Review: Really Great American Historical Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 12, 2013
**Review of the Audio Book**Description:<B>The Longing</b> is the story of Kyle Grayson and Amelia Drake, who have both been hurt in the past by people they loved.  They are forced to marry and now they have to learn to trust each other with their secrets and their hearts.The Set-Up:Kyle Grayson is the middle Grayson brother who has run the family mill since his father died.  He lost the woman he thought he was going to marry to his brother, so he is (understandably) very cranky and pretty cynical about love.  Amelia Drake is the daughter of a mill owner and when she was young she was seduced and abandoned by a man who she thought loved her and wanted to marry her.  Now she’s decided to stay a spinster school teacher because no man would want a wife who isn’t a virgin.  Due to some unfortunate circumstances, Kyle and Amelia must marry and that’s where the story really takes off.What I liked:Kyle and Amelia are really interesting, complicated characters who both have A LOT of baggage.  Kyle is not a particularly likeable character in the first book, so it was really great to see him transform over the course of the book, not just in his relationship with Amelia, but also with his brothers.  I liked Amelia’s sassiness and sense of humor.  This books had a lot of humor which was a pleasant surprise.What I Also Liked:There was a bit of a mystery in this story, which I thought added to the book and helped Kyle and Amelia build their relationship and learn to work together.What I didn’t Like:The hero and heroine keeping secrets from each other is not my favorite plot device.  I just wanted them to talk to each other! There were so many secrets, it got a little frustrating, but even after saying all that it does make for a compelling read!I listened to the audio version of this book and I thought the narrator (Julia Motyka) did an excellent job portraying all the different characters and conveying the emotion and humor needed for this story.  She's a narrator I'd definitely listen to again!If you’re looking for a well-written, compelling historical romance (when are those secrets going to come out!?!?), with complex characters with a lot of baggage but also sass and humor and occasional crankiness, then I highly recommend this story!I was offered a copy of the audio book by the author in exchange for an honest review.