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Pure
- Narrated by: Jonathan Aris
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
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Pure
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Summary
A year of bones, of grave-dirt, relentless work. Of mummified corpses and chanting priests. A year of rape, suicide, sudden death. Of friendship too. Of desire. Of love.... A year unlike any other he has lived.
Deep in the heart of Paris, its oldest cemetery is, by 1785, overflowing, tainting the very breath of those who live nearby. Into their midst comes Jean-Baptiste Baratte, a young, provincial engineer charged by the king with demolishing it.
At first Baratte sees this as a chance to clear the burden of history, a fitting task for a modern man of reason. But before long, he begins to suspect that the destruction of the cemetery might be a prelude to his own.
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What listeners say about Pure
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Miss E Balfour
- 25-11-22
Witty prose wonderfully narrated
This is one of those books that you can start and be so consumed by you finish it in a couple of days. Engaging, funny, visceral and at times tragic. Love the narrator and the depth he adds to the characters.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Vicuña
- 07-08-18
Strange and compelling
Wasn’t sure what a story about digging up a cemetery and relocating bones would work as a fact based work of fiction. Pure is a fast paced, skilfully plotted and atmospheric tale...in literally every sense.
Andrew Millers people are almost visual as is Paris and later rural northern France. They’re dark, sometimes subversive, humorous and totally plausible. The malodour pervaded almost every page and seeps into the story metaphorically and literally. I was totally gripped by a fast moving tale.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- J F P
- 12-02-18
rich detail, absorbing detail, engaging characters
it felt like diving deep into late 18th century Paris... full of beautiful descriptions, rich detail and intricate imagery. The characters are engaging, and the story feels like it builds towards some great intrigue... one that, sadly, never really comes. the plot feels a little flat. But, still, a very enjoyable read!
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Alison
- 16-09-12
Slow build unease and beautiful language
The true story at the centre of the book - the removal of thousands of bodies/bones from central Paris - is really amazing; but it plays an almost secondary role in this book as the main emphasis is on the characters and the atmosphere. These are compelling, as is the use of language by A Miller: sometimes clipped and spare, at others almost florid and often very beautiful. I wasn't as engaged by the book as I had hoped, possibly because I didn't really like any of the characters very much. However, it is well worthy of 4 stars. There is a sense of anxiety, bordering on menace at times, that builds gradually, not surprising given the subject matter. Very well narrated.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Jan
- 13-04-13
A fascinating listen
Highly recommended. As well as being beautifully descriptive of the era and life in a Paris suburb, I found the overarching story of the clearance of a cemetry unexpectedly interesting. The interaction of those directly associated with the clearance plus the characters on the peripheries, the smells and the intertwined relationships are all really engaging. I will certainly listen again.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mallers
- 23-10-18
Loved it............................
Great story..........extremely well narrated by Andrew Miller. Well worth a listen in my view
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 08-03-24
The reading
Very beautifully read . Story could have been better
. I didn’t get a feel at all for the main character
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Dr Zube
- 30-09-12
Great book, great narrator, well worth a download
A great book of such an interesting historical period, with some truly memorable characters and great twists and turns in the story itself. Extremely evocative of pre-revolutionary France and the amazing city that was/is Paris. Brilliant.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jacqui Penalver
- 21-01-20
Brilliant
Wonderful story, excellently told. I thoroughly enjoyed this from start to finish. Would highly recommend!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- danryan24
- 15-11-17
Exposes the hollowness of all-consuming ambition
well written. captivating. Exposes the hollowness of all-consuming ambition. I will read his other novels
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3 people found this helpful