The Tale of Halcyon Crane

By: Wendy Webb

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell

Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

Ghosts don't exist in our world of today. Life is too pragmatic, too consuming, too busy for past lives to linger on longer than their allotted time, or so Halcyon had believed, until she received a letter from a lawyer claiming that her mother, whom she had thought long dead, had actually been living in another part of the country since Halcyon's early childhood. She had only recently passed away, leaving Halcyon heir to an unexpected fortune and an estate on an isolated island in the middle of the Great Lakes.

Setting out to find some answers, Halcyon travels to her mother's home. But will she be prepared for the ghastly family history that waits for her there, the visions and revelations that will change everything that she thought she knew about the father she lived with and the mother she'd lost long ago?

©2010 Wendy Webb (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Captivating and haunting, this debut proves Wendy Webb is a very gifted storyteller.” (M. J. Rose, author of The Memorist)

Atmosphere plus

Would you listen to The Tale of Halcyon Crane again? Why?

I have listened to this twice since purchasing it. It's one that I am sure I will return to again. It's genuinely atmospheric with a hint of gothic.

What other book might you compare The Tale of Halcyon Crane to and why?

The Thirtieth Tale. Anything by Kate Morton.

What about Cassandra Campbell???s performance did you like?

Her voice is even and fluctuates well with the rise and fall of the story

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

Yes, I could have listened straight through

Any additional comments?

A great ghost story with some real scary moments. Loved it.

Where was the editor?

I have a few questions for the editor, because I'm curious how anyone could have printed the book without asking the author to resolve a few things.

1. Are there no dead people in Seattle? How is that Hallie could see spirits for 5 years, then see none for 30 years, then see them again?

2. On an island with a limited population, how does no one ever say "Iris? Who's Iris?"

3. How clueless would Hallie need to be to realize that a 100 year old woman wouldn't walk miles to polish wood?

4. What was the point of the Jonah secret?

Okay listen, but not one I'll recommend to others.

loved it

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes - already have

Which scene was your favorite?

"say say oh playmate......." gave me goosebumps

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

kept me interested ..... read while i was driving to and from work. Had to stop listening when i was home by myself at night....spooked

Any additional comments?

the end was a little cheesy, but loved it as a whole

Avoid this one if you're looking for a ghost story

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

It seemed more concerned about what she was eating, rather than the atmosphere. I could see where she was trying to go with this but the world building wasn't there.

What could Wendy Webb have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Make it scarier and less about whos pants she's trying to get in, or at least make the romance believable. She tried to smack too many things into a book.
If you want a good gothic book I suggest the Thirteenth Tale

What does Cassandra Campbell bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She's not one of my favourite narrators but I don't pass over a book because she's narrating it.

Any additional comments?

It was boring.
It wasn't scary.
It wasn't ominous.
The relationships between people didn't make sense and the atmosphere wasn't what I was looking for.
I don't like discouraging people from reading (or listening) so if you're looking for a light read, sure. But I would skim this one.

Wonderful author, excellent book

Where does The Tale of Halcyon Crane rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is one of my favorite audible finds (along with Webb's book The Vanishing).

What did you like best about this story?

The story ties in so many fascinating plot points and handles them all extremely well. Once the story got going, I couldn't stop listening.

A solid "meh."

The narrator did a great job, but the story was predictable and silly. The main character seems determined not to understand any of the many clues around her, and honestly it just became tiresome to listen to. It was difficult to suspend belief to get into the story, and the details the author chose to dwell on were just kind of inconsequential. People call it "atmospheric," due to the setting, but there's just no there, there. Anyway. It was fine, but a bit disappointing.

Too Many Clichés

I didn’t realise this was a ghost-story when I decided to read it. I guess I missed the clues in the synopsis like “dark secrets” and “eerie atmosphere” and “strange things are starting to happen” … perhaps I’m a little slow, but none of those necessarily equate to a ghost story in my mind.

The central mystery was interesting, and I did want to know ‘what happened’, but the ghost-story element ruined it for me. I don’t dislike paranormal plots in general, but this one was too full of clichés for my taste and I found that the general tone of the book was a little “simple” or “beach-ready” if that makes sense.

Now that’s not necessarily a criticism; sometimes a “lite-read” hits the spot! but add an implausible plot with a million clichés and it all falls short.

Particularly annoying to me:

- the way Iris kept calling Hallie ‘child’… eye roll
- the truth about Iris … puh-leeeeze

I think I was just not in the right mood!

absolutely loved it

Any additional comments?

There was a perfect balance of everything you look for in a good book. It was cozy yet suspenseful.

Starts strong ends flat

Very very scary horror novel with a let down obvious ending. Also drags a bit.

Every gothic trope in the book

This novel would be quite good if it was labeled as YA. As it is it’s a bit obvious for an adult reader. For example, what is creepier than Victorian twins? Victorian TRIPLETS of course! Mrs. Danvers-esque housekeepers and haunted/haunting secondary female characters abound. Every mother figure is insane with grief. Potential incest lurks due to messed up family dynamics and secrets. The author clearly knows her gothic tropes and is not afraid to use them. All of them.

brilliant

I know there are mixed reviews on here but this is truly a wonderful story. its not exceptionally scary no but it is a gothic haunting with a pinch of romance.

Brilliant!

Absolutely loved this book! Can't believe it was free. Recommend 100%. Beautifully read. Spooky!

loved this cozy gothic ish horror

this was a friendly listen and well read. I enjoyed the person gets big house aspect and the description of the locations, also no loose ends and good lots of supernatural ... or is it?! we don't know for sure till the end. very fun, not scary but like a nice horror movie.

Great story, shame about the narrator

Loved the story, just didn't like the narrator's voice impressions of the different characters. Story was compelling enough to endure the strange accents though. Really enjoyed it.

A good one 👍

Great narration and easy listening. Better than expected and not the outcome I expected

beautifully read

wonderful story but struggling with the actual ghost story premise, well right until the end at least. beautifully read and gave great feeling to the book throughout. well written

Enjoyable

I really liked this story. Just ghostly enough without being scary and beautifully read. Will look for more Wendy Webb!

Considering it’s free I was hooked from beginning to end

A great story, beautifully read I was captivated from beginning to end. I’ve read lot of ghost stories but this one was beautifully and skilfully told.

Easy listen, a little predictable

This story was easy to listen to and narrated well. I did manage to guess a lot of the plot so that was a little disappointing

Can't recommend. Sorry

The story itself was ok but nothing new. I thought the narrator just sounded incredibly smug the whole time she was reading it but she didn't have much to work with as the main character was boring, bland and just cringe inducing imo.

Thankfully it was free with plus catalogue. The only good thing about it