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One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Jackie Zebrowski
- Length: 19 hrs and 2 mins
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One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow
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Summary
From the bestselling author of The Ragged Edge of Night comes a powerful and poetic novel of survival and sacrifice on the American frontier.
Wyoming, 1876. For as long as they have lived on the frontier, the Bemis and Webber families have relied on each other. With no other settlers for miles, it is a matter of survival. But when Ernest Bemis finds his wife, Cora, in a compromising situation with their neighbor, he doesn’t think of survival. In one impulsive moment, a man is dead, Ernest is off to prison, and the women left behind are divided by rage and remorse.
Losing her husband to Cora’s indiscretion is another hardship for stoic Nettie Mae. But as a brutal Wyoming winter bears down, Cora and Nettie Mae have no choice but to come together as one family - to share the duties of working the land and raising their children. There’s Nettie Mae’s son, Clyde - no longer a boy, but not yet a man - who must navigate the road to adulthood without a father to guide him, and Cora’s daughter, Beulah, who is as wild and untamable as her prairie home.
Bound by the uncommon threads in their lives and the challenges that lie ahead, Cora and Nettie Mae begin to forge an unexpected sisterhood. But when a love blossoms between Clyde and Beulah, bonds are once again tested, and these two resilient women must finally decide whether they can learn to trust each other - or else risk losing everything they hold dear.
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What listeners say about One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- llanlis
- 20-06-21
Shakespeare's County review
Commuter-Belt Warwickshire in England is not exactly historic settlers' Wyoming and this book was a contrasting tonic to my life. I am encouraged that I enjoyed it so much - a book of strength and weakness, love and hate and sin and penance. I found the book's honesty and articulacy about particularly female characters' emotions really helpful to me with my own struggles even though I have so little in common with the characters, basic humanity aside. I found the love of and dependence on Nature compelling and infectious.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Marlee
- 15-09-23
Immersive
Wonderful descriptive story with great characterisations, and beautifully narrated. My “cup of tea” really. However, if you aren’t a fan of lengthy descriptive text, perhaps this wouldn’t be your “cup of tea”.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- scrunchieang
- 04-05-23
Simply beautiful
What a book. What a listen. I've been totally immersed in their story and their lives. It's one of those books you never want to finish because you'll miss the characters. I wonder how their lives went on after I left them . . . .
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sue
- 28-04-23
Breathtaking detail
I loved this story a powerful depiction of love grief loneliness and hatred with a glorious background of the creatures of the prairie.
More of Beaulah and Clyde please.
Narrated with emphasis and expectation.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 17-04-23
Slow and beautiful
I had plenty of time to listen to this while painting portraits, for which I was grateful. The vastness of the landscape, the river, the animals and the characters were so clear in my mind that I feel as though I’m still there, and will do so for a while. Loved it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- A K Thornewell
- 04-02-23
Beautiful story
I loved this from the opening chapter. The images of the vastness of the prairie, the solitude, the struggle - and of course all because of the incident which opens the novel. The characterisations were excellent in the hands (or voice!) of the narrator - I wanted to slap Cora for being so insipid and indecisive! Definitely recommend, and will be listening to more Olivia Hawker.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 01-02-23
A family story set in the American rural farmlands
A story of 2 families and an unusual girl. Most enjoyable, Very different from what I expected.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Selly
- 22-01-23
I should have loved this, I just didn’t
The narration is good and the story not so good. It repeats itself by explaining the situation from other characters. It’s long winded and unrealistic
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Tigandbertie
- 20-01-23
Good balance
Good balance of action, character development and description of environment and feelings. I found the narrator's voice a bit irritating to start with but soon got used to it. I didn't want it to end.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 16-01-23
boring and repetitive
I wish the story had covered more time, as it felt very long and boring. I understand the intentions of the writer to focus on the world around the characters but it didn't add much too the story or characters who where quite 2D.
The writing itself was repetitive with phrases and monologue becoming cliche and repetitive.
Definetly a page turner, and tear jerker that was easy to listen to with a good narrator.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
- Shari Ring Wolf
- 05-11-19
Mixed review
This book had beautiful prose. The descriptions of outdoors and nature, the sky, starlit or sunrise/sunset, used gorgeous words. Human nature was also succinctly described and showed a rare depth of understanding.
I am a fast reader, and I couldn't absorb the prose written in late-1800's vernacular, so I listened to much of the book. The narrator did a fine job reading until she got to the dialogue. Her voices for Beaulah and Clyde were very good. The voice of Nettie Mae was way too strident, making the character less likable. When reading Nettie Mae's thoughts and dialogue I had some empathy for her. Listening to the narrators depiction of her, she seemed less dimensional-- just a bitter, hateful woman. The voice of Cora made me cringe! It was horrible, vapid, falsetto fake. I swear my teeth hurt every time I heard the narrator recite Cora's dialogue!
The book was extremely slow reading. I was invested in the story so I stuck with it despite having spurts of irritation. I spent a lot of time looking up words that aren't used much today. This gave the book a feeling of authenticity, which I appreciate. I love reading stories set in the era presented in this book. I feel cheated by historical inaccuracies. Particularly when the characters have mindsets that people did not hold back then, or when they use tools that weren't yet invented at that time, or the fashions are off. I'm no expert on that time period though I do research situations and things that feel "off" in historical novels. I did no such research for this novel.
Overall, aside from the horrid narration on Cora's dialogue, the issues I had with the book are a direct result of some of the book's best qualities. I liked the metaphysical bent of the main character, and I liked the way the characters all became more self aware and showed personal growth from the story's beginning to the end. I have a stronger realization of how difficult life was back then, particularly for those who lived in The wilderness.
The author is obviously very talented! Still, the book is not an easy read or listen. It's very dense. If you like historical fiction that is accurate and poetic, I think you will like this book better than I did.
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44 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Mel 123😊😂😄🐇👙
- 20-10-19
So great to knit by.
When this story started, my daily chores came to an end. My whole being listened and I knitted to a remarkable story. The author wove a delicate story of human emotions. Well done!
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22 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tonya
- 30-10-19
Addictive
What a wonderful mix of mystic and wonder!!! I love how the characters are portrayed and how the book unfolds! The characters grow and develop throughout the book to a satisfying ending that leaves the reader with hope and fulfillment!!!
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14 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- AmazonCustomer
- 17-10-19
Beautifully written
An absolute pleasure to read - reminiscent of Carson McCullers style. Storyline was original, fully developed, and very thought-provoking.
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11 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Terry
- 31-10-19
A tell of two families
A shot sounds and in an instant two neighbors lose their husbands; only Clyde, a man of sixteen, is left to take care of the men’s work. The prairie is cold and unforgiving for those unprepared for winter. Cora must put aside her guilt and beg for mercy from her neighbor for surely her children wouldn’t survive the winter. A story of sin, hurt, anger and forgiveness.
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10 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Michael
- 27-04-21
Intriguing....and sooo boring
I finished this book because I was intrigued enough to want to know what happened, not because I enjoyed it. The narrator missed the point so that didn't help.
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Diantha Roberts
- 20-02-20
One of my favorites!
Beautiful prose. Beautiful dialogue and story. I felt so incredibly lucky to be able listen to this story and feel not only connected to the characters as they grew, forgave and were forgiven, but also the land they were so attached to. Great book!
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- laurie e.
- 09-01-21
Painfully long
I purchased this book because it had good reviews. I was disappointed. Not only was the narrative hard to listen to [Cora‘s voice was like nails on a chalkboard], It got tiring listening to all the long descriptions, characters’ thoughts, etc. Normally I would get into a book like this, it fell short for me.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- David and Nichole Dillon
- 27-10-19
Excellent book
This book seems long at first. The story is told in a beautiful artistic way. All characters come to life with an emotional understanding. The moral fiber is strong and prevails. Christian values. Highly recommended.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Lisa - Your Solutions
- 26-10-19
Loved the snippet of time
The varied descriptive words encapsulated me. I felt the prairie winds, and I smelled the earth. It was as though I was in each characters head experiencing their moments. I highly recommend this book as a get away from our busy life to remember there used to be a lot more physical work to do. We do not have it so bad.
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4 people found this helpful