Cathy

This was one of my first audio-books. I had recently changed jobs, and faced a new 45 minute commute each way. The book had been recommended, but I'd neglected to read it. Bored with my commute, I decided to try audiobooks. I enjoyed the first couple, and they made the commute pass nicely, but this one blew me away! I was willing to go back out to the drugstore, to the post office, anywhere, even after my long day was done, just to have a few more minutes to listen to this story. The narrators are superb,and the story is beyond engrossing. I have a teen-aged son and daughter, who were both so intrigued by my fascination with this book that they each downloaded the book, and asked for hard copies for Christmas. I never believed I would be so enamored of an audiobook, but this one has made me a stalwart champion.

My only caution is that the author does not seem to have any further titles available.

I wanted badly to be drawn in, but it simply didn't happen. I kept an open mind, and listened even when I began to feel the story was interminable. So, yes, I saw it through to the end, but only because I was hoping for a big realization, or ...something. But despite a twinge of identification with the central character's declaration of having not lived the life she was intended to have lived, I was never engaged, and I could not very much identify with Rebecca . I did not expect an optomistic novel, but I did have expectations of something a bit more insightful, and much less hopeless. I was further put off by the drab characteriztion of all the children and granchildren. None were fully fleshed out, but only provided to the reader as partial justification for Rebecca's discontent.