We Have Always Lived in the Castle
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Narrated by:
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Bernadette Dunne
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Written by:
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Shirley Jackson
About this listen
Shirley Jackson’s deliciously unsettling novel about a perverse, isolated, and possibly murderous family takes readers deep into a labyrinth of dark neurosis, macabre humor, and gothic atmosphere.
Six years after four family members died suspiciously of arsenic poisoning, the three remaining Blackwoods—elder, agoraphobic sister Constance; wheelchair-bound Uncle Julian; and eighteen-year-old Mary Katherine, or, Merricat—live together in pleasant isolation. Merricat has developed an idiosyncratic system of rules and protective magic to guard the estate against intrusions from hostile villagers. But one day a stranger arrives—cousin Charles, with his eye on the Blackwood fortune—and manages to penetrate into their carefully shielded lives. Unable to drive him away by either polite or occult means, Merricat adopts more desperate methods, resulting in crisis, tragedy, and the revelation of a terrible secret.
Jackson’s novel emerges less as a study in eccentricity and more—like some of her other fictions—as a powerful critique of the anxious, ruthless processes involved in the maintenance of normalcy itself.
©1962 Shirley Jackson (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.You may also enjoy...
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Four seekers have come to the ugly, abandoned old mansion: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of the psychic phenomenon called haunting; Theodora, his lovely and lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a lonely, homeless girl well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the adventurous future heir of Hill House.
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I really don't get the appeal.
- By Amazon Customer on 2019-06-17
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An ordinary family man, geologist, and Mormon, Soren Johansson has always believed he'll be reunited with his loved ones after death in an eternal hereafter. Then, he dies. Soren wakes to find himself cast by a God he has never heard of into a Hell whose dimensions he can barely grasp: a vast library he can only escape from by finding the book that contains the story of his life. In this haunting existential novella, author, philosopher, and ecologist Steven L. Peck explores a subversive vision of eternity.
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Existential
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I'm Thinking of Ending Things
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In this deeply scary and intensely unnerving debut novel, Jake and a woman known only as "The Girlfriend" are on a drive to visit his parents at their secluded farm. But when Jake leaves "The Girlfriend" stranded at an abandoned high school, what follows is a twisted unraveling of the darkest unease, an exploration into psychological frailty, and an ending as suspenseful as The Usual Suspects and as haunting as Misery.
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Better book to read than to listen to
- By DrHex on 2020-01-10
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I Who Have Never Known Men
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Deep underground, 39 women live imprisoned in a cage. Watched over by guards, the women have no memory of how they got there, no notion of time, and only a vague recollection of their lives before. As the burn of electric light merges day into night and numberless years pass, a young girl—the 40th prisoner—sits alone and outcast in the corner. Soon she will show herself to be the key to the others’ escape and survival in the strange world that awaits them above ground.
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Loved this one
- By Margaret on 2024-11-18
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Bunny
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Samantha Heather Mackey couldn't be more of an outsider in her small, highly selective MFA program at New England's Warren University. A scholarship student who prefers the company of her dark imagination to that of most people, she is utterly repelled by the rest of her fiction writing cohort—a clique of unbearably twee rich girls who call each other "Bunny", and seem to move and speak as one. But everything changes when Samantha receives an invitation to the Bunnies' fabled "Smut Salon"....
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Confused
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Hell House
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For over 20 years, Belasco House has stood empty. Regarded as the Mt. Everest of haunted houses, its shadowed walls have witnessed scenes of unimaginable horror and depravity. All previous attempts to probe its mysteries have ended in murder, suicide, or insanity.
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Mostly just gross and unsettling
- By Erica on 2019-01-25
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The Haunting of Hill House
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- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Four seekers have come to the ugly, abandoned old mansion: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of the psychic phenomenon called haunting; Theodora, his lovely and lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a lonely, homeless girl well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the adventurous future heir of Hill House.
-
-
I really don't get the appeal.
- By Amazon Customer on 2019-06-17
Written by: Shirley Jackson
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A Short Stay in Hell
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- Narrated by: Sergei Burbank
- Length: 2 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An ordinary family man, geologist, and Mormon, Soren Johansson has always believed he'll be reunited with his loved ones after death in an eternal hereafter. Then, he dies. Soren wakes to find himself cast by a God he has never heard of into a Hell whose dimensions he can barely grasp: a vast library he can only escape from by finding the book that contains the story of his life. In this haunting existential novella, author, philosopher, and ecologist Steven L. Peck explores a subversive vision of eternity.
-
-
Existential
- By Angela on 2024-11-25
Written by: Steven L. Peck
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I'm Thinking of Ending Things
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- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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In this deeply scary and intensely unnerving debut novel, Jake and a woman known only as "The Girlfriend" are on a drive to visit his parents at their secluded farm. But when Jake leaves "The Girlfriend" stranded at an abandoned high school, what follows is a twisted unraveling of the darkest unease, an exploration into psychological frailty, and an ending as suspenseful as The Usual Suspects and as haunting as Misery.
-
-
Better book to read than to listen to
- By DrHex on 2020-01-10
Written by: Iain Reid
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I Who Have Never Known Men
- Written by: Jacqueline Harpman
- Narrated by: Nikki Massoud
- Length: 6 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Deep underground, 39 women live imprisoned in a cage. Watched over by guards, the women have no memory of how they got there, no notion of time, and only a vague recollection of their lives before. As the burn of electric light merges day into night and numberless years pass, a young girl—the 40th prisoner—sits alone and outcast in the corner. Soon she will show herself to be the key to the others’ escape and survival in the strange world that awaits them above ground.
-
-
Loved this one
- By Margaret on 2024-11-18
Written by: Jacqueline Harpman
-
Bunny
- A Novel
- Written by: Mona Awad
- Narrated by: Sophie Amoss
- Length: 11 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Samantha Heather Mackey couldn't be more of an outsider in her small, highly selective MFA program at New England's Warren University. A scholarship student who prefers the company of her dark imagination to that of most people, she is utterly repelled by the rest of her fiction writing cohort—a clique of unbearably twee rich girls who call each other "Bunny", and seem to move and speak as one. But everything changes when Samantha receives an invitation to the Bunnies' fabled "Smut Salon"....
-
-
Confused
- By Bookie on 2019-08-19
Written by: Mona Awad
-
Hell House
- Written by: Richard Matheson
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 9 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
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For over 20 years, Belasco House has stood empty. Regarded as the Mt. Everest of haunted houses, its shadowed walls have witnessed scenes of unimaginable horror and depravity. All previous attempts to probe its mysteries have ended in murder, suicide, or insanity.
But now, a new investigation has been launched, bringing four strangers to Belasco House in search of the ultimate secrets of life and death. A wealthy publisher, brooding over his impending death, has paid a physicist and two mediums to establish the facts of life after death once and for all. For one night, they will investigate the Belasco House and learn exactly why the townsfolk refer to it as the Hell House.
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Mostly just gross and unsettling
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The Mysteries of Udolpho
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The virtuous and loving Emily, the young protagonist, finds herself in the care of her aunt following the death of her father. Her aunt promptly marries the villain Montoni, a cruel and calculating man whose scheming leads him to lock both women in the dark and winding castle of Udolpho. Will they survive to tell of its terrors?
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A collection of short stories, The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories was first published in 1979 and awarded the Cheltenham Festival Literary Prize. This Audible exclusive adaptation is narrated by legendary actors, Richard Armitage and Emilia Fox, who take on different chapters of the audiobook. Among these are 'The Bloody Chamber', 'The Courtship of Mr Lyon', 'The Tiger's Bride', 'Puss in Boots', 'The Erl-King', 'The Snow Child', 'The Lady of the House of Love', 'The Werewolf' and 'Wolf-Alice'.
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f*ck me up, Carter
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The Bird's Nest
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Elizabeth is a demure 23-year-old wiling her life away at a dull museum job, living with her neurotic aunt, and subsisting off her dead mother’s inheritance. When Elizabeth begins to suffer terrible migraines and backaches, her aunt takes her to the doctor, then to a psychiatrist. But slowly, and with Jackson’s characteristic chill, we learn that Elizabeth is not just one girl - but four separate, self-destructive personalities.
Written by: Shirley Jackson, and others
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Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Sadomasochism. Obsession. Death. A whirlpool of darkness churns at the heart of a macabre ballet between two lonely young women in an internet chat room in the early 2000s - a darkness that threatens to forever transform them once they finally succumb to their most horrific desires. What have you done today to deserve your eyes?
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Do not listen to this book
- By Bert on 2021-10-22
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From New York Times best-selling author Stephen Graham Jones comes a novel that is equal parts psychological horror and cutting social commentary on identity politics and the American-Indian experience. Fans of Jordan Peele and Tommy Orange will love this story as it follows the lives of four American-Indian men and their families, all haunted by a disturbing, deadly event that took place in their youth. Years later, they find themselves tracked by an entity bent on revenge, totally helpless as the culture and traditions they left behind catch up to them in a vengeful way.
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I like it, good story
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Nothing but Blackened Teeth
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A Heian-era mansion stands abandoned, its foundations resting on the bones of a bride and its walls packed with the remains of the girls sacrificed to keep her company. It’s the perfect venue for a group of thrill-seeking friends, brought back together to celebrate a wedding. A night of food, drinks, and games quickly spirals into a nightmare as secrets get dragged out and relationships are tested. But the house has secrets too. Lurking in the shadows is the ghost bride with a black smile and a hungry heart.
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Fantastically Creepy
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Dark Tales
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After the publication of her short story “The Lottery” in the New Yorker in 1948 received an unprecedented amount of attention, Shirley Jackson was quickly established as a master horror storyteller. This collection of classic and newly reprinted stories provides listeners with more of her unsettling, dark tales, including the “The Possibility of Evil” and “The Summer People”.
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Eat Pray Love meets American Psycho in a seductive and sinister debut literary thriller. Food critic Dorothy Daniels indulges in her homicidal urges by murdering her lovers and devouring their organs in this intense, visceral, and lushly told tale of food, sex, power, and the pursuit of a very particular taste set between New York and Italy. Please Note: A Certain Hunger contains adult language and depictions of violence. Discretion is advised.
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Perfection
- By Rae on 2023-04-11
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Old Country
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Overall
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Performance
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It’s the house of their dreams. Former marine Harry and his wife, Sasha, have packed up their life and their golden retriever, Dash, and fled the corporate rat race to live off the land in rural Idaho. Their breathtaking new home sits on more than forty acres of meadow, aspen trees, and pine forest in the Teton Valley. Even if their friends and family think it’s a strange choice for an up-and-coming pair of urban professionals, Harry and Sasha couldn’t be happier about the future they’re building, all by their lonesome.
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excellent narration and story
- By Darren Fisher on 2024-12-08
Written by: Matt Query, and others
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Breakfast at Tiffany's
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Golden Globe-winning actor Michael C. Hall (Six Feet Under) performs Truman Capote's masterstroke about a young writer's charmed fascination with his unorthodox neighbor, the "American geisha" Holly Golightly. Holly - a World War II-era society girl in her late teens - survives via socialization, attending parties and restaurants with men from the wealthy upper class who also provide her with money and expensive gifts. Over the course of the novella, the seemingly shallow Holly slowly opens up to the curious protagonist.
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Perfect for a drive
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Pan's Labyrinth: The Labyrinth of the Faun
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Performance
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Oscar winning writer-director Guillermo del Toro and bestselling author Cornelia Funke have come together to transform del Toro’s hit movie Pan’s Labyrinth into an epic and dark fantasy novel for listeners of all ages, with enchanting short stories that flesh out the folklore of this fascinating world.
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C'était très bien lu!
- By Customer on 2024-11-18
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What Moves the Dead
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
When Alex Easton, a retired soldier, receives word that their childhood friend Madeline Usher is dying, they race to the ancestral home of the Ushers in the remote countryside of Ruritania. What they find there is a nightmare of fungal growths and possessed wildlife, surrounding a dark, pulsing lake. Madeline sleepwalks and speaks in strange voices at night, and her brother Roderick is consumed with a mysterious malady of the nerves. Aided by a redoubtable British mycologist and a baffled American doctor, Alex must unravel the secret of the House of Usher before it consumes them all.
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Good Story, Disappointing Narration
- By Georgia on 2022-08-27
Written by: T. Kingfisher
What the critics say
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What listeners say about We Have Always Lived in the Castle
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
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Performance
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- Rosemarie Gerow
- 2022-06-07
A must “read” for Shirley Jackson fans
One of my favourites. I used to read it every summer but my eyes are failing so I was very happy to see it here. If you love anything by Shirley Jackson you will love this.
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- Anonymous User
- 2020-08-05
Now what?
Overall, this was a well written story and very interesting I have never read anything like it but there are a couple of unanswered questions that I wished were clarified... the book has a very anti-climactic ending so that’s a little disappointing but it’s funny to read during quarantine since were all staying in our houses.
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- Karen W. Lam
- 2022-06-26
Wonderfully Macabre
I forgot I had purchased this audiobook and am so happy to finally listen to it. A dark fairytale highlighting the monstrous hearts of “good people.” It reminds me how much I love Shirley Jackson’s writing. Recommended for anyone who has ever read and loved The Lottery and wondered what else this talented author has written.
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- Anonymous User
- 2022-12-23
Amazing!
Fantastic! I was mesmerized by both the story, and the performance. Jackson's last novel is truly amazing.
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- Tee Aye
- 2021-02-17
It's a good story, just very little pay off.
read if you like, it's not a bad read by any means... but the ending just kind of ends and nothing really makes you feel that final "yes!" moment.
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- Mystery McCarthy
- 2021-09-13
Very Well Written, Worth Reading, But Not Scary
I am giving five stars for the excellent writing skill of Shirley Jackson. I do have to mention that if not for this skill, I would only give this four stars, because the story isn't spooky. It just isn't. Disturbing, yes a little messed up, but not up to the hype of it being a scary story. Maybe folks were easier to scare back when? Definitely worth reading, but just don't expect to feel the need to check the closet or under the bed before you go to sleep.
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- Zara
- 2021-06-12
Amazing book
The storyline is absolutely astonishing and it’s not extremely hard to read. The metaphors are just complex enough to grasp quickly.
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- Anonymous User
- 2024-10-22
Good but slow
It was alright, it was not quite the "horror" I was going for. It was dark with themes of mental instability, mystery, isolation and suspense. An interesting story but I felt the climax wasn't a little anticlimactic and the ending was okay. A little underwhelmed, still good!
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- Karen
- 2017-12-26
Atmospheric
Big on atmosphere, light on outright horror. I enjoyed the story very much. I was intrigued by the characters and I felt the narration truly did them justice. From what I understand, it is somewhat, slightly autobiographical.
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- Russ Osain
- 2019-04-12
Superb
Well read and very immersive. Definitely good and comforting to listen to. I felt engrossed in the story.
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