The Paying Guests

De: Sarah Waters

Narrado por: Juliet Stevenson

The New York Times bestselling novel that has been called “a tour de force” (Wall Street Journal), “unputdownable” (The Washington Post), “a delicious hothouse of a novel” (USA Today), “effortless” (The Economist), “seductive” (Vanity Fair) and “pitch perfect” (Salon)

“Superb, bewitching…Forget about Fifty Shades of Grey; this novel is one of the most sensual you will ever read, and all without sacrificing either good taste or a "G" rating” – NPR

“One of the year’s most engrossing and suspenseful novels…a love affair, a shocking murder, and a flawless ending … Will keep you sleepless for three nights straight and leave you grasping for another book that can sustain that high.” — Entertainment Weekly (A rating)

“Volcanically sexy, sizzingly smart, plenty bloody and just plain irresistible." —USA Today (4 stars)


It is 1922, and London is tense. Ex-servicemen are disillusioned; the out-of-work and the hungry are demanding change. And in South London, in a genteel Camberwell villa—a large, silent house now bereft of brothers, husband, and even servants—life is about to be transformed as impoverished widow Mrs. Wray and her spinster daughter, Frances, are obliged to take in lodgers.

With the arrival of Lilian and Leonard Barber, a modern young couple of the “clerk class,” the routines of the house will be shaken up in unexpected ways. Little do the Wrays know just how profoundly their new tenants will alter the course of Frances’s life—or, as passions mount and frustration gathers, how far-reaching, and how devastating, the disturbances will be.

Short-listed for the Man Booker Prize three times, Sarah Waters has earned a reputation as one of our greatest writers of historical fiction, and here she has delivered again. A love story, a tension-filled crime story, and a beautifully atmospheric portrait of a fascinating time and place, The Paying Guests is Sarah Waters’s finest achievement yet.

Juliet Stevenson is a genius

Where does The Paying Guests rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

One of the most amazing and moving performances I've ever heard. Maybe the best ever!

What did you like best about this story?

The performance

Have you listened to any of Juliet Stevenson’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is the best of all of them. She's masterful.

A perfect literary novel with suspense

If you could sum up The Paying Guests in three words, what would they be?

A great read.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Frances, as the protagonist, was clearly my favorite, but I also liked Lillian. Frances perhaps the most as the the voice of the novel and the one we are most intimate with as she goes about her life.

Have you listened to any of Juliet Stevenson’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Not sure as I listen to so many books. Ms. Stevenson was excellent. I will look for her again, most certainly.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

My reaction was visceral. The prose was captivating as was the sense of place and times. There was an intimacy with the character that deeply moved me.

Any additional comments?

I am telling all my friends who love to read GREAT books to read this one. Ms. Waters is a rare and exceptionally talented writer. Brava!

Brilliant Narration of an Excellent Story

Juliet Stevenson is certainly one of the great narrators of British literature. This novel by three-time Booker Prize Nominee Sarah Waters offers is glimpse into a time and place, post-WWI London, and into the lives of a group mostly of women. Suffrage, post-war trauma, women’s changing roles, economic shifts, and a loosening of social class rigidity all play a part in this ever-changing, engrossing novel. Waters is a masterful storyteller, and she reveals information piece-by-piece with a deft hand and a sharp eye. I highly recommend The Paying Guests.

Once again.

Sarah Waters is such an amazing writer. Her writing puts the reader right in the middle of the story. As if one is on the sidelines watching every scene, hearing every word spoken by such wonderful characters. The mystery of it all,the feelings, the depth of emotion is simply incredible. Not one wasted word. How very rare is that?The performance was wonderful. The perfect voice for a perfect story. Perhaps the best performance I have heard. Overall fantastic.

Feel bad

It is very well written. You can’t let it down but it is a major downer, all the way.