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The Nature of Fragile Things Audiobook
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Publisher Description
April 18, 1906: A massive earthquake rocks San Francisco just before daybreak, igniting a devouring inferno. Lives are lost, lives are shattered, but some rise from the ashes forever changed.
Sophie Whalen is a young Irish immigrant so desperate to get out of a New York tenement that she answers a mail-order bride ad and agrees to marry a man she knows nothing about. San Francisco widower Martin Hocking proves to be as aloof as he is mesmerizingly handsome. Sophie quickly develops deep affection for Kat, Martin's silent five-year-old daughter, but Martin's odd behavior leaves her with the uneasy feeling that something about her newfound situation isn't right.
Then one early-spring evening, a stranger at the door sets in motion a transforming chain of events. Sophie discovers hidden ties to two other women. The first, pretty and pregnant, is standing on her doorstep. The second is hundreds of miles away in the American Southwest, grieving the loss of everything she once loved.
The fates of these three women intertwine on the eve of the devastating earthquake, thrusting them onto a perilous journey that will test their resiliency and resolve and, ultimately, their belief that love can overcome fear.
From the acclaimed author of The Last Year of the War and As Bright as Heaven comes a gripping novel about the bonds of friendship and mother love, and the power of female solidarity.
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“Alana Kerr Collins narrates this audiobook in a lovely Irish lilt that gives credibility to the young protagonist, Sophie Whelan, an immigrant whose fortunes we follow. Collins’s revealing yet subtle tone is matched by that of Jason Culp, who portrays Marshal Logan, whose matter-of-fact questioning is woven into the story. The pair’s narration styles suit this novel in which good triumphs over evil…The audiobook becomes a story of three courageous women—all connected to the despicable Hocking.”
— AudioFile
Quotes
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“Meissner spins an exceptional story….Unexpected and masterfully crafted twists and turns abound….Ingeniously plotted and perfectly structured, this captivates from beginning to end.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
“A brilliant story of resilience and the power of female friendship.”
— Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author -
“A terrific tale that takes us on a harrowing cable-car ride through early 20th century San Francisco, where dark secrets—like the city itself—crack wide open, forcing our world-weary heroine to confront the devastation done by the lies she's been told and by the lies she's still telling...
— Stephanie Dray, author of America’s First Daughter and The Women of Chateau Lafayette -
A brilliant story of resilience and the power of female friendship.
— Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The Mystery of Mrs. Christie -
A mysterious web of lies, love, and loss that accelerates toward the inevitable: the great San Francisco earthquake of 1906.
— Kristin Harmel, author of The Book of Lost Names -
A riveting tale set in 1906 San Francisco. These fascinating characters' hidden pasts and dark secrets collide, entwine, and explode—and that's before the earthquake hits.
— Greer Macallister, author of The Magician's Lie and The Arctic Fury -
In the ashes of San Francisco's greatest tragedy, one remarkable woman finds love, friendship, and the means to rebuild. Historical fiction that reads with the urgency and suspense of a thriller.
— Lauren Willig, New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Country -
Driven by the unstoppable force of the three intriguing women at its heart, this is a novel to savor, and one to share with all the women in your life whom you admire.
— Hazel Gaynor, New York Times bestselling author of When We Were Young & Brave -
“Meissner spins an exceptional story….Unexpected and masterfully crafted twists and turns abound….Ingeniously plotted and perfectly structured, this captivates from beginning to end.
— Publisher's Weekly (starred review)
Awards
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An Audie Award Finalist for Best Fiction Narration
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About Susan Meissner
Susan Meissner is a USA Today bestselling author of historical fiction with more than three-quarters of a million books in print. She is an author, speaker, and writing workshop leader with a background in community journalism.
About the Narrators
Jason Culp, an Earphones Award–winning narrator, has been acting since the age of ten, and his credits include a variety of television, theater, and film roles. He is best known for his role as Julian Jerome on General Hospital. In addition to audiobooks and voice-over work in national commercials, he has also narrated documentaries for National Geographic and the History Channel.
Alana Kerr Collins is an Earphones Award–winning audiobook narrator. She is also an actor, puppeteer, and singer who studied at the Impulse Company in London and earned a BA in drama and English at the University of Dublin, Trinity College. She starred in the short films Rachel 9000, The Deal, and Veritas and has appeared in several television series, including Emu and Big City Park.
Alana Kerr Collins is an Earphones Award–winning audiobook narrator. She is also an actor, puppeteer, and singer who studied at the Impulse Company in London and earned a BA in drama and English at the University of Dublin, Trinity College. She starred in the short films Rachel 9000, The Deal, and Veritas and has appeared in several television series, including Emu and Big City Park.