Widowland
A Novel

Name: Widowland
Brand: Blackstone Audiobooks
Availability: InStock
Author: C. J. Carey
ISBN: 9798212004978

Author: C. J. Carey

Narrator: Esther Wane

Unabridged: 11 hr 15 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Published: 08/09/2022

Categories: Fiction, Women, Dystopian

Synopsis

An alternative history with a strong feminist twist, perfect for fans of Robert Harris’s Fatherland, Christina Dalcher’s Vox, and the dystopian novels of Margaret AtwoodTo control the past, they edited history. To control the future, they edited literature.London, 1953, Coronation year—but not the Coronation of Elizabeth II.Thirteen years have passed since a Grand Alliance between Great Britain and Germany was formalized. George VI and his family have been murdered, and Edward VIII rules as King. Yet, in practice, all power is vested in Alfred Rosenberg, Britain’s Protector. The role and status of women is Rosenberg’s particular interest.Rose Ransom belongs to the elite caste of women and works at the Ministry of Culture, rewriting literature to correct the views of the past. But now she has been given a special task.Outbreaks of insurgency have been seen across the country: graffiti daubed on public buildings. Disturbingly, the graffiti is made up of lines from forbidden works, subversive words from the voices of women. Suspicion has fallen on Widowland, the run-down slums where childless women over fifty have been banished. These women are known to be mutinous, for they have nothing to lose.Before the Leader arrives for the Coronation ceremony of King Edward and Queen Wallis, Rose must infiltrate Widowland, find the source of this rebellion, and ensure that it is quashed.

About C. J. Carey

C. J. Carey is the pen name of Jane Thynne, author of the Clara Vine series. She was born in Venezuela, went to school in London, and then to Oxford University, where she read English. She later worked as a BBC journalist before moving to Fleet Street and working at the Sunday Times, the Daily Telegraph, and The Independent, as well as numerous magazines. She lives in London with whichever of her three children are around. Widowland is the first novel she’s written as C. J. Carey.

About Esther Wane

Esther Wane is a British actor and voice-over artist. After a career in finance, she fulfilled a childhood dream of going to drama school in London, and her life as an actor began at age forty. She has a lifelong passion for literature and can often be found browsing bookshops during any spare moments. Wane enjoys taking her listeners on a journeys in time and space and bringing the characters on the page to life in their imagination. She lives with her family and collection of books in Hertfordshire, just outside London.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Janelle

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this dystopian alternative history set in an England that is a protectorate of Nazi Germany and where women are classified by their Aryan-ness, age and breeding ability into a caste like system. Reading is discouraged (as are any solitary activities) and the main charact......more

Goodreads review by Nisha

This book didn't work out for me. The premise was wonderful - what if there was no World War and Britain decided to act for Germany as its Protectorate? Women have been divided into castes. The protagonist is of the higher caste that allows her more freedom yet she has numerous restrictions to pass.......more

Goodreads review by Pooja

In a 1953 England under the control of German forces, life is good for Rose Ransom, a member of the privileged Geli class - or at least as good as life can be for a woman in the oppressive regime. But when she is given the task of infiltrating Widowland in search of possible subversives, she comes t......more

Quotes

“Storytelling at its best! I rarely come across a book I can’t put down but I devoured this one. It was The Handmaid’s Tale but even more closely tied to the reality of our world, showing what happens to women under a totalitarian regime.” Rhys Bowen, New York Times bestselling author

“Fatherland meets The Handmaid’s Tale in C. J. Carey’s compelling what-might-have-been new novel…Widowland is a compulsive, terrifying read.” Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author

“In Widowland, C. J. Carey has written an electrifying, Orwellian dystopia with a thrilling feminist twist. Carey renders a post-WWII alternative history that demonstrates the resilience of women and their ability to find light even in the darkest places. In Carey’s expert hands, one can truly believe that literature can change the world.” Lara Prescott, New York Times bestselling author

“C. J. Carey takes the great ‘what if’ question of the twentieth century and gives it a wholly inventive feminist twist…Tense, thought-provoking, and terrifying, Widowland is about a woman’s search for truth in a world bent on destroying all traces of it.” Natalie Jenner, internationally bestselling author

“This utterly engrossing exploration of the subversive power of literature―part thriller, part dystopian fiction, part feminist cautionary tale―is a rollicking homage to women who refuse to accept being less. It could not be more timely.” Meg Waite Clayton, internationally bestselling author