Nemesis and the Swan

by Lindsay K. Bandy Narrated by Sarah Naughton

Overview

From her prison cell in revolutionary Paris, nineteen-year-old aristocrat Hélène d'Aubign recalls the events that led her to choose between following in her parents' unforgivable footsteps or abandoning the man she loves.

Despite her world of privilege, Hélène is inspired early on by the radical ideas of her progressive governess. Though her family tries to intervene, the seeds of revolution have already been planted in Hélène's heart, as are the seeds of love from an unlikely friendship with a young jeweler's apprentice. Hélène's determination to find true love is as revolutionary as her attempt to unravel the truth behind a concealed murder that tore her family apart.

As violence erupts in Paris, Hélène is forced into hiding with her estranged family, where the tangled secrets of their past become entwined with her own. When she finally returns to the blood-stained streets of Paris, she finds everything-and everyone-very much changed. In a city where alliances shift overnight, no one knows whom to trust.

Faced with looming war, the mystery of her family's past, and the man she loves near death, Hélène will soon find out if doing one wrong thing will make everything right, or if it will simply push her closer to the guillotine.

Editorial Reviews

NOVEMBER 2020 - AudioFile

This well-written and beautifully performed story about the French Revolution is seen through the eyes of a young aristocrat. Hélène d’Aubign’s life is recounted in flashbacks as she awaits trial in jail. Narrator Sarah Naughton draws listeners in with her splendid pronunciation of the French phrases scattered throughout this audiobook. Naughton’s most stunning scene is the near rape that occurs after Hélène refuses to marry a man she does not love. The brutal drama and sexual threat Naughton generates may keep listeners awake for hours. Hélène must find her place in the new Paris, and she also must find her true identity. The history is factual, the characters are authentic, and Sarah Naughton is superb. E.E.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2020-07-28
A French teen searches for her identity against a backdrop of revolution.

In Paris in the summer of 1792, 19-year-old Hélène d’Aubign, daughter of a French marquis, is thrown into prison—though she doesn’t know who accused her or what her crime is. The story flashes back nine years and recounts her growing up with an idealistic governess, unfeeling mother, and domineering father. Alternately indulged and oppressed, she falls in love with Théo, a jeweler’s apprentice. When villagers kill her father and set fire to the family’s château, Hélène and her mother escape to her mother’s family, whom she’s never met. Hélène begins to unearth family secrets while plotting to return to Théo, but when she manages to reach Paris she is met with news that changes everything. She settles into life as an ordinary citizen, but danger still lurks—brief prison scenes interrupt the narrative until the timelines converge at Hélène’s trial. Bandy’s debut features credible historical detail, an engaging narrator, and a sweet romance. Lulls in the pacing slow momentum, and the ending sacrifices credibility for convenience. Ultimately, this is an above-average history and romance, though less satisfying in terms of the mystery. Major characters are White; Hélène’s radical governess introduces her to her lover, a formerly enslaved Black abolitionist.

A lush portrayal of personal and national struggles let down by a rushed ending. (Historical fiction. 12-18)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940177253190
Publisher:	Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Publication date:	01/26/2021
Edition description:	Unabridged

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