The Hand That First Held Mine Audiobook By Maggie O’Farrell cover art

The Hand That First Held Mine

 Preview

$0.00 for first 30 days

Try for $0.00
Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks, and podcasts.
You will get an email reminder before your trial ends.
Audible Plus auto-renews for $7.95/mo after 30 days. Upgrade or cancel anytime.

The Hand That First Held Mine

By: Maggie O’Farrell
Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
Try for $0.00

$7.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $24.04

Buy for $24.04

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

Lexie Sinclair yearns for more than her parents’ genteel country life. She makes her way to the city, where she meets a magazine editor, Innes, a man unlike any she has ever imagined. He introduces her to the thrilling world of Bohemian postwar London, and Lexie learns to become a reporter, to know art and artists, to live fully, unconventionally, and with deep love. And when she finds herself pregnant by a man wholly unsuitable for marriage or fatherhood, she doesn’t hesitate a minute to have the baby on her own.

Later, in present-day London, a young painter named Elina dizzily navigates the first weeks of motherhood. Her boyfriend, Ted, traumatized by nearly losing her in labor, begins to recover lost memories. At first he cannot place them, but as they emerge, we discover something heartbreaking and beautiful that connects these two stories.

©2010 Maggie O’Farrell (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction England

Critic reviews

“O'Farrell brings to mind Sue Miller but with a British and darker flavor; her sure hand for psychological suspense ( The Vanishing Act of Esme Lenno) continues to be most impressive.” ( Library Journal)
Beautifully Woven Storylines • Captivating Plot Twist • Superb Narration • Emotional Depth • Masterful Writing
Highly rated for:
All stars
Most relevant  
I struggled to get into this book. The 3rdnperspn point of view made it hard to fall in love with the characters. It seemed very clinical and the switching story lines were hard to follow.

It was Ok

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I have loved other books by Maggie O'Farrell, especially Hamnet. This was so disappointing. It took way too long for the two narratives to finally converge. Elena's story in particular seemed mired in tedious details. Both story lines included lots of seemingly irrelevant passages. Lexi was the most complete character but not especially compelling. I only finished it because I was traveling and needed a listen to pass the time driving. Kept hoping it would get better but it didn't. Also found the reader a bit grating and detached sounding which didn't help the tedium.

Tedious

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I enjoyed listening to this book. The story line was very well put together. Hopefully the author reads reviews…… I need a follow up! I loved the book so much I’ll have to listen to it again.

Loved This Book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I have been a fan of Maggie O’Farrell since reading/listening to Hamnet. This story is equal to that one as it demonstrates the author’s ability to include the slightest details to illustrate the characters and the plot. It was cinematic (in a good way). I was very sorry to get to the end.

Such a Well-written Story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I was drawn into the story from the very beginning, the characters interesting and the development swift.

Entertaining enough

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Like many family secret novels that travel time like a shuttlecock, this one occasionally made me a bit seasick. I put it down a few times. The writing is so good, though, especially when about Elena's struggles with "the baby", that I completely felt her pain and kept getting drawn back in. The ending was worth every minute.

a bit confusing but hang in there!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
it was a bit of a struggle to get used to the narration style and voice, but it was a good story and we'll written.

narration not great

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Lovely writing style. I was totally engaged with the two stories and intrigued as to how they would eventually meld. engaging to the end.

engaging

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters were just sympathetic enough to be believable.
As always, once i know im going to like a book i want to stop listening and go read the book. But this narrator was a pleasure on the ears - either very experienced or just a natural. I listened happily from beginning to interesting and unexpected ending.

Very well done.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Parallel stories, twist, beautifully woven, couldn't put it down right to the end. What a story teller

Another great story by MOF

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews