I needed to reach the HEA, but was sorry to leave

I really, really enjoyed this book. I would've listened non-stop from start to finish if I could've and was tempted to switch to print, not because of anything to do with the narration, but because I'm a fast reader and I needed to know how it would end. And of course, when it did end, I wanted there to be more, because I was so into it, the characters and the world.
I will admit to feeling a sense of dread for good deal of the time though. The blurb mentions dishonesty on the part of Niall, so it's no spoiler. Waiting for his lie to be discovered had me extra nervous, but there's so much going on, so much danger and complications for the characters to work through that I had to keep going all the time.
Niall and Gareth are very flawed characters, each guilty of monumental errors in judgment. Despite that, I cared for them both. I wanted everything to work out for them, for all their friends and family, and all of Faerie, (though not certain villains contained within).
There are occasional moments of cheesiness and convenient workings in the love story and solutions to problems, but there are also times that cheesiness is called out by characters, so that helps balance things out when there are eyeroll moments. There's also a lot of fantastic humor that had me suddenly guffawing and cackling out loud.
For the audio narration, like the previous two books, it is very representative of Joel Leslie's style. I don't know how accurate his accents are for the Welsh, Irish and British, being an American without a lot of in-person contact with people from that area of the world, but I didn't feel it terrible, so that is definitely something. I always knew who was talking and I could feel the emotion.
I only wish for more time with these characters and hope to see them again in the related series.

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An incredible ending to an incredible series! Wow

I have to admit to dreading the major series hangover I'd have after completing the last book of the Fae Out of Water series beautifully narrated by Joel Leslie! In 'Bad Boy's Bard: Fae Out of Water Book 3' Naill O'Tierney, is the lover from Gareth Kendrick's past that was lost to the Unseelie lord two hundred years ago. Gareth had believed him lost all this time then come upon him at the joining ceremony for the Seelie and Unseelie realms and escapes with him to the outer world where he thought the human Naill belonged. But Naill has been keeping one secret from Gareth--he is the half-human son of the Unseelie King and knowing Gareth's negative feelings towards the Unseelie court, he was understandably reluctant to admit it. Gareth is understandably horrified when he discovers Naill's fae heritage yet he is even more shaken when he discovers Naill was imprisoned and whipped by his own father for failing to kill Garreth, the Seelie Queen's Bard. Making amends enough to join forces, they look to discover which current villains want to revert back to the Fairie days of old. Such a change will destroy the earth as we know it and Gareth and Naill's escape to the outer realm may have made a bad situation worse! Or does it? In this last of the Fae Out of Water series, we see the demisexual Bard Gareth regain a lover he thought lost so long ago. His disinterest in other lovers over the period of two centuries is remarkable and very touching. I wanted so desperately for Gareth to forgive Naill and he does. Once again the pacing and balance of the narrative are wonderful. The world-building, character development, and cohesion both within the book and throughout the series are awesome. The writer included enough information from the previous books for the reader to stay fully grounded in the universe and committed to the resolution of the major conflict in the series. Narrated by the simply incredible Joel Leslie, this series is one of the best EVER!

1 person found this helpful

More Faerie!

Gareth, the youngest Kendrick brother and the last Seelie bard, gets his story when his former lover Niall returns after 200 years apart. I love this series and the world of Faerie. The story drags a little in the middle with both Niall and Gareth (especially Niall) keeping secrets and spending a lot of time mentally lamenting keeping the secrets. But overall it’s a fun and funny adventure. The commentary of the ethera in Niall's head was hilarious and brightened the book considerably. Joel Leslie’s narration was perfect. Hoping there will be more in this series.

1 person found this helpful

enjoyed it

📖 Story comment: good pace and an interesting story. This series really needs to be read in order to understand the overall story. There is a lot going on in this book, and without knowledge of the prior stories it could be a little confusing.

It took me a while to warm up to both character's in this one, but overall I'm glad i persevered. Both Niall and Gareth proved worthy of the intricately woven adventure to get them to their HEA.

🎧 Narrator comment: Joel Leslie is a master voice actor, he has good cadence, inflections and intonations and it's easy to distinguish all the characters from each other. I'm not fluent in the number of accents he uses in this book (or series), and I don't particularly care for their accuracy - Overall he's given us an excellent performance and done a delightful job bringing all the characters in this series to life.

Love it!!!

I really, really love this series and these characters. I'm a fan of stories with supernatural beings, and these are incredibly fun. In this book we get to learn Gareth and Niall's story. Their story started centuries ago, but they've been apart and are now getting a second chance. I like seeing them learn to love each other again after so long apart and many misunderstandings. This book is best enjoyed as part of the series.

My heart is the hard I play for you

I don’t think you can standalone this series because there are a lot of background world building and characters that you need to know. Otherwise, you’d be totally clueless. I love EJ Russell for always being able to write intricate world building and magical fairytale creatures. They are a treat if you are into paranormal romances.

Gareth thought the love his life was gone and he’s been living his life just for the sake of it. Meanwhile, the love of his life Niall has been imprisoned for 200 years and he also thought Gareth is long since dead. When these two men met again unexpectedly, Niall realized Gareth will come to hate him if he knew of his true origins. So he pretended to have amnesia and try to rekindle the romance between them. Meanwhile, a disaster is about to happen and Gareth and Niall has to work together to save every one of their kind while trying to charter their love life.

You definitely can’t stand alone this series because it’s a bit difficult to keep track with how much everything is happening. Regardless, once you get the hang of it, you will find that this is a very enjoyable and intriguing paranormal book with lots of twists and turns. And of course, Joel’s bombshell narration was spot on. I’m sad to see that this series has come to an end but at the same time I’m happy that everyone got their own closure and happily ever after. Enjoyed it.

4.5 My heart is the bard I play for you stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫


Audio rating

Story - 4 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Narration - 4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Performance - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Overall - 4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Masterfully Done.

please let the series continue! Masterfully done all three books! satisfying to a high degree even if there is not a continuance. However... this old Druid wants to hear more fantastic tales!

Missed the Hotness

Great story and all but after the other two books, this one has almost no sexy scenes. everything else about it was really great though.

Love this series!

I have loved this series so much! I loved getting to know the brothers and seeing how this world unfolded. The different supernaturals were so much fun and I never wanted it to end! Ive been looking forward to this one for a while and it was so worth the wait! This series was a blast I really hope we get more stories in this world and get to see these characters again at some point.

Fun listen!

Really enjoyed this fun story from EJ Russell and narrated by Joel Leslie. I loved the characters and felt like the story was totally immersive! Great job!