The Apple Orchard

The Apple Orchard : Bella Vista Chronicles

  • by Susan Wiggs
  • Narrated by Christina Traister
  • Series: Bella Vista Chronicles
  • 12 hrs and 3 mins
  • Unabridged Audiobook
4.18 (551
Ratings.
)

Publisher's Summary

"Sometimes you stumble across a treasure when you’re looking for something else entirely."
Number-one New York Times best-selling author Susan Wiggs brings listeners to the lush abundance of Sonoma County in a novel of sisters, friendship, and how memories are woven like a spell around us.
Tess Delaney makes a living restoring stolen treasures to their rightful owners. People like Annelise Winther, who refuses to sell her long-gone mother’s beloved necklace - despite Tess’s advice. To Annelise, the jewel’s value is in its memories.
But Tess’s own history is filled with gaps: a father she never met, a mother who spent more time traveling than with her daughter. So Tess is shocked when she discovers the grandfather she never knew is in a coma. And that she has been named in his will to inherit half of Bella Vista, a 100-acre apple orchard in the magical Sonoma town called Archangel. The rest is willed to Isabel Johansen. A half-sister she’s never heard of.
Against the rich landscape of Bella Vista, Tess begins to discover a world filled with the simple pleasures of food and family, of the warm earth beneath her bare feet. A world where family comes first and the roots of history run deep. A place where falling in love is not only possible, but inevitable.
And in a season filled with new experiences, Tess begins to see the truth in something Annelise once told her: If you don’t believe memories are worth more than money, then perhaps you’ve not made the right kind of memories.
From one of America’s most beloved writers, The Apple Orchard is a story of family ties - both old and new - and of the moments that connect our hearts.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful

Cliche Storyline With One-Dimensional Characters

The narrator was the only good part of this book. I'll sum up the story (spoiler alert):

First Third of Story: "Woe is me. I'm a type A personality with no close friends or family. My work is everything because I have not met Mr. Right."

Second Third of Story: "I met Mr. Right. There is not one damn thing wrong with him. He is generous, kind, loyal; he makes his own delicious wine and takes care of his oh-so-adorable kids (who overcome my normal distaste for kids) and of course he is instantly in love with me. He is gorgeous and charming and adopts dogs from the shelter. But woe is me. I can't let myself be vulnerable to such an amazing, perfect person. I was so scarred by growing up without a father that of course I never learned as a grown woman to have meaningful adult relationships. Oh - and I found out I have a sister who is also as perfect and as one-dimensional as the man I met."

Final Third: Yay! I have a sister and a boyfriend and I've improved my relationship with my mother. I learned that I can love! I also happened upon $20 million and so I can live happily ever after. Whoopie!"

The only interesting part of this book - which likely consisted of maybe 20 pages - was when the story flashed back to the Danish resistance to German occupation in World War II.

The author also fails to even close some sub-plots, like what happened to the sister when she left for college, why she is so worried about the outside world and how Dominick tried to "save" her.

Poorly written, flat and unrealistic storyline. I've never rolled my eyes so much when listening to an audiobook.
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- Alexis

1940s Jewish Persecution to Sonoma Valley Now

Three generations of secrets, dating back to WWII, when a young boy is robbed of his family and is forced to make a decision . . . what will he live FOR? This is a beautifully woven story of the cruelty suffered by not just the Jewish families, but the brave families that CHOSE to do the RIGHT thing during the war. A story of the youngest children, how they were forced to grow up, long before their time, how they watched their parents and grandparents be torn away from them . . . and still chose to live and fight. It's the story of what happened next . . . and the mistakes that were made along the way . . . the love and secrets that spanned three generations . . . the alienation that resulted and the path back to healing. I had to finish this book in one day . . . could not stop listening . . . and I dare say that LISTENING to this book is the way to go . . . you will almost smell the delicious bread baking in the kitchen . . . the descriptions are so vivid . . . beautifully written and narrated.
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- Debbie

Book Details

  • Release Date: 04-30-2013
  • Publisher: Brilliance Audio
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