• The Uses of Enchantment

  • A Novel
  • By: Heidi Julavits
  • Narrated by: Shelly Frasier
  • Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
  • 3.4 out of 5 stars (47 ratings)

Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks, and podcasts.
You will get an email reminder before your trial ends.
Audible Plus auto-renews for $7.95/mo after 30 days. Upgrade or cancel anytime.
The Uses of Enchantment  By  cover art

The Uses of Enchantment

By: Heidi Julavits
Narrated by: Shelly Frasier
Try for $0.00

$7.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $18.05

Buy for $18.05

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

A few weeks later, an unharmed Mary reappears as suddenly and mysteriously as she disappeared, claiming to have little memory of what happened to her. Her mother, concerned that Mary has somehow been sullied by the experience, sends her to therapy with a psychologist named Dr. Hammer.

Mary turns out to be a cagey and difficult patient. Dr. Hammer begins to suspect she concocted her tale of abduction when he discovers its parallels with a 17th-century narrative of a girl who was abducted by Indians and later caused her rescuer to be hanged as a witch. Eager to further his professional reputation, Hammer decides to write a book about Mary's faked abduction, a project her mother sanctions because she'd rather her daughter be a liar than a rape victim.

Fifteen years later, Mary returns to Boston for her mother's funeral. Her abduction, real or imagined, has tainted many lives, including her own. When she finds a suggestive letter sent to her mother, she suspects her mother planned a reconciliation before her death. Thus begins a quest that requires Mary to revisit the people and places in her past.

The Uses of Enchantment weaves a spell in which the power of a young woman's sexuality, and her desire to wield it, has a devastating effect on all involved. The riveting cat-and-mouse power games between doctor and patient, and between abductor and abductee, are gradually, dreamily revealed, along with the truth about what actually happened in 1985.

Heidi Julavits is in full command of her considerable gifts, and has crafted a dazzling narrative sure to garner her further acclaim as one of the best novelists working today.

©2006 Heidi Julavits (P)2007 Tantor Media Inc.

Critic reviews

"A spooky coming-of-age tale....Julavits expertly keeps the reader baffled until the end." (The New Yorker)
"The mystery of what did happen to Mary Veal will enthrall the reader to the very last page." (Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about The Uses of Enchantment

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    10
  • 4 Stars
    18
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    8
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6
  • 4 Stars
    7
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    5
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    3

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

hyper radiant girl liar

This will take some time and careful listening to maximize the effect. I enjoyed it immensely, but found myself rewinding quite a bit to figure things out and to appreciate the writing style. It's quite subtle and conceptual. A really nice addition to the literature of young women's coming of age stories.

It reads as suspense, but if you looking for a resolution to the mystery you will be disappointed.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful