Elizabeth Wiley has narrated 75 audiobooks on Listento.it by 61 authors, with an average listener rating of 4.4★ across 154 ratings. The most-rated is Born Survivors.
Born Survivors
Summary
Eastern Europe, 1944: Three women believe they are pregnant, but are torn from their husbands before they can be certain. Rachel is sent to Auschwitz, unaware that her husband has been shot. Priska and her husband travel there together, but are immediately separated. Also at Auschwitz, Anka hopes in vain to be reunited with her husband. With the rest of their families gassed, these young wives are determined to hold on to all they have left-their lives, and those of their unborn babies. Having concealed their condition from infamous Nazi doctor Josef Mengele, they are forced to work and almost starved to death, living in daily fear of their pregnancies being detected by the SS. In April 1945, Priska gives birth. She and her baby, along with Anka, Rachel, and the remaining inmates, are sent to Mauthausen concentration camp on a hellish train journey. Rachel gives birth on the train; Anka at the camp gates. All believe they will die-then a miracle occurs. The gas chamber runs out of Zyklon-B, and as the Allied troops near, the SS flee. Against all odds, the three mothers and their newborns survive their treacherous journey to freedom.
©2015 Wendy Holden (P)2017 Tantor
My Mother's Secret
Summary
Franciszka and her daughter, Helena, are simple, ordinary people until 1939, when the Nazis invade their homeland. Providing shelter to Jews in Nazi-occupied Poland is a death sentence, but Franciszka and Helena do exactly that. In their tiny home in Sokal, they hide a Jewish family in a loft above their pigsty, a Jewish doctor with his wife and son in a makeshift cellar under the kitchen, and a defecting German soldier in the attic - each party completely unknown to the others. For everyone to survive, Franciszka will have to outsmart her neighbors and the German commander. Told simply and succinctly from four different perspectives, My Mother's Secret is a testament to the kindness, courage, and generosity of ordinary people who chose to be extraordinary.
©2013 J. L. Witterick (P)2015 Tantor
Daughters of Rome
Summary
A.D. 69. The Roman Empire is up for the taking. The Year of Four Emperors will change everything - especially the lives of two sisters with a very personal stake in the outcome. Elegant and ambitious, Cornelia embodies the essence of the perfect Roman wife. She lives to one day see her loyal husband as Emperor. Her sister Marcella is more aloof, content to witness history rather than make it. But when a bloody coup turns their world upside-down, both women must maneuver carefully just to stay alive. As Cornelia tries to pick up the pieces of her shattered dreams, Marcella discovers a hidden talent for influencing the most powerful men in Rome. In the end, though, there can only be one Emperor... and one Empress.
©2011 Kate Quinn (P)2015 Tantor
Mistress of Rome
Summary
Thea is a slave girl from Judaea, passionate, musical, and guarded. Purchased as a toy for the spiteful heiress Lepida Pollia, Thea will become her mistress' rival for the love of Arius the Barbarian, Rome's newest and most savage gladiator. His love brings Thea the first happiness of her life, but that is quickly ended when a jealous Lepida tears them apart. As Lepida goes on to wreak havoc in the lives of a new husband and his family, Thea remakes herself as a polished singer for Rome's aristocrats. Unwittingly she attracts another admirer in the charismatic emperor of Rome. But Domitian's games have a darker side, and Thea finds herself fighting for both soul and sanity. Many have tried to destroy the emperor: a vengeful gladiator, an upright senator, a tormented soldier, a Vestal Virgin. But in the end, the life of the brilliant and paranoid Domitian lies in the hands of one woman: the emperor's mistress.
©2010 Kate Quinn (P)2015 Tantor
The Company We Keep
Summary
On Tuesday nights in the backroom of Cassie’s café, six strangers seek solace and find themselves part of a Company of Good Cheer Hazzley is at loose ends, even three years after the death of her husband. When her longtime friend Cassandra, café owner and occasional dance-class partner, suggests that she start up a conversation group, Hazzley posts a notice on the community board at the local grocery store. Four people turn up for the first meeting: Gwen, a recently widowed retiree in her early 60s, who finds herself pet-sitting a cantankerous parrot; Chiyo, a 40-year-old fitness instructor who cared for her unyielding but gossip-loving mother through the final days of her life; Addie, a woman pre-emptively grieving a close friend who is seriously ill; and Tom, an antiques dealer and amateur poet who, deprived of home baking since becoming a widower, comes to the first meeting hoping cake will be served. Before long, they are joined by Allam, a Syrian refugee with his own story to tell. These six strangers are learning that beginnings can be possible at any stage of life. But as they tell their stories, they must navigate what is shared and what is withheld. Which version of the truth will be revealed? Who is prepared to step up when help is needed? This moving, funny and deeply empathic new novel from acclaimed author Frances Itani reminds us that life, with all its twists and turns, never loses its capacity to surprise.
©2020 Frances Itani (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers
Last Rituals: A Novel of Suspense
Summary
At a university in Reykjavík, the body of a young German student is discovered, his eyes cut out and strange symbols carved into his chest. Police waste no time in making an arrest, but the victim's family isn't convinced that the right man is in custody. They ask Thóra Gudmundsdóttir, an attorney and single mother of two, to investigate. It isn't long before Thóra and her associate, Matthew Reich, uncover the deceased student's obsession with Iceland's grisly history of torture, execution, and witch hunts. But there are very contemporary horrors hidden in the long, cold shadow of dark traditions. And for two suddenly endangered investigators, nothing is quite what it seems...and no one can be trusted.
©2007 Yrsa Sigurdardóttir (P)2016 Tantor
The Power of Knitting
Summary
Purl and stitch: empowering, healing, and reconnecting us to each other and ourselves In a fractured world plagued by anxiety and loneliness, knitting is coming to the rescue of people from all walks of life. Economist and lifelong knitter Loretta Napoleoni unveils the hidden power of the purl and stitch mantra: an essential tool for the survival of our species, a means for women to influence history, a soothing activity to calm us, and a powerful metaphor of life. This book is a voyage through our history following the yarn of social, economic, and political changes - from ancient Egypt and Peru to modern Mongolia, from the spinning bees of the American Revolution to the knitting spies of World War II, and from the hippies' rejection of consumerism to yarnbombing protests against climate change. For the author it is also a personal journey of discovery and salvation, drawing on the wisdom her grandmother passed along as they knit together. Revealing recent discoveries in neuroscience, The Power of Knitting offers proof of the healing powers of knitting on our bodies and minds. Breaking through societal barriers, even nursing broken hearts, and helping to advance cutting-edge science, knitting is still a valuable instrument for navigating our daily lives. As a bonus, the book includes patterns for 10 simple yet iconic projects that reflect the creative, empowering spirit of knitting, with complete instructions. This audiobook includes a downloadable PDF containing knitting patterns from the book. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2020 Loretta Napoleoni (P)2020 Penguin Audio
Lady of the Eternal City
Summary
Elegant, secretive Sabina may be empress of Rome, but she still stands poised on a knife's edge. She must keep the peace between two deadly enemies: her husband, Hadrian, Rome's brilliant and sinister emperor; and battered warrior Vix, who is her first love. But Sabina is guardian of a deadly secret: Vix's beautiful son, Antinous, has become the emperor's latest obsession. As tragedy sends Hadrian spiraling into madness, Vix and Sabina form a last desperate pact to save the empire. But ultimately the fate of Rome lies with an untried girl, a spirited redhead who may just be the next Lady of the Eternal City....
©2015 Kate Quinn (P)2015 Tantor
And Then There Were Nuns
Summary
Audie Award Finalist, Inspirational, Faith-Based Nonfiction, 2016 With humor and opinions aplenty, a woman embarks on an unconventional quest to see if she is meant to be a nun. Just as Jane Christmas decides to enter a convent in mid-life to find out whether she is “nun material”, her long-term partner Colin, suddenly springs a marriage proposal on her. Determined not to let her monastic dreams be sidelined, Christmas puts her engagement on hold and embarks on an extraordinary year-long adventure to four convents - one in Canada and three in the UK. In these communities of cloistered nuns and monks, she shares - and at times chafes and rails against - the silent, simple existence she has sought all of her life. Christmas takes this spiritual quest seriously, but her story is full of the candid insights, humorous social faux pas, profane outbursts, and epiphanies that make her books so relatable and popular. And Then There Were Nuns offers a seldom-seen look inside modern cloistered life, and it is sure to ruffle more than a few starched collars among the ecclesiastical set.
©2013 Jane Christmas (P)2014 Post Hypnotic Press Inc.
Empress of the Seven Hills
Summary
Powerful, prosperous, and expanding ever farther into the untamed world, the Roman Empire has reached its zenith under the rule of the beloved Emperor Trajan. But neither Trajan nor his reign can last forever.... Brash and headstrong, Vix is a celebrated ex-gladiator returned to Rome to make his fortune. The sinuous, elusive Sabina is a senator's daughter who craves adventure. Sometimes lovers, sometimes enemies, Vix and Sabina are united by their devotion to Trajan. Trajan's ambitious Empress has her own plans for Sabina. And the aristocratic Hadrian - the empress' ruthless protégé and Vix's mortal enemy - has ambitions he confesses to no one, ambitions rooted in a secret prophecy. When Trajan falls, the hardened soldier, the enigmatic empress, the adventurous girl, and the scheming politician will all be caught in a deadly whirlwind of desire and death that may seal their fates and that of the entire Roman Empire....
©2012 Kate Quinn (P)2015 Tantor
The Sisters of Versailles
Summary
Set against the lavish backdrop of the French Court in the early years of the 18th century, The Sisters of Versailles is the extraordinary tale of the five Nesle sisters - Louise, Pauline, Diane, Hortense, and Marie-Anne - four of whom became mistresses to King Louis XV. Their scandalous story is stranger than fiction but true in every shocking, amusing, and heartbreaking detail.Court intriguers are beginning to sense that young King Louis XV, after seven years of marriage, is tiring of his Polish wife. The race is on to find a mistress for the royal bed as various factions put their best foot - and women - forward. The king's scheming ministers push Louise, the eldest of the aristocratic Nesle sisters, into the arms of the king. Over the following decade, the four sisters - sweet, naïve Louise; ambitious Pauline; complacent Diane, and cunning Marie Anne - will conspire, betray, suffer, and triumph in a desperate fight for both love and power. In the tradition of The Other Boleyn Girl, The Sisters of Versailles is a clever, intelligent, and absorbing novel that historical fiction fans will devour. Based on meticulous research on a group of women never before written about in English, Sally Christie's stunning debut is a complex exploration of power and sisterhood - of the admiration, competition, and even hatred that can coexist within a family when the stakes are high enough.
©2015 Sally Christie (P)2015 Tantor
The Professor Is In
Summary
Each year tens of thousands of students will, after years of hard work and enormous amounts of money, earn their PhDs. And each year only a small percentage of them will land jobs that justify and reward their investments. For every comfortably tenured professor or well-paid former academic, there are countless underpaid and overworked adjuncts and many more who simply give up in frustration. Karen Kelsky has made it her mission to help job seekers join the select few who get the most out of their PhDs. As a former tenured professor and department head who oversaw numerous academic job searches, she knows from experience exactly what gets an academic applicant a job. Now, for the first time ever, Karen has poured all her best advice into a single handy guide that addresses the most important issues facing any PhD, including writing a foolproof grant application, cultivating references and crafting the perfect CV, acing the job talk and campus interview, and making the leap to nonacademic work when the time is right.
©2015 Karen Kelsky (P)2015 Tantor
The French War Bride
Summary
At her assisted living center in Wedding Tree, Louisiana, 93-year-old Amelie O'Connor is in the habit of leaving her door open for friends. One day she receives an unexpected visitor - Kat Thompson, the ex-fiancée of her late husband, Jack. Kat and Jack were high school sweethearts who planned to marry when Jack returned from France after World War II. But in a cruel twist of fate, their plans were irrevocably derailed when a desperate French girl overheard an American officer's confession in a Parisian church... Now Kat wants to know the truth behind a story that's haunted her whole life. Finding out how Amelie stole Jack's heart will-she thinks-finally bring her peace. As Amelie recalls the dark days of the Nazi occupation of Paris, The French War Bride reveals how history shapes the courses of our lives...for better or for worse.
©2016 Robin Wells (P)2017 Tantor
This Brave New World
Summary
In the next decade and a half, China and India will become two of the world's indispensable powers - whether they rise peacefully or not. During that time Asia will surpass the combined strength of North America and Europe in economic might, population size, and military spending. Both India and China will have vetoes over many international decisions, from climate change to global trade, human rights, and business standards. From her front-row view of this shift, first at the State Department and now as an advisor to American business leaders, Anja Manuel escorts us on an intimate tour of the corridors of power in Delhi and Beijing. Her encounters with political and business leaders reveal how each country's history and politics influences their conduct today. Through vibrant stories, she reveals how each country is working to surmount enormous challenges. We wring our hands about China, Manuel writes, while we underestimate India, which will be the most important country outside the West to shape China's rise. Manuel shows us that a different path is possible - we can bring China and India along as partners rather than alienating one or both, and extend our own leadership in the world.
©2016 Anja Manuel (P)2016 Tantor
Sarah M. Eden British Isles Collection
Summary
The SARAH M. EDEN BRITISH ISLES COLLECTION contains two brand new historical romance novellas A FRIEND INDEED and A HAPPY BEGINNING, as well as four hand-picked readers' and reviewers' favorites of Sarah's popular Timeless Romance Anthology novellas. Listeners will love this selection of six historical romance novellas set in the British Isles.
©2015 Mirror Press, LLC (P)2017 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.
Refuge
Summary
Early one morning in 1929, Mary Seneca Steele spontaneously packs a suitcase, gathers up her son and daughter, and drives away in her abusive and dissolute husband’s brand-new Auburn Phaeton automobile, leaving her privileged life in Charleston behind. It is the beginning of a journey of enlightenment that leads Mary “Sen” to the mountains and mysteries of Appalachia, where she will learn unexpected family secrets, create a new life for herself and her children, and finally experience love and happiness before tragedy will once again test her. A Pulitzer Prize-nominated author, Dot Jackson has spun a story that will captivate listeners looking for an entertaining saga of self-discovery, family, love, loss, and redemption.
©2017 Dot Jackson (P)2020 Blackstone Audio, Inc.
The Enemies of Versailles
Summary
"That beastly bourgeois Pompadour was one thing; a common prostitute is quite another kettle of fish." After decades of suffering the King's endless stream of Royal Favorites, the princesses of the Court have reached a breaking point. Horrified that he would bring the lowborn Comtesse du Barry into the hallowed halls of Versailles, Louis XV's daughters, led by the indomitable Madame Adelaide, vow eternal enmity and enlist the young dauphiness Marie Antoinette in their fight against the new mistress. But as tensions rise and the French Revolution draws closer, a prostitute in the palace soon becomes the least of the nobility's concerns. Told in Christie's witty and engaging style, the final book in the Mistresses of Versailles trilogy will delight and entrance fans as it once again brings to life the sumptuous and cruel world of 18th century Versailles, and France as it approaches irrevocable change.
©2017 Sally Christie (P)2017 Tantor
Going Dark
Summary
After walking into a trap on a covert op in Russia, the men from top secret SEAL Team Nine are presumed dead. Not knowing whom they can trust, and with war hanging in the balance, the survivors must go dark and scatter around the globe. Marine ecologist Annie Henderson joins her new boyfriend on a trip to the Western Isles of Scotland to protest a hazardous offshore drilling venture. When she realizes that she may be swept up in something far more dangerous than she'd intended, there is only one man she can turn to.... She and the mysterious but sexy dive boat captain haven't exactly gotten off to the best start, but something about his quiet confidence makes her think that he's the kind of man she can depend on. Because he's gruff and guarded, she can tell Dan Warren has secrets. But she could never imagine how high the stakes are for him to keep his cover, even as he risks everything to protect her.... Contains mature themes.
©2017 Monica McCarty (P)2017 Tantor
The Tango War
Summary
The Tango War by Mary Jo McConahay fills an important gap in World War II history. Beginning in the '30s, both sides were well aware of the need to control not just the hearts and minds but also the resources of Latin America. The fight was often dirty: Residents were captured to exchange for US prisoners of war and rival spy networks shadowed each other across the continent. At all times, it was a Tango War, in which each side closely shadowed the other's steps. Though the Allies triumphed, at the war's inception it looked like the Axis would win. A flow of raw materials in the Southern Hemisphere, at a high cost in lives, was key to ensuring Allied victory, as were military bases supporting the North African campaign, the Battle of the Atlantic and the invasion of Sicily, and fending off attacks on the Panama Canal. Allies secured loyalty through espionage and diplomacy - including help from Hollywood and Mickey Mouse - while Jews and innocents among ethnic groups - Japanese, Germans - paid an unconscionable price. Mexican pilots flew in the Philippines and 25,000 Brazilians breached the Gothic Line in Italy. The Tango War also describes the machinations behind the greatest mass flight of criminals of the century, fascists with blood on their hands who escaped to the Americas.
©2018 Mary Jo McConahay (P)2018 Tantor
Ensnared
Summary
From New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Elisabeth Naughton comes a new story in her Eternal Guardians series.... Ryder: mysterious, powerful, every woman’s fantasy come true. For thousands of years, Ryder has reveled in his role as an immortal messenger - a dream weaver sent to seduce and manipulate. Until he’s ordered to deceive a fantasy of his own. Zakara, the daughter of one of the mightiest Eternal Guardians, is his perfect woman. But she’s impervious to Ryder’s advances. Each attempt to sway her to his will pushes him deeper into a dreamscape she seems to be controlling. To survive, Ryder will need to find a way to master his sexy new prey. Because if he can’t, he risks forever condemning himself and the woman he’s grown to love to a never-ending nightmare drawn straight from the twisted depths of hell.
©2019 Elisabeth Naughton (P)2019 Audible, Inc.