Olivia is the favorite child in the Land family; one morning when the family wakes, she is gone. Laura is Theo's favorite child, but on the first day of her summer job, before leaving for university, she is murdered. Private detective Jackson Brodie is hired years later to solve the mysteries of these events. But this is no conventional murder mystery. It is the story of how people can change when such important events remain unexplained and how our lives can be intertwined in ways in which we are not aware. Susan Jameson is flawless in her creation of a myriad of characters--the snipped tones of the buttoned-up Amelia Land, the unsubtle lengthening of words by the flirtatious Julia, the permanent anguish of Theo, and the frustration of the young mother when her husband wakes the fussy baby. Each character has recognizable tones and moods. A wonderful story and performance.
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2008
Duration: 10 hrs
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This audiobook is initially daunting. Sixteen hours long and constructed of subtle—at times, even confusing—shifts in point of view, it may feel overwhelming in the first hour. But sticking with George Newbern’s narration and Gilbert’s prose yields great rewards. Newbern’s performance is funny, thoughtful, heartrending, and utterly engrossing. When the famous, now aging, author A.N. Dyer calls his distant sons to his side, Newbern is provided ample characters to animate, and he does so with perfect pacing and what seems like an innate understanding of the novel. He creates a rhythm that makes the changing perspectives easy to follow and Gilbert’s details accessible. & SONS is a perfect example of how a skilled narrator can make a good book even better.
Pub Date: July 23, 2013
Duration: 16 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9780385359566
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Following multiple lives over six decades, this is a story of cultural shifts, the effects of racial prejudice, and family secrets. Joy Osmanski's narration is engaged and easy to listen to. There are times when her narration is uneven and character accents are inconsistent, but she moves the story along at an excellent pace. Will Damron capably narrates a few descriptive paragraphs at the beginning to set the scene. During the '50s, as bombs are explode in Nevada's deserts to entertain Las Vegas tourists, four sets of characters experience the destruction caused by prejudice and social upheaval in their lives. The author skillfully integrates the lives of vivid and realistic characters, bringing them to a satisfying and surprising denouement in the final chapters.
Pub Date: May 2, 2017
Duration: 11 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781508234715
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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