Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Celia Garth by Gwen Bristow Narrator: Gabra Zackman
Published by Tantor Audio on January 18,2018
Genres: Historical Romance
Length: 14 hours
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
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Amazon, Audible, Libro.fm, Barnes & Noble
A bustling port city, Charleston, South Carolina, is the crossroads of the American Revolution where supplies and weapons for the rebel army must be unloaded and smuggled north. From the window of the dressmaker’s shop where she works, lovely Celia Garth, recently engaged to the heir to a magnificent plantation, watches all of this thrilling activity.
When the unthinkable occurs and the British capture and occupy Charleston, bringing fiery retribution to the surrounding countryside, Celia sees her world destroyed. The rebel cause seems lost until the Swamp Fox, American General Francis Marion, takes the fight to the British—and one of his daring young soldiers recruits Celia to spy on the rebels’ behalf. From the ashes of Charleston and the Carolina countryside will rise a new nation—and a love that will change Celia Garth forever.
This is the first historical romance I remember and a favorite of mine in my teen years. I own an original hardcover copy. I bought the ebook and now I have listened to the new audio release. It is a very long time since I read Celia Garth, so it was shocking to me how clearly I remembered everything and how some of the concepts became part of my own life beliefs. I decided to be an appreciator.
The story both because of being written over 50 years ago plus it’s a historical romance does have some dated concepts. Slavery is part of the world. There are definitely class distinctions. Women perhaps did not have much power but many were portrayed as strong and smart.
The war is a big factor in the plot and the story. It may or may not be historically accurate. Either way I loved it. The battles and strategies fascinated me. Some truly grim things happen during war. I enjoyed the tales of Francis Marian, the Swamp Fox.
Celia is a new adult and does undergo a great deal of growth and some of the hardships of being an orphan and the war. She is a seamstress which I loved because I sew. (In my teen years, I sewed pretty much every day). Her desire to be independent and make her own choices in life resonated with me. I loved her circle of friends which developed throughout the story. I liked Celia and hoped for her success!
“I don’t think,” she added, “that you’d understand.”
“Why not?” he asked genially.
“You’re so content the way you are. Oh Darren, don’t you ever want to—to be somebody?”
Darren chuckled. “I am somebody. I’m an appreciator.”
“A what?”
“An appreciator,” said Darren. “A person who appreciates things.” He grinned. “People who do things need other people to appreciate them. Don’t they?” In spite of her worriment Celia began to laugh. Darren went on. “I’m fairly bright and I’ve got pretty good taste. I can appreciate books and music, and good clothes, and good food and wine—why Celia, I’m mighty important in the world.”
Narration:
Gabra Zackman is one of my favorite narrators. I listened to this at 1.25 speed which was comfortable, even with the southern accents. She did a nice lilt which seemed to fit. I thought both the male and female voices worked well. Having read the book many times, it was interesting to have the emotional development of her performance.
Listen to a clip here.
About Gabra Zackman
Gabra Zackman is a New York based actress, writer, and audiobook narrator. She is the author of The Bod Squad series published by Simon and Schuster’s Pocket Books starting in April 2015.
As an actress, Gabra has been seen in classics, new plays, and everything in between. She has been on TV in “Law and Order”, “Law and Order: SVU” and “All My Children” and in the film “Law Abiding Citizen”.
The foundation of Gabra’s work is her ten plus years of employment in the audio book industry, having recorded over 300 audio books to date.
Gabra is known for her versatility as an artist, and is currently working equally in three artistic fields. She loves how the crafts of acting, writing and narration all inform and influence each other. She feels profoundly lucky to get to tell stories in so many different ways.
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I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2018 Audiobook Challenge
- 2018 New Release Challenge
- COYER Winter Switch
I love historical romance and its neat that this one is set during the Colonial period. She sounds like a great heroine and I love that she’s a spy.
She’s young and it comes through in some of her thoughts and impatience but she does grow throughout the book. And she does have much more to suffer than most people today. Base level starvation, war, death stuff. I love the Revolutionary War and Civil War periods so this was very fun for me.