The Blue

By: Nancy Bilyeau

Narrated by: Eleanor Hicks

Length: 15 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

In 18th century London, porcelain is the most seductive of commodities; fortunes are made and lost upon it. Kings do battle with knights and knaves for possession of the finest pieces and the secrets of their manufacture.

For Genevieve Planché, an English-born descendant of Huguenot refugees, porcelain holds far less allure; she wants to be an artist, a painter of international repute, but nobody takes the idea of a female artist seriously in London. If only she could reach Venice.

When Genevieve meets the charming Sir Gabriel Courtenay, he offers her an opportunity she can’t refuse: If she learns the secrets of porcelain, he will send her to Venice. But in particular, she must learn the secrets of the color blue....

The ensuing events take Genevieve deep into England’s emerging industrial heartlands, where not only does she learn about porcelain, but also about the art of industrial espionage.

With the heart and spirit of her Huguenot ancestors, Genevieve faces her challenges head-on, but how much is she willing to suffer in pursuit and protection of the color blue?

©2018 Nancy Bilyeau (P)2019 Nancy Bilyeau

What an adventure!

I loved this novel! It progressed at a good speed and kept me interested as the story unfolded.
The narrator did a great job as well!

Transports you to another time & place

The author’s historical detail envelops the listener in the sights, smells, landscapes, and of course color, of 18th century England and France. I enjoyed the plot twists and learning about the Huguenots and porcelain making. The reader’s diction was very clear even at a high speed.

Fascinating Story

I never knew how difficult it was for artists to develop color, or jaw valuable new colors were to people of power. This story takes the reader/listener, on a journey & an adventure of rewarding discovery!

who knew about blue

So much treachery over the color blue. I had no idea. I guess I take color for granted.

Don't waste your time!

Tough to listen to the end! The narrator's voicewas uncomfortable, and the charactors are whiney and artificial.

Interesting story

I love books centered around history, and this one was intriguing during an interesting time. The storyline kept my interest and was definitely worth listening to. I enjoyed points of interest that drove me to the internet to read more about. A few quirks for me were that it slowed in a few spots, particularly when Genevieve had ponderous and repetitive internal thoughts or unrealistic actions that didn’t advance the plot. Setting a faster speed helped move things along. The narrator has talent and a pleasing voice for the protagonist’s dialog. However, in the beginning, her voice fades down at the end of some of the sentences, and I didn’t care for the voices she chose for some of the men. Whispering of internal thoughts is my least favorite narration style, so I also sped those up. Aside from those few nuances, it was a good read.

Exciting historical adventure

A gripping plot and memorable characters with a rich historical backdrop. Minimal language and some spice.

Breathless dramatics

The story sounded intriguing, but the narrator was overly dramatic in her presentation. The pace and intensity ran at a high level with little varation, causing me to be agitated and weary afterlistening. I will read the book, if I can find it.

Not my favorite story

I could not sympathize with the main character. She was more villain and the story did not support her character.

Truly should not have finished the book, but I kept having hopes she would change.

Review of The Blue

The narrator’s voicing of all older male characters is best described as screeching. Painful to hear.

I chose this book because the fictional account of the historical period and color discovery should have been interesting. The writing and performance were so disappointing, I couldn’t finish this book.