Rock Hard

By: Nalini Singh

Narrated by: Justine O. Keef

Length: 10 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's Summary

Wealthy businessman Gabriel Bishop rules the boardroom with the same determination and ruthlessness that made him a rock star on the rugby field. He knows what he wants, and he'll go after it no holds barred. And what he wants is Charlotte Baird.

Charlotte knows she's a mouse. Emotionally scarred and painfully shy, she just wants to do her job and remain as invisible as possible. But the new CEO - a brilliant, broad-shouldered T. rex of a man who growls and storms through the office, leaving carnage in his wake - clearly has other plans. And these plans may be equal parts business and bedroom.

If Charlotte intends to survive this battle of wits and hearts, the mouse will have to learn to wrangle the T. rex. Game on.

©2015 Nalini Singh (P)2015 Tantor

Critic Reviews

"Gabriel Bishop reminds me why I fell in love with romance." (Angela, Fiction Vixen)

I WAS SWEPT AWAY WITH THEIR SIMMERING CHEMISTRY

I made a huge mistake with this book..... I started to listen to it quite late in the evening and, because the well paced story was romantic, captivating and all its characters were so likeable, I just couldn't stop listening and kept fooling myself with thoughts of "oh, just one more chapter" until I finally thought "well there's only five chapters left I might as well finish it". I know I know I have no willpower and since joining Audible I've seen a lot of early dawns creeping in but, when the book's characters are so alluring and the storyline is funny, sad, tender, sexy, sweet, touching, romantic and there's witty banter too, then I'm a sucker for a love story with a HEA ending.

Gabriel, the very handsome workaholic playboy, has come in as CEO to rescue a failing Company but he's ruthless, focussed, driven and is very intelligent so it doesn't take him long to see that one of his employees, the shy, mousey little Charlotte with her baggy ill-fitting clothes, is actually highly intelligent and is in the wrong position in the Company so promotes her to be his P.A. But, as soon as he does, Gabriel realises that he's physically and mentally drawn to her and can see beyond her layers of protection to the little gem hidden beneath so he does what he does best.... makes careful plans to win the affections and trust of his timid little mouse. However, he soon discovers that his plans will have to be long-term plans as the more he sees Charlotte flinching and freezing up at his touch the more he painfully realises that she's been a victim of something terrible but it doesn't deter this now focussed and reformed playboy.

Yes, Charlotte has been a victim and her horrific ordeal is told in this listen but, with the help of her best friend Molly (from book 1) and over several months of working for sexy Alpha Gabriel (dubbed as T Rex by her), she slowly gains confidence, stands up for herself and snipes back.... which is just what Gabriel had planned. Then her fears turn into longings, she sees the caring family man behind Gabriel's ruthless facade, she also sees the deep attraction for her that he's not hiding any longer and the patience he's endured. But can she tell him her secret, will it scare him off, will she ever enjoy being touched again, is there any hope of a future for Gabriel and herself and will she survive when her abusive ex-boyfriend is released from prison???

Worth a credit? Dual POV's, a very good narrator who did a sexy Alpha male voice with ease, a patient, loyal, loving and swoon worthy Hero and an enjoyable well-written plot that had a lot of character growth and development as the Hero drew in his claws and the Heroine finally found hers. So YES worth a credit and I haven't yet come across a Nalini Singh book that wasn't worth a credit..... that's why her books are an auto buy for me.

18 of 19 people found this review helpful

Appreciated the writer, storyline, location...more

What did you love best about Rock Hard?

The story was well written, underlying issues being addressed not lost, and the chemistry sizzling.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Charlotte (Charlie) as she conquered so much during the length of the tale.

What does Justine O. Keef bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Justine O. Keef is an great narrator - period.

Any additional comments?

My only reason to not give this audible experience 5 stars all the way around is that this book is centered in New Zealand and I think the book deserves a narrator with experience in New Zealand (a Kiwi perhaps) or an English ex-pat who has spent time in New Zealand. Pronunciation, knowledge of the country, and tone, could really bring this book to another level of experience. I am not suggesting a deep kiwi accent in the book, but a recognizable softened accent would nevertheless add to the experience and help set the book apart perhaps from every other American-read narration. Certainly Charlotte would be a kiwi I would expect.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

A fantastic listen!

Would you consider the audio edition of Rock Hard to be better than the print version?

I only listened so I have no idea but I enjoyed the narrator and felt they added to the story.

What did you like best about this story?

Okay so this was really good. The story layers intersected beautifully. There were reasons for the character motivations. The male lead worked hard to give space and time to the female lead whoneeded it. It took time for them to actually get to the physical part and there was follow up for why. I did not review the first book in this series because I did not feel the same way but this book exceeded my expectations and I applaude Ms. Singh for truly hitting the mark.

What about Justine O. Keef’s performance did you like?

Her performance was impassioned and well done. I am always astounded when I forget a female is reading a male role. Bravo!

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

Holding back from passion takes strength but the bond it forms is Rock Hard.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Best so far

This novel in the series has the most depth of character. It's not heart wrenching deep but the author's character development keeps improving with each installment. No rockers in this book, however.
-V from Kansas

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Heartfelt.

Very strong story. Even better than the first. Gabriel was strong and perfect. So steadfast for his woman.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Not A Keeper for Me

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

NO

Any additional comments?

I dislike this story it's so...predictable just like other contemporaries where the women are soft and supposed to be smart and yet make herself vulnerable, why is it that she knows theres a threat to herself and make no move to take self-defense classes etc to keep herself safe? Why did Nalini Singh make her female character so blah..I'm not liking her other contemporary either why did she make the leading ladies so lame..?BLAH..

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Pushiness Wins Sometimes

Game on for Charlie and T-Rex. Yeah for Gabriel pushing Charlotte out of her comfort zone. Loved this book, it was a great love story and story of strength and resilience. I highly recommend this book and series. Great performance by Justine O. Keef.

Fantastic

Absolutely loved this book! The humor the wit the laughter all made this story great.

T-Rex meets Charlie-mouse

Yay! Charlie gets her own story, and we get introduced to the Bishop-Esera clan. (Read Sailor and Isa’s story in Cherish Hard, after the Rock Kiss series.) We can admire Charlie more when we find out what she’s been through. We can also admire Gabriel aka the Bishop aka T-Rex as he recognizes Charlie’s value as an employee and woman.
Keef does a very good job with narration.
Recommend!

One of Nalini Singh's best for ContemporaryRomance

Besides the Novella from this Series, this is my 2nd fav of the Series. Really likable characters and great interaction.

narrator did well with enough expression to make it interesting!

Yah Charlie mouse

I love listening to this book and have done do 3 or 4 times since it was released. To see Charlie come out of herself after what she went through will Richard was inspiring. Roll on the next book.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Excellent first audio book experience!

In the past I would have said I didn't like audio books as I'm not keen on being read to but Justine O. Keef's narration of Rock Hard has definitely changed my mind. Her clear diction and clean accent meant I wasn't straining to make out what was being said and could enjoy the story of Charlotte and Gabriel without being distracted by the narrator.
I'd already read and loved this book (Nalini's books are an autobuy for me) but I hadn't thought about listening to it until I saw a tweet about it and thought I'd give it a go & I'm so glad I did.
I would love it if the Psy/ Changeling books were available as audio as I would get them to complement the print and eBook versions I've already got (as long as the narration's just as good). Can't recommend this highly enough.