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

“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

“Exposes the dark desires of a seemingly normal woman . . . Adèle—and the reader—must come to terms with what it is we demand of women in modern times, and how those punishing requirements lead so many of us to crack and try and get autonomy through unorthodox means.” —Nylon, “50 Books You’ll Want to Read in 2019”

“If Sally Rooney is her generation’s essential writer on sex, Slimani . . . is its most compelling writer on violence. Her prose is grotesque and vivid; indulging nothing that doesn’t need to be indulged.” —The New Statesman

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.

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.