Audio only
By Invitation Only
A NovelBy Dorothea Benton FrankNarrated by Susan Bennett, Courtney Patterson, Sarah NaughtonLength10h 24m
About this audiobook
The Lowcountry of South Carolina is where By Invitation Only begins at a barbecue engagement party thrown by Diane English Stiftel, her brother Floyd, and her parents to celebrate her son’s engagement. On this gorgeous, magical night, the bride’s father, Alejandro Cambria, a wealthy power broker whose unbelievably successful career in private equity made him one of Chicago’s celebrated elite, discovers the limits and possibilities of cell phone range. While the mother of the bride, Susan Kennedy Cambria, who dabbles in the world of public relations and believes herself deserving of every square inch of her multimillion-dollar penthouse and imaginary carrara marble pedestal, learns about moonshine and dangerous liaisons.
Soon By Invitation Only zooms to Chicago, where the unraveling accelerates. Nearly a thousand miles away from her comfortable, familiar world, Diane is the antithesis of the bright lights and super-sophisticated guests attending her son Fred’s second engagement party. Why a second party? Maybe it had been assumed that the first one wouldn’t be up to snuff? Fred is marrying Shelby Cambria, also an only child. The Cambrias’ dearest wish is for their daughter to be happy. If Shelby wants to marry Frederick, aka Fred, they will not stand in her way—although Susan does hope her friends won’t think her daughter is marrying more than a few degrees beneath her socially. At the same time, Diane worries that her son will be lost to her forever.
By Invitation Only is a tale of two families, one struggling to do well, one well to do, and one young couple—the privileged daughter of Chicago’s crème de la crème and the son of hard -working Southern peach farmers.
Dorothea Benton Frank offers a funny, sharp, and deeply empathetic novel of two very different worlds—of limousines and pickup trucks, caviars and pigs, skyscrapers and ocean spray—filled with a delightful cast of characters who all have something to hide and a lot to learn. A difference in legal opinions, a headlong dive from grace, and an abrupt twist will reveal the truth of who they are and demonstrate, when it truly counts, what kind of grit they have. Are they living the life they want, what regrets do they hold, and how would they remake their lives if they were given the invitation to do so?
By Invitation Only is classic Dorothea Benton Frank—a mesmerizing Lowcountry Tale that roars with spirit, humor, and truth, and forces us to reconsider our notions of what it means to be a Have or a Have Not.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 4.0 (21.4K)
Includes Goodreads, Amazon, LibraryThing
GenreGeneral Fiction, Romance
Length10 hrs 24 mins
Narrated bySusan Bennett, Courtney Patterson, Sarah Naughton
FormatAudiobook
Publish dateMay 15, 2018
LanguageEnglish
More from Dorothea Benton Frank
The Hurricane SistersDorothea Benton Frank10h 27m3.8 (27.4K)$29 · $0.00
The Land of Mango SunsetsDorothea Benton Frank12h 14m4.0 (10.5K)$29 · $0.00
The Last Original WifeDorothea Benton Frank11h 38m3.9 (23.3K)$29 · $0.00
Return to Sullivans IslandDorothea Benton Frank12h 6m3.9 (10.9K)$29 · $0.00
The Land of Mango SunsetsDorothea Benton Frank6h 2m4.1 (9.4K)$24 · $0.00
Porch LightsDorothea Benton Frank10h 47m4.0 (20.2K)$29 · $0.00
Same Beach, Next YearDorothea Benton Frank9h 56m3.8 (23.7K)$29 · $0.00
Queen BeeDorothea Benton Frank10h 8m3.9 (26K)$29 · $0.00
All the Single LadiesDorothea Benton Frank10h 55m$29 · $0.00
Lowcountry SummerDorothea Benton Frank12h 13m4.1 (10.4K)$29 · $0.00
Bulls IslandDorothea Benton Frank11h 27m4.0 (10.6K)$29 · $0.00
All Summer LongDorothea Benton Frank10h 50m3.5 (13.6K)$29 · $0.00
Full of GraceDorothea Benton Frank10h 53m3.9 (8.9K)$29 · $0.00
Folly BeachDorothea Benton Frank13h 7m3.9 (14.2K)$33 · $0.00
Full of GraceDorothea Benton Frank6h 20m3.9 (10K)$24 · $0.00
The Christmas PearlDorothea Benton Frank3h 28m3.8 (13.2K)$18 · $0.00
WhistlerAnn Patchett10h 45m4.6 (4.6K)$29 · $0.00
Demon CopperheadBarbara Kingsolver21h 3m4.5 (949.4K)$46 · $0.00
To Kill a MockingbirdHarper Lee12h 18m4.5 (7.4M)$29 · $0.00
Remarkably Bright CreaturesShelby Van Pelt11h 17m4.4 (1.7M)$29 · $0.00
Cast in BloodMichelle Sagara16h 35m4.6 (607)$33 · $0.00
The Captain Blood Trilogy (Annotated)Rafael Sabatini29h 20m4.6 (1K)$3 · $0.00
Ship of the Line (Annotated)Cecil Louis Troughton Smith11h 13m4.6 (1K)$2 · $0.00
The George Orwell CollectionGeorge Orwell24h 46m4.5 (14.4K)$12 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust15h 38m4.5 (9.2K)$2 · $0.00
Driving ForceElle James4h 58m4.6 (407)$20 · $0.00
When God Calls the HeartBrian Bird, Michelle Cox3h 24m4.6 (439)$10 · $0.00
Five Little IndiansMichelle Good10h 34m4.5 (64.5K)$29 · $0.00
Lolth's WarriorR. A. Salvatore13h 20m4.6 (2.4K)$33 · $0.00
The Things We Cannot SayKelly Rimmer13h 48m4.5 (359.1K)$33 · $0.00
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du BoisHonoree Fanonne Jeffers29h 49m4.5 (58K)$8 · $0.00
Going PostalTerry Pratchett11h 23m4.5 (189.9K)$29 · $0.00
Glen AffricKarine Giebel22h 51m4.5 (3.2K)$46 · $0.00
The Book Of NegroesLawrence Hill15h 45m4.5 (107.3K)$33 · $0.00
Anne of Green GablesL. M. Montgomery11h 1m4.5 (1.2M)$2.30 · $0.00
Lieutenant Hornblower (Annotated)C. S. Forester11h 41m4.5 (2.9K)$2 · $0.00
Following the TrailLynette Eason6h 35m4.6 (2.3K)$12 · $0.00
Her Duty Bound DefenderSharee Stover6h 30m4.6 (559)$12 · $0.00
Defending from DangerJodie Bailey5h 46m4.6 (588)$24 · $0.00
White HotIlona Andrews13h 18m4.5 (136.9K)$5 · $0.00
Explosive RevengeMaggie K. Black6h 18m4.6 (545)$12 · $0.00
Her Brand of JusticeB.J. Daniels6h 48m4.6 (1.3K)$12 · $0.00
Search And DetectTerri Reed5h 51m4.6 (706)$24 · $0.00
Driving ForceElle James4h 58m4.6 (407)$20 · $0.00
Danger in the WildernessDarlene L. Turner6h 54m4.7 (299)$12 · $0.00
Yukon JusticeDana Mentink6h 15m4.6 (751)$12 · $0.00
The Rogue WarriorCindy Roland Anderson5h 44m4.6 (410)$17 · $0.00
Trail Of ThreatsJessica R. Patch5h 47m4.6 (425)$24 · $0.00
Ironwood, a Fae Universe SeriesAlessa Thorn26h 57m4.6 (835)$30 · $0.00
Ready to ProtectValerie Hansen5h 38m4.6 (981)$24 · $0.00
Searching For EvidenceCarol J. Post6h 21m4.6 (552)$24 · $0.00
New Beginnings at Lullbury BayGeorgia Hill6h 59m4.6 (423)$13 · $0.00
Hiding in MontanaLaura Scott6h 18m4.6 (1K)$12 · $0.00
Christmas K-9 Unit HeroesLenora Worth, Katy Lee5h 51m4.6 (507)$24 · $0.00
Three ComradesErich Maria Remarque15h 50m4.5 (47.3K)$2 · $0.00
Craft BrewLayla Reyne7h 50m4.5 (986)$26 · $0.00
You may also like
The Beach Reads BookshopLee Tobin McClain8h 55m4.0 (868)$28 · $0.00
Can This Be Christmas?Debbie Macomber2h 29m3.9 (4.9K)$16 · $0.00
Can This Be Christmas?Debbie Macomber2h 29m3.8 (5.6K)$16 · $0.00
The Wish ListMichelle Major10h 8m4.2 (758)$28 · $0.00
Return to Virgin RiverRobyn Carr7h 46m4.3 (20.3K)$26 · $0.00
No Wedding Like NantucketGrace Palmer6h 31m4.3 (2.1K)$17
The Way Life Should BeChristina Baker Kline7h 20m3.7 (19.6K)$24 · $0.00
The Cottage on Juniper RidgeSheila Roberts9h 23m4.1 (1.4K)$29 · $0.00
New Beginnings at Christmas Tree CottageGeorgia Hill8h 51m4.4 (752)$14 · $0.00
The Friday Night Knitting ClubKate Jacobs12h 37m3.6 (90.3K)$23
Christmas in Icicle FallsSheila Roberts9h 36m4.2 (1.3K)$29 · $0.00
Willa’s GroveLaura Munson11h4.0 (2K)$20
An Island WeddingJenny Colgan12h 26m4.0 (11.5K)$29 · $0.00
Lost Dogs and Lonely HeartsLucy Dillon12h 58m4.0 (8.5K)$30 · $0.00
Woefield Poultry CollectiveSusan Juby7h 51m3.9 (4K)$26 · $0.00
PollyannaEleanor Hodgman Porter6h 32m4.1 (112.4K)$2 · $0.00
The Christmas CabinMichelle Major10h 29m4.1 (572)$28 · $0.00
Summer on Mirror LakeJoAnn Ross12h 21m4.2 (1.5K)$29 · $0.00
Ties That BindMarie Bostwick11h 39m4.1 (3K)$24
Rancher's LawDiana Palmer, Teri Wilson12h 59m4.3 (779)$24 · $0.00