The Marriage Bureau
The True Story of How Two Matchmakers Arranged Love in Wartime London
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
The Marriage Bureau
Buy for $22.49
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Jane Copland
-
By:
-
Penrose Halson
About this listen
A riveting glimpse of life and love during and after World War II - a heartwarming, touching, and thoroughly absorbing true story of a world gone by.
In the spring of 1939, with the Second World War looming, two determined 24-year-olds, Heather Jenner and Mary Oliver, decided to open a marriage bureau. They found a tiny office on London's Bond Street and set about the delicate business of matchmaking. Drawing on the bureau's extensive archives, Penrose Halson - who many years later found herself the proprietor of the bureau - tells their story and the stories of their clients.
From shopgirls to debutantes, widowers to war veterans, clients came in search of security, social acceptance, or simply love. And thanks to the meticulous organization and astute intuition of the bureau's matchmakers, most found what they were looking for.
Penrose Halson draws from newspaper and magazine articles, advertisements, and interviews with the proprietors themselves to bring the romance and heartbreak of matchmaking during wartime to vivid, often hilarious life in this unforgettable story of a most unusual business.
©2017 Penrose Halson (P)2017 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
-
The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle
- A Novel
- By: Jennifer Ryan
- Narrated by: Sophie Roberts
- Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 461
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 404
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 405
After renowned fashion designer Cressida Westcott loses both her home and her design house in the London Blitz, she has nowhere to go but the family manor house she fled decades ago. Praying that her niece and nephew will be more hospitable than her brother had been, she arrives with nothing but the clothes she stands in, at a loss as to how to rebuild her business while staying in a quaint country village.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Delightful historical fiction
- By Kindle Customer on 01-01-23
By: Jennifer Ryan
-
The Windsor Knot
- A Novel
- By: SJ Bennett
- Narrated by: Jane Copland
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,112
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 983
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 977
It is the early spring of 2016 and Queen Elizabeth is at Windsor Castle in advance of her 90th birthday celebrations. But the preparations are interrupted when a guest is found dead in one of the Castle bedrooms. The scene suggests the young Russian pianist strangled himself, but a badly tied knot leads MI5 to suspect foul play was involved. The Queen leaves the investigation to the professionals—until their suspicions point them in the wrong direction. Unhappy at the mishandling of the case and concerned for her staff's morale, the monarch decides to take matters into her own hands.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great Book
- By Kristen on 04-20-21
By: SJ Bennett
-
The Only Woman in the Room
- By: Marie Benedict
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 10,005
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 8,951
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 8,914
Her beauty almost certainly saved her from the rising Nazi party and led to marriage with an Austrian arms dealer. Underestimated in everything else, she overheard the Third Reich's plans while at her husband's side, understanding more than anyone would guess. She devised a plan to flee in disguise from their castle, and the whirlwind escape landed her in Hollywood. She became Hedy Lamarr, screen star.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
incredible true story about heddy Lamar
- By S. Loew on 01-26-19
By: Marie Benedict
-
The Beantown Girls
- By: Jane Healey
- Narrated by: Sarah Mollo-Christensen
- Length: 11 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,018
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,521
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,507
1944: Fiona Denning has her entire future planned out. She’ll work in city hall, marry her fiancé when he returns from the war, and settle down in the Boston suburbs. But when her fiancé is reported missing after being shot down in Germany, Fiona’s long-held plans are shattered. Determined to learn her fiancé’s fate, Fiona leaves Boston to volunteer overseas as a Red Cross Clubmobile girl, recruiting her two best friends to come along. There’s the outspoken Viviana, who is more than happy to quit her secretarial job for a taste of adventure.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting history, just not my cup of tea
- By Amy Hammond Hagberg on 04-03-19
By: Jane Healey
-
The Light of Days
- The Untold Story of Women Resistance Fighters in Hitler's Ghettos
- By: Judy Batalion
- Narrated by: Mozhan Marno
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 572
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 489
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 486
One of the most important stories of World War II, already optioned by Steven Spielberg for a major motion picture: a spectacular, searing history that brings to light the extraordinary accomplishments of brave Jewish women who became resistance fighters - a group of unknown heroes whose exploits have never been chronicled in full, until now.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A profoundly moving book
- By Brian R Smith on 04-18-21
By: Judy Batalion
-
Miss Benson's Beetle
- A Novel
- By: Rachel Joyce
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 12 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,087
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,735
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,721
It is 1950. London is still reeling from World War II, and Margery Benson, a schoolteacher and spinster, is trying to get through life, surviving on scraps. One day, she reaches her breaking point, abandoning her job and small existence to set out on an expedition to the other side of the world in search of her childhood obsession: an insect that may or may not exist - the golden beetle of New Caledonia. When she advertises for an assistant to accompany her, the woman she ends up with is the last person she had in mind.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
A well-written panorama of human tragedy
- By Film Fan on 07-03-21
By: Rachel Joyce
-
The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle
- A Novel
- By: Jennifer Ryan
- Narrated by: Sophie Roberts
- Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 461
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 404
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 405
After renowned fashion designer Cressida Westcott loses both her home and her design house in the London Blitz, she has nowhere to go but the family manor house she fled decades ago. Praying that her niece and nephew will be more hospitable than her brother had been, she arrives with nothing but the clothes she stands in, at a loss as to how to rebuild her business while staying in a quaint country village.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Delightful historical fiction
- By Kindle Customer on 01-01-23
By: Jennifer Ryan
-
The Windsor Knot
- A Novel
- By: SJ Bennett
- Narrated by: Jane Copland
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,112
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 983
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 977
It is the early spring of 2016 and Queen Elizabeth is at Windsor Castle in advance of her 90th birthday celebrations. But the preparations are interrupted when a guest is found dead in one of the Castle bedrooms. The scene suggests the young Russian pianist strangled himself, but a badly tied knot leads MI5 to suspect foul play was involved. The Queen leaves the investigation to the professionals—until their suspicions point them in the wrong direction. Unhappy at the mishandling of the case and concerned for her staff's morale, the monarch decides to take matters into her own hands.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great Book
- By Kristen on 04-20-21
By: SJ Bennett
-
The Only Woman in the Room
- By: Marie Benedict
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 10,005
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 8,951
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 8,914
Her beauty almost certainly saved her from the rising Nazi party and led to marriage with an Austrian arms dealer. Underestimated in everything else, she overheard the Third Reich's plans while at her husband's side, understanding more than anyone would guess. She devised a plan to flee in disguise from their castle, and the whirlwind escape landed her in Hollywood. She became Hedy Lamarr, screen star.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
incredible true story about heddy Lamar
- By S. Loew on 01-26-19
By: Marie Benedict
-
The Beantown Girls
- By: Jane Healey
- Narrated by: Sarah Mollo-Christensen
- Length: 11 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,018
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,521
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,507
1944: Fiona Denning has her entire future planned out. She’ll work in city hall, marry her fiancé when he returns from the war, and settle down in the Boston suburbs. But when her fiancé is reported missing after being shot down in Germany, Fiona’s long-held plans are shattered. Determined to learn her fiancé’s fate, Fiona leaves Boston to volunteer overseas as a Red Cross Clubmobile girl, recruiting her two best friends to come along. There’s the outspoken Viviana, who is more than happy to quit her secretarial job for a taste of adventure.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting history, just not my cup of tea
- By Amy Hammond Hagberg on 04-03-19
By: Jane Healey
-
The Light of Days
- The Untold Story of Women Resistance Fighters in Hitler's Ghettos
- By: Judy Batalion
- Narrated by: Mozhan Marno
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 572
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 489
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 486
One of the most important stories of World War II, already optioned by Steven Spielberg for a major motion picture: a spectacular, searing history that brings to light the extraordinary accomplishments of brave Jewish women who became resistance fighters - a group of unknown heroes whose exploits have never been chronicled in full, until now.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A profoundly moving book
- By Brian R Smith on 04-18-21
By: Judy Batalion
-
Miss Benson's Beetle
- A Novel
- By: Rachel Joyce
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 12 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,087
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,735
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,721
It is 1950. London is still reeling from World War II, and Margery Benson, a schoolteacher and spinster, is trying to get through life, surviving on scraps. One day, she reaches her breaking point, abandoning her job and small existence to set out on an expedition to the other side of the world in search of her childhood obsession: an insect that may or may not exist - the golden beetle of New Caledonia. When she advertises for an assistant to accompany her, the woman she ends up with is the last person she had in mind.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
A well-written panorama of human tragedy
- By Film Fan on 07-03-21
By: Rachel Joyce
-
In Sight of the Mountain
- By: Jamie McGillen
- Narrated by: Sarah Brands
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
In the devastating aftermath of the 1889 Great Seattle Fire, 19-year-old Anna Gallagher faces considerable pressure to marry well and soon. But she has no intention of giving up her freedom to keep house. She wants to be the first woman to summit Mount Rainier. Anna's grandfather couldn't disapprove more. And after he discovers that she's befriended a Duwamish woman in the forest, he threatens to disown her completely.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Beautifully Written
- By Megan Rice on 06-05-20
By: Jamie McGillen
-
Shrines of Gaiety
- A Novel
- By: Kate Atkinson
- Narrated by: Jason Watkins
- Length: 15 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 702
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 613
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 613
1926, and in a country still recovering from the Great War, London has become the focus for a delirious new nightlife. In the clubs of Soho, peers of the realm rub shoulders with starlets, foreign dignitaries with gangsters, and girls sell dances for a shilling a time. The notorious queen of this glittering world is Nellie Coker, ruthless but also ambitious to advance her six children, including the enigmatic eldest, Niven, whose character has been forged in the crucible of the Somme. But success breeds enemies, and Nellie’s empire faces threats from without and within.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Rich characters of all stripes
- By Glorious Lorius on 11-09-22
By: Kate Atkinson
-
A Dangerous Fortune
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 16 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8,189
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 6,269
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 6,270
In 1866, tragedy strikes the exclusive Windfield School when a young student drowns in a mysterious accident. His death and its aftermath initiate a spiraling circle of treachery that will span three decades and entwine many lives. From the exclusive men’s clubs and brothels that cater to every dark desire of London’s upper class to the dazzling ballrooms and mahogany-paneled suites of the manipulators of the world’s wealth, one family is splintered by a shared legacy.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Predictable Fun
- By Rebecarol on 05-24-08
By: Ken Follett
-
The Summer Before the War
- A Novel
- By: Helen Simonson
- Narrated by: Fiona Hardingham
- Length: 15 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,988
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,803
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,792
East Sussex, 1914. It is the end of England's brief Edwardian summer, and everyone agrees that the weather has never been so beautiful. Hugh Grange, down from his medical studies, is visiting his aunt Agatha, who lives with her husband in the small, idyllic coastal town of Rye. Agatha's husband works in the Foreign Office, and she is certain he will ensure that the recent saber rattling over the Balkans won't come to anything.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Divine Book Club Listening
- By Gillian on 03-24-16
By: Helen Simonson
-
War Brides
- By: Helen Bryan
- Narrated by: Tavia Gilbert
- Length: 13 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,508
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,265
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,267
As war moves ever closer, the sleepy English village of Crowmarsh Priors settles into a new sort of normal: Evacuees from London are billeted in local homes. The nightly German air raids become grimly mundane. Rationing curtails every comfort. Men leave to fight and die. And five women forge a bond of friendship that will change their lives forever in this engrossing novel of loyalty, loss, and love in the shadow of World War II.With the hardships of war intensifying every day, the women band together to defeat formidable enemies and find remarkable strength within themselves to help one another. It is a war-forged loyalty certain to endure years and distance. When four of the women return for a celebration fifty years later, their mission is not simply to commemorate or remember. They’ve returned to confront a traitor whose actions cost countless lives — and to avenge one of their own at last.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Ruined by Narration
- By Sara on 08-28-14
By: Helen Bryan
-
Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald
- By: Therese Anne Fowler
- Narrated by: Jenna Lamia
- Length: 12 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,986
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,773
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,773
When beautiful, reckless Southern belle Zelda Sayre meets F. Scott Fitzgerald at a country club dance in 1918, she is seventeen years old and he is a young army lieutenant stationed in Alabama. Before long, the "ungettable" Zelda has fallen for him despite his unsuitability: Scott isn't wealthy or prominent or even a Southerner, and keeps insisting, absurdly, that his writing will bring him both fortune and fame. Her father is deeply unimpressed.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great! From the first page to the last.....
- By L.W. on 03-30-13
-
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk
- A Novel
- By: Kathleen Rooney
- Narrated by: Xe Sands
- Length: 8 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,211
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,059
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,053
It's the last day of 1984, and 85-year-old Lillian Boxfish is about to take a walk. As she traverses a grittier Manhattan, a city anxious after an attack by a still-at-large subway vigilante, she encounters bartenders, bodega clerks, chauffeurs, security guards, bohemians, criminals, children, parents, and parents to be in surprising moments of generosity and grace. While she strolls Lillian recalls a long and eventful life that included a brief reign as the highest paid advertising woman in America - a career cut short by marriage, motherhood, divorce, and a breakdown.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Lillian takes a stroll down memory lane!
- By Iris Pereyra on 01-29-17
By: Kathleen Rooney
-
The Life and Loves of a She-Devil
- By: Fay Weldon
- Narrated by: Gemma Dawson
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 63
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 64
In New York Magazine, Rhoda Koenig calls The Life and Loves of a She-Devil, "...a novel of blazingly hot revenge, one that amply illustrates the saying about heaven having no rage like love turned to hate, nor hell a fury like a woman scorned."
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Sweet, brutal, and over the top revenge!!
- By Wayne on 04-10-17
By: Fay Weldon
-
Now, Voyager
- Femmes Fatales
- By: Olive Higgins Prouty
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 70
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 64
Boston blueblood Charlotte Vale has led an unhappy, sheltered life. Lonely, dowdy, repressed, and pushing 40, Charlotte finds salvation at a sanitarium, where she undergoes an emotional and physical transformation. After her extreme makeover, the new Charlotte tests her mettle by embarking on a cruise and finds herself in a torrid love affair with a married man which ends at the conclusion of the voyage. But only then can the real journey begin, as Charlotte is forced to navigate a new life for herself.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Inspiration for The Movie Classic
- By Susie on 12-17-12
-
The Designer
- By: Marius Gabriel
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,274
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,133
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,130
In 1944, newly married Copper Reilly arrives in Paris soon after the liberation. While the city celebrates its freedom, she's stuck in the prison of an unhappy marriage. When her husband commits one betrayal too many, Copper demands a separation. Alone in Paris, she finds an unlikely new friend: an obscure, middle-aged designer from the back rooms of a decaying fashion house whose timid nature and reluctance for fame clash with the bold brilliance of his designs. His name is Christian Dior.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Copper Is A Feminist Before It Was Cool—1944!
- By Linda on 10-18-17
By: Marius Gabriel
-
The Two of Us
- My Life with John Thaw
- By: Sheila Hancock
- Narrated by: Sheila Hancock
- Length: 5 hrs and 13 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 35
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 35
When John Thaw, star of The Sweeney and Inspector Morse, died from cancer in 2002, a nation lost one of its finest actors and Sheila Hancock lost a beloved husband. In this unique double biography she chronicles their lives - personal and professional, together and apart. John Thaw was born in Manchester, the son of a lorry driver. When he arrived at RADA on a scholarship he felt an outsider. In fact his timing was perfect: it was the sixties and television was beginning to make its mark.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
sad and enthralling
- By Steve on 03-17-12
By: Sheila Hancock
-
My Story
- By: Caroline Cossey
- Narrated by: Katherine Fenton
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 52
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 46
Caroline "Tula" Cossey was born with male genitalia but went on to become a beautiful woman with a successful modeling career. My Story is Tula's candid thought-provoking, enlightening, humorous, heart wrenching, and motivational account of her struggles: her troubled childhood being bullied and taunted in East Anglia, her dreams of becoming a woman, the operations that liberated her sexually, and the journey from showgirl to James Bond girl to top international model.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great Audiobook
- By Kristofer R Rasmussen on 10-23-15
By: Caroline Cossey
Critic reviews
Related to this topic
-
The Postcard
- By: Leah Fleming
- Narrated by: Elaine Claxton
- Length: 13 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 172
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 156
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 160
2002, Australia. When Melissa discovers a postcard addressed to 'Desmond' among her recently deceased father's effects, she is determined to discover this person's identity and his relationship to her father. She soon embarks on a journey that will take her across oceans and into the past...
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Meh
- By Summer Layne on 03-06-15
By: Leah Fleming
-
Shadow of a Century
- By: Jean Grainger
- Narrated by: Alana Kerr Collins
- Length: 11 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 263
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 230
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 227
Mary Doyle arrives in Dublin in 1913, doomed, she fears, to a life of domestic service. Instead, however, she finds herself deeply affected by the social and political turmoil of a fledgling nation struggling for independence. Suddenly, all that was once inevitable is no longer a certainty as she is embroiled in the very heart of the Easter Rising.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Loved this book!
- By Amazon Customer on 11-14-20
By: Jean Grainger
-
Mosaic
- By: Diane Armstrong
- Narrated by: Deidre Rubenstein
- Length: 19 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 208
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 167
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 171
>i>Mosaic is compelling storytelling at its best - from the fascinating details of Polish-Jewish culture and the rivalries and dramas of family life, to its moving account of lives torn apart by war and persecution, this an extraordinary true story of a family, and of one woman's journey to reclaim her heritage.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Absolutely excellent!
- By Roberta on 09-22-11
By: Diane Armstrong
-
Mademoiselle Chanel
- By: C. W. Gortner
- Narrated by: Rebecca Gibel
- Length: 14 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 604
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 539
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 537
Born into rural poverty, Gabrielle Chanel and her siblings are sent to an orphanage after their mother's death. The sisters nurture Gabrielle's exceptional sewing skills, a talent that will propel the willful young woman into a life far removed from the drudgery of her childhood.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Fiction Not Biography
- By Sara on 02-07-16
By: C. W. Gortner
-
The Mayfair Bookshop
- A Novel of Nancy Mitford and the Pursuit of Happiness
- By: Eliza Knight
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Gideon
- Length: 11 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 106
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 96
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 96
1938: She was one of the six sparkling Mitford sisters, known for her stinging quips, stylish dress, and bright green eyes. But Nancy Mitford’s seemingly dazzling life was really one of turmoil: with a perpetually unfaithful and broke husband, two Nazi sympathizer sisters, and her hopes of motherhood dashed forever. With war imminent, Nancy finds respite by taking a job at the Heywood Hill Bookshop in Mayfair, hoping to make ends meet, and discovers a new life.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Perfectly Voices, Upliftingly Fun
- By Syd Young on 04-15-22
By: Eliza Knight
-
Now, Voyager
- Femmes Fatales
- By: Olive Higgins Prouty
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 70
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 64
Boston blueblood Charlotte Vale has led an unhappy, sheltered life. Lonely, dowdy, repressed, and pushing 40, Charlotte finds salvation at a sanitarium, where she undergoes an emotional and physical transformation. After her extreme makeover, the new Charlotte tests her mettle by embarking on a cruise and finds herself in a torrid love affair with a married man which ends at the conclusion of the voyage. But only then can the real journey begin, as Charlotte is forced to navigate a new life for herself.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Inspiration for The Movie Classic
- By Susie on 12-17-12
-
The Postcard
- By: Leah Fleming
- Narrated by: Elaine Claxton
- Length: 13 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 172
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 156
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 160
2002, Australia. When Melissa discovers a postcard addressed to 'Desmond' among her recently deceased father's effects, she is determined to discover this person's identity and his relationship to her father. She soon embarks on a journey that will take her across oceans and into the past...
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Meh
- By Summer Layne on 03-06-15
By: Leah Fleming
-
Shadow of a Century
- By: Jean Grainger
- Narrated by: Alana Kerr Collins
- Length: 11 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 263
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 230
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 227
Mary Doyle arrives in Dublin in 1913, doomed, she fears, to a life of domestic service. Instead, however, she finds herself deeply affected by the social and political turmoil of a fledgling nation struggling for independence. Suddenly, all that was once inevitable is no longer a certainty as she is embroiled in the very heart of the Easter Rising.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Loved this book!
- By Amazon Customer on 11-14-20
By: Jean Grainger
-
Mosaic
- By: Diane Armstrong
- Narrated by: Deidre Rubenstein
- Length: 19 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 208
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 167
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 171
>i>Mosaic is compelling storytelling at its best - from the fascinating details of Polish-Jewish culture and the rivalries and dramas of family life, to its moving account of lives torn apart by war and persecution, this an extraordinary true story of a family, and of one woman's journey to reclaim her heritage.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Absolutely excellent!
- By Roberta on 09-22-11
By: Diane Armstrong
-
Mademoiselle Chanel
- By: C. W. Gortner
- Narrated by: Rebecca Gibel
- Length: 14 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 604
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 539
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 537
Born into rural poverty, Gabrielle Chanel and her siblings are sent to an orphanage after their mother's death. The sisters nurture Gabrielle's exceptional sewing skills, a talent that will propel the willful young woman into a life far removed from the drudgery of her childhood.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Fiction Not Biography
- By Sara on 02-07-16
By: C. W. Gortner
-
The Mayfair Bookshop
- A Novel of Nancy Mitford and the Pursuit of Happiness
- By: Eliza Knight
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Gideon
- Length: 11 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 106
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 96
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 96
1938: She was one of the six sparkling Mitford sisters, known for her stinging quips, stylish dress, and bright green eyes. But Nancy Mitford’s seemingly dazzling life was really one of turmoil: with a perpetually unfaithful and broke husband, two Nazi sympathizer sisters, and her hopes of motherhood dashed forever. With war imminent, Nancy finds respite by taking a job at the Heywood Hill Bookshop in Mayfair, hoping to make ends meet, and discovers a new life.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Perfectly Voices, Upliftingly Fun
- By Syd Young on 04-15-22
By: Eliza Knight
-
Now, Voyager
- Femmes Fatales
- By: Olive Higgins Prouty
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 70
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 64
Boston blueblood Charlotte Vale has led an unhappy, sheltered life. Lonely, dowdy, repressed, and pushing 40, Charlotte finds salvation at a sanitarium, where she undergoes an emotional and physical transformation. After her extreme makeover, the new Charlotte tests her mettle by embarking on a cruise and finds herself in a torrid love affair with a married man which ends at the conclusion of the voyage. But only then can the real journey begin, as Charlotte is forced to navigate a new life for herself.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The Inspiration for The Movie Classic
- By Susie on 12-17-12
-
A Dangerous Fortune
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 16 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8,189
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 6,269
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 6,270
In 1866, tragedy strikes the exclusive Windfield School when a young student drowns in a mysterious accident. His death and its aftermath initiate a spiraling circle of treachery that will span three decades and entwine many lives. From the exclusive men’s clubs and brothels that cater to every dark desire of London’s upper class to the dazzling ballrooms and mahogany-paneled suites of the manipulators of the world’s wealth, one family is splintered by a shared legacy.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Predictable Fun
- By Rebecarol on 05-24-08
By: Ken Follett
-
Golden Earrings
- By: Belinda Alexandra
- Narrated by: Caroline Lee
- Length: 20 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 533
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 487
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 483
Catalina, grand-daughter of Spanish refugees, is a disciplined student with the School of the Paris Opera Ballet. Little gets inthe way of her career until the visit of an otherworldly being, who leaves her a mysterious pair of golden earrings. Given a quest, Catalina realises she must explore her own Spanish heritage and makes the connection between the visitor and ‘La Rusa’, a young Andalusian flamenco star. La Rusa died in exile in Paris in 1952, her death ruled as suicide. But as Catalina begins to discover, there were those in the community, who had good reason for wanting La Rusa dead.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fabulous story
- By Paddington on 10-19-12
-
Maeve's Times
- In Her Own Words
- By: Maeve Binchy
- Narrated by: Kate Binchy
- Length: 11 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 99
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 87
From the royal wedding to boring airplane companions, Samuel Beckett to Margaret Thatcher, "senior moments" to life as a waitress, Maeve's Times gives us wonderful insight into a changing Ireland as it celebrates the work of one of our best-loved writers in all its diversity - revealing her characteristic directness, laugh-out-loud humor, and unswerving gaze into the true heart of a matter.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A GLIMPSE THROUGH MAEVE'S LOOKING GLASS
- By jstrfic on 08-08-17
By: Maeve Binchy
-
The Life and Loves of a She-Devil
- By: Fay Weldon
- Narrated by: Gemma Dawson
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 63
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 64
In New York Magazine, Rhoda Koenig calls The Life and Loves of a She-Devil, "...a novel of blazingly hot revenge, one that amply illustrates the saying about heaven having no rage like love turned to hate, nor hell a fury like a woman scorned."
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Sweet, brutal, and over the top revenge!!
- By Wayne on 04-10-17
By: Fay Weldon
-
Marlene
- A Novel
- By: C. W. Gortner
- Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne
- Length: 14 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 106
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 95
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 94
Raised in genteel poverty after the First World War, Maria Magdalena Dietrich dreams of a life on the stage. When a budding career as a violinist is cut short, the willful teenager vows to become a singer, trading her family's proper middle-class society for the free-spirited, louche world of Weimar Berlin's cabarets and drag balls.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
One of the best books I’ve ever read!!!
- By Rimma Rose on 01-26-18
By: C. W. Gortner
-
The Girls of Slender Means
- By: Muriel Spark
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 3 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 240
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 201
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 203
"Long ago in 1945 all the nice people in England were poor, allowing for exceptions." Thus begins Muriel Spark's tragic and rapier-witted portrait of a London ladies' hostel just emerging from the shadow of World War II. Like the May of Teck Club building itself - "three times window shattered since 1940 but never directly hit" - its lady inhabitants do their best to act as if the world were back to normal, practicing elocution and jostling over suitors and a single Schiaparelli gown.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
please please try again
- By Consolation on 03-24-20
By: Muriel Spark
-
High Rising
- A Virago Modern Classic
- By: Angela Thirkell, Alexander McCall Smith - introduction
- Narrated by: Jilly Bond
- Length: 7 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 209
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 182
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 182
Successful lady novelist Laura Morland and her boisterous young son, Tony, set off to spend Christmas at her country home in the sleepy surrounds of High Rising. But Laura's wealthy friend and neighbor, George Knox, has taken on a scheming secretary whose designs on marriage to her employer threaten the delicate social fabric of the village.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Beginning of a journey
- By Jerri C on 11-04-16
By: Angela Thirkell, and others
-
Rose
- My Life in Service to Lady Astor
- By: Rosina Harrison
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 8 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 341
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 293
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 289
In 1928, Rosina Harrison arrived at the illustrious household of the Astor family to take up her new position as personal maid to the infamously temperamental Lady Nancy Astor, who sat in Parliament, entertained royalty, and traveled the world. "She's not a lady as you would understand a lady" was the butler's ominous warning. But what no one expected was that the iron-willed Lady Astor was about to meet her match in the no-nonsense, whip-smart girl from the country.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
AWFUL!! I was very disappointed.
- By The Louligan on 08-12-13
By: Rosina Harrison
-
American Rose
- A Nation Laid Bare: The Life and Times of Gypsy Rose Lee
- By: Karen Abbott
- Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne
- Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 131
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 102
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 99
With the critically acclaimed Sin in the Second City, best-selling author Karen Abbott “pioneered sizzle history” (USA Today). Now she returns with the gripping and expansive story of America’s coming-of-age - told through the extraordinary life of Gypsy Rose Lee and the world she survived and conquered. America in the Roaring Twenties. Vaudeville was king. Talking pictures were only a distant flicker. Speakeasies beckoned beyond dimly lit doorways; money flowed fast and free.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Well done biography of a complicated Icon
- By Moire on 01-27-11
By: Karen Abbott
-
My Autobiography
- By: Charles Chaplin, David Robinson - introduction
- Narrated by: Steve John Shepherd
- Length: 19 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 73
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 62
Take an unforgettable journey with the man George Bernard Shaw called "the only genius to come out of the movie industry" as he moves from his impoverished South London childhood to the heights of Hollywood wealth and fame; from the McCarthy-era investigations to his founding of United Artists to his "reverse migration" back to Europe.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Finally Chaplin’s auto is available!
- By Ryan Baumbach on 04-28-22
By: Charles Chaplin, and others
-
After the War Is Over
- A Novel
- By: Jennifer Robson
- Narrated by: Lucy Rayner
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 148
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 134
After four years as a military nurse, Charlotte Brown is ready to leave behind the devastation of the Great War. The daughter of a vicar, she has always been determined to dedicate her life to helping others. Moving to busy Liverpool, she throws herself into her work with those most in need, only tearing herself away for the lively dinners she enjoys with the women at her boardinghouse.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
More romance than history
- By RueRue on 08-17-16
By: Jennifer Robson
-
The Razor's Edge
- By: W. Somerset Maugham
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,040
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 918
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 909
The Great War changed everything and everyone, and Larry Darrell is no exception. Though his physical wounds from the war heal, his spirit is changed almost beyond recognition. He leaves his betrothed, the beautiful and devoted Isabel; studies philosophy and religion in Paris; lives as a monk, and witnesses the exotic hardships of Spanish life. All of life that he can find - from an Indian Ashrama to labor in a coal mine - becomes Larry's spiritual experiment as he spurns the comfort and privilege of the Roaring 20s.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An Classic of Love and the Desire for Meaning
- By Eric on 01-06-17