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Vanishing Acts Audiobook
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(3.00) - 52,463 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult is widely acclaimed for her ability to tap into the hearts and minds of real people. Now she explores what happens when a young woman’s past—a past she didn’t even know she had—catches up to her just in time to threaten her future.
How do you recover the past when it was never yours to lose?
Delia Hopkins has led a charmed life. Raised in rural New Hampshire by her beloved, widowed father, she now has a young daughter, a handsome fiancé, and her own search-and-rescue bloodhound, which she uses to find missing persons. But as Delia plans her wedding, she is plagued by flashbacks of a life she can’t recall…until a policeman knocks on her door, revealing a secret about herself that changes the world as she knows it—and threatens to jeopardize her future.
With Vanishing Acts, Jodi Picoult explores how life—as we know it—might not turn out the way we imagined; how the people we’ve loved and trusted can suddenly change before our very eyes; how the memory we thought had vanished could return as a threat. Once again, Picoult handles an astonishing and timely topic with understanding, insight, and compassion.
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"Vanishing acts is a powerful story of how a past is always going to catch up with the present. Jodi Picoult weaves a shocking story of how a women finally figures out her life.Vanishing Acts was a book that did not disappoint me, and it is one I'd recommend to anyone. "
— ?Grace? (5 out of 5 stars)
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“Each of the five narrators in this excellent audiobook speaks intimately to the listenerener, capitalizing on the emotional complexity of Picoult’s heart-wrenching tale…Delia’s parents, read by Jenner and Washington, offer the most noteworthy performances. Jenner successfully conveys the rainbow of personalities Andrew encounters while being held in an Arizona jail. Washington, meanwhile, embodies Delia’s darkly tragic mother, who emerges as both a gentle healer with a dulcet Southwestern accent and a mother who was never there for her young child.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“Having different actors voice the major characters is ideal, and all here are excellent, from the supple but mature voice of paterfamilias Andrew Hopkins, who turns out to have kidnapped his daughter decades earlier, to the daughter, now known as Delia, who is a young mother herself. Picoult dovetails the narratives neatly and rations the plot turns expertly, building to a fine courtroom finale.”
— AudioFile
Vanishing Acts Listener Reviews
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" It was ok. I got a little bored in the middle. Not sure how crazy I was about how quickly it kept switching back and forth between present and past. I was not as shocked about the ending as I usually am about most of her books. "
— Joy, 2/12/2014 -
" cheesy, cheesy cheesy. I don't know why I felt it was necessay to finish it. Maybe it was the native american excerpts and I my background from New Mexico, but I kept with it. I will admit that that i scanned quickly thru the "romantic" narrative. Oh god, how emabarrassing for an almost 60 year old woman. I was expecially annoyed with the use of memory theory and weak indicator of Loftus studies for the DV and sexual abuse core. I have worked in DV for over 20 years and this kind of easy exploitation irritates me. "
— Brooke, 2/8/2014 -
" After reading five of her books, this one made me realize that maybe I need a break from her. I didn't finish reading it. I just felt like it has too much going on than I can handle. "
— Fearlesprincess, 2/5/2014 -
" One of her better books. Usually I think the endings are diportional to the middle (so much detail in the middle and then the entire problem is wrapped up in 30 pages). "
— Jenna, 2/4/2014 -
" 4 stars really means 3 3/4 ;-) Good. Just good. Not great. Fast read, convincing storyline, interesting characters. Perhaps too predictable? I hate finishing a book feeling like, "well, get to check that one off my list!" I'd much rather be wowed. "
— Jenifer, 2/1/2014 -
" loved this .... but i have yet to find a jodi picoult book i havent loved :) like the way her books really let you get into the characters and understand why they do what they do. Which book of hers will I read next???? "
— Shona, 2/1/2014 -
" Another great page turner. The thing I love about her books is her ability to show me a perspective that I already had an opinion on and then make me question how I actually perceive it. "
— Kelley, 1/12/2014 -
" I could do without the middle part of the story (the second subplot Jodi always throws in there was definitely not necessary this time), but as usual- it's an amazing book! "
— Angela, 1/9/2014 -
" To many (weird) plot twists. "
— Niky, 1/4/2014 -
" Very interesting good. "
— Sheree, 12/24/2013 -
" another great one by this author. is about a father who kidnaps his own daughter "
— Nilay, 12/3/2013 -
" Love anything with Jodi's name on it...but not my favorite of hers. Probably because the heroine lets things happen to her..the two heros are much stronger characters. "
— Laura, 11/23/2013 -
" This book was my very favorite out of all the fifteen that shes written. very beautiful book. "
— Jeanine, 7/6/2013 -
" I'd rate this book somewhere between 3 and 4 stars. A definate page turner With so many twists leading up to the end, but I found the different characters telling their stories through out the book, at times hard to keep up with. "
— Jane85, 4/23/2013 -
" This could have been a great book. The concept was great, and the potential mystery was intriguing. The delivery was lacking something. "
— Tony, 2/19/2013 -
" It was a story that kept my attention. Woman grown up, with a daughter of her own, and alcoholic fiancee finds out her own father kidnapped her at the same age as her daughter is, and her mother was an alcoholic. "
— Coral, 8/2/2012 -
" Not what I expected...this author is a good read. "
— Mom, 4/12/2012 -
" I almost quit halfway through but it is picoult and I like her - but the story was just okay "
— Gina, 1/20/2012 -
" Didnt really like this Picoult book. Didnt get on with the setting and the storyline didnt really engage me like her other books have. "
— Andie, 1/2/2012 -
" pretty standard jodi, but a quick read and i liked the ending. "
— Meghan, 12/28/2011 -
" Definetely not my favorite, and I didn't connect with the characters very well, but it still sucked me in. "
— KayLee, 11/28/2011 -
" Loved it!!! A couple of parts were a little too predictable, thats why the 4 star. But the end was very good!!! Left you wondering, what will happen to these people. .... "
— Jasmine, 10/3/2011 -
" It started great but it seams that at the last minute Jodi always pulls the same freaking card... Which is disapointing, specially being such a great story =o/ "
— Catarina, 6/5/2011 -
" Interesting, twisting plot. Kept me coming back, but not as uplifting as I prefer. "
— Marjorie, 5/21/2011 -
" Normally I'm a fan of Picoult's efforts, but I didn't like this one, and that's all she wrote. "
— Sarah, 5/18/2011 -
" One of my favorites. None of my friends like Vanishing Acts as much as I do. "
— Caroline, 5/15/2011 -
" In true Picoult fashion, these characters sit in your living room and each tell you their story. Made the mistake of starting this at 10pm... I should know better as I can't put her books down. "
— Krista, 5/9/2011 -
" Anders als wat ik normaal lees, wel mooi. Moest er wel even inkomen. "
— Jeske, 5/9/2011 -
" I can't stand reading about life in prison, it is so hard to read. "
— Erin, 5/2/2011 -
" I agree with many of the other reviews, the plot got bogged down with the addition of all of the Hopi Indian spirituality...it just distracted and held the story back. I've read Picoult before and enjoyed her work, can't say the same for this one. "
— Denise, 5/1/2011 -
" I love the way she writes, sometimes the paths the stories take are unusual or different, but I wouldn't change a thing because in the end of all her books I just want to sigh and sit back and remember! "
— Shannon, 4/26/2011 -
" This was pretty good read, although parts seemed a bit forced. The story flowed well, mostly. All in all I did enjoy reading it. "
— DuctTapeDiva, 4/25/2011 -
" Got me through a day in airports, but just barely. "
— Anna, 4/19/2011
About Jodi Picoult
Jodi Picoult is the #1 New York Times and London Sunday Times bestselling author of twenty-four stand-alone novels and three series, through the genres of fiction, romance, young-adult romance, mystery, and science fiction. She is the recipient of multiple awards, including the New England Bookseller Award for Fiction, the Alex Award from the YA Library Services Association, and the NH Literary Award for Outstanding Literary Merit. She studied creative writing at Princeton University and received her masters from Harvard. Visit her website at JodiPicoult.com.
About the Narrators
James Jenner is an actor known for Very Good Girls, Enemy Territory, and Third Watch.
Sharon Washington is a critically acclaimed actress, whose performances have been called “Sensational … A breakout … Ferociously funny” by the New York Times. Notable theater credits include “The Lady” in the Broadway musical The Scottsboro Boys; Lady Anne, alongside Denzel Washington, in the New York Shakespeare Festival’s Richard III; and Valeria, alongside Christopher Walken, in Coriolanus. She is a graduate of Darmouth College and received her MFA from Yale School of Drama.
Jonathan Davis has been inducted into the Audible Narrator Hall of Fame. A three-time recipient and fourteen-time nominee of the Audie Award, he has earned accolades for his narration from the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, the American Library Association, Booklist, the Audio Publishers Association, AudioFile magazine, and USA Today. He has narrated a variety of bestsellers and award-winners for top publishing houses. He also narrated over forty titles of the Star Wars franchise for Lucasfilm Ltd./PRH Audio, including several iconic movie tie-ins, has participated with Star Wars Celebration, and has built a significant fan base. His work as a narrator includes films and programming for National Geographic Television, NOVA, PBS, VH1, and Francis Ford Coppola. He grew up in Puerto Rico and speaks Spanish, Portuguese, and Hebrew.