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    The Soldier's Scoundrel
    The Soldier's Scoundrel
    The Soldier's Scoundrel
    Audiobook7 hours

    The Soldier's Scoundrel

    Written by Cat Sebastian

    Narrated by Gary Furlong

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    A scoundrel who lives in the shadows.
     
    Jack Turner grew up in the darkness of London's slums, born into a life of crime and willing to do anything to keep his belly full and his siblings safe. Now he uses the tricks and schemes of the underworld to help those who need the kind of assistance only a scoundrel can provide. His distrust of the nobility runs deep and his services do not extend to the gorgeous high-born soldier who personifies everything Jack will never be. 
     
    A soldier untarnished by vice.
     
    After the chaos of war, Oliver Rivington craves the safe predictability of a gentleman's life-one that doesn't include sparring with a ne'er-do-well who flouts the law at every turn. But Jack tempts Oliver like no other man has before. Soon his yearning for the unapologetic criminal is only matched by Jack's pleasure in watching his genteel polish crumble every time they're together. 
     
    Two men only meant for each other.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateOct 4, 2016
    ISBN9780062668639
    The Soldier's Scoundrel
    Author

    Cat Sebastian

    Cat Sebastian writes queer historical romances. Cat’s books include We Could Be So Good and the Turner series, and have received starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Booklist. Before writing, Cat was a lawyer and a teacher and did a variety of other jobs she liked much less than she enjoys writing happy endings for queer people. She was born in New Jersey and lived in New York and Arizona before settling down in a swampy part of the South. When she isn’t writing, she’s probably reading, having one-sided conversations with her dog, or doing the crossword puzzle.

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    Reviews for The Soldier's Scoundrel

    4.5/5

    324 ratings22 reviews

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    • 3/5
      It was a good story. It got tired after a while though. The investigation, to me, got a bit boring after some time. I honestly wasn't interested at all in that story line. I also gor bored of the push and pull between Oliver and Jack. I feel like the book didn't have a real soft area for the two of them. It was push and pull and then final resignation. It was ok.
    • 5/5
      Really cute book about learning to love, and looking past biases.
    • 5/5
      A very good storyline. Well written and very pleasantly narrated. I enjoyed this book very much.

    • 5/5
      Lovely story, the narrator made a great job! Its 100 % better than the horendous cover picture.
    • 1/5
      Good book, but the audio recording is missing parts!! Had to buy it on kindle to finish it :/
    • 5/5
      It was a sweet love story which i enjoyed very much.
    • 4/5
      Not sure if the ending is plausible but I enjoyed it!
    • 1/5
      Atrocious, sodomy infused garbage that should be banned from the literary world
    • 5/5
      I found this story delightful. Class difference, a little bit grumpy/sunshine. I was absorbed in the story, and laughing, and it was sweet, and the characters and events made sense. I'm very pleased.
    • 5/5
      I'm a big fan of historical romance when it has excellent characters. Delighted to find a new series to love.
    • 5/5
      I've read a lot of Regency romance, but The Soldier's Scoundrel was my first Regency with two male protagonists. If you love Regency, you'll love this book. The character's have a lovely hate-at-first sight turned infatuation relationship which is complicated by being gay men during this time period. Both character's are shown with mostly supportive families and I felt neither were a stereotype. The steamy scenes were well written and didn't feel gratuitous. Slight ending spoiler below:Even though it's a romance, the author doesn't completely suspend reality by having them ride off into the sunset with their relationship out in the open, but the ending was as satisfying as could be expected.
    • 4/5
      Sweet and prim Oliver, and Jack, the rogue, will quickly win the hearts of the reader. Unfortunately, they didn’t win the hearts of the society or the time period they were a part of. In this time period gay people could expect to face anything from the pillory to the noose. However fiction can have any outcome it wishes so the author has every right to give the reader their expected “happily ever after”. Jack and Oliver couldn’t be more different...but yet I could easily see how and why they were drawn to each other. I wasn’t entirely convinced by certain aspects of the ending and just how these two planned to get away with staying together...but none the less I still enjoyed seeing them reach that point.
    • 5/5
      Jack Turner does discreet private investigations for people. He also solves their problems. Oliver Rivington is the youngest son of the Earl of Rutland and he comes to Jack to find out what Jack was doing for his sister. While there, Lady Wraxhall comes in and wants Jack to find out who wants to blackmail her over letters she wrote years ago to a hometown beau. Jack takes on the case and Oliver goes along with him to stop him from breaking the law. Along the way the two men fall in love but neither tells the other. Oliver's brother-in-law dies and both suspect more than an accidental death. So they both look into it. Was it murder or just an accident? Will they stay together?I enjoyed this book. I liked Jack and Oliver. They were total opposites in their outlooks on life but they cared about each other. No matter what circumstances were thrown at them they overcame it though it was close for a while there. The secondary characters were there to move the story along. I had questions about them but most were answered.I enjoy Cat Sebastian's writing and will be reading more of her.
    • 5/5
      Real Rating: 4.75* of fiveFirst, read this:Jack had relied utterly on {Oliver} for all things related to navigation—the geography of the north of England was nothing more than an ominous question mark to Jack. This morning, as plain as day, he had seen mountains to the west, mountains that he was certain had no business being in England at all, and yet there they were, which only went to show how completely unreliable everything became the farther one got from London.–and–When Oliver gently bit Jack’s earlobe, all those worries scattered like spiders, retreating to the dark and safe corners of Jack’s mind.–and–{Jack} said “breeding” like someone would say “syphilis” or “bedbugs.”The thing about privilege is, when you're born to it, it's a bit...restrictive. There are codes. Rules. Norms. Small price to pay for luxury, grumble those without it. Yeah? You try it, sneer those with it.Honor was a luxury item, like hair pomade and snuff. Its only purpose was to show the world that you could afford to be impractical, that you had enough money to behave in a way that was compatible with some ludicrous code instead of acting out of self-preservation like the rest of humanity.So Oliver, privileged by his parentage and his recent Napoleonic-Wars service and injury, is restless back in England. Accidentally he discovers his sister has paid a considerable sum to a private investigator, Jack, and decides he wants to know the whys and wherefores. There are prices to pay for losing one's ignorance...“No,” Jack said after a moment. “That is not how it works. With all due respect,” he remarked, managing to convey no respect whatsoever, “you wouldn’t know whether or not he was decent. You couldn’t, in fact. You play cards with him, maybe drink or make idle conversation. He has no power over you to be anything other than decent. It’s his wife and servants who know the truth. You would likely have thought your brother-in-law a decent fellow had you met him at your club.”Jack, well, he doesn't play even when it's playtime. Jack lives his life. There's no room in it for an overbred underdone scion of the nobility he so despises. Until, of course, Oliver:{Oliver} seemed unperturbed by Jack’s loss of temper. He rubbed has hand along his jaw. “In that case, we could pretend to be cousins by marriage. And then we can both act appalled by the connection.”Jack laughed, feeling his anger dissipate.”–and–“Hear me now, Oliver Rivington. You will not use gestures with me.”The humor of the situation, a gap in social class being made as nothing when love enters the frame, the stakes of the men's mutual pursuit of a miscreant...all worked for me largely because Author Cat writes amusing and witty lines the way I sweat, effortlessly and profusely. I've tried to sample the typical lines, the ones that aren't set-pieces, as well as those that are. The story will stand or fall on your opinion of the synopsis. The writing, you've seen, is what will make your experience memorable for good or ill.I'm very much on the "good" side, and I hope you'll be as well.An almost-perfect score, a quarter-star off for a few mondegreens, but mostly BECAUSE THERE WAS NOT ONE SINGLE SOLITARY AWFUL GHASTLY WINK.
    • 5/5
      Reread because 1) I'm rereading old favorites and 2) I had wanted to listen to this one.

      Rivington seemed unperturbed by Jack’s loss of temper. He rubbed has hand along his jaw.
      “In that case, we could pretend to be cousins by marriage. And then we can both act appalled by the connection.” Jack laughed, feeling his anger dissipate.


      I think, probably, my friends have all written better, more adequate reviews. And I'll tell you that this seems to be about the only book that hits the spot. The humor was just right, the angst was well done, and just overall a beautiful book.

      I love Jack, I love Oliver. I love that both heroes have strength and vulnerabilities.I talk about vulnerability in characters a lot. As a person, I find it a big risk and reward. So when both characters exhibit it whether willing or reluctant, it strikes a chord. Somehow this book has a balance in both characters that is refreshing and delightful. Somehow they both manage to be 'alpha' (kind of hate that term) in different ways. Basically, they are adorable.


      This is ours

      This one obviously held up on reread, if not improved. I like Gary Furlong a lot. I don't always love his timing, but overall find him super easy to listen to.



      ___________________________________
      Loved it.
      Loved the heroes. Loved the tension and buildup. Loved all the things they said without words. Loved the fireworks. The conflict was well done as well.

      Intrigued by secondary characters. I wish I had more to say in this review, but I really don't.
    • 4/5
      4.5. Loved, loved, loved both Jack & Oliver!
    • 4/5
      like sherlock holmes dr. watson, but gayer. a solid romp and super fun. will definitely read more of her work!
    • 5/5
      My second Cat Sebastian book, and only the third romance book I've ever finished. It has elements of mystery to it, and yet it achieves a wonderful balance; the mystery plot does not distract from the romance, and the romance does not distract from the mystery plot. They work in concert to beautiful effect. It's also surprisingly funny and the two leads are each very interesting characters on their own. One specific thing I loved was the way in which each character (secondary and mains) revealed their particular hurts. Each time it felt organic and natural, and each time, the manner of revealing told you as much as the reveal itself. Just a really great romance novel.
    • 5/5
      Cheesy cover, but a terrific Regency mystery and romance of two men from different classes of society falling in love. Will be reading more from this author. Very impressed and very entertained.
    • 4/5
      Set in Regency England, this romance follows Jack Turner, who is a kind of Regency-era fixer who takes jobs for women only, and Oliver Rivington, an aristocratic second son who has just sold his army commission after being seriously wounded in the leg. The two cross paths when Oliver tries to hunt down just why his sister would have paid Jack two hundred pounds. The two become friends while they are both busy trying not to fall in love with each other, and they investigate one of Jack's cases while they're at it. It took me a little bit to get into this one, but once I did, I was strongly invested, both in the heroes as characters/in their love story and in the case they were investigating (although it probably bears mentioning that there isn't a whole lot of true investigating on the page). Two things struck me about this story that I really enjoyed. The first was that the realities of the dangers of engaging in a same-sex relationship in early 1800s Britain were fully recognized (even if the HEA is a wee bit hand-wavey) without casting a pall of dread over the whole story. Second was the way women remain important to the story (which is often, though certainly not always, not true in m/m romance). Both men have women in their lives who are important to them (even if they aren't on the page a huge amount of the time), and Jack's work (and specifically the case they work on during the bulk of the story) hinges on the ways women are given little or no recourse by their society when they are wronged.Absolutely recommended to anyone who enjoys this sort of thing.
    • 4/5
      This book caught me by surprise. It's the first m/m Romance I've seen from a major publishing house. In the past, all the ones I've seen have been either self or indie published. So that alone would have caught my attention. Yet, the author gives us enjoyable characters and a lovely romance to go along with that individuality.I adore Jack and Oliver. Both characters have distinct personalities, uncouth Jack and refined Oliver. Yet where other authors my fall into the trap of making these characters stereotypes or caricatures, the author succeed in making both men individual unto themselves. As the story progresses, each character changes with the turns of the story as well. Both leads were able to develop and grow, not being stuck in characterization ruts.The relationship between these two made for sweet reading. The author does a great job in conveying that two men can have as emotional and romantic a connection as a man and woman can, especially given the timeframe this takes place in. The Regency era was a time when a relationship such as theirs was punishable by death. Jacks and Oliver's personalities played off each other beautifully, rounding each other out to create a cohesive relationship.I also liked the time the author spent with her historical details. I got a real sense of the societal rules of the Regency era and the little details of everyday life like dress and home life. Seeing those details play into our lead’s personalities and how their relationship developed was an added bonus.The one aspect of this book that was weak was the background mystery. The sleuthing was predictable, the clues somewhat hackneyed, and the overall mystery itself borderline silly. I could care less what happened to the Wraxhalls or their associates. However, this is a historical romance; such a story aspect really doesn’t have to be that strong in this genre. It’s still an enjoyable tale.For what this book is, it shines. The romance and leads are very well done, especially as this is a debut novel. I adored watching these two men grow, both in themselves and together in their relationship. While the background mystery was predictable and boring, historical romances don't hinge on that story aspect, at least for this reader. I would definitely look for other volumes by this writer; she's a promising author for the m-m romantic subgenre.
    • 4/5
      Loved it! Just the right blend of relationship push/pull...then relationship sweetness and angst...paired with the couple of mysteries that Jack was trying to resolve (at times reluctantly) with Oliver's help--perfect! Cat Sebastian's writing too was a whole lot of fun--whether the dialogue was external or internal, there were many, many snippets that I ended up needing to highlight so I could go back later and smile at all over again. Such fun!Jack and Oliver were a great couple. Of course making your protagonists from different classes in a historical romance gives you built in conflict, but add to that the fact that their very relationship breaks the law? Yeah, that's a whole new element. But oh goodness, with these two they had to be together, they just had to. I was all for Oliver with his sunny optimism on the prospect of their future, but realistically afraid that Jack was going to end up right all along... (Spoiler alert: he's not--because, hello, it's a romance. Fortunately, Ms. Sebastian manages to pull it off in a fairly believable way--I'm not totally convinced it would work, but I want it to, so I'm perfectly willing to go with it.)I also enjoyed the two puzzles that Jack had to resolve in the course of the book. Neither one of the solutions were obvious, yet the answers came together nicely and made sense. Jack's ability to read people was believable given his past and also highly entertaining--I loved watching him at work! Oliver was better at helping him out than either of us thought he would be; together they gave off an almost Sherlock-and-Watson-in-the-Regency-era vibe.The secondary characters here were fun too--Jack's brother Georgie was a hoot, and it looks like he's due to star in book #2 (yay!). Jack and Oliver also both have sisters, so... (hint, hint! ;))A highly entertaining debut from Ms. Sebastian--I am anxiously awaiting her next release!Rating: 4 stars / A-I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.