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.
Basil  By  cover art

Basil

By: Wilkie Collins
Narrated by: Nicholas Boulton
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $24.18

Buy for $24.18

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.

Publisher's summary

Appearing in 1852, Basil was Wilkie Collins’s second published novel. The eponymous narrator is emotionally torn between two women: Margaret Sherwin and his sister Clara. His marriage to Margaret, a draper’s sexually precocious daughter, is to remain secret and unconsummated for the first year, as agreed with her father.

Anticipating Collins’s later sensation novels, the plot involves betrayal, insanity and death, with a thrilling conclusion set among the cliffs and whirlpools near Land’s End. The book was received with shock upon its publication, most especially due to its treatment of adultery.

Here Basil is read by the prolific and popular narrator Nicholas Boulton.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

Public Domain (P)2022 Naxos AudioBooks UK Ltd.

What listeners say about Basil

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    10
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    10
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    9
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 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

Another wonderful narration by Nicholas Boulton

Wilkie Collins, Anthony Trollope, Charles Dickens and Mary Elizabeth Gaskell are some of my favorite authors. Mr. Boulton's narration suits the tone of this novel.

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

Yet another amazing story from Collins

Lesser known yet no lesser in story and beauty. Collins can’t write a bad story

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

A Very Victorian Tale

As a fan of Wilkie Collins, I was excited to come across this lesser-known work. I don’t think it stands up to his major novels. Even so I am glad to have read it.

It is highly melodramatic and theatrical. Nothing is subtle. The main character behaves in a manner that is sometimes cringe worthy, and often rather stupid. It reminds me of those horror movies when you want to scream at the screen “ don’t do it!” right before the victim steps into an obvious trap.
Still, I found enjoyment in the portrayal of several minor characters and the author’s captivating description of the English countryside.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!