Conspiring with a Rogue

A Whisper of Scandal, Book 2

By: Julie Johnstone

Narrated by: Tim Campbell

Length: 12 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's Summary

In order to save the man she loves from the enemy bent on destroying her, Lady Whitney Rutherford sheds her identity and escapes her past, making a new life for herself as Mr. Roger Wentworth, missing person locator extraordinaire. But when Whitney's best friend from her old life comes up missing and there is every indication the girl was taken by the debauched members of a secret club, Whitney dons a new disguise and infiltrates the club, determined to unravel the mystery and save her friend. She never expects to encounter Drake Sutherland, the man who still has her heart. In the dark world of pleasure and sin, Whitney must play a dangerous game and one wrong move could mean the death of her friend or the destruction of the man she loves.

©2013 Julie Johnstone (P)2014 Julie Johnstone

Lovesick Hero/TSTL Heroine! Terrible.

Geez that was a tough book to get through.. The hero, Drake was so love sick he was annoying to say the least. The heroine, Whitney was just TSTL most of the time.

The story had potential but was ruined by making the hero so freaking love sick, oh and so extremely prideful. Geez... You wanted to scream! Always saying "Whitney", "Whitney" ,"Whitney". "I won't ask for help", "I won't ask for help", "I won't ask for help",

Whitney was way to meek and mild to be pretending to be an investigator and made some really stupid decisions. And her constant whining about not wanting to be a burden grated on the nerves as well.

Seriously, I did a word count on the name "Whitney" in my Kindle and I got 1,090 hits. I also did a search in Drake's name and got 1,013 hits. I do believe that over half the hits I got on Drake's name was him whining about Whitney!

And of course, the misunderstanding and angst lasted all the way to the end! No resolutions or truths between the two until the last 10 pages. What an annoying book. At one point I wanted to throw my iphone, and another time I literally slapped my hand against my forehead in an "Are you kidding me? You people are so stupid" gesture.

There is a lot of dialogue, and I do like a lot of dialogue in my books, except most of this dialogue was Drake whining to everyone one and anyone about Whitney! Strong hero's do not whine to everyone they come in contact with they are brokenhearted. Really!!??

There are a couple of sex scenes, nothing remarkable, and somewhat annoying, Since you get so much of Drake's thoughts on "I can't believe I am with Whitney, Oh Whitney, Is this real or am I dreaming of Whitney" Wanted to barf it was so nauseating.

It is really to bad too, I read the first book Bargaining with a Rake and it was great. This one was a total disappointment. This is by far the worst Julia Johnstone book I have read or listened to.

As for the narrator he did a great job, He did a good job on the female voices and read with emotion. So it was not that narrator that ruined this book it was the writing and the story.

too many cliches to count!

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Anyone with attention deficet disorder. IT was just too much to care about

What could Julie Johnstone have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

She needed to focus and edit out about 3 hours. There was a major misunderstanding "why the heroine left the hero". Nothing was discussed and only solutions seemed to be manipulation. If this author thinks this is how to solve problems, then I have nothing to offer.

What about Tim Campbell’s performance did you like?

I liked his performance. In the past I have found a few times , his narration was annoying, but in this he does a great job.

What character would you cut from Conspiring with a Rogue?

Sally and Audrey ( but she is required for book 3). Sally was a distraction to any situation that was occuring. She was the least straightforward and kep confusing me with her behaviour. The story’s central issue of a kidnapped girl. I found Sally taking precious time away from finding a girl that could be in serious trouble to be confusing. I don't think anything really effected Sally .

Any additional comments?

This author decided to use every trop/cliché that she could think of:
Heroine as martyr
Boy loses girl, then boy finds girl and then boy loses girl
Heroine impersonating a man
Heroine impersonating a courtesan
Hooker with a heart of “gold”
Kidnapped girl
Girl being sold into white slavery
Hero saving heroine from “ravishing”
Pirates sinking ships
Rags to riches
Hero on the verge of disaster/bankruptcy
Fake betrothal
Sex club/secret organization
And of course a visit to a brothel
If that was not enough, the next door neighbour as a homosexual artist, befriending the heroine…because if you can’t squeeze in one more clicke, why write the novel!
This story was a mess. For all of that it was slow and dragged to the point where I stopped caring what would happen in the last 2 hours of the story.

Ouch!

I started this audiobook so many times. Finally I got to the point where I had 4 hours left and couldn't take it any more. I did something I never do - I skipped to the end. This was dreadful. I gave it an extra credit for the narration alone.

Whitney was stupid. She drove me nuts. I hate TSTL characters.

I have to say this is my least favorite Julie Johnstone book.

This review is for the narrator Tim Campbell

Would you listen to Conspiring with a Rogue again? Why?

This was the best narration I have heard in a while. Tim Campbell is becoming my favorite. His voices were clear and he did not sound like a wheezing old man.

What did you like best about this story?

I gave a review on Amazon about the book.

Which scene was your favorite?

My favorite scene was when the hero realized he needed to retrieve his heroine.

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

Overcoming obstacles.

Disappointing

This read like a badly written erotica. Week characters & storyline. Enjoyed the first book; however, this one will disappoint. Skip

Loved it!!

Would you listen to Conspiring with a Rogue again? Why?

Yes,Such a heart rendering story.

What did you like best about this story?

The twists and turns that kept my interest.

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

He did a great job and he has done the voices great!

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

When Whitney sacrificed her happiness for her love Drake.

Any additional comments?

Great Audio book!

Confusing

I had to restart a few parts because I thought I missed a plot point but nope just a bad story.

listen to first two chapters then skip to the last

skip to the last two chapters. Not as good as book one. i was glad i skipped cuz i just couldnt get into it.

Very repetitive….

It just felt like the same situation was just repeated over and over, and then it became a little boring and predictable. Not the usual high standard, but I still love all her books and will read them all.

really drawn out

This story could have been told in a lot less time. the constant bemoaning of these characters is irritating

A Brilliant but Frustrating Book

I love any book by Julie Johnstone but I don't think I've ever felt as frustrated. With both the 2 main characters. I suppose that's what a good book is all about, it keeps you gripped, even though you know how it will end it doesn't help.
There were plenty of twists & turns & some really funny moments.
I'm loving this series so far & I've no doubt the next book will be equally as frustrating but off I go.
I would definitely recommend it.

Lukewarm

Goes on for too long about deception plus all the clichés imaginable. Americanisms in writing and narrator's pronunciation add to British listener's annoyance.

good story

It was a good story but I wouldn't say I loved it. The lies went on for a bit too long, I thought Whitney would tell Drake sooner. The story could either have been a bit shorter or she could have somehow told him what she was covering up before, so her lies and Drake's depression wouldn't have gone on for so long. Her deception went on for too long for nothing because his business was still going down the drain anyway. I felt so sorry for Drake, he was such a lovely man. She was too much, too headstrong and stubborn for my liking. She thought she was invincible, doing a man's job alone in the gutters of London. When she finally did have to tell him I was so relieved, AT LAST!!! In fact I listened to the last few chapters again as they were so nice. I didn't enjoy this 2nd book as much as the first one. But I will still listen to the rest of the series as I love Julie Johnstone's books normally. But this is not one of her best.

Slightly bizarre but good lol

Ok the plot in this book was slightly bizarre and went a little to far to believe at times! That said it was enjoyable and certainly unique!! I preferred the narrator on book one, but this narrator is still pretty good.

Not as good as book one, but still enjoyable and worth a credit