Birthright [Abridged, Audiobook, CD] [Audio CD]

Nora Roberts (Author), Bernadette Quigley (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 28, 2006

On a hot July afternoon, a worker at an Antietam Creek construction site drives the blade of his backhoe into a layer of soil — and strikes a 5,000-year-old human skull. The discovery draws plenty of attention and a lot of controversy. It also changes the life of one woman in ways she never expected... As an archaeologist, Callie Dunbrook knows a lot about the past. But her own past is about to be called into question. Recruited for her expertise on the Antietam Creek dig, she encounters danger — as a cloud of death and misfortune hangs over the project, and rumors fly that the site is cursed. She finds a passion that feels equally dangerous, as she joins forces in her work with her irritating, but irresistible, ex-husband, Jake. And when a strange woman approaches her, claiming to know a secret about Callie’s privileged Boston childhood, some startling and unsettling questions are raised about her very identity. Searching for answers, trying to rebuild, Callie finds that there are deceptions and sorrows that refuse to stay buried. And as she struggles to put the pieces back together, she discovers that the healing process comes with consequences — and that there are people who will do anything to make sure the truth is never revealed.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Set in and around rural Woodsboro, Md., a small town drawn with affection and familiarity, Roberts's latest is the literary equivalent of a big delicious meal whipped up by a talented home cook. She offers a dash of exoticism and innovation-a Neanderthal settlement is discovered on the site of an unwanted housing development, prompting gorgeous young archeologist Callie Dunbrook to race to Woodsboro to take charge of what promises to be the dig of her career. After dollops of detail about archeological work, Roberts dishes up huge servings of comfort food, and it is all the more satisfying for being so straightforward. When the owner of the Antietam Creek development turns up murdered on the site, Callie is thrown into closer contact than she'd like with her ex-husband, who also happens to be the anthropologist sharing responsibility for the dig. Jacob Greystone is a hunk-"long bones, long muscles, all covered in bronzed skin...." Meanwhile, Suzanne Cullen, the hugely successful proprietor of a Mrs. Field's-like baked-goods business, tracks down the archeologist after seeing her on the evening news. Callie, the woman claims, is the baby daughter who was snatched from her stroller when she was just a few months old. Callie hires a beautiful young lawyer, Lana Campbell, who happens to be involved with Doug Cullen, Callie's long-lost brother. Another murder, arson and attempted murder heat up the chase until all the young lovers are drawn in. As in other delectable entertainments by Roberts, it is not the wild denouement but the pursuit itself-studded with scrumptious romantic encounters-that is the real dessert.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Archaeologist Callie Dunbrook is excited to be overseeing a new dig, but with the site rumored to be cursed, her ex-husband hanging around, and a stranger suggesting that he knows all about her past, things aren't altogether rosy. Despite the pub date, the book will surface in late March.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio on CD Value Priced; Abridged edition (July 28, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1423319419
• ISBN-13: 978-1423319412
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (120 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,431,018 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars She is having a great year!!!, June 5, 2003

By 

"intentaccess" (Boca Raton, Florida USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Birthright (Hardcover)

I love Nora Roberts work and I am always amazed by the quality to the number of books she cranks out a year. I really have to say she has out done herself this year as I think this was one of her best books yet. I also felt this way about her last "In Death " installment to her mystery series written as J. D. Robb. This book was a thriller all the way though, turning the pages and not wanting to put the book down.

In a mall around Christmas time a mother rushes to her three year old son who is scared of Santa. She turns back and her three month old daughter is gone! 28 years later this mother is watching TV and she sees her daughter. DR Callie Dunbrook, who is an archeologist on a site in Maryland where this child had been taken years ago. This mother Suzanne Cullen contacts Callie and Callie knows this woman is grasping at straws because she is not adopted.

Well, Callie who snoops around, she is a digger now, finds out she was adopted. Her parents promise she was adopted in good faith. Callie is determined to get to the bottom of this black market baby stealing for everybody's peace of mind. Callie's ex husband is assigned to the same dig and he backs her all the way. But there are people who do not want Callie digging around and will even kill to stop her.

This book was very creatively written, a true Nora Roberts romantic suspense thriller. Where innocent people was tangled up in this drama and even killed along the way. This was a book you could not put down for a minute. You do not want to miss this one. I really think it was one of her best!!

37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Captivating Romantic Suspense, March 31, 2003

By 

Sheri Melnick (Enola, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Birthright (Hardcover)

Nora Roberts' prolific generation of novels has run the gamut from witchcraft on the New England coast to futuristic mysteries sizzling with attraction. Her latest endeavor carries uniqueness all its own, with its crafty combination of suspense and sensual romance.

Archaeologist Callie Dunbrook's current assignment is to supervise a dig at an Antietam Creek, Maryland construction site. Finding human remains over five thousand years old, Callie needs more help at the site. When that help comes in the form of her sexy ex-husband Jake, Callie is furious with her supervisor, even as she continues to fight her attraction for Jake. While locals are angry at their loss of employment with the construction halted, seemingly innocuous pranks turn into murderous "accidents". Coinciding with the archeological find is the claim by local businesswomen Suzanne Cullen, that Callie is really her long-lost daughter, stolen as an infant.

Tough, beautiful, and brilliant, Callie is the epitome of a strong female lead character. Her romantic sparring with Jake creates a sexual tension that keeps an even pace with the mystery, as Callie discovers that the accidents at the site may be related to her unearthing of her past including an illegal adoption ring. Earthy, compelling characters are the driving forces behind this mystery/romance, entrancing the reader from the get go, in a package that is quite possibly Ms. Roberts' best effort to date...

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Birthright, February 4, 2008

By 

Kelly "Reviewer for The Sinfully Sensuous" (Littleton, Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Birthright (Paperback)

Callie Dunbrook is an acclaimed archaeologist at the top of her game, but one appearance on television changes her life forever. While working on a historic dig in Maryland, she discovers she was kidnapped when she was an infant and raised by another family. As she struggles to deal with her new family ties, the sudden appearance of her anthropologist ex-husband Jake Graystone, she also has to try to find out who is sabotaging the site.

I really enjoyed this book! It is now one of my favorites. I have been on geology digs, so I really liked the setting of this story. There was good rapport and chemistry between Jake and Callie. They made a very likeable couple. The secondary characters were also an important part of the story. The biological family Suzanne, Jay, and Doug were well written.