Audiobook Sample
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- Title: Street of Seven Stars
- Author: Mary Roberts Rinehart
- Narrator: Mary Ann
- Length: 07:38:00
- Version: Abridged
- Release Date: 01/01/2011
- Publisher: LibriVox
- Genre: Mystery, Thriller & Horror, Suspense
- ISBN13: SABFAB9780825
As someone who’s spent years chasing stories through cobblestone streets from Prague to Budapest, I found myself instantly transported back to Central Europe’s golden twilight years upon listening to Mary Roberts Rinehart’s ‘Street of Seven Stars.’ The moment Mary Ann’s narration began, I was standing again in Vienna’s Innere Stadt, smelling the coffee houses and hearing distant violin strains – though this time through the ears of young Harmony Wells, our American violinist protagonist.
Rinehart’s 1914 novel unfolds like a carefully composed sonata, with each movement revealing new depths in its exploration of artistic ambition versus romantic attachment. Having once lived above a music school in Vienna myself (while researching Habsburg-era architecture), I recognized with visceral clarity the novel’s authentic textures – the way cold seeps into practice rooms, how goulash steam hangs in boarding house corridors, and that particular ache of being both enchanted and overwhelmed by a foreign city’s grandeur.
Mary Ann’s narration captures this duality beautifully. Her voice carries the crisp diction of American expats while subtly adopting the cadences of Viennese German in dialogue – a delicate balance I’ve rarely heard achieved so convincingly. When she voices Peter Byrne, our idealistic doctor protagonist, I was reminded of an American surgeon I once interviewed in Budapest who similarly wrestled with Old World medical traditions. The narrator’s ability to convey Peter’s professional intensity alongside his growing protective tenderness toward Harmony makes their relationship development profoundly believable.
What struck me most – and what Rinehart renders with remarkable prescience – is how the novel captures Vienna’s precarious position as a cultural capital on the brink of war. Through Harmony’s innocent eyes, we see the glittering surface of concert halls and coffee houses, while Peter’s medical work reveals the city’s underbelly of poverty and political tension. This dual perspective reminded me of walking Vienna’s Ringstrasse today, where imperial palaces stand shoulder-to-shoulder with bullet-pocked buildings from later conflicts – a physical manifestation of the contrasts Rinehart explores.
The audiobook’s greatest strength lies in how it handles the novel’s central tension between artistic vocation and human connection. As someone who’s missed important family events chasing stories abroad, Harmony’s dilemma resonated deeply. When she must choose between returning to America or staying to pursue her musical dreams, Mary Ann’s performance makes you feel the character’s anguish in your bones. The narrator particularly shines in the hospital scenes with the orphan boy – her voice takes on a raw, unfiltered quality that perfectly matches Rinehart’s unsentimental yet compassionate prose.
Some contemporary listeners might find the pacing leisurely compared to modern thrillers, but this allows space to appreciate Rinehart’s rich period details. The description of Harmony’s boarding house transported me to my own stay in a Jugendstil-era pension near the Naschmarkt, where the wallpaper literally whispered with generations of stories. Mary Ann’s measured delivery enhances these atmospheric passages, letting the setting breathe like a character itself.
While categorized as mystery/suspense, the novel’s tension derives more from psychological and social dangers than criminal plots. Rinehart fans expecting her trademark ‘Had-I-But-Known’ twists might be surprised by the focus on character development, though the undercurrent of peril – especially regarding Harmony’s financial vulnerability – maintains consistent unease. The narrator subtly amplifies this through slight vocal tremors during key scenes, creating an immersive listening experience that respects the source material’s nuance.
Compared to similar expatriate narratives, ‘Street of Seven Stars’ offers a uniquely feminine perspective on the American-in-Europe trope. Where Henry James’ Isabel Archer observes European society with detached curiosity, Harmony actively participates in Viennese musical life while navigating its gendered constraints. The audiobook makes these cultural negotiations particularly vivid – you can practically hear the rustle of skirts as Harmony moves between respectable and bohemian circles.
For modern listeners, the free LibriVox edition presents both opportunity and limitation. While the price can’t be beat, the audio quality occasionally shows its public-domain origins with slight inconsistencies in volume. However, Mary Ann’s clear enunciation and thoughtful pacing compensate admirably. This would be an ideal companion for a long train journey (perhaps along the very Danube that features in the story) or while wandering through any European city’s historic quarter.
Ultimately, what makes this audiobook special is how it preserves Rinehart’s time-capsule of pre-war Vienna while making her characters feel immediately relatable. When Peter debates whether to return to America as war looms, I recalled my own difficult decision to leave Budapest during the pandemic – that universal tension between safety and purpose. The narrator honors these emotional complexities without overplaying them, trusting Rinehart’s prose and the listener’s imagination.
For fellow travelers who appreciate historical fiction with emotional depth, this audiobook offers a rich sensory journey. Pair it with a Viennese melange and the distant sound of violin practice for full immersion. While the mystery elements may be subtler than Rinehart’s other works, the novel’s exploration of artistic sacrifice and cross-cultural connection remains strikingly relevant – especially in Mary Ann’s capable vocal hands.
With pen poised for the next adventure,
Marcus Rivera
