The Last Empress
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The Last Empress
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Narrated by:
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Alexandra O'Karma
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By:
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Anchee Min
About this listen
Reeling from tragedy, Orchid reluctantly assumes greater power over late 19th-century China. And as her nation is divided by opposing factions, only she can keep China from tearing itself apart.
©2007 Anchee Min (P)2007 Recorded BooksListeners also enjoyed...
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At the age of 16, in a nationwide selection for royal consorts, Cixi was chosen as one of the emperor's numerous concubines. When he died in 1861, their five-year-old son succeeded to the throne. Cixi at once launched a palace coup against the regents appointed by her husband and made herself the real ruler of China - behind the throne, literally, with a silk screen separating her from her officials who were all male.
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2 out of 5 stars
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An insult to audiobooks. Get a print version.
- By Reademandweep on 02-23-15
By: Jung Chang
-
Equal of the Sun
- A Novel
- By: Anita Amirrezvani
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 13 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 736
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 661
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 664
Iran in 1576 is a place of peace, wealth, and dazzling beauty. But when the Shah dies without having named an heir, the court is thrown into tumult. Princess Pari, the Shah's daughter and closest adviser, knows more about the inner workings of the state than almost anyone, but the princess's maneuvers to instill order after her father's sudden death incite resentment and dissent. Pari and her trusted servant, a eunuch able to navigate the harem as well as the world beyond the palace walls, are in possession of an incredible tapestry....
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4 out of 5 stars
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A Woman in a Man's World
- By JGrace on 06-26-13
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Victoria: The Queen
- An Intimate Biography of the Woman Who Ruled an Empire
- By: Julia Baird
- Narrated by: Lucy Rayner
- Length: 21 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 59
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 49
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
When Victoria was born, in 1819, the world was a very different place. Revolution would threaten many of Europe’s monarchies in the coming decades. In Britain, a generation of royals had indulged their whims at the public’s expense, and republican sentiment was growing. The Industrial Revolution was transforming the landscape, and the British Empire was commanding ever larger tracts of the globe. In a world where women were often powerless, during a century roiling with change, Victoria went on to rule the most powerful country on earth with a decisive hand.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Masterpiece!!
- By DKSTRYKER on 01-07-24
By: Julia Baird
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Nefer the Silent
- Stone of Light, Volume 1
- By: Christian Jacq
- Narrated by: Ezra Knight
- Length: 5 hrs and 2 mins
- Abridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 14
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 7
Deep in the heart of the Upper Egyptian desert lies a forbidden village, where bands of artisans prepare the tombs of the Pharaohs. Guarded by a handful of elite soldiers, the hidden city shelters the most precious of treasures: the Stone of Light, a legendary stone of magical power. When a devious military officer schemes to infiltrate the city and capture the sacred gem, his subversive plot is thwarted by an unlikely hero: a desert wanderer who falls into a maze of treachery and betrayal, desire and danger.
By: Christian Jacq
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Peter the Great
- His Life and World
- By: Robert K. Massie
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
- Length: 43 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,205
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 1,020
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,009
This superbly told story brings to life one of the most remarkable rulers––and men––in all of history and conveys the drama of his life and world. The Russia of Peter's birth was very different from the Russia his energy, genius, and ruthlessness shaped. Crowned co-Tsar as a child of ten, after witnessing bloody uprisings in the streets of Moscow, he would grow up propelled by an unquenchable curiosity, everywhere looking, asking, tinkering, and learning, fired by Western ideas.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Narrater ruins everything
- By BrendaLouQuilts on 12-30-11
By: Robert K. Massie
-
Ramses
- The Son Of Light
- By: Christian Jacq
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 125
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 89
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 89
An epic re-creation of the exhilarating and mysterious time when the Sun King ruled Egypt, Ramses, the Son of Light, has become the rage in France. With over two million copies sold, it is the greatest publishing phenomenon to hit the shelves there in 20 years. Rameses is only 14 when his father, the Pharaoh Seti, begins testing his true mettle. Being the younger of two sons, the proud Ramses has a problem with being relegated to second place.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Teenager drama with little insight into Egyptian culture
- By Consuelo on 10-24-17
By: Christian Jacq
-
The Family
- By: Mario Puzo, completed by Carol Gino
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 14 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 200
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 129
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 129
Mario Puzo first answered the question 'What is a family?' with the creation of the Corleones in his landmark best seller The Godfather. Now, 30 years later, Puzo enriches us all with his ultimate vision of the subject: the story of the greatest crime family in Italian history, the Borgias.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Outstanding look at the Papacy
- By Gary on 11-12-08
By: Mario Puzo, and others
-
Aavarana
- The Veil
- By: Sandeep Balakrishna - translator, S. L. Bhyrappa
- Narrated by: Deepti Gupta
- Length: 14 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 34
Aavarana: The Veil by S. L. Bhyrappa is a story of a free-spirited and rebellious young woman, Lakshmi, who marries the man she is deeply in love with. Amir, her husband, requests she convert to Islam, and she reluctantly agrees. Despite her father being completely against the marriage, she breaks ties with him and changes her name to Razia. However, things change for the worse, and she discovers a different side to Amir. He is not the progressive and liberal person she thought he was.
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5 out of 5 stars
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History and research
- By Manan Shukla MD on 11-16-24
By: Sandeep Balakrishna - translator, and others
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The Iron King
- The Accursed Kings, Book 1
- By: Maurice Druon
- Narrated by: Peter Joyce
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 670
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 615
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 614
From the publishers that brought you A Game of Thrones comes the series that inspired George R.R. Martin’s epic work. France became a great nation under Philip the Fair - but it was a greatness achieved at the expense of her people, for his was a reign characterised by violence, the scandalous adulteries of his daughters-in-law, and the triumph of royal authority.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Historical Goodie
- By Syd Young on 08-03-13
By: Maurice Druon
-
Master and God
- A Novel of the Roman Empire
- By: Lindsey Davis
- Narrated by: Robin Sachs
- Length: 15 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 82
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 73
Lindsey Davis’ Master and God is a vastly entertaining historical novel set in the reign of the Emperor Domitian in first-century Rome. It is on the one hand a love story between Gaius Vinius Clodianus, a valiant but reluctant member of the Praetorian Guard, whose military career is as successful as his marital history is disastrous, and Flavia Lucilla, daughter of a freed slave and hairdresser to the ladies of the imperial household. A devastating fire in Rome brings them together....
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Info Dump with Romance
- By S. Lev-Ami on 10-03-12
By: Lindsey Davis
-
Across the Nightingale Floor
- Tales of the Otori, Book One
- By: Lian Hearn
- Narrated by: Kevin Gray, Aiko Nakasone
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8,302
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,270
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,289
A tour-de-force novel set in ancient Japan filled with passion, fantasy, and feuding warlords. The first volume in the highly anticipated Tales of the Otori trilogy.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wonderful epic story
- By Jody R. Nathan on 10-04-03
By: Lian Hearn
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Desert Queen
- The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Adviser to Kings, Ally of Lawrence of Arabia
- By: Janet Wallach
- Narrated by: Jean Gilpin
- Length: 20 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 278
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 235
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 239
Turning her back on her privileged life in Victorian England, Gertrude Bell (1868-1926), fired by her innate curiosity, journeyed the world and became fascinated with all things Arab. Traveling the length and breadth of the Arab region, armed with a love for its language and its people, she not only produced several enormously popular books based on her experiences but became instrumental to the British foreign office. When World War I erupted, and the British needed the loyalty of the Arab leaders, it was Gertrude Bell's work and connections that helped provided the brain for T. E. Lawrence's military brawn.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Great beginning, then gets boring
- By Msz on 03-31-16
By: Janet Wallach
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To the Scaffold
- The Life of Marie Antoinette
- By: Carolly Erickson
- Narrated by: Davina Porter
- Length: 14 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 128
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 111
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 110
To this day Marie Antoinette remains one of history’s most misunderstood heroines. How she triumphed over the petty jealousies and backstairs rivalries of the court, how she sustained a good-hearted but malleable king, and how she was transformed from French queen to Austrian “whore,” is the story told with skill and fascinating detail.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Davina Porter is a treasure!
- By Missee on 04-08-19
By: Carolly Erickson
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Shalimar the Clown
- By: Salman Rushdie
- Narrated by: Aasif Mandvi
- Length: 18 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 572
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 241
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 238
When Maximilian Ophuls is murdered outside his daughter's home by his Kashmiri Muslim driver, it appears to be a political killing. Ophuls is the former U.S. ambassador to India and America's leading figure in counter-terrorism. But there is much more to Ophuls and his assassin, a mysterious man calling himself "Shalimar the Clown", than meets the eye. One woman is at the center of their shared history, a history of betrayal and deception.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Incredible
- By Barry on 12-07-05
By: Salman Rushdie
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The Virgin's Daughter
- Tudor Legacy, Book 1
- By: Laura Andersen
- Narrated by: Rosalind Ashford
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 186
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 172
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Story4 out of 5 stars 168
Perfect for fans of Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir, The Virgin's Daughter is the first book in a captivating new saga about the next generation of Tudor royals, which poses the thrilling question: What if Elizabeth I, the celebrated Virgin Queen, gave birth to a legitimate heir?
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5 out of 5 stars
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Intriguing premise, good story, great storytelling
- By RC on 06-10-15
By: Laura Andersen
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Antoinette's Sister
- By: Diana Giovinazzo
- Narrated by: Marisa Calin
- Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 291
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 258
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 258
As Marie Antoinette took her last breath as queen of France in Paris, another formidable monarch - Antoinette’s dearly beloved sister, Charlotte - was hundreds of miles away, in Naples, fighting desperately to secure her release from the revolutionaries who would take her life. Little did Charlotte know, however, that her sister’s execution would change the course of history - and bring about the end of her own empire.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Started off good, but I lost interest as time went
- By Tess of the D'urbervilles on 02-02-22
By: Diana Giovinazzo
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The Romanovs
- 1613-1918
- By: Simon Sebag Montefiore
- Narrated by: Simon Beale
- Length: 28 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,315
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,182
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,177
This is the intimate story of 20 tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore's gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence, and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries, and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Scholarly but gripping
- By William on 06-16-16
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At the age of 16, in a nationwide selection for royal consorts, Cixi was chosen as one of the emperor's numerous concubines. When he died in 1861, their five-year-old son succeeded to the throne. Cixi at once launched a palace coup against the regents appointed by her husband and made herself the real ruler of China - behind the throne, literally, with a silk screen separating her from her officials who were all male.
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A revelatory and disturbing portrait of China, this is Anchee Min's celebrated memoir of growing up in the last years of Mao's China. As a child, Min was asked to publicly humiliate a teacher; at 17, she was sent to work at a labor collective. Forbidden to speak, dress, read, write, or love as she pleased, she found a lifeline in a secret love affair with another woman. Miraculously selected for the film version of one of Madame Mao's political operas, Min's life changed overnight. Then Chairman Mao suddenly died, taking with him an entire world.
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The story of Tzu Hsi is the story of the last empress in China. In this audiobook, Pearl S. Buck recreates the life of one of the most intriguing rules during a time of intense turbulence. Tzu Hsi was born into one of the lowly ranks of the Imperial dynasty. According to custom, she moved to the Forbidden City at the age of 17 to become one of hundreds of concubines. But her singular beauty and powers of manipulation quickly moved her into the position of Second Consort.
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At the age of 16, in a nationwide selection for royal consorts, Cixi was chosen as one of the emperor's numerous concubines. When he died in 1861, their five-year-old son succeeded to the throne. Cixi at once launched a palace coup against the regents appointed by her husband and made herself the real ruler of China - behind the throne, literally, with a silk screen separating her from her officials who were all male.
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What listeners say about The Last Empress
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Taylor Kinney
- 01-27-16
Inspirational and eye-opening!
All americans should read this book to open their eyes to new perspectives on foreign policy. Orchid's touching story is one of courage, strength, daring, intelligence and deep love.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Patricia A. Sonnenstuhl
- 10-16-16
The last empress
Our book group chose the two books by this author and audible was the only place I found them in an auditory format.
Long stories both but very interesting Chinese history
It will be an interesting discussion for us
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Linda Erlich
- 02-27-15
Great sequel to Empress Orchid
This audio book picked up Cixi's story where Empress Orchid left off. It covered her life after the death and funeral of her Emperor husband's death until her death. After reading non-fiction accounts of Cixi's life this book seems to follow the accomplishments of her life and the steps she took as a leader to modernize China.
Although it is a work of fiction, and no one can really know the details of her relationships, she was the ruler of China as regent for two child Emperor's and therefore wielded great power. The paradox she had to deal with was that the Chinese saw themselves as a superior and advanced civilization and so did the Western countries. The clash of cultures was enormous as Eastern and Western cultures tried to find some common ground to begin their negotiations.
As the product of Western civilization and the conveniences of what began with the Industrial Revolution it is difficult to imagine a people who would not welcome these wonders. But the Chinese had a different world view full of different priorities and values.
One must listen with an open mind and learn about this totally foreign world.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- JLeyva
- 06-19-18
Confusing
The long pauses between chapters and paragraphs is disconcerting as I kept thinking my player was causing problems. There were too many things described in the story that weren't available in China at the time, such as French hair dye, cupcakes, dollars etc. My students were confused.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- HB
- 08-22-24
Nice sequel
Still good but there is far less focus on the characters and more about highlighting all the troubles China had to endure via military decisions and societal pressures.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jen
- 01-21-20
Great
A great sequel to Empress Orchid with an absolutely amazing narrator, Alexandra O’Karma!!! What a voice!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- rikki keller
- 01-17-23
Narrator is awful
You can hear the disgusting sound of the narrator swallowing. it was a poor performance
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Patricia B Tripoli
- 09-02-13
Ugh!
Sadly, I am the kind of reader that no matter how bad the book I have to finish it. I struggled to finish this book. I had not read the first book about this Empress but I never will now.
The story was boring at best. The author wrote in a way that I could not tell if she was referring to her perceptions or reality. This woman sounded like she was continually unhappy and a martyr. I did not see her as a strong leader or someone to be a role model.
The narration was awful. Accents were excellent but the monotone presentation was the biggest reason for my struggle to finish this book. The emotionless delivery was also part of why the empress sounded more like a martyred wimp!!
Don't bother with this book.
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