Audiobook Review: Priest: A Love Story by Sierra Simone
- KA
- Aug 20, 2017
- 4 min read
USA Today Best Seller!
There are many rules a priest can't break. A priest cannot marry. A priest cannot abandon his flock. A priest cannot forsake his God.
I've always been good at following rules.
Until she came. Then I learned new rules.
My name is Tyler Anselm Bell. I'm 29 years old. Six months ago, I broke my vow of celibacy on the altar of my own church, and God help me, I would do it again. I am a priest, and this is my confession.
Priest is a full-length stand-alone with an HEA. For mature audiences only.
Written by: Sierra Simone
Narrated by: Jacob Morgan and Elena Wolfe
Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date: 06-13-17
Publisher: Sierra Simone
Whispersynced - $7.49
REVIEW
Rating:
Story – 5 stars
Performance – 5 stars
Overall – 5 stars
I'd heard so many good things about this book that I knew I wanted to read it, lucky for me the audiobook was available and is narrated by two extremely talented performers. This book is wonderful, I don’t know what I was expecting but I'm pretty sure it wasn’t a book filled with emotion, conflict, love and steamy sex. It completely blew me away.
Father Tyler Bell has committed his life to the church, to turning around his community’s opinion of the church and building strong relationships with his parishioners. He loves his work, even though his own family doesn't approve of his vocation…with good reason. His commitment is to God and God alone, that is until Poppy Danforth steps into his confessional booth. Can he resist the temptation of her?
Poppy Danforth is lost, not in location but in life. She doesn’t know what she’s doing and wanders into Tyler Bell’s church looking for something, she’s not really sure what. One conversation with Father Bell is enough to put her on a path of spiritual guidance. If only she could stop fantasizing about him.
Plot.
I loved the plot of this story. The majority of the book is told from Father Bell’s POV. A priest falling in love, it was simply beautiful. You really get to see his inner conflict, the religious aspects of the book were handled intelligently and made an impact in the scenes they were part of. The emotional aspects of the book are what really makes this a standout book.
Characters.
Sooooooo, I’m in love with Tyler Bell, don’t judge me! He is a wonderful man struggling to do the right thing. The emotional rollercoaster that Sierra put him on was tough. Poor guy! I loved his struggle; his head and heart were in such conflict, seeing that play out and how he came to the conclusions he did was just beautiful to experience. I really liked his family too, they’re all dealing with their grief in the best way for them, the interactions with Tyler were sweet, comical and at times heartbreaking.
I really liked Poppy, I felt bad for her over some of the things she was dealing with, she was clearly very conflicted over her feelings and her place in the world. There is one scene when Father Bell apologises for taking advantage of her and well, she lets him have it. Her speech was fantastic and the perfect example of the type of person Poppy is, she is strong and independent and capable of making her own decisions. I wanted to hate Sterling, I truly did, and I did for a time. But towards the end of the book, like Tyler, I started having empathy and feeling bad for the guy. He was still a jerk though.
Relationship.
Wow! The chemistry between this couple was off the charts from their first meeting, and it just got better, and hotter. They’re both struggling with their own demons and gradually they help one another realise what they need, what is missing from their lives. Experiencing the development of their feelings for each other and the lengths they go to in order to protect each other was beautiful and captivating. I’ll admit at one point I threw my hands in the air and shouted “No! This is NOT how it’s supposed to happen!!” (In all honesty, I may have used a curse word or two).
So, I decided to start this book while walking to the town centre…. bad idea!!! This is not the book to listen to around other people unless that other person is your significant other and doesn’t mind getting down and dirty. Lol. The book has some of the BEST sex scenes I’ve ever listened to, and there are plenty of them! This isn’t a complaint, they were extremely well written, sexy and had a place in the story. I found myself blushing more than once.
Narration.
Jacob Morgan was the perfect Tyler Bell, I can’t imagine anyone else doing the character justice. He performed him with such raw emotion and passion that it was hard not to get lost in the story. The way he smoothly transitioned from sweet, gentle Father Bell, to dominant, sexy Tyler Bell was riveting. Once I started listening I just didn't want to stop.
Elena Wolfe makes a few small appearances in this book and she is as wonderful as ever. Her parts were captivating and really fit the tone of the story.
Just a little side-note – there was some noise on the recording, kind of like feedback noise I guess, it didn’t take away from the story and other people may not notice it, but it was there and I found it a little distracting.
Warning: Do NOT listen to this in public, it is steamy hot. The book is about a priest, who falls in love – who knew with that title, right? Lol. Anyway, if you’re upset by the idea that a priest has the urges of a man, or sexual acts being performed in a religious setting, please don’t go any further. This is not the book for you.
To stay up to date on all things Sierra Simone:
Comments