Adèle

A Novel

By: Leïla Slimani, Sam Taylor

Narrated by: Finty Williams

Length: 5 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's Summary

Adèle appears to have the perfect life. A respected journalist, she lives in a flawless Parisian apartment with her surgeon husband and their young son. But beneath the veneer of "having it all", she is bored - and consumed by an insatiable need for sex, whatever the cost. Struggling to contain the twin forces of compulsion and desire, she begins to orchestrate her life around her one-night stands and extramarital affairs, arriving late to work and lying to her husband about where she’s been, until she becomes ensnared in a trap of her own making. 

An erotic and daring story - with electrically clear writing - Adèle will captivate listeners with its exploration of addiction, sexuality, and one woman’s quest to feel alive.

©2019 Leila Slimani (P)2019 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

One of O, The Oprah Magazine’s 10 Titles to Pick Up Now

One of Time’s 11 New Books to Read This January

One of Entertainment Weekly’s 20 New Books to Read in January 

One of amNewYork’s 8 New Novels to Read in 2019

One of The Million’s Most Anticipated of 2019

One of Nylon’s 50 Books You’ll Want to Read in 2019

“Sensational.... In her novels, home and hearth are a furnace, not a haven. Families are groups in which power struggles are conducted in close quarters, and with gloves off.” (Time)

“A slim, compelling read, Adèle examines topics ranging from marriage and motherhood to adultery, but the overarching theme is the notion of freedom.... The plot of Adèle recalls Kundera’s masterwork [The Unbearable Lightness of Being].” (Vanity Fair)

“Brave.... A skillfully turned novel that gives us nothing we expect.... Its clean, affectless prose may recall Camus. (A gifted stylist, Slimani can pack a sneaky wallop when she wants.).... Any Slimani novel is a major event.” (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

Hm.

This was not an intriguing story, it almost seemed like an abridged version and I was missing chunks of background info and details. The publisher summary is much more interesting than the book actually is. I tried to pay particular attention to any outstanding writing or descriptions — since maybe it was the way the story was told that makes it interesting, but I didn’t notice anything remarkable. I also got The Perfect Nanny by the same author and I’m a little skeptical of all the glowing reviews but I’ll give it a chance and hopefully it’s better than this book.

Well Written But Not My Cup of Tea

A wonderfully written novel and character study, but not really my cup of tea at the moment. It’s intense, brutal, and poetically written.