So, this is basically a soap opera

If you’re looking for a step below good literature, but a step above pure trash- this one is a winner. The characters have zero depth- zero. And insanely unrealistic and laughable life experiences. And yet... it’s a fun easy listen. This one won’t change your life, or even help you check off a word from your GRE vocab list, but it would certainly improve a long distance flight or ease the monotony of being bed ridden (I caught a nasty cold- this book was perfect! I could fade in and out of my NyQuil induced sleep and pick right back up- it’s so predictable, you never miss a beat). So listen away! Oh- and there were some complaints about the narrator, she didn’t bother me at all!

34 people found this helpful

Wow. Wow wow wow!

What did you love best about The Tea Rose?

The book was well written and well read. I knew nothing about it and took a risk getting it. I'm always a little scared when spending my credits, though with the guarantee its now a much more comfortable feeling and less risk. I hated taking a chance of getting stuck with a book I didnt like!! This book far exceeded my expectations,

What about Jill Tanner’s performance did you like?

This is my first Jill Tanner book, and I have to admit that at first I was instantly in dislike. Her voice is a bit rough, kind of like a smoker maybe, and thus far I've listened to very smooth voices. As story went in, however, I became accustomed to, and appreciative of her. She did great voice changes and it was easy to follow who was who. Her voice is in just the right range where the inflections genuinely vary between a natural sounding mans voice or a natural sounding womans voice.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I was surprised at how much I was able to "feel" in this book. I actually cried a few times, both happy and sad cries. It was easy to be excited, happy, scared, anger, as well as a myriad of other emotions. I was really surprised by that. Every time I cried I was like "Seriously!?". The storyline with Nicholas was really touching in so many ways. I loved his character, I loved his and Fionas relationship, and I loved... Well I cant say anything else without it being a spoiler.

Any additional comments?

This book is different than those that I frequent in that instead of the characters being rich London Ton, they were the very poor in the bowels of the city. Getting used to a new narrator and a new kind of story was challenging at first, but only for a few chapters. Loved this book SO much and am now currently listening to the second one in the series, The Winter Rose. (Alternating between Into The Wilderness series and this one so as to make them both last)
In some of the reviews I read, people complained about the Jack the Ripper storyline. I had no issue with it and thought it added to the character.

39 people found this helpful

WOW! Excellent Series

I am writing a review for the entire series on this the first book to encourage anyone looking for a great book/series with great narrator to consider taking on the lengthy saga. I do like series, but generally hold them to 10 - 12 hours each. This series is about 88 hours, and takes some commitment. My encouragement was self isolation with the coronavirus of 3/20.

Although most of the characters are fictional, the events circle around true moments in history touching on Jack The Ripper, Lawrence of Arabia, espionage of WWI and ironically the Spanish Flu. Each book tells several story lines, and these semi continue throughout all of the books. You could just read one and figure it out, but it is so much better to really understand what is happening by reading all of the books.

I loved each character and was gutted with deaths, marriages, infidelity and drug abuse. I laughed, and I cried and now other books just don't measure up to the beautiful writing of Ms. Donnelly. After the first two books, I decided to take a break and was not sure whether to continue on with the third. My interim (which normally I would have enjoyed) felt so lacking in both content and narration. With the Tea Rose series, I could visualize everything so clearly, like I was watching a movie. Finding a new book will be hard, if only this series continued.

As you can guess, I did go back and finish the third book and I am so glad I did. The tension lasted right up to the last chapter, and the major story lines were complete. All I can do is thank Ms. Donnelly and Ms. Tanner for providing me hours of truly pleasurable listening enjoyment. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

7 people found this helpful

Please complete the trilogy with "THE WINTER ROSE"

Where does The Tea Rose rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

IT IS IN THE TOP TEN !

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Tea Rose?

THE EXCITING FINALE THAT TAKES PLACE IN THE WAREHOUSE AT THE END.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Historical romance at it's best !

Any additional comments?

Please, release the final book of the rose triology, "The Winter Rose" which has already been produced by Recorded Books !!!!!!!!!!!

14 people found this helpful

I LOVED THIS BOOK

This was my first Jennifer Donnelly book and I absolutely loved everything about this book. The story was so gripping (I couldn't stop listening to it.) and the narrator was GREAT. Well worth a credit!!!

19 people found this helpful

Fine

Would you try another book from Jennifer Donnelly and/or Jill Tanner?

Possibly Jennifer Donnelly. The story had many good points, but narration was distracting & shone a glaring light on various plot flaws.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

The many near misses/coincidences were amateurishly handled & just frustrating.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Ugh. The narrator acted the story well, but kept losing her voice and/or accent throughout. In the end almost everyone sounded like a middle aged barmaid, especially the 17-19 MC.

12 people found this helpful

So Glad I stumbled onto this one

I won't get another book until I have read all of Jennifer Donnelly's books. I have been a member for at least 12 years with about a thousand books on 3 accounts and this is the best yet.

11 people found this helpful

So. boring.

I wanted to like this book. I waded through about 3 hours in hopes it would become interesting, and I simply couldn’t get through any more. If you’re looking for a cozy, romantic mystery with engaging characters who will make you bond with them or feel intrigued over their plights/growth, this is not it. I didn’t even get enough of the mindlessness that can come from a campy historical romance. Boring.

4 people found this helpful

The Tea Rose

If you could sum up The Tea Rose in three words, what would they be?

Lovely mental vacation.

What about Jill Tanner’s performance did you like?

Jill Tanner's did an outstanding job with the narration. Her range in characters was done nicely.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

At 28 hours one sitting would be difficult, but yes the ear buds were in my ears more often than not.

Any additional comments?

I have read this trilogy 3 times and listened to The Tea Rose and The Wild Rose twice. Jennifer Donnelly draws you into 1890 London and it's hard to come back to reality. Beautiful story, the characters are alive, the details are vivid without being boring. I even went so far as to print out a 1900 London & New York maps to move around with the story.

The Winter Rose is book 2, it is not out in audio yet, why they started with book 3 then moved to book one is a mystery to me. These books need to be read in order, character developement is created in each book that brings you to the next.

PLEASE HURRY with the release of book 2. How can a new reader understand the story without the middle!

16 people found this helpful

such a great listen!

no one told me about this book. i was simply reading through titles and seeing "who also bought" from other books and stumbled upon this gem.

i love long books so that didn't scare me away (favorite book, The Pillars of the Earth) and decided to give it a chance. especially loved the historical fiction side to it, beginning around jack-the-ripper time in london...

anyway, i won't give much away other than to say this book has a lot of The Count of Monte Cristo to it. a lot of the same feelings, etc.

this is a series of three books so read them in order, that's important. i suppose you could read them separately but it will make the story line easier if read in order. :)

10 people found this helpful