
Rare Objects
A Novel
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Narrated by:
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Susan Bennett
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By:
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Kathleen Tessaro
In Depression-era Boston, a city divided by privilege and poverty, two unlikely friends are bound by a dangerous secret in this mesmerizing work of historical fiction from the New York Times best-selling author of The Perfume Collector.
Maeve Fanning is a first-generation Irish immigrant born and raised among the poor, industrious Italian families of Boston's North End by her widowed mother. Clever, capable, and as headstrong as her red hair suggests, she's determined to better herself despite the overwhelming hardships of the Great Depression.
However, Maeve also has a dangerous fondness for strange men and bootleg gin - a rebellious appetite that soon finds her spiraling downward, leading a double life. When the strain proves too much, Maeve becomes an unwilling patient in a psychiatric hospital, where she strikes up a friendship with an enigmatic young woman who, like Maeve, is unable or unwilling to control her unladylike desire for freedom.
Once out, Maeve faces starting over. Armed with a bottle of bleach and a few white lies, she lands a job at an eccentric antiques shop catering to Boston's wealthiest and most peculiar collectors. Run by an elusive English archeologist, the shop is a haven of the obscure and incredible, providing rare artifacts as well as unique access to the world of America's social elite. While delivering a purchase to the wealthy Van der Laar family, Maeve is introduced to beautiful socialite Diana Van der Laar - only to discover she's the young woman from the hospital.
Reunited with the charming but increasingly unstable Diana and pursued by Diana's attractive brother, James, Maeve becomes more and more entwined with the Van der Laar family - a connection that pulls her into a world of moral ambiguity, deceit, and, ultimately, betrayal. Bewitched by their wealth and desperate to leave her past behind, Maeve is forced to unearth her true values and discover how far she'll go to reinvent herself.
©2016 Kathleen Tessaro (P)2016 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...



















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Susan Bennett's Voice My 1st Choice
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Boston, circa 1932
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Worthwhile!
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The whole book was worth the very last line
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Didn’t want it to end!
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An exceptional performance!
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Unexpected events
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Too few...
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It was (both!) worthwhile & enjoyable. I'm glad that it was a longer book.
I love her clear, powerfully evocative writing. Flowing words smoothly transport the reader into the mind of the main character, understanding of her relationships, and a palpable sense of traveling to a different place & time.
What other book might you compare Rare Objects to and why?
I very much enjoyed Kathleen Tessaro's other book, The Perfume Collector.This was just as thoughtful and worthwhile, in my opinion. I would like to see others from the same author.
What about Susan Bennett’s performance did you like?
The narrator has a captivating cadence and tone quality that draws one into the scenes.
It seems that we are actually in the moment she is describing.
I would give her 5 stars, but occasionally she had some confusion with accents when switching between ethnicities, which was a bit distracting.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Not just one, but many throughout the book. I think that the pairing of Tessaro's writing with Susan Bennett's reading was a prefect combination.
A treasure of a book, well worth exploring.
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A beautiful story!
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