The Princess Passes
Charles Norris Williamson
Read by Grant Hurlock
An American heiress nicknamed the Manitou Princess (after her daddy's richest silver mine) is devastated to find that her fiancé only loves her money, so she does what anyone might do: she bolts for Europe, dons male attire and sets out on a walking tour of the Alps. Though professing hatred of all men, she soon falls in with a just-jilted English lord, aptly named Monty Lane, who is attempting to walk off a broken heart of his own. The Princess Passes presents the ups and downs of their alpine relationship through the unpenetrating eyes of Lord Lane.
Co-author Alice Livingston, of Poughkeepsie, New York, mentions in her memoirs that she sailed for Europe after a boyfriend tried to shoot her. In London she met literary editor Charles Williamson and began writing for the story magazines of media mogul Lord Northcliffe. At one point she found herself scribbling six serials simultaneously, on the income from which she and Williamson married. She later spun some of her husband's detailed descriptive notes made during their motor-trips abroad into a string of bestselling novels involving automobiling, then a novelty
.
The central romantic action of The Princess Passes recalls comic situations of Shakespeare's cross-dressing heroines and is bookended by automobile-themed sequences as the narrator and friends (hero & heroine of the Williamsons' first novel, The Lightning Conductor) motor south through the magnificent, peaceful mountain passes of pre-World War I Europe. (Summary by Grant Hurlock) (11 hr 36 min)
Chapters
Woman Disposes | 20:30 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
Mercedes to the Rescue | 35:30 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
My Lesson | 24:53 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
Pots, Kettles, and Other Things | 25:18 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
In Search of a Mule | 13:49 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Wings of the Wind | 33:48 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
At Last! | 18:54 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Making of a Mystery | 15:27 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Brat | 30:36 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Scraping of Acquaintance | 20:52 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
A Shadow of Night | 19:47 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Princess | 18:23 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
Afternoon Calls | 27:05 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Path of the Moon | 34:10 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
Enter the Contessa | 17:26 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
A Man from the Dark | 32:34 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
A Little Game of Flirtation | 20:05 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
Rank Tyranny | 15:03 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Little Rift Within the Lute | 21:16 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Great Paolo | 14:50 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Challenge | 16:22 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
An American Custom | 9:46 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
There Is No Such Girl | 26:05 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Revenge of the Mountain | 41:25 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Americans | 23:08 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Vanishing of the Prince | 26:02 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Strange Mushroom | 22:41 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The World Without the Boy | 19:29 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Fairy Prince's Ring | 19:45 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Day of Suspense | 10:13 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
The Boy's Sister | 21:19 | Read by Grant Hurlock |
Reviews
Unexpected companions
Julia R
Beautifully told story of two people trying to get over being jilted. They each end up taking a long walking tour through the mountains, to get over their loss, and when they happen to meet up, they take an instant dislike to one another, which gradually grows into a warm friendship as they travel in together. Wonderful descriptions of the sights along the way. Clean.
berty
Bertie
so enjoyed this book .almost travel with them.not to be rushed.
ellene
Switzerland for the armchair tourist
First of all, reviewers don’t have to pass judgement on others because they don’t happen to care for the genre. Why mention it in the first place? Who cares? I liked this odd story and I’m glad I listened in. The narrator’s boring monotone was maddening but I solved that problem by increasing the speaking pace. Then it was tolerable. The story was mostly travelogue, the relationship clearly homosexual. Her transformation mattered little. Story somewhat shallow because of sketchy character development in contrast to the vivid descriptions of the landscape.
TheTellMeLady
Travel enthusiasts will be satisfied, those interested in the history of the automobile will be delighted, and anyone searching for a bit of a romantic farce will find that here.
totally worth a listen
obx12
Great reader and enjoyable plot
engaging book
A LibriVox Listener
Well narrated and engaging characters.
Ms. Elizabeth
offering contructive criticism, scifi would suit readers voice better. It's so strange, when he's reading the announcement part, he does not sound like this. No, I couldn't do it any better. I may try to listen another time or another reader.