The Taker

By: Alma Katsu

Narrated by: Laurel Lefkow

True love can last an eternity... but immortality comes at a price.

On the midnight shift at a hospital in rural Maine, Dr. Luke Findley is expecting another quiet evening of frostbite and the occasional domestic dispute. But the minute Lanore McIlvrae—Lanny—walks into his ER, she changes his life forever.

A mysterious woman with a past and plenty of dark secrets, Lanny is unlike anyone Luke has ever met. He is inexplicably drawn to her... despite the fact that she is a murder suspect with a police escort. And as she begins to tell her story, a story of enduring love and consummate betrayal that transcends time and mortality, Luke finds himself utterly captivated.

Her impassioned account begins at the turn of the nineteenth century in the same small town of St. Andrew, Maine, back when it was a Puritan settlement. Consumed as a child by her love for the son of the town’s founder, Lanny will do anything to be with him forever. But the price she pays is steep—an immortal bond that chains her to a terrible fate for all eternity. And now, two centuries later, the key to her healing and her salvation lies with Dr. Luke Findley.

Part historical novel, part supernatural thriller, The Taker is an unforgettable tale about the power of unrequited love not only to elevate and sustain, but also to blind and ultimately destroy, and how each of us is responsible for finding our own path to redemption.

©2011 Alma Katsu (P)2011 Simon & Schuster

The protagonist needs to be slapped

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

This story brought out so many emotions in me that at times I had to remind myself that it was a work of fiction. Some spoilers ahead, so beware if you continue reading.

This woman allows herself to be physically and emotionally abused repeatedly. She has no respect for herself, long before she met Adair and his minions and I had a hard time trying to enjoy the story when this woman was so abused.

Would you be willing to try another book from Alma Katsu? Why or why not?

Perhaps. The writing was well done, I just could not get past the doormat - Lenore.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

The narration was fine except that the narrator mispronounced several words.

Do you think The Taker needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

I know there are two more in the series. I've read some of the reviews so I am not sure I'm going to listen to/read the next. I may just end with this story.

Egh - kind of a downer

I read an article this week that defined happiness as "being satisfied with what you have" if that's true, then this book is the definition of unhappiness.

Based on the description; I did not expect the book I got. That being said - I'm not sure what I was expecting. I think clearer resolution might be it. I felt like the book "ended" as opposed to it being "finished".

I will say that I think Lanny did finally start to mature emotionally by the last chapter, I don't think it was enough of a leap to really make me feel like the journey was worth it.

I had been considering reading this book and then a book club I belong to selected it for this month's selection. I'm glad I had a reason to finish what was otherwise a pointless and dull book.

A little slow at the end

Overall, I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next! The end of this book was a bit slow and left me wondering if I should even read the next...but I already bought it! P.S. it's a good start to the second book...I just hope it doesn't disappoint with the ending again!!

Live Forever?

If you could sum up The Taker in three words, what would they be?

Eternity...Loneliness...Timeless.

What did you like best about this story?

The way the different stories of the characters go back and forth through time.

What does Laurel Lefkow bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She does a good job with performing all the characters.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Forever is a long, long time. What would you do to live forever? If it was for love?

Any additional comments?

This book was fully engrossing and I enjoyed it immensely. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

decent read

it bounced around alot and was hard to keep up if you weren't paying close attention.

Heavy Hearted...

Any additional comments?

It's difficult to rate this book. This was a very heavy read for me.

This dark historical fiction/fantasy introduces us to some very complex and intriguing characters, none of which are very likable. But that's by design. These characters are flawed and I'm impressed with the author's ability to keep me coming back despite some of the way I felt about the characters. I'm not sure I've ever read a book where I disliked all the characters. But Lanny's plight and survival story is compelling and I couldn't stop reading it, even when it made me feel depressed and anxious. Like I said...very compelling, but if you are a very empathetic reader, it can be a heavy read. Maybe it's just the way I related to Lanny... I found it to be a bit depressing, and as an empathetic reader, I felt the sadness in Lanny's obsession with Jonathan.

Alma Katsu is a very talented writer. Her characters were well defined. It's a love story, but not to be confused with historical romance. Love is a funny thing. It's cliche to say, but "the heart wants what the heart wants." Lanny is in love with Jonathan from they time they were children. And Jonathan loves her as best he can, but she knows from the beginning that he may not love her the same way. Even if they live for an eternity... But she never gives up hoping.

I will read The Reckoning, but not just yet. My heart can't take it. I would look forward to other stories from Alma.

**Spoilers**
I would have liked to see a little less of Lanny's "youth" or rather, early years, and more of the last 100 years of her life. We could have seen the character development over that time. It makes me sad that in those years that she didn't grow to accept the relationships that she couldn't change and find love and happiness in the life she made.

I personally believe that love and happiness are part of who we are and we can decide to grow those feelings just as the feelings of sadness, loneliness, and loss can be held obsessively (as in the case of Lanny) to our own detriment. Letting go is not easy, but sometimes you just have to move on. I also think that having Jonathan disappear for 100 years, and have some significant character development happen and just dropped in our laps was a bit of a cheat.

Couldn't put it down!

Any additional comments?
I was initially sobered by the vaguely worded lukewarm reviews on this book, but decided to take a chance and buy it anyway. I'm so glad I did. I was mesmerized from the first chapter and couldn't put it down. I've always loved the "1001 Arabian Nights" types of books where stories are used to advance the plot, so I very much enjoyed this one. The reader was also very good.

I'm especially glad I gave it a try since the 2nd book, "The Reckoning," is turning out to be so entertaining. It's so original and really can't be compared to anything else out there.

My only complaint is that I stayed up way too late listening to the first book!

great

this was a nice change of pace for immortality, excited to listen to book 2

The Soulless

Very interesting story about a young girl who loved a young man too much,so much so that she had committed atrocities just to keep him from harm and with her and in doing this,doomed both their souls for eternity.For all that she has endured,given up...in the end, she winds up lonely and un-loved.The narrator did a great job narrating the characters.The ending of the book though was a bit flat,could have been more creative.

Left wanting something more...

The Taker is a great story. I loved the performance of the reader. And overall the story was very good, well written and so interesting!! I just felt that that we didn't get the complete story. Or maybe it was that we had too many very good stories with none of them ever giving that feeling of satisfaction. Though Katsu certainly has set up a series in the making, and I'm looking forward to more.