The Winter Sea

By: Susanna Kearsley

Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor

Length: 15 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

History has all but forgotten...

In the spring of 1708, an invading Jacobite fleet of French and Scottish soldiers nearly succeeded in landing the exiled James Stewart in Scotland to reclaim his crown.

Now, Carrie McClelland hopes to turn that story into her next bestselling novel. Settling herself in the shadow of Slains Castle, she creates a heroine named for one of her own ancestors and starts to write.

But when she discovers her novel is more fact than fiction, Carrie wonders if she might be dealing with ancestral memory, making her the only living person who knows the truth-the ultimate betrayal-that happened all those years ago, and that knowledge comes very close to destroying her...

Please note: This novel has also been published under a different title: Sophia's Secret.

Please note, this title is the original recording, which is now known as Sophia's Secret

©2010 Susanna Kearsley (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Winner, Romance, 2012

"Rosalyn Landor provides delightful Scottish accents for many of the characters Carrie meets inside and outside her novel....Landor adds a poetic edge to her storytelling while at the same time giving a dreamy aura to the historical side of the story." ( Audiofile)

Delightful

This book might not appeal to everyone but I loved it. It had a bit of all the things I find of interest. Genealogy, history, time travel (sort of )... I couldn't stop listening.

Anything by SK is the best!!!

Her narrators are simply devine and the story can easily take you on a journey!

Totally loved Winter Sea!

I did not want interuptions while listening to this book! Not only was I wrapped up in the characters of Carrie McClelland & the Keith's, but of the characters in Carrie's story. Rosalyn Landor did a wonderful job on the narration. She did a such great job on the accents, that I wish I could move to Scottland to hear it daily :)
This is a story of an author writting a story & I really enjoy having the 2 stories building simultaneously. I am a fan of Nevada Barr & well remember her book Flashback for having a story within a story. It creates a double intrigue.
I have English blood on both sides of my family & enjoy reading historical fictions of the UK to understand more of my ancestor's past. This is the second book I've listened to recently that has involved the Jacobite uprising in its' storyline & now I understand what that was about.
I am already looking for more titles by this author & this narrator!

Love this book so much!

I’ve physically read the book and now listened to it twice and I cry every time. It’s a beautiful story, and so satisfying.

just another old lady romance novel

Would you try another book from Susanna Kearsley and/or Rosalyn Landor?

no read one you have read them all

Would you ever listen to anything by Susanna Kearsley again?

maybe

Any additional comments?

I was disapointed ... another old lady romance novel with a little history ,,,, it follows the script of the books like this..... diffent pople , diffrent setting... but same old story line... nothing intresting .....

I loved this book and the narration!

This story was really compelling and enjoyable. It's really two stories, the historical novel being written, and then events in the writer's life in a modern setting. I enjoyed both stories, and the novel as a whole comes together wonderfully in the end. Highly recommended!

Excellent.

This is one of this author's books. It touched all emotions. I had a problem at first with the narrator's Scottish brogue but soon got used to it. However I never got used to Carrie's wimpy voice. It sounded false. Otherwise I thoroughly enjoy this book and could hardly put it down.

Not quite what I thought it would be....

Would you consider the audio edition of The Winter Sea to be better than the print version?

Yes, I love the hearing the various brogues; but, wouldn't want to read them. That adds so much.

Would you be willing to try another book from Susanna Kearsley? Why or why not?

Yes. I like the style, but I was disappointed in this book at the constant repeats of phrases.

Which scene was your favorite?

Absolutely, the goodbye scenes were powerful. It wasn't my favorite, but made me cry - weep - when the Heroine says goodbye to her daughter. The cut curl exchange absolutely put me over the edge.

I did love the author's expressed appreciation of the sea and how the sea was in her blood.

Who was the most memorable character of The Winter Sea and why?

The Adm. Uncle was my most memorable character. I love the way he was always watching, protecting and teaching. Also, the author wove him in and out of the story with what he had been doing somewhat of a mystery at times. In many ways, he actually was the hero.

Any additional comments?

Why was I disappointed? When I read the summary of the book, I thought that it would be historical in nature with some writer's license to build the historical characters into the story to help bring facts to real life. Specifically, why would the author spend so much time in Paris and yet not really tie it into the story? And the story in history hardly told is still - in my mind - still hardly told. Maybe I just missed something in the message carriers coming and going and the ships fighting. I definitely didn't get the Queen's interest in the heroine.

With all that said, I did really enjoy this book and will no doubt listen to it again.

This Book Stays With You

4 3/4 stars (I'm a tough grader and only give 5 stars in rare cases). I really loved this book. So well written, great story, and the kind of book that stays with you after you've finished, so that you keep thinking about the characters and the setting and some of the events. A little slow for me in the very beginning (maybe the first couple of chapters), but then it starts to take hold of you and won't let go. Narration was wonderful. Highly recommend!

Slow start but a great find

This was a little of a slower start but I love the story within a story. It was done well, only a few times did I have to wait a minute or two to figure out which side was being told at that moment.