Flowers from the Storm

By: Laura Kinsale

Narrated by: Nicholas Boulton

Length: 18 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

He's a duke. He's a mathematical genius. He can't talk and he's locked in a lunatic asylum. Only a modest Quaker girl can reach him, but when she helps him to escape, she's swept into his glittering aristocratic world, her life torn apart by his desperate attempt to save himself.

Laura Kinsale personally chose the exceptional talent of Nicholas Boulton to narrate her classic romance Flowers from the Storm - cited by readers of The Washington Post and Glamour magazine as "one of the greatest love stories of all time" - creating a fresh and unique work that brings all the power and intensity of the original to audio.

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Loved my first Laura Kinsale and my first Male Narrator!!

I didn't want to put this down. What an intense experience. The characters have a reality and depth that draws you into this well written story. Reminded me of Jane Eyre.

Wow! I had to finish so I could get some sleep!

Any additional comments?

This is the first book I've listened to by Laura Kinsale, but it certainly will not be the last! I couldn't put it down! This is a wonderful, gripping story of a man's struggle to save himself from an 1820's British mental institution. He was a Duke and a mathematical genius but had apparently suffered a stroke and while he was unable to speak or think clearly, his family placed him in the institution. He was helped by a Quaker girl and her father who had known him before his illness. It gradually became a troubled romance - troubled because, as a Quaker, she was not allowed to have any sort of relationship beyond a distance acquaintance with a worldly man. Not only was the story almost impossible to put down, but it was greatly enhanced by the narration of Nicholas Boulton. This was the first time I had heard him, also, but again I will be seeking him out in the future. His command of voices for each character and his ability to put exactly the right amount of emotion into the narration made this a book I will listen to again and again.

My New Favorite Book

Would you listen to Flowers from the Storm again? Why?

Yes, Yes, Yes, I love this book.

What did you like best about this story?

Its epic love story.

What about Nicholas Boulton’s performance did you like?

Nicholas Boulton's performance is perfect for the story. He portrays the characters true an distinctly.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I was captured from the very beginning and my heart fell with the duke in the hospital.

Any additional comments?

Laura Kindale is amazing.

I'm listening to it now for a second time!

Would you listen to Flowers from the Storm again? Why?

Am doing it now with a friend. It's one of those stories that you love so much, you want to listen to it again to see if you missed something - and relive it! The narrator is fantastic as always. Mr. Boulton brings to life the once spoiled and still arrogant, but now frustrated and angry duke. The duke is all male, growling and sarcastic one moment, and sweet and gentle the next. Maddy Girl (love that name) is typically straight-laced and follows her religion to the letter; yet how can she not realize that perhaps God is the one who brought the duke into her life.

What other book might you compare Flowers from the Storm to and why?

Haven't listened to a book this good since Diana Gabldon's Outlander series. I love all these books. Not sure I could choose which I enjoyed more. However, I get bogged down with all the characters and side-stories in the Outlander series. This book is all about one story - Maddy and Christian.

Which scene was your favorite?

All of the ones which portray the duke's thoughts. He not only hears and speaks brokenly, but he thinks that way, too. It's so funny, and you know exactly what he means and how he feels. Love the duke's friends as well.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

As another reviewer wrote, this book should be savored and not gulped.

Any additional comments?

So glad for Laura Kinsale and Nicholas Boulton!

Absolutely wonderful!

I read about 150 books a year, every year. Most books are good, but this one is a Jem. I haven't read anything by this author before, but I will probably pick up more of her books. This story is wholely original, something I find lacking in a lot of stories, and you fall in love with Christian and his Maddygirl. A book for my favorites shelf, and one I will re read.

Oh Maddy girl

The struggle between Maddy & her religion was annoying after awhile. Kept my interest though especially since the family was behind putting Christian into the insane hospital.

Loved it

This was a most enjoyable listen from start to finish with the absolute best of narrations by Nicholas Boulton. I usually do not like stories of this kind and have no idea why I bought this book from the recommendation I received for it but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it. The story of Maddy and Christian makes one glad to live in this time and not in a time of ice bath treatments for the so called insane.

A great read & a great romance.

Oh, my, Laura Kinsale can write a great romantic story! I loved it. Want More!

Fitting for any library of classics

For me, this hero is one of the most intimately revealed, complex, admirable and memorable created in pen and ink. The heroine’s narrow minded, judgmental viewpoint is both the worst and the best part of the narrative. Worst because she is long in her metamorphosis best because if the reader could benefit from her lessons in the odiousness of self righteous judgmentalism much can be learned in a manner calculated to linger long after the reading is past and perhaps permanently leave the reader altered for the better. I find myself feeling that reading this book once a year may be a worthy undertaking. While the heroines brilliant choice of action in relation to the hero is relieving, her obtuseness in some situations as the tale progresses can be a bit frustrating. However that may be, this tale deserves the designation of classic. Memorable hero or heroines are usually not flawless. Indeed, perhaps the flawed ones lodge most deeply in the heart.

good book

loved the book and narrator. good plot. the romance was classic. this book has it all.