Ava Gardner: The Secret Conversations

By: Peter Evans, Ava Gardner

Narrated by: William Hope

This wickedly candid memoir that Ava Gardner dared not publish during her lifetime offers a revealing self-portrait of the film legend's life and loves in Hollywood's golden age.

Ava Gardner was one of Hollywood's great stars during the 1940s and '50s, an Oscar-nominated leading lady who co-starred with Clark Gable, Burt Lancaster, and Humphrey Bogart, among others.

But this riveting account of her storied life and career had to wait for publication until after her death, so concerned was Gardner with its frankness. 'I either write the book or sell the jewels,' Gardner told co-author Peter Evans, 'and I'm kinda sentimental about the jewels.'

The legendary actress serves up plenty of gems in these pages, reflecting with delicious humour and cutting wit on a life that took her from an impoverished childhood in North Carolina to the heights of stardom.

Get ready for the most revealing Hollywood autobiography in decades.

©2013 Peter Evans and Ava Gardner (P)2014 Audible, Inc

So sad it ended!

I could have listened for hours more! The narrator was awesome. I felt like Ava was talking. Years of smoking made it believable.

A genuine life story

An honestly telling and extremely interesting insight into the life of a Hollywood legend that reminds us that even icons are still humans with passion, emotions, regret, and pain.

Exactly like the real Ava

Performance on point- brings Ava back to life. As someone very familiar with the late Ava herself, this rings true and sounds exactly like her. Normally avoid reading about Ava but this came highly recommended. Does not disappoint.

Excellent

A fun read with insights into the life of Ava Gardner raw and powerful I loved it

Enjoyably candid Hollywood memoire

While there is a sincere effort here to capture Gardners voice, which isn't bad, men doing lady's voices can come over more like drag queens than queens of Hollywood. The narrator's voice also has a bit of a patronising tone. This might grate on you, it did me. Having said all that, this is about as close to Ava Gardner as we can get these days, so I'm very happy I read it. She was a remarkable character and that comes through very clearly in this warts-&-all memoir.