Pearls

Spirits of the Belleview Biltmore

By: BonSue Brandvik

Narrated by: Emily Gittelman

Software developer Honor Macklin believes she’s equal business partners with her philandering ex-husband, but when family responsibilities take her to Florida, she discovers her ex may have cheated her in more ways than one. Spirits at the Belleview Biltmore hotel try to help Honor by invading her dreams to share memories from the life of Darcy Loughman, a young Victorian woman with big problems of her own. When the two worlds collide, Honor and her new lover, Josh, along with his clairvoyant four-year-old son, try to figure out how Honor can use lessons from the past to change her destiny.

The setting for this novel is the famous and currently endangered historic Belleview Biltmore Resort in Belleair, FL. The hotel was built in 1896 by one of Florida’s founding fathers, Henry B. Plant. The author is working with preservationists, hoping to find investors willing to save the wonderful, 820,000 sq. ft. hotel from demolition.

©2008 Bonnie-Sue Brandvik (P)2013 Bonnie-Sue Brandvik

Pearls

The text in this book was very good. The narrator however, was horrible . Her name was Emily Gettleman.

Love this story!

What made the experience of listening to Pearls the most enjoyable?

I love the story of Honor and her ancestors. The depiction of the late 1800s and early 1900s is realistic. And to use the historic Bellview Hotel is awesome. I am a historical buff and genealogy buff so this story really appealed to me.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Darcy was my favorite character. She overcame so much in her life.

Have you listened to any of Emily Gittelman’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, I am not impressed with the Narrator. I found her voice almost irritating.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

The Belleview

Enjoyed the story but

The imagery was well done ,the story was well worth the listen but the narrator was stiff and awkward. If it wasn't that the story itself interested me I would deleted it

Awful Reading

The narrator was awful... I couldn't get in to the book at all.. I even tried to slow it down or speed it up. didn't help