Daphne

By: M. C. Beaton

Narrated by: Charlotte Anne Dore

Length: 5 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's Summary

Daphne, the fourth daughter of the Reverend Charles Armitage, is beautiful - dazzlingly beautiful - but she is utterly wrapped up in her own appearance. It seems fitting when she decides to marry the exquisite Cyril Archer, who is as empty-headed and vain as she is; after all, once she is safely married, she can hide her true nature behind her beauty, never expected by anyone (least of all her husband) to do or say anything clever. Moreover, marrying Cyril will preserve her from the zealous schemes of her father, whose passion for the hunt is surpassed only by his love of tracking down wealthy, titled husbands for his many daughters.

But when Daphne heads home from London, escorted by her eccentric, malaprop cousin, Lady Godolphin, her plans are suddenly thrown awry. Her father, in an aborted attempt to save his hunting pack from a vindictive bishop, finds himself indebted to a certain Mr. Simon Garfield, who is every bit as wealthy as he is noble. So the country vicar offers up the stunning, unwilling Daphne as a bride, forcing her to drop her placid mask in order to fight for the right to make her own match.

Meanwhile, Daphne's older sister Annabelle is having troubles of her own. Once so happy in her marriage, she is now losing her husband's love and attention because of their screaming son - or is it their son? Daphne suddenly finds herself in a compromising position when she is given an even more serious reason to resent her father than his marriage plans for her.

©1984 Marion Chesney (P)2012 AudioGO

Disappointing narration

What disappointed you about Daphne?

I am a great Marion Chesney/M C Beaton fan so was very pleased to see the Regency series begin to be available on here. I am not at all pleased with this narrator though. Her main focus seems to be enunciating clearly, which she does well, but she clearly has no love for the characters or understanding of the time period. Some words are pronounced incorrectly and her interpretation seems mainly focussed on reading correctly rather than with a love for the story that inspires the listener. When a narrator loves what they're reading, or is a good fit for the book, it's easy to lose yourself in the story and makes it come alive. This is not remotely the case with this narrator and I'm sorry to see that she reads all the available books in this series.

2 people found this helpful

Quick and Enjoyable

The best of the series thus far! Laughed at every chapter, at some point. Very enjoyable

Not the best series by Beaton

I think that M.C. Beaton was getting weary of writing historical romances by the time she wrote this series. All of the main heroines are vapid, shallow and have loose morals. These vicar's daughters have no restraint and most of them don't make it to the marriage bed chaste. By book 4, I am now completely tired of Lady Goldolphin's saying every other word wrong. It is not eccentric, cute or funny. And I am tired of the vicar who really isn't a vicar but a hunter always on the chase to kill a fox.

Enchanting!

A little surface, and repetitive. But a fun series! More Regency, shenanigans. Plenty of malaprops 😅