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Lyrebird

By: Cecelia Ahern
Narrated by: Aoife McMahon
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Summary

The Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller

She will change your life forever…

In the south-west of Ireland, rugged mountains meet bright blue lakes and thick forests. Deep in the woods, a young woman lives alone, forever secluded from the world, her life a well-kept secret. She possesses an extraordinary talent, the likes of which no-one has seen before: a gift that will earn her the nickname Lyrebird.

When Solomon stumbles into Laura’s solitary existence, her life is turned on its head. Pulled from her peaceful landscape to the cacophony of Dublin, she is confronted by a world desperate to understand her.

But while Solomon knows the world will embrace Laura, will it free her to spread her wings – or will it trap her in a gilded cage? Like all wild birds, she needs to fly free…

Lyrebird is a thoughtful, deeply moving love story; a story of the wild heart in us all and the quiet that lies underneath the world’s noise.

©2016 Cecelia Ahern (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers Limited
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Critic reviews

‘A unique look at secrets …beautifully crafted’ Essentials

‘A moving, beautiful novel.’ Sunday Telegraph

‘Thought-provoking, lyrical, and really rather lovely’ Glamour

‘Alive with the mystical and unknown….A delicious enchantment underpins and threads through the story, yet there is also an undertone of unease and foreboding that lingers as you turn the pages…bewitching’ Lovereading.com

‘A heartfelt love story’ The Pool

‘Bursting with narrative verve and ear for language…a writer hitting their prime’ Waterstones.com

What listeners say about Lyrebird

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Nice unusual story. impressive narration

An unusual story. perhaps a little implausible in places. But Ahern crafted some beautifully flawed characters.

And McMahon's narration is really impressive. Particularly when grappling with the tricky Cork accent.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Easy listening and enjoyable story

The story is a tad predictable but I still enjoyed it . I wanted to listen every day

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not the best

This was ok - didn't draw me in but had to persevere a bit slow and predictable !

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Absorbing

beautiful book. I loved how easily I could conjure up images. I'll miss Laura's journey.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Heart-warming and lovely

This is a beautiful story. It touched me in every way possible, I cried, I laughed, I felt anxious when Laura did and I felt happy when she hit every milestone. I've given it 4/5 because I feel it could have moved quicker and there were bits which only added fluff to the emotions. I left wanting to know more, feeling like a friend to Laura

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant

My first Audible book and I was not disappointed. Kept me company on my long car journeys. The Narrartor was brillant.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A truly unique story!

If you could sum up Lyrebird in three words, what would they be?

Magical, compelling & unique.

What other book might you compare Lyrebird to, and why?

I'm not sure that I could compare this book to any other – it's totally unlike anything else I've read. The concept is so original and the atmosphere was magical. I loved the combination of the homely Irish atmosphere of the beginning and the somewhat more hectic atmosphere of TV talent shows.

What about Aoife McMahon’s performance did you like?

Aoife's voice was incredible soothing to listen to and I felt she did an excellent job of distinguishing between different character dialogue. However, some of her other accents were not always brilliant – for example, the Australian accent (to me, at least) didn't sound quite right). But for the majority of the book, I loved the narration and felt it suited the story very well.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Chapter 41 – if you've read the book, I'm sure you'll remember the chapter number too – it was beautiful and exactly what I had been hoping for.

Any additional comments?

This was an incredibly beautiful, unique and moving story. The narration complimented the story perfectly and I was completely transported by the story all the way through – I was in Ireland with those characters, in the mountains, at the talent competition. Such a wonderful story – I could recommend it highly enough. A beautiful experience.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Another hit by Ahern

I do not want to give away the plot but this book makes you relook how we are as a society with people we deem to be different.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

captivating and brilliant

Wonderful story, wonderful narrator. Completely captivated from start to finish. A completely believable tale ofthe times we live in.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Heart warming lovely story

Loved this story, it was somthing diffrent. Didn't want it to end, would recommend it. Love all her book

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