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Rules of Civility cover art

Rules of Civility

By: Amor Towles
Narrated by: Graeme Malcolm, Rebecca Lowman
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Summary

The unforgettable debut by the bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow and The Lincoln Highway

On the last night of 1937, twenty-five-year-old Katey Kontent is in a second-rate New York City jazz bar trying to stretch three dollars as far as it will go.

But a chance encounter with the handsome banker at the next table changes everything, opening the door to the upper echelons of New York society and a glittering new social circle. Plunged into a dizzy world of cocktail parties, sprawling mansions and glamorous magazine offices, Katey soon learns that there are rules to play by and riches can turn to rags in the trip of a heartbeat . . .

©2011 Amor Towles (P)2011 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

Terrific. A smart, witty, charming dry martini of a novel (David Nicholls, author of ONE DAY)
This is a flesh-and-blood tale you believe in, with fabulous period detail. It's all too rare to find a fun, glamorous, semi-literary tale to get lost in . . . While you're lost in the whirl of silk stockings, fur and hip flasks, all you care about is what Katey Kontent does next (Viv Groskop)
Who doesn't want to be transported to Thirties Manhattan? (Lucy Mangan, author of ARE WE HAVING FUN YET?)

What listeners say about Rules of Civility

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A joy to listen to

Another phenomenal novel by Amos Towles. I truly felt like I was transported to 1930s New York (and also so desperately wanted to be after eating up every word of this book)! A masterful piece of work, excellently written.

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A delicious book

The narrator is wonderful. You are transported back to the delightful times of the 30's. The parties the clothes the romance.

The characters are engaging and charming. I just didn't want this book to end . Reader you must read this along with any other of amor towles writings.

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The road to Kent

I think the fact that this is so different to AGIM shows the fantastic range of this author. Reminiscent of Fitzgerald and lots of other literary references. Good pace and good listen/read but took concentration

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Magical

Elegant writing from combined with engaging narration created interesting characters. Loved the way he set the listener guessing, right from the beginning, about the fate of Tinker from the two portraits in the exhibition - just wonderful.

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Thoroughly enjoyable


I thought Rules of Civility was a portrait of a modern glitzy 30’s where the morals seemed quite fluid and unexpected.
I listened rather than read this and the narrator had a typical soft New York drawl which transported me right to the era. It had a Great Gatsby feel to it- that bubble of entitlement that was very shallow- but equally very sought after.
I was touched by the Wallace relationship and saddened by the Tinker relationship. Ann was a master manipulator and people were pawns on her chess board. A thoroughly distasteful character.
I listened in the car, and wanted to click it back on, so figure I quite enjoyed it!

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Poetic Prose

Full disclosure: I LOVED Gentleman in Moscow and thoroughly enjoyed Lincoln Highway… Towles writing here is just as magnificent, though the story itself - a relationship melodrama - is not my usual brew and not especially interesting (though I did find Katy C particularly endearing). That said, the way AT brings alive the period kept me reading happily, if not magnetically, to the end.

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Beautifully told

Really enjoyed this book but took a little time to get into it but the story builds quickly enough. I really enjoyed that narrators voice, she has a coolness to her voice but adapts it well to other characters.
The storyline itself was interesting, painted vividly in the way amor towles is known for and it is his way with language and description which draws me to him.
Well worth a read but so is the gentleman of Moscow and the Lincoln highway - the last being my absolute favourite audio book.

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An amazing first novel

Although this may fall slightly short of the charms of A Gentlemen in Moscow this is not to this book’s detriment. This is a beautifully crafted story. A real treasure.

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Loved it.

Excellent narrator and engaging depiction of 1930s NY. Would love to see an adaptation of this - grit means glam.

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Excellent book

Loved this story of life in NYC in 1938 / 1939. Amor Towles is a master writer.

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