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Romancing Miss Bronte: A Novel Audiobook
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(3.03) - 866 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
In this astonishing novel, a brilliant mélange of fact and fiction, Juliet Gael skillfully and stylishly captures the passions, hopes, dreams, and sorrows of literature’s most famous sisters—and imagines how love dramatically and most unexpectedly found Charlotte Brontë. During the two years that she studied in Brussels, Charlotte had a taste of life’s splendors—travel, literature, and art. Now, back home in the Yorkshire moors, duty-bound to a blind father and an alcoholic brother, an ambitious Charlotte refuses to sink into hopelessness. With her sisters, Emily and Anne, Charlotte conceives a plan to earn money and pursue a dream: The Brontës will publish. In childhood the Brontë children created fantastical imaginary worlds; now the sisters craft novels quite unlike anything written before. Transforming her loneliness and personal sorrow into a triumph of literary art, Charlotte pens her 1847 masterpiece, Jane Eyre. Charlotte’s novel becomes an overwhelming literary success, catapulting the shy and awkward young woman into the spotlight of London’s fashionable literary scene—and into the arms of her new publisher, George Smith, an irresistibly handsome young man whose interest in his fiercely intelligent and spirited new author seems to go beyond professional duty. But just as life begins to hold new promise, unspeakable tragedy descends on the Brontë household, throwing London and George into the background and leaving Charlotte to fear that the only romance she will ever find is at the tip of her pen. But another man waits in the Brontës’ Haworth parsonage—the quiet but determined curate Arthur Nicholls. After secretly pining for Charlotte since he first came to work for her father, Arthur suddenly reveals his heart to her. Romancing Miss Brontë is a fascinating portrayal of an extraordinary woman whose life and work articulated our deepest human longing: to love and be loved in return.
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"This was a book that I won from this website. I had not read any of the classic "Bronte" books, but plan to now. I had a hard time getting into this book at first because my usual genre is thriller/ horror (Koontz/King/Saul), but I was so glad that I stuck with it. I truly enjoyed this book and it has prompted me to seek out the classics and begin reading them. I think this author did a great job of portraying the Bronte sisters and it is interesting to learn about the authors' lives and background."
— Heidi (4 out of 5 stars)
Romancing Miss Bronte Listener Reviews
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" Barely three stars, and only because the author's writing style was quite lovely. The romantic relationship between Arthur and Charolette was nicely written too. Unfortunately, the book was a bit boring at times. The author could have easily "axed" 100 pages in the editing process. Nice piece of historical fiction about the Bronte sisters, but sadly, nothing to rave about! "
— Aleisha, 2/12/2014 -
" At first I felt a bit turned off by the overt "fictionalizing of a biography" aspect of this, but it grew on me. I already knew all the facts (except for the stuff about Arthur Bell - and a lot of the stuff about Arthur Bell is most likely imagined rather than based on fact), but the essential story had power for me anyway. "
— Kiri, 2/5/2014 -
" Fiction based on facts. Almost fictionalized biography. Loved it! In one or two places the narrative goes skiwumpus, like she lost her train of thought, but overall engrossing, satisfying. "
— John, 2/3/2014 -
" This book really helped me appreciate the time period in which the Brontes, Jane Austin and Elizabeth Gaskell were writing. What a sad life Charlotte Bronte led. "
— Cathy, 1/22/2014 -
" Loved the story, only criticism is that I thought Arthur was portrayed to be weak. "
— Cynthia, 1/10/2014 -
" I have read several other books about the Bronte family. This one was exceptional. The author's description of their lives was amazing. There was so much sadness in the family. It is impressive to read how Charlotte finally attained happiness. It makes me want to read Jane Eyre again. "
— Judy, 1/4/2014 -
" WARNING: this book was fantastic (5 star rating) until Chapter 29. And then much to my surprise there were two chapters of explicit honeymoon scenes. What the Heck? You can skip them if you are interested in the story. "
— Wendy, 12/29/2013 -
" This book was enjoyable to read. I want to read the rest of the Bronte sisters' books (besides Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre--one of my all time favorites) now that I've read this book. It also made me want to read Elizabeth Gaskell's biography of Charlotte since I also enjoy her books. "
— Jennifer, 12/22/2013 -
" The best novel of the Brontes I've read so far! "
— Jenny, 12/11/2013 -
" It's been a while since I read this but I do like some historical fiction and found that this was fun to read, though sad. "
— Mary, 10/31/2013 -
" A bit slow at first, but as described on the cover, a brilliant mix of fact and fiction. Although I've read a couple of her novels, I knew little of her life. Such sadness she endured, and with such courage. I must read Jane Eyre again. "
— Marlo, 10/17/2013 -
" The story of the Brontes is tragic but this novelization of their story reminds you why it's also fascinating. It was good to visit the Brontes again through Gael's eyes. I particularly liked how she used Charlotte's letters throughout the story so it was almost half fiction, half biography. "
— Krystal, 10/9/2013 -
" Interesting story. I don't buy all of the fictional parts of Charlotte's life. "
— Eloise, 10/6/2013 -
" WOW! This is a phenomenal work of biographical fiction. Well-written, informative, captivating. Really brought these people to life in a genuine, complete way. What a fascinating family and saga. "
— Laurisa, 8/22/2013 -
" It was pretty slow reading, but I did find it interesting. "
— Jennifer, 11/10/2012 -
" Wonderful book that stays with you! Brings the Bronte sisters to life! "
— Sheillagh, 9/29/2012 -
" I would probably give this book a 3.8 in reality. It was a very enjoyable book. It was especially fun to read after just finishing Wuthering Heights and starting Jane Eyre. I really liked this book. "
— Aleena, 3/25/2012 -
" Jane Eyre was one of my favorite books growing up. I really enjoyed learning about Charlotte Bronte and her sisters. "
— Katie, 4/8/2011 -
" WOW! This is a phenomenal work of biographical fiction. Well-written, informative, captivating. Really brought these people to life in a genuine, complete way. What a fascinating family and saga. "
— Laurisa, 4/7/2011 -
" Very interesting book. Learnt a lot about the Bronte sisters that I did not know. MAde me want to read all of their books. "
— Allyson, 4/7/2011 -
" I really enjoyed learning about the life of Charlotte Bronte (and her family) in this novel, which seems to stick pretty close to fact. "
— Bekah, 3/22/2011 -
" WARNING: this book was fantastic (5 star rating) until Chapter 29. And then much to my surprise there were two chapters of explicit honeymoon scenes. What the Heck? You can skip them if you are interested in the story. "
— Wendy, 3/8/2011 -
" I really liked this book and cheered for all the Bronte sisters. They will not only become your friends, they will inspire you to read their work. "
— Megan, 2/23/2011 -
" Fascinating portrayal of Charlotte Bronte; fictional, but based on fact. Well-written, sympathetic without being maudlin, it paints a picture of her hopes, dreams, passions, and sorrows. "
— Joan, 2/8/2011 -
" The best novel of the Brontes I've read so far! "
— Jenmikes, 1/18/2011 -
" I have read several other books about the Bronte family. This one was exceptional. The author's description of their lives was amazing. There was so much sadness in the family. It is impressive to read how Charlotte finally attained happiness. It makes me want to read Jane Eyre again. "
— Judy, 1/17/2011 -
" Really enjoyed this book. Cool to see this perspective of Charlotte Bronte's life. "
— Manda, 1/10/2011
About Juliet Gael
Juliet Gael was raised in the Midwest and obtained her MA in French literature before pursuing graduate film studies at USC and English literature at UCLA in Los Angeles, California. She has lived abroad for more than fifteen years, primarily in Paris, where she worked as a screenwriter. She now makes her home in Florence, Italy.
About Rosalyn Landor
Rosalyn Landor is an English-born television, theater, and multiple-award-winning audiobook narrator. Her television credits include Love in a Cold Climate, Rumpole of the Bailey, Sherlock Holmes, and Star Trek: The Next Generation. She has won numerous Audie awards and AudioFile magazine Earphones awards.