Darling Beast

By: Elizabeth Hoyt

Narrated by: Ashford McNab

Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

RT Book Reviews, Best Historical Romance nominee, 2012

A man condemned...

Falsely accused of murder and mute from a near-fatal beating, Apollo Greaves, Viscount Kilbourne has escaped from Bedlam. With the Crown's soldiers at his heels, he finds refuge in the ruins of a pleasure garden, toiling as a simple gardener. But when a vivacious young woman moves in, he's quickly driven to distraction...

A desperate woman...

London's premier actress, Lily Stump, is down on her luck when she's forced to move into a scorched theatre with her maid and small son. But she and her tiny family aren't the only inhabitants—a silent, hulking beast of a man also calls the charred ruins home. Yet when she catches him reading her plays, Lily realizes there's more to this man than meets the eye.

Out of ash, desire flares.

Though scorching passion draws them together, Apollo knows that Lily is keeping secrets. When his past catches up with him, he's forced to make a choice: his love for Lily...or the explosive truth that will set him free.

©2014 Elizabeth Hoyt (P)2014 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Hoyt's writing is imbued with great depth of emotion ...Heartbreaking ... an edgy tension-filled plot." (Publishers Weekly)

"Beautifully written... a truly fine piece of storytelling and a novel that deserves to be read and enjoyed." (TheBookBinge.com)

Ashford McNab is BACK with Maiden Lane!!!!!

Thank goodness, Ashford McNab narrated book 7 in the Maiden Lane Series. There are a few bad narrations for a few of the books in the series. Ashford always does a great job with narration and I think she is the voice of the Maiden Lane characters. HOWEVER, I do not like the severe lisp she has given Phoebe, but all of the characters are spot-on.

I did like this book. Elizabeth Hoyt always writes a good story and a great romance. I'd definitely recommend this book.

Slight - SPOILER ALERT: Although, I REALLY liked this book, I REALLY missed the Ghost of St. Giles. I also missed the past characters. Only Phoebe and Captain Trevillion of the previous Maiden Lane characters make an appearance in this book. A couple of the characters have a few lines, but on the whole, there is no mention of previous characters that have at least made an appearance in all previous books. I found that very disappointing.

I am so excited for the next book. Finally Phoebe's story and I'm excited to see she's hooked up with the Captain. Previews show they escape to Cornwall. Wouldn't it be lovely if Charming Mickey and Silence helped out Phoebe and the Captain. (I can't remember where Mickey and Silence ended up.)

Great book! Great listen!

Foiled Again-Negative Reviewed Scared Me-Loved it!

What made the experience of listening to Darling Beast the most enjoyable?

Just a good story that I wasn't sure where it was going...I expected x scene and they went to z, and then Captain T was in it and I learned more about Duke Montgomery. DON"T listen to critics...I enjoyed this book so much that I've just used my last 2 credits for books 8 & 9. I can't wait!!!!!! :)

What did you like best about this story?

I originally didn't like the character of the Beast...I didn't id with him in the previous story, but I liked him in this story. The narrator expressed his thoughts so well...I liked Daff and Inino! And again...Capt. T and Montgomery.

Have you listened to any of Ashford McNab’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes and excellently!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No extreme reaction...I had a lot of smiles. :)

Any additional comments?

Just an enjoyable book...helped me to relax after a stressful week at work...an enjoyable Mother's Day weekend read. Phoebe's lisp didn't overly distract since she wasn't in the book too long. I first listened to Phoebe's story due to lisp comments about this book, but the Beast was much better than I imagined. Don't be foiled by listening to stories out of order due to undue negative comments.

Another Fun Read

Absolutely love this series and have listened to all of this series through book 12 except 5 due to reviews. I read this one out of order due to reviews about the lisp... which weren’t so bad after all. Anyway, this series has provided hours upon hours of entertainment and I’ve enjoyed every minute. Another great performance by the narrator Ashford McNab.

Enjoyable Listen

I found this to be an enjoyable read and a nice addition to the Maiden Lane series. I was eager to see how Apollo got his happy ending after meeting him in Duke of Midnight and I thought Hoyt did a good job. Lily was up to the task of healing Apollo and helping him clear his name. I really enjoyed Indio and the antics of his dog Daff. If you are looking for an entertaining listen to helps time fly I highly recommend this book. I only gave the performance 4 stars because I did not like Phoebe's lisp. In no previous book was a mention of her having a lisp mentioned and I truly hope that the narrator does not give Phoebe a lisp in her book (the next book in the series).

Best in the series! laugh out loud funny

Any additional comments?

Incredible to award this THE BEST in the series because my favorite WAS #4 thief of shadows followed closely by #11 Alf's story, #10 Duke of sin, and #3 is also quite exceptional. I've skipped around, but I'm glad I read this after Duke of Midnight to better appreciate Apollo's struggle.I absolutely adore the characters, refreshing new plot, and hot life-like romance. Literally laughed out loud because the beginning is hilarious I could have read additional hours more of poor mute Apollo interacting with Lilly before he regains his voice. Write another book with these characters please!

I will be so sad if Phoebe has a lisp in book 8

Would you listen to Darling Beast again? Why?

I don't think so. I have listened to the other stories more then once, but this book seems more like a standalone. It had very little of the other characters that I love to see appear again and again in the series. It brought in Phoebe and Artemis and Maximum, but only briefly. We also never visited the foundling home. I enjoyed the story, but it was not one of my favorites.

What aspect of Ashford McNab’s performance would you have changed?

When Phoebe was in the story, she had a lisp. I had to go back and listen to her when she spoke in Duke of Midnight and she did NOT have a lisp. I really did not like the lisp at all. I will not want to hear her read like that in the next book, especially since she is the heroine! Besides Phoebe's lisp, I like Ashford McNab's performance.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I did listen to it all in one setting. I had planned my day (which actually included re-arranging my whole week) around the release of this book.

Any additional comments?

I hope the next book has more scenes with the families all together. Silence, Hero, Megs, Temperance, etc. I also hope there are more scenes with the orphanage.

Witty, exciting, romantic, Excellent read!

Any additional comments?

Surprisingly delightful read. Although this book seem to take a different path the previous books, as far as the Ghost of Saint Giles and the orphanage and all that, it was still riveting in its own right. The characters were intriguing, the love story exciting and enjoyable. Overall, I really liked it and encourage other to give it a try. Elizabeth Hoyt has yet to disappoint! And Ashford? Psh! We already know she rocks!

Good story but the narrator

I really like the story and other voice written by the author but the narrator kind of got on my nerves. When speaking the main characters, she was fine but when speaking some of the supporting characters it was terrible. If you get past some of character voices like I did, then you will like the story.

Maiden Lane Should Never End

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

I was very upset when Ashford stopped narrating this series. I was so excited to see that she was narrating this one. However, I was a little disappointed with the narration. It wasn't her best performance. As others mentioned I hated the lisp that Phoebe's character had. I'd say that she did better with the male voices. I almost felt like she wasn't into it. Perhaps a revisit to the old books in the series to get back into character is in order? I'll give her a 3.5--will rank as a 4 just because she's usually so stellar.

Any additional comments?

I've been on a romance hiatus for about 3-4 months now. I was weary of the same format and needed a break. I bought Darling Beast when it first came out but held on to it expecting the ‘same thing.’ Boy was I wrong and in retrospect Mrs. Hoyt has never let me down so why I lumped her into the general category is beyond me. If I had to sum it up in one word: AWESOME! I don’t know if I can wait until 2015 for the next book. It feels like torture already.

We pick up where we left off for the most part. I started falling in love with Apollo from his previous appearances. I was not sure how I would feel about Lily Stump initially. However within a few minutes of the audiobook I knew that she was special. I loved little Indigo and Maude—although she was a bossy bit of goods. Daffodil was a delight as well, I wonder if she is Miss Puppy Pie in fiction form. Artemis & The Duke of Wakefield also make small appearances but we do get a chance to catch up with them.

The guy who really stole the show for me was The Duke of Montgomery. Very unlikeable initially but he grew on me; I looked forward to his scenes by the end of the book. Although I still am not sure if he’s good or bad, I want to see more of him. There was a moment where he ‘thought’ about a woman more than he usually did… Maybe he’ll get his own book or at least have a reoccurring role. Asa Makepeace aka Mr. Hart and Edwin were great as well. I would not mind reading a book about Asa. We also get a healthy glimpse of Phoebe and Captain Trevillion. Overall a very likeable cast who kept me engaged and made me smile.

The plot was engaging, there were some things thrown at me that I did not expect. The dialogue between the characters was well done. We didn't see many of those misunderstandings as in most historical romance. Lily and Apollo had great chemistry. I love that she never doubted that he was a good guy. She stuck to her convictions and stood by her man. There’s so much to the story surrounding Apollo and ‘that night.’ I was pleasantly surprised when things finally came to a head (although I saw some of it coming, it was nice to see it play out). Of course we get our HEA and I’m smiling. I smile even more because I had an audio preview of Dearest Rogue.

Is it 2015 yet? I'm so looking forward to the next masterpiece.

One of the best in the series IMO. Please keep steaming ahead Miss Hoyt, you do this genre JUSTICE! I ♥ Maiden Lane!

Overall: Story: 5, Narration: 3.5

Loved it

When I see new Hoyt books I always check to see if it's part of the maiden lane series. This one perhaps wasn't as good as the first few stories in the series but it was still very good. Narrator isn't just ok either, her accent and cadence seem to fit the story. This pairing makes the listen so much better than expected. I would listen to this again.