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The Metal Heart by Caroline Lea
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The Metal Heart

The beautiful and atmospheric story of freedom and love that will grip your heart
by Caroline Lea
Due to publisher restrictions, this audiobook is unavailable for purchase in your selected country.
Length 9 hours 7 minutes
Language English
Narrators David Monteath, Arielle Free & Simone Lahbib

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Brought to you by Penguin.

A BEAUTIFULLY COMPELLING WARTIME STORY OF FREEDOM AND LOVE

The sky is clear, star-stamped and silvered by the waxing gibbous moon.

No planes have flown over the islands tonight; no bombs have fallen for over a year.

Orkney, 1940. Five hundred Italian prisoners-of-war arrive to fortify these remote and windswept islands. Resentful islanders are fearful of the enemy in their midst, but not orphaned twin sisters Dorothy and Constance. Already outcasts, they volunteer to nurse all prisoners who are injured or fall sick.

Soon Dorothy befriends Cesare, an artists swept up by the machine of war and almost broken by the horrors he has witnessed. She is entranced by his plan to build an Italian chapel from war scrap and sea derbis, and something beautiful begins to blossom.

But Con, scarred from a betrayal in her past, is afraid for her sister; she knows that people are not always what they seem.

Soon, trust frays between the islanders and outsiders, and between the sisters - their hearts torn by rival claims of duty and desire. A storm is coming...

In the tradition of Captain Corelli's Mandolin, The Metal Heart is a hauntingly rich Second World War love story about courage, brutality, freedom and beauty and the essence of what makes us human during the darkest of times.

Praise for Caroline Lea:

'Enthralling' Stacey Halls, author of The Familiars and The Foundling

'Fantastic' The Times

'Memorable and compelling' Sarah Moss, author of The Times Book of the Year Ghost Wall

'Intensely written and atmospheric' Daily Mail

'Gripped me in a cold fist. Beautiful' Sara Collins, author of The Confessions of Frannie Langton

'Brilliant' Daily Express

© Caroline Lea 2021 (P) Penguin Audio 2021

FictionMystery & ThrillerRomanceHistorical Fiction

Caroline Lea grew up on the island of Jersey. The Glass Woman, her debut, is a gothic thriller set during the Icelandic witch trials. The Metal Heart, a Waterstones Scottish Book of the Month, is an epic Second World War love story; Prize Women reveals a feminist scandal at the heart of the roaring 20s. Her latest novel reimagines Mary Shelley and the writing of Frankenstein.

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Bookseller Created
Scottish Fiction

Audiobook details

Author:

Narrators:
David Monteath, Arielle Free & Simone Lahbib

ISBN:
9781405948586

Length:
9 hours 7 minutes

Language:
English

Publisher:
Penguin Books Ltd

Publication date:

Edition:
Unabridged

Illustration of person opening a gift

The perfect last-minute gift

Audiobook credit bundles can be delivered instantly, given worldwide, and support local bookstores!

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Phone showing make the switch message

Limited-time offer

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Reviews

Myth, legend, fear and superstition all play a part in this intensely atmospheric novel A beautiful, heart-breaking tale of grief, love and the bond between sisters. I read it in a day, desperate to know what would happen Lea deftly taps into an age-old theme: suspicion and mistrust of outsiders. Woven throughout The Metal Heart is the potent reminder that there are always innocents caught up in the cruel, unforgiving machinery of war A stunning World War Two novel, unlike any other The remoteness of the Orkney islands intensifies the hopes and fears of war. The Metal Heart is a story of passion and separation in which the isolation of twin sisters within a tight-knit community threatens tragedy. A deeply atmospheric novel of hope and redemption. Draws you into a wild landscape through an exquisitely told love story Superbly plotted . . . a story that comes together convincingly, complete with a wonderful double-twist in its final pages Uses the true story of the building of the chapel on Orkney to fashion a touching story of sisterly devotion and passionate love A mesmerising and atmospheric read Praise for THE GLASS WOMAN A fantastic, atmospheric debut Memorable and compelling. A novel about what haunts us - and what should An enthralling tale Intensely written and atmospheric, with an unusual setting, this is a stark evocation of a community where fear of the outsider is rife and unsettling A perfect, gripping winter read. I loved it Utterly unputdownable. Rich in superstition and mystery, it pulled me in. An incredible novel A chilling tale A tense, passionate and deeply atmospheric novel about a community in wartime - and two defiant hearts. Orkney was so perfectly realised, too, that I almost felt windblown. I loved it all the more so for having read it during lockdown: Caroline's beautiful transported me entirely to another time and land A powerful Second World War love story. As tensions grow between the Italian PoWs and the Orkney men, the scene is set for a dramatic reckoning. Lea writes beautifully of island life and love, and the sacrifices that both demand Atmospheric, heart-wrenching, evocative - this is a gorgeously written story about the scars we carry with us, and how they can be overcome Uses the true story of the building of the chapel on Orkney by Italian prisoners during the Second World War to fashion a fast-moving and very touching story of sisterly devotion and passionate love A stunning novel . . . impeccably researched, gorgeously written, and deeply evocative of Orkney and its wild beauty. I loved this tale of sisters, salvation and sacrifice from the first page Confirms Lea as a highly original and inventive writer A story of innocents caught up in the machinery of war. Exquisitely researched, beautifully told, this tiny corner of Scotland came alive Expand reviews
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