A Bridge Across the Ocean

by Susan Meissner Narrated by Kim Bubbs

Overview

Wartime intrigue spans the lives of three women-past and present-in this emotional novel from the acclaimed author of The Last Year of the War.
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February, 1946. World War Two is over, but the recovery from the most intimate of its horrors has only just begun for Annaliese Lange, a German ballerina desperate to escape her past, and Simone Deveraux, the wronged daughter of a French Résistance*spy.
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Now the two women are joining hundreds of other European war brides aboard the renowned RMS Queen Mary to cross the Atlantic and be reunited with their American husbands. Their new lives in the United States brightly beckon until their tightly-held secrets are laid bare in their shared stateroom. When the voyage ends at New York Harbor, only one of them will disembark...
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Present day. Facing a crossroads in her own life, Brette Caslake visits the famously haunted Queen Mary at the request of an old friend. What she finds will set her on a course to solve a seventy-year-old tragedy that will draw her into the heartaches and triumphs of the courageous war brides-and will ultimately lead her to reconsider what she has to sacrifice to achieve her own deepest longings.
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CONVERSATION GUIDE INCLUDED

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Praise for A Bridge Across the Ocean

“I was utterly spellbound, beguiled, swept up in this ghostly mystery.”—Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling author of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

“A beguiling tapestry of storytelling and a unique look at one of history’s most enigmatic ships.”—Sarah McCoy, New York Times bestselling author of The Mapmaker’s Children

More Praise for the Novels of Susan Meissner

“A shimmering novel of love and acceptance...A Fall of Marigolds turns fate into a triumph of spirit.”—Sandra Dallas, New York Times bestselling author of A Quilt for Christmas 

“Susan Meissner deftly casts a fascinating friendship between two complex women against a glittering 1930s Hollywood backdrop. You will love this book for its very human characters and for its inside look at one of the greatest movies ever made.”—Marisa de los Santos, New York Times bestselling author of The Precious One

“Sympathetic, relatable characters that readers will applaud. Touching and inspirational.”—Kirkus Reviews

Kirkus Reviews

2016-12-19
A woman who can see ghosts becomes tangled in a mystery involving European war brides who crossed the Atlantic on the Queen Mary.Brette has had the sight since she was a little girl. The ability to see the dead runs in her family, but ever since an aunt told her she was better off ignoring the ghosts she encounters, that's exactly what she's done. That is, until an old classmate needs her help and Brette inadvertently becomes drawn into the lives of three women from the past. As Brette communicates with a spirit and tries to unravel the mystery behind one of the ship's tragedies, Meissner (Secrets of a Charmed Life, 2015, etc.) also tells the stories of two of the ship's passengers: Annaliese Lange, who is escaping from a marriage to a Nazi, and Simone Devereux, who lost her family in the war. Annaliese's and Simone's stories are engaging and heartbreaking; Brette's point of view, though, is less interesting and never seems as urgent. Also, the multiple points of view are occasionally hard to keep track of, especially when it isn't yet clear how they intersect. Although the stories of Annaliese and Simone are captivating and well-researched, readers may find themselves wishing Meissner had devoted more of the book to the women on the ship and less to Brette and her ability to see ghosts. An interesting World War II narrative is dragged down by a less-engaging present-day story.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169440232
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	03/14/2017
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	719,633

Read an Excerpt

***This excerpt is from an advance uncorrected copy proof*** 

Copyright © 2017 Susan Meissner

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