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The Thirteenth Tale  By  cover art

The Thirteenth Tale

By: Diane Setterfield
Narrated by: Bianca Amato, Jill Tanner
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Publisher's summary

All children mythologize their birth... So begins the prologue of reclusive author Vida Winter's beloved collection of stories, long famous for the mystery of the missing thirteenth tale. The enigmatic Winter has always kept her violent and tragic past a secret. Now old and ailing, she summons a biographer to tell the truth about her extraordinary life: Margaret Lea, a young woman for whom the secret of her own birth remains an ever-present pain.

Disinterring the life she meant to bury for good, Vida mesmerizes Margaret with the power of her storytelling. Hers is a tale of gothic strangeness, featuring the Angelfield family, including the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, and a devastating fire. Struck by a curious parallel between their stories, Margaret demands the truth from Vida, and together they confront the ghosts that have haunted them.

The Thirteenth Tale is a return to that rich vein of storytelling that our parents loved and we loved as children. Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter, and in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life.

©2006 Diane Setterfield (P)2007 Simon & Schuster Audio

Critic reviews

  • Audie Award Finalist, Literary Fiction, 2007

"Bianca Amato is stunning as Margaret....[her] respect for the power of story and the written word is heard in every utterance. Jill Tanner accomplishes a tour de force as the enigmatic and mysterious Vida. In conversation her voice has the hesitancy and fragility of an elderly woman, but her voice takes on the strength and power of a master storyteller as she weaves her spellbinding life story." (AudioFile)
"Readers will be mesmerized by this story-within-a-story tinged with the eeriness of Rebecca and the willfulness of Jane Eyre. The author skillfully keeps the plot moving by unfurling a new twist in each chapter and leaves no strand untucked at the surprising and satisfying conclusion. A wholly original work told in the vein of all the best gothic classics. Lovers of books about book lovers will be enthralled." (Booklist)

What listeners say about The Thirteenth Tale

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Listened multiple times

I think I have listened to the Thirteenth Tale 3 times now. Each time I discover something new. Even though I know the ending it still surprises me. It is some of the little details you forget. The narrators are what makes the story come to life. I love to hear a book read in multiple character voices. This is a must listen to first audible.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

It stays with you.

This book was beautifully narrated and such an enjoyable listen. If you love books and stories this one is for you. I hope the author writes more, but if this is her only work I would understand. It is simply perfect.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A Modern Victorian Novel

This is a Victorian Novel. It was just written a century later. And in every way it's just as fun.
It's many tangled paths that lead to an end, like most Victorian work. The journey is well worth the read.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Not what I expected

I expected something supernatural, ghostly, otherworldly, etc.. What I got was a tale of lives. A story of twisted family trees and branches that gnarl and twist, not so unlike so many families in the world, not completely unlike my own. This story was unexpected, but welcomed. The characters develop slowly, but you end up as emotionally involved in the tale as the characters themselves. And the cat, yes the cat, brought a smile to my face like no other. That attention to that detail made me feel that the author is not only a true reader and lover of books, but one that knows the feeling of loss when details are overlooked. The ghost in this story turns out to be not only real, but similarly outlandish events happen in all families, somewhere down the line... Again this was not what I expected, but I am happy I took the time to listen...

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    5 out of 5 stars
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A spellbinder!

I so enjoyed this story and narrator's voices were perfect! I hated it to end!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A great listen

The Thirteenth Tale is a story that really benefits from being read aloud. The two narrators help bring bring the two primary female characters to life. At times the subplots can seem to wonder, but trust the author to bring everything to a satisfying and cogent conclusion.

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Phenomenal story!

Phenomenal story, with wonderful characters and narrators.
At every turn and twist you are taken by surprise at the next development in the story.

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intricately woven

the weave between author and storyteller is beautiful. Threads left hanging are woven into the tapestry of the story by the time it ended. Suprise, intrigue and compassion are emotions that stirred within .

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great listen.

there are many twists and turns in this story and it keeps you on your toes. I loved it.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

A storytellers story

I enjoyed the thirteenth tail. It wasn't untill close to the end when I figured, likely along with other readers, the truth. I love that I was surprised and I enjoyed that the ending is for readers.

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