The Birthing House, Christopher Ransom
The Birthing House, Christopher Ransom
List: $20.95 | Sale: $14.66
Club: $10.47

The Birthing House

Author: Christopher Ransom

Narrator: Edward Herrmann

Unabridged: 10 hr 57 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/04/2009

Synopsis

A psychological thriller with supernatural overtones, The Birthing House is a tale of one man’s descent into madness, where fantasy and nightmare share the same bed.In this brilliantly crafted ghost story, a young couple, Conrad and Joanna Harrison, attempt to save their marriage by starting anew in a rural turn-of-the-century former birthing house. One day, when Jo is away at work, the former owner bequeaths a photo album that “belongs to the house.” Thumbing through the antique photos of miserable midwives and pregnant girls in their nineteenth-century dresses, Conrad is chilled to the bone when he sees his own wife staring back at him with rage.The Birthing House is a story of possession, sexual obsession, and ultimately murder, as a centuries-old crime is reenacted in the present with devastating consequences.

About Christopher Ransom

Christopher Ransom is a native of Boulder, Colorado, who has lived in New York and Los Angeles. He now resides with his wife and three dogs in a 142-year old former birthing house in Mineral Point, Wisconsin.

About Edward Herrmann

Edward Herrmann's many television credits include his Emmy-nominated portrayals of Franklin D. Roosevelt and his guest role in The Practice, for which he won an Emmy.  He has also played the part of Richard Gilmore on the popular television series Gilmore Girls and appeared in Grey's Anatomy, 30 Rock, and Law & Order.  On stage, Edward has appeared on Broadway, most notably as Frank Gardner in Mrs. Warren's Profession, for which he won a Tony Award.  His film work includes roles in The Great Waldo Pepper, The Paper Chase, Overboard,The North Avenue Irregulars, and Woody Allen's The Purple Rose of Cairo. Edward has narrated over 300 titles, including Thurston Clarke's Ask Not, published by Macmillan Audio.  AudioFile magazine has deemed Edward a "Golden Voice," and he has received multiple awards and nominations for AudioFile's Earphones Awards and Audie Awards.

Reviews

AudiobooksNow review by MARY on 2009-08-27 12:53:12

What is this again?? It should be classsified as Erotica/Horror. This is a porn show in a haunted house. It has potential as a good story but the writer just could not get it together. I think that perhaps he could not think of anything to write about so he filled the pages with porn most of the time. If this ever is a movie, Wow! let the kids be in their rooms with the door secured. I just could not figure it out most of the time. Too much going and coming, characters that you could not get to know, going into the past and then into the future, I was sooo lost??????? Sorry, but really read the reviews before you rent this one.

Goodreads review by Kelsey on June 13, 2015

Seeing as the reviews for this seem to be so bad, I thought I'd better mention that my review is not a critical one. So I don't know if it's just a personal preference and taste thing. Or maybe I'm just easily pleased compared to others. Who knows? But I know I seem to be in the minority when I say......more

Goodreads review by Elizabeth on July 18, 2012

I wanted to like this book. It sounded so good when I picked it up, but was ultimately just really confusing. Looking at other reviews I see that I am not the only one who totally did not understand the story. My main complaints - He never really explains why one of the ladies in the picture looks......more

Goodreads review by Lorna on May 05, 2014

First of all, a warning. If you do read this book make sure you don't pick it up before you're about to go to sleep, it will keep you awake. Conrad comes home one day to find his wife Jo in a somewhat compromising situation with their mutual friend Jake. So it seems appropriate that he's just bought......more

Goodreads review by Alyson on July 01, 2009

What I Learned from this Book: Christopher Ransom likes iced tea a LOT! So the protagonist drinks a lot of iced tea in this novel, which is supposed to be a scary one full of ghosts, hauntings (real and imagined ones, literal and figurative ones), twists and turns, and who knows what else. The only......more

Goodreads review by Siobhan on July 25, 2015

This isn’t my favourite read by the author but it is an okay read if you like his writing style. There were a few moments in this book where I found myself flickering back a few pages just to remove my confusion to make sure I was understanding it properly, but for the most part it was gripping (perh......more

Quotes

“Christopher Ransom’s The Birthing House was so all-out scary that it kept me up until the wee hours in a way few novels have since Carrie went to the prom…This book is killer.” Jacquelyn Mitachard, New York Times bestselling author

“[An] impressive debut…Replete with subtle symbolism that supports the birthing motif (spiders with bulging egg sacs, a moist clutch of snake eggs, etc.), this addictively readable ghost story will keep readers up all night, with the lights on, of course.” Publishers Weekly

“As much about the terrors of humankind as it is about the supernatural, this is an exceptional debut, full of action-packed gore and carnal imagery. Ransom’s style mimics that of the early Stephen King and Dan Simmons’ horror fiction.” Library Journal (starred review)

“A stunning debut—swaddling the reader in dread from the very first sentence and spiraling into a heart-stopping climax.” Michael Marshall, author of The Straw Men

“Author Christopher Ransom provides plenty of chills that will spook even the most dedicated of horror fans, especially as delivered by narrator Edward Herrmann. He reads with a subtle intensity from the very beginning of the story, implanting in listeners a strong sense of foreboding that helps to set the scene for the eventual mayhem. The story is filled with plenty of horror-story clichés but when combined with Herrmann’s skillful performance, the results prove to be compelling. An Audies Finalist.” AudioFile

“Herrmann captures every disturbing nuance in this evocative debut horror novel…Herrmann perfectly sets the stage, beginning with a pleasant, straightforward recounting of events, before projecting the burgeoning horror as Conrad’s mental state deteriorates…Words and images that might be skimmed over in print reverberate in audio, thanks to Herrmann’s capable reading. He draws listeners in as foreboding builds and clues are revealed. This is all about mood, and Herrmann expertly channels the nightmare.” Booklist

“Stage and television actor Edward Herrmann’s narration is smooth, and he creates the appropriate ominous mood. His narration is skillful, professional, chilling.” SoundCommentary.com

Awards

  • Audie Award Finalist
Add to Cart
Add to Wish List