To Hold a Hidden Pearl
Rossingley, Book 1
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To Hold a Hidden Pearl
Narrated by:
Richard Stranks
Buy Now for £13.05
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Narrated by:
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Richard Stranks
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By:
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Fearne Hill
Dr. Jay Sorrentino is getting married in 10 days’ time to the girl of his dreams, so what the hell is he doing in a gay London club with a stupidly handsome stranger? As if calling off the wedding and alienating his friends and family isn’t enough, Jay also has to contend with starting a new job at a new hospital. So the last thing he needs is for the bloke from the club to be his prickly supervisor.
Dr. Lucien Avery is a difficult colleague. He’s also the unexpected and reluctant heir to the vast Rossingley estate. Reclusive and miserable, he hates most of his colleagues, people who eat packed lunches, and supervising junior doctors. That is, until the delectable Dr. Sorrentino turns up on his doorstep.
A light-hearted M/M contemporary romance, Rossingley takes place in Southern England and is centered around a fictional country house and estate by the same name. The first in the series, it can be enjoyed as a stand-alone.
©2020 Fearne Hill (P)2022 NineStar Press, LLC
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The chemistry between Jay and Dr Lucien was electricity.
This was my first book by this author and I'm in love with their writing style
The narrator performed an amazing audio delivery and narration.
Definitely recommend
Light and sweet
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What I really love about this book is Fearne Hill’s wisdom; her innate and deep understanding of the human psyche is obvious throughout this lovely story. A practising hospital doctor herself, her observations of hospital life are all the more moving as they have most likely been fed by her own experiences. It made the story very real to me and I’ll admit that I had a tear in my eye on more than one occasion.
Witnessing the fragile and utterly beautiful Lucien coming back from the brink after the loss of his beloved family was moving and at times quite difficult. It does make one think about that possibility; almost everyone one loves… gone in one fell swoop. Incomprehensible. With the growing love and help of Jay, Lucien begins to feel that life is worth living again, and the fact that he too helps Jay come to terms with his sexuality and feelings of guilt is no small thing. A wonderful love story of how two polar opposite men meet and find a deep, inclusive and non judgemental love. So heartwarming.
Richard Stranks is a new to me narrator. I’ll admit to feeling quite unsure about him to begin with as his voice didn’t immediately resonate with me. As an avid audio book listener I have my go-to favourite narrators, and also some whose name on a book means I will never download but I decided to give this narrator a chance. To be fair, he grew on me the more I listened, and I can see why Fearne Hill chose him to narrate her book. His ‘Jay’ voice especially, was very pleasant. Jay *mostly* came over as described; a working class boy with a toned down Midlands accent - although he didn’t exactly sound like anyone I’ve ever known with a Wolverhampton accent - he was, nevertheless, easy on the ear and consistent throughout and I enjoyed the portrayal immensely; the character’s boyish exuberance and innate kindness coming over clearly.
The narrator’s rather over-the-top, ‘posh’ aristocratic accent for Lucien was a little harder to enjoy, a little reedy and harsh to my ear to begin with, but the more I listened, the more I settled in and accepted that this was the fragile, beautiful Lucien. Plus his accent softened when he was in a private moment with Jay so perhaps this was Richard Stranks’s aim: the autocratic Consultant Anaesthetist Dr Avery as opposed to his other alter egos. He differentiated clearly between the two men, and there was certainly never any doubt as to who was talking at any given time. One word kept grating on me though, but that’s down to the author, not the narrator; “gosh”. It was said so frequently throughout the book by Lucien that it put my teeth on edge and I found myself waiting for it. But that’s just me and I doubt anyone else has even noticed.
All in all a beautiful love story that I have no hesitation in recommending and with enjoyable narration by an up and coming young voice actor. I’m sure we’ll see a lot more of Richard Stranks in the future.
A beautiful story of love after loss
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loved it
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enjoyed
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I’ll start with Lucien. I felt great empathy for him. Oh, he’s a jerk at work – but he’s also faced great personal tragedy that’s left him overwhelmed and feeling not up to the task of running his family’s estate. He was the spare – this wasn’t supposed to be his burden to bear. On top of that, he’s gay – which doesn’t do well to continue the lineage – of which he is the seventeenth. He also has a secret fetish that he keeps hidden from the world. Hence the pearls.
I also loved Jay. The bloke’s about to get married but is also realizing he might not be as straight as he’s always believed. Before tying himself to a woman he adores and a lacklustre sex life, he heads to a gay club in London. The results are… interesting. In the end, he realizes he can’t go through with the wedding. He breaks his fiancée’s heart, and creates a huge mess to disentangle, but he’s free.
Until he comes face-to-face with the guy from the bar.
Uh…awkward.
Underpinning the relationship is the goings-on in a hospital. Through Lucien we meet many different patients and even now I’m tearing up. Those stories were heart-wrenching – and a reflection of real life. Still – tremendously impactful.
I loved Jay and Lucien together – they just fit. And yes, that makes life complicated for both – but it also brings happiness neither anticipated. And I loved the epilogue.
This is just the first in the series and I can’t wait for the next book. Finally, Richard Stranks is a new narrator to me and I have to say he did a great job. Won’t hesitate to pick him up again.
New to me author and I can’t wait for more!
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