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Vacant Possession

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Vacant Possession

By: Hilary Mantel
Narrated by: Sandra Duncan
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About this listen

From the double Man Booker Prize-winner, a savagely funny tale that revisits the characters from the much-loved Every Day is Mother’s Day.

Muriel Axon is about to re-enter the lives of Colin Sidney and Isabel Field. It is 10 years since her last tangle with them, but for Muriel this is not time enough. There are still scores to be settled, truths to be faced and vengeance to be wreaked.

©1986 Hilary Mantel (P)2013 W F Howes Ltd Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Satire Fiction Comedy Funny Thought-Provoking Witty

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Critic reviews

"The macabre and wonderfully funny plot has as many twists and turns as a well-made thriller" ( Standard)
"Hilary Mantel's wit is wonderful and startlingly nasty" ( Sunday Times)
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Great following on from Every Day is Mother's Day, but was left very disappointed by the ending. It has almost made me wish I hadn't invested the time and emotional energy into listening to the two books.

Fabulous follow up but disappointing ending

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Really exiting, funny family thriller. Excellent for anyone who loves great stories perfectly written. Got through this in less than a week

Brilliant/ exiting/

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A brilliant sequel to Every day is Mothers Day. Bleak and hilarious, beautifully written and narrated.

Funny and dark

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Thoroughly weird but compelling stories. I’m glad I read Everyday is Mothers Day first because Vacant Possession follows on.
One thing I will say the last 2 Chapter’s lost me somewhat I probably need to go over them again.

Fantastic book

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Hilarious Mantel was a brilliant writer, and the appreciation of her use of language adds another large layer to the plot.
I had been eager to find out what happened to Muriel and the Sidneys after Mother's Day, and there they were, all in her former home where the 'accumulated misery bounced off the walls'.
I never had any idea where the plot was going, but it was a rollicking ride with it!

Stunning

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I’m afraid I found this so dismal that I really didn’t enjoy listening to it - it felt bleak and lowering. Some of the characters seemed very far fetched, and others just dull trapped and suburban. I found it less compelling than its prequel. Maybe my sense of humour isn’t cruel enough?!

Funny?

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The best book I have read in a very long time. Very unsettling. Very interesting characters.

Great story

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Mantels work always reads like a Drama than a Novel, it absolutely maximises all the characters personalities making them all protagonists.

I love her work

Another Corker

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Very well read despite the dreadful story with no joy in it at any point

Depressing and sad

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The narrator speaks in funny voices, mostly it is a voice of an old lady (while we discover that the character is just is over 40…) and sometimes it is a squeaky voice pretending to be child’s. I gave up because of that!

What a terrible performance!

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