Listen free for 30 days
-
The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 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 $32.62
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's Summary
“A family secret, a DNA test, a journey as rich and colorful as the early-day circus itself. Through Cecily Larson’s hidden life, Ellen Baker tenderly examines personal determination, lost love, family ties, and our innate need to discover our own truth.” — Lisa Wingate, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Before We Were Yours and Before and After
Orphan Train meets Before We Were Yours meets Water for Elephants in this compelling multigenerational novel of survival, love, and the families we make.
In 1924, four-year-old Cecily Larson’s mother reluctantly drops her off at an orphanage in Chicago, promising to be back once she’s made enough money to support both Cecily and herself. But she never returns, and shortly after high-spirited Cecily turns seven, she is sold to a traveling circus to perform as the “little sister” to glamorous bareback rider Isabelle DuMonde. With Isabelle and the rest of the circus, Cecily finally feels she’s found the family she craves. But as the years go by, the cracks in her little world begin to show. And when teenage Cecily meets and falls in love with a young roustabout named Lucky, she finds her life thrown onto an entirely unexpected—and dangerous—course.
In 2015, Cecily is now 94 and living a quiet life in Minnesota, with her daughter, granddaughter, and great-grandson. But when her family decides to surprise her with an at-home DNA test, the unexpected results not only bring to light the tragic love story that Cecily has kept hidden for decades but also throw into question everything about the family she’s raised and claimed as her own for nearly seventy years. Cecily and everyone in her life must now decide who they really are and what family—and forgiveness—really mean.
Sweeping through a long period of contemporary history, The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson is an immersive, compelling, and entertaining family drama centered around one remarkable woman and her determination to survive.
You may also enjoy...
-
Under the Paper Moon
- Written by: Shaina Steinberg
- Narrated by: Carrie Coello
- Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's 1942, and as far as her father knows, Evelyn Bishop, heiress to an aeronautics fortune, is working as a translator in London. In truth, Evelyn—daring, beautiful, and as adept with a rifle as she is in five languages—has joined the Office of Strategic Services as a spy. Her goal is personal: to find her brother, who is being held as a POW in a Nazi labor camp. Through one high-risk mission after another, she is paired with the reckless and rebellious Nick Gallagher, growing ever close to him until the war's end brings with it an act of deep betrayal.
-
-
anachronistic almost to the point of ridulous
- By Tiffany on 2024-11-15
Written by: Shaina Steinberg
-
Meet Me at the Starlight
- Written by: Rachel Hauck
- Narrated by: Andrea Gallo, Nick Walther, Morgan Hallett
- Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
1987. Supermodel Harlow Hayes seeks solace in a quaint Florida beach town to heal from a heartbreak that shattered her entire world. To her surprise, she encounters Matt Knight—a Hollywood A-lister with a bad-boy reputation—who has returned to his hometown to help his plucky grandmother, Tuesday, save her century-old skating rink, the Starlight.
Written by: Rachel Hauck
-
Take the Long Way Home
- Written by: Rochelle Alers
- Narrated by: Jasmin Walker
- Length: 15 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Freedom fighter, brilliant businessperson, devoted wife, master of languages, and ultimately, savior of a European dynasty. Claudia Patterson would become all of these—spurred on by the fiercely powerful loves and losses along the way … Denny Clark. An abused thirteen-year-old White boy whose life twelve-year-old Claudia saves—complicating her own life for years to come.
Written by: Rochelle Alers
-
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 Vineyard Remains
- A Novel
- Written by: Addison McKnight
- Narrated by: Carlotta Brentan, Maria McCann, Angelina Rocca
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A desperate murder committed by Angela Miller’s mother tore Angela’s life apart and brought her to Martha’s Vineyard to live with her wealthy grandparents. It’s where her cousin, Kiki King, was born and raised, and Kiki now wants nothing more than to see the world beyond its sandy perimeter. Kiki’s mother escaped it. She took a late-night swim off Tashmoo Beach and was never seen again.
-
-
Unlikeable characters, weak women and selfish men.
- By Anonymous User on 2024-09-26
Written by: Addison McKnight
-
Sipsworth
- Written by: Simon Van Booy
- Narrated by: Christine Rendel
- Length: 5 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Following the deaths of her husband and son, Helen Cartwright returns to the English village of her childhood after living abroad for six decades. Her only wish is to die quickly and without fuss. Helen retreats into her home on Westminster Crescent, becoming a creature of routine and habit. Then, one cold autumn night, a chance encounter with an abandoned pet mouse on the street outside her house sets Helen on a surprising journey of friendship.
-
-
Delightful!
- By Budb on 2024-10-22
Written by: Simon Van Booy
-
Under the Paper Moon
- Written by: Shaina Steinberg
- Narrated by: Carrie Coello
- Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's 1942, and as far as her father knows, Evelyn Bishop, heiress to an aeronautics fortune, is working as a translator in London. In truth, Evelyn—daring, beautiful, and as adept with a rifle as she is in five languages—has joined the Office of Strategic Services as a spy. Her goal is personal: to find her brother, who is being held as a POW in a Nazi labor camp. Through one high-risk mission after another, she is paired with the reckless and rebellious Nick Gallagher, growing ever close to him until the war's end brings with it an act of deep betrayal.
-
-
anachronistic almost to the point of ridulous
- By Tiffany on 2024-11-15
Written by: Shaina Steinberg
-
Meet Me at the Starlight
- Written by: Rachel Hauck
- Narrated by: Andrea Gallo, Nick Walther, Morgan Hallett
- Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
1987. Supermodel Harlow Hayes seeks solace in a quaint Florida beach town to heal from a heartbreak that shattered her entire world. To her surprise, she encounters Matt Knight—a Hollywood A-lister with a bad-boy reputation—who has returned to his hometown to help his plucky grandmother, Tuesday, save her century-old skating rink, the Starlight.
Written by: Rachel Hauck
-
Take the Long Way Home
- Written by: Rochelle Alers
- Narrated by: Jasmin Walker
- Length: 15 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Freedom fighter, brilliant businessperson, devoted wife, master of languages, and ultimately, savior of a European dynasty. Claudia Patterson would become all of these—spurred on by the fiercely powerful loves and losses along the way … Denny Clark. An abused thirteen-year-old White boy whose life twelve-year-old Claudia saves—complicating her own life for years to come.
Written by: Rochelle Alers
-
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 Vineyard Remains
- A Novel
- Written by: Addison McKnight
- Narrated by: Carlotta Brentan, Maria McCann, Angelina Rocca
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A desperate murder committed by Angela Miller’s mother tore Angela’s life apart and brought her to Martha’s Vineyard to live with her wealthy grandparents. It’s where her cousin, Kiki King, was born and raised, and Kiki now wants nothing more than to see the world beyond its sandy perimeter. Kiki’s mother escaped it. She took a late-night swim off Tashmoo Beach and was never seen again.
-
-
Unlikeable characters, weak women and selfish men.
- By Anonymous User on 2024-09-26
Written by: Addison McKnight
-
Sipsworth
- Written by: Simon Van Booy
- Narrated by: Christine Rendel
- Length: 5 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Following the deaths of her husband and son, Helen Cartwright returns to the English village of her childhood after living abroad for six decades. Her only wish is to die quickly and without fuss. Helen retreats into her home on Westminster Crescent, becoming a creature of routine and habit. Then, one cold autumn night, a chance encounter with an abandoned pet mouse on the street outside her house sets Helen on a surprising journey of friendship.
-
-
Delightful!
- By Budb on 2024-10-22
Written by: Simon Van Booy
-
Ordinary Human Failings
- A Novel
- Written by: Megan Nolan
- Narrated by: Jessica Regan
- Length: 5 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's 1990 in London and Tom Hargreaves has it all: a burgeoning career as a reporter, fierce ambition and a brisk disregard for the "peasants"—ordinary people, his readers, easy tabloid fodder. His star seems set to rise when he stumbles across a sensational scoop: a dead child on a London estate, grieving parents beloved across the neighborhood, and the finger of suspicion pointing at one reclusive family of Irish immigrants and “bad apples”: the Greens. At their heart sits Carmel: beautiful, otherworldly, broken, and once destined for a future beyond her circumstances.
-
-
The characters came to life as their stories unfolded.
- By Amazon Customer on 2024-09-17
Written by: Megan Nolan
-
The Wrong Daughter
- Written by: Dandy Smith
- Narrated by: Daphne Kouma, Heather Long
- Length: 12 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the night when Caitlin and Olivia's parents leave them to go to a dinner party both girls are full of excitement about being old enough to stay home alone. What they don't see is the figure watching them through the open window. Who, after the girls have fallen asleep, will turn the handle of the unlocked back door. When their parents return, they will find Olivia's bed empty. Their eldest daughter gone. Never to return. Until now. But is the woman who claims to be Olivia really all she seems? And is everything Caitlin said she saw that night really the whole truth?
-
-
Unrealistic
- By Kathy from Regina, SK on 2024-09-24
Written by: Dandy Smith
-
The Lost Letters of Aisling
- A Novel
- Written by: Cynthia Ellingsen
- Narrated by: Aoife McMahon, Stephanie Cannon
- Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Rainey’s grandmother makes a startling request: Take me home. To Ireland, the country she fled post-World War II. Though they’re inseparably close, Rainey knows few of her grandmother’s secrets. Until they arrive at Aisling—the majestic estate on the southern coast of Ireland where her grandmother was raised—and Rainey discovers a collection of seventy-year-old letters in a trunk.
-
-
Lovely story!!
- By Nouhade N. on 2024-11-13
Written by: Cynthia Ellingsen
-
The Mango Tree
- A Memoir of Fruit, Florida, and Felony
- Written by: Annabelle Tometich
- Narrated by: Annabelle Tometich
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When journalist Annabelle Tometich picks up the phone one June morning, she isn’t expecting a collect call from an inmate at the Lee County Jail. And when she accepts, she certainly isn’t prepared to hear her mother’s voice on the other end of the line. However, explaining the situation to her younger siblings afterwards was easy; all she had to say was, “Mom shot at some guy. He was messing with her mangoes.” They immediately understood.
-
-
authentic and honest.
- By anne nonomus on 2024-11-17
Written by: Annabelle Tometich
-
Memories of the Lost
- A Novel
- Written by: Barbara O'Neal
- Narrated by: Sarah Zimmerman
- Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Months after her mother passes away, artist Tillie Morrisey sees a painting in a gallery that leaves her inexplicably lightheaded and unsteady. When a handsome stranger comes to her aid, their connection is so immediate it seems fated, though Liam is only visiting for a few days. Working on her own art has always been a refuge, but after discovering a document among her mother’s belongings that suggests Tillie’s life has been a lie, she begins to suffer from a series of fugue states, with memories surfacing that she isn’t even sure are her own.
-
-
Whimsical
- By Julia on 2024-11-11
Written by: Barbara O'Neal
-
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
-
The Memory of Lavender and Sage
- Written by: Aimie K. Runyan
- Narrated by: Caroline Hewitt
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Food critic Tempèsta Luddington has always felt like the odd person out in her family, ever since she lost her beloved mother at the tender age of thirteen. When her workaholic father passes fifteen years later, Tempèsta is not surprised that the majority of the considerable family money will pass to her dutiful younger brother, Wal. Still, she is left a modest remembrance from her mother, and for the first time Tempèsta has a world of choices before her.
-
-
Lovely, warm, comforting, hopeful
- By Georgina on 2024-08-20
Written by: Aimie K. Runyan
-
If the Tide Turns
- Written by: Rachel Rueckert
- Narrated by: Pilar Witherspoon
- Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Set during the Golden Age of Pirates and the shadowy aftermath of the Salem witch trials, this vivid literary debut is inspired by the captivating true story of real-life pirate Samuel Bellamy, combining high seas adventure, star-crossed longing, surprisingly timely questions about social justice and freedom, and the emotionally satisfying tale of one strong-willed young woman determined to choose her own path.
-
-
🥹
- By @haylingbookstorm on 2024-07-23
Written by: Rachel Rueckert
-
Look on the Bright Side
- Written by: Kristan Higgins
- Narrated by: Susan Bennett, Christina Moore, Xe Sands
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Lark Smith has always had a plan for her life: find a fantastic guy, create a marriage as blissful as her parents’, pop out a couple of kids, and build a rewarding career as an oncologist. Things aren’t going so well. For one, the guy didn’t work out. Theoretically, she’d love to find someone else, but it hasn’t happened. Two, she’s just been transferred out of Oncology for being too emotional. (Is it her fault she’s a weeper?) Three, her parents just split up. Deviating from the plan was … well, not in the plan. A potential solution comes from the foul-tempered surgeon Lorenzo Santini.
-
-
Narration issue
- By Izzy on 2024-10-14
Written by: Kristan Higgins
-
The Sanctuary
- Written by: Andrew Hunter Murray
- Narrated by: Andrew Hunter Murray
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ben is a painter from the crowded, turbulent city. For six months his fiancée, Cara, has been working on the remote island of Sanctuary Rock, the private estate of millionaire philanthropist Sir John Pemberley. Now she has decided to break off their engagement and stay there for good. Ben travels to the island to try and win Cara back. After an arduous journey, he finds himself compelled to stay. But as Ben begins to traverse Pemberley’s kingdom, he begins to uncover the truth of the apparently perfect society the enigmatic Sir John is building.
Written by: Andrew Hunter Murray
-
When the World Goes Quiet
- A Novel
- Written by: Gian Sardar
- Narrated by: Jesse Vilinsky
- Length: 12 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s 1918 in German-occupied Bruges, Belgium. With luck, Evelien will make it to the end of the war and be given what she was promised: a prized painting in exchange for safeguarding her employer’s possessions. Until then, Evelien knows to keep her head down and stay out of trouble. But life never goes to plan, especially in war. A member of the Resistance approaches Evelien: steal a list of names hidden in her employer’s home.
-
-
Great story
- By Joanne on 2024-09-10
Written by: Gian Sardar
-
A Rough Way to Go
- Written by: Sam Garonzik
- Narrated by: Victor Warren
- Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this all-consuming, suspenseful story, a stay-at-home father with something to prove finds a wealthy Wall Street investor's body washed up on the shore—and decides to take the investigation into his own hands…
-
-
Great narration
- By Annonymous on 2024-11-18
Written by: Sam Garonzik
What listeners say about The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2024-11-18
Lovely Characters
I was provided a preview of this at the end of another listen, and before buying I was surprised at the 1 star review as the preview was quite compelling. I decided to get it anyway. The review that was written for that rating disliked the narration, and is now missing but regardless, I found the character development compelling, and the movements back and forward through the decades made for a compelling listen. About halfway through I thought I had figured out and was going to be disappointed, but the ending is not quite as I assumed, and was very lovely. The narration was great as well.
I listen to a lot of fiction and non-fiction as I work - not all are enjoyable and some narration is not good at all. Even so I don’t usually provide reviews. The previous rating is so obviously misleading that I felt compelled this time to provide a review to provide a counter point on this work. I believe most listeners will enjoy this.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!