To Whisper Her Name by Tamera Alexander

Narrated by Tavia Gilbert

The first thing I look for in an audiobook after my initial search in Christian Inspirational Fiction, my genre of choice, is a book that is at least eight hours in length. I want my money’s worth, especially when using one of my precious Audible credits. To Whisper Her Name far exceeds that and, I have to admit, the thought of its 17-hour length made me a bit weary as I started listening.

As Historical fiction is usually not one of my top choices for listening, I was not sure what to expect. However, this audio was enjoyable from the get go and much of that credit goes to Tavia Gilbert’s talented narration. At one point halfway though the audio, I did wonder, “Why is this categorized inspirational?” I soon discovered it was, just not overly so.  Although there are references to God and prayer, that’s not the primary focus.

The widow of a cruel traitorous man, Olivia Aberdeen lives in post-Civil War Nashville. She is being forced to leave her home and everything she has ever known. Her husband had been involved in some shady dealings and everyone assumes she’d been in the know the entire time. Olivia is given two dresses and sent on her way to live with her “Aunt Elizabeth” who is a close friend of her deceased mother, since she has no other family.

On her way to her new home, Olivia meets the handsome, and somewhat irritating, Ridley Cooper who rescues her from a precarious situation. Arriving at the beautiful Belle Meade Plantation expecting to take on the position of head housekeeper, she discovers that the position was given to someone else that very day by General William Harding, head of Belle Meade. Olivia is aware the general is none-too-pleased with her arrival as she is now shunned by most of society, but because of his wife’s love for her, he accepts her into his home.

Olivia soon finds her place at Belle Meade and begins to feel like she fits in as she makes friends with many of the servants (very recently, former slaves) and becomes a companion to her ailing Aunt Elizabeth. She also begins to warm to Mr. Ridley Cooper finding he might not be so irritating after all, all too aware that he plans to stay at Belle Meade for only a short time.  Ridley is hiding some secrets of his own and feels he must be on his way as quickly as possible, but he too is having some feelings for Olivia.

This was my first experience listening to (or reading) a Tamera Alexander book but my second time listening to narrator, Tavia Gilbert.  When I enjoy a narrator’s work, I look at their backlist for other titles I think will interest me and Tavia Gilbert is the reason I chose To Whisper Her Name. She’s an excellent narrator, capable of performing a wide variety of characters and to my way of thinking that is what makes a good narrator great. She had her work cut out for her though as there are numerous men, women, and even a few children, each requiring a distinct voice. Tavia simply did an amazing job and I had no trouble distinguishing between characters.

Overall, I ended up loving To Whisper Her Name. I loved watching the budding romance between Olivia and Ridley. I loved watching Olivia’s transformation. I loved her interaction with the servants and their evolving friendships. And I loved being immersed in Tavia’s perfect cadence as she kept my attention totally focused on Ms. Alexander’s written word. The 17 hours flew by.

As the ending neared, I knew I wanted more and was beyond excited when I learned this was book one of three in the Belle Meade Plantation series.  I have found a new favorite author in Tamera Alexander, and a new love for historical fiction.

Katherine

Narration:  A

Book Content:  B+

Steam Factor:  You can play it out loud

Violence:  None

Genre:  Inspirational Romance

Publisher:  Zondervan