Once Upon a River

21 hrs. 3 min.

Language Russian

Author Diane Setterfield

Narrator Pavel Konyshev

Description

For the first time in Russian—a brand-new novel by Diana Setterfield, the acclaimed author of “The Thirteenth Tale,” recognized as a masterpiece of contemporary English prose. It sparked critics’ talk about the return of the golden age of the British novel—one associated with the names of Charlotte and Emily Brontë and Daphne du Maurier—and spread around the world in 40 languages, selling over 3 million copies.

On the darkest and longest night of the year, the day of the winter solstice, a wounded stranger stumbles into the ancient inn “The Swan” on the banks of the Thames with a dead girl in his arms. But a few hours later, the girl is alive. Is it a miracle? Magic? Or can there be a scientific explanation? And—most importantly—who is she? The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Vaughan, missing for two years? Or maybe the granddaughter of a farmer, Robert Armstrong, about whose existence he learned only the day before—and still never got to meet her? After all, “The Swan” is not just the oldest inn in the area. People have been coming here for a long time to listen to and tell stories—topical jokes, or old tales and legends, or magical fairy stories. So the story of this mysterious girl must weave itself into the tapestry being spun by experienced storytellers for many centuries…