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Restless
- Narrated by: Rosamund Pike
- Length: 10 hrs and 11 mins
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Restless
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Summary
Bloomsbury presents Restless by William Boyd, read by Rosamund Pike.
READ BY ROSAMUND PIKE
CHOSEN FOR THE DUCHESS OF CORNWALL'S READING ROOM BOOK CLUB
‘Eva Delectorskaya,' I said mystified. ‘ Who's that?'
‘Me,' she said. ‘I am Eva Delectorskaya.'
What happens to your life when everything you thought you knew about your mother turns out to be an elaborate lie? During the long, hot summer of 1976, Ruth Gilmartin discovers that her very English mother Sally is really Eva Delectorskaya, a Russian émigré and one-time spy.
In 1939 Eva is a beautiful twenty-eight year old living in Paris. As war breaks out, she is recruited for the British Secret Service by Lucas Romer, a mysterious, patrician Englishman. Under his tutelage she learns to become the perfect spy, to mask her emotions and trust no one. Even those she loves most.
Since then Eva has carefully rebuilt her life – but once a spy, always a spy. Ruth discovers her mother has one final assignment. This time, though, Eva can't do it alone: she needs Ruth's help.
Restless is a tour de force from William Boyd. Exploring the devastating consequences of duplicity and betrayal it is a gripping novel that captures the drama of the Second World War and a remarkable portrait of a female spy. Full of suspense, emotion and history, this is storytelling at its very finest.
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What listeners say about Restless
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kirsten
- 15-01-21
Intelligent, warm and witty
Love William Boyd's way of writing, no words are superfluous, he is challenging and it takes my full attention to follow the plotline, but then I was also rewarded by noticing when he refers to the title, about which another reviewer had remarked that she had no idea where came from.
I also love that this takes place in the 1970s with references to the Baader-Meinhof group (though this ends up being a bit of a distraction, I kept expecting more about this) and the Shah in Iran and the possible treatment of exile-Iranians. The spy story itself is plausible, interesting and much better than most spy thrillers.
Did not exactly love Rosamund Pike's narration, as other reviewers have pointed out, she is not good at men's voices, I think I like her better as an actress.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Paul D
- 15-01-17
Brilliant
Spying during the second war, equal to La Carre at his best. Beautifully written, well constructed plot, well drawn interesting characters and a super reading.
My first Boyd and it certainly won't be my last.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- karen sinclair
- 18-04-20
Great listen
I have read many of William Boyd’s books but this one stands out as it’s my favourite time period - WW11 and involves espionage! The characters were believable and my only criticism was the expected ending. Having said that when you feel disappointed at the end of a novel because it’s ended and you seek something to fill the void - you know you have read a good novel.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rhi
- 26-12-21
A spy story- extraordinary
I really enjoyed this audiobook! Rosamund Pike is a great narrator and I had wanted another book narrated by her. William Boyd is an author I haven’t read before but would like to explore more of his work after this fantastic story. The characters were brilliantly built up in his world of espionage. Some nice twists and turns and I really enjoyed the dual narrators of mother and daughter. Overall a fantastic book with amazing intricacies that I thoroughly recommend.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Cabaspre
- 05-07-18
Astoundingly good.
I was sad to finish this as I cannot believe that I will find another as interesting, spellbinding and so well written. The switches between the decades of mother and daughter were seamless. The narration by Rosamund Pike was perfect, with the careful enunciation of wartime speech used by some. What a story - the imagination of William Boyd knows no bounds of the twists and turns of wartime espionage. I wonder if the Foreign Office could use him or, indeed, worried by him! I recommend this book without reservation
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- John
- 06-01-18
A real gem
Don’t be put off by Eva Delectorskaya’s rather contrived name - yes she does share her surname with (in real life) Russian model and emigré Lydia who collaborated with Henri Matisse rather than Britain’s secret service and throughout the book I couldn’t help but wonder if that seductive choice was somehow no literary accident. The book is beautifully read far better than the average spy story.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Roger Gittins
- 31-03-21
A surprisingly enjoyable book
Interesting and engaging, really excellent narration. I shall read more of his work and look out for her narration
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- KO
- 15-12-20
Loved the story, the narration
brilliant story
taking an old adage of WW2 espionage and making it from a women's perspective
also contemporary jumps between relatable present day and the romance and history of cities around the world.
I loved it, will listen again. So much detail and perfectly performed by Pike. loved it!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- sharlene lewis
- 15-09-20
Restless in every sense
The narration was superb . I found myself walking in Ava's shoes , becoming quite taken with it all . Well written . Definitely recommended.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- David M
- 11-03-17
Surprisingly good
Not the sort of look I usually listen to, I gave it a go and I was pleasantly surprised.
It's about a young woman finding herself recruited into the British spy network early during WW2. The story covers her training, work and personal life during this time. Interspersed with this story we also hear the story of how she is getting on in 1976 and how her spy work affected her life long after the war was over.
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