Beyond Betrayal

By: Bette Lee Crosby

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

A TALE OF LONELINESS AND DANGER ...From USA Today Bestselling Author, Bette Lee Crosby, comes a chilling tale of betrayal, self-doubt, and a friendship so powerful it can change a life.


When Susan Robertson buried her husband, she thought that would be the worst day of her life. She was wrong. Before there is time to grieve, she starts to discover the secrets he left behind. A hidden key. Another woman. A baby on the way.

Devastated by the truth, Susan sinks into an emotionally charged world of pain, loss and recrimination. With a ready supply of sleeping pills and a well-stocked liquor cabinet, she is on the verge of giving way to her growing despair when friend Blanche steps in with a firm hand and a fistful of tough love.

Trying to instill a renewed sense of purpose in her friend, Blanche suggests a day of sailing. Despite her life-long fear of water, Susan agrees to go. When a sudden storm rolls in, she discovers herself in a dangerous situation and will have to find an inner-strength she thought impossible. If she fails, someone will die.

Virtual narration kills the story

I recently discovered this author when I read/heard Spare Change, a listen I really enjoyed. Imagine my delight when I found several other books in the plus catalog that I could listen for free! After adding two books to my library - this one and Beyond the Carousel, I jumped right into it. Within 30 seconds, I realized my folly. The book is narrated by AI. Storytelling is an art. Character development, the emotions we feel, how we get pulled into the story and cannot wait to reach the end – the narrator carries a huge responsibility as a storyteller. AI is not such a narrator. The uniqueness of each character’s voice, and the expression of their personality is completely lost by this robotic monotone. Not to mention the unedited mistakes like reading a phone number as if it were a ten digit number, pronouncing U.S.as “us“, calling them the N.Y.GIANT instead of New York Giants. I’m only listing a few things, but overall the experience is regrettable. I’m deeply disappointed that this author, who is a brilliant storyteller, has chosen to use AI to narrate her stories. For that reason, alone, I do not recommend.

The story was okay but spoiled by virtual voice.

This story told of loss and betrayal and the gradual recovery of a woman’s heart and sense of self worth. It was totally predictable so less interesting than stories similar. The author obviously cares a lot more about making money by using cheap ai virtual voice than providing the listener a good audible experience! The virtual voice made so many really stupid mistakes that it distracted from the story.