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    Island Beneath the Sea: A Novel
    Island Beneath the Sea: A Novel
    Island Beneath the Sea: A Novel
    Audiobook17 hours

    Island Beneath the Sea: A Novel

    Written by Isabel Allende

    Narrated by S. Epatha Merkerson

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    “Allende is a master storyteller at the peak of her powers.”
    — Los Angeles Times

    From the sugar plantations of Saint-Domingue to the lavish parlors of New Orleans at the turn of the 19th century, the latest novel from New York Times bestselling author Isabel Allende (Inés of My Soul, The House of the Spirits, Portrait in Sepia) tells the story of a mulatta woman, a slave and concubine, determined to take control of her own destiny.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateApr 27, 2010
    ISBN9780061997556
    Island Beneath the Sea: A Novel
    Author

    Isabel Allende

    Isabel Allende is the author of twelve works of fiction, including the New York Times bestsellers Maya’s Notebook, Island Beneath the Sea, Inés of My Soul, Daughter of Fortune, and a novel that has become a world-renowned classic, The House of the Spirits. Born in Peru and raised in Chile, she lives in California.

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    Reviews for Island Beneath the Sea

    4/5

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    • 5/5
      Allende at her finest. One of my all time favorite works of fiction

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      How is it that so many people don’t know the difference between a review and a summary? Why do so many people summarize books in this spot? Please share your review, or opinion. For god’s sake, don’t write a blurb.

      Ahem. Anyways.. For me, Allende’s writing is always refreshing. Her stories are original and impassioned. I always enjoy her rhythmically steady, well-researched writing that can transport the reader to any setting with ease. I hope she never stops writing (and that they don’t stop translating her remaining Spanish tomes to English). I enjoyed her more-magical books most of all but loved the female characters in this story as if they were my own sisters. A wonderful read or listen.
    • 4/5
      This impressive epic novel is set in the late 18th century surrounding the time of revolution in Saint-Domingue, now Haiti. It describes the colonization and slavery on the plantations. Although beautifully written, eloquent and flowing, in some parts the story is harrowing as it brings a cruel history to life. The saga is based on factual events, which makes it informative and interesting, while at the same time heartbreaking because of the brutal nature of many passages. This passage describes the source of the title:"Many (infants) died of tetanus, paralyzed, their jaws frozen. That was one of the island's mysteries because whites did not suffer from that disease. The masters did not suspect that those symptoms could be provoked undetected by sticking a fine needle into a soft part of the baby's head before the cranial bones harden. In that way the baby went happily to the Island Beneath the Sea without ever experiencing slavery."
    • 3/5
      I was expecting a more riveting story then what was offered. The journey although was quite engaging, the ending has left me feeling like something is missing. *shrugs*
    • 4/5
      While this novel lacks the magicalness of some of Allende’s books, it’s a powerful story about one of the world’s great abominations: slavery, and it’s effects on one woman in particular, Zarite called Tete. Toulouse Valmoriain arrives in Saint-Domingue (now Haiti) as a 20 year old with the idea of seeing his ailing father, getting the sugar plantation on it’s feet again, and then going back to civilized France. But the plantation takes constant attention, so he stays. The child Tete is bought to be his first wife’s personal slave, which is an easier life for a slave than working in the fields. But Tete is prey to the same dangers as all slaves, of abuse, rape, threats of sale or death. Her life may be easier than some because of her intelligence and her luck in ending up with valued slaves who take her under their wings, but it’s still a miserable, hard life. She longs for freedom, even though the chances of obtaining it are slim. Many of the whites are almost caricatures in their evilness as slaveholders, especially Valmorain’s second wife who carries a whip in her hand at all times. But people like her really existed, as did men like Valmorain, who lives with a clear conscience despite raping Tete when she is 11 and taking her first child away from her immediately. To him- and to most of the whites- she is not fully human and thus her feelings need not be taken into account. They are less than animals, because most of those slave owners would have taken care of their horse or dog better than they did these fellow human beings. Thankfully, there are a few exceptions. A few whites exist in this story who feel that slavery is a horrible thing. Allende achieves a good balance of good and evil; while the atmosphere is oppressive, things aren’t’ completely bleak for Tete. Through the years of Tete’s slavery, the story moves from Saint-Domingue and the slave rebellion, to Cuba, to New Orleans, which is sold to the United States during the novel. Allende has done serious research for this book, and it shows. While not my favorite of Allende’s books- I was enraged by so many of the characters too much of the time- it’s a good one. It’s a very memorable novel.
    • 2/5
      I will give a low mark because of the unsuitable choice of speaker. In the book there are so many references in french and the speaker seems to lack knowledge of french since her accent sounds a bit annoying for those who do speak.
    • 5/5
      In short, this book was amazing. I struggled to know whether to give it four or five stars, but in the end I relented and gave it the highest possible score. I just loved it so much, in spite of the fact that it was so long that it took me two weeks to read it.

      The book has quite an ensemble cast, drawn from a range of race and class backgrounds. The first half of the book is set in the French colony of Saint-Domingue in the late eighteenth century; with the great revolt in which slaves won their independence, the action moves to Louisiana. I felt that all Allende's characters were skilfully depicted, and obviously the products of the backgrounds they'd come from - this is probably one of my main criteria in judging a novel - it came across as really left-wing, because of how it COULD show that individuals are the products of their situations and all that.

      There are definitely some characters I absolutely despised - I annotated the novel as I went in my Kindle, and I think 90% of my notes are yelling at Valmorain. His character is a plantation owner who deludes himself about how enlightened and generous he is because he doesn't mistreat his slaves quite as badly as his neighbour Lacroix, so I think you can see how I'd get frustrated. I was pretty sure I wouldn't hate anyone in the novel as much as him, but then along came Hortense Guizot... it was a hard-fought battle but I think she triumphed in the end. Valmorain DID rape Tété on a regular basis for years and treat her appallingly in general, and apparently considered raping his daughter Rosette as well... but then Hortense was deliberately malicious and murdered Rosette by proxy so... tough as this decision was to make...

      Anyway, in summary - although I reserve the right to edit this review if I think of something more to add - this was an amazing exploration of French colonial society, with characters that I felt were hugely true to life and logical, much as I hated some of them. Well worth reading! (Dec 2012)
    • 3/5
      A work of historical fiction that follows the life of Tete, a slave, and her owner Toulouse Valmorain. The first half of the book is set in what is now Haiti, in the late 1700s and the time leading up to the Haitian Revolution and slave rebellion, and the second half is after they escape to New Orleans. I studied the Haitian slave rebellion at university and it's a fascinating episode in history. I would have liked to have seen a bit more about it in the book, rather than just these characters who are in the periphery and flee fairly early on. This novel was an easy read, but it took me a whole month to get through it as I'd get bored and wander off to do something else or fall asleep. Rating: Island Beneath the Sea is one of those books that readers rate much higher than the critics. I'm with the critics on this one -- it's a good book, but not great. Recommended for: readers who like straight-forward historical fiction and readers who want to learn about the Haitian Revolution. For some reason, Isabel Allende books always end up with "magic realism" tags on LT, which drives me nuts. None of the 4 Allende books I've read have had any magic realism. So if you're one of those people who avoids MR, don't shy away from her writing. Yes, House of the Spirits is a key MR text, but that doesn't mean everything she writes is magic realism. Sheesh! (stepping off my soap box now).
    • 5/5
      This novel, told by Tete, an enslaved woman of Haiti and Louisiana, is filled with graphic detail about the Haitian revolution and of the lives of women in the Caribbean - drudgery and finery, depending on desirability as a sexual partner or a sugar cane cutter, or both. It's also about the privilege enabled by that "one drop" of white blood, and by the impact of geopolitics on both regions. Tete is sold as a child and ends up being raped by Toulouse Valmorain, a planter from France, at age 11. She has two children by him and also becomes the lover of Gambo, an African lieutenant to Toussaint L'Overture, founder of modern Haiti. The reader is not spared the brutality of sugar cane harvesting in the inhospitable climate, and the suicides and death from overwork that result. There's a perfect balance here between the political and the family lives of Tete and Violette, a courtesan, and how indebted Valmorain is to both for his life and those of his children. There's only a tiny modicum of peace and justice for the heroic Tete, and Allende leaves the reader wondering about the fate of the four children under her care at the close of the book.
    • 4/5
      Audiobook performed by S. Epatha Merkerson.In a bit of a departure from her usual emphasis on Hispano-American history, Allende gives us a story of an 18th-century slave in French-occupied Saint-Domingue (later to become Haiti). We follow Zarité from her childhood through age forty, from Guinea to Saint-Domingue to Cuba and on to New Orleans. Allende populates the novel with a wide variety of characters: Zarité’s French master and plantation owner Toulouse Valmorain; the free quadroon Violette Boisier who entertains a wide variety of gentlemen callers, chiefly Valmorain and the French military officer Etienne Relais; Valmorain’s Cuban wife Eugenia Garcia de Solars who is mother to his heir, Maurice; the local doctor Parmentier who is married to a mulatta woman Adele but keeps a separate house from that of his family; and a host of other characters too numerous to mention specifically. Allende is more than up to the task of relating the historical events that frame this family drama. The time frame of the novel is 1770 to 1810, and we witness the slave rebellion that results in the French abandoning Saint-Domingue to the rebel leaders who will ultimately name it Haiti. As the French leave their plantations and the island for safe haven they migrate to the French colony in New Orleans. But just as they feel settled, Napoleon sells a large tract of land to the United States in what we know as the Louisiana Purchase. Against this backdrop of national and international upheaval, we have the family drama of Valmorain, his slave, Zarité, and their children. I loved Zarité. She’s intelligent, resourceful, courageous, adaptable and wily. A keen observer and a good judge of character, she makes alliances and bides her time, acting when it is most advantageous to her and her family. And she needs every bit of these skills to navigate the dangerous relationships with Valmorains two wives; the mentally unstable Eugenia, and the cruel Hortense. Violette is also a richly drawn character – willful, intelligent, confident, loyal and loving. She has made the best of her situation and with the aid of her loyal servant Loula she will ensure the success of her family and those she holds dear. None of the men in her life are a match for her. S. Epatha Merkerson does a fantastic job of voicing the audiobook. She gives each character a sufficiently unique voice that it is easy to follow the dialogue. But I particularly love the way in which she brings Zarité and Violette to life. These are two strong women, and Merkerson excels in interpreting their characters.
    • 4/5
      Enthralling story of Haiti, in the late 18th and early 19th century, through the story of a white sugar plantation owner, his family and slaves. Through the eyes of a slave woman, Zarite, we witness the sweeping changes slave rebellions bring. We also witness life in French New Orleans when they flee the island, and the changes the Louisiana Purchase bring about to that society. Such historical figures as Toussaint Louverture and Jean Lafitte populate this book. Through it run elements of voodooism and how the people of color mix it with Catholic beliefs.Highly recommended.
    • 5/5
      This is an astounding story that revolves around the life of Zarite, a slave on the island of Saint-Domingue.

      With a total length just under 18 hours, this is a bit more of an audiobook than I typically prefer to bite off, but the story is well worth the time it takes to read or listen to. It probably would have been broken down into two or even three books had it come from a less reliable author. As it is, Allende has a long and illustrious list of best-sellers that I believe comes to 22 books that have been translated into many languages. She has a full list of books, with all their international editions on her website: Isabel Allende. Let me stop before I go too far down the rabbit hole on how awesome she is (but seriously check out her TEDtalks, one is about tales of passion and the other is about living passionately).

      I adore Zarite. She's a great protagonist for several reasons but as with all great protagonists, these reasons center around her being a well developed character with love she shouldn't feel, actions that aren't good for her, trusting the wrong people at times, and a belief system that has needed to be reconciled over and over again with the world around her.

      The story is told mostly in the third person but chapters occasionally veer into her first person perspective and are generally named after her so it's not a surprise when it happens. It begins well before we meet Zarite, when the world that she must inhabit is being formed by the elder people around her. Before we meet Zarite, we meet her owner, Toulouse Valmorain, his wife Eugenia, and the woman who helps Valmorain obtain her and who trains her for him, Violette Boisier. Each character is developed, given reasons for what they do and are stuck in traps by class and society or of their own making at some point. None are entirely good or bad, though they have varying degrees of corruption. I loved Zarite's growth arc and as well as each of the secondary characters.

      The world building and setting are amazing, looking back at times that are often called "simpler" but couldn't have been. It begins on a plantation in Saint-Domingue not too long before it becomes the slave revolt that changes it to Haiti and then migrates to New Orleans during turbulent times there as well.

      For me, much of the story serves as a prosaic reminder that the times we have romanticized in the US were not actually romantic. They were riddled with personal strife of a different ilk, though not without their own versions of hope. There was also a lot more nuance to the experiences of the people living in those times than we like to credit them for when we put romantic labels on them, even when they are bad ones. Somehow, none of this stopped the story and it's characters from having a gorgeous growth arc and leaving on a realistically high note.
    • 5/5
      Mystical feminism. At first thinking, the term is offensive but Allende has woven a tale set in Haiti amid horrifying conditions with the universal theme of strong women as catalysts of change and yes, mysticism. This is story where the secondary characters propell the reader to the final page, fleshed out so that we care about them when they are lost , and many are lost in this tumultuous historical title. Most of this history is unknown to the majority of the world and when leaders use terms like Sh**hole Nations, it repeats Allende's theme of one-view and racism. The first and only successful all Black Revolution. I didn't know.
    • 3/5
      I know that I am definitely in the minority when rating this audio book. I liked it better than The Japanese Lover but not enough to read more of what Isabel Allende has written. This audio book had a different reader, S. Epatha Merkelson and I think that she did much better. What did I not like about this story? The style just got on my nerves. I usually love historical fiction but the writing style made it difficult for me to plow through those 14 CDs. Her voice seemed too impersonal for me. Also, the content included more sexually explicit scenes than I am used to. What I did like is historically correct stories of slavery and customs in Haiti and Louisiana. Before listening to this book, I was unaware of the Code Noir that was adopted in Louisiana. I was ignorant of the code put out by France. In some ways it was a kinder slavery than in the other states but it was still evil slavery. I also liked the information of the slave uprisings in Haiti and learning about some of the African customs. I did learn more history but I would prefer the experience of slavery being told with more passion and fervor and less physically explicit.
    • 4/5
      Engaging storytelling here will keep a reader/listener moving forward. I like this author but suspect this particular book isn't her most popular, so I'll read some of her others. The reader of this audio book did a fine job, especially with the many French names and words. A decades-long saga of a remarkable slave woman and her master and all the other people in their lives, this book gives the reader a slice of history in both Haiti and New Orleans in the late 1700s and early 1800s. The author paints mind pictures with vivid details. The book might be a 5 for some, but I felt it wasn't quite there.
    • 3/5
      Fascinating history of what is now Haiti; I loved the first part with more of the historical detail and Tete's early life; as with many epics of this kind I tired of the story by the end. Some of the characters in the last part of the book were not well layered.
    • 4/5
      The book tells the story of Zarité, a slave who grows up on Haiti and during the slave rebellion stays with her owner to take care of his children. She travels with him to Cuba and later to America. In America she finally gets her freedom, but her past still haunts her.I really loved this book. Allende has a great talent for telling historical stories. Her characters are lifelike and you soon grow attached to them and get very involved in their lives. The descriptions of the areas are great and really give you an idea of what life was like at that time.One thing I really liked about this novel was how Allende shows the different viewpoints and manages to really give you some idea of how the slave-owners felt and thought. For me it is hard to imagine, but I do think these owners generally didn't view their slaves as 'human' and this book gives a good insight into what it might have been like to be a slave-owner in those days; especially Toulouse, who starts out with great ideals but ends bitter and cruel, is a character who really comes to life, even if he's not a 'nice guy'.Though the story in itself is quite sad, and many bad things happen to Zarité and other slaves, it is also a positive story. It shows courage and strength and love, and shows how even in bad situations people can still find joy. Aside from the slave owners and the white people who look down on the slaves, there are also people who are genuinely concerned for the well being of the slaves and support them in their quest for freedom.
    • 5/5
      The story of the intertwined lives of a slave born in Saint-Domingue (Haiti) and the wealthy plantation owner who buys her when she is still a child. The Haitian Revolution and the reality of of the refugees new lives in New Orleans were illustrated with great detail. I loved both the historical storyline of the novel and the fabulous character development.
    • 4/5
      Duh!
      For a great portion of this book, I kept trying to figure out why the characters seemed so very, very familiar... almost as if I'd read the book before, years ago. But it was only published two years ago, and my memory isn't quite that bad! I even looked on the internet to try to find out if any excerpts had been previously published, or any short stories featuring the same characters... no.
      Just as I sat down to write this review, I remembered: I went to see Allende at a live appearance, I believe shortly before this book was published, and she read a chapter from it!
      So my memory may be bad, but...

      So. That settled.
      I really enjoyed this book. Yes, it can tend toward melodrama, but the events are suited to high drama. Allende has a real talent for creating rich settings and vivid characters. I feel that in this book, a complex time period and difficult social milieu is dealt with well, showing horrific situations from a multiplicity of perspectives, without shying away from the difficult aspects of showing slavery from both slaves' and masters' perspectives.

      Zarite is a strong and memorable character - well, memorable enough that I felt like I knew her from hearing one chapter, even though I couldn't remember why!

      I have to admit, after 'City of the Beasts,' I was about ready to give up on Allende... but she's still got it. I guess she just has an inexplicably poor opinion of the intelligence of younger people. ('City of the Beasts' was supposedly YA.) I know, I shouldn't even be talking about it in an unrelated review. But, boy did it suck!
    • 3/5
      I was so bored by this book that I gave up when I was about 40% into it. The basic premise was excellent and thss could have been a fantastic book, if told in a different way. It was just a factual description of events, with very little character development and a very strange flow. I tried hard to like it, but I simply could not empathize with any character and was annoyed that such a good story was told in such a mundane way.
    • 5/5
      Based on true historical events surrounding the time of revolution in what is now known as Haiti, this book is beautifully written. I found the characters well-rounded and the integration of historical events into a fictional story was well done, providing information and insight into the historical past without coming across as a textbook lecture. It is, at times, very difficult to read; the passages describing the inhumane and brutal treatment of the slaves are truly heartbreaking, but are, unfortunately, a reminder of a cruel and terrible truth in our history.
    • 5/5
      Allende erzählt die Geschichte der schwarzen Sklavin Zarité und ihrem Streben nach Freiheit. Allende hat einen wunderbaren Roman geschaffen, der sich neben ihren bekannteren Werken keineswegs zu verstecken braucht. Allende erzählt eine große (Familien-)geschichte mit liebevoll in Szene gesetzten Hauptfiguren, blumigen Situationsbeschreibungen und einem äußerst fesselnden Handlungsstrang. Auch wenn Allende jedes Klischee bedient, driftet der Roman nie ins Kitschige oder Banale ab.Nebenbei bringt Allende den Lesern auch die überaus spannende Geschichte der Karibik im ausgehenden 18. Jahrhundert und im beginnenden 19. Jahrhundert näher. So erleben die Hauptfiguren die Sklavenaufstände in der französischen Kolonie Saint-Domingue, die haitianische Revolution, den Louisiana-Purchase und die Staatswerdung der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika.
    • 5/5
      As always it's an education to read a book by Allende. Great detail, well drawn out characters and an unflinching look at life from the various plot progenitors.
    • 2/5
      First of all, I have to say I listened to the audiobook in Italian, read by an actress who unfortunately did a terrible job. She read the whole thing with a tone of amused delight, which is the farthest she could possibly go from the horrific ugliness described in this book. So, please bear with me.

      It's not that I didn't like the story. It's the combination writer / italian reader that I really, really didn't like.

      As for the book itself, I am fascinated by the history of Haiti, but Allende's characters meant less than nothing to me. Look at the book cover - you see how impersonal, flat and bi-dimensional that drawing of a girl's face looks? That's exactly how Allende's characters come across in the book: they feel fake, as if they were talking stereotypes, marionettes, who never once become truly alive.

      I could never empathize with anyone. The only true feeling that I could sense throughout the novel was boredom. And perhaps that of being a victim of cruelty... question mark?

      In other words: ok, the bare bones of this story are extremely unpleasant. Fine, but at least give me some damn adventure or thrills. Nothing at all, only a bit at the end, too late to save the book. Another writer, like for example Ken Follett, while sparing nothing of the violence and ugliness, would have written the story in a totally different way, providing that true conflict, dynamism and excitement that this book is totally lacking.

      So when i think of Allende I now have this image of an old lady sitting in her neatly organized living room and droning on about this boring story, told with bitterness and a hint of sadistic pleasure, while seeping her tea. Her style is called "magic realism" because in the middle of an ornate, poetic and elegant descritpion she will use the word "shit" instead of feces. How magic! She is of course speaking in Spanish, and she has a crazy Italian translator next to her who translates every sentence for me with a spirited smile on her face, as if it was the highest form of poetry she has ever heard.

      Right. Not good.
    • 1/5
      Very disappointed! It was like sitting through a boring history lesson. The lack of depth to the characters seemed so unlike what I expect in a novel by Allende, and overall it felt pedantic.
    • 5/5
      A great story on the history of slavery on the plantations in Haiti and in the Louisiana Territory in the late 18th century by one of my favorite authors.
    • 4/5
      The setting of the sugar plantations in early Haiti became very real as did early New Orleans. I felt the characters were honestly drawn and believable. Obviously the author has done her research on the historical events of the time. My only complaint was that there were a few too many times when coincidence played too large a part. What are the chances of meeting up with "long lost" lovers, sons, daughters after many years and many miles. However, that did not take away from an engrossing read. Another good read from Allende.
    • 5/5
      Interesting story of the slaves of Haiti and New Orleans. The main character, Zarité, had and incredible journey. We follow her family and her Maitre over a 50 year span.
    • 4/5
      A vivid portrayal of life in Haiti and New Orleans during the late 1700's. One of the principal characters is Zarite--a mulatto slave who becomes the "property" of Toulouse Valmorain--a Frenchman who travels to Haiti to take charge of the family's plantation. Revolutions, uprisings, illnesses, and religious beliefs all shape the story Zarite (or Tete as she is called) struggles to gain the freedom to pursue her own happiness in a world where all the cards are stacked against her, while her master struggles to gain financial wealth and an heir to pass it onto. Whether it is voodoo, God, or Karma the characters will "reap what they sow" in the end. What made this story resonate with me were the vivid descriptions of the traditional African beliefs (their so called "voodoo") which were not only portrayed in action but also in the thoughts and deeds of the characters. It also illustrated the far reaching effects of the French Revolution and the philosophies about the freedom of all men that were circulating the globe at that time. For those who enjoy history and books with vivid characters and descriptions this would be a great choice.
    • 4/5
      Island Beneath the Sea. Isabel Allende. 2010. My first Allende book was a pleasant surprise. For some reason I steer away from magical realism and that is why I never had any desire to read this author. This was a straight forward historical novel set in Saint-Domingue (Haiti) and in New Orleans. Zarite, a mulatto slave and concubine relates the story of her life on a sugar plantation and later in New Orleans. The vivid descriptions of life on the plantation, the plight of the slaves and mixed race children, the decadence of the plantation owners, and of life in New Orleans during the time of Jean LaFitte was fascinating and horrifying. This is a great historical novel. My favorite way to lean history!