Audiobook Review: Damaged

Author: Jeanne St. James

Narrator: B.B. Franklin

Length: 5 hour and 41 minutes

Publisher: Jeanne St. James

Released: Mar. 22, 2018

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Two scarred souls: one physically, one mentally. Both on the mend, hiding from their pasts…

Mace Walker can’t wait to get home.

Being buried deep undercover for the past two years, on the most complex case of his career, has torn him down physically and mentally. Now the FBI agent has come home to recover after having his leg badly injured from a gunshot wound. Arriving home late one night, his relief is short-lived as he’s faced with a stranger pointing a gun to his head, acting like he is the one who doesn’t belong there!

Colby Parks, a biochemist at the local university, had come to town a year earlier to escape an abusive relationship. She vows never to put herself in that situation again.

Then the perfect opportunity comes along: housesitting for Mace’s sister while making the house she purchased habitable. But she couldn’t anticipate this big snag: the one wearing the tight Levi’s and worn leather jacket, looking like he had just escaped prison.

Being forced to share a house creates sparks between them in more ways than one. However, things take a turn when their pasts catch up to them, threatening to pull them apart forever.

JEANNE ST. JAMES is a USA Today bestselling romance author who loves an alpha male (or two). She was only thirteen when she started writing. Her first paid published piece was an erotic story in Playgirl magazine. Her first erotic romance novel, Banged Up, was published in 2009. She is happily owned by farting French bulldogs. She writes M/F, M/M, and M/M/F ménages. Want to read a sample of her work? Download a sampler book here: BookHip.com/MTQQKK

To keep up with her busy release schedule check her website at http://www.jeannestjames.com or sign up for her newsletter: http://www.jeannestjames.com/newslettersignup

Website⎮Twitter⎮Facebook⎮Goodreads⎮Amazon⎮Instagram

This one is difficult to review. On one hand, I have some things I did not like, but on the other, there is just something about these characters that I enjoyed. We have the story of an FBI agent coming home to heal his leg after being undercover for quite some time and a girl abused by her ex-boyfriend. We see them gradually trust each other and we see the past coming back for both. Deep feelings and deep connections are predominant.

On the positive note, I did enjoy their backstories and how they both have secrets. The intense moments they share are to die for. Mace is overprotective and even too jealous at times and Colby is too scared to face her actions. This flaw in their relationship is something that I liked. They start quickly something that they cannot name yet and it felt normal somehow. All their fears felt normal.

The thriller aspect of the story was not as believable to me. Mace is an FBI agent and could have easily found out what Colby’s past hid or who was making threats. The part where his own past returns felt forced. Also, for a woman with her past, she trusted very easily. Even if she says she’s strong, she falls into the comfort of having a man she can trust by her side. But can she trust him completely? When Colby is face to face with her worst fear, her reaction was not as emotional as I would have expected.

The narration was great. Even if I would have preferred a little more voice acting, the emotions were there, the rhythm of the story was there and B.B. Franklin’s voice is clear and easy to understand. Of all the interpretation, I like the frustration feeling she managed to capture. It was so realistic, it was as if she was living every moment with the character.

All in all, I will go with 3.5 stars. Even if there may be elements that did not stand well with me, this is still a book worth checking out, especially in audio version. I hope you’ll give it a try and come back with your thoughts 😊 Happy Reading!

I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Jeanne St. James. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.