Narrator Karen Chilton uses a Southern drawl that evokes the region and its citizens. Elle Burns is a freed slave who now works for the Loyal League, using her eidetic memory to assist the Union Army's campaign. She feels both surprise and desire as she reluctantly falls for Scottish American Malcolm McCall, another Union spy who is undercover in Richmond. Chilton clearly depicts how Elle is torn between her deeply held convictions and Malcolm's courtesy and affection for her. Because Chilton doesn't adopt McCall's Scottish accent, her ability to fully characterize him is reduced, and his dialogue with Elle is often too similar to differentiate. In addition, numerous mispronounced words diminish the power of the production.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2017
Duration: 10 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781501954139
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Ayla, one of the "others," is adopted by a clan of Neanderthal cave people. She struggles to conform to their ways, but her advanced human traits overwhelm and threaten their primitive culture in this initial installment of an immensely popular series. Although the story might benefit from abridgment, Rowena Cooper easily carries out the formidable task of enlivening the mostly silent and stereotypical characters with consistent, diverse personalities and human dimension. Through skillful phrasing and inflection, she maintains the reader's interest and suspense, especially with Ayla and her plight, throughout this rambling and imaginative story.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This lyrical, sensual novel of woman's lot in Manchu, China, is as well researched as it is well written. Authentic in tone, it's nonetheless written for Westerners by a Western expert on China. Moreover, Susan Clark performs the demanding text superbly, with only occasional signs of fatigue. For the most part she not only sustains the quaint diction and Asian atmosphere, but also, creates whole worlds with her voice. She acts the book, rather than reads it, and, in so doing, turns a pretty trifle into a stupendous beauty.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 4 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Audio Literature
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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