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Possession

A Romance

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Possession

By: A. S. Byatt
Narrated by: Samuel West
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Winner of the Booker Prize 1990

Possession is an exhilarating novel of wit and romance, at once a literary detective novel and a triumphant love story. It is the tale of a pair of young scholars investigating the lives of two Victorian poets.

Following a trail of letters, journals and poems they uncover a web of passion, deceit and tragedy, and their quest becomes a battle against time.

Cover illustration © Aitch.

©1991 A. S. Byatt (P)2019 Audible, Ltd Classics Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Mystery Romance Fiction Heartfelt
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This is a tour de force from a superb author, brilliantly narrated. But it is a very difficult listen. The sections of Victorian poetry are very inaccessible, although superbly read by Samuel West. I am glad I read and loved the book before I started to listen to it. In the reading I was able to skim through the poetry, which is not possible in a narration. It might have benefitted from some editing, although of course that is against Audible’s philosophy. But I am so glad I persevered!

I am glad I read this before I listened to it.

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Hard to put into words how brilliant this is - both as a book and as a performance. Samuel West’s narration is pitch-perfect, enhancing understanding and clarity without ever drawing attention to himself. A wonderfully subtle and sensitive reading.

As for the book it self…I really regret that I didn’t read this when it came out. It’s been sitting there in the dark, waiting for me to discover its depths and riches, all those years, and finally discovering is like a revelation. It’s full of wonderful writing, ideas about reading and writing, and pulls off its meta-narrational tricks with tremendous skill. It’s a fantastic read/listen, and a reminder of why I fell in love with all those Victorian novels and poets when I first started exploring the world of literature. A detective story, a love story (stories) and an intellectual journey, all in one.

Marvellous. I envy you if you haven’t read it yet.

Fantastic Listen

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I didn't think I was going to enjoy this book, I got it on a 2 for 1 and was going to exchange it but gave it a go and got really immersed in it. Admittedly I fell in and out a bit, as there is some poetic writing and a lot of letters (which I enjoyed but couldn't follow sometimes), but by the end I was hooked emotionally and was sad for it to end. Well worth persevering with a beautiful and satisfying end. Brilliantly read, moving and moreish!

Brilliantly read, moving and moreish!

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Having read this book 3 or 4 times already, wanted to try listening. Not disappointed at all, Samuel West narrates beautifully.

great

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Really enjoyed it. Sometimes the voices got muddled by the reader but that was a minor flaw in a gripping and fascinating story

Excellent

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