A Passionate Man

By: Joanna Trollope

Narrated by: Eleanor Bron

Archie Logan, a country doctor, and his wife Liza lead an orthodox-seeming life, and everything is well until Archie's father, a widower for over 30 years, falls in love. His choice, a woman of powerful charm, has a profound effect on all the Logans, adults and children alike. The house and family turn from being a refuge to being a cage. Archie and Liza risk losing everything they have built. A Passionate Man is about a man's mid-life crisis and a woman's fear of failure. It is about fathers and sons, about sex and love, about loyalties and identities. It is also a story about modern village life.©2014 Audible, Inc (P)2014 Audible, Inc

Critic reviews

"A compelling journey into the lives of two ordinary people coping with extraordinary events." (Booklist)

Poorly produced

I always like Joanna Trollope, and I'd listen to Eleanor Bron read the phone book aloud, so this looked like a sure thing. Alas, the production is so weak enough to take the edge off my enjoyment of this book. The sound is muffled and mushy, and too frequently I can hear extraneous background noises. It sounds as if Bron recorded the book at home, not in a studio. Very distracting, and not to the high standard I expect from Audible.

Also, Bron doesn't do children well. There's one child character, Imogen, a toddler, who is written as a spoiled, mouthy little brat. She should have been comic relief or possibly a foil to other characters, but Bron reads every line of hers in the same high-pitched whine. I wanted to reach into my mp3 player, grab the kid, and slap it silly.

The book is worth your time - a well written and engaging story - but be advised that the production flaws will take the edge off the experience. And that horrible little girl will make you wonder why the parents failed so miserably with her when their other children are three dimensional and believable.