Mist of Midnight

By: Sandra Byrd

Narrated by: Elizabeth Sastre

Length: 10 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's Summary

In the first of a brand-new series set in Victorian England, a young woman returns home from India after the death of her family to discover her identity and inheritance are challenged by the man who holds her future in his hands.

Rebecca Ravenshaw, daughter of missionaries, spent most of her life in India. Following the death of her family in the Indian Mutiny, Rebecca returns to claim her family estate in Hampshire, England. Upon her return people are surprised to see her...and highly suspicious. Less than a year earlier, an imposter had arrived with an Indian servant and assumed not only Rebecca's name but her home and incomes.

©2015 Sandra Byrd (P)2015 Recorded Books

What A Stellar Performance!!

This is our most recent book club pick and the third one that I have selected to listen to rather than read. And I must say, the narrator’s skillful performance was without a doubt my favorite part of the book! She does a truly terrific job - especially with the wide variety of accents within this historical romance from the cultured English accents, along with the Scottish, French and Indian ones. All are quite convincing and genuinely pleasurable to listen to! I definitely plan on listening to more from this skilled performer!

Unfortunately, my enthusiasm for this selection wanes considerably in regards to the actual book. Set in 1850s England, the narrator Miss Rebecca Ravenshore, is the lone survivor of her family’s missionary life in India. When she returns to the home she hasn’t seen since four years of age, she quickly discovers that another young woman has posed as he and has since passed on under some questionable circumstances. On top of which, her family home has been claimed by a distant (and of course handsome) relative! It’s an intriguing premise, but it unfolds very slowly. The historical detail feels authentically researched and there’s plenty there to prove that Rebecca is indeed the daughter of missionaries (if nothing else, her actions in the end prove that!). But Rebecca herself is not consistently likable - she seems overly naive and trusting considering her life experiences. And as for the romance, well that is far too predictable and rather disappointing. Much of the plot feels overly familiar to me, and while I am certain that I have never read this before, the entire time listening to it I had a very odd deja-vu sense of knowing exactly what would happen.

The plot does hold one genuine surprise, though and it is one that sticks out of this book quite a bit for me... I am curious to see where our club’s discussion will go, but I am very thankful for the skill of the narrator because otherwise I am quite certain that I wouldn’t have finished this one at all!

Inspirational, Romantic, and Mysterious

Mist of Midnight was a pleasant surprise for me. I read and enjoyed Sandra Byrd's "French Twist" series (which sadly no longer seems to be available on Audible) awhile ago, but this was a very different genre, and so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. In my opinion, however, Byrd skillfully weaves an inspirational romance with a Gothic mystery in this story of Rebecca Ravenshaw, an English lady who has spent most of her life with her missionary parents in India. Despite the (understandable) questions after the murder of her parents in the Indian Mutiny, Rebecca, with the help of some of those around her, manages to stay strong in her faith. In so doing, she demonstrates Christian love and forgiveness in a way that teaches without being preachy. This, combined with a sweet romance, a slightly spooky mystery and Elizabeth Sastre's wonderful narration, made for an engaging story that has me eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys inspirational historical romance, but most especially those who are fans of Julie Klassen.

lovely read

Sandra Byrd is an amazing author! The story was captivating and beautiful! I really enjoyed listening to it. The narrator also did an excellent job with her wonderful English accent! I can't wait to listen to the other books in the series!

Poetic

Good author. It had good mystery and a cute story. Struggled to follow at times. More than other books cause I tend do be doing much while I listen.

Perfection

One of the best audio stories of all. This story should be made into a movie. It's that good. You'll not be disappointed!

A Favourite

I have listened to this four times. The wonderful story has so many delightful phrases. The narrator is superior.

I should have chosen better....

Romance novels, especially with religious overtones, are not my genre, but I wanted a change from my usual picks. The plot sounded entertaining, but, sadly, it wasn't. Too preachy, rather obvious plotting, and characters that I just didn't care for. ( my favorite "character" in the story was the little house cat, Marie....I think that says it all). But, I will give a big high five to the narrator, she was excellent, and that was the only reason I kept listening.

All the right elements!

This book has both an intriguing story coupled with a delightful narrator! I highly recommend :-)

Long way round

It seemed like it took forever to get anywhere with this story. I liked the basis of the story, the characters were interesting but the main character seemed to naive and trusting of people she had never met. The narrator was spot on and did a fantastic job.

Please be aware this is very religious/Christian

Just a short review - I wanted to make listeners aware that this is a Christian story. You may love that, you may not. But you should know before choosing this book. I myself do not seek out novels with strong Christian themes woven through them. I wish I had known in advance just now much religious/Jesus talk was in this book. The story was pretty good - the performance was outstanding. If you like Christian books you will love this. If you don't like Christian books, skip it.