The Séance

By: John Harwood

Narrated by: Fiona Hardingham, Simon Vance, Katherine Kellgren

Length: 10 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

A haunting tale of apparitions, a cursed manor house, and two generations of women determined to discover the truth, by the author of The Ghost Writer.

Sell the Hall unseen; burn it to the ground and plow the earth with salt, if you will; but never live there…

Constance Langton grows up in a household marked by death, her father distant, her mother in perpetual mourning for Constance's sister, the child she lost. Desperate to coax her mother back to health, Constance takes her to a séance; perhaps she will find comfort from beyond the grave. But the meeting has tragic consequences. Constance is left alone, her only legacy a mysterious bequest that will blight her life.

So begins this brilliant and gripping novel, a dark mystery set in late-Victorian England. It is a world of apparitions, of disappearances and unnatural phenomena, of betrayal and blackmail and black-hearted villains - and of murder. Constance's bequest comes in two parts: a house and a mystery. Years before, a family disappeared at Wraxford Hall, a decaying mansion in the English countryside with a sinister reputation. Now the Hall belongs to Constance, and she must descend into the darkness at the heart of the Wraxford mystery to find the truth - even at the cost of her life.

©2009 John Harwood (P)2013 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Brilliant story - one narrator not so much!

I loved this story!
All the different timelines and how it all came together at the end.
I also enjoyed the different voices for the different characters BUT Constance’s narration was very bad and distracting.
Screaming the one minute, soft the next, fast and then slow. I couldn’t bond with Constance because of the terrible narration.

Just OK

Story was OK, wordy, and confusing at times. I listened to it all, but can't recommend.

that narrator!

she had me glued to my seat! fantastic job, her telling of this story is just WOW!

Simply wonderful

The perfect combination between a great plot, amazing characters, suspense and mystery. I absolutely loved it.

Just ok; not horror or ghostly

This was like a Seinfeld episode where there are multiple storylines that all come together in the end. While we’ll written, I was disappointed that it was not a horror story, but a murder mystery. The narrator at the end was over the top in her acting, and I had to stop and turn the volume way down. Overall, just ok.

Totally disagree w the harsh narrator reviews

There are several narrators and they are all really good. The initial narrator does project and perform her character, but she does so in a way that makes you lose yourself into the story. If you listen to the sample it does seem a bit much, but you quickly become accustomed to the style. It is easy to become absorbed in this story. I love books like The Woman in White, Lady Audley's Secret, Rebecca, My Cousin Rachel, etc. I would put this in a similar category. However, compared to those novels it is a bit simpler and not nearly as deep. It is nonetheless an enjoyable book. Entertaining for sure!

I will buy the book

This is yet another listen I had to shut off mainly due to the narration. Simon Vance and the other female voice were fine. Vance great as usual. Constance felt like an ice pick in my ear. Honestly why in earth do some of the UK narrators (and state side too) feel the need to sound like they are strenuously arguing a point? I find the story interesting and would like to continue this one but it will have to be with a hard copy.

I don’t know enough about the story itself to give a good/bad review so I left it at three stars. I feel badly doing that. There didn’t seem to be a way to not leave any stars.

There was no getting use to that voice for me. Very sorry.

Bravo, Bravo, Bravo!!

Superbly writing story and excellent performance!
This was thoroughly entertaining. I'm now off to look for anything else this author has written! A new favorite!

A Fabulous Journey

This book was intriguing. Loved it! It kept me guessing through to the end.

awesome!

Great narration and story! I throughly enjoyed...it kept me on the edge of my seat!