Conclave

By: Robert Harris

Narrated by: Roy Mcmillan

Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

The Pope is dead.

Behind the locked doors of the Sistine Chapel, 118 cardinals from all over the globe will cast their votes in the world's most secretive election. They are holy men. But they have ambition. And they have rivals.

Over the next 72 hours, one of them will become the most powerful spiritual figure on earth.

©2016 Robert Harris (P)2016 Random House Audiobooks

Exciting, authentic and hopeful

How difficult it is to find a pope who is a follower of Christ. The narrative has many heroes, negative and positive. Until the end of this conclave, told intimately and authentically from the point of view of the protagonist Cardinal Lomeli, it remains immensely exciting.

Compulsive read

Another fantastic, compulsive read from Robert Harris, so well researched, full of compelling characters, twists and turns, Wonderfully narrated by Roy McMillan. Highly recommended.

Good "read" (listen).. but!

Excellent book with great detail and plenty of political intrigue within the Vatican. Narrator superb. Unfortunately, the ending was too contrived and brought me down with a bump!!

Great story, well written and well read

Would you listen to Conclave again? Why?

Yes, mostly cause I fell asleep during one passage, but also because the book is so good

Who was your favorite character and why?

None in particular, all were realistic and well defined

What does Roy Mcmillan bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Good pace, subtle changes in accent, great pronunciation

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, I did

Any additional comments?

Unusual book, well worth the credit

Engrossing

Roy Mcmillon (McMillan?) read very well and matches the tone of this story.
Robert Harris writes well.

I found this book almost as good as 'The Ghost', that Robert Harris wrote some years ago.

Our Dean, in telling his own story is an exact and very likeable person who begins to take a few risks and moves away from his established comfort zone in order to do his 'job' well.
Do not expect 'leaping over tall buildings' or 'spy vs spy' or contrived plots. You as reader or listener may guess the outcome and it really does not spoil the story at all. Another story you may find is about a man we only meet as a corpse. There is an absence perhaps of the high drama of Harris's Cicero trilogy and for me 'Conclave' remains compelling.
If you have already read and enjoyed Harris's other books and wonder how the election of a Pope could stand up to his other works, my only response is 'this book is well worth your credit and your time'.

More thrilling than a legal thriller. Wonder how the conclave is conducted in Beijing

More thrilling than a legal thriller. I wonder how the conclave is conducted in Beijing

Dirty doings at the Vatican

I've enjoyed nearly all of Harris's novels, especially 'Pompeii', though I found the Cicero trilogy very tedious and gave up halfway through. 'Conclave' deals in minute detail with the election of a new Pope, plus a mildly thriller type plot. As usual, Harris has done his research and provides plenty of twists and turns to his plot, though for the reader who is not a Roman Catholic, and takes little interest in the Pope or the Church's internal affairs, the reaction might well be 'Does it really matter, and why should I care?' It's hard to give any more details of the story without committing some serious spoilers, so I'll leave it at that. It did strike me that the current outrage at the sins of the Vatican, covered-up child abuse, is given a very easy ride; in fact it hardly figures at all. No, not one of my favourites. The reader is excellent.