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  • Into the Wilderness

  • A Novel
  • Written by: Sara Donati
  • Narrated by: Kate Reading
  • Length: 30 hrs and 13 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (117 ratings)

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Into the Wilderness

Written by: Sara Donati
Narrated by: Kate Reading
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Publisher's Summary

Weaving a vibrant tapestry of fact and fiction, Into the Wilderness sweeps us into another time and place...and into the heart of a forbidden, incandescent affair between a spinster Englishwoman and an American frontiersman. Here is an epic of romance and history that will captivate listeners from the start.

When Elizabeth Middleton, 29 years old and unmarried, leaves her Aunt Merriweather's comfortable English estate to join her father and brother in the remote mountain village of Paradise on the edge of the New York wilderness, she does so with a strong will and an unwavering purpose: to teach school.

It is December of 1792 when she arrives in a cold climate unlike any she has ever experienced. And she meets a man different from any she has ever encountered - a white man dressed like a Native American, tall and lean and unsettling in his blunt honesty. He is Nathaniel Bonner, also known to the Mohawk people as Between-Two-Lives.

Determined to provide schooling for all the children of the village - White, Black, and Native American - Elizabeth soon finds herself at odds with local slave owners. Much to her surprise, she clashes with her own father as well. Financially strapped, Judge Middleton has plans for his daughter - betrothal to local doctor Richard Todd. An alliance with Todd could extract her father from ruin but would call into question the ownership of Hidden Wolf, the mountain where Nathaniel, his father, and a small group of Native Americans live and hunt.

As Judge Middleton brings pressure to bear against his daughter, she is faced with a choice between compliance and deception, a flight into the forest, and a desire that will bend her hard will to compromise and transformation.

Elizabeth's ultimate destiny, here in the heart of the wilderness, lies in the odyssey to come: trials of faith and flesh, and passion born amid Nathaniel's own secrets and divided soul.

Interweaving the fate of the remnants of the Mohawk Nation with the destiny of two lovers, Sara Donati's compelling novel creates a complex, profound, passionate portrait of an emerging America.

©2009 Sara Donati (P)2009 Random House

What the critics say

"My favorite kind of book is the sort you live in, rather than read. Into the Wilderness is one of those rare stories that let you breathe the air of another time, and leave your footprints on the snow of a wild, strange place. I can think of no better adventure than to explore the wilderness in the company of such engaging and independent lovers as Elizabeth and her Nathaniel." (Diana Gabaldon)
"Each time you open a book you hope to discover a story that will make your spirit of adventure and romance sing. This book delivers on that promise." (Amanda Quick)

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What listeners say about Into the Wilderness

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable

I read this book about 10 years ago and wasn't sure what books to purchase so I thought I'd give this a try as an audiobook. I like really long books as long as they are good. I enjoyed reading this more than I did listening. The narrator is not my favorite ever. First impression was that she was reading too fast. Second her voice reminds me of actress Wendie Malik, which is not necessarily a bad thing. There is something about her cadence and a couple of character voices that I really don't care for, but I settled into it well enough.

As far as the book itself, I quite enjoyed it again. I was surprised to note mention of the Outlander characters which I did not recognize the first time around as I hand read those books at the time. If you liked Outlander, give this a try.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great story

Thoroughly enjoyed listen to this book. It could be difficult to follow all characters at times, but it was a good story.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Story & Historical Significance

I loved the historical aspect of the story, the realism of the characters, and the strength of the female characters
I will continue to read this authors series
A favourite author for sure

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
  • M.G
  • 2022-03-05

quite the adventure

I listened to this story over a month or two..the story had so many twists and turns. it's well researched and I enjoy imagining the lives of indigenous peoples and settlers from UK in Great Lakes region.. It was a bit too much of a romance for my taste but it kept my entertained. The reader was amazing and could do excellent Scottish accents and Kahnienkehaka Language.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

amazing historical stort

great story of the earlier Europeans and first nations relationships and hardships with a live story within.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Into the Wilderness by Sara Donati.

Really enjoyed this story of the wild woods and Indian and settler days in America in 1760. A world full of adventure and strange dangerous happenings. also much love and romance.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent audio book

We live in a remote place, so shopping and medical business requires a long drive to and from the nearest village on the Island. The drive is more relaxing listening to an audio book. This one is one of the best so far, given it's historical value and the things we learned about wilderness survival and the conflict between races. We will purchase more from this author.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Good book

I found the book hard to get into till chapter 20. Then It got so much better.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

easy listening love story

An easy to listen to story about an independent woman fall in love with the wilderness and love interest. a great story if this is what you're looking for

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Loved this book!

The audio performance was excellent and I’ll definitely re-listen to this one again in the future.

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