The Distant Hours

By: Kate Morton

Narrated by: Caroline Lee

Length: 22 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

Edie Burchill and her mother have never been close, but when a long lost letter arrives one Sunday afternoon with the return address of Milderhurst Castle, Kent, printed on its envelope, Edie begins to suspect that her mother’s emotional distance masks an old secret.

Evacuated from London as a 12-year-old girl, Edie’s mother is chosen by the mysterious Juniper Blythe and taken to live at Milderhurst Castle with the Blythe family: Juniper, her twin sisters, and their father, Raymond.

Fifty years later, as Edie chases the answers to her mother’s riddle. She, too, is drawn to Milderhurst Castle and the eccentric sisters Blythe. Old ladies now, the three still live together, the twins nursing Juniper, whose abandonment by her fiancé in 1941 plunged her into madness.

Inside the decaying castle, Edie begins to unravel her mother’s past. But there are other secrets hidden in the stones of Milderhurst Castle, and Edie is about to learn more than she expected. For the truth of what happened in the distant hours has been waiting a long time for someone to find it....

©2010 Kate Morton (P)2010 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Love the reader but the story dragged

I've read this author before and loved her books so purchased this one. However, I maintained interest in the story with difficulty because it moved so slowly.

Lush, gorgeous writing

This story of lies and missed chances, of a family trapped by its past, is rife with pathos, and yet it is beautifully rendered. And Caroline Lee did a masterful job with the narration.

an enjoyable novel

I enjoyed this story. It had a good mix of World War 2 English life and culture blended with more recent times. You are kept in the dark about the mystery right till the end. I look forward to more Kate Morton Books.

I loved this book!

this was a wonderful Story from beginning to end I am hard to trick and it surprised me. the narrator also was very easy to listen to which I greatly appreciate.

Enjoyable

I enjoyed this book. I didn't expect the turns it took. The only thing I didn't like was the sad ending.

loved this book's twists and turns

the story is so well wtitten. the characters come alive. I love a story that isn't predictable.

Gorgeously detailed

Such a lovely story. The narration was also excellent, if marred only slightly by the narrator’s own Australian accent often overriding her attempts at an English accent. It lead to a little confusion about certain details about the story, as it has me thinking that several characters were Australian and not from London.

Very very slow

I have enjoyed many of Kate Morton’s books. This one has been the most difficult but it was all pulled together at the end.

Mental Illness on Parade

This book is another well-written novel by a very clever writer. I didn’t like it as well as her other books, it was a bit too dour for me, but it was still enjoyable. I’m a little ambivalent about this book to be totally honest, I really preferred ‘The Secret Keeper’. I feel the twist in the story was handled better. It was revealed early enough that I was able to catch my breath and process the information and love the paradigm shift. In this, there was a host of mental illnesses seemingly presented but the ending left me wondering what Ms. Morton was trying to portray. The story wasn’t confusing but I feel like it was a little muddy...no pun intended. However, the side story with Edie and her mother is very touching.

Despite my ambivalence, I did enjoy it and would probably recommend it but I would recommend ‘The Lake House’ or ‘The Secret Keeper’ before I would recommend this one.

75% to long, are we counting words for college?

I am sure it was deliberate but I was disappointed at the end. You just wanted to strangle the author, GET ON WITH IT.