Legacy

By: Danielle Steel

Narrated by: Arthur Morey

Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

This compelling, centuries-spanning novel brilliantly interweaves the lives of two women - a writer working in the heart of modern academia and a daring young Sioux Indian on an incredible journey in the 18th century. The result is an unforgettable story of courage in the face of the unknown.

At the age of 38, Brigitte Nicholson has a job she likes, a man she loves, and a book on the women’s suffrage movement that she will finish - someday. Someday is Brigitte’s watchword. Someday she and Ted, a rising star in the field of archaeology, will clarify their relationship. Someday she will have children. Someday she will stop playing it so safe....

Then, on a snowy day in Boston, Brigitte’s life is jolted. Suddenly, everything she counted on has changed and she finds herself questioning every choice she has made along the way.

As she struggles to regain her balance and plot a new course, Brigitte agrees to help her mother on a family genealogy project. In Salt Lake City at the Family History Library, she makes a stunning discovery - reaching back to the French aristocracy. How did Brigitte’s mysterious ancestor, Wachiwi, a Dakota Sioux, travel from the Great Plains to the French court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette - and into the arms of a French marquis? How did she come to marry into Brigitte’s family? What is the truth behind the tantalizing clues in the fragmented, centuries-old records?

Following the threads of Wachiwi’s life, Brigitte travels to South Dakota, then on to Paris, irresistibly drawn to this brave young woman who lived so long ago. And as she comes closer to solving the puzzle of Wachiwi’s journey, her previously safe, quiet life becomes an adventure of its own. A chance meeting with a writer of historical fiction, a new opportunity, and a difficult choice put Brigitte at last in the forefront of her own story.

©2010 Danielle Steel (P)2010 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"[An] inspiring story about a frustrated woman who rediscovers her passion for life during a genealogical quest.... Steel splices in passages from Wachiwi's life--abduction by a Crow war party, traveling to France, surviving the French Revolution--to create a doubly absorbing romantic adventure." ( Publishers Weekly)

Great story with a feasible angle.

I really enjoyed this story. The author successfully connected the lives of two young women 200 years apart. She wrote with lots of details of each period of time.

awesome book

loved it! I fell in love with the characters and i wish there was more!

loved wachewa, but not bridget

the story of wachewa, jean and Tristan was amazing. the book should have been all about them and wachewa tribe. I found bridget boring and she lacked initiative.

Excellent

This was a great book. With plot twists. It was easy to listen too. I'd recommend it to anyone.

PLEASANT AUDIOBOOK

WHEN I REMINDED MYSELF OF THE SUMMARY OF THIS BOOK, WHICH I READ A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO I DIDN'T EVEN RECALL THE MAIN CHARACTER'S NAME, AND WHILST I ENJOYED LISTENING TO THE BOOK AT THE TIME, IT WAS NOT ONE OF DANIELLE STEELE'S MORE MEMORABLE BOOKS.

Legacy

Any additional comments?

Legacy is about ten hours of listening, read by Arthur Morey, and is two stories. The book opens with a modern-day girl losing her boyfriend and job in Boston and, with the prodding of her New York mother, researching her familial heritage. The second story is that of a mid-18th century Dakota Sioux girl, kidnapped by Crow indians, ultimately escaping with the help of a French explorer. Thus is the premise of Legacy.

Steel does a nice job merging the two stories into a pleasant read of terror, joy, romance, history. Nice beach-read, not intended to build gray matter, but to simply escape … which is very DaniecleSteelesque. As with most Steel books, this is a ‘sweet’ romance … feel free to let a teenaged girl listen/read.

Arthur Morey is okay, but I’d rather have a female reader with books having a female lead character, i.e., all of Steel books. Just my preference. But, I had no trouble determining who-says-what-to-who.

If you like Danielle Steel, you’ll enjoy Legacy.

Once again a great book

One thing
It has a very slow beginning before it gets into one of the greatest stories she has ever written. The Indian story was something out of this world and I could picture every detail in my head as I read this book. I wanted more in the end but it still a great book !!!!

I Was Left Wanting

I fully wanted to love this book, having just completed the 18th century historical novels in the Outlander series. Legacy takes place in the same time periods, and covers some similar topics, but perhaps through no great fault of it's own, doesn't seem to go into either the Sioux or French 18th century history as much as I'd hoped.

Legacy skims the surface of both of these interesting cultures without spending enough time in either the past or the present to feel as if you've had your fill of either of the main protagonists and their situations. This may be due to my comparison to the 'Outlander' novels by Diana Gabaldon, which at a staggering 48 or so hours each, give detail free reign. Even the 'Lord John' novels, which are for length at least on par with Legacy, contain a great deal more detail and flavor of the period.

In the end, you're left a bit wanting, both for the color of the background environment (so much seems to have been skimmed over after the 18th century heroine arrives in France) and the relationships, both of which were supposed to be the driving force in the book.

Of the audio experience itself, I must say that I've been spoiled by the likes of Loreli King, Davina Porter and James Marsters who bring characters and events to life. The narrator of Legacy has a clear and pleasant speaking voice, but lends no flavor to the personalities or events he is reading. Which is to say, he might as well have been reading the phone book with his precise and pleasant pronunciation.

In the end, what I remember of this book is that I wish it had been more.

Was expecting something more

I enjoyed the story of the young Indian girl, but felt this book was missing something. Lacked enthusiasm.

Historical fiction wrapped in Danielle Steel.

The contemporary romance was typical Danielle Steel, but the historical fiction wrapped inside was an appreciated change of pace.