-
The First Time She Drowned
- Narrated by: Jorjeana Marie
- Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $22.50
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's summary
The beautiful struggle of a girl desperate for the one relationship that has caused her the most pain.
Cassie O'Malley has spent the past two and a half years in a mental institution - dumped there by her mother, against her will. Now, at 18, Cassie emancipates herself, determined to start over. She attends college, forms new friendships, and even attempts to start fresh with her mother. But before long, their unhealthy relationship threatens to pull Cassie under once again. As Cassie struggles to reclaim her life, childhood memories persist and confuse, and Cassie must consider whose version of history is real, and more important, whose life she must save.
A bold, literary story about the fragile complexities of mothers and daughters and learning to love oneself, The First Time She Drowned reminds us that we must dive deep into our pasts if we are ever to move forward.
Critic reviews
"Kerry Kletter’s The First Time She Drowned is the kind of book I love best - a lovely and haunting keep-you-up-all-night heart-wrencher that is both beautiful and raw, painful and uplifting. It’s utterly amazing. An incredible read. Be warned though - you will want to read Cassie’s story, start to finish, in one sitting. And then you will want to race to put it in the hands (and hearts) of everyone you know and love." (Jennifer Niven, New York Times best-selling author of All the Bright Places)
"Kletter’s exploration of a dysfunctional family through the eyes of a daughter is raw with emotion…a sophisticated read…lyrical.” (School Library Journal)
"[An] excellent debut novel....heart-wrenching....Readers who enjoy the suspense of unreliable narrators, as in Adele Griffin’s Loud Awake and Lost or Stephanie Kuehn’s Complicit, will appreciate this one." (Booklist, starred review)
More from the same
Author
Related to this topic
-
Falling Together
- A Novel
- By: Marisa de los Santos
- Narrated by: Julia Gibson
- Length: 14 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s been six years since Pen Calloway watched her best friends walk out of her life. And through the birth of her daughter, the death of her father, and the vicissitudes of single motherhood, she has never stopped missing them. Pen, Cat, and Will met on their first day of college and formed what seemed like a magical and lifelong bond, only to see their friendship break apart amid the realities of adulthood. When, after years of silence, Cat - the bewitching, charismatic center of their group - e-mails Pen and Will with an urgent request to meet at their college reunion, they can’t refuse.
-
-
Narrator's breathy voice a turn off
- By Amy on 10-16-11
-
The Last to Let Go
- By: Amber Smith
- Narrated by: Stephanie Einstein
- Length: 10 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
How do you let go of something you've never had? Junior year for Brooke Winters is supposed to be about change. She's transferring schools, starting fresh, and making plans for college so she can finally leave her hometown, her family, and her past behind. But all of her dreams are shattered one hot summer afternoon when her mother is arrested for killing Brooke's abusive father. No one really knows what happened that day, if it was premeditated or self-defense, whether it was right or wrong. And now Brooke and her siblings are on their own.
-
-
It's slow
- By Autumn S. on 09-05-18
By: Amber Smith
-
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
- Mara Dyer, Book 1
- By: Michelle Hodkin
- Narrated by: Christy Romano
- Length: 9 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mara Dyer believes life can't get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there. It can. She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her strangely unharmed. There is. She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love. She's wrong.
-
-
Not Sure About Mara Dyer
- By C. Betts on 07-30-14
By: Michelle Hodkin
-
Unearthly
- By: Cynthia Hand
- Narrated by: Samantha Quan
- Length: 10 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.
-
-
Fantastic story, horrible narrator.
- By BookMama on 08-26-11
By: Cynthia Hand
-
A List of Cages
- By: Robin Roe
- Narrated by: Graham Halstead, Christopher Gebauer
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Adam Blake lands the best elective ever in his senior year, serving as an aide to the school psychologist, he thinks he's got it made. Sure, it means a lot of sitting around, which isn't easy for a guy with ADHD, but he can't complain, since he gets to spend the period texting all his friends. Then the doctor asks him to track down the troubled freshman who keeps dodging her, and Adam discovers that the boy is Julian - the foster brother he hasn't seen in five years.
-
-
Heart wrenching!
- By Heather Shaver on 02-28-18
By: Robin Roe
-
Love Walked In
- By: Marisa de los Santos
- Narrated by: Jennifer Ikeda
- Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Award-winning poet Marisa de los Santos crafts an irresistibly touching debut novel. Love Walked In is a contemporary tale, steeped in nostalgic, cinematic charm, of love in all its forms. Unapologetically idealistic about love, Cornelia Brown appears to catch the break of a lifetime when the dashing Martin Grace, her own personal Cary Grant, comes strolling into her life. But it is Martin's connection to 11-year-old Clare Hobbes that touches Cornelia's heart in ways she never imagined.
-
-
Dreadful audio quality
- By Marenghi on 09-16-11
-
Falling Together
- A Novel
- By: Marisa de los Santos
- Narrated by: Julia Gibson
- Length: 14 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s been six years since Pen Calloway watched her best friends walk out of her life. And through the birth of her daughter, the death of her father, and the vicissitudes of single motherhood, she has never stopped missing them. Pen, Cat, and Will met on their first day of college and formed what seemed like a magical and lifelong bond, only to see their friendship break apart amid the realities of adulthood. When, after years of silence, Cat - the bewitching, charismatic center of their group - e-mails Pen and Will with an urgent request to meet at their college reunion, they can’t refuse.
-
-
Narrator's breathy voice a turn off
- By Amy on 10-16-11
-
The Last to Let Go
- By: Amber Smith
- Narrated by: Stephanie Einstein
- Length: 10 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
How do you let go of something you've never had? Junior year for Brooke Winters is supposed to be about change. She's transferring schools, starting fresh, and making plans for college so she can finally leave her hometown, her family, and her past behind. But all of her dreams are shattered one hot summer afternoon when her mother is arrested for killing Brooke's abusive father. No one really knows what happened that day, if it was premeditated or self-defense, whether it was right or wrong. And now Brooke and her siblings are on their own.
-
-
It's slow
- By Autumn S. on 09-05-18
By: Amber Smith
-
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
- Mara Dyer, Book 1
- By: Michelle Hodkin
- Narrated by: Christy Romano
- Length: 9 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mara Dyer believes life can't get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there. It can. She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her strangely unharmed. There is. She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love. She's wrong.
-
-
Not Sure About Mara Dyer
- By C. Betts on 07-30-14
By: Michelle Hodkin
-
Unearthly
- By: Cynthia Hand
- Narrated by: Samantha Quan
- Length: 10 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.
-
-
Fantastic story, horrible narrator.
- By BookMama on 08-26-11
By: Cynthia Hand
-
A List of Cages
- By: Robin Roe
- Narrated by: Graham Halstead, Christopher Gebauer
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Adam Blake lands the best elective ever in his senior year, serving as an aide to the school psychologist, he thinks he's got it made. Sure, it means a lot of sitting around, which isn't easy for a guy with ADHD, but he can't complain, since he gets to spend the period texting all his friends. Then the doctor asks him to track down the troubled freshman who keeps dodging her, and Adam discovers that the boy is Julian - the foster brother he hasn't seen in five years.
-
-
Heart wrenching!
- By Heather Shaver on 02-28-18
By: Robin Roe
-
Love Walked In
- By: Marisa de los Santos
- Narrated by: Jennifer Ikeda
- Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Award-winning poet Marisa de los Santos crafts an irresistibly touching debut novel. Love Walked In is a contemporary tale, steeped in nostalgic, cinematic charm, of love in all its forms. Unapologetically idealistic about love, Cornelia Brown appears to catch the break of a lifetime when the dashing Martin Grace, her own personal Cary Grant, comes strolling into her life. But it is Martin's connection to 11-year-old Clare Hobbes that touches Cornelia's heart in ways she never imagined.
-
-
Dreadful audio quality
- By Marenghi on 09-16-11
-
Side Effects May Vary
- By: Julie Murphy
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When 16-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, her prognosis is grim. To maximize the time she does have, she vows to spend her final months righting wrongs - however she sees fit. She convinces her friend Harvey, who she knows has always had feelings for her, to help her with a crazy bucket list that's as much about revenge (humiliating her ex-boyfriend and getting back at her archnemesis) as it is about hope (doing something unexpectedly kind for a stranger).
-
-
Listening Experiences May Vary
- By The Reading Date on 05-18-14
By: Julie Murphy
-
Divided Minds
- Twin Sisters and Their Journey Through Schizophrenia
- By: Pamela Spiro Wagner, Carolyn S. Spiro MD
- Narrated by: Kimberly Farr, Amanda Carlin
- Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Divided Minds is a dual memoir of identical twins, one of whom faces a life sentence of schizophrenia and the other who becomes a psychiatrist after entering the spotlight that had for so long been focused on her sister.
-
-
intense!
- By Snow Dunn on 09-12-19
By: Pamela Spiro Wagner, and others
-
Nero
- Made Men, Book 1
- By: Sarah Brianne
- Narrated by: Aaron Landon
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nero is the king of Legacy Prep, living a life of power. Elle is the school's punching bag, living a life of fear.
-
-
two words...Amazing and hott!
- By Jenee's Reviews on 09-15-15
By: Sarah Brianne
-
All We Have Left
- By: Wendy Mills
- Narrated by: Shiromi Arserio, Amy Melissa Bentley
- Length: 9 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Now: Sixteen-year-old Jesse is used to living with the echoes of the past. Her older brother died in the September 11th attacks, and her dad since has filled their home with anger and grief. When Jesse gets caught up with the wrong crowd, one momentary hate-fueled decision turns her life upside down. The only way to make amends is to face the past, starting Jesse on a journey that will reveal the truth about how her brother died. Then: In 2001, 16-year-old Alia is proud to be Muslim....it's being a teenager that she finds difficult.
-
-
Powerful!
- By Amazon Customer on 08-11-21
By: Wendy Mills
-
Scarred
- By: Joanne Macgregor
- Narrated by: Kelsey Egan, Richard Lothian
- Length: 6 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sloane Munster had the perfect life - until she didn't. Now 17-year-old Sloane is trying to reboot her life after a serious accident left her badly scarred and emotionally traumatized. Starting her senior year at a different school, she recognizes Luke Naughton, a swimmer whom she once had a crush on, in her new class. But when she smiles at him, he glares back with revulsion, and she's sure he's disgusted by her ugly scar.
-
-
The ending is just STUPID
- By Effie on 02-05-19
By: Joanne Macgregor
-
Sweet Evil
- By: Wendy Higgins
- Narrated by: Erin Mallon
- Length: 11 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences? This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels. Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She's aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but Anna, the ultimate good girl, has always had the advantage of her angel side to balance the darkness within. It isn't until she turns 16 and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test.
-
-
Eh...
- By Bee on 03-19-13
By: Wendy Higgins
-
Before I Fall
- By: Lauren Oliver
- Narrated by: Sarah Drew
- Length: 12 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Samantha Kingston has it all: the world's most crush-worthy boyfriend, three amazing best friends, and first pick of everything at Thomas Jefferson High—from the best table in the cafeteria to the choicest parking spot. Friday, February 12, should be just another day in her charmed life. Instead, it turns out to be her last. Then she gets a second chance. Seven chances, in fact.
-
-
Beautiful.
- By Penny on 03-20-10
By: Lauren Oliver
-
The Siren
- By: Kiera Cass
- Narrated by: Arielle DeLisle
- Length: 7 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Kahlen is a Siren, bound to serve the Ocean by luring humans to watery graves with her voice, which is deadly to any human who hears it. Akinli is human - a kind, handsome boy who's everything Kahlen ever dreamed of. Falling in love puts them both in danger...but Kahlen can't bear to stay away. Will she risk everything to follow her heart?
-
-
Hooked from start to finish
- By Branana on 02-10-16
By: Kiera Cass
-
The Opportunist
- By: Tarryn Fisher
- Narrated by: Andi Arndt
- Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Olivia Kaspen has just discovered that her ex-boyfriend Caleb Drake has lost his memory. With an already lousy reputation for taking advantage of situations, Olivia must decide how far she is willing to go to get Caleb back.
-
-
overall: irritating book
- By DD on 02-14-17
By: Tarryn Fisher
-
Spellcaster
- By: Claudia Gray
- Narrated by: Khristine Hvam
- Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Nadia's family moves to Captive's Sound, she instantly realizes there's more to the place than meets the eye. Descended from witches, Nadia can sense that a spell has been cast over the tiny Rhode Island town - a sickness infecting everyone and everything in it. The magic at work is darker and more powerful than anything she's come across and has sunk its claws most deeply into Mateo...her rescuer, her friend, and the guy she yearns to get closer to even as he pushes her away.
-
-
Compelling, fun and exciting!
- By M. Herbert on 07-15-13
By: Claudia Gray
-
Too Bright to Hear Too Loud to See
- By: Juliann Garey
- Narrated by: Dan Butler
- Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In her tour-de-force first novel, Juliann Garey takes us inside the restless mind, ravaged heart, and anguished soul of Greyson Todd, a successful Hollywood studio executive who leaves his wife and young daughter and for a decade travels the world giving free reign to the bipolar disorder he's been forced to keep hidden for almost 20 years.
-
-
Psychosis or Syphilis?
- By Vira on 04-02-13
By: Juliann Garey
-
Dark Room Etiquette
- By: Robin Roe
- Narrated by: Andrew J. Andersen
- Length: 12 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sixteen-year-old Sayers Wayte has everything. Popularity, good looks, perfect grades—there's nothing Sayers' family money can't buy. Until he's kidnapped by a man who tells him the privileged life he's been living is based on a lie. Trapped in a windowless room, without knowing why he's been taken or how long the man plans to keep him shut away, Sayers faces a terrifying new reality. To survive, he must forget the world he once knew, and play the part his abductor has created for him.
-
-
Absolutely brilliant
- By Shelley on 01-20-23
By: Robin Roe
Love Books? You'll Love Audible.
Transform your day
Replace endless scrolling with endless listening. Chores can be fun.
Listen everywhere
Download titles to listen offline, wherever you are in the world.
Carry your entire Library
Your stories go where you go. Audiobooks don’t weigh a thing.
Listen and learn
Discover stories that can change your mind, your well-being, and your life.
Reach your reading goals
You can’t turn pages while you drive—but you can press play.
Find your niche
WIth thousands of titles to explore, there’s something for everyone.
What listeners say about The First Time She Drowned
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Karen C.
- 04-16-16
Captivating and poignant
I could identify with the main character immediately. A truly successful must read book. Triu
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Wendi
- 04-24-16
Depression Surfaces and Drowns At the Same Time
This is an odd book. It's extremely depressing. The narrator of the book is a female- and she goes back and forth from her childhood to her early years as an adult. Her mother was abused by her grandmother, and then in turn, she was extremely emotionally abused by her mother. She is placed in an 'insane asylum' for years, and when she gets out she has to learn to live among peers/friends and people in general again.
She also has to come to grips with the fact that the way she was treated wasn't her fault. Her mother was deeply mentally ill- but of course as a child you wouldn't know this.
The story is solid and the characters are fairly strong. The book is extremely depressing though- but it does stick to a very important theme in life- you should stick with people who make you feel good about yourself, not those who make you feel horribly.
I felt that there could have been so much more added to this novel to make it a bit more interesting. It's a very good attempt at a book about mental illness and it's affects, but something falls short of this being a 4 star book. I am glad I read it, and I would recommend this book to anyone who doesn't mind depressing stories.
-Wendi
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- LJM
- 05-25-23
Great story
I truly enjoyed this heartbreaking novel. The story was sad but also inspiring. I was rooting for Cass the whole time!
My only negative was that the narrator sounded like she had a really stuffy nose in some places. It was distracting.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jean
- 11-30-16
A must read for girl's and women born to narcicistic Mothers
Save yourself the trouble of years of trying to figure out your relationship with your self absorbed Mother. All of the answers are here in this wonderful fiction novel. Excellent reader as well. Read this and be free! It was never you fault ❤️
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- soosie
- 08-15-18
Good Book not exciting
Good book, well written but not exciting or extremely interesting. It’s a simple story about a girl all of us have probably met or know. Not particularly deep or difficult to follow.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- M. Robertazzi
- 06-10-16
I couldn't wait to walk
I listen to my audiobooks when I exercise each day. As much as I dislike exercising I found I could not wait to get out and walk so I could hear what was next. There was so much to love about this book. The characters, the twists and turns, imagining the different endings that could turn out. I highly recommend it
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kristin Gilbo
- 04-25-16
Sad and real
Thus book is so good. Made me sad and angry so many times because it could be a story of so many people's lives!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- northengirl19
- 05-02-16
Great Book. Even Better Narrator!
This book was so good! had me completly swept away with the story. Perfectly written.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Melody Austin Silverman
- 09-09-17
Great book and audible experience
This book has such beautiful storytelling that engages from page one. Sometimes stories on this subject matter can be a little "high school" feeling aka whiney, but Cas is a powerful main character that is deep, complicated, and surprisingly hilarious. I believe anyone of any age will connect with this book, especially if you've had a complicated relationship with a co-dependent.
This story was so refreshingly genuine, and it's amazing that the voice actress was able to enhance this so well with her delivery. A perfect match; a great experience.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Heidi
- 09-09-17
amazing
This book was so good. Haven't read anything like this before. I cry so much during this.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!