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Unabridged Digital Audiobook
Runtime: 5 hours, 21 minutes
Read by Elodie Yung, Rupert Degas, Cécile Deepière, and Jean Brassard
Some novels are so moving, so memorable, that they have the power to transform readers, inspiring them to take a chance or make a change. And the audio edition of author Cathy Bonidan’s The Lost Manuscript tells the story of one such novel—and the lives it touched through the years.
The story sets out on a life-changing journey inspired by a long-lost novel. While on vacation, Parisian Anne-Lise Briard discovers a discarded manuscript in the drawer of the bedside table. After reading it, she decides to send the manuscript to an address that she finds inside. When the package finally reaches the author, Sylvestre, he writes to reveal that he’d lost the manuscript on a flight to Montreal 30 years ago—and that someone had apparently chosen to finish the story for him. Fascinated by the story, Anne-Lise begins to follow the manuscript’s path, determined to find the other writer.
What follows is as charming as it is suspenseful—written in a series of letters to and from Anne-Lise, Sylvestre, and the various people who have read the manuscript and passed it on throughout the last three decades. Along the way, Anne-Lise discovers stories of heartbreak and hope, of lost loves, of second chances. She meets some fascinating people. And she helps some of those people change their own stories.
More than just a story about the lives this novel has touched, though, it’s also a mystery, following the trail of readers to discover which one added his or her own ending to Sylvestre’s original draft. And while it feels unlikely that this one person could be found after so many years, it’s a fascinating journey nonetheless.
Admittedly, this novel isn’t one that’s instantly absorbing. Perhaps that’s because of the narration, with various levels of French accents. Or maybe it’s the format—everything revealed through hand-written letters. But as the story unfolds, you’re sure to find yourself engrossed in the story, caught up in the characters’ lives, even swept away by the old-fashioned feel of the characters’ correspondence—and eager to discover how it will all conclude. But when it does, you’ll wish you could stay for just a little while longer, enjoying the company of these charming characters.
While it explores the ability of literature to captivate readers and even transform lives, The Lost Manuscript is itself a captivating read. Readers are sure to get caught up in the romance and drama and mystery—as well as the nostalgic feel of this charming French adventure.
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