The Forgery of Venus
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Narrated by:
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Eric Conger
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By:
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Michael Gruber
About this listen
This feat attracts the attention of Werner Krebs, a shady art dealer who becomes Wilmot's friend and patron. Wilmot is suddenly working with a fervor he hasn't felt in years, but without warning, he finds himself reliving moments from his past - not as memories but as if they are happening all over again. Soon, he believes he can travel back to the 17th century where he lived as the Spanish artist Diego Rodriguez de Silva Velazquez. Wilmot begins to fantasize that as Velazquez, he has created a masterpiece and when the painting actually turns up, he doesn't know if he painted it or if he imagined the whole thing.
Little by little, Wilmot enters a secret world of gangsters, greed, and murder, with his mystery patron at the center of it all, either as the mastermind behind a plot to forge a painting worth millions, or as the man who will save Wilmot from obscurity and madness. Miraculously inventive, this book cements Gruber's reputation as one of the most imaginative and gifted writers of our time.
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- By Renee on 08-08-18
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Loving Day
- By: Mat Johnson
- Narrated by: J. D. Jackson
- Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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On his first night in his new home, Warren spies two figures in the grass outside; when he screws up the nerve to confront them, they disappear. The next day he encounters ghosts of a different kind: In the face of the teenage girl he meets at a comics convention, he sees the mingled features of his white father and his black mother, both now dead. The girl is his daughter, and she thinks she's white.
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Teen lit with heavy erotic imagery
- By Itinerant T on 08-26-15
By: Mat Johnson
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Young Hearts Crying
- By: Richard Yates
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor
- Length: 12 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Yates movingly portrays a man and a woman from their courtship in the 1950s to their divorce in the '70s, chronicling their heartbreaking attempts to reach their highest ambitions. Michael Davenport dreams of being a poet after returning home from World War II, and at first he and his new wife, Lucy, enjoy their life together. But as the decades pass and the success of others creates a fear of failure in both Michael and Lucy, their once bright future gives way to a life of adultery and isolation.
By: Richard Yates
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Bright Lights, Big City
- By: Jay McInerney
- Narrated by: Daniel Passer
- Length: 5 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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The tragicomedy of a young man in New York City, a writer, never named, who works as a fact-checker for a prestigious magazine. He struggles with the reality of his mother's death, alienation, and the seductive pull of drugs and a vibrant nightlife.
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Curiously, mundanely real
- By Amber on 01-07-12
By: Jay McInerney
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Mortal Friends
- By: Jane Stanton Hitchcock
- Narrated by: Jennifer Van Dyck
- Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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When the latest victim of the "Beltway Basher" is found in the woods of Montrose Park, Reven Lynch's favorite jogging spot, her crime-loving antenna goes up. The murder makes Reven and her best friend, Violet Bolton, reconsider their running route - but that's not the only change in Reven's routine.
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Kept me guessing
- By Anonymous User on 12-30-21
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The Reason You're Alive
- A Novel
- By: Matthew Quick
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray
- Length: 5 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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After 68-year-old David Granger crashes his BMW, medical tests reveal a brain tumor that he readily attributes to his wartime Agent Orange exposure. He wakes up from surgery repeating a name no one in his civilian life has ever heard - that of a Native American soldier whom he was once ordered to discipline. David decides to return something precious he long ago stole from the man he now calls Clayton Fire Bear.
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Kinda like Gran Torino..
- By H Harris on 06-02-18
By: Matthew Quick
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Eat the Document
- By: Dana Spiotta
- Narrated by: Rachael Warren
- Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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In the heyday of the 1970s underground, Bobby DeSoto and Mary Whittaker - passionate, idealistic, and in love - design a series of radical protests against the Vietnam War. When one action goes wrong, the course of their lives is forever changed. The two must erase their past, forge new identities, and never see each other again. Now it is the 1990s. Mary lives in the suburbs with her 15-year-old son, who spends hours immersed in the music of his mother's generation.
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Great ensemble piece!
- By Buyer009 on 08-08-17
By: Dana Spiotta
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City of Dark Magic
- A Novel
- By: Magnus Flyte
- Narrated by: Natalie Gold
- Length: 13 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Once a city of enormous wealth and culture, Prague was home to emperors, alchemists, astronomers, and, as it’s whispered, hell portals. When music student Sarah Weston lands a summer job at Prague Castle cataloging Beethoven’s manuscripts, she has no idea how dangerous her life is about to become. Prague is a threshold, Sarah is warned, and it is steeped in blood. Soon after Sarah arrives, strange things begin to happen.
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So promising and yet...
- By Tyler on 01-19-13
By: Magnus Flyte
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The Immigrants
- By: Howard Fast
- Narrated by: full cast
- Length: 13 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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This is a love story of great beauty and great tenderness, the kind of love story that entangles the listener in the lives of the characters, so that after the story is over, one continues to live with those characters. And fortunately, the listener will not have to say farewell to these characters, since it is the first in a series that will tell the story of three Californian families over the course of the 20th century.
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Narration style kills the story.
- By Glynis on 11-27-14
By: Howard Fast
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A Rather Lovely Inheritance
- By: CA Belmond
- Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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This is your life Penny Nichols...Penny Nichols is a historical researcher working on a big-budget film in the south of France when she gets an urgent call. Her Aunt Penelope has just died, and Penny's presence is required in London for the reading of the will. With only a slim recollection of her eccentric aunt, Penny is astonished to learn that not only is she the bona fide heiress - but she's also been invited to put her research skills to work.
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Delightful Story with Excellent Narratation
- By AnJoMom16 on 01-13-15
By: CA Belmond
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The Wangs vs. the World
- By: Jade Chang
- Narrated by: Nancy Wu
- Length: 14 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Charles Wang is mad at America. A brash, lovable immigrant businessman who built a cosmetics empire and made a fortune, he's just been ruined by the financial crisis. Now all Charles wants is to get his kids safely stowed away so that he can go to China and attempt to reclaim his family's ancestral lands - and his pride. Outrageously funny and full of charm, The Wangs vs. the World is an entirely fresh look at what it means to belong in America - and how going from glorious riches to (still name-brand) rags brings one family together in a way money never could.
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Spectacular
- By Barbara on 10-11-16
By: Jade Chang
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Precious Gifts
- A Novel
- By: Danielle Steel
- Narrated by: Dan John Miller
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Handsome, widowed, sophisticated, utterly charming, Paul Parker won the heart of a wealthy young Frenchwoman - the daughter of an American financier, the granddaughter of a major French art dealer - as his second wife. In two marriages, he fathered a challenging son and three very different daughters. But as irresponsible as he was irresistible, he ultimately shrugged off the demands of marriage and parenting to pursue life as an international bon vivant.
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I Like Danielle Steele
- By beth on 03-09-18
By: Danielle Steel
What listeners say about The Forgery of Venus
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Charles D. Christman
- 09-18-18
Amazing!
This book...its story...the narrator...definitely one of my favorite audiobooks I've ever listened to! A must listen for any art lover!
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- IVAL
- 02-06-13
More fun with Gruber
After loving "the Book of Air and Shaddows" I rushed to order "The Forgery of Venus" and boy am I glad I did!! The story is a delightful roller coaster of twists and turns with an engaging protagonist (or possible two - does he have a 17th century doppleganger?) and an encyclopedic view of the Great Masters of painting, especially Velasquez. Add halucenogenic drugs, a few ex-wives, a (possibly) evil mastermind, and a lot of fascinating detail abour food, wine, and art forgery, and there you go!! What a ride!!
I liked this narrator a lot. Better than the much more obtrusive voice of the narrator of "Air and Shaddows". He had the job of voicing two people speaking, and he did it clearly but without resorting to accents, manerisms or other bothersome tricks. In voicing the main character, Chaz Wilmet, he was just excellent, with the undertones of frustration, agitation, craziness and philospphical acceptance all perfectly appropriate but so understated i felt like it was my own voice comprehending the words in my head.
Hey Audiblre - Why are two of this author's books available only in abridgement????????????
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Judy
- 01-02-11
recommended for artists!
I'm an artist in the NY area and I loved this book, particularly the spot-on descriptions of the Manhattan art scene. If you're a fan of timetravel stories and have even a passing interest in art, this book is for you. Great characters, well-written, kept me wondering but had a satisfying conclusion, and considering (literally) today's headlines about re-authenticating Velazquwz's portraits of young King Philip at Prada and The Met, quite timely.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Uriel Dana
- 07-15-23
One of the best books I’ve read!
I’ve been a professional artist 4 decades and also trained as a restorer in Italy (the flip side of forgery).The author weaves the darker side of the art business with a wealth of art history brilliantly. It will keep you on the edge of seat. Very authentic and magical.
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- bigbossbookreader
- 08-30-23
Wonderful
Michael Gruber never disappoints as he weaves his richly detailed tales of wide ranging subject matters, from Shakespeare to Velasquez. I wanted to listen to this all in one go it was so engaging. The characters are rich, involved, knowledgeable with a sly sense of humor in many places. You can see the old cities, appreciate the beauty of the art.
Eric Conger is exemplary, expressive, and with a mastery of the names and places and language little known to many listeners.
One of my best purchases from Audible!
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- Susan
- 11-06-11
art sci fi psychological thriller
a real treat for artists, and a spellbinding thriller. Thought this was the best Michael Gruber that is available on audible. After reading this, I downloaded the rest of his work, but still think this is the best. the details about art and conservation are spot on with only one exception that any art restorer would know is bogus. However, the story is one to keep you guessing and riveted. loved it.
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5 people found this helpful
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- CKC
- 01-04-14
Michael Gruber - Always remarkable!
Having stumbled into "The Good Son" by the same author, I purchased this book. Both books deeply engaged me. Left me wondering....Thought provoking, he describes a familiar world that is transformed into a different reality by various means we may never understand. Is it a mind altering drug or prolonged capture that has the power to transform the characters? Or is it the evanescence of our reality? Are we the captors or the captive? Everything flashes in the light of his prose.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall
- Hollye
- 01-22-15
Deliciously intricate
Gruber never disappoints me with his intelligent and complex characters nor the intricacies of plotting. I'm a new fan of Valasquez. Another favorite!
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