Narrated by Veronica Den
What happens when revenge and love collide? On Every Street
On Every Street is the tale of Ellie Watt’s quest for revenge. Raised by gypsies who used her in their scams, one day Ellie is caught trying to steal from Travis, a powerful and evil drug lord. His punishment scars her both physically and emotionally. Determined to make him feel the pain he has caused her, a young and innocent Ellie leaves her home shortly after high school graduation, on a mission to find Travis.
Assuming a new identity of Eden White, after weeks of surveillance, she devises a plot to get close to Travis by seducing Javier, one of his higher-up, drug ring leaders who has ties to the Mexican cartel. With no real life experience and her sole education to carry out this goal limited to having watched a few adult movies, Ellie is no match for an experienced lover and dominant man like Javier. Moreover, Javier is not only instantly attracted to her, but powerfully drawn to her innocent allure, especially when combined with the good girl identity she crafts to go along with her new “Eden White” persona.
So begins the all-consuming, earth shattering, passionate affair of Eden and Javier. Soon, however, she is forced to make a decision between her need for revenge and her uncontrollable enrapturing love for Javier.
To Javier, Eden is his “angel”. Seeking to assuage his guilt for the horrible sins he has committed, he pins all his hopes for salvation on her, convinced that her seeming purity can cleanse him of his sins. His obsession, for what he believes only she can give him, is so overwhelming that he feels the need to totally consume her – to “stain” every inch of her being. But when the miracle finally happens that signifies his new beginning and, shortly thereafter, is abruptly taken away, her magical allure of salvation is lost, leading to the resurrection of his evil side. Even angels can have “dirty wings” though, and Javier is a possessive man who now views Eden as “his” which brings his obsession with her to an all new level.
Veronica Den delivers an improved performance in On Every Street as compared to the earlier released Sins and Needles. The Artists Trilogy appears to be her first narration and, therefore with experience, I am sure that we will be hearing better performances from this promising newcomer. Specifically, I found Ms. Den’s delivery and accents to be much more consistent in this rendition and I enjoyed her voice for Javier better than some of the others utilized for males in Sins and Needles. She made Javier come to life for me. I was also impressed with her ability to create multiple distinguishable variations of a Mexican accent for Javier’s various cartel friends.
As in her prior recording, Ms. Den showed great skill in acting out the characters’ emotions, and I found her delivery well suited to add a dramatic effect to the suspense filled passages, as well as, intensity to the passionate scenes.
On Every Street was a fabulous listen in all respects for me. With her clever, thought-provoking writing, and unique plots, Karina Halle has won a place on my must-read authors list. I can’t wait to hear the rest of The Artists Trilogy!
BJ
Narration: B+
Book Content: A
Steam Factor: For your burning ears only
Violence: Fighting
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Hachette Audio
On Every Street was provided to AudioGals for review by Hachette Audio.
