A Fair Mystery


Lu par LibriVox Volunteers

(4.6 stars; 20 reviews)

(Written by Charlotte M. Brame under the pen name Bertha M. Clay.)

Honest Mark Brace is about to lose his farm, land of his ancestors, home to his wife, Patty, and small daughter, Mattie, when out of a dark and stormy night comes the answer to his prayers. A tiny babe, tender and fair, left on their doorstep with a note asking Mark and Patty to bring the child up as their own, to raise it to be good, like themselves, and to accept for their troubles a hundred pounds a year.

The farm is saved, and all is peaceful for a while as the beautiful baby, Doris, grows into an even more beautiful child. But as she grows, so too grows her awareness of her own loveliness, of her difference from the humble farmers who raise her. Doris hungers for luxury, jewels and velvet, bright fetes and ardent admirers. Confident that her ethereal beauty and native wit will bring her everything she deserves, she focuses her energies on obtaining these things and sets in motion a chain of events that will break hearts, rip at the mystery surrounding her birth, and culminate in the greatest tragedy of them all.

A story of love in many forms, A Fair Mystery is part romance, part tragedy, and part social commentary, one which asks us to pause a moment and reflect on what it is that is truly worth having in this life. (Summary by Elanor Sakamoto) (19 hr 11 min)

Chapitres

A Voice and a Face in the Night. 11:29 Lu par Lynne T
A Fairy Changeling. 11:30 Lu par Lynne T
A Daughter of Patricians. 10:43 Lu par Arie
The Marble Psyche. 7:22 Lu par Arie
'I want to be just like you.' 7:55 Lu par Lynne T
Faithless and Debonair. 7:21 Lu par Lynne T
All, All is Vanity. 10:38 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
The Young Coquette. 14:00 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
Poet and Gentleman. 10:42 Lu par Elanor Sakamoto
A Wasted Warning. 10:17 Lu par Elanor Sakamoto
The Foster-Sisters. 9:35 Lu par Elanor Sakamoto
Beauty Becomes Immortal. 12:31 Lu par Sandra Estenson
'Faithless and debonair.' 11:07 Lu par Sandra Estenson
'I will be true--forever.' 12:04 Lu par Sandra Estenson
A Betrothal Day. 11:36 Lu par Sandra Estenson
A Shining Memory. 11:15 Lu par Sandra Estenson
A Woman Averse to Marriage. 14:39 Lu par Sandra Estenson
A Prospective Pleasure for Doris. 14:20 Lu par Sandra Estenson
'They tell me, child, that you are really promised in marriage.' 16:19 Lu par Sandra Estenson
Her Eyes Invited Him. 17:08 Lu par Sandra Estenson
'I shall never be a model woman.' 11:31 Lu par SamR
The Coquette and the Man of the World. 10:28 Lu par SamR
An Impassioned Wooing. 11:53 Lu par SamR
The False Lips of Woman. 11:08 Lu par SamR
The Last Happy Day of His Life. 11:03 Lu par SamR
How She was Tempted. 10:20 Lu par Petra
A Woman Resolved. 12:12 Lu par Petra
The Flight at Midnight. 11:30 Lu par Lynne T
A Thorn in the Garden of Roses. 10:30 Lu par SamR
'I could sooner plunge a dagger in his heart.' 11:00 Lu par SamR
'I am a man, and I will have justice.' 11:11 Lu par SamR
There is no True Love Except the Love of a Mother. 10:30 Lu par SamR
'After so many years of dread has it come at last?' 9:49 Lu par SamR
'I must tell you my secret.' 11:42 Lu par SamR
Lady Estelle's Story. 11:12 Lu par SamR
'He made me believe that I was the whole world to him!' 11:45 Lu par SamR
The Punishment of Folly. 11:14 Lu par SamR
A Mother's Confession. 11:35 Lu par SamR
A Clew at Last. 11:36 Lu par SamR
'I claim you as my own; I will never release you!' 11:33 Lu par SamR
'This is your revenge--to humiliate me.' 14:42 Lu par Marsha Payne
The Coquette's Blandishments. 13:28 Lu par Marsha Payne
The Nobleman's Oath. 13:36 Lu par Marsha Payne
An Appeal for Forgiveness. 14:10 Lu par Marsha Payne
A Thunderbolt in a Ducal Palace. 14:58 Lu par Marsha Payne
The Duke's Plan. 15:05 Lu par Marsha Payne
An Important Letter. 14:40 Lu par Marsha Payne
'Welcome, my daughter, to your father's heart.' 14:09 Lu par Marsha Payne
'Only one other person knows my secret.' 14:18 Lu par Marsha Payne
A Nobleman's Generosity. 13:39 Lu par Marsha Payne
'Be kind to her, as though you were her own child.' 15:55 Lu par Marsha Payne
A Young Lady Pleasantly Occupied. 14:50 Lu par Marsha Payne
'I must bear it for his sake.' 14:29 Lu par Marsha Payne
'My queen rose of the rosebuds.' 17:31 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
'When she was young, perhaps she loved some one like me.' 16:35 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
The Yearnings of a Mother's Heart. 16:43 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
Before the Queen. 17:27 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
The New Beauty Discussed. 17:22 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
Doris Affects a Little Curiosity. 14:55 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
'I might have been so happy, but for this!' 15:28 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
'I have seen some one like her.' 15:45 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
Lord Vivianne Perplexed. 16:03 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
A Terrible Trial. 14:07 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
'If she refuses, let her beware!' 19:17 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
A Little Artifice. 15:02 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
A Quiet Wedding Advocated. 16:41 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
A Clew at Last. 16:26 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
Lord Vivianne Proposes a Little Discussion. 15:09 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
The Price of a Secret. 16:09 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
The Coward's Threat. 16:14 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
The Earl Reluctantly Assents. 15:46 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
The Countess Becomes Curious. 17:20 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
A Last Vain Appeal. 16:46 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
'Heaven save Earle!' 15:30 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
'I shall wake up and find it a dream.' 17:08 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
Trying on the Wedding-Dress. 15:10 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
A Midnight Visitor. 16:06 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
Why He Suspected. 16:37 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
What Happened After Midnight. 17:28 Lu par Gabriela Cowan
The Silent Bride. 12:30 Lu par Mike Pelton
How the News was Told. 13:10 Lu par Mike Pelton
The Captain Asks Strange Questions. 12:58 Lu par Mike Pelton
A Mother's Anguish. 12:21 Lu par Mike Pelton
A Surprise for Lord Linleigh. 12:53 Lu par Mike Pelton
Haunted by a Dead Face. 13:54 Lu par Mike Pelton
Silent Love Rewarded. 4:58 Lu par Mike Pelton

Critiques

A Fair Tragedy


(3 stars)

The summary is dead on. You'll have Earle in your heart from start to finish while having conflicting feelings about Doris. While I like the overall story, some parts were too drawn out. Doris & Lord Vivianne meet twice & discuss an ultimatum. So why at the 3rd meeting does Doris ask what he wants & why does he go into detail about it & about their past yet again? Why make us suffer through this? There were a couple of offbeat moves as well. When Lord Linleigh offers to not have Lord Vivianne visit anymore Doris doesn't encourage this. Going by Doris' character & her feelings for Vivianne she'd naturally go for this but doesn't in the story. Lastly, the exact manner of a character's story ending seems very hard to believe. It actually is silly to me. Still, if you're willing to devote a large chunk of time to 1 story then give this a listen. If it were cut down I'd definitely have given it a higher rating. Oh, & Gabby will be difficult to understand unless you're not distracted & are in a quiet room/area.