Reviewed by Larissa
TITLE: Unguarded
SERIES: Vino & Veritas Book 10
AUTHOR: Jay Hogan
NARRATOR: Gary Furlong and Iggy Toma
PUBLISHER: Tantor Audio
LENGTH: 10 hours and 35 minutes
RELEASE DATE: June 29, 2021
BLURB:
I fled Boston and my cheating jerk of an ex with three hundred dollars and a lip gloss in my pocket. Waking up the next day in Burlington, Vermont, with a crick in my back and a frozen ass wasn’t exactly in the plan. If there was one. Which there wasn’t. Story of my life.
Three hours later and I’ve been hired as temporary help in the local veterinary and grooming clinic, which is kind of impressive since I know zip about animals and even less about grooming. But one thing I do know—I’m crushing hard on the sexy, absent-minded vet I work for.
My life is a hot mess. The last thing I need is another relationship. Emmett pushes all my buttons, but he isn’t out. He’s overwhelmed with a business to run and a son to look after and the kind of domestic life I never thought I wanted.
I should walk away.
But Emmett believes in me, and I might just be starting to believe in myself. As different as we are, is it possible we’re exactly what the other needs?
REVIEW:
Unguarded falls seamlessly into a long line of Jay Hogan’s superbly written and overwhelmingly enjoyable M/M romances. This book is part of Sarina Bowen’s Vino & Veritas series set in her True North world in Burlington, Vermont. Yet the story is 100% Jay Hogan right down to Tai’s Kiwi accent and saucy attitude à la Cameron Wano. Unguarded may be the wittiest book I’ve read from her, and her imagery is not only effective but made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion.
As far as romances go, this one is just yummy. Emmett is the town veterinarian in need of a temporary receptionist. He’s a single dad to his 10-year-old son Leo after his wife died four years prior. Emmett has thrown his whole life into work and his son, and hasn’t given much thought to himself or his loneliness. Emmett is bisexual and closeted, but once he lays eyes on Tai, the draw is strong.
Spitfire Tai arrives in Burlington with the clothes on his back, a beat-up car, and a whole bunch of closed-out bank and credit card accounts courtesy of the cheating, emotionally abusive, financially controlling ex-boyfriend he left behind in Boston. Tai has no home, no job, no money, and no plan. He’s starting to panic and disparage himself but calling on the last shreds of his pride, he accepts a lifeline thrown by a kind stranger. Thereafter he meets Emmett, implores Emmett to let him take the temp receptionist job, and then both of their lives are turned upside down.
Tai and Emmett’s relationship is full of stops and starts but we all know where it’s headed, and so do they despite them trying to deny it. They are complete opposites and yet fit perfectly together. I thought the narrator choice for the Unguarded audiobook was (perhaps unintentionally) reflective of that. Jay Hogan brings together two excellent, talented narrators to bring Tai and Emmett’s love story to life. But wow are they about as opposite as you can get. And yet the combination is a winner.
Gary Furlong narrates Tai, who is a native New Zealander, using his flawless New Zealand accent. Tai is a complex character but Mr. Furlong knows exactly how to capture it. Tai is unapologetically himself and while he’s been knocked down, his strong, defiant personality refuses to let him give up. He’s also mischievous at times, kind and generous, and absolutely fierce in his protection of those he loves. Mr. Furlong gives Tai a higher-pitched voice, with a silky smooth tone to his words reflective of his sassy, sometimes seductive nature. His voice has energy and impact and a potent sharpness that engages when he gets angry, stands up for himself, or defends his loved ones. What Mr. Furlong does best, though, is his vocal portrayal of Tai’s “diva”-like expressions and gestures. They are a hoot and so perfect for Tai’s personality.
Iggy Toma narrates Emmett and gives him a deeper voice that has more of a sharp edge to it. It’s faster and more robust in the punchiness of the tone and delivery that fits Emmett’s questioning and confusion about his attraction to Tai and what to do about it. But there’s also latent anxiety and frustration that is a critical part of Emmett’s character. He is a man who had everything he wanted and had it come crashing down around him. While he’s picked up the pieces, he’s not yet completely figured out how they all fit back together. Mr. Toma channels all of that into his tone and delivery when dwelling on the emotional aspects of Emmett’s journey and falling in love again.
When you listen to Mr. Furlong and Mr. Toma’s voices back to back, the vast difference in their voices really stands out. But the juxtaposition works because both of these talented narrators do all of the basics like the masters they are. Their performances are immersive and expressive. They deliver the emotional impact behind the words. They use apropos pacing, inflections, and emphasis to punctuate the words and actions on the page.
This pairing was only problematic in relation to the Kiwi accent. Mr. Furlong’s accent is perfect and while Mr. Toma did quite an admirable job at it, because the quality of their voices is so different, it made it very challenging for Mr. Toma’s Kiwi accent to approximate Mr. Furlong’s. Stated differently, on its own, Mr. Toma’s Tai voice would have stood up better than it did in comparison to Mr. Furlong’s. Additionally, I felt that both narrators struggled with the female voices here and Leo’s voice sounded a bit too old for a 10-year-old.
These minor issues were distracting at first but then fell off into the background as the audiobook progressed. I still recognized they were there as I listened but it didn’t bother me anymore because these narrators drew me into the story with their strong vocal performances. The most important aspect of the audiobook required getting the main characters right and Mr. Furlong and Mr. Toma did that in spades. As for the rest, it’s not perfect, but it sure as hell is still enjoyable and I can’t imagine reading Unguarded without their voices bringing it to life.
RATING: 
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