The Phoenix Crown

A Novel

De: Kate Quinn, Janie Chang

Narrado por: Saskia Maarleveld, Katharine Chin

Duración: 11 h y 35 m

Resumen del Editor

From bestselling authors Janie Chang and Kate Quinn, a thrilling and unforgettable narrative about the intertwined lives of two wronged women, spanning from the chaos of the San Francisco earthquake to the glittering palaces of Versailles.

San Francisco, 1906. In a city bustling with newly minted millionaires and scheming upstarts, two very different women hope to change their fortunes: Gemma, a golden-haired, silver-voiced soprano whose career desperately needs rekindling, and Suling, a petite and resolute Chinatown embroideress who is determined to escape an arranged marriage. Their paths cross when they are drawn into the orbit of Henry Thornton, a charming railroad magnate whose extraordinary collection of Chinese antiques includes the fabled Phoenix Crown, a legendary relic of Beijing’s fallen Summer Palace.

His patronage offers Gemma and Suling the chance of a lifetime, but their lives are thrown into turmoil when a devastating earthquake rips San Francisco apart and Thornton disappears, leaving behind a mystery reaching further than anyone could have imagined . . . until the Phoenix Crown reappears five years later at a sumptuous Paris costume ball, drawing Gemma and Suling together in one last desperate quest for justice.

©2023 Kate Quinn and Janie Chang (P)2023 HarperCollins Publishers

Narrators were wonderful, story excellent, if a bit too good too believe

Liked narrators, blending of cultures. Storyline. Disliked wrapping up a bit too good to be true.

Outstanding story and performance

I found the story, the history, and the deliverance exceptional. I will save this book to read again. I've found great books on Audible where the performance completely ruined the the story. Enough accolades cannot be given to these voice actors. They are simply the best! The deliverance can make or break the author's work.

Perfect weekend book

Kate Quinn never disappoints and this is no exception. Vibrant characters and storyline that grips from the first paragraph to last.

art and music

Wonderful book full of history, art, music and mystery. Written by 2 authors seems to help the characters develop.

Not my favorite

The book was good, but I like others by these authors better. I would have liked further detail on some of the sub plots.

The Strength of Women

The authors weaved very human female characters, with fears and challenges we all face, who through grit and perseverance survive triumphantly. The historical backdrop was well researched and touched on many of the sad details of American history we should never forget.

Martha Stewart reads the SF earthquake...

Interesting story line and characters had great potential. But, as written, I found the characters to be stiff and lifeless, especially in the Soo Ling/Reggie story. Endless passages about what SooLing was feeling, but I find actions to be so much more revealing. Gemma and Alice seemed real, but not the other 2.
The narration was also stiff, especially the SooLing/Reggie story. Sort of like having Martha Stewart read the book!

A treat!!

Oh my goodness!! I absolutely loved this book and the performance!! Literally felt like I was swept up into the world of the characters. The story is amazing and I cannot believe many of the characters were real people. The story is so well written. Thank you all for the treat to escape into another time and space!!

Fascinating history & setting. Slow start.

Big fan of Kate Quinn. However, this was not my favorite. Very slow start for me. Glad I did not give up. Was not sucked into the story or characters like I have been in her other novels. Really enjoyed the setting of San Francisco and gaining a better understanding of the quake of 1906 and the subsequent destruction of the city by fire. Appreciated learning about the Chinese who lived in the city at that time. Ending was rather anticlimactic for me. Overall a 3.5

Entertaining History

Excellent novel. Compelling story really held my attention. The idea of this diverse group of characters becoming intertwined through happenstance in the lead-up to and aftermath of a major American tragedy is quite brilliant. I’ve visited and worked in San Francisco many times over the years but I learned a lot of things I didn’t know about it from this book. My wife, who doesn’t read a lot of fiction, listened to the audiobook with me and she loved it as much as I did.