Listen free for 30 days
-
Husbands & Lovers
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Helen Laser, Caroline Hewitt
- Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $29.14
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's Summary
Two women—separated by decades and continents, and united by an exotic family heirloom—reclaim secrets and lost loves in this sweeping novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Wives.
“My favorite kind of page-turner—unputdownable!”—Martha Hall Kelly, author of The Golden Doves
New England, 2022. Three years ago, single mother Mallory Dunne received the telephone call every parent dreads—her ten-year-old son, Sam, had been airlifted from summer camp with acute poisoning from a toxic death cap mushroom, leaving him fighting for his life. Now, searching for the donor kidney that will give her son a chance for a normal life, Mallory’s forced to confront two harrowing secrets from her past: her mother’s adoption from an infamous Irish orphanage in 1952, and her own all-consuming summer romance fourteen years earlier with her childhood best friend, Monk Adams—one of the world’s most beloved singer-songwriters—a fairy tale cut short by a devastating betrayal.
Cairo, 1951. After suffering tragedy beyond comprehension in the war, Hungarian refugee Hannah Ainsworth has forged a respectable new life for herself—marriage to a wealthy British diplomat with a coveted posting in glamorous Cairo. But a fateful encounter with the enigmatic manager of a hotel bristling with spies leads to a passionate affair that will reawaken Hannah’s longing for everything she once lost. As revolution simmers in the Egyptian streets, a pregnant Hannah finds herself snared in a game of intrigue between two men . . . and an act of sacrifice that will echo down the generations.
Timeless and bittersweet, Husbands & Lovers takes listeners on an unforgettable journey of heartbreak and redemption, from the revolutionary fires of midcentury Egypt to the moneyed beaches of contemporary New England. Acclaimed author Beatriz Williams has written a poignant and beautifully voiced novel of deeply human characters entangled by morally complex issues—of privilege, class, and the female experience—inside worlds brought shimmeringly to life.
You may also enjoy...
-
The Wedding People
- A Novel
- Written by: Alison Espach
- Narrated by: Helen Laser
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She's immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself.
-
-
So much talking talking talking
- By parsnip on 2024-10-30
Written by: Alison Espach
-
All Adults Here
- A Novel
- Written by: Emma Straub
- Narrated by: Emily Rankin
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Astrid Strick witnesses a school bus accident in the center of town, it jostles loose a repressed memory from her young parenting days decades earlier. Suddenly, Astrid realizes she was not quite the parent she thought she'd been to her three, now-grown children. But to what consequence?
-
-
a great character driven family story
- By Amazon Customer on 2021-07-10
Written by: Emma Straub
-
The Secret Life of Violet Grant
- Written by: Beatriz Williams
- Narrated by: Kathleen McInerney
- Length: 14 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Passion, redemption, and a battered old suitcase full of secrets: The New York Times best-selling author of A Hundred Summers returns with another engrossing tale of lost love and female ambition that crosses generations.
-
-
Loved it.
- By Millysgal on 2022-02-10
Written by: Beatriz Williams
-
The Summer Wives
- A Novel
- Written by: Beatriz Williams
- Narrated by: Kristin Kalbli
- Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the summer of 1951, Miranda Schuyler arrives on elite, secretive Winthrop Island as a schoolgirl from the margins of high society. When her beautiful mother marries Hugh Fisher, Miranda’s catapulted into a heady new world of pedigrees and cocktails. Isobel Fisher, Miranda’s new stepsister is eager to draw Miranda into the arcane customs of Winthrop society. But there are really two clans: the summer families with their steadfast ways and quiet obsessions, and the working class of Portuguese fishermen and domestic workers. Then Miranda is caught in a catastrophe and banished....
-
-
Excellent Descriptive Prose
- By SusanSalomonsson on 2022-08-26
Written by: Beatriz Williams
-
The First Shot
- A Prequel
- Written by: Liv Constantine
- Narrated by: Suzanne Elise Freeman
- Length: 2 hrs and 35 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this gripping prequel to the blockbuster best seller and Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick The Last Mrs. Parrish, listeners will discover exactly how Amber Patterson transformed from small-town girl to master manipulator - after all, practice makes perfect.
-
-
Excellent short story prequel 👌
- By Beth on 2024-11-20
Written by: Liv Constantine
-
Expiration Dates
- A Novel
- Written by: Rebecca Serle
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Daphne Bell believes the universe has a plan for her. Every time she meets a new man, she receives a slip of paper with his name and a number on it—the exact amount of time they will be together. The papers told her she’d spend three days with Martin in Paris; five weeks with Noah in San Francisco; and three months with Hugo, her ex-boyfriend turned best friend.
-
-
Julia Whelan can do no wrong
- By Annabelle Battaglia on 2024-07-16
Written by: Rebecca Serle
-
The Wedding People
- A Novel
- Written by: Alison Espach
- Narrated by: Helen Laser
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She's immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself.
-
-
So much talking talking talking
- By parsnip on 2024-10-30
Written by: Alison Espach
-
All Adults Here
- A Novel
- Written by: Emma Straub
- Narrated by: Emily Rankin
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Astrid Strick witnesses a school bus accident in the center of town, it jostles loose a repressed memory from her young parenting days decades earlier. Suddenly, Astrid realizes she was not quite the parent she thought she'd been to her three, now-grown children. But to what consequence?
-
-
a great character driven family story
- By Amazon Customer on 2021-07-10
Written by: Emma Straub
-
The Secret Life of Violet Grant
- Written by: Beatriz Williams
- Narrated by: Kathleen McInerney
- Length: 14 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Passion, redemption, and a battered old suitcase full of secrets: The New York Times best-selling author of A Hundred Summers returns with another engrossing tale of lost love and female ambition that crosses generations.
-
-
Loved it.
- By Millysgal on 2022-02-10
Written by: Beatriz Williams
-
The Summer Wives
- A Novel
- Written by: Beatriz Williams
- Narrated by: Kristin Kalbli
- Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the summer of 1951, Miranda Schuyler arrives on elite, secretive Winthrop Island as a schoolgirl from the margins of high society. When her beautiful mother marries Hugh Fisher, Miranda’s catapulted into a heady new world of pedigrees and cocktails. Isobel Fisher, Miranda’s new stepsister is eager to draw Miranda into the arcane customs of Winthrop society. But there are really two clans: the summer families with their steadfast ways and quiet obsessions, and the working class of Portuguese fishermen and domestic workers. Then Miranda is caught in a catastrophe and banished....
-
-
Excellent Descriptive Prose
- By SusanSalomonsson on 2022-08-26
Written by: Beatriz Williams
-
The First Shot
- A Prequel
- Written by: Liv Constantine
- Narrated by: Suzanne Elise Freeman
- Length: 2 hrs and 35 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this gripping prequel to the blockbuster best seller and Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick The Last Mrs. Parrish, listeners will discover exactly how Amber Patterson transformed from small-town girl to master manipulator - after all, practice makes perfect.
-
-
Excellent short story prequel 👌
- By Beth on 2024-11-20
Written by: Liv Constantine
-
Expiration Dates
- A Novel
- Written by: Rebecca Serle
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Daphne Bell believes the universe has a plan for her. Every time she meets a new man, she receives a slip of paper with his name and a number on it—the exact amount of time they will be together. The papers told her she’d spend three days with Martin in Paris; five weeks with Noah in San Francisco; and three months with Hugo, her ex-boyfriend turned best friend.
-
-
Julia Whelan can do no wrong
- By Annabelle Battaglia on 2024-07-16
Written by: Rebecca Serle
-
The Cousins
- Written by: Karen M. McManus
- Narrated by: Sarah Skaer, Kate Reinders, David Garelik, and others
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah Story are cousins, but they barely know each another, and they've never even met their grandmother. Rich and reclusive, she disinherited their parents before they were born. So when they each receive a letter inviting them to work at her island resort for the summer, they're surprised...and curious.
-
-
Nope. Nope and Nope.
- By Honest Anonymous on 2024-01-03
Written by: Karen M. McManus
-
The Cliffs: Reese's Book Club
- A Novel
- Written by: J. Courtney Sullivan
- Narrated by: Kimberly Farr, Tanis Parenteau, Emily Lawrence, and others
- Length: 15 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a secluded bluff overlooking the ocean sits a Victorian house, lavender with gingerbread trim, a home that contains a century’s worth of secrets. By the time Jane Flanagan discovers the house as a teenager, it has long been abandoned. The place is an irresistible mystery to Jane. There are still clothes in the closets, marbles rolling across the floors, and dishes in the cupboards, even though no one has set foot there in decades. The house becomes a hideaway for Jane, a place to escape her volatile mother.
-
-
All over the place
- By cathy masek on 2024-08-12
Written by: J. Courtney Sullivan
-
Evvie Drake Starts Over
- A Novel
- Written by: Linda Holmes
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan, Linda Holmes
- Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In a sleepy seaside town in Maine, recently widowed Eveleth "Evvie" Drake rarely leaves her large, painfully empty house nearly a year after her husband’s death in a car crash. Everyone in town, even her best friend, Andy, thinks grief keeps her locked inside, and Evvie doesn’t correct them. Meanwhile, in New York City, Dean Tenney, former Major League pitcher and Andy’s childhood best friend, is wrestling with what miserable athletes living out their worst nightmares call the "yips": he can’t throw straight anymore, and, even worse, he can’t figure out why.
-
-
Lovely Characters
- By Janean |Rosin on 2019-10-11
Written by: Linda Holmes
-
The Flower Sisters
- Written by: Michelle Collins Anderson
- Narrated by: Jim Frangione, Andrea Gallo, L.J. Ganser, and others
- Length: 14 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At birth, Violet and Rose Flowers were identical, save for a tiny bluish-purple mark gracing Violet’s slender neck. By nineteen, their temperaments distinguish them, as different as the flowers their mother named them for—Violet, wild and outgoing, and Rose, solitary and reserved. Still, they are each other’s world. Then, on a sweltering, terrible August night in 1928, an explosion rocks Lamb’s Dance Hall in Possum Flats, Missouri, engulfing it in flames, leaving one twin among the dozens dead, and her sister’s life forever changed.
-
-
Enjoyable
- By PWL on 2024-10-04
Written by: Michelle Collins Anderson
-
The Summer Pact
- A Novel
- Written by: Emily Giffin
- Narrated by: JD Jackson, Karissa Vacker, Alex McKenna
- Length: 10 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Four freshmen arrive at college from completely different worlds: Lainey, a California party girl with a flair for drama; Tyson, a brilliant scholar and aspiring lawyer from Washington, D.C.; Summer, an ambitious, recruited athlete from the Midwest; and Hannah, a mild-mannered southerner who is content to quietly round out the circle of big personalities. Soon after arriving on campus, they strike up a conversation in their shared dorm, and the seeds of friendship are planted.
-
-
Awful narration
- By Amazon Customer on 2024-07-21
Written by: Emily Giffin
-
Slow Dance
- A Novel
- Written by: Rainbow Rowell
- Narrated by: Rebecca Lowman
- Length: 11 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
They were just friends. Best friends. Allies. They spent entire summers sitting on Shiloh’s porch steps, dreaming about the future. They were both going to get out of north Omaha—Shiloh would go to go to college and become an actress, and Cary would join the Navy. They promised each other that their friendship would never change. Well, Shiloh did go to college, and Cary did join the Navy. And yet, somehow, everything changed.
-
-
Boring!
- By Leigh on 2024-10-18
Written by: Rainbow Rowell
-
Bye, Baby
- A Novel
- Written by: Carola Lovering
- Narrated by: Helen Laser, Karissa Vacker
- Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a brisk fall night in a New York apartment, 35-year-old Billie West hears terrified screams. It's her lifelong best friend Cassie Barnwell, one floor above, and she's just realized her infant daughter has gone missing. Billie is shaken as she looks down into her own arms to see the baby, remembering—with a jolt of fear—that she is responsible for the kidnapping that has instantly shattered Cassie’s world.
-
-
excellent
- By Amazoncustomer on 2024-09-22
Written by: Carola Lovering
-
Summer Romance
- Written by: Annabel Monaghan
- Narrated by: Kristen DiMercurio
- Length: 8 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ali Morris is a professional organizer whose own life is a mess. Her mom died two years ago, then her husband left, and she hasn’t worn pants with a zipper in longer than she cares to remember. No one is more surprised than Ali when the first time she takes off her wedding ring and puts on pants with hardware—overalls count, right?—she meets someone. Or rather, her dog claims a man for her, in the same way he claimed his favorite of her three children: by peeing on him. Ethan smiles at Ali like her pants are just right—like he likes what he sees.
Written by: Annabel Monaghan
-
Finding Mr. Write
- Written by: Kelley Armstrong
- Narrated by: Natalie Naudus, Will Peters, Patricia Santomasso, and others
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Daphne McFadden already knows that as a female author, the cards are stacked against her. Now she knows just how much. Because her sudden whim to pose as an “outdoorsy hunk of masculinity” male author for her new book just resulted in the unthinkable: a bidding war, a huge book deal, and the kind of fame every author dreams of. Now she’s in big trouble. Because she needs to convince the world that Zane Remington actually exists...but how? By hiring an actor, of course.
-
-
Clever and unfailingly charming
- By Jenny Chiu on 2024-09-08
Written by: Kelley Armstrong
-
The Guests
- A Thriller
- Written by: Margot Hunt
- Narrated by: Amy McFadden, Sarah Naughton, Michael Crouch, and others
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When a Category 5 hurricane is poised to hit their coastal Florida town, the Davies family takes refuge in their waterfront manse. Marlowe, Lee, and their teenage twins invite their close friends to wait out the storm in comfort and style. Uninvited are the three strangers who dock on the family’s shore right before the storm descends. Brothers Jason and Bo—and Bo’s girlfriend, Darcy—are a charming, helpful trio in need of a safe haven that the Davies are only too happy to provide. But as the storm outside grows more threatening, so does the tension in the house.
-
-
An original gripping thriller filled with heart.
- By L.D'anna on 2024-01-13
Written by: Margot Hunt
-
Nora Goes Off Script
- Written by: Annabel Monaghan
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 6 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nora Hamilton knows the formula for love better than anyone. As a romance channel screenwriter, it’s her job. But when her too-good-to work husband leaves her and their two kids, Nora turns her marriage’s collapse into cash and writes the best script of her life. No one is more surprised than her when it’s picked up for the big screen and set to film on location at her 100-year-old-home. When former Sexiest Man Alive, Leo Vance, is cast as her ne’er do well husband Nora’s life will never be the same.
-
-
Enjoyed by the beach
- By A Timmins on 2023-06-15
Written by: Annabel Monaghan
-
Real Americans
- A Novel
- Written by: Rachel Khong
- Narrated by: Louisa Zhu, Eric Yang, Eunice Wong
- Length: 14 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Real Americans begins on the precipice of Y2K in New York City, when twenty-two-year-old Lily Chen, an unpaid intern at a slick media company, meets Matthew. Matthew is everything Lily is not: easygoing and effortlessly attractive, a native East Coaster and, most notably, heir to a vast pharmaceutical empire. Lily couldn't be more different: flat-broke, raised in Tampa, the only child of scientists who fled Mao’s Cultural Revolution. Despite all this, Lily and Matthew fall in love.
Written by: Rachel Khong
What the critics say
“I loved Husbands & Lovers and devoured it in one delicious gulp. I was so invested in Mallory and Monk. It’s my favorite kind of page-turner—unputdownable!”—Martha Hall Kelly, New York Times bestselling author of The Golden Doves
“The masterful Williams spins a story that spans continents and eras, and it takes readers on a page-turning ride encompassing intoxicating youthful romance, forbidden wartime love, betrayal, espionage, life-eroding secrets, and a mother’s boundless love for her child. Reminding us of the interconnectivity of the past and present and the enduring power of love, Husbands & Lovers is stunning.”—Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling co-author of The Personal Librarian
“From sunny Cape Cod beaches to 1950s Cairo, I loved being immersed in the lives and loves of Beatriz Williams’s complex characters. This novel has it all: a single mother with a secret, a passionate affair against the backdrop of World War Two, and a child so wonderful (and in so much danger) that I stayed up until three in the morning to make sure he would survive. This is sweeping, sumptuous, and utterly enthralling.”—Amanda Eyre Ward, New York Times bestselling author of The Jetsetters
What listeners say about Husbands & Lovers
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Sarah Stewart
- 2024-09-16
Rich character development
the character development, the performance, and the content far surpassed my expectations of this book. I had originally purchased it thinking it was going to be fluffy and easy. while it's easy, the characters, and the stories that are interwoven made this one of the best books I've listened to all year.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- TiMiMo
- 2024-07-20
Loved it.
I kind of needed this. My last few books had me in a bit of a hangover. This one pulled me out of it. Narrated perfectly, the storylines were beautifully woven, and the very last, somewhat unexpected, sentence gave me tears of joy.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Richard Phelan
- 2024-10-29
Confusing narration
I didn’t love this book. I was expecting something a bit more deep and nuanced with much more character development. It’s really quite cringy at times. I was not all that invested in the love stories because I feel like I didn’t really ‘know’ the characters. Completely disliked Mallory from the beginning. I don’t know one mother that would not explore EVERY option should their child need it to live and thrive. And the fact that she constantly discussed Monk in front of her ‘fatherless’ child was annoying. I preferred the other story line, however the narrator’s accents were completely distracting. And the fact that the characters thought in an English accents yet when they spoke they spoke with a British and French accent was incredibly annoying. This was a big miss for me. I have had the pleasure of reading some very character rich novels lately and this fell short.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Joanne Berube
- 2024-07-22
Hannah
I skipped all the chapters about Mallory after the first two and listened only to Hannah’s story.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!