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Marc Levy
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The Last of the Stanfields Kindle Edition

by Marc Levy (Author), Daniel Wasserman (Translator) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 10,509 ratings
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A mystery, a love story, and a search through a shadowy past. Two strangers unite in this novel of family secrets by international bestselling author Marc Levy, the most read contemporary French author in the world.

When London journalist Eleanor-Rigby Donovan receives an anonymous letter alluding to a crime committed by her deceased mother, her life is turned upside down. It points her to a bar on the Baltimore Harbor, where she finds a stranger who has received the same mysterious letter about his own mother. Together, Eleanor-Rigby and this young man, George-Harrison Collins, embark on a quest through the shadowy past of the Stanfields, a moneyed Maryland family full of unimaginable secrets. These secrets will transport them back decades, across continents, and to a mysterious crime long buried…until now.

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  1. Print length
    385 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Amazon Crossing
  5. Publication date
    January 1, 2019
  6. File size
    2541 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Get to know this book

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  1. What's it about?

    A journalist receives an anonymous letter alluding to a crime committed by her deceased mother, leading her on a quest with a stranger to uncover family secrets and a long-buried crime.

  2. Popular highlight

    When an old person dies, it’s as though a library has burnt to the ground.
    603 Kindle readers highlighted this

  3. Popular highlight

    Prejudice is the prerogative of people convinced they know everything.
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    My father replied, “The key to lasting love is knowing how to give.”
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“[A] breezy family drama that plays out its familiar narrative beats right on time.” —Kirkus Reviews

“The Last of the Stanfields is a compelling tale of mystery, love, and a search through a shadowy past.” —Brooklyn Digest

“Amusing at times, nostalgic and wistful at others…” —New York Journal of Books

From the Publisher

I am one of the millions of Marc Levy fans around the world eagerly awaiting each new book. This month, we are very much in luck. Levy’s latest book to be translated from French is The Last of the Stanfields—a love story and mystery spanning three generations of the titular family, crafted with Levy’s trademark humor, perfect dramatic pacing, and unforgettable characters.

Heroine Eleanor-Rigby Donovan plunges us immediately into her story by showing us what’s at stake—which is nothing less than both a missing fortune and the future of her family. Eleanor is mourning the recent loss of her much-beloved mother Sally-Anne, when she gets an anonymous letter. Sally-Anne, the letter claims, was not the person that Eleanor and her family thought she was, hinting darkly that she might have had a criminal past. “Your mother was a brilliant and remarkable woman, capable of great good…and great evil. Until now, you have only known the good.”

What’s a daughter to do but jump on the next plane from London to Baltimore and dig into the secrets of the past, taking grateful readers along for the ride? Who could resist throwing themselves into the quest to uncover the truth of a parent’s past? And we are lucky enough to come along for the twists and turns of the adventure.

- Elizabeth DeNoma, Editor

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B079DPT97R
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Amazon Crossing (January 1, 2019)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 1, 2019
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2541 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 385 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1503904059
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 10,509 ratings

About the author

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Marc Levy

Marc Levy

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Marc Levy was born in France. When he turned eighteen, he joined the Red Cross, where he spent the next six years. In 1983, he created a computer graphics company based in France and the United States. Six years later, he co-founded an interior design and planning company with two friends; the company soon became one of the leading architecture firms in France.

At thirty-seven, Marc Levy wrote a story for the man that his son would grow up to be. In early 1999, his sister, a screenwriter (now a film director), encouraged him to send the manuscript to a French publisher, who immediately decided to publish If Only It Were True. Before it was published, Steven Spielberg (Dreamworks) acquired film rights to the novel. The movie, Just like Heaven, starring Reese Witherspoon and Mark Ruffalo, was a #1 box office hit in America in 2005.

After If Only It Were True, Marc Levy began writing full-time. Since then, he has written 25 novels. His work has been translated into 50 languages and has sold over 50 million copies worldwide.

His last novel "The Symphony of Monsters" has been published in France on October 17, 2023.

In addition, Marc Levy has directed a short movie, written short stories and song lyrics for various artists, including Johnny Hallyday.

Le Figaro newspaper recently commissioned a nationwide poll asking the French to rank their favorite author: Marc Levy and Victor Hugo were #1.

Marc Levy currently lives in New York City.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
10,509 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the plot interesting, peculiar, and charming. They also say the book is worth reading, unique, and cute. Readers describe the characters as interesting and fascinating. They praise the writing style as wonderful, funny, and expertly paced. Opinions are mixed on comprehensibility and pacing, with some finding it easy to follow and others finding it confusing at times.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Select to learn more
PlotEnjoyabilityCharactersWriting styleEngagingnessComprehensibilityPacingContent
555 customers mention "Plot"459 positive96 negative

Customers find the plot interesting, with lots of twists and turns. They also appreciate the interesting structure with parallel stories. Readers describe the book as rich, with convincing family dynamics. They mention that the book is exquisitely written, with a peculiar yet charming sense of history.

"...The mysteries keep mounting. The twists and turns are fascinating and the ending totally unexpected, well parts of the ending were anyhow...." Read more

"Overall, I enjoyed this book. I liked the plot and the fact that it encompassed aspects of thriller, mystery and romance genres...." Read more

"...names of Eleanor-Rigby and (later) George-Harrison give this book a peculiar, yet charming, sense of oddness from the start...." Read more

"...The historical value and how it was weaved into the story was interesting and well done...." Read more

410 customers mention "Enjoyability"410 positive0 negative

Customers find the book enjoyable, well-drawn, and fun. They also say the storyline and premise feel unique. Customers also say it's touching, realistic, and easy to read.

"This book is a can’t put down read. The characters are so complex and colorful. The mysteries keep mounting...." Read more

"...But honestly I could see this book becoming a movie and being a very good one, assuming someone came in and gave Eleanor-Rigby and George-Harrison..." Read more

"...plot spread across countries, generations, and years, this is an engaging book that kept me up later than I should have been to see what would..." Read more

"Second book I've read by him and it's another cute and easy to read book. Very much enjoyed it...." Read more

186 customers mention "Characters"156 positive30 negative

Customers find the characters interesting.

"This book is a can’t put down read. The characters are so complex and colorful. The mysteries keep mounting...." Read more

"...in 2016, 1980, and wartime years starting in 1944, with secondary characters well described with their own quirks...." Read more

"...The characters are finally crafted and well rounded. Robert Stanfield became more interesting the more he receded into mist of time past...." Read more

"This was a great read with a unique story and great character development. I would recommend it. Three more words." Read more

185 customers mention "Writing style"151 positive34 negative

Customers find the writing style wonderful, light, and funny. They also say the book is a beautiful tale of love and loss that plucks at their heartstrings.

"...The writing is compelling, well edited and translated. I would look for more from this author. An example from Eleanor-Rigby:..." Read more

"...Generally I found this book easy to read; not too complicated even though the story line jumped between decades on a regular basis and had a..." Read more

"Second book I've read by him and it's another cute and easy to read book. Very much enjoyed it...." Read more

"...A beautifully written tale of love and loss, exquisitely plucking at one's heartstrings and toying with one's emotions - I won't spoil the story but..." Read more

41 customers mention "Engagingness"30 positive11 negative

Customers find the book engaging, with characters and story that keep them moving forward. They say the plot is interesting and the action keeps moving.

"...Still, this book wasimpossible to put down which is why I gave it four stars." Read more

"...The mysteries which make up the plot are well handled and the book was hard to put down until the final denouement in the last chapter was over." Read more

"...A lot of the humor, for example about the Trump 2016 campaign, felt heavy-handed; which resulted in more eye-rolling rather than giggles...." Read more

"...A thoroughly good Saturday read, full of complex characters and much action." Read more

78 customers mention "Comprehensibility"45 positive33 negative

Customers find the book easy to follow and well written. They also say the historical facts are true and easy to ignore. However, some customers find the plot confusing at times and tedious. They are disappointed in the lack of detail surrounding the area.

"...Generally I found this book easy to read; not too complicated even though the story line jumped between decades on a regular basis and had a..." Read more

"...Like all books in this genre, the plot is ridiculous and convoluted at times. But it remained believable to the end...." Read more

"...It is a past and present based book but the plot is easy to follow along with the each characters story." Read more

"...It started a bit slow and did have some tedious parts, but by the time the reveal came, I had to rate this a solid 4 stars." Read more

64 customers mention "Pacing"26 positive38 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the pacing of the book. Some find it perfect, while others say it's a little slow in the beginning.

"...It started a bit slow and did have some tedious parts, but by the time the reveal came, I had to rate this a solid 4 stars." Read more

"...The book unfurls slowly, building characters until you're comfortable enough with them to care before plunging deeper into their family background...." Read more

"This book was a challenge for me to get into. I felt as though it started very slow and the dialogue was a bit juvenile and left a bit to be desired...." Read more

"...It was well written and fast paced and I must admit a real page turner. It was suspenseful, had romance, family history as well as a bit of comedy...." Read more

26 customers mention "Content"18 positive8 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the content. Some find the book has lots of detail, keeping them interested and guessing. They also say it offers insights into history and different types of people. However, some customers feel the sex is minimal and hardly graphic.

"...The author did an excellent job adding information at just the right times to make your brain re-examine its theories right from the start...." Read more

"...I found the reading easy, keeping me interested and guessing...." Read more

"...It's much too long and is filled with a lot of superfluous fluff...." Read more

"...None of it is graphically detailed. Coarse language is never offensive to me, if it rings true for the characters so that was not a factor...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

Marilyn Sultar
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow!
Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2024
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This book is a can’t put down read. The characters are so complex and colorful. The mysteries keep mounting. The twists and turns are fascinating and the ending totally unexpected, well parts of the ending were anyhow. The story takes us to Baltimore, Maryland, then London, England, moves around mostly from there to France, to Spain, and Canada, not necessarily in that order. It involves a story of Hanna, a Holocaust survivor, and Robert, a resistance fighter, and their family. It is a story about the world of art and the drive for luxury and security. It is a story of lies. I can’t recommend this book highly enough!!!
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Sharon R -- A Regular Gal
4.0 out of 5 stars A good book overall
Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2018
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Overall, I enjoyed this book. I liked the plot and the fact that it encompassed aspects of thriller, mystery and romance genres.

The reason I'm giving it 4 stars instead of 5 is that the dialogue throughout really never rang true for me, especially the dialogue between the two main characters. I had read other reviews mentioning that this French author didn't have a good ear for American dialogue and I assumed they meant he occasionally mixed up a metaphor or colloquialism. But that's not it - the things the characters say and the meanings we're supposed to glean from the dialogue often don't gel. In many instances, one character will be laughing or having an internal dialogue about the conversation they just had and I couldn't figure out what they were laughing at or why the character would infer what they did from the conversation. Not to say there aren't some good bits of humor in the book - there are. But the the dialogue, typically one of my favorite parts of a good book, was frequently rather weak.

Spoilers below!

The other reason I'm giving it for 4-stars is that there were some plot points that didn't make sense to me. I assumed throughout most of the book that Robert had retrieved all of the art when he went back to the hunting lodge before they fled for Spain. At the end of the book, when I realized he had retrieved only one painting, I couldn't understand it. Perhaps there wasn't room to carry more than one painting and if so, it would make sense for Robert to noodle through that while he was getting the one painting, mentioning how he wished he could have taken all of them but there was just no room in his knapsack.

The second part of the plot that made no sense to me was how his wife determined what really happened when he was taken prisoner based on the fact that he retrieved that painting. Even after thinking about it from several angles, I still don't understand how that implicates him as a traitor, a plot point that was critical to the whole book. As for his retrieval of the tandem bike, that could easily have been explained - it could have been left by the side of the road when he was taken and he could have run back by that same location on his way back to the hunting lodge.

But honestly I could see this book becoming a movie and being a very good one, assuming someone came in and gave Eleanor-Rigby and George-Harrison completely new dialogue and maybe fine-tuned the aspect concerning how Robert was able to escape the enemy. I definitely did not guess all the parts of the mystery until the very end and I enjoyed that very much.
2 people found this helpful
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Goth Gone Grey
5.0 out of 5 stars Multi-generational family secrets
Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2018
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Lead characters with unlikely, quirky names of Eleanor-Rigby and (later) George-Harrison give this book a peculiar, yet charming, sense of oddness from the start. The book unfurls slowly, building characters until you're comfortable enough with them to care before plunging deeper into their family background. The author is treating this as a nuanced chess match, not checkers.

With the plot spread across countries, generations, and years, this is an engaging book that kept me up later than I should have been to see what would happen next, and who was pulling the strings. The core of the book is strong, resourceful women in 2016, 1980, and wartime years starting in 1944, with secondary characters well described with their own quirks.

The writing is compelling, well edited and translated. I would look for more from this author. An example from Eleanor-Rigby:

"At the beginning, I set off to see the world, scouring the globe in search of hope, something I was sorely lacking at the age of twenty. I wanted to break away from a life that was mapped out in advance. I was desperate to avoid being boxed in to the type of life my mother had led, the same sort of path that Maggie seemed to have no qualms about pursuing. I had to leave my family to learn to love them again. Because in spite of all the love around me, I found suburban life to be suffocating and unbearable."
12 people found this helpful
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Altoona Story Teller
3.0 out of 5 stars A mediocre book for me
Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2019
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I read many of the reviews on The Last of the Stanfields before purchasing it. I was hesitant to download it because of some of the very negative reviews but there were many praise worthy reviews as well so I took a chance. Generally I found this book easy to read; not too complicated even though the story line jumped between decades on a regular basis and had a large number of characters. I enjoyed the relationship of Eleanor's family and especially how devoted the father was to his three adult children. I am not going to reveal the story line in my review because I think that ruins a book for those thinking about reading it. The historical value and how it was weaved into the story was interesting and well done. Toward the end of the book I became a little confused as the writer started to pull all the facets of the story toward a quick conclusion. I would say that was one of my disappointments in the book; a buildup of the characters and then a quick wrap up. I enjoyed the story and would recommend it to readers but I admit it was a mediocre book for me.
2 people found this helpful
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Linnea
4.0 out of 5 stars Easy read
Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2024
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Second book I've read by him and it's another cute and easy to read book. Very much enjoyed it. It is a past and present based book but the plot is easy to follow along with the each characters story.
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Johnny Jinx
5.0 out of 5 stars A riveting story
Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2023
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When I started reading 'The Last of the Stanfields,' I was expecting at best a good story about a search for family roots.

What Marc Levy has given us is a tale, full of twists, turns, and unexpected trips 'down the rabbit hole' (to borrow from Alice in Wonderland).
Just as I felt that I had a grasp on the narrative, it would slip out of my hand and head down a totally different path. So much so that I stayed up all night, just to see how it ended.

A beautifully written tale of love and loss, exquisitely plucking at one's heartstrings and toying with one's emotions - I won't spoil the story but one of the biggest plot surprises comes in the last few lines.

A highly recommended book, both beautifully written and translated.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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schnitz
3.0 out of 5 stars The story line is somewhat flawed ant entirely logical. It makes for a good read but the flaws destroy the story line. I cannot reveal the two flaws as that would reveal
Reviewed in Canada on June 29, 2022
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the story. So I will try another of Levy's novels and see if I can find it more interesting and flawless.
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SB
5.0 out of 5 stars Ohne die Vergangenheit gibt es keine Zukunft
Reviewed in Germany on August 26, 2020
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Da ich ein Fan von Marc Levy bin, konnte ich nicht auf die Übersetzung seines neuesten Romans warten und habe es mir in Englisch bestellt. Es ist wieder ein typischer Levy mit ein bisschen Mystery, Romantik und viel Spannung. Dabei nicht abgehoben, denn es hätte so passieren können...
Für mich ein echter Lesegenuss! Sabine
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Lynda Kelly
5.0 out of 5 stars Please Read It-A Terrific Story
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 5, 2018
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I will most definitely be reading more by this author. This is probably one the best books I've read this year, I just loved it. It was my Kindle First free one for December.....I wasn't really blown away by any of the titles offered, to be honest, and just picked this as the best of a mediocre bunch......boy, was I wrong !! For me it has everything; murder and intrigue and really heartfelt moments that had me sobbing.....it's pretty nigh on perfect. Even better since my hopes really weren't that high. The main characters' silly names almost put me off altogether as I thought it might be a bit comedic but it's anything but.
Much of it is set in the 1980s although I "felt" more like it was the 1920s we were living through-it just had that flavour to me. I lived through the 1980s and yet that terrific decade really didn't feature heavily at all.....
I've read a book about a true-life family, the Garmans (The Rare and the Beautiful) and it brought them to mind for me a great deal as I read it. I loved his characters, well, I loved everything about it....that's it. All the way through I made little notes about what I thought was happening but as usual I was wonderfully wrong ! My favourite moment in the whole story was in Madrid........it was superbly described, even though I sat here bawling !
The story kicks off in London and I was initially irritated that the spellings are American ones but then it moved across the water and I learned at the end that the translator is American so I let that go. I thought weapons cache needed an apostrophe and I think the time differences got messed up as we're ahead of the USA, editor in chief needed hyphenating and one time soldier was written as solider but that was my lot for errors.....
I do hope my little review encourages people to maybe give this a go as it really is terrific, trust me.
17 people found this helpful
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Shirley McDonald
5.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting
Reviewed in Australia on January 4, 2019
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A very good read. After receiving an anonymous letter Eleanor then starts to to try discover more about her mother and her past history. I liked the way this book went from the 1980's to the present time. It was very interesting and kept your attention.
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R
5.0 out of 5 stars Spannende Geschichte
Reviewed in Germany on February 28, 2019
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Die Geschichte ist spannend geschrieben, der Schreibstil ist angenehm zu lesen. Am Anfang habe ich mich etwas schwer getan, in die Geschichte reinzukommen. Insgesamt hat mir das Buch aber sehr gut gefallen, das Ende lässt auch keine Wünsche offen.
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