The Romantic Audiobook By William Boyd cover art

The Romantic

A Novel

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Romantic

By: William Boyd
Narrated by: Kobna Holdbrook-Smith
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $22.50

Buy for $22.50

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

From the award-winning, internationally best-selling author, a beguiling romp of a novel, at once intimate and panoramic, about the adventures and misadventures of a nineteenth-century everyman

"Picaresque, big-hearted and moving, this is Boyd at the top of his game."The Guardian

One man, many lives . . . Cashel Greville Ross experiences more of everything than most, from the rapturous to the devastating, from surprising good luck to unexpected loss. Born in 1799, Cashel seeks his fortune across the turbulence of multiple continents, from County Cork to rural Massachusetts, from Waterloo to Zanzibar, embedded with the East Indian Army in Sri Lanka, sunning himself alongside the Romantic poets in Pisa. He travels the world as a soldier, a farmer, a felon, a writer, even a father. And he experiences all the vicissitudes of existence, including a once-in-a-lifetime love that will haunt the rest of his days. In the end, his great accomplishment is to discover who he truly is—which is the romance of life itself, and the beating heart of The Romantic.

©2023 William Boyd (P)2023 Random House Audio
Coming of Age Historical Fiction Fiction Heartfelt Romance
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

["“An absorbing tale.... Panoramic, transporting.... Engrossing.... Cashel Greville Ross [is] another of Boyd’s marvelous ‘whole life’ creations.... Throughout the book, Boyd is superb at integrating period detail.” —Charles Finch, New York Times Book Review

“A rambunctious, swashbuckling tale, told with panache by a master storyteller.... Surrender to this fine novel’s spell...it will vicariously supply more than enough thrills for anyone.” The Observer

“Boyd’s back, baby.... Pure, joyful escapism.” The Times

What listeners say about The Romantic

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    19
  • 4 Stars
    10
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    22
  • 4 Stars
    6
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    18
  • 4 Stars
    8
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent book highly recommend.

Enjoyed reading the book. Fantastic and interesting character development, historical context. A great love affair plagued by the realties of the time.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Light and lovely

Crackling dialog characterizes this cut-above romance for thoughtful adults. Too bad that it kind of lost its way at the very end, as though the author suddenly had to be somewhere else and wrap it up.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Epic history

Such a review by fiction the history of the mid 1850s. Very entertaining life of scrapes and near misses.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

This story has a ring of truth.

This novel is rich in detail, about characters, with a plausible plot, numerous locations, languages and it is exquisitely read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great story & awesome narrator

The book spans decades, crosses oceans, involves families & complex family members, heartache, drama, passion & lessons about good & poor choices. Narrator was excellent; historical story line & interesting characters. Highly recommended.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

One man, many lives

This is a sweeping tale about one man’s complicated, fascinating life, his trials and triumphs. I loved the main character, Cashel, and didn’t want his story to end. Of all of the novels I’ve read this year, this has been my favorite.

I found the narrator’s voice soothing.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Where is the character development?

Ordinarily, I love William Boyd’s work, but I kept wondering why he wrote this book? To illustrate his knowledge of Waterloo and nineteenth century European capitals? The history of the discovery of the source of the Nile? All of these are interesting subjects. His main character is not, and he breaches the key tenet of good books: character development. His protagonist continues to make stupid decision after stupid decision—why? We never learn. Read his other better books for more insight.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Read the Author's Note first, not in the audiobook

After I finished listening to The Romantic, I read several reviews, some of which mentioned an Author's Note which sets out some context for the book. That note is omitted in the audiobook and is worth reading first; it's available in the Kindle sample and should take just a few minutes to read. It's not that you can't make sense of the book without it – you can – but it gives a bit more of the writer's intention to read it before starting chapter 1, as the author intended.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Bad read

The worst audible I have read
Poor story too long a bodice ripper
Bits taken from good stories

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!