The Stolen Marriage

A Novel

By: Diane Chamberlain

Narrated by: Susan Bennett

From New York Times, USA Today, and Sunday Times bestselling author Diane Chamberlain comes The Stolen Marriage—a thrilling new audiobook of secrets, heartbreak, and small-town alienation.

In 1944, twenty-three-year-old Tess DeMello abruptly ends her engagement to the love of her life when she marries a mysterious stranger and moves to Hickory, North Carolina, a small town struggling with racial tension and the hardships imposed by World War II. Tess’s new husband, Henry Kraft, is a secretive man who often stays out all night, hides money from his new wife, and shows no interest in making love. Tess quickly realizes she’s trapped in a strange and loveless marriage with no way out.

The people of Hickory love and respect Henry and see Tess as an outsider, treating her with suspicion and disdain, especially after one of the town’s prominent citizens dies in a terrible accident and Tess is blamed. Tess suspects people are talking about her, plotting behind her back, and following her as she walks around town. What does everyone know about Henry that she does not? Feeling alone and adrift, Tess turns to the one person who seems to understand her, a local medium who gives her hope but seems to know more than he’s letting on.

When a sudden polio epidemic strikes the town, the townspeople band together to build a polio hospital. Tess, who has a nursing degree, bucks Henry’s wishes and begins to work at the hospital, finding meaning in nursing the young victims. Yet at home, Henry’s actions grow more alarming by the day. As Tess works to save the lives of her patients, can she untangle her husband’s mysterious behavior and save her own life?

©2017 Diane Chamberlain (P)2017 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"[A] well-crafted crime-tinged tale." —Publishers Weekly

Wonderful read

Captivating plot, I read the book in two days. The book is based on historical events and deals with quite a lot of taboo subjects. The reader can easily identify with the characters but I feel that Tess, the protagonist, was just a little too understanding, a little too nice and the author never really presented Tess as she ought to. Tess had a passion for nursing, yet the author neglected in demonstrating that passion, no explanations why Tess loved it, no follow up on how Tess reached her professional goals. That being said, this book is definitely worth a credit and the narrator did an excellent job. I would definitely recommend this book.

Enjoyed the story

I normally listen to books only in the car. I couldn't stop listening and didn't turn the t.v. on all weekend. I listened to the entire book in about 3 days.

Five plus plus !!!!

I loved this book. It's a very satisfying story about love, mistakes, misunderstandings, forgiveness, redemption and change. I just thoroughly enjoyed it!!

loved it!

Excellent narrator. Anytime I wasn't listening I could hardly wait to get back to the story. Not only was it very entertaining, but also I learned a lot about the real impact of polio before the vaccine.

It held my interest the whole time.

What made the experience of listening to The Stolen Marriage the most enjoyable?

Its interesting because I predicted the outcome at every turn but still enjoyed listening to it very much. If your traveling a distance and want your trip to go fast, I highly recommend.

Really good!

What did you love best about The Stolen Marriage?

Constant surprises.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Absolutely. Lots of cliff hangers.

What about Susan Bennett’s performance did you like?

Excellent timing and different voices for the characters.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Too long for one sitting, but couldn’t wait to get back to the story.

Any additional comments?

This is my first review!

Great read, will definitely keep you wanting more!

This was my first book I have read from Diane Chamberlain, I can't wait to read more. tbis was a well written book that will keep you Want I g more, there are some few twists in the book and honestly they don't turn out how you think!

Couldn't stop listening!

Wonderful story full of twists. Really makes you realize that while we may not agree with the paths our life takes sometimes, it's taking us there for a reason that is beyond our understanding at the time. There's a bigger picture awaiting.

Best book I have read all year!

An absolute must read! The way the author captures the events happening in life during the 1940s and then the events happening in our chaotic world today are eye opening. The issues that we endured then and now and how our world seems to overcome and repeat itself over and over again. Diane Chamberlain is one of my new favorite authors and I look forward to reading more of her novels if you're hesitant about reading this book just do it you will not regret it

Almost Didn't Finish It

To be honest, I did not enjoy the beginning of the book and almost put it down. There was too much tragedy in too short a period of time for my taste. But man am I glad I kept reading! This book became my favorite read of the year! When the pieces started falling into place I could not put it down. I finally heard the last chapter at 4:00 a .m. Yep, read all night! Excellent book! And I suspect most people won't have the issues with the first of the book that I had. Read this one, you won't be sorry.