In the Midst of Winter

A Novel

By: Isabel Allende

Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris, Jasmine Cephas Jones, Alma Cuervo

Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's Summary

New York Times and worldwide best-selling author Isabel Allende returns with a sweeping novel that journeys from present-day Brooklyn to Guatemala in the recent past to 1970s Chile and Brazil that offers “a timely message about immigration and the meaning of home” (People). 

During the biggest Brooklyn snowstorm in living memory, Richard Bowmaster, a lonely university professor in his 60s, hits the car of Evelyn Ortega, a young undocumented immigrant from Guatemala, and what at first seems an inconvenience takes a more serious turn when Evelyn comes to his house, seeking help. At a loss, the professor asks his tenant, Lucia Maraz, a fellow academic from Chile, for her advice. 

As these three lives intertwine, each will discover truths about how they have been shaped by the tragedies they witnessed, and Richard and Lucia will find unexpected, long overdue love. Allende returns here to themes that have propelled some of her finest work: political injustice, the art of survival, and the essential nature of — and our need for — love.

©2017 Isabel Allende (P)2017 Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Critic Reviews

"Each of the narrators, Dennis Boutsikaris, Jasmine Jones, and Alma Cuervo, embodies the tone, personality, and pain of his or her characters, with Cuervo providing the most genuine performance. Listeners may become so engaged in the characters' histories that they experience a jolt upon being brought back to the present and the narrative about the minor car accident that draws these three people together." (AudioFile)

Typical Allende, rich, warm, enticing.

IN does story is rich with color and culture. The narrators and their accents and emphasis gave the story credibility.

Excellent

Loved this story and it's wonderful characters. it is a story that shares how we all need each other. Enjoy!

During the Snow Storm

I have read this author before and liked her previous books better than this one. The character development was good but the present-day interaction of the three main characters seemed unbelievable and a little farcical.

For anyone in educating dealing with immigration

The book was recommends by my staff. A must read to understand why children are fleeing countries that are at war.

You never know what people are going through.

Interesting backgrounds of three individuals who come together! I️ loved Lucia’s quirky personality. It really came through the writing and the through the narrator as well.

A Relevant and Lyrical Novel

IN THE MIDST OF WINTER
Isabel Allende


MY RATING ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️▫️
PUBLISHER Simon and Schuster Audio
PUBLISHED November 2, 2017

A relevant and lyrical novel that runs the gamut of emotions, blending humor, tragedy, depression and love.

SUMMARY
IN THE MIDST OF WINTER begins with a minor traffic accident on a snowy morning in Brooklyn. Richard Bowmaster, a depressed 60-year-old human rights professor slides on the snow into the rear a white Lexus causing some minor damage. The Lexus is driven by Evelyn Ortega, a young undocumented Guatemala immigrant who works as a nanny for a New York gangster. She immediately drives off, as Richard throw his business card through her window. The accident takes a serious turn when Evelyn shows up on Richard’s doorstep later that evening in immense distress and uncommunicative. Not knowing what to do, Richard calls his downstairs tenant Lucia Maraz, a 62-year-old visiting professor from Chile, for help. After several hours, Richard and Lucia are finally able to understand the full extent of Evelyn’s plight regarding the accident and they agree to help her. Later the next day the three travel together to upstate New York in an attempt to resolve Evelyn’s issue. During this trip the story branches into the backstories for each of three protagonists. The backstories, a significant part of the novel takes the reader to Guatemala, Chile and Brazil. Ultimately, a charming unexpected love story develops between Richard and Lucia, who both had given up on ever finding love again.


REVIEW
ISABEL ALLENDE has artfully woven a lyrical novel running the gamut of emotions. This spellbinding novel creatively blends humor, tragedy, depression and love. It takes us places we have never been and shows us things we have never seen. The backstories for each of the three protagonists are tragic, yet here they are in New York trudging though the snow and helping a stranger. The novel is informative and revealing, and at the same time gives us hope, that after the worst thing that could ever happen to you happens, good may ultimately follow, in the most unexpected circumstances.

Lucia’s character was adorable and steals the show, she is feisty and full spunk. She sums up this amazing story when she tells Richard, “Enough wallowing in the sorrows of the past. The only cure for so much misfortune is love.” Richard, on the other hand, adds much levity to the story by his eccentricities and his stomach problems. Evelyn, is in a word, resilient. She has been through more than we can imagine and she still manages to show care and compassion for others. All three diverse characters uniquely come together to form the perfect ensemble in a most relevant book.

“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.”
- Albert Camus

Down Right Harrowing

To me this book was so extremely violent and politically driven that I was completely overwhelmed. Honestly, I had to stop listening three or four times, give it a day or two and then return and try again. I searched repeatedly for a foothold within the characters, something to secure the storytelling, without luck.

I understood before I started that the story would have themes focused on human rights issues, immigration and abuse. I expected to feel a level of discomfort with the struggles of the characters. What I did not expect was the harsh tone of strident or even preachy lecturing that I encountered.

The stories of Central America and South America were so gruesome and horrifying that I found myself unable to continue. For that matter, even the lives lived by the characters in NYC were dire, cold and barren.

I have loved Allende's writing in the past so I really wanted to give this new book a chance.
In the end, what made me finally give up was the pervasive feeling of being brow beaten with misery. Allende seems to have chosen the sledge hammer approach over all else to sway the reader. Do be forewarned, considerable graphic violence and heartbreak ahead.

Worst narrators

I normally love Allende’s writing but, for this book, it’s hard to tell. All three narrators were soooo wrong for their characters, and so wrong in many of the times they narrated for the other characters. It was painful.

Not worth the credit

I did not think the reviews were that bad, but I did not enjoy this book.
I don’t want to say it was terrible, but I would not encourage any one to listen or read the book. It dragged on.

Disappointing

I've loved Allende's work till this book - which is episodic and lacking in depth. I felt no connection to the characters and found their blossoming love frankly bewildering. I'm currently in Guatemala, where one of the characters is from and while the descriptions are accurate, they contain none of the heart which usually bewitches in Allende's writing.

There are several narrators and two of them are breathy and flat to listen to. So, much as I wanted it to be otherwise this book was a huge disappointment.