Heathcliff: A Wuthering Heights Story

by Gracie Oddie-James, Daryl McCormack (Narrator), Charlie Rowe (Narrator)

A feverish re-imagining of literature’s most infamous romantic villain.

The Heathcliff we know is obsessive, possessive and cruel, bound and beholden to his childhood love and would-be soulmate Catherine, and their home at Wuthering Heights. But before his descent into monstrous revenge, there were three missing years. A time of possibility, freedom and a different kind of love…

With Cathy’s rejection burning hot in his ears, Heathcliff flees the moors and arrives in London, seeking distraction and oblivion. There he is rescued by Sir Francis Barber, the Black adopted son of Samuel Johnson who urges him to forge his own path. Along the way he meets the reckless gambler, Lord Montgomery and the beautiful courtesan Rhoda Pascal, and begins to chart a path towards fortune, and belonging. In growing closer to Rhoda, he starts to untangle the mystery of who he is, but Cathy's ghostly presence, calling to him like a siren song, draws him ever back to his own dark nature, and the bewildering memories of Wuthering Heights...

Starring Daryl McCormack (Good Luck to You, Leo Grande) as Heathcliff; with Arinzé Kene (The Pass), Charlie Rowe (Slow Horses), Gracie Oddie-James (The Lady from the Sea), Sagar Radia (Industry), Raffey Cassidy (The Brutalist) and Tanya Moodie (Silo).

Written by Gracie Oddie-James. Directed by Mahalia Belo.

Genres: Audiobook, Historical Fiction, Fiction

Audible Audio

Published February 12, 2026

Reviews

[Ryk Stanton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was excited when I saw this book was going to be coming to Audible. I had two little complaints about it.

One was my normal complaint that quality literature does not need profanity. I do think that perhaps Heathcliff is a brutish enough character to use such language, but Catherine certainly is not. That’s just lazy writing.

My other critique is less important, and that is that the first person he meets an interacts with in London is named Francis, and Frances was the name of Hindley‘s wife back at Wuthering Heights, but no mention was made of the coincidence of names. Unless I missed it.

Other than that, a very enjoyable listening experience, one I will listen to again.

[Gabriel Mero · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this "retelling" that details the three years that Heathcliff was away and how he came by his fortune. I took a more literal approach to Heathcliff in Emily Brontë's novel and pictured him as Romani, but here, he's black; the backstory that was created to explain it was logical and added to Heathcliff's turmoil. I especially loved the cameos from Cathy, always haunting Heathcliff's heart.

[Nita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting take on Heathcliff and what he may have gotten up to in the "missing" years. I wish it was more about the ruthless man than the "nobody loves me, boohoo" man. I enjoyed the narration and the background audio kept the story lively, easy to imagine what was happening. This was a good companion for an afternoon walk.

[Kristi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Set during the three years in which Heathcliff is absent from Wuthering Heights, with this short tale Oddie-James attempts to give readers an alternative Heathcliff: a gentler freedom-seeking Heathcliff, who wants to escape Catherine and forge a life for himself as a gentleman; the possibility for redemption denied. But it didn't work for me.

Audible presents an immersive layered audio drama performance, which is compeltely atmospheric and wonderfully acted. (Athough at times the music and lively sound effects made it difficult to hear the character actors, especially to start). Unfortantely, beyond Heathcliff being "haunted" by Catherine, (to me) this doesn't hold up to Bronte, and the story was not a compelling addendum to Bronte's novel.

Allowing that Heathcliff is not a narrative voice in Bronte's novel, and that his telling might differ; also allowing that Wuthering Heights is not a favoite of mine, I was, nonetheless, unconvinced that this is Heathcliff's interium story. The portinons in Heathcliff relates his past expereince were very moving. The Catherine pieces were likewise evocative. But given Heathcliff's obsession with possessing and punishing Catherine, it was uconvincing to me that he quickly fell into another romantic attachment. And the extreme unlikelyhood that this same particular stranger would quickly track down his annonymous mother, was beyond my suspension of disbelief. To my discernment, this story did not explain sufficently—beyond anything in Bronte— why Heathcliff would then return with cruel vengence to Wuthering Heights to make generations pay for his pain, instead of choosing the opportunity for an alternate future.

It simply all seemed superflueous. Aside from the passages that draw directly on Bronte's creation regarding Catherine's psychological hold on Heathcliff, the new imaginings paled in both imagining and believablity, while still relying too heavily on Bronte to offer a true revision or reimagining of Heathcliff's character.

[Natalie Fagan-Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: “Moors, Melodrama, and Magnificent Narration”

Heathcliff by Gracie Oddie-James feels like an answer to a question I’ve carried for years: what on earth happened to Heathcliff when he vanished from Wuthering Heights — and how did he become the man who stormed back onto the moors in the first place? This reimagining leans into that mystery with emotional intensity and atmospheric depth, but what truly elevated the experience for me was the narration. The narrators didn’t simply read the story; they embodied it. Heathcliff’s brooding presence felt layered — wounded, volatile, magnetic — and the shifts between vulnerability and fury were delivered with such nuance that every emotional beat hit harder. The windswept mood, the longing, the simmering resentment all felt alive through their performances. I wasn’t just listening; I was fully immersed, finally exploring the shadows of a character I’ve long been curious about. The narration gave breath and pulse to a story that answers a literary “what if” with grit and heart.

[Lounge505 · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

I struggled through it, the main character fails to embody the essence of Heathcliff. I’m sure he was wounded by Cathy and probably hated her at the beginning, but I think he’s still besotted with her so the idea that he could simply ‘fall for’ another person seem to be wrong and jarring. But I guess the three years void is up to individual’s interpretation, for me it just doesn’t ring true. That said, the means he gets his fortune does feel like a plausible path.

[Kelly Conrad · Rating 2 out of 5]

This wasn’t a great book, by any means, but it was a fun little adventure that filled in the gap of what Heathcliff might have done to get rich before he returned to Wuthering Heights.

It must have been fun for the author to explore this “hole” in the classic original. Obviously she took many liberties, but she stayed true to the characters, and it seemed believable. Definitely not the caliber of Brontë, of course, but like I said, fun to get some more Heathcliff in my life!

[Ida Wilcox · Rating 1 out of 5]

I dont know why I thought I would like this when I don't really care for Wuthering Heights.

[Dav Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Answers the question “what happened to Heathcliffe when he went away?” - imaginative and very very good. Doesn’t shy from his heritage, in fact draws it forth as an ally to the narrative.

[Taylor Cravey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This felt more like a musical with all of the sound effects. There wasn’t a lot to the story but it was great background noise.

[Kendal Connors · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fucking delight

[Patti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very brooding. I need to re-read Wuthering Heights now.

[Evelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This full cast dramatisation finds Heathcliff soul searching, swearing, stock brokering, drinking and fighting during his missing years.
Good fun!