The Confessions by Tiffany Reisz

Narrated by Matthew Lloyd Davies

The Confessions is a novella in Ms. Reisz’s Original Sinners series. This “quickie” at only 2 hours 49 minutes packs quite the punch and is sure to be a must listen for fans of this series who are looking for a greater understanding of both Soren’s and Nora/Eleanor’s perspectives.

Please note though that, due to the reflective aspect of this book, however, it is not meant to be listened to as a standalone. While optimally the listener should have read or listened to all of the prior books in the series, I think at a minimum the listener would have had to have either read or listened to either The Red Years Quartet (featuring Nora’s years as dominant; books 1-4 in the series) or The White Years Quartet (featuring Nora’s, then known as Eleanor, years as a submissive; Books 5-8 in the series). In my case, I must confess that I have only listened to The White Years Quartet, but I was so floored by the forbidden love aspects of this story, not to mention Ms. Reisz’s ability to tiptoe right up to the boundary of what is morally acceptable, that I could not pass up the chance to listen to and review The Confessions. And what a treat it was!

The primary figure in The Confessions is Father Stuart Ballard, who has been the priest that Soren (also a priest) has confessed his sins to since he was a teenager. Soren’s confessions relate primarily to the early years, when he first meets Eleanor, and pertain to his grappling with his feelings over Eleanor (then just a 16 year-old teenager; Soren at the time was in his late twenties), as well as the first love of his life, Kingsley.

Many years later, Nora pays on an unexpected visit to Father Stuart Ballard where she relays her own confessions relating to Soren and the several other “hims” that have played a major role in her love life. Perhaps my favorite quote by Father Stuart Ballard is that over the telling of Nora’s confession, he tells Nora that she has more “hims than a hymnal.”

Last but not least, we are treated to an interview with none other than Tiffany Reisz on her thoughts as to these characters both today and as she was writing them.

The narration by Matthew Lloyd Davies generally works well. Mr. Davies does a good job of bringing both the British Father’s and Soren’s voice to life. I also thought he did great delivering Ms. Reisz’s special breed of tongue-in-cheek humor which no doubt requires remarkable detail to timing and inflection.

The one aspect, however, where I wasn’t as convinced about the narration was in Nora’s confession. Perhaps Eleanor/Nora has become so ingrained in my mind that I couldn’t settle into a male narrator telling her confession. I think the fact that I could still hear the remnants of a very slight, nondescript European sounding accent also may have slightly detracted from my ability to fully believe the narration (as Eleanor/Nora is American). All that said, I was so enthralled by the subject matter, that I just barely noticed this effect and it really didn’t detract from my ability to enjoy the story.

All in all, fans of the Original Sinners Series should not miss The Confession. I have enjoyed these characters so much, especially Soren and Eleanor/Nora that it is such a treat to get more of their stories. I also really enjoyed listening to Ms. Reisz’s perspective in the interview at the end.

BJ