and whom. I would bet the aristocracy back then got it right but I guess we will never know for sure.

So so

Terrible narration and it ruined the story. Will not listen to Rosalind Ashford in the future.

waited too long

unfortunately this got pushed down in my library and I waited too long to return. story may have been ok but the narration was DREADFUL.

Fantastic Book

I have listened to many audio books and found this one quite enjoyable! This book is among a very few that i will listen to again. I prefer longer books with more developed storylines this one fit the bill.

Cute Story - GREAT Narrator!

"Compromised" was a light romance from new author Kate Noble. It was a little slow in some spots, but for the most part flows nicely. This story is about the Alton family. The father is in politics and the step-mother is a social climber. They have two daughters. Evangeline, the oldest girl, is blond, petite and a beauty; Gail is tall with not much to recommend her except her wit and her outspoken ideas, which usually gets her into trouble. Sharing a season with her gorgeous sister causes people to ignore Gail, so she is quiet and tries to blend into the background at balls her step-mother forces her to attend.. Her step-mother wants both her step-daughters to get married, but Gail wants nothing to do with it.

Gail's father bought Max's horse's stablemate and gave her to Gail. She encounters Max riding his horse in the park and his horse goes berserk trying to get to Gail's mare. His reins break, and Gail tries to help as his horse comes barreling at her, and they both find themselves thrown from their horses into a lake. She sees him again at her family's ball and throws up on his shoes. Max hopes he never sees Gail again, because she confuses him and blames him for everything that goes wrong.

Max’s father plans to disown him if Max doesn't find a wife in three months, so Max has no choice but to attend the "season's" balls. During the Alton ball, he meets Evangeline in the conservatory and with the moon shining upon her beautiful face Max leans forward and kisses her, and is caught by the Housekeeper. Max feels he has compromised Evangeline and offers to marry her...and everything goes downhill from there.

I enjoyed the witty dialogue between the hero (Max) and heroine (Gail).

Kate Noble is a noteworthy author, and Rosalind Ashford gave an excellent performance -- VERY talented narrator.

Good story, immature dialog, mediocre narration

With time and experience, Kate Noble will be a really good author. The creativity in character development and good story telling, are a great start. And IMHO a great narrator can make a mediocre book also great. Good Luck Kate Noble....we may meet again some day.

Very Enjoyable

I really liked the characters Max and Gail. Overall great listen. The story was long but it kept my interest. Never a dull moment. If you are looking for a fun romance set in London in the 1800’s give this one a try.

Lovely Story

Great story, Awesome characters, funny, heartfelt, and engaging. Try to keep up with what is happening next to this poor girl. Kept you on your toes.

Loved Max and Gail

The delightfully loving quarreling couple kept me entertained for hours. The narrator did an admirable job in keeping me tuned in. I listened to the entire book twice!!

Never mind the Holland Covers

Good effort by this author in this genre, but gratingly inaccurate (and American) in so many small ways, that it became too annoying to continue; the way the author dipped in and juxtaposed "period" cant and colloquialisms with modern terms. As a long time aficionado of Ms Heyer, Ms Austen and lately of Ms Riley, the foibles of language use, of type of carriage, ie a barouche is a light coach drawn by two horses, not a travelling coach laden with luggage, layouts of houses; it all grated and soon outweighed my ability to continue.

For me, after reading the tripe v not tripe comments already submitted, this book is very much a sows ear masquerading as a silk purse.

Narrator was good.

NOT FOR ME

Tripe

Fourteen hours of drivel. Lovestruck geldings, young ladies and gentlemen swearing in public are just too unbelievable. I gave up after two chapters.

Might have been okay

The book might have been okay but the narration was so robotic and strange that I didn't like it at all. Struggled on to chapter 13 bu lt gave up. Sorry narrator but that type of natation just isn't for me. I won't be listening to any more books with this author or narrator.

enthralling story

loved the story but unfortunately didn't enjoy the narrator. But all in all a very enjoyable story.

A surprising delight

The story is strong , twists and turns aplenty. Complex characters. Good historical facts. Love and laughter. Really well penned. Highly recommended

Enjoyable and not that predictable

I mean sure, it’s obvious a book like this will turn out well in the end but it was a lengthy and enjoyable listen!

Not Tripe - ignore that foolish review!

I occasionally read the various reviews before purchasing a title, I did on this occasion, there were only 2. One of which said that this was tripe and that the book was given up at chapter 2!
I would advise you to ignore that review.

This is a regency novel with the distinction of telling about lives in the Beau Monde and those characters and friendships that hover both on the edge of the Ton in business (Trade! Gasp!), Politics and enterprise, who are acceptable because of great wealth, an old but distant family connection and offered peerages from grateful monarchy and the favour of the Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington.

You don’t often see how these groups mix the class structures through schooling, friendships, travel and war… makes for an interesting ‘plot C’. The main plot, is actually a comedy of errors and the female lead, Abigail, is a breath of surprising fresh air for her time. Plot B is easily the most traditional historical story and the only intrigue is how, alongside ‘plotA’, the story gets resolved. But the fun of it is, that the resolution is very novel.

I do think that it needn’t have taken so long to resolve, but it doesn’t suffer overall for the length, give it a chance, it’s an original piece of work in as far as, it’s not all Almacks and sad crushes…

Lighthearted & entertaining

The narrator wasn’t the best but the story was fun & entertaining, the kind of book (if it was paperback) you’d read on the beach