Listen to Best Sellers Audiobooks in Fiction, Literary

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Title: Who You Think I Am

Author: Camille Laurens, Adriana Hunter - translator

Narrator: Eileen Stevens

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 29 mins

Language: English

Release date: 03-28-17

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 2 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

In a vertiginous play of mirrors between fantasy and virtual reality, Camille Laurens relates the dangerous liaisons of a woman who refuses to give up on desire. This is the story of Claire Millecam, a 48 year-old teacher and divorcee, who creates a fake social media profile to try to keep tabs on Jo, her occasional, elusive, and inconstant lover. Under the false identity of Claire Antunes, a young and beautiful 24 year-old, she starts a correspondence with Chris - pseudonym KissChris - which soon turns into an Internet love affair.

Who You Think I Am is a true novel of our times that brilliantly exposes the disconnect between desire and fantasy. Social media allows us to put ourselves on display, to indulge in secrets, but above all it allows us to lie, to recreate a life, to become our own fiction - a mixture of sentimental naivety and manipulative perversity which echoes the libertine novels of the 18th century.

Members Reviews:

Interesting idea, but just couldn't hold my interest due to the writing style

I tried very, very hard to like and get through this work, but as another reviewer has stated it's an odd read. I really wanted to like this because the premise and the execution was interesting, but it was ultimately the execution that kept me from really sinking into the work.

The first portion of this is written in a running narrative, as it's a direct transcript of the main character Claire talking to a male therapist. It's intriguing in its own way, as it gives us things exactly from Claire's perspective - or at least the perspective that she wants to present to the therapist. She's someone who is very quickly shown as a person who is able and willing to some extent to continuously lie to someone in order to satisfy her own wants and desires, so Claire is very much an unreliable narrator. When we begin seeing writing from the perspective of the therapist and even other characters it's still difficult to tell whether or not the reality we're seeing is the honest truth, much like how difficult it is to tell these things online. Basically, Laurens seems to be telling us that while it's hard to discern truth online it's not that much easier doing it in real life.

It's a thought provoking book, however I just couldn't seem to progress through the book no matter how hard I tried. I believe that it's the narration style, as it's not what I prefer to read in paper format. I believe that I could probably listen to this quite easily in audiobook format, but I don't know if this will ever receive that treatment, although I feel that it deserves it. The work brought up a lot of questions and made me think, but the writing style ultimately just wasn't my thing and I couldn't seem to hold an interest in it.

This looks to be the type of work where you'll either love it or hate it, so it's something that I'd recommend checking out at the library. I wish that the publisher would put up a preview of the book since the excerpt on their website doesn't really help since it's so short, as you can sort of tell whether or not the writing style would appeal to you.

"Go Die!"

Wow. If you are a woman over 50...or frankly a woman of any age, you'll need some time to digest, contemplate, and regroup after this beautifully rendered twisty cautionary tale.

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Title: Under the Almond Tree

Author: Laura McVeigh

Narrator: Rasheeda Ali

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-23-17

Publisher: Two Roads

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

If you lost everything you loved, how would you survive and begin again?

Under the Almond Tree tells the story of one refugee family fleeing conflict and war in Afghanistan in the 1990s as they travel towards freedom and safety.

Fifteen-year-old Samar, the middle child, shares the story of her incredible journey on the Trans-Siberian Express - with the help of Napoleon, the ticket collector; Tolstoy's Anna Karenina; and her parents and siblings. Forced to flee Kabul as the Russians then the Taliban turn their lives inside out, the children and their parents face the loss of their world and their place in it.

Throughout, our storyteller, Samar, bravely holds on to family and hope, often when all survival seems impossible. With the true strength that comes from love, learning and imagination, Samar reveals her extraordinary resilience and the discovery that anything may be possible - if you can just hold on to hope and love.

Members Reviews:

The story left me heartbroken

I admit I am taken aback by all the negative reviews this book has received, because it was easily one of my top 2017 reads. A lot of the comments made revolved around the fact that it was not true to the refugee status and that Laura McVeigh, being a white woman, was just cashing in on the refugee crisis. I must disagree. I am no expert, and cannot begin to imagine what the lives of these refugees are like, but I did not for a moment think that it was too cliché or that it was riddled with inaccuracies. Iâve read The Kite Runner, for instance â and Iâm not trying to be stereotypical, but thatâs the closest book I could think of that also talks about an Afghani family being thrown into war and having to leave their country, and I did think that the struggle and suffering was the same. The nature of the book needs to be put into context as well. This was a book that seemed to target younger readers, and as such, it was written in a simpler way perhaps, with just the right amount of violence and suffering to send the message across.

Under the Almond Tree is written from the perspective of Samar, a young Afghan girl, who along with her family, is on the Trans-Siberian railway trying to get to Moscow, where her aunt is said to be residing. As Samar and her family journey back and forth through different cities and towns, we also journey back and forth through time as she remembers her life back in Afghanistan and the events that led to their escape, while giving us glimpses of her life on this train at present.

The execution of the two storylines and how they interweave and meet is absolutely brilliant. Once I hit the climax of the story, or the âplot twistâ as it were, I literally had to put the book down in disbelief. I wanted to cry angry tears for all the injustices of the world.

Samar, who grew up listening to her mother regale them with beautiful stories, aspired to become a writer herself. To write stories and tell them to the world. She loved to read, her favorite book being Tolstoyâs Anna Karenina, and you can immediately find parallels between her world and that of Anna Karenina. Be it her journey on the train, or her faint suspicion that her mother may have had an affair at one point, all things that are told from Samarâs perspective and not necessarily ever confirmed or resolved.

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Title: The Western Lands

Subtitle: The Red Night Trilogy, Book 3

Author: William S. Burroughs

Narrator: Ray Porter

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-27-16

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 4 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

Here is the final novel of Burroughs' Red Night trilogy, available in audio for the first time.

A fascinating mix of autobiographical episodes and extraordinary Egyptian theology, Burroughs' final novel is poignant and melancholic. Blending war films and pornography, and referencing Kafka and Mailer, The Western Lands confirms Burroughs' status as one of America's greatest writers. The final novel of the trilogy begun with Cities of the Red Night and The Place of Dead Roads is a Book of the Dead for the nuclear age, an astonishing, profound, and revealing meditation on morality, loneliness, life, and death.

Members Reviews:

nightmarish

Written in a non-linear form, Burroughs uses ancient Egyptian religious concepts as a springboard for a meditation on hell, life, death, sickness, and betrayal. He fluctuates between storytelling, autobiography, and reflections.

The book is dreamy, nightmarish, and at times violent. At times I wished I had a guidebook for the book to help give me more insight to deeper symbolism. Despite the serious and dark nature of the topics covered, he maintained a biting, tongue-in-cheek style that I loved.

I also enjoyed when he targeted certain aspects of the contradictory and hypocritical nature of Western society.

Worthy of a second read, for sure.

Burroughs at his best.

Granted, it takes awhile before one can really appreciate this author for the humor and fantasmical plots he delivers. When I first starting reading Burroughs, specifically Cities of the Red Night, I was enchanted but didn't find him altogether funny -- now I read back on much of his material and find myself laughing outloud. Like the other books in the series -- all of which I have read (the Cities of the Red Night and the Place of Dead Roads are the other books in the series in respective order) -- we are given glimpse into madness, multiple hooks, sound logic in commentary of the world and abundant odd tirades (the Valley certainly was neat!) Many consider works of Burroughs prose and rightfully so; the storyline is not at all like that of your standard novel. In any event, it makes for splendid reading and is additionally great inspiration to anyone who seeks to write especially since it tells us it isn't always requisite to create in a manner that lands material fitting into a specific mold.

I liked this book much more then the Place of Dead Roads -- it seems more focused and more driven. I think I would probably rank it right alongside Cities of the Red Night, perhaps even a notch higher because it's so damn funny at times.

Best Burroughs Novel

Yes, that is a bold statement, but my opinion is unwavering. Perhaps not as shocking or unnerving as Naked Lunch, it still retains Burroughs' unique bite - his untimid voice.

This novel took me a complete two years to read, a sharp contrast to the two days it took me to read Naked Lunch. The intensity of his prose allowed me only to read a couple pages per day before I had to put it down and process his words. I felt throughout the novel I had to read each sentence several times, but it never bored me. In fact, the deeper I looked into each prose, the more and more I began understanding the man.

What made Naked Lunch so succesful was perhaps the array of inventive characters and thier situations. The most common character in The Western Lands happens to be Burroughs himself.

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Title: The Guest Cat

Author: Takashi Hiraide

Narrator: David Shih

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 21 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-27-16

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 8 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

A best seller in France and winner of Japan's Kiyama Shohei Literary Award, The Guest Cat, by the acclaimed poet Takashi Hiraide, is a subtly moving and exceptionally beautiful novel about the transient nature of life and idiosyncratic but deeply felt ways of living. A couple in their 30s live in a small rented cottage in a quiet part of Tokyo; they work at home, freelance copy-editing; they no longer have very much to say to one another. But one day a cat invites itself into their small kitchen. It leaves, but the next day comes again, and then again and again. Soon they are buying treats for the cat and enjoying talks about the animal and all its little ways. Life suddenly seems to have more promise for the husband and wife - the days have more light and color. The novel brims with new small joys and many moments of staggering poetic beauty, but then something happens.

As Kenzaburo Oe has remarked, Takashi Hiraide's work "really shines". His poetry, which is remarkably cross-hatched with beauty, has been acclaimed here for "its seemingly endless string of shape-shifting objects and experiences, whose splintering effect is enacted via a unique combination of speed and minutiae".

Critic Reviews:

"This is a beautiful, ornate read, brimming with philosophical observation, humor and intelligence, leaving the reader anticipating more translated works of Hiraide." (Publishers Weekly)

Members Reviews:

A Novel As Poetry

I loved this deceptively simple story which was beautifully written and seamlessly translated from the original Japanese. There was a gentle flow in the writing which could have been so easily overwhelmed by the wrong choice in narrators. Thankfully, this wasn't the case with this book. The narration was beautifully done and really captured the subtle nuances of the writing.

The cultural contrast between a life lived in Tokyo verses life in America are at first fascinating in terms of the differences presented. Then as the book continues the story bridges these differences with the universal idea of life as an exploration of beauty and connection. The writing explores love, loss, connection, and most of all communication. I particularly enjoyed the way architecture, light, insects, animals, and gardens all played key roles in the storytelling.

To me, this was a tender and lovingly written window into another world and way of living. Poetic and thoughtful.

Delightful

This story takes place in Japan in the 1980s. The couple, one a freelance writer the other a proof-reader and editor, work from home. Over time communication decreases between them as they are involved in their solitary work. One day a neighbors cat wanders into their home. Chibi begins to make regular visits to them. The cat brings them small pleasures that allow them to reconnect with each other.

The book is extremely well written. It is short only three and a half hours long (140 pages). The style of the writing and the story is Japanese. The translation of the book from Japanese to English appears to be excellent. Unless the reader has had exposures to Japanese writing, it might be difficult to totally enjoy the subtle parts of the story. Characteristic of Japanese writing the philosophical passages and literary reference are quite simple and sparse. The descriptions are beautiful and even lyrical; the vivid prose keeps everything flowing. The prose is focused on the people and places not the events.

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Title: The Blue Flower

Author: Penelope Fitzgerald, Candia McWilliam - introduction

Narrator: Thomas Judd, Stephanie Racine

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-15-16

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 13 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

From the Booker Prize-winning author of Offshore comes this unusual romance between the poet Novalis and his fiancée, Sophie, newly introduced by Candia McWilliam.

The year is 1794, and Fritz - passionate, idealistic and brilliant - is seeking his father's permission to announce his engagement to his heart's desire: 12-year-old Sophie. His astounded family and friends are amused and disturbed by his betrothal. What can he be thinking?

Tracing the dramatic early years of the young German who was to become the great romantic poet and philosopher Novalis, The Blue Flower is a masterpiece of invention, evoking the past with a reality that we can almost feel.

Members Reviews:

Excellent

Any additional comments?

One of the great novels of the 20th century no comments necessary. Thomas Judd reads it with intelligence and sensitivity. Worth downloading even if you've read it before.

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Title: The Guineveres

Author: Sarah Domet

Narrator: Erin Bennett

Format: Unabridged

Length: 14 hrs and 34 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-04-16

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 55 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

"We cling to the most painful reminders of our youth, our memories or our injuries, perhaps so we can look back to our former selves, console them, and say: Keep going. I know how the story ends."

To four girls who have nothing, their friendship is everything: They are each other's confidantes, teachers, and family. The girls are all named Guinevere - Vere, Gwen, Ginny, and Win - and it is the surprise of finding another Guinevere in their midst that first brings them together. They come to the Sisters of the Supreme Adoration convent by different paths, delivered by their families, each with her own complicated, heartbreaking story that she safeguards. Gwen is all Hollywood glamour and swagger; Ginny is a budding artiste with a sentiment to match; Win's tough bravado isn't even skin deep; and Vere is the only one who seems to be a believer, trying to hold on to her faith that her mother will one day return for her. However, the girls are more than the sum of their parts, and together they form the all-powerful and confident The Guineveres, bound by the extraordinary coincidence of their names and girded against the indignities of their plain, sequestered lives.

The nuns who raise them teach the Guineveres that faith is about waiting: for the mail, for weekly wash day, for a miracle, or for the day they turn 18 and are allowed to leave the convent. But the Guineveres grow tired of waiting. And so when four comatose soldiers from the war looming outside arrive at the convent, the girls realize that these men may hold their ticket out.

In prose shot through with beauty, Sarah Domet weaves together the Guineveres' past, present, and future, as well as the stories of the female saints they were raised on, to capture the wonder and tumult of girlhood and the magical thinking of young women as they cross over to adulthood.

Members Reviews:

ehhh

I wish the story had focused more on their friendship and less on "their boys". I feel like a female centric book that spends so much time on the boys kind of misses the mark.

Nice Summer Read

It took a few chapters to get into the story but was soon captured by the tale and transported into life with the Guinveres. Interesting story of life, love, relationships, and growing up.

This is a horrible book

What disappointed you about The Guineveres?

The homoerotic portrayal of women saints.

The rape of a comatose man

Would you ever listen to anything by Sarah Domet again?

no

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I couldn't tell if there was one Guinevere narrating the book; or each one separately.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Revulsion

Any additional comments?

There should be a warning that this book is OFFENSIVE and makes a mockery of nuns who devote their lives taking care of young women.

So dreary

Would you try another book from Sarah Domet and/or Erin Bennett?

No, thank you.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

I can't believe how dreary and grey this book was.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Erin Bennett?

I can't tell. Her dreariness matched the material.

Do you think The Guineveres needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Not for me. I'm not interested in hearing anything else the author has to say.

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Title: Transit

Author: Rachel Cusk

Narrator: Julia Franklin

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 47 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-29-16

Publisher: Whole Story AudioBooks

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 4 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

In the wake of family collapse, a writer and her two young sons move to London. The process of upheaval is the catalyst for a number of transitions - personal, moral, artistic, practical - as she endeavours to construct a new reality for herself and her children.

In the city she is made to confront aspects of living she has until now avoided and to consider questions of vulnerability and power, death and renewal, in what becomes her struggle to reattach herself to and believe in life.

Critic Reviews:

"One of the most daringly original and entertaining pieces of fiction I've ever read." (Observer on Outline)

"Brilliant...absorbing, thought-provoking." (Evening Standard on Outline)

Members Reviews:

TRANSIT - FREEDOM TO FATE

A remark novel in which the narrator brings us into encounters with neighbours, friends, tradesmen, an email offing astrological truths, a writing student etc. Each conversation which has a great wit and a sense of playfulness evoked in my mind the most important questions of who we think we are - how we hold onto the things that are over how we iimagine our 'fate' or making our freedom and are they that different.

The best for me is the encounter with her short story writing group and a man who is asked to talk about a dog he loves.

I have no idea what is going on.

Would you try another book written by Rachel Cusk or narrated by Julia Franklin?

No. Julia Franklin is usually excellent - her readings of Joanna Trollopes books are wonderful and I lose hours and hours wrapped in them. with this book she sounds as bored and confused as me and there are way too many breathy " he said" "she saids"

Would you ever listen to anything by Rachel Cusk again?

No.

Would you be willing to try another one of Julia Franklins performances?

Yes I have tried many and they are great.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Transit?

Most of it. I got up to the literary festival part and after that I was completely lost as to what was happening. I had struggled to form any bond with the characters up to that point and have no idea what the story is supposed to be about.

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Title: Here I Am

Author: Jonathan Safran Foer

Narrator: Ari Fliakos

Format: Unabridged

Length: 17 hrs and 4 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-06-16

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 9 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

Penguin presents the unabridged downloadable audiobook edition of Here I Am by Jonathan Safran Foer, read by Ari Fliakos. A monumental new novel about modern family lives from the best-selling author of Everything Is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

God asked Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son, Isaac, and Abraham replied obediently, 'Here I am'.

This is the story of a fracturing family in a moment of crisis. Over the course of three weeks in present-day Washington, DC, three sons watch their parents' marriage falter and their family home fall apart. Meanwhile, a larger catastrophe is engulfing another part of the world: a massive earthquake devastates the Middle East, sparking a pan-Arab invasion of Israel.

With global upheaval in the background and domestic collapse in the foreground, Jonathan Safran Foer asks us: what is the true meaning of home? Can one man ever reconcile the conflicting duties of his many roles - husband, father, son? And how much of life can a person bear?

Members Reviews:

Complex and relatable characters and story

I've enjoyed Safran Foer's previous books and didn't know this had come out until I stumbled upon his 'Audible Sessions' interview recently.

The audiobook achieves that rarity of Safran Foer's dense and examining writing, relatable characters who feel familiar, frustrating and sympathetic and a performance by Ari Fliakos that really helps make the characters and story come to life (his portrayal of Irv alone is worth the credit. If this were a film, he'd be nominated for best supporting actor).

The two twin disasters of war and divorce are played out while digging deep into themes of family dynamics, monogamy and happiness, ritual, faith, reality vs. virtual reality, consumerism, childhood, politics, culture and the riddle that is: how do you prioritise your own happiness vs. your family vs. looking out for all of mankind? And all of this seasoned with the ever-present backdrop of the American Jewish experience in all its complexity and oddity and what that means when truly tested in the context of the outbreak of war in the middle east.

The story immediately pulls you in by revealing that something very bad is about to happen a few days / weeks after we're introduced to Sam, but the tension is held until roughly halfway through before we realise what's waiting for our characters. In the meantime, the writing and portrayals of the easily-relatable and endlessly infuriating Jacob, Julia, their - sometimes unrealistically articulate - children, parents, the "Israeli cousins" (another breakthrough performance of Tamir by Fliakos) and more carry us deep within the all-too-real world that the author has made for us.

I've read other reviews that complain about the book's complexity and density. Sure, no book should be for everyone and if you like your audiobooks light and entertaining then I'd avoid this. If you enjoy critical thinking and reflecting and delighting in the author's words that shine new light and perspective on otherwise unreflected surfaces then I'd recommend both the story as written by Safran Foer and the performance given by Fliakos.

What a wonderful technician

Saran For does dialogue better than any other writer I know, which means you get right inside the characters directly from what they say.

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Title: Dancing with the Tiger

Author: Lili Wright

Narrator: Tim Andres Pabon

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-12-16

Publisher: Dreamscape Media, LLC

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 15 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

When Anna Ramsey learns that a meth-addicted looter has dug up what might be the funerary mask of Montezuma, she books the next flight to Oaxaca. Determined to redeem her father, a discredited art collector, and to one-up her unfaithful fiancé, Anna hurls herself headlong into Mexico's underground art world. But others are chasing the treasure as well. Anna soon realizes that everyone is masked - some literally, others metaphorically.

Indeed, Dancing with the Tiger is a splendid reminder that throughout human history, cultures have revered masks: Masks are as universal as our desire to transform ourselves, to change. Anna, without an ounce of self-pity despite traumatic losses, stands out as a heroine for our times as she finds the courage to show her true face.

Members Reviews:

An Intelligent Literary Thriller

Lili Wrightâs "Dancing with the Tiger" is a well-written and intelligent literary thriller. In crafting her multifaceted and absorbing narrative, Wright deftly lures her readers into numerous universes that are more related than one would normally assume. She takes us into the small but high-minded world of New York archaeological mask collectors, scholars, dealers and curators -- and closely examines the often illicit archeological acquisition and distribution infrastructure that moves artifacts from Mexico to New York. She treats us to tense portraits of the chilling Mexican Narcoculture and introduces us to its hapless perpetuators and victims. All of this adds up to a tense and compelling journey.

Wrightâs protagonist, Anna Ramsey, decides to chase (acquire) the Montezuma II Death Mask for her father. His health is failing; the authenticity of his mask collection is under question -- and all of this jeopardizes their plans for a museum wing to be dedicated to her late mother. Her perilous journey brings her into contact with a number of fascinating characters: There is Reyes, a self-proclaimed director of antiquities. Reyes is the head of a deadly drug cartel. He has cancer and wants to be buried with Montezumaâs mask, âso he can look God in the face.â Thereâs the deftly drawn American expatriate couple, Constance and Thomas. She is the heiress and he is the kept man who prophetically states, âThe mask peels back our daily faade and reveals the tragedy of the human condition.â And of course, thereâs Anna herself â who changes from someone who was glad to be swept away into the art world of the little black dress, to someone who eventually realizes: âEveryone picks someone small to dominateâlike a set of Russian dolls. I am the last doll. The hard one that canât be opened.â

As the book concludes we are left with one final question. Are we to agree with Salvadoreâs assertion: ââonce objects are taken from their context, history is lost.â That is to say, should a cultural artifact remain in situ and/or be repatriated if it was acquired by another country?

This is why I described the book as an intelligent literary thriller. The author makes us think.

Gripping!

I love this intriguing and thoughtful novel by Lili Wright. I found it absolutely gripping. I couldn't put it down and was completely engrossed. I love the mixing of past and present, the multi-layered plots and characters and the art world and post-colonialism critiques. I think the main character is a real gem.

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Title: My Last Continent

Subtitle: A Novel

Author: Midge Raymond

Narrator: Cassandra Campbell

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-21-16

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 27 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

An unforgettable debut with an irresistible love story, My Last Continent is a big-hearted, propulsive novel set against the dramatic Antarctic landscape - an "original and entirely authentic love story" (Graeme Simsion, author of The Rosie Project).

It is only at the end of the world - among the glacial mountains, cleaving icebergs, and frigid waters of Antarctica - that Deb Gardner and Keller Sullivan feel at home. For the few blissful weeks they spend each year studying the habits of emperor and Adélie penguins, Deb and Keller can escape the frustrations and sorrows of their separate lives and find solace in their work and in each other. But Antarctica, like their fleeting romance, is tenuous, imperiled by the world to the north.

A new travel and research season has just begun, and Deb and Keller are ready to play tour guide to the passengers on the small expedition ship that ferries them to their research destination. But this year Keller fails to appear onboard. Then, shortly into the journey, Deb's ship receives an emergency signal from the Australis, a cruise liner that has hit desperate trouble in the ice-choked waters of the Southern Ocean. Soon Deb's role will change from researcher to rescuer; among the crew of that sinking ship, Deb learns, is Keller.

As Deb and Keller's troubled histories collide with this catastrophic present, Midge Raymond's phenomenal novel takes us on a voyage deep into the wonders of the Antarctic and the mysteries of the human heart. My Last Continent is packed with emotional intelligence and high stakes - a harrowing, searching novel of love and loss in one of the most remote places on earth, a land of harsh beauty where even the smallest missteps have tragic consequences - "half adventure, half elegy, and wholly recommended" (Karen Joy Fowler, author of We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves).

Members Reviews:

Gripping, thought-provoking read for book clubs

What a beautiful and haunting story! The scenery is gorgeously rendered. The science feels well-researched. The characters are flawed and lovable. I was totally engaged--a total page turner. And because it asks big questions about our planet, our children, and our species, this makes a great read for book clubs. Lots to discuss!

Penguins and People in Antarctica

Life of a penguin researcher in Antarctica. Drama and difficulties with love and a normal life. Lots of interesting information about the Antarctica penguins, ice burgs and the continent.