AuthorR.F. Kuang
NarratorBillie Fulford-Brown, Chris Lew Kum Hoi
Duration21h 45m
CategoriesAdult Fiction, Historical Novels
PublisherHarper Collins
VersionUnabridged
Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.
Oxford, 1836.
The city of dreaming spires.
It is the centre of all knowledge and progress in the world.
And at its centre is Babel, the Royal Institute of Translation. The tower from which all the power of the Empire flows.
Orphaned in Canton and brought to England by a mysterious guardian, Babel seemed like paradise to Robin Swift.
Until it became a prison…
But can a student stand against an empire?
An incendiary new novel from award-winning author R.F. Kuang about the power of language, the violence of colonialism, and the sacrifices of resistance.
The Poppy War Series Book 3: The Burning God
Author: R.F. Kuang
Author R.F. Kuang
Narrator Emily Woo Zeller
SeriesThe Poppy Wars, Book 3
Duration 23h 46m
The exciting end to The Poppy War trilogy, R.F. Kuang's acclaimed, award-winning epic fantasy that combines the history of 20th-century China with a gripping world of gods and monsters, to devastating, enthralling effect. After saving her nation of Nikan from foreign invaders and battling the evil Empress Su Daji in a brutal civil war, Fang Runin w...
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The Last Kingdom Book 12: Sword of Kings
Author: Bernard Cornwell
Author Bernard Cornwell
Narrator Matt Bates
SeriesThe Last Kingdom, Book 12
Duration 13h 27m
England is in turmoil as Vikings and Saxons battle for territory. Rumours build about the fatal sickness of the King, and the country awaits an heir. A violent clash at sea forces the warrior lord Uhtred to lead his men from his Northumbrian fortress to London and plunge into the eye of the storm. For two kings claim the empty throne and a new king...
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Author: Pam Jenoff
Author Pam Jenoff
Narrator Various
Duration 11h 42m
From the internationally best-selling author Pam Jenoff, The Lost Girls of Paris is an emotional and powerful journey through friendship and betrayal during the Second World War, inspired by true events. 1940s. With the world at war, Eleanor Trigg leads a mysterious ring of female secret agents in London. Twelve of these women are sent to aid the r...
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Author: Rosella Postorino
Author Rosella Postorino
Narrator Kristen Atherton
Duration 10h 51m
East Prussia, 1943. Hitler hides away in the Wolfsshanze - his hidden headquarters. The tide is turning in the war, and his enemies circle ever closer. Ten women are chosen. Ten women to taste his food and protect him from poison. Twenty-six-year-old Rosa has lost everything to this war. Her parents are dead. Her husband is fighting on the front li...
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Author: Isabella Hammad
Author Isabella Hammad
Narrator Fiona Button
Duration 20h 31m
As the First World War shatters families, destroys friendships and kills lovers, a young Palestinian dreamer sets out to find himself. Midhat Kamal picks his way across a fractured world, from the shifting politics of the Middle East to the dinner tables of Montpellier and a newly tumultuous Paris. He discovers that everything is fragile: love turn...
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Author: Vanora Bennett
Author Vanora Bennett
Narrator Lucy Scott
Duration 13h 48m
As the Wars of the Roses draw slowly to a close, England is a place of turmoil. Edward IV is on the thrown but his position is unstable and he finds himself challenged by a man who would become Henry VII. But Isabel, a silk weaver to the court and mistress to Richard II, can cut through the turmoil with her clever ways and her pretty smile. Her sis...
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Author: Michel Houellebecq
Author Michel Houellebecq
Narrator John Sackville
Duration 8h 10m
Dissatisfied and discontent, Florent-Claude Labrouste begrudgingly works as an engineer for the Ministry of Agriculture, and is in a self-imposed dysfunctional relationship with a younger woman. When he discovers her ongoing infidelity, he decides to abandon his life in Paris and return to the Normandy countryside of his youth. There he contemplate...
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Ellindale Saga Book 4: One Perfect Family
Author: Anna Jacobs
Author Anna Jacobs
Narrator Anne Dover
SeriesEllindale Saga, Book 4
Duration 10h 46m
Lancashire, 1934. When Tam Crawford is unexpectedly bequeathed some money, he can finally realise his dream of settling down in the beautiful village of Ellindale. Tam knows he can be impulsive - his nickname isn't Crazy Tam for nothing! - but this time he is determined not to be ruled by his big heart and hot head. Yet somehow, within just one day...
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The Poppy War Series Book 2: The Dragon Republic
Author: R.F. Kuang
Author R.F. Kuang
Narrator Emily Woo Zeller
SeriesThe Poppy Wars, Book 2
Duration 23h 46m
The searing follow-up to 2018's most celebrated fantasy debut - THE POPPY WAR. Rin is on the run... Haunted by the atrocity she committed to save her people, addicted to opium, and driven by the murderous commands of Phoenix, the vengeful god who has blessed Rin with her fearsome power. Rin's only reason for living is to get revenge on the traitoro...
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The Poppy War Series Book 1: The Poppy War
Author: R.F. Kuang
Author R.F. Kuang
Narrator Emily Woo Zeller
SeriesThe Poppy Wars, Book 1
Duration 18h 57m
When Rin aced the Keju - the test to find the most talented students in the Empire - it was a shock to everyone: to the test officials, who couldn't believe a war orphan from Rooster Province could pass without cheating; to Rin's guardians, who had hoped to get rich by marrying her off; and to Rin herself, who realized she was finally free from a l...
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Jacqui 23 Nov 2023
Brilliant
Babel by R F Kuang - well I finished it, all 22 hours at normal speed, did I enjoy it Yes, did I understand it all No, would I recommend it Definitely...I have so many questions about this book I don’t know where to begin with them, I am hoping to find someone in my book club who has read it to discuss it with. It was the mixture of fact/historical events and fantasy that just kept throwing me, I think that was because I wasn’t expecting it.
There is so much to unpack in this story around colonialism and the stripping of countries of their natural resources for the benefit of a richer country. We can’t change history, but we can acknowledge what happened and maybe learn from it, or is it a human condition to take advantage of those who are weaker than you? I don’t know it is something to discuss with others who have read the book
I think it is one I will buy so I can listen to it again and not feel bad I am keeping people waiting for it, although I still have over a week to go before the return date I don’t feel that is long enough for it to all sink in.
I had been aware of this book for some time and it hadn’t appealed to me, definitely enjoyed it more than I expected to and look forward to listening to it again and maybe getting a better understanding of it.
Regarding the audiobook which wasn’t obvious the second narrator is the foot notes that appear at the end of pages/chapters in the physical book, I will be honest this throw me to start with. It was only after finishing and finding someone who had read the physical book that could confirm what I expected.