The Kept

A Novel

By: James Scott

Narrated by: Kate Udall

Length: 12 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

In the winter of 1897, Elspeth Howell treks across miles of snow and ice to the isolated farmstead in upstate New York where she and her husband have raised their five children. Her midwife's salary is tucked into the toes of her boots, and her pack is full of gifts for her family. But as she crests the final hill, and sees her darkened house and a smokeless chimney, immediately she knows that an unthinkable crime has destroyed the life she so carefully built.

Her lone comfort is her twelve-year-old son, Caleb, who joins her in mourning the tragedy and planning its reprisal. Their long journey leads them to a rough-hewn lake town, defined by the violence both of its landscape and of its inhabitants. There Caleb is forced into a brutal adulthood, as he slowly discovers truths about his family he never suspected, and Elspeth must confront the terrible urges and unceasing temptations that have haunted her for years. Throughout it all, the love between mother and son serves as the only shield against a merciless world.

A scorching portrait of guilt and lost innocence, atonement and retribution, resilience and sacrifice, pregnant obsession and primal adolescence, The Kept is told with deep compassion and startling originality, and introduces James Scott as a major new literary voice.

©2014 James Scott (P)2014 HarperCollinsPublishers

Not a compeling read

What disappointed you about The Kept?

This is a very dark story, did not grab my interest or attention at any part during the story. I did listen to the whole thing but took me a long time to finish as ther is no interesting story line or character to hang on to.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Back to more traditional mystery and adventure.

What about Kate Udall’s performance did you like?

Ms Udall's performance was very good. The only thing good about this book.

This book has a great plot. thI also hav

This book has a great plot. I also tend to be a little picky about narrators, but this one was great. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is that I had a hard time keeping track of which character was which at the end. There were a lot of them, and some don't have a big part in the storyline until then, so I had to go back and listen to some earlier sections again. (I also am usually listening while doing other tasks, so it could just be me being easily distracted).

Darkness and Sadness

The author certainly sets the shadowy mood for this grim story with a devastating ending.

Fantastic!!

Pulls you in quick, which I need these days. I think my eyes were wide for the first 30 minutes. And then I settled in to this dark, cold story of revenge and horrible guilt. Such a good kind of pain. Thrilling.

Long but Good Listen

I enjoyed this story but at times I felt my mind wandering. In fact, I had to go back several times as I missed details that were important to the plot’s development. I felt like the ending was left open, which is a little disappointing. But overall, I did like this novel and the narrator really brought the characters to life!

Ending STUNK!!

Good story line, kept me interested, really liked Caleb! Elsbeth was an interesting character, sometimes I loved her sometimes I hated her. Absolutely did not like the ending, but I do like things buttoned up at the end sooo......

Could not stop listening

I know it sounds cliche, but I really could not stop listening to this book! Well, written. Brilliantly narrated. Will definitely listen to this more than once.

I could not stop listening!

I have listened to many audiobooks and have never liked one enough to write my first review.
This was an exceptional book and so very well written! The author pulls you in and you feel like you are right there . The emotions are so perfectly worded and the characters are described so perfectly, that you can actually picture the person . The narrator was perfect for this !
I will definitely listen to more audiobooks from James Scott!

Almost didn’t finish

Honestly, I wouldn’t have finished listening if I hadn’t used a credit on the book. The main downfall for me was the narrator performance. Everything sounded the same and the boy always sounded defensive. Could have used some better emotion/creativity. I had to speed up the playback speed to even tolerate the reading. The story has holes that were left wide open, though doesn’t seem to be done intentionally, more likely inadvertently. It’s not a book I’d recommend.

Suspenseful

Interesting story, kept my attention. Could have left out all the gay references and still been good.