Susan Duerden has narrated 105 audiobooks on Listento.it by 61 authors, with an average listener rating of 4.2★ across 1,868 ratings. The most-rated is Dracula [Audible Edition].
The Ugly Duchess
Summary
How can she dare to imagine he loves her... when all London calls her The Ugly Duchess? Theodora Saxby is the last woman anyone expects the gorgeous James Ryburn, heir to the Duchy of Ashbrook, to marry. But after a romantic proposal before the prince himself, even practical Theo finds herself convinced of her soon-to-be duke's passion. Still, the tabloids give the marriage six months. Theo would have given it a lifetime... until she discovers that James desired not her heart, and certainly not her countenance, but her dowry. Society was shocked by their wedding... and is scandalized by their separation. Now James faces the battle of his life, convincing Theo that he loves the duckling who blossomed into the swan. And Theo will quickly find that, for a man with the soul of a pirate, All's Fair in Love - and War.
©2012 Eloisa James (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers
Pleasure for Pleasure
Summary
Fueled by the knowledge that notoriety is better than failure, witty, unconventional Josie does what no proper young lady should - she challenges fate. She discards her corset and flirts outrageously. She attends the horse races and allows an arrogant rakehell to whisk her behind the stables for a surreptitious kiss....and is caught! She doesn't want to marry the young hellion? but who's to help? Her chaperone keeps disappearing for mysterious appointments; her guardian is on his wedding trip; and his friend the Earl of Mayne is too busy staring into the eyes of his exquisite French fiancee. Can a marriage forced by stuffy convention and unwilling desire become the match of the season?
©2006, 2011 Eloisa James (P)2011 HarperCollinsPublishers
When the Duke Returns
Summary
The Duchess of Cosway yearns for a man she has never met...her husband. Married by proxy as a child, Lady Isidore has spent years fending off lecherous men in every European court while waiting to meet her husband. She's determined to accept him, no matter how unattractive the duke turns out to be. When she finally lures Simeon Jermyn back to London, his dark handsomeness puts Isidore's worst fears to rest - until disaster strikes. The duke demands an annulment. Forsaking his adventuresome past, Simeon has returned to London ready to embrace the life of a proper duke, only to find that his supposed wife is too ravishing, too headstrong, and too sensual to be the docile duchess he has in mind. But Isidore will not give up her claim to the title - or him - without a fight. She will do whatever it takes to capture Simeon's heart, even if it means sacrificing her virtue. After all, a consummated marriage cannot be annulled. Yet in forcing Simeon into a delicious surrender, will Isidore risk not only her dignity - but her heart?
©2008 Eloisa James (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers
An Affair Before Christmas
Summary
Magic under the mistletoe. One spectacular Christmas, Lady Perdita Selby, known to her friends and family as Poppy, met the man she thought she would love forever. The devilishly attractive Duke of Fletcher was the perfect match for the innocent, breathtakingly beautiful young Englishwoman, and theirs was the most romantic wedding she had ever seen. Four years later, Poppy and the duke have become the toast of the town. But behind closed doors the spark of their love affair has burned out. Unwilling to lose the woman he still lusts after, the duke is determined to win back his beguiling bride's delectable affections - and surpass the heady days of first love with a truly sinful seduction.
©2007 Eloisa James (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers
This Duchess of Mine
Summary
No man can resist Jemma's sensuous allure...except her own husband! Wedding bells celebrating the arranged marriage between the lovely Duchess of Beaumont and her staid, imperturbable duke had scarcely fallen silent when a shocking discovery sent Jemma running from the ducal mansion. For the next nine years she cavorted abroad, creating one delicious scandal after another (if one is to believe the rumors). Elijah, Duke of Beaumont, did believe those rumors. But the handsome duke needs an heir, so he summons his seductive wife home. Jemma laughs at Elijah's cool eyes and icy heart - but to her secret shock, she doesn't share his feelings. In fact, she wants the impossible: her husband's heart at her feet. But what manner of seduction will make a man fall desperately in love...with his own wife?
©2009 Eloisa James (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers
Duchess by Night
Summary
A Mischievous Charade... Harriet, Duchess of Berrow, is tired of her title and the responsibilities that come along with it. Enough with proper tea parties and elegant balls; what Harriet really wants is to attend an outrageous soiree where she can unleash her wildest whims and desires. But to attend such an event - especially if the event in question is Lord Justinian Strange's rollicking fete, filled with noble rogues and rotters, risqué ladies and illicit lovers - would be certain scandal. That's why she must disguise herself.... Looking forward to a night of uninhibited pleasure, Lord Strange is shocked to discover that beneath the clothes of a no-good rake is the most beautiful woman in the room. Why is a woman like her risking her reputation at his notorious affair? And can he possibly entice her to stay...forever?
©2008 Eloisa James (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers
The Duke Is Mine
Summary
Destiny will be decided betweenthe sheets in this all-new tale of “The Princess and the Pea.” For Olivia Lytton, betrothal to the Duke of Canterwick - hardly a Prince Charming - feels more like a curse than a happily-ever-after. At least his noble status will help her sister, Georgiana, secure an engagement with the brooding, handsome Tarquin, Duke of Sconce,a perfect match for her in every way... every way but one. Tarquin has fallen in love with Olivia. Quin never puts passion before reason. And reason says that Georgiana is his ideal bride. But the sensual, fiery, strong-willed Olivia ignites an unknown longing in him - a desire they are both powerless to resist. When a scandalous affair begins, they risk losing everything - Olivia’s engagement, her sister’s friendship, and their own fragile love. Only one thing can save them - and it awaits in the bedroom, where a magnificent mattress holds life-changing answers to the greatest romantic riddle of all.
©2012 Eloisa James (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers
When Beauty Tamed the Beast
Summary
Miss Linnet Berry Thrynne is a Beauty... Naturally, she's betrothed to a Beast. Piers Yelverton, Earl of Marchant, lives in a castle in Wales where, it is rumored, his bad temper flays everyone he crosses. And rumor also has it that a wound has left the earl immune to the charms of any woman. Linnet is not just any woman. She is more than merely lovely: her wit and charm brought a prince to his knees. She estimates the earl will fall madly in love - in just two weeks. She is more than merely lovely: her wit and charm brought a prince to his knees. She estimates the earl will fall madly in love - in just two weeks. If she decides to be very wicked indeed... what price will she pay for taming his wild heart?
©2011 Eloisa James (P)2011 HarperCollinsPublishers
The Bellerose Bargain
Summary
The heiress to the Bellerose estate has gone missing and what a waste of a dowry it is! Charlotte Bellamy's future husband, Lord Geoffrey Seavers, is in desperate need to finance his royal fleet, yet somehow Charlotte disappeared and the Bellamy inheritance slipped through his fingers. Enter Alicia, a tavern maid of uncertain parentage. Yes, she's a bit young and headstrong, but no one at court has actually ever seen the Lady Bellamy, and Alicia's beauty, poise, and bearing are enough to fool the king. At least, that's what Geoffrey hopes when he proposes the Bellerose bargain: Alicia must pose as Charlotte, marry Geoffrey, split the dowry, fake her death, then both can part ways wealthier than they ever dreamed. Everything goes according to plan at first. Alicia charms King Charles II and his court easily, but did Geoffrey, her "business partner," have to be so dashing, tempestuous and oh-so-irresistible? Falling in love wasn't supposed to be part of the bargain…Worst of all, someone at court knows the true Charlotte Bellamy and recognizes Alicia for who she is. The truth of her past and the lies of her present are about to collide, and suddenly, Alicia and Geoffrey have more than they bargained for. Set in Restoration England, The Bellerose Bargain is full of passion, conspiracies, and intrigue. Fans of Virgin River are sure to love this historical novel written with Robyn's trademark zest for life.
©1982 Robyn Carr (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.
Much Ado About You
Summary
When you're the oldest daughter, you don't get to have any fun! Witty, orphaned Tess Essex faces her duty: marry well and marry quickly, so she can arrange matches for her three sisters - beautiful Annabel, romantic Imogen, and practical Josie. After all, right now they're under the rather awkward guardianship of the perpetually tipsy Duke of Holbrook. But just when she begins to think that all might end well, one of her sisters bolts with a horse-mad young lord, and her own fiancé just plain runs away. Which leaves Tess contemplating marriage to the sort of man she wishes to avoid - one of London's most infamous rakes. Lucius Felton is a rogue whose own mother considers him irredeemable! He's delicious, Annabel points out. And he's rich, Josie notes. But although Tess finally consents to marry him, it may be for the worst reason of all. Absurd as she knows it to be, she may have fallen utterly in love....
©2005 Eloisa James (P)2013 HarperCollinsPublishers
The Dressmaker
Summary
Just in time for the centennial anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic comes a vivid, romantic, and relentlessly compelling historical novel about a spirited young woman who survives the disaster only to find herself embroiled in the media frenzy left in the wake of the tragedy. Tess, an aspiring seamstress, thinks she's had an incredibly lucky break when she is hired by famous designer Lady Lucile Duff Gordon to be a personal maid on the Titanic's doomed voyage. Once on board, Tess catches the eye of two men, one a roughly-hewn but kind sailor and the other an enigmatic Chicago millionaire. But on the fourth night, disaster strikes. Amidst the chaos and desperate urging of two very different suitors, Tess is one of the last people allowed on a lifeboat. Tess’s sailor also manages to survive unharmed, witness to Lady Duff Gordon’s questionable actions during the tragedy. Others - including the gallant Midwestern tycoon - are not so lucky. On dry land, rumors about the survivors begin to circulate, and Lady Duff Gordon quickly becomes the subject of media scorn and later, the hearings on the Titanic. Set against a historical tragedy but told from a completely fresh angle, The Dressmaker is an atmospheric delight filled with all the period's glitz and glamour, all the raw feelings of a national tragedy and all the contradictory emotions of young love. From the Hardcover edition
©2012 Kate Alcott (P)2012 Random House Audio
The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Volume 12
Summary
The latest in a series that has been called "a must for fans of science fiction, fantasy, and short stories in general" Science fiction is a portal that opens doors onto futures too rich and strange to imagine. Fantasy takes us through doorways of magic and wonder. For more than a decade award-winning editor Jonathan Strahan has sifted through tens of thousands of stories to select the best, the most interesting, the most engaging science fiction and fantasy to thrill and delight readers. Featuring stories from Daniel Abraham, Charlie Jane Anders, Kelly Barnhill, R. S. Benedict, Tobias Buckell, C.S.E. Cooney, Indrapramit Das, Samuel R. Delany, Greg Egan, Max Gladstone, Theodora Goss, Saad Z. Hossain, Dave Hutchinson, Kathleen Kayembe, Caitlin R Kiernan, Mary Robinette Kowal, Rich Larson, Yoon Ha Lee, Scott Lynch, Maureen McHugh, Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali, Linda Nagata, Suzanne Palmer, Vina Jie-Min Prasad, Alastair Reynolds, Karl Schroeder, Kai Ashante Wilson, Nick Wolven, and Caroline M. Yoachim. Narrators: Dan Woren, Shridhar Solanki, MW Wilson, Josh Clark, Mimi Chang, Susan Duerden, Deepti Gupta, Nick Hardcastle, Rachel Jacobs, Sisi Aisha Johnson, Ava Lucas, Janet Metzger, and Greg Tremblay. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
©2017 see PDF (P)2018 Recorded Books
Seven Minutes in Heaven
Summary
Witty and elusive Eugenia Snowe has all society begging for one of her premiere governesses - except the powerful Edward Reeve, who bursts into her office with his arrogant demands. No question that Eugenia enjoys crossing wits with the brilliant inventor, but Ward wants far more than a governess. He wants Eugenia, and he'll stop at nothing to have her - including kidnapping. Will Eugenia lose her heart in the most reckless gamble of her life, or will she discover the sweetest pleasure she's ever known? All it will take is seven minutes.
©2017 Eloisa James, Inc. (P)2017 HarperCollins Publishers
Midnight Pleasures
Summary
In the night, all rules are forgotten... Eloisa James, the acclaimed author of Potent Pleasures, returns to Regency England with an unforgettable new heroine - a genteel but naughty innocent who gets more than she bargains for when she finally says yes to love. To her legions of adoring suitors, it comes as quite a shock when Lady Sophie York rejects an offer of marriage from the dashing, rakish Patrick Foakes in favor of amiable but dull Braddon Chatwin. He may be an earl, but it is Patrick's stolen kisses that sear her lips. When Patrick, in disguise, scales a ladder to retrieve his friend's fiancée, he never expects the elopement to be his own. Neither does Sophie, Braddon, or the rest of the tattling ton. One hasty wedding later, the passionate innocent and the sophisticated rogue play out their own intricate dance as Sophie masters what it takes to keep a man where he belongs. And Patrick learns the ultimate lesson in love.
©2000 Eloisa James (P)2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc.
The Map of Knowledge
Summary
“The Map of Knowledge is an endlessly fascinating book, rich in detail, capacious and humane in vision.” (Stephen Greenblatt, author of The Swerve: How the World Became Modern, winner of the Pulitzer Prize)
After the Fall of Rome, when many of the great ideas of the ancient world were lost to the ravages of the Dark Ages, three crucial manuscripts passed hand to hand through seven Mediterranean cities and survived to fuel the revival of the Renaissance - an exciting debut history.
The foundations of modern knowledge - philosophy, math, astronomy, geography - were laid by the Greeks, whose ideas were written on scrolls and stored in libraries across the Mediterranean and beyond. But as the vast Roman Empire disintegrated, so did appreciation of these precious texts. Christianity cast a shadow over so-called pagan thought, books were burned, and the library of Alexandria, the greatest repository of classical knowledge, was destroyed.
Yet some texts did survive and The Map of Knowledge explores the role played by seven cities around the Mediterranean - rare centers of knowledge in a dark world, where scholars supported by enlightened heads of state collected, translated, and shared manuscripts. In 8th century Baghdad, Arab discoveries augmented Greek learning. Exchange within the thriving Muslim world brought that knowledge to Cordoba, Spain. Toledo became a famous center of translation from Arabic into Latin, a portal through which Greek and Arab ideas reached Western Europe. Salerno, on the Italian coast, was the great center of medical studies, and Sicily, ancient colony of the Greeks, was one of the few places in the West to retain contact with Greek culture and language. Scholars in these cities helped classical ideas make their way to Venice in the 15th century, where printers thrived and the Renaissance took root.
The Map of Knowledge follows three key texts - Euclid's Elements, Ptolemy's The Almagest, and Galen's writings on medicine - on a perilous journey driven by insatiable curiosity about the world.
“A lovely debut from a gifted young author. Violet Moller brings to life the ways in which knowledge reached us from antiquity to the present day in a book that is as delightful as it is readable.” (Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads)
“A sumptuous, glittering, endlessly fascinating book, written with passion, verve, and humor.” (Catherine Nixey, author of The Darkening Age)
©2019 Violet Moller (P)2019 Random House Audio
My Four Seasons in France
Summary
A little over 10 years ago, Janine Marsh and her husband gave up their careers in London to chase the good life in the countryside of northern France. Having overcome the obstacles of starting to renovate her dream home - an ancient, dilapidated barn - and fitting in with the peculiarities of the locals, Janine is now the go-to expat in the area for those seeking to get to grips with a very different way of life. In this book, Janine regales us with the delights and dramas of a year attempting to live the rural idyll. Each month brings to light a new aspect of life in the French countryside: snow in January, resulting in a broken arm, which in turn leads to an etiquette lesson at the local hospital; wild winds in February; cuckoos in March; and giant hailstones in July that destroy cars and houses and bring the villagers closer together. Told with warmth and humor, My Good Year in France showcases a uniquely French way of life: where two eternally ambitious expats drag a neglected farmhouse to life, and deal with the accompanying disasters, learn to grow vegetables, discover how to cook, and stumble across the hidden gems of this very special part of the world.
©2020 Janine Marsh (P)2020 Tantor
Corsets and Codpieces
Summary
Have you ever wondered why we wear the type of clothes we do? Packed with outlandish outfits, this exciting history of fashion trends reveals the flamboyant fashions adopted (and discarded) by our ancestors. In the days before cosmetic surgery, people used bum rolls and bombastic breeches to augment their figures, painted their faces with poisonous concoctions, and doused themselves with scent to cover body odor. Take a fresh look at history's hidden fashion disasters and discover some of the stories behind historical garments: How removing a medieval woman's headdress could reveal her as a harlot Why Tudor men traded in their oversized codpieces for corsets How crinoline caused a spate of shoplifting among Victorian ladies Karen Bowman charts our sartorial history from the animal skins first used to cover our modesty and show off hunting skills, right up to the twentieth-century drive for practicality and comfort. Corsets and Codpieces is a fascinating listen for history buffs and fashionistas alike.
©2015 Karen Bowman (P)2017 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.
My Last Duchess
Summary
New York Times best-selling author Eloisa James returns to the Wildes series with a prequel about the Wilde children's parents, Hugo, duke of Lindow, and Ophelia, Lady Astley. Every duke needs a duchess.... Hugo Wilde, the duke of Lindow, has a drafty castle, eight naughty children - and no wife. Ophelia, Lady Astley, has a fine house, one well-behaved daughter - and no husband. Hugo takes one look at Ophelia and loses his heart, but she doesn’t want more children or a castle. She takes one look at him and heads for her carriage. Desperate to find a duchess, Hugo identifies an appropriate lady to woo. Yet when he meets Ophelia again, the duke realizes that he will marry her or no one. Now he faces the greatest challenge of his life. He must convince Ophelia that their blazing sensuality, his exquisite castle, and his eight charming children add up to a match made in heaven. When duke finds his duchess, can he win her heart?
©2020 Eloisa James (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers
His Kidnapper's Shoes
Summary
Daniel is my son. He has always been mine. And he always will be.
On some level deep inside, Laura Bateman knows something is wrong. That her relationship with her son is not what it should be. That it is based on lies.
But bad things have happened to Laura. Things that change a person. Forever.
For twenty-six-year-old Daniel, the discovery that his mother is not who he thought comes close to destroying him. As his world turns upside down, he searches for sanity in the madness that has become his life. Daniel is left with nothing but questions. Why did Laura do something so terrible? Can he move past the demons of his childhood?
And the biggest question of all: can he ever forgive Laura?
©2016 Maggie James (P)2017 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.
And the Miss Ran Away with the Rake
Summary
Sensible gentleman of means seeks a sensible lady of good breeding for correspondence, and in due consideration, matrimony. Which is exactly the sort of advertisement that makes practical-to-a-fault Daphne Dale's heart flutter. A sensible gentleman, in her estimation, is the perfect match, and she's even more convinced once she's exchanging sensibly romantic letters with her very appropriate suitor. That is, until Lord Henry Seldon strays into her path. He's everything she's vowed to avoid - a rakish charmer whose very touch seduces her practical sensibilities and her resolve. Lord Henry Seldon was not amused when his nephew placed an advertisement to find him a wife. Yet he couldn't resist replying to the note from "Miss Spooner". And once he discovers he's corresponding with none other than the disarming Daphne Dale, he finds it's too late to disavow his heart. Now it is up to Henry to prove to Daphne just how insensible - and powerfully passionate - true love can be...
©2013 Elizabeth Boyle (P)2014 HarperCollins Publishers