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Wideacre

Wideacre, Book 1

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About this listen

Featuring a foreword recorded exclusively for Audible by Philippa Gregory and an interview with the author.

Philippa Gregory's first story in the best-selling Wideacre trilogy. A compelling tale of passion and intrigue set in the 18th century. From the author of The Other Boleyn Girl and The Virgin's Lover.

Wideacre Hall, set in the heart of the English countryside, is the ancestral home that Beatrice Lacey loves. But as a woman of the 18th century, she has no right of inheritance. Corrupted by a world that mistreats women, she sets out to corrupt others.

Sexual and willful, she believes that the only way to achieve control over Wideacre is through a series of horrible crimes, and no-one escapes the consequences of her need to possess the land.

©2006 Philippa Gregory (P)2017 Audible, Ltd Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Romance Women's Fiction

Critic reviews

"The 18th-century woman is a neglected creature but, in the figure of her heroine, Philippa Gregory has defined a certain kind of wildness.... This is a novel written from instinct, not out of calculation, and it shows." (Peter Ackroyd, The Times)
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The plot of this book is not for the faint hearted be warned, it has some very uncomfortable themes like incest etc. But some morbid curiosity keeps you going, no matter how much you want to shy away. You’ll end up despising the main character, but you’ll still want to see how her plots unfold.

Uncomfortable but gripping

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The story was gripping and the main character had traits not normally assigned to the protagonist of a text (Lady Macbeth vibes!). I feel some aspects of the plot did her a disservice however.

The narration was great ( besides the iffy Scottish accent).

What I really struggled with, towards the beginning of the book especially, was the detail used to describe the sexual acts of 14 year olds and then (spoiler alert!) the incest that followed! Maybe a trigger warning would have helped but I felt very uncomfortable with some of these moments. Once I moved past these as best I could, I did enjoy the book and read it very quickly.

Interesting Story with Problematic Elements

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I’ve liked other Phillipa Gregory novels but having listened to about half way through I can’t find any redeeming features in the main character.

Well read but not enjoyed the story

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Phenomenal writing and superb story. I got completely engrossed in the characters and the story. Quite brilliant

Wideacre book 1

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This story is so intense. I felt as if I was as much in love with Wideacre as Beatrice.
Beautifully written with a most particular attention to detail.
It is certainly one that will stay with me.

Harrowing!

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