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The Glutton

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The Glutton

By: A. K. Blakemore
Narrated by: Philippe Spall
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About this listen

Sister Perpetue is not to move. She is not to fall asleep. She is to sit, keeping guard over the patient’s room. She has heard the stories of his hunger, which defy belief: that he has eaten all manner of creatures and objects. A child even, if the rumours are to be believed. But it is hard to believe that this slender, frail man is the one they once called The Great Tarare, The Glutton of Lyon.

Before, he was just Tarare. Well-meaning and hopelessly curious, born into a world of brawling and sweet cider, to a bereaved mother and a life of slender means. When a sudden act of violence sees Tarare cast out and left for dead, his ferocious appetite is ignited.

Following Tarare as he travels from the South of France to Paris and beyond, through the heart of the Revolution, The Glutton is an electric, heart-stopping journey into a world of tumult, upheaval and depravity, wherein the hunger of one peasant is matched only by the insatiable demands of the people of France.

2024, Dylan Thomas Prize, Short-listed

2024, Royal Society of Literature Encore Award, Short-listed

WARNING: CONTAINS VIOLENT AND GRAPHIC CONTENT AND STRONG LANGUAGE

©2023 A. K. Blakemore (P)2023 Bolinda Publishing Fiction Genre Fiction Gothic Historical Fiction Horror Literary Fiction Scary Heartfelt

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Critic reviews

'A sensory assault fit to slap any reader awake with its gorgeous glut of baroque prose and wise, poised lessons on life, pleasure, class, desire, and love.' (Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The Girl of Ink and Stars)

'An audacious and humane study of desire, pain and tenderness.' (Keiran Goddard, author of Hourglass)
'It will have you squirming between sympathy and revulsion, pleasure and pain.' (Alex Hyde, author of Violets)
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One of the best audiobooks if not the best have listened to. Beautifully written and delivered.

Brilliant

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Beautifully written (I will be looking for more books by the same author) and outstanding narrator. I am quite sad it came to an end.

I did not think I would this so much, and great narrator

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One of the finest pieces of writing I can remember. And the reading is so fantastic. Completely brings the already vivid writing to full life.

Outstanding

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Utterly compelling, heartbreaking and disgusting in equal measure. this novel renders Revolutionary France in all its grisly detail, with a brilliant cast of characters and a really complex character at its heart. who will stay with me for a long time. The prose is like a meal itself, absolutely beautifully written with such attention to the senses. It isn't for the faint-hearted - there were moments that genuinely made me feel sick, and the climax is horrifying - but I feel a bit bereft now it's finished and am looking forward to reading more from this author.

Couldn't stop listening

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The writing is outstanding and captivating. The author gives a glimpse of an interesting social history of the French Revolution through a small cast of characters. Tarare is no hero or particularly sympathetic character, but it's the themes of nature, survival, power and disgust which are fascinating. I only wish it could have been longer.

Brilliant writing, very interesting story

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