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Atonement
Atonement
Atonement
Audiobook8 hours

Atonement

Written by B.J. Daniels

Narrated by Graham Winton

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

About this audiobook

Just how far are people willing to go to keep their secrets? Protecting the citizens of Beartooth, Montana, is never an easy job. It's been one year, and Sheriff Dillon Lawson still feels guilty that he couldn't save his twin brother, Ethan. But the biggest test of his bravery comes when Tessa Winters arrives, claiming to be pregnant.with Ethan's baby. At first, Dillon can't decide if this beautiful woman is a con artist or a victim. If Ethan didn't die in that car crash, then where is he-and why is he hiding? Now, Dillon is prepared to do anything to uncover the truth-anything except admit his growing feelings for Tessa. But with violence threatening, Tessa and Dillon must trust in each other to save not only themselves.but also Tessa's unborn child.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateJan 2, 2015
ISBN9781490639567
Author

B.J. Daniels

New York Times and USA Today bestselling authorB.J. Daniels lives in Montana with her husband, Parker, and two springerspaniels. When not writing, she quilts, boats and always has a book or two to read. Contact her at www.bjdaniels.com, on Facebook at B.J. Daniels or through her reader group the B.J.Daniels' Big Sky Darlings, and on twitter at bjdanielsauthor.

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Reviews for Atonement

Rating: 3.9282526474990154 out of 5 stars
4/5

7,617 ratings341 reviews

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  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I was in the mood for a cowboy romance, and the blurb for ATONEMENT grabbed my attention. This is the first B.J. Daniels book I’ve read, so I’m jumping into this series late, and I did feel like I was missing parts of the back story.The book starts out strong when the angry and pregnant heroine, Tessa, comes to Montana searching for her baby’s father, Ethan. Instead, she finds his twin brother, Dillon (who she didn’t know about), and Dillon claims that his brother died over a year ago, which Tessa knows couldn’t be possible. Dillon assumes Ethan has gotten himself in big trouble again, and that’s why he’s playing dead, so Dillon and Tessa set out to uncover the mystery and find Ethan.The book switches back and forth between the Tessa/Dillon/Ethan story line and a murder mystery involving the town’s sheriff, Frank, and his girlfriend, Nettie. I’m assuming that Frank & Nettie’s story is being carried over from a previous book. While I was intrigued by their mystery, I thought it detracted from Tessa & Dillon’s story. It wasn’t easy keeping everyone and everything straight, and I felt disconnected.I liked Dillon and Tessa as a couple, and I was rooting for them. With her being pregnant with another man’s baby, theirs was a unique and sweet romance that took time to grow. I did wonder, though, how a smart and strong woman like Tessa could have fallen for a screw up like Ethan. I guess love makes us do crazy things.I think those who have read the previous books in this series will probably like ATONEMENT more than I did, though I enjoyed seeing how both mysteries played out in the end.Source: Review copy from NetGalley
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    4 starsIn Atonement has two story lines, One is dealing with the Sheriff and his ex-wife that has been in all four books of Beartooth, Montana. The other deals with Dillon Lawson and his dead twin brother. Also Tessa and her pregnant baby. The plot was good and kept you wanting to know what happens next.Full of Drama, action, suspense and mystery. I enjoyed reading Atonement. Also clean read.The setting was Beartooth, Montana and surrounding states.I liked the characters. I would think it be hard to love brothers especially twins. Dillon is a hard working honest man. He is acting Sheriff and his own small ranch. Ethan is the opposite of Dillon. In fact he is dishonest and died a year ago.Tessa Winters is eight month pregnant and she has found Ethan the father of her baby. She wants the money he stole from her and sign his rights away to the baby. She can't believe she fell for Ethan lies. Now she and the baby could be in danger.Their are a lot of characters that are new. Their is also others that we have met in Beartooth Montana. The Sheriff Frank who is wanted for murdering his ex-wife. Nettie the grocery store owner who has loved Frank for years.Their are a few murders that happen in the book both in story lines.I will read more books by B.J. Daniels in the future.I was given this ebook to read and asked in return to give honest review of it by Netgalley and Harlequin.publication: February 25th 2014 by Harlequin HQN 384 pages ISBN 9780373778461
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Read for Review (NetGalley)Overall Rating: 3.50Story Rating: 3.25Character Rating: 3.75First Thought when Finished: Atonment by B.J. Daniels would have made 2 great full length novels but there was a little too much going on for one!Story Thoughts: Atonment was really 2 stories in one: One for Dillon/Tessa and one for the Sheriff. The problem was that I felt both would have made great full length novels on their own. I felt more could have been explored with Dillon/Ethan. I also would have liked a little more of Tessa/Dillon, their love story was a little rushed. I would have been happy with more about the Sheriff (though that might have been tackled in the previous books but I have not read them). I did love the pacing and writing. I guess I just wanted more of both stories which is what left me wanting...Character Thoughts: I thought Dillon was a fascinating character. He wasn't too perfect but he was a great character study in good, solid men! Tessa was a great match for Dillon on paper but I would have liked to know more about her. Together they made for a good love story that I would have loved a little more of.Final Thoughts: Despite wanting more from the stories, I still enjoyed Atonement! It was a great read for suspense fans.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    4 "The Good Twin" Stars for the story and 3.5 stars for the narration.Atonement is like two romantic suspense titles wrapped up in one. For those of you who have been following the Beartooth Montana Series, you will be familiar with both of the heroes. While it is possible to read this as a stand-alone title, given the intricate interconnections of the various characters, particularly as it relates to the suspense, I suggest that you read or listen to this series in chronological order.The main story revolves around Under Sheriff Dillon Lawson (the good twin) and his identical brother, Ethan, who he believes passed away a year earlier. That is until Tessa Winters arrives in town claiming to be carrying Ethan's baby. Dillon doesn't know what to make of this news, and Tessa is convinced that Dillon is actually Ethan but just assuming the identity of his brother to avoid her. Of course, this leads to a tumultuous beginning, but little by little the pair begins to uncover one incredible suspense-filled web. All the while, as the credibility and good-will of the other begins to become undeniable, the couple begins a journey towards finding out the truth and determining whether their fate includes a HEA.The secondary story, is actually one that is more directly carried over from the prior books and involves Sheriff Frank Curry, his ex-wife Pam, and his new love interest, Nettie Benton. Sheriff Curry inadvertently finds himself on the wrong side of the law and Frank and Nettie will be racing against the clock to prove his innocence all the while testing their romantic resolve for one another.Rounding out the action and suspense filled plot is Graham Winton's narration. Mr. Winton is a natural to perform this romantic western. Producing an authentic and appropriate tone setting accent for this Montana based romance, Mr. Winton does a great job of bringing both Dillon and Frank to life. While his female characters are a little less gender authentic, he also produces a sufficiently nuanced pitch for these characters to allow for easy differentiation between the female and male cast. The one area where I had a little more trouble was in telling apart the characters of a similar age and gender. For example, there are a few scenes where there is another male character of the same age as Dillon, and I had more difficulty distinguishing between the two characters. However, this was only a minor detraction, and Mr. Winton's attention to the scene being enacted and general tone of the characters leads to an overall slightly above average performance.All in all, if you enjoy a good romantic suspense title--especially with a small-town Western feel--then I recommend that you give the Beartooth Montana Series a try. Moreover, for those of you that are already enjoying this series, then I highly recommend Atonement.Source: Review copy provided in exchange for an honest review.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Tessa comes into town. The first thing she does is head over to Dillon and Ethan's ranch. Tessa is about to give birth to Ethan's baby any day. All she wants is for Ethan to sign his rights away. Dillon realizes that Tessa may have been one of the last people to see Ethan alive. He does not plan to let Tessa out of his sight until he learns the truth about Ethan's death. It has been quite some time since I have read a book by this author. I enjoyed reading this book. I like westerns. Atonement is book four in the Beartooth, Montana series. You don't have to have read the prior three novels. However it did feel a little disconnected like the characters and the current events that they were facing had happened in a prior book. So I this did not help some in the department of me getting to really know the characters and sharing a bond with them. In addition, in the beginning I thought that Dillon came off as very uncaring and rough. So I did not see him as the romantic love interest for Tessa. As the story progressed I did warm up to Dillon. Plus, it was easy to see him and Tessa together as I felt like I did not know who Ethan was. Other than a rambler. I more tended to like Tessa. She was strong-willed.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Good book with two interesting storylines. The main story is that of Dillon and Tessa. Dillon has been filling in as sheriff while Sheriff Frank Curry has been on a leave of absence. It's been an eventful year and Dillon is still feeling the loss of his twin brother - until a woman shows up claiming to be pregnant with Ethan's baby. Now Dillon wants to know why Ethan is pretending to be dead. Since she didn't know that Ethan had a twin brother, at first Tessa thought Dillon was Ethan. Once that confusion is dealt with both Dillon and Tessa want to find Ethan. As they work together they discover that Ethan had gotten in over his head in a couple of ways and want to find him before he ends up dead for real. Dillon spent a lot of time when he was younger protecting Ethan from their father and getting Ethan out of the trouble he was constantly in. He wants Ethan to have the chance to do the right thing by Tessa. Meanwhile, Tessa is over Ethan, having put up with enough over his disappearance and his theft of her savings. She just wants him to sign over custody of their baby to her so she can move on with her life. Dillon quickly grows attached to Tessa, partly because of the baby she carries but mostly because of the way she makes him feel. But he feels guilty about those feelings because she is his brother's girl. Tessa realizes that Dillon is everything that Ethan is not, but doesn't think Dillon would ever see her as anything other than his niece's mother. I loved the growing relationship between the two of them. Dillon was such a nice guy that I wondered for a little while how long he would go before letting Tessa know how he felt. It wasn't too surprising that Tessa seemed to take more initiative, though Dillon wasn't backward once he realized she really did want him.The mystery that revolves around Ethan, his "death", and the people he got mixed up with was very well done. There were multiple viewpoints from the various players as the danger to Ethan, Dillon and Tessa grew closer. There were a couple very interesting twists as the truth came out about who was after Ethan and why. I loved the final resolution and how Dillon handled it.The second storyline involved Sheriff Frank Curry and his lady friend Nettie. In the previous book Forsaken Frank's ex-wife had attempted to kill both him and Nettie. She got away, and Frank took a leave of absence to try to find her. At the beginning of this one, he has returned to Beartooth having been unable to find her. He is ready to go back to work and pick up his romance with Nettie. Just as things are starting to look up for them, Pam's remains are found on Frank's land and he is suspected of murdering her. Nettie doesn't believe he had anything to do with it and takes it upon herself to do a little investigating of her own. Frank is worried about her safety and tries to convince her to stay out of it, but Nettie is just as stubborn as he is. Her efforts nearly get her killed by a character I never suspected. I loved seeing Frank and Nettie finally get their happy ending after so many years apart.As always, I love the vivid descriptions of the Montana landscape. Sometimes I could swear I felt the cold of the snowstorms or smell the scent of the pines. Someday I will get there to see it for myself.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Not my favorite McEwan but still good. Not as much edge as his earlier novels
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    "It wasn't only wickedness and scheming that made people unhappy, it was confusion and misunderstanding; above all, it was the failure to grasp the simple truth that other people are as real as you."On the hottest day of 1934, looking out of a bedroom window 13 year-old Briony Tallis sees her older sister Cecelia strip to her underwear and plunge into the fountain in the garden of their parent's country house watched their childhood friend Robbie Turner, the son of the family's cleaning woman. Briony misinterprets what she has seen and by the end of the day all their lives will have changed forever.This is the sixth book by McEwan that I've read and on the whole they've left me disappointed, with the exception of 'The Child in Time.' Now I have mixed feelings about this one. At times I found it predictable and plodding, far too many sentences seemed to have been written for the pleasure of writing them rather than with the reader in mind, those long passive sentences take a bit to unravel . The story often meanders and the description of the horrors in France is very good yet somehow also felt detached which only really made sense when I got to the final section. In truth McEwan's descriptions are very vivid but when they come instead of plot its frustrating. Yet oddly I also found it compelling and probably my favourite of the author's books that I've read.I think its only fair that I should point out at this juncture that I've never seen the movie adaptation of this book ,never really wanted to, but may have to now.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    In 1935, 13-year-old Briony is witness to a sexual assault, but thanks to a series of bad assumptions, her limited child's viewpoint, and a willingness to let herself express more certainty than was actually justified, she identifies the wrong man, only admitting her mistake to herself years later. The result is a novel about guilt, but also about human fallibility, the art of writing, and war.I can't say it's my favorite of the McEwan novels I've read so far -- that might be Enduring Love, actually -- but it does remind me of a thought I've had about McEwan's writing before: that his characters are so realistically human that they make me realize, with a sense of startlement, just how fictional everyone else's are.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This was objectively an excellent novel but fair warning: if you watched the movie (even if you only watched it once when it came out, over a decade ago) reading the book is absolutely spoiled by already knowing the big reveal at the end. I thought after all this time it wouldn't matter, but it did! I'll look forward to reading an Ian McEwan book that I haven't seen in movie form as I like his characters and style very much.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    When Bryony - a fanciful girl who considers herself a writer - is thirteen, she witnesses a handful of small but to her traumatic vignettes all in one day that lead her, for various reasons, to wrongfully accuse someone of a shocking crime. This awful act has all sort of consequences for many members of her family, and we watch those consequences play out during the first years of WWII.Welp, I *loved* this novel. I have strong feelings about all the characters, both positive and negative (I love that I love the ones I love and love to hate the ones I hate), and I thought the writing and the pacing of the story was perfect. It wasn't a happy story, but somehow it didn't put me in a funk, which typically happens with darker books.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The cover makes this look gothic, but aside from not being so, it is a wonderful story of a wrong and the subsequent, well, atonement.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A lovely book. The pre-war story of Briony, her siblings, parents and the people that work on their estate is wonderful. The crime and misunderstanding that takes place is shattering because of how much you care for the characters and the little world they have created. As the story expands during WWII, the book shifts and almost becomes a war action and romance novel. Many people felt betrayed by the ending, to me it's ultimately a testament to the power of storytelling.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A great book, one of the most interesting and depressing novels I ever read. Unfortunately I made the mistake of watching the movie first (not knowing about this book at that time), which spoiled part of the novel and especially the ending for me. That's the reason for changing the rating from 4 stars to 5, adding this book to my alltime favourites.

    I was drawn into the book right from the beginning - the pre-war setting with its lush and carefree atmosphere, spoiled by the events during the course of a day, then the darker and more brutal scenery during the war - the author did a great job here.
    The characters were great as well. The motivation for their deeds (and for the things they didn't do) were understandable and there was a lot of character development. The actions that seemed to be out of character were explained by the ending. Going into depth more would spoil the book for those of my friends who might be planning to read it (if they haven't read a synopsis somewhere else or seen the film).

    I still sometimes think about some of the questions the book posed for me. Is there really a thing like atonement? Is it possible to forgive someone who spoiled the entire lifes of other persons, even if she did it without fully understanding what she was doing? A really good book - and definately on my list to reread.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    what a miserable way to live
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Wish I had written it!! That's my highest compliment. I loved the writing style and the cleverness of the story line. Even the varied (somewhat emotional) reviews say a lot about the impact of this novel on the reader. Personally I loved the twisted ending the most.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I had a hard time with this book - it just didn't grab me. I wanted to root for the characters but they just didn't do it for me. I especially felt the middle section dragged. Just not my type of story I guess.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I was looking for a good example of metafiction to read, and McEwan's work satisfied my curiosity. The author's thoughts as writing define metafiction, and I appreciate its value, but I find that the flow of the story is interrupted too much for my reading pleasure. That said, I loved Briony. Her aspirations to be a writer are admirable, and her imagination certainly gets its exercise when she misinterprets her cousin's affair as a sexual assault. I appreciated the letter from an editor included as part of the story, and I truly marveled at the ending where she affirms an author's right to play God.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    I have tried on three separate occasions to finish this book, but have not been able to make it past page 66. I also tried to watch the movie, but also quit halfway through. I officially give up an declare this book a lost cause.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Of course there is always something spellbinding and touching in a love that’s faithful enough it crosses boundaries of distance and surmounts the passing time. A love that endures, as one might say, is both a blessing and a curse for it doesn’t deter from any kind of struggle, however the affliction, and reunites with a soulful fervour. But when it’s weathered by insufferable theatrics it becomes almost a borderline melodramatic excess. Such is Atonement. Told in paragraphs much too beautiful it can be emotionally dismantling, it successfully distracts from its subtle mediocrity. For one, Atonement is almost irredeemable with its usage of rape as a cheap, underwhelming plot device. As if it is not disturbing enough that the victim and perpetrator reach the most appalling of conclusions, the others are too caught up in their own confusing snobbishness, selfishness, and tiring anguish to prevent it at all. What’s more surprising here is my utter indifference to Briony Tallis which near the end turned to sympathy then pity of some sort. I don’t believe she is completely and solely culpable. A child exposed to some kind of trauma can’t be fully held accountable for acting out of fear. Some of the characters’ decisions are absurd (looking at you, Cecilia Tallis) too. And without any relevant interactions to invest much on, Cecilia and Robbie’s love story gets diluted into that one lustful library encounter. And perhaps if some form of explanation to Briony was provided after, it’d have been entirely different. Nonetheless, the chapters about the second world war are the strongest in the novel as they capture, also mirror, a life-altering catastrophe which victimises everyone. Nobody goes out unscathed. A theme present throughout the book. Amidst some flaws and predictability, McEwan’s prose kept me tangled (and fairly satisfied) in its depressing mess.“A person is, among all else, a material thing, easily torn and not easily mended.”If there’s anything of genuine value here, it’s how we tend to forget that words can be both sharp and dull: they can alter a moment, injure those closest to us, and they become smoke when they have burnt a cellophane of emotions. That and it’s surely romantic to be made love to against a row of bookshelves (but mind the cunt-calling please).
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Still one of my favorite books of all time. If you like the meta-cognitive examination of the novel and its power, this book is for you. If you don't, you'll probably think this book is pretentious. I'm interested to see what my book club will think. Full review to follow.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    An amazing novel about the consequences of a youth's ignorance. This is just a lovely book that is written so well. The book can be slow, but the writing prose sucks you in to every sentence. The book is in 3 parts, the first with lovers at a young age, second during WWII, and the third for the atonement. The 3 main characters are great and the story is amazing. I highly recommend this book.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I like Ian McEwan's writing style but I was confused about the point of this book. The narrator didn't seem to really doing any real atoning... Was that the point?
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I really enjoyed it, but I kept expecting to get sucked in like the movie, and that didn't happen. Both followed most of the same plot, I just didn't feel as much emotion from the book.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    I have heard good things about this book and really wanted to like it. Three chapters in, I gave up. It simply did not hold my interest. It is no longer in my collection. I set it free via Book Crossing.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Oh good, this has lots of reviews, so I will only comment on why it didn't work for me and I quit reading it at chapter twelve. The telling of the tale is tortuously slow. When you see that all paths lead to misery in a book, and yet each scene is repeatedly told from each character's point of view, well, let's just say that I don't have enough reading time left in my life to spend on stories like that. The prose was excellent, and the characters were interesting, I even liked the way the author was telling the tale, so if I were in a different place in life I might have enjoyed wallowing in this story. I'm just not there.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Beautifully written but often slow novel about how a child's misinterpretation of an adult moment and a thoughtlessly spiteful act can echo down decades.The character of Briony Tallis is brilliantly drawn -- a precocious child of 13, the adored baby of a nouveau riche British family, Briony is also a budding writer whose melodramatic tales of foolish love, betrayal, and ultimate happy-ever-after are praised by her family. When she sees, but does not hear, an exchange between her older sister and the sister's potential suitor, she misunderstands the flirtation for threatening behavior on the part of the young man. Thinking she is protecting her sister, Briony falsely accuses him in an act that destroys the young man's future and puts him on the front lines in Britain's disastrous retreat from Dunkirk.This is not an easy read. It's dark, and the characters aren't always likable. The descriptions of the Dunkirk retreat and the scenes set in the London hospitals that receive the survivors, is brutal. Still, McEwan's prose drives the story and demands that the reader hang on for the denouement.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The mark of a good novel is knowing how it's going to end, but still being shocked and heartbroken when you get there.

    I'm sure everyone has already said everything there is to be said about Atonement, a novel my mother proclaimed "the movie made me cry!" Well, mother, the book made your daughter cry. And I knew. I KNEW how it had to end, because there could be no other ending, and I still cried a river.

    This book is incredibly human. I think every single person will relate to it, because we all make mistakes we wish we could atone for and sometimes...

    we can't.

    And we're forced to live with our guilt forever.

    Is there anything sadder than that?
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A great book, really, the more I revisit it the better it becomes. The account of the retreat to Dunkirk was very gripping and the ending has a magnificent twist. Brings things into focus very well.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Normally I would give a book I enjoyed this much a fuller review, but I only just finished it and I'm still crying. Suffice to say it's good, really good, the characterisation captivated me and the slow, lingering atmosphere and remorse it builds is staggering. But it doesn't crawl either, it's not an action packed book at all, but there is so much richness in its slow-moving time. I suspect many people find this book just-so and I'm not saying it's perfect, but something about it caught me. (Part of that is definitely war-time Robbie. Call me easy, I don't care)