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Narrated by:
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Mary L Phillips
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By:
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Antoine Laurain
About this listen
When the manuscript of a debut crime novel arrives at a Parisian publishing house, everyone in the readers’ room is convinced it’s something special. And the committee for France’s highest literary honor, the Prix Goncourt, agrees.
But when the shortlist is announced, there’s a problem for editor Violaine Lepage: She has no idea of the author’s identity. As the police begin to investigate a series of murders strangely reminiscent of those recounted in the book, Violaine is not the only one looking for answers. And, suffering memory blanks following an airplane accident, she’s beginning to wonder what role she might play in the story....
Antoine Laurain, best-selling author of The Red Notebook, combines intrigue and charm in this dazzling novel of mystery, love, and the power of books.
©2020 Gallic Books (P)2022 Gallic BooksListeners also enjoyed...
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C’est Si Bon
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Critic reviews
"The plot blends mystery with comedy to great effect". (Daily Mail)
"A profound love of books and authors underpins this sprightly mystery." (Publishers Weekly)
"A stylish whodunnit blended with an affectionate send-up of the world of books." (Sunday Mirror)
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The best-selling author of Atonement and Enduring Love, Ian McEwan is known as one of contemporary fiction’s most acclaimed writers. This Booker Prize-winning novel by McEwan finds two men connecting at the funeral of their ex-lover. Distressed by how she was slowly destroyed by an illness, the two make a pact to save each other from enduring such a fate.
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Make something, and die.
- By Darwin8u on 02-07-17
By: Ian McEwan
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Codinome Villanelle [Codename Villanelle]
- O livro que inspirou a série Killing Eve [The Book That Inspired the Killing Eve Series]
- By: Luke Jennings
- Narrated by: Marcia Caspary
- Length: 6 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Villanelle (um codinome, é claro) é uma das assassinas mais habilidosas do mundo. Uma psicopata hedonista, que ama sua vida de luxo acima de quase qualquer coisa... menos a emoção da caçada. Especializada em matar as pessoas mais ricas e poderosas do mundo, Villanelle é encarregada de aniquilar um influente político russo, e acaba com uma inimiga determinada em seu encalço.
By: Luke Jennings
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Mystery Man
- By: Colin Bateman
- Narrated by: Stephen Armstrong
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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He’s the Man With No Name and the owner of No Alibis, a mystery bookshop in Belfast. But when a detective agency next door goes bust, the agency’s clients start calling into his shop asking him to solve their cases. It’s not as if there’s any danger involved. It’s an easy way to sell books to his gullible customers and Alison, the beautiful girl in the jewellery shop across the road, will surely be impressed. Except she’s not – because she can see the bigger picture.
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Mystery, humor & literary nuances - GREAT
- By Toby on 09-06-13
By: Colin Bateman
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The Cleaner
- By: Elisabeth Herrmann
- Narrated by: Imogen Church
- Length: 14 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Pools of blood, scenes of carnage, signs of agonising death - who deals with the aftermath of violence once the bodies have been taken away? Judith Kepler has seen it all. She is a crime-scene specialist. She turns crime scenes back into habitable spaces. She is a cleaner. It is at the home of a woman who has been brutally murdered that she is suddenly confronted with her own past. The murder victim knew Judith's secret: as a child Judith was sent to an orphanage under mysterious circumstances - parentage unknown.
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Reader was very distracting
- By Merry Unbirthday on 10-16-17
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Pietr the Latvian
- Inspector Maigret, Book 1
- By: Georges Simenon, David Bellos - translator
- Narrated by: Gareth Armstrong
- Length: 3 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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The first audiobook which appeared in Georges Simenon's famous Maigret series, in a gripping new translation by David Bellos.Inevitably Maigret was a hostile presence in the Majestic. He constituted a kind of foreign body that the hotel's atmosphere could not assimilate. Not that he looked like a cartoon policeman. He didn't have a moustache and he didn't wear heavy boots. His clothes were well cut and made of fairly light worsted. He shaved every day and looked after his hands. But his frame was proletarian. He was a big, bony man.
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Long live Maigret
- By Adeliese Baumann on 11-19-14
By: Georges Simenon, and others
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Murderous Mistral
- Provence Mystery, Book 1
- By: Cay Rademacher, Peter Millar - translator
- Narrated by: Antony Ferguson
- Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Capitaine Roger Blanc, an investigator with the anticorruption unit of the French Gendarmerie, was a bit too successful in his investigations. He finds himself removed from Paris to the South of France, far away from political power. Or so it would seem. The stress is too much for his marriage, and he attempts to manage the breakup while trying to settle into his new life in Provence in a 200-year-old half-ruined house. At the same time, Blanc is tasked with his first murder case.
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Good police procedural
- By Ms Peach on 04-15-18
By: Cay Rademacher, and others
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Blind Goddess
- A Hanne Wilhelmsen Novel, Book 1
- By: Tom Geddes - translator, Anne Holt
- Narrated by: Kate Reading
- Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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A small-time drug dealer is found battered to death on the outskirts of the Norwegian capital, Oslo. A young Dutchman, walking aimlessly in central Oslo covered in blood, is taken into custody but refuses to talk. When he is informed that the woman who discovered the body, Karen Borg, is a lawyer, he demands her as his defender, although her specialty is civil, not criminal, law. The young man is adamant: he will speak to Karen Borg, and to her alone.
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Not Sure Why I Didn't Like It
- By Tracey Rains on 05-28-13
By: Tom Geddes - translator, and others
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Jar City
- By: Arnaldur Indridason
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Gold Dagger Award winner Arnaldur Indridason’s novels featuring Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson became international sensations on their way to selling millions of copies worldwide. The debut of morose detective Sveinsson finds the inspector and his team delving into the murder of a retiree with horrifying secrets.
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Cerebral Police Procedural
- By Aaron on 09-14-13
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Dr Yes
- By: Colin Bateman
- Narrated by: Stephen Armstrong
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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The hilarious new Mystery Man crime caper from the master of menace and mirth. Beauty is in the eye of the be header. The wife of crime writer Augustine Wogan disappeared shortly after entering the exclusive clinic of the mysterious Dr Yes, plastic surgeon extraordinaire. As fatherhood approaches, the Small Bookseller with No Name is persuaded to investigate. He soon finds himself up to his neck in murder, make-up and madness - and face to face with the most gruesome serial killer since the last one.
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Fun diversion from the usual fair
- By Dennis on 11-09-12
By: Colin Bateman
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Distant Star
- By: Roberto Bolano
- Narrated by: Walter Krochmal
- Length: 4 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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A chilling novel about the nightmare of a corrupt and brutal dictatorship. The star of Roberto Bolano's hair-raising novel Distant Star is Alberto Ruiz-Tagle, an air force pilot who exploits the 1973 coup to launch his own version of the New Chilean Poetry, a multimedia enterprise involving sky-writing, poetry, torture, and photo exhibitions. For our unnamed narrator, who first encounters this "star" in a college poetry workshop, Ruiz-Tagle becomes the silent hand behind every evil act in the darkness of Pinochet's regime.
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Omg
- By Sierra on 08-03-16
By: Roberto Bolano
What listeners say about The Readers' Room
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Evgenya Ganelis
- 06-22-23
Excellent and touching story
I am a big fan of the author and always fascinated by the stories he writes. They are all different and brilliant in its own way. Totally recommend it!
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- Eiein
- 07-26-24
Literary Mystery
The Readers' Room by Antoine Laurain has an intriguing premise that mixes mystery with a literary twist. Set in a cozy Parisian publishing house, the story kicks off with a debut crime novel that grabs everyone's attention in the readers' room and even catches the eye of the Prix Goncourt committee. Things get really interesting when the editor, Violaine Lepage, realizes she has no clue who the author is, and then a bunch of real-life murders start to mimic the book.
Laurain’s writing pulls you in, and he’s great at mixing mystery with the charm of the literary world. The book has a bunch of cool characters and suspenseful moments that keep you hooked. But, some parts of the plot feel a bit forced, and the pacing can be a bit all over the place.
Violaine’s memory issues after a plane crash add a unique twist, but it can feel a bit overdone as a plot point. The mystery itself is gripping, though the ending might leave some readers wanting a bit more depth and clarity.
All in all, it is an enjoyable read with a fascinating concept, but it falls short of being a standout in the mystery genre. It's a good pick for anyone who loves literary-themed mysteries and wants something light and entertaining.
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- Chris S
- 07-18-24
Excellent
Violaine Lepage’s publishing house received an unsolicited manuscript that is so special that it needs to be published. It garners award nominations, and also the attention of the police when the crimes in the book seem to be replicated in real life. A lot of interesting characters and twists and turns in the plot. The narration by Mary L. Phillips is excellent. I received a free audiobook code for my honest review.
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- Becky
- 12-15-23
The French publishing world.
I was gifted an audio version of this book from the author through Story Origin.
I'm afraid I really struggled with the French names, not seeing them in writing. I did enjoy the plot. It really has alot going on. Editing a book that describes real life murders. Rape. Pregnancy. Abortion. Lesbianism. A plane crash. All in this short read/listen.
4 stars for narration.
4 stars for book.
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- Hanny
- 12-12-23
WOW!!!
WOW! I loved this book!!!
The flawed characters, the mystery - the ending was surprising and I could never have guessed it.
Truly an awesome job all around!
I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
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- Mrs.Bear
- 08-31-24
Flawed Characters Rule!!
I was pleasantly surprised about how much I enjoyed this book! I was a bit confused now and then but it all came together. Dysfunctional families and flawed people usually make a good story. These characters did. I loved taking a seat in a publishing house Readers Room! I enjoyed learning how it all works. Very enjoyable listen and narration.
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