The Begum's Fortune by Jules Verne audiobook.

Genre: scifi

A novel with some utopian elements, but primarily dystopian. A French doctor and a German professor both inherit a vast fortune as descendants of a French soldier who married the rich widow of an Indian prince. They both decide to go to America and establish their own 'ideal' society. Dr. Sarrasin, the French doctor, is focused on maintaining public health. He builds Ville-France. Professor Schultze, the German scientist, is a bit of a militarist and racist. He builds Stahlstadt and devotes his city to the production of ever more powerful weapons so that he can destroy Sarrasin's city. They manage to get the US to cede sovereignty to two cities so that the two newly rich men can create their utopia. The setting for Ville-France would place it on the Oregon Coast, near Bandon, Oregon. The location for the second city, Stahlstadt, is less clear, but the description would place it somewhere near Roseburg, Oregon

For ad-free listening try our premium subscription

Chapters (Approximate)

(00:00:00) Chapter 01

(00:23:31) Chapter 02

(00:49:41) Chapter 03

(01:14:38) Chapter 04

(01:40:49) Chapter 05

(02:08:25) Chapter 06

(02:31:19) Chapter 07

(02:52:35) Chapter 08

(03:25:35) Chapter 09

(03:48:15) Chapter 10

(04:13:17) Chapter 11

(04:26:45) Chapter 12

(04:47:47) Chapter 13

(04:52:54) Chapter 14

(05:03:11) Chapter 15

(05:23:36) Chapter 16

(05:41:35) Chapter 17

(05:55:44) Chapter 18

(06:11:28) Chapter 19

(06:19:27) Chapter 20

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices