The Glass Pearls
Faber Editions
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The Glass Pearls
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Narrated by:
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Mark Gatiss
About this listen
For fans of The Passenger, this thrilling tale of an ex-Nazi surgeon hiding in plain sight in 1960s London by the celebrated filmmaker is a lost noir gem, introduced by Anthony Quinn and narrated on audio by Mark Gatiss, as chosen by Ian Rankin on BBC Radio 4's A Good Read.
'Stunning: incredibly good, thought-provoking and tense.' Ian Rankin
'This extraordinary novel had me hooked from start to finish.' Sarah Waters
'An outstanding novel: gripping, tense and darkly unsettling. ' Jonathan Freedland
'A wonderfully compelling noir thriller and audacious and challenging act of imagination.' William Boyd
Nothing is more inviting to disclose your secrets than to be told by others of their own ...
London, June 1965. Karl Braun arrives as a lodger in Pimlico: hatless, with a bow-tie, greying hair, slight in build. His new neighbours are intrigued by this cultured German gentleman who works as a piano tuner; many are fellow émigrés, who assume that he, like them, came to England to flee Hitler. That summer, Braun courts a woman, attends classical concerts, dances the twist. But as the newspapers fill with reports of the hunt for Nazi war criminals, his nightmares become increasingly worse .
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Critic reviews
"A wonderfully compelling noir thriller and audacious and challenging act of imagination." (William Boyd)
"This extraordinary novel had me hooked from start to finish." (Sarah Waters)
"Incredibly good, thought-provoking and tense." (Ian Rankin)
What listeners say about The Glass Pearls
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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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Antje Freudenberg
- 21-08-22
A must listen
Once again, Mark Gatiss at his best, reading this
captivating story.
I'm at awe how Mark Gatiss managed both the German accent as well as the French names.
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2 people 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
- Jane Renton
- 26-11-24
A tautological feast.
The narration was compelling and very well-pitched and the story arc surprising and chilling - like the subject itself.
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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
- Mrs Curzon Tussaud
- 12-10-22
An Audible triumph.
One of the best narrators I’ve yet listened to on Audible; great characterisations and more than competent with accents.
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2 people 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
- imusthaveanickname
- 04-05-23
Good all round.
Great narration as expected. I didn't expect such a challenging story, which didn't explicitly judge the main character for much of the book. I loved it.
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2 people 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
- Mrs E M Gorrie
- 11-02-24
Interesting sympathies
The manipulation of emotions about the main character-Karl - was fascinating. Also the enigmatic woman of his lonely desire is beautifully drawn.
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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
- Amazon Customer
- 04-02-24
Simply tragic
The split between rooting for the underdog that you know did terrible things because of his history and humanity, and the final chapters which bear listening to twice. An excellent reading of an excellent book
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- ARUTHER LOWRY
- 23-03-24
Great story and characters
An important book about the holocaust and its perpetrators disguised as a thriller a wonderful book.
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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
- Mr. Matthew Le Fevre
- 17-01-23
Superb!
Hitchcock meets Ishiguro meets marathon man…. Gripping! Twisty!unsettling! Clever! Driving narrative and a stunning set of twists - 10/10
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2 people 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
- tomomo
- 01-02-24
A very unusual, thought-provoking suspense novel
This book was selected by Ian Rankin on BBC R4's "A Good Read" (30 January 2024). The short discussion on that programme/podcast gives a useful introduction to the book -- so maybe check it out before buying.
As Rankin says in the programme, there's something of Patricia Highsmith and Graham Greene in it. It's a (very odd) kind of holocaust survivor memoir, a fascinating portrayal of London in the '60s, and a very humorous and suspenseful read.
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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
- Mrs. Bridget Biggar
- 09-02-24
Became my world for its span
Fantastically narrated by Mark Gatiss - he brings it to life in such subtle ways.
The empathy for the main character is so skilfully created from exquisite descriptions of reality be they of London, day to day behaviours and emotions or the internal dialogue.
And also the writing provided some gems of wit.
So glad I listened to this thought-provoking book
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