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)

An Incredible Two-fer

This audio book is absolutely amazing. It is a book about writing a book...so you get two stories for the price of one as the story's main character, a novelist, also tells the story she is writing. What is so incredible is the intertwining of two very different writing styles. There is the style of the author, but within that, the character author has a different style. Ms. Kearsley is quite talented to be able to pull this off. Additionally, the narrator, Ms. Landor, does an fantastic job with the multitude of voices in both story lines. She even uses a different "voice" to read the character's novel. It's difficult to explain, but profoundly well-done. This is definitely one that I think starts with an excellent plot and benefits all the more with an excellent narrator. A must-read.

A bit predictable but liked the setting

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Yes, Iliked the setting of the story on the edge of Scottish Sea with castles and the weather for mood.

Would you recommend The Winter Sea to your friends? Why or why not?

Nice characters. Felt like you could see them and know them.

What three words best describe Rosalyn Landor’s performance?

Good. Did she do the male parts too? And the Scottish accents?

Could you see The Winter Sea being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Felt like it was a movie. I could see landscape and the characters clearly.

Any additional comments?

Sometimes there was too much rehashing of things we already knew in the story.

The Winter Sea - great read/listen!

I chose The Winter Sea as my companion book to listen to as I drove north from Florida to spend two weeks in Delaware. It was a wonderful choice - a very different and intriguing story. For those who like history and romance, this is a terrific choice! I will definitely look for others by this author.

Nice Mix of Modern Story & Historical Fiction

Audio production: This was narrated by, Rosalyn Landor who is always a good narrator, for this one she had a lot to live up to since this was recommended to me because I love Outlander so she had Davina Porter to live up to and I must say she did a very good job!


This was a nice mix of historical fiction and a modern day story set in Scotland, this was recommended to me because I love the Outlander Series. First off this doesn’t have time travel as I’ve seen some people say it has genetic memories which was a new device for me, but it worked well. It was interesting how modern day author Carrie is writing her novel and the characters in her head tell her how the story should go then she checks the historical records and they match perfect so there is this little bit of genetic memory, possible ghost story. I have heard from authors when they talk about their writing process that the characters decide where the story goes and not the writer and how they feel like their characters come to life, so this was kind of a take on this concept.

Both the present day and historical stories are blended well with the historical story set during the Jacobite rebellion of 1708 which was very well done and researched. There is romance in both stories that kind of mirror each other but both are kind of chaste and bittersweet neither is a big passionate affair just a nice addition to the story.

I enjoyed this story very much and would recommend it to fans of historical fiction. I will be reading more by this author!

4 1/2 Stars

I'm Addicted

I just finished my second listen in less than 2 months. I missed the characters and location so much, I had to go back. Wish there was a sequel.

In addition to being just what I needed - a book that isn't complicated or serious - The Winter Sea is also well performed.

A great read!!

Where does The Winter Sea rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I loved the audiobook.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Sophie because of her struggles but she survived with the love of her life.

What does Rosalyn Landor bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The tone of voice and the switching of characters by listening I knew who was who.

Just what i needed

I don't think i remember the last book that made me cry , heartbreaking with a twist of romance .

Okay story, predictable plot.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I really liked the idea of this book but I have to admit that I was looking forward to it being over. The history details were good and I enjoyed them, I am a fan of European history so it was right up my alley but it was a bit of a slow read for me.

The ending was very predictable. It is easy to figure out what was going to happen to the main historical characters very early in the book. The author also sets the modern characters up very early so you know their outcome also. The voice of the main character seemed a little old to me. Maybe it was the slight accent but to me her voice just didn't fit right. Her many Scottish accents were well done though.

Overall a slow read and a bit predictable. Not something I would listen to again.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The history was interesting. I enjoyed that aspect of the book.

Past and present merging

Interesting novel with romance mixed with mystery in a historical setting Gallant men who at times seemed a bit too alike. And too unbelievably focused on the heroine but the story was heartwarming. Enjoyed the historical background

Fascinating read

I liked the way the author wove the life of the modern day characters with the historical characters. I enjoy reading novels that make history come alive.