The Gypsy Bride

The Daring Debutantes, Book 2

By: Jerrica Knight-Catania

Narrated by: Stevie Zimmerman

Length: 3 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

Engaged to a reprehensible baron, Bianca Manning knows she must do something to escape her fate. She decides that a Romany camp is the last place her mad fiance would think to look for her.

The last thing Emilian Carrol needs is a spirited Englishwoman in his life, but he can't seem to say no when she begs to hide out in his tribe's camp. And maybe she's just the thing he needs to help heal his wounded heart.

Thomas Barclay, future Viscount Grantham, is bored to tears and looking for a distraction. When his old friend Baron Tisbury asks for help in tracking down his missing fiancee, Tom decides to make himself useful and goes in search of the wayward girl.

Caught between two worlds, Bianca must figure out which man holds the keys to her heart.

©2012 Jerrica Knight-Catania (P)2013 Jerrica Knight-Catania

Pretty cute story

This was a cute little romance. I don't love historical books, but this was okay and the narrator had a lovely English accent that made the story flow and kept me engaged.
Bianca and Emil were cute together and I liked how he cared for her enough that he put her safety over keeping her with him and putting her in danger. Thomas fell for Bianca too quickly and I don't think it was real love, he just liked the idea of her and it gave him purpose. The way he acted at the end was disappointing and makes me think he's not ready for a relationship. Hopefully in the next book he's happy.

Savory Historical Romance

The second book in the series seems to be for Victoria's brother Tom, but not really. It is a little love triangle. This is presented with a mixed narrative from the three leads and a few side POVs from Victoria. It was a really intriguing style, definitely helped to get insight into all characters.

I really liked Bianca and her adventurous spirit. She did seem to have trouble making a choice but thankfully fate has a hand in making things work out. I would love to see a spin-off with her sisters, they are quite the bunch!!

I liked Emil and felt for his past and current situation. I always have a weakness for a Gypsy rogue!! I am also drawn to Tom, who really is not happy in London. I thought he let family and society pressures keep him away from Jamaica, which he truly loved. While his heart was in the right place, it just wasn't meant to be.

The feelings seemed more tentative between Bianca and Tom, more friendship and admiration than love. Things were much lustier for Bianca and Emil, but that often leads to deeper emotions.

The story does have a little drag and gets a bit repetitive, a lot of running away. Still it was very entertaining and a little heartbreaking.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Stevie Zimmerman, who is delightful. The British accent suited the setting of the book and was a lovely addition to the narration. She has a delightful way with the character voices. She managed to make them all distinct and consistent. I would have liked a but more accent for the Gypsies. She has a very brisk pace in the read, some might want to play at half speed to keep up, personally I like it quicker. I am definitely looking forward to hearing her read the rest of the series.

There is a weird quirk in the audio, it pauses after each chapter before it starts again. I like a smoother read and this was a distraction.

Overall this was a enjoyable read, even when it was being a touch frustrating. I really liked the characters and see growth in the storytelling. I can not wait to see the next book, a certain drunkard in this book needs to find some much deserved happiness.

Disclosure - I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts, opinions and ratings are my own.

Cute Story.

This was a very cute story. I liked it. I liked the heroine, she was spunky. The hero was interesting too. I haven't read a historical with a Gypsy hero before, so that was a change. They had some good chemistry together. No sex in this story but there was kissing and "discomfort in breeches" So it is rated G.

I liked the story line and the plot, except for one thing that happened didn't get any closure. But I guess that's okay. There is lots of dialogue throughout the entire book which was great! I like it when people talk to each other and we don't just get the inner thoughts. So good job on the dialogue!

As for the narration, Stevie Zimmerman did a good job with everyone's voices and the reading voice, except I didn't care for the voice she did for Emil our hero. He was a Gypsy so of course he needed and accent but he just didn't sound very sexy or handsome, he sounded sort of dumb at times. Hence the 3 stars for narration.