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Love in the Time of Cholera  By  cover art

Love in the Time of Cholera

By: Gabriel García Márquez
Narrated by: Armando Durán
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Publisher's summary

Audie Award Finalist, Classic, 2014

From the Nobel Prize-winning author of One Hundred Years of Solitude comes a masterly evocation of an unrequited passion so strong that it binds two people's lives together for more than half a century.

In their youth, Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza fall passionately in love. When Fermina eventually chooses to marry a wealthy, well-born doctor, Florentino is devastated, but he is a romantic. As he rises in his business career, he whiles away the years in 622 affairs - yet he reserves his heart for Fermina. Her husband dies at last, and Florentino purposefully attends the funeral. Fifty years, nine months, and four days after he first declared his love for Fermina, he does so again.

With humorous sagacity and consummate craft, Gabriel García Márquez traces an exceptional half-century of unrequited love. Though it seems never to be conveniently contained, love flows through the novel in many wonderful guises - joyful, melancholy, enriching, and ever surprising.

©1988 Gabriel García Márquez (P)2013 Blackstone Audio

Featured Article: The top 100 classics of all time


Before we whipped out our old high school syllabi and dug deep into our libraries to start selecting contenders for this list, we first had to answer the question, "How do we define a classic?" The answer isn’t as straightforward as you might guess, though there’s a lot to be said for the old adage, "You know it when you see it" (or, in this case, hear it). Of course, most critically, each of our picks had to be fabulous in audio. So dust off your aspirational listening list—we have some amazing additions you don’t want to miss.

Editorial Review

With a plot beginning in the 19th century that stretches into the 20th century, this exceptional half-century romance remains just as relevant and stunning in the 21st century. Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel García Márquez proves himself once again with a literary classic that's filled to the brim with humorous sagacity, complex characters, and a bittersweet story that will stay with you.
A brilliant writer, it's no surprise that García Márquez brought a chronicle of life into full bloom with original characters that the listener can't help but be drawn to. But such a talented best-selling author doesn't leave things at surface level. With an appraisal of people as complex and often contradictory, this compelling audiobook is full of twists and turns, with characters in opposition against themselves as much as with the world around them. The major characters are never flat or two-dimensional, as García Márquez brings the beautiful story to full life with masterly evocation of the reality of human existence.
Love in the Time of Cholera received critical acclaim after publication, and it remains one of the most popular, celebrated Gabriel García Márquez audiobooks today. As ambitious books go, it's certainly hit its mark. By turns matter-of-factly despondent and achingly romantic, this title is sure to capture your imagination.
Seasoned García Márquez narrator Armando Durán gives us another stunning performance with Love in the Time of Cholera. He captures the slow burn of over 50 years of pining for a lost love with a steady, personality-filled reading. — Audible Latino Editor

What listeners say about Love in the Time of Cholera

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Love

This was a beautiful book about love. It is quite long however. I wish there was not a word minimum for a review.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Meh, hard to follow.

I found this book hard to follow. With all the names I couldn't keep the characters straight and it made it really confusing since I couldn't listen to all in one sitting. Maybe that would have made me feel different about it, but as it was, I didn't really care for it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent Narration only adds to the excellence

The narration is so wonderfully done that I found it better than actually reading it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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love it

Love is a saving grave. Beautiful written and relaxing to read. I highly recommend this novel. happy reading everyone.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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good

slay audiobook i really enjoyed it but wish for more magical realism. overall happy with Gabo

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Rambling Monolog

I never connected with this on any level. It was a sill monolog about people that did not appeal to me at all. Take a pass. This book passes off rape and child exploitation as a love affair. Ridiculous.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great story, needs better audiobook producer.

Over the years, I've listened to over 350 unabridged, classic audiobooks. For some time I've waited for audiobooks by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, one of my favorite authors. I see that Audible is finally releasing several over the next few months, this being the first. Listening to this audiobook reaffirmed my appreciation of Marquez's greatness. Though the narrator's tone, diction, and pronunciation is excellent, and his casting is perfect, sadly he employed a singsong pattern of starting sentences with a higher pitch and then trailing off as he finished. If he had done this a couple of times it wouldn't have been that bad. But to do it for 16 hours became annoying. I do not blame him one jot. He is very talented and I've listened to him on other audiobooks in which he did not do this. I blame Audible 100%. If the producer (if there was one) had simply told the narrator one time, "Your voice pattern is a little singsong. Listen to this example," I'm sure the problem would have been immediately corrected. To waste this great novel and the talents of a very good narrator is unexcusable. Even still, the story itself is so great that I highly recommend you give it a listen. It's well worth the money. It's just a shame that I had to rate this audiobook anything less than 5 stars. Thanks.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Brilliant book, needs a me too update.

Of course the prose is gorgeous, the narrative and story and how García Márquez weaves through time, sublime. But damn if the rapes, and twisted perspective on consent (something about trying until she wants it), along with the blatant incest/pedophilia got in the way of fully enjoying the story. Just gross. Most of us are people of our time. In his writing García Márquez was ahead of his, but when it comes to misogyny, he is lock-step. I’m a little afraid to re-read 100 Years for finding the same.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

LOVE AND MARRIAGE

Gabriel Garcia Márquez begins "Love in the Time of Cholera" with a sweet evocation of love and marriage between Dr. Juvenal Urbino and his 71-year-old wife, the former Fermina Daza.

"Love in the Time of Cholera" almost loses one’s interest with the introduction of Florentino Ariza, an earlier rival for señorita Daza’s affection. Florentino seems a pale suitor when compared to Urbino. Florentino is too poor, too poetically inept, and socially immature to rival Urbino. Márquez slowly fills out Florentino’s character to make a listener interested enough to find out why he is important to the story. Márquez cleverly inserts an anonymous letter delivered to Urbino in the telling of his tale. The letter was held by a suicide victim, an acquaintance of Urbino’s, which adds mystery to the story. One wonders, is the letter related to Fermina’s earlier suitor? An answer is not given until the end of "Love in the Time of Cholera."

Márquez’s story suggests that love does not arrive with marriage but only comes with the passage of time. Márquez concludes sex in life and marriage is ephemeral and evolving; while love is eternal and built over time.

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Armando Duran brings this great story alive!

loved this story. I never knew where it was going. It took me to a time and place I've never been, in a delightful manner that was intoxicating.

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