Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Confession

By: Jessie Burton
Narrated by: Hayley Atwell
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

A Sunday Times bestseller and Richard and Judy Book Club pick, The Confession is an absorbing tale of secrets and self-discovery from Jessie Burton, the million-copy bestselling author of The Miniaturist and The Muse.

When Elise Morceau meets the writer Constance Holden, she quickly falls under her spell. Connie is sophisticated, bold and alluring – everything Elise feels she is not. She follows Connie to LA, but in this city of strange dreams and 1980s razzle-dazzle, Elise feels even more out of her depth and makes an impulsive decision that will change her life forever.

Three decades later in London, Rose Simmons is trying to uncover the story of her mother, who disappeared when she was a baby. Having learned that the last person to see her was a now reclusive novelist, Rose finds herself at the door of Constance Holden’s house in search of a confession . . .

'Dazzlingly good . . . Without doubt one of the best novels of recent years' - Elizabeth Day, author of Magpie

©2019 Jessie Burton (P)2019 Macmillan Publishers International Ltd
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: LGBTQ+
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Midnight House cover art
Who Do You Think You Are Maggie Pink? cover art
Every Happy Family cover art
The Mother I Could Have Been cover art
The Echo of Old Books cover art
The Forever Home cover art
The Day My Husband Left cover art
The Ex cover art
The Day She Came Back cover art
The Family Holiday cover art
Who's Loving You cover art
The Woman Who Came Back to Life cover art
The House at Magpie Cove cover art
Hello, Again cover art

Critic reviews

A bold, intelligent, wonderful novel (Sarah Winman, author of Tin Man)
A beautiful novel and one that will stay with me for a very long time (Louise O’Neill, author of Only Ever Yours)
Her best yet, I’m dazzled by it . . . I am deeply jealous of every reader who has it all ahead of them (Daisy Buchanan, author of The Sisterhood)
An irresistible tale of families, deception and the consequences of our choices (Stacey Halls, author of The Familiars)
In The Confession, Jessie Burton hasn’t just captured a myriad of women’s experiences but also the intrinsic ambivalence of living in a female body: the advantages, the oppressions. She’s built a world of women that is so vivid and absorbing that at one point I paused in my reading to google Connie – and only then remembered that she was a fictional character (Jean Hannah Edelstein, author of This Really Isn’t About You)
I loved Burton's debut, The Miniaturist, but this is even better! Rose's mother disappeared when she was a baby, and the last person to see her was Constance, a reclusive novelist based in Hampstead. When Rose tracks her down, will she get the answers she needs? I was completely engrossed (Nina Pottell, Prima)

What listeners say about The Confession

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,059
  • 4 Stars
    516
  • 3 Stars
    180
  • 2 Stars
    41
  • 1 Stars
    22
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,249
  • 4 Stars
    294
  • 3 Stars
    74
  • 2 Stars
    17
  • 1 Stars
    6
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    925
  • 4 Stars
    433
  • 3 Stars
    197
  • 2 Stars
    51
  • 1 Stars
    29

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A brilliant read

This is a really good novel with beautifully drawn characters and the dynamics of the relationship between Constance and Elise and how this plays out is memorable and moving. The novel has two time frames; there is a hint of chick lit, or even cliche about the present day time frame, around the friendship between Rose and her best friend Kelly, but it doesn’t stand in the way of the elegance of the writing. Can definitely recommend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A mixed bag

There were parts of this book that were so well-written - phrases and even paragraphs that were just perfect! But the sex scenes felt gratuitous and out of place somehow and at times the characters were so self-absorbed that it was difficult to listen to. But on the whole, it was a well-constucted story, well told and worth a listen.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wow

What a book! Simply loved this story. Definitely one of my absolute favourites. I feel like I want to listen to it all over again and that doesn’t often happen. A must read in my opinion.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

engaging story, fantastic narrator.

loved this. characters all really relatable, intriguing story and beautifully read. A really enjoyable listen

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Compelling!

An absolutely compelling story, and beautifully narrated. I thoroughly enjoyed listening, at every available moment!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Captivating

Absolutely brilliant! Couldn’t stop listening. I’m Going to try more of Burtons books!
Thank you

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

a examination of motherhood, lost souls and self

Honest and human, will resonate deeply with anyone that has a maternal instinct. loved it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant

In all honesty I bought this book as it is narrated by Hayley Atwell, and she didn’t disappoint. It was clear and read excellently with each character having their individual sound that helped differentiate who is speaking. She should definitely narrate more, a brilliant actor who I could listen to all day!

The story was SO well-written! I love how the characters had flaws yet were still loveable and I felt fully invested in their stories. I love the way Jessie writes and I will definitely purchase more of her books. Honestly it’s hard to put into words how much I enjoyed this book, I think I will definitely listen to it more than once.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

So disappointed! No ‘story’ at all really.

Really disappointed I wasted my time with this. From all the reviews I had high hopes - but I found it dreary, monotonous and the story was that there really wasn’t a story at all! I kept waiting for a big twist or ‘ahhhh’ moment - but there was none. And I didn’t find it beautiful - it was depressing. The characters irritating - all of them.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Slow burner but worth sticking with

I didn’t enjoy the first couple of chapters but I’m so glad I stuck with it as I grew to love the two main characters and their relationship. The narration was brilliant throughout and vividly brought both worlds to life. I really liked the ending of the novel too. As a fan of this authors previous books I wasn’t disappointed and would buy this to read again.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!