Midnight Bayou

By: Nora Roberts

Narrated by: James Daniels, Sandra Burr

Length: 9 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

Declan Fitzgerald had always been the family maverick, but even he couldn't understand his impulse to buy a dilapidated mansion on the outskirts of New Orleans. All he knew was that ever since he saw Manet Hall, he'd been enchanted - and obsessed - with it. So when the opportunity to buy the house comes up Declan jumps at the chance to live out a dream.

Determined to restore Manet Hall to its former splendor, Declan begins the daunting renovation room by room, relying on his own labor and skills. But the days spent in total isolation in the empty house take a toll. He is seeing visions of days from a century past, and experiencing sensations of terror and nearly unbearable grief - sensations not his own, but those of a stranger. Local legend has it that the house is haunted, and with every passing day Declan's belief in the ghostly presence grows.

Only the companionship of the alluring Angelina Simone can distract him from the mysterious happenings in the house, but Angelina too has her own surprising connection to Manet Hall - a connection that will help Declan uncover a secret that's been buried for a hundred years.

©2004 Nora Roberts (P)2004 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"Narrator James Daniels depicts this romantic, suspenseful ghost story with finesse, switching Cajun accents as he navigates between Declan Fitzgerald and the restoration of Manet Hall in 2002, to betrayal, rape, and murder in the early 1900s." ( AudioFile)
"To add to the pleasure, tastefully choreographed, highly erotic lovemaking scenes are seamlessly woven into a novel that exemplifies storytelling at its finest." ( Booklist)

Captivating

Absolutely loved this book. Grabs you right from the start and keeps you until the very end. For anyone wanting a great mystery I highly recommend it. But, listening to the sample you won’t know it does have some bad language. Just so you’re aware before investing your time and money. Would’ve been every bit if not better without the foul language but the story itself is captivating. Narrator does a great job as well.

What's done in the dark will come to the light.

This story switches back n forth between the past (dead) owners of the house and the new Yankee owner. I was hooked from the beginning with the back story, it is so interesting how the snooty elite got away with murder, and the lies they told were never questioned, simply because of who they were. Enter the Bostonian, who has given up his lucrative law practice to buy a decrepit plantation and begins to restore it to its former glory. The evil presents its immediately, however our Yankee isn't too easily scared off, besides he has the lovely Angelina Simone to keep him centered.

This story is classic Nora, and kept me interested. Will it win a Pulitzer? NAW!! But for pure entertainment it was great.

It was worth a credit for me.

Now for the Narrators, they were fantastic. I enjoyed their performance and will listen to them again. Well done.

Absolutely Amazing and Unforgettable !!

This is my favorite movie so I decided to get the book to see how or even if it differed. I wish Hollywood had left it alone and created the movies ending like the book. I will listen to this book again and again. And when I see the movie again I will remember the book. The audio performers were outstanding and it was so smart to have one voice for the past and another for the present. I couldn't have asked for a better first audio book to listen to. I will cut my teeth on another Nora Roberts book soon.
Thanks, Solon

Wonderful story!

I always like Nora Roberts, but this book was special. The hero (heroine?) in the story was such a delightful mix of character traits I fell in love. His sense of humor was delightful that I laughed out loud often. The story had some interesting twists to it as well, which satisfied me after coming of a marathon of mystery romances. This one was definitely worth the credit!

3rd time still love it

one of the first audio books i listen to. .have listen to 3 times and still love it... love the south ..love remodeling and love acgreat ending..

Midnight Bayou

I loved it! Great story and 2 fantastic narrators. I will have to listen again!!

Great story and performance.

kept my attention the whole time. the narrator is consistent with all his voices over all has a nice clear voice and reads at a good rythumn that you can soak in the words and make a picture in your head.

Wonderful story

Any additional comments?

I LOVED this book! the story was so addicting and the narrators were just amazing.

I loved, loved, loved this book.

The only bad part was that it ended. An old romantic tragedy based on class differences of the old South in the antebellum period in New Orleans, leaves a mystery, legends, spirits and a beautiful home in ruins.

Fast forward to modern day where a Boston lawyer breaks his engagement and goes to New Orleans to by the home and restore it to its former glory. He meets the most interesting people in the process of restoring the home. In the process he begins to hear, see and dream things that happened 100 years ago. Can he solve the mystery, renew the house AND get the girl?

The characters are rich in creole tradition, the phrasing and behaviors are spot on for the area. Each character is believable and charming. An excellent read

Amazing Story!!!

An absolutely awesome, engaging and entertaining story...the characters are all so very real and enjoyable!!!