William

The concept was interesting but very poorly executed. The details in some cases were absurd - even by fictional standards! The narration was horrid. The mimicry of female voice was pathetic. Do NOT waste your money (or credits) on this selection!

I enjoyed this book when I listened to it the first time, as it is well written somewhat in the style of old favorites from Austen, Dickens, and the Brontes. Excellent pacing and real, complex characters allowed the intrigue to develop and continue to suck me in. Then when I had a second listen for a new bookclub, the richness of the story and the writing revealed itself even further. I've listened to it 4 times now and find something new every listen.

For those who love 19th century english literature, this novel is destined to be a new treasure. For those who simply enjoy a great mystery, a well written book, or a good story, this novel is a worthy investment of time and money.

This well written novel weaves together multiple time periods, life stories, and "mysteries" with well developed characters, plausible twists and turns, and great intrigue. I didn't want this story to end; I hated to part with the characters!

I wanted to like this book. I expected to like it based on the overwhelming reader praise for it. But it simply went to forever telling the most miniscule aspects of his life ... even when parts of the story were admittedly pure speculation. I still haven't been able to finish it.

Sometimes hard to tell the fact from the fiction. This was a well done story based on a very complicated time. It is a complex story but mostly easy to follow.

Very well done historical fiction. Well developed characters and interwoven plots made for a great listen. Made me think about life during the period and the constancy of mankind. Some parts of the story are very harsh, as was life furing the period.

An interesting story with nice character development, some believable twists, good narration. A good listen.

Well written with a good balance of coverage of the personalities, events, and atmosphere of the times. Very interesting to recognize just how much changed in a decade - a factor of the times but also of some very savvy and talented leadership. It will be interesting to see what parallels ultimately are drawn to our current era. Will our generation rise to the challenge?

I really enjoyed the development of the characters, the timeperiod backdrop, and the story. Some wonderfully surprising twists kept it very interesting. I loved all of the characters, even the hateful ones. I would love to see a sequel about how some of the lives continued to evolve.

Not an easy listen, because it's a tough story. Well written, though, with good and believeable character development.