Husband and Wife

By: Leah Stewart

Narrated by: Gabrielle de Cuir

Sarah Price has never regretted trading her MFA for a steady job so that her husband, Nathan, could write fiction. But at age 35, her world is turned upside-down by a shocking revelation: Nathan's upcoming novel, Infidelity, is based on fact.

Reeling from his betrayal, Sarah is plagued by dark questions. How well does she really know her husband? More important, how well does she know herself?

For answers, Sarah looks back to her artistic 20-something self to try to understand what exactly has happened to her dreams. And so begins her quest to discover which version of herself is the essential one: the artist, wife, mother, or someone else entirely? It's an eye-opening journey that leads Sarah hundreds of miles away from her marriage and back to herself.

©2010, 2011 Leah Stewart (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers

Critic reviews

"Stewart's graceful prose and easy storytelling pull the reader into caring about what happens to the struggling heroine while exploring the many gray areas of life and marriage. The conclusion, while true to Sarah, is surprising but not unrealistic." ( Publishers Weekly)

Interesting with irritating narration

This story is rather interesting and relatable in some ways . When speaking normally, the narration is good. Unfortunately, this narrator’s big mistakes occurred when she tried other voices. When will they ever learn not to talk baby talk? Her voices for the children were downright cringy and obnoxious. Her accents for others were equally bad. The narrator definitely had a negative impact on the story. The couple was so pretentious that they were unlikable for the most part. Why tell your partner about a brief affair after the fact? This was baffling. I am only half way through, but am reduced to listening while driving in traffic to work and on errands.

The most awful narration I have ever heard

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

No, I would recommend that they read it, not listen to it. This is the worse narration that I have ever had to endure in an audiobook. The narrator is whiny and dramatic and irritating beyond words. I enjoy Leah Stewart and have read her other works, so I suffered through this listening. I listen to several books a month and have experience with different narrators and I have never come across such an irritating voice and manner.

How could the performance have been better?

A different narrator

Heartbreakingly Relatable

I could not help but think this story was written about me, about my life and experience. There were so many similarities to my own marriage I felt like someone was reading my mind. It is comforting to know that other couples feel this way after a betrayal; forced to reevaluate their own lives and the events that led up to the infidelity. To accept the reality that an ordinary life is what we all end up with and if you're lucky enough to spend it with someone you love, hold onto it. Thank you for this book.

Excellent!!!

For anyone who has had problems in thier marriage - this book hits the nail right on the head - Very good listen!!

Life Isnt Always As You Expect It!

What made the experience of listening to Husband and Wife the most enjoyable?

The characters were relatable. Good Story.

What about Gabrielle de Cuir’s performance did you like?

Very good, with making each characters voice believable.

I am only at chapter 3 & the narrating is terrible

What would have made Husband and Wife better?

I am only into chapter 3 so far, the narrating for this book is very frustrating to listen to. I have just had to shut it off too many times now because of the whiney voice, the high pitch at times and the accents are just bad. She really tried you can tell but it is just very hard to listen too.

I waited so long...

What disappointed you about Husband and Wife?

I read The Myth of Me & You, Leah Stewart's first novel and couldn't wait for her to publish her next. Every time I logged in I searched under author's name. Finally came the day when her next book arrived. I was more than disappointed. What happend? Her first book was so thought provoking and real. This book seemed cliche and "been there done that". Frankly I could not stand the narration either.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Gabrielle de Cuir?

Anyone. Too dramatic and whiny.

I wanted so bad to enjoy this

I wanted so bad to enjoy this story. I listen intently waiting for something to happen but it never did. The story went on as a wife ranting about her life and how everything happens to her. No big plot twist, no build up, just ranting. Then it ended. To say I was disappointed is an understatement.