The Kiss

By: Danielle Steel

Narrated by: Joseph Siravo

In her 53rd bestselling novel, Danielle Steel explores how a single shattering moment can change lives forever. The Kiss is at once a moving testament to the fragility of life and a breathtaking story about the power of love to heal, to free, to transform, and to make broken spirits whole.

On a warm June evening, a red double-decker bus, full of pasengers, speeds down a London street. A few blocks away, a man and a woman climb into a limousine, reveling in a magical evening of dancing and champagne. As their driver pulls into an intersection, the couple shares their first, searching kiss. For a moment, etched in time, all stands still—until, in a flash of metal and glass, their limousine is struck at full speed, crushed under the bus's tremendous weight. And a long journey begins—toward healing, toward hope, toward dreams of an infinite future...

Isabelle Forrester is the exquisite wife of a prominent Parisian banker who has long since shut her out of his heart. For lonely years, Isabelle has lived a life of isolation, pouring her passions into caring for her desperately ill son, Teddy, and into making their Paris home as happy as possible for her teenage daughter, Sophie. Isabelle allows herself one secret pleasure: a long-distance friendship by telephone with an American man, a Washington power broker who travels in the highest circles of politics and who, like Isabelle, is trapped in an empty marriage. To Bill Robinson, Isabelle is a godsend, a woman of extraordinary beauty and intellectual curiosity—a kindred spirit who touches him across the miles with her warmth and gentle empathy. Their relationship is a gift, a lifeline that sustains them both through the heartache of marriages they cannot leave and will not betray. Agreeing to meet for a few precious, innocent days in London, Isabelle and Bill find their friendship changing. Then, amidst the sudden crash of steel against steel, they are thrust onto a new path, a path fraught with pain but also with possibility.

Now, inside the cool, sterile wards of a London hospital, Isabelle and Bill cling to life, their bodies shattered almost beyond repair. In the days and weeks that follow, they slowly, painfully traverse a road to recovery littered with challenges of the body, spirit, and heart. Together, they must find the strength not only to embrace life again but to face what they have left behind. For Isabell, a loveless marriage turns into a brutal power struggle. For Bill, a time of healing exposes wounds that cut deeper than steel and realities that will test him to his core. For both, a tangle of changing relationships and the tragedy of another loss conspire to separate them once again. And this time they could lose each other forever.

In a novel that is as compelling as it is compassionate, Danielle Steel weaves a story of courage in the face of unimaginable loss. With the grace of a master storyteller, she explores the strength it takes to conquer our greatest fears, showing us how the toughest choices can yield the most unexpected rewards...and how the longest, most winding journeys can begin with a single kiss.©2001 Danielle Steel; (P)2001 Random House Inc., Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, a Division of Random House Inc.

Critic reviews

Praise for Danielle Steel

“Steel is one of the best!”—Los Angeles Times

“Few modern writers convey the pathos of family and material life with such heartfelt empathy.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer

“Steel pulls out all the emotional stops. . . . She delivers!”—Publishers Weekly

“What counts for the reader is the ring of authenticity.”—San Francisco Chronicle

I was not able to turn off my Ipod

Would you consider the audio edition of The Kiss to be better than the print version?

I like audio books a lot better than reading the book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Kiss?

The Kiss it was a book that you can live a very unhappy life until you find a person that you can talk for hours and not have reservations of what you say to each other.

If you could take any character from The Kiss out to dinner, who would it be and why?

The Love of my life. But as discover on this book now is to late he is gone to another life.

Any additional comments?

It brought me so many memories of my first love that what the happiest time of my life.
They are gone now.

excellent book

loved it. my favorite author. great story. enjoyable and easy to get lost in the story

full-circle story

Two main characters were both likable and understandable. For their own reasons, they found each other when needed, became friends, and built a long-distance relationship that stood up to the overwhelming events they had to face - together. Good story.

Would have liked a different marital end

I would have liked seeing Isabel stand up for herself more, especially at the end, and would have loved seeing her get what every wife deserves in divorce, half of everything. Take him to the cleaners. She let that monster get away with way too much.

love it

Great story, I couldn't stop listening. I really enjoy danielle steel books. this is a classic love story.