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  • The Secret History

  • By: Donna Tartt
  • Narrated by: Donna Tartt
  • Length: 22 hrs and 4 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (653 ratings)

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The Secret History

By: Donna Tartt
Narrated by: Donna Tartt
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Publisher's Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

THE BESTSELLER THAT DEFINED AN AGE

Penguin presents the audio edition of The Secret History, read by the author.

'Everything, somehow, fit together; some sly and benevolent Providence was revealing itself by degrees and I felt myself trembling on the brink of a fabulous discovery, as though any morning it was all going to come together---my future, my past, the whole of my life---and I was going to sit up in bed like a thunderbolt and say oh! oh! oh!'

Under the influence of a charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at a New England college discover a way of thought and life a world away from their banal contemporaries. But their search for the transcendent leads them down a dangerous path, beyond human constructs of morality.

©1992 Donna Tartt (P)2010 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

"Haunting, compelling, brilliant." (The Times)

"Irresistible and seductive." (Guardian)

"Enthralling... Forceful, cerebral and impeccably controlled." (New York Times)

What listeners say about The Secret History

Average Customer Ratings
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    2 out of 5 stars

Riveting story

Wonderful but for an Australian the American accent is a bit grating so would prefer an English voice despite the author being American

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Donna Tartt is the narrator!

A fantastic book and it was even better having the author herself read the book.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Narrator was great!

I loved the narrator. I'd give the book an overall 4.7 out of 5. Story was easy to follow and sophisticated.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

An outstanding expose of an eccentric clique of students.

Donna Tartt voiced each of her characters superbly, very few of whom were likeable, but the intricate plot and brilliant writing style render this unforgettable.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

“Wait for me” - Henry

“How could I possibly make [anyone] understand there is divinity in our midst?” - Donna Tart

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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Literary baroque

An ornate folly. A story of deluded youth and the mystique of college adventures resonate through life. Wonderful. Exceptional. Lush and detailed narration.

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3 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Dreadful narration

The narration of this book was so bad - had a tinny sound and very poor quality - so much so that it was distracting fdrom the book.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Exquisite

I had read the book years before joining audible and thought it was good; upon listening to this narration it has become my favourite novel. I was shocked to find negative reviews of Donna's narration is (although I am a huge proponent of author narration.) I think it is exquisite.

It allowed me to delve in, almost like a meditative state, to the point that I experienced the prose and characters better than my first reading and it became my absolute favourite piece of writing. I have listened to it again since then and sometimes just go back to a chapter here or there.

This book is not to everyone's taste; it is long, at times meandering, certainly much more character and prose focused than plot, but if you're open to the mindset of Richard Papen and the idealisation of those around him... well I can get lost in it for days.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Great story terrible narration

Loved the story but found the narration did not do it justice. I would not purchase another story narrated Donna Tartt.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

souvlaki privilege

poor Protagonist wants in to elite group, gets in, life shewered, underlying Greek themes.

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.