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In the war-torn London of 1939, fourteen-year-old Hazel and five-year-old Flora are evacuated to a rural village to escape the horrors of the Second World War. Living with the kind Bridie Aberdeen and her teenage son, Harry, in a charming stone cottage along the River Thames, Hazel fills their days with walks and games to distract her young sister, including one that she creates for her sister and her sister alone—a fairy tale about a magical land, a secret place they can escape to that is all their own.
But the unthinkable happens when young Flora suddenly vanishes while playing near the banks of the river. Shattered, Hazel blames herself for her sister's disappearance, and she carries that guilt into adulthood as a private burden she feels she deserves.
Twenty years later, Hazel is in London, ready to move on from her job at a cozy rare bookstore to a career at Sotheby's. With a charming boyfriend and her elegantly timeworn Bloomsbury flat, Hazel's future seems determined. But her tidy life is turned upside down when she unwraps a package containing an illustrated book called Whisperwood and the River of Stars. Hazel never told a soul about the imaginary world she created just for Flora. Could this book hold the secrets to Flora's disappearance? Could it be a sign that her beloved sister is still alive after all these years?
As Hazel embarks on a feverish quest, revisiting long-dormant relationships and bravely opening wounds from her past, her career and future hang in the balance. Spellbinding and atmospheric, "this heartrending, captivating tale of family, first love, and fate will sweep you away" (Kristin Harmel, New York Times bestselling author).
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
May 2, 2023 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781797155982
- File size: 357490 KB
- Duration: 12:24:46
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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January 23, 2023
In this affecting entry from Henry (Once upon a Wardrobe), a woman stumbles onto a lead in the decades-old cold case of her sister’s disappearance. It’s 1960, and Hazel Linden is astonished when the bookstore she works at is shipped a volume entitled Whisperwood, which depicts a fantasy realm Hazel dreamed up as a teenager and shared only with her younger sister. Twenty years ago, 14-year-old Hazel and five-year-old Flora were evacuated from London during WWII and took refuge in the idyllic Oxford countryside with Bridie Aberdeen and her teenage son, Harry. There, Hazel told Flora stories about Whisperwood, a make-believe world where the two could seek comfort. Months into their evacuation, Flora disappeared and was presumed drowned in the River Thames. Back in the novel’s present, Hazel, still haunted by her sister’s disappearance, embarks on a faith-fueled, sometimes-reckless quest to discover if her sister might still be alive, one that involves tracking down the American author of the book and visiting Bridie and Harry for the first time since Flora’s disappearance. Though framed by a mystery, Henry’s offering shines most in its exploration of the ways relationships grow and adapt to time and trauma, making for a poignant meditation on the bonds of sisterhood. This captivates. -
Narrator Cynthia Erivo's quiet assurance permeates this dual-timeline audio about the powerful alchemy of storytelling. In 1939, two girls, Hazel and Flora Lea, are evacuated from London to escape imminent war. Flora Lea mysteriously disappears. In 1960, Hazel, now a rare book shop clerk, opens a package and discovers a book of the same stories she once made up to calm Flora Lea. Erivo rarely raises her voice, yet through desperate tones she expertly conveys Hazel's search for answers to the mysteries of her missing sister and the appearance of the stories from long ago. Erivo seamlessly adopts the charming lilt of young Flora and the American accent of the woman who has unwittingly written the fanciful stories that connect Hazel's past with her present. N.M. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine -
September 1, 2023
In 1939, 14-year-old Hazel and her five-year-old sister, Flora Lea, are evacuated from London to Oxford. There, Hazel tells Flora stories of Whisperwood, an imaginary, mystical place where she and Flora can escape the fear and uncertainty of war. The sisters visit Whisperwood often but never share its existence with anyone. All is well until Flora disappears without a trace. The police believe that she drowned in the Thames, but Hazel and her mother still hope that Flora is alive. In 1960, Hazel, who is now working at a shop selling rare books, opens a mysterious package. Inside is a manuscript titled Whisperwood and the River of Stars--the same stories that she shared with only Flora. Hazel drops everything to discover more about the author and the stories, hoping that she may be able to find her long-lost sister after all. The audiobook's narrator, Tony-winning British actress Cynthia Erivo (The Color Purple), provides a quiet, expertly paced performance of Henry's (Once Upon a Wardrobe) latest, a novel that stresses the importance of storytelling and the need to be true to oneself. VERDICT An enchanting tale about sisterhood and stories. Listeners will be transported.--Joanna M. Burkhardt
Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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