The Head of the House of Coombe & Robin (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Historical NovelsBy Frances Hodgson Burnett
Length24h 6m
About this audiobook
The Head of the House of Coombe & Robin traces the emotional and moral education of Robin Gareth-Lawless, a neglected child raised amid the glittering decadence of Edwardian society and later tested by war, love, and social upheaval. Burnett's prose mingles melodrama, psychological observation, and fairy-tale patterning, yet the work is darker than her best-known children's fiction. Set against prewar aristocratic London and the shadow of the First World War, it examines class privilege, maternal failure, guardianship, and the redemptive power of steadfast affection. Frances Hodgson Burnett, born in Manchester in 1849 and later transplanted to America, repeatedly wrote about displaced children, fragile households, and the making of identity across social boundaries. Her own experience of bereavement, migration, financial struggle, and literary celebrity informs the novel's fascination with vulnerability and survival. Having achieved fame with Little Lord Fauntleroy, A Little Princess, and The Secret Garden, Burnett here adapts familiar themes for an adult historical moment marked by anxiety and loss. This paired work is recommended to readers interested in late Victorian and Edwardian fiction, women's authorship, and the transition from domestic romance to wartime narrative. It offers both emotional intensity and cultural insight, rewarding those who appreciate Burnett beyond her canonical children's classics.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A comprehensive Introduction outlines these selected works' unifying features, themes, or stylistic evolutions.
- The Author Biography highlights personal milestones and literary influences that shape the entire body of writing.
- A Historical Context section situates the works in their broader era—social currents, cultural trends, and key events that underpin their creation.
- A concise Synopsis (Selection) offers an accessible overview of the included texts, helping readers navigate plotlines and main ideas without revealing critical twists.
- A unified Analysis examines recurring motifs and stylistic hallmarks across the collection, tying the stories together while spotlighting the different work's strengths.
- Reflection questions inspire deeper contemplation of the author's overarching message, inviting readers to draw connections among different texts and relate them to modern contexts.
- Lastly, our hand‐picked Memorable Quotes distill pivotal lines and turning points, serving as touchstones for the collection's central themes.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 3.8 (263)
Includes Goodreads
GenreRomance, Historical Fiction
Length24 hrs 6 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateJan 6, 2019
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2Introduction
3Author Biography
4Historical Context
5Synopsis (Selection)
Show all chaptersShow less
6The Head of the House of Coombe & Robin
7The Head of the House of Coombe (pt. 1)
8The Head of the House of Coombe (pt. 2)
9The Head of the House of Coombe (pt. 3)
10The Head of the House of Coombe (pt. 4)
11The Head of the House of Coombe (pt. 5)
12Robin (pt. 1)
13Robin (pt. 2)
14Robin (pt. 3)
15Robin (pt. 4)
16Robin (pt. 5)
17Analysis
18Reflection
19Memorable Quotes
High Society Romance: 40 Gilded Age NovelsFrances Hodgson Burnett, Gene Stratton-Porter, Edith Wharton, Mark Twain, George Eliot, Louisa May Alcott, Guy de Maupassant, Mrs. Oliphant, Alexandre Dumas fils, Edmund Yates, Robert Barr, Booth Tarkington, Albert Ross, Edward Bulwer Lytton, Leo Tolstoy, John Galsworthy, Thomas Hardy, George William Curtis, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Henry James, Mrs. Alexander, Horatio Alger, David Graham Phillips, Theodore Dreiser, Anna Katharine Green, Grace Livingston Hill, Wilkie Collins, Mary Augusta Ward, George Meredith, George Gissing710h 49m$1.99
Der kleine Lord (Weihnachtsedition) (Kommentiert)Frances Hodgson Burnett7h 54m4.6 (1.2K)$1 · $0.00
The Story of Prince Fairyfoot (Stories from the Lost Fairy-Book, Re-told by the Child Who Read Them) (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett2h 33m$2 · $0.00
That Lass o' Lowrie's (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett9h 29m$2 · $0.00
The Making of a Marchioness & Its Sequel, The Methods of Lady Walderhurst (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett9h 55m4.0 (13.8K)$2 · $0.00
Der kleine Lord (Kommentiert)Frances Hodgson Burnett7h 59m4.3 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
A Lady of Quality & His Grace of Osmonde (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett21h 20m$2 · $0.00
The Shuttle (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett25h 2m4.0 (1.5K)$3 · $0.00
The Land of the Blue Flower (Illustrated Edition) (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett4h 45m4.0 (573)$2 · $0.00
Through One Administration (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett20h 21m$2 · $0.00
The Secret Garden, A Little Princess & Little Lord Fauntleroy (Illustrated) (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett23h 51m4.4 (840)$2 · $0.00
A Fair BarbarianFrances Hodgson Burnett6h 9m4.0 (370)$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Frances Hodgson Burnett (Illustrated Edition)Frances Hodgson Burnett244h 47m$1 · $0.00
LoduskyFrances Hodgson Burnett1h 17m2.6 (25)$2 · $0.00
The Pretty Sister Of JoséFrances Hodgson Burnett2h 52m3.3 (46)$1 · $0.00
The Making of a Marchioness (Emily Fox-Seton, Complete)Frances Hodgson Burnett8h 39m3.8 (7.1K)$2 · $0.00
Two Little Pilgrims' ProgressFrances Hodgson Burnett4h 23m3.9 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
T. TembaromFrances Hodgson Burnett21h 19m4.0 (515)$1 · $0.00
The Making of a Marchioness + The Shuttle (2 Unabridged Classic Romances)Frances Hodgson Burnett33h 1m4.4 (119)$1 · $0.00
Miss CrespignyFrances Hodgson Burnett5h 26m3.7 (590)$2 · $0.00
The Chandler Brothers, the Entire CollectionCarly Phillips26h 33m4.7 (3.6K)$30
Breath of HeavenDeborah Raney9h 11m4.7 (759)$23
Desperate MeasuresBrenda Jackson8h 59m4.7 (669)$28 · $0.00
Pride & Prejudice (Annotated)Jane Austen15h 10m4.7 (13.3K)$2 · $0.00
Searching For ThanksgivingS.E. Smith4h 24m4.8 (395)$20
The InheritanceBlair Howard6h 40m4.8 (283)$23
The Dance with Me TrilogyShelley Shepard Gray21h 44m4.7 (1.2K)$35
The Search (Annotated)Grace Livingston Hill7h 29m4.7 (1.1K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Captivating WarriorCami Checketts, Daniel Banner4h 8m4.7 (608)$15
TimberTate James15h 36m4.6 (28.8K)$23
The ReunionJana Deleon6h 31m4.6 (1.6K)$26 · $0.00
Long LostLexi Blake13h 12m4.6 (3.2K)$23
The Vineyard BrideKatie Winters5h 5m4.6 (1.9K)$15
Something Like LoveBeverly Jenkins10h 21m4.6 (2.7K)$29 · $0.00
Wishes from the HeartSophie Mays4h 9m4.7 (343)$15 · $0.00
Blizzard ShowdownShirlee McCoy5h 16m4.6 (1.1K)$12 · $0.00
The Heart of CourageLynne Basham Tagawa10h 57m4.7 (240)$20
Love Inspired Suspense October 2025 - Box Set 2 of 2Laura Scott, Carrie Stuart Parks, Jennifer Pierce17h 34m4.8 (88)$35 · $0.00
To Hold and ProtectSandra Owens7h 59m4.6 (1.1K)$8 · $0.00
The Newly Witch GameRobyn Peterman4h 39m4.7 (549)$15
Ivanhoe (Annotated)Walter Scott22h 52m4.8 (88)$2 · $0.00
Scaramouche (Annotated)Rafael Sabatini15h 24m4.6 (1.8K)$2 · $0.00
Northern ShadowsDaniel Greene12h 52m4.7 (281)$23
The Ghost by the Billabong (The Matilda Saga, #5)Jackie French14h 58m4.6 (773)$33 · $0.00
The Labyrinth of the SpiritsCarlos Ruiz Zafon27h 55m4.5 (77.2K)$53 · $0.00
The Things We Cannot SayKelly Rimmer13h 48m4.5 (359.1K)$33 · $0.00
Their Castilian OrphanAnna Belfrage14h 45m4.7 (122)$27
Lieutenant Hornblower (Annotated)C. S. Forester11h 41m4.5 (2.9K)$2 · $0.00
Eagles over BritainLee Jackson12h 26m4.5 (18.6K)$23
Rilla of InglesideLucy Maud Montgomery11h 44m4.5 (48.2K)$2 · $0.00
The Viennese DressmakerKathryn Gauci11h 46m4.5 (2.1K)$23 · $0.00
The Man in the Brown Suit & They Came to BaghdadAgatha Christie15h 43m4.6 (495)$33 · $0.00
Under the Light of the Italian MoonJennifer Anton12h 28m4.5 (5.3K)$23 · $0.00
Jubilee, 50th Anniversary EditionMargaret Walker15h 43m4.5 (9.5K)$25 · $0.00
Arch of TriumphErich Maria Remarque15h 51m4.4 (36.6K)$28
Serenade for NadiaZülfü Livaneli9h 9m4.4 (20.1K)$20
Pride and PrejudiceJane Austen14h 44m4.4 (4.7M)$2 · $0.00
Flying Colours (Annotated)Cecil Louis Troughton Smith9h 26m4.4 (10.1K)$2 · $0.00
With Love from HarlemReShonda Tate13h 48m4.5 (2K)$6 · $0.00
Under the Java MoonHeather B. Moore12h 23m4.4 (3.2K)$23
You may also like
Washington Square (Annotated)Henry James9h 1m3.9 (32.5K)$2 · $0.00
Tony's WifeAdriana Trigiani12h 39m3.8 (8.5K)$33 · $0.00
Washington SquareHenry James7h 21m3.9 (35.2K)$1.20 · $0.00
The Chanel SistersJudithe Little9h 35m4.0 (16.2K)$29 · $0.00
Bright Arrows (Musaicum Romance Classics)Grace Livingston Hill9h 2m4.3 (624)$1 · $0.00
Sense and SensibilityJane Austen10h 49m4.2 (1.4M)$5 · $0.00
A Life: The Humble Truth (The Classic Unabridged English Edition) (Annotated)Guy de Maupassant7h 56m4.0 (19.1K)$2 · $0.00
MonticelloSally Cabot Gunning11h 54m4.0 (2.4K)$29 · $0.00
Rilla of InglesideL. M. Montgomery11h 40m4.4 (72.5K)$25
THE GREATEST DICKENS CLASSICS (Illustrated Edition)Charles Dickens337h 30m4.5 (1.2K)$1 · $0.00
Rilla of Ingleside (Annotated)Lucy Maud Montgomery13h 27m4.4 (67.1K)$2 · $0.00
WASHINGTON SQUAREHenry James8h 45m4.0 (54K)$2 · $0.00
The Triumph of the LionsStefania Auci13h 7m4.2 (520)$33 · $0.00
An Orkney MaidAmelia E. Barr3h 56m3.4 (17)$1 · $0.00
Love and LamentJohn Milliken Thompson13h 7m3.3 (220)$23
Collected Plays of W. Somerset Maugham (Annotated)William Somerset Maugham22h 14m4.6 (12)$2 · $0.00
Social Determinism and Urban Poverty – 3 Classic Working-Class NovelsStephen Crane, Edith Wharton, Arnold Bennett31h 44m$2
Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy: The Major NovelsFyodor Dostoyevsky, Leo Tolstoy154h 47m4.3 (248)$135 · $0.00
The Lonely WarriorClaude Carlos Washburn11h 20m$2.30
First the BladeClemence Dane11h 43m$2 · $0.00