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    The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair: A Novel
    Unavailable
    The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair: A Novel
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    The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair: A Novel
    Audiobook17 hours

    The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair: A Novel

    Written by Joël Dicker

    Narrated by Pierce Cravens

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    The #1 internationally bestselling thriller, and ingenious book within a book, about the disappearance of a 15-year-old New Hampshire girl and, 30 years later, a young American writer's determination to clear his mentor's name-and find the inspiration for his next bestseller

    August 30, 1975: the day fifteen-year-old Nola Kellergan is glimpsed fleeing through the woods before she disappears; the day Somerset, New Hampshire, lost its innocence.

    Thirty-three years later, Marcus Goldman, a successful young novelist, visits Somerset to see his mentor, Harry Quebert, one of America's most respected writers, and to find a cure for his writer's block as his publisher's deadline looms. But Marcus's plans are violently upended when Harry is suddenly and sensationally implicated in the cold-case murder of Nola Kellergan -- whom, he admits, he had an affair with. As the national media convicts Harry, Marcus launches his own investigation, following a trail of clues through his mentor's books, the backwoods and isolated beaches of New Hampshire, and the hidden history of Somerset's citizens and the man they hold most dear. To save Harry, his writing career, and eventually even himself, Marcus must answer three questions, all of which are mysteriously connected: Who killed Nola Kellergan? What happened one misty morning in Somerset in the summer of 1975? And how do you write a successful and true novel?

    A global phenomenon, with sales approaching a million copies in France alone and rights sold in more than thirty countries, The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair is a fast-paced, tightly plotted, cinematic literary thriller, and an ingenious book within a book, by a dazzling young writer.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateMay 27, 2014
    ISBN9780698176409
    Unavailable
    The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair: A Novel
    Author

    Joël Dicker

    Joël Dicker’s novels have been translated into over forty languages and sold more than fifteen million copies worldwide. Born in Geneva in 1985, Dicker later studied Law. His first novel was awarded the Prix des Ecrivains Genevois. The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair (La Verite sur l’Affaire Harry Quebert) was shortlisted for the Prix Goncourt and won the Grand Prix du Roman de l’Academie Française and the Prix Goncourt des Lyceens.

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    Reviews for The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair

    3.5/5

    54 ratings46 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Well....I wasn't really sure how I wanted to rate this book. I really enjoyed the story and it kept me hooked so that I wanted to read on; to find out what actually happened that day. However, I have to say that the writing style was very off putting. Every single character in this book had no depth, no dimension to them; they were caricatures and stereotypes. It was beyond annoying. Much of the plot line and how the main character gathered his information was so implausible it made me shake my head in wonder; but yet I still found the story entertaining.
    • 5/5
      Finally, I book that I could really get into.Where to start? This is a book, I'd probably not have picked up myself so I am so glad that I got the opportunity to read it. I found the writing style one that I liked and soon immersed myself deep into the story.Nola Kellergen is a 15 year old girl who disappears in 1975. He body is found 33 years later and opens up a huge case which proves difficult to solve. Initially Harry Quebert is the main suspect as he was in love with Nola in 1975, and her body is found in his garden, however he protests his innocence. The story is told from mostly Marcus Goldman's perspective. He is an author and Harry's friend and sets out to prove his innocence.This book kept me guessing. I never really knew what was gonna happen next and I certainly never predicted the ending in any case. I liked the way it went back from 2008 to 1975 and vise versa. I got a real sense of the people in the book really, even ones who appear briefly. Marcus's mother was one of my favourites even though she wasn't around too much.All in all, a 5 star rating from me. I'm so glad to have finally read a great book this year!
    • 3/5
      I had high hopes for this book was really looking forward to reading this.Main character is Marcus Goldman the latest and greatest American writer.His old mentor Harry Quebert has been arrested for murdering a 15 year old girl, she went missing 33 years ago.Marcus decides to write a book to clear Harry's name.Characters aren't believable, Plot is ok but just to silly, Also this book is 200 pages to long.I so wish this book was more enjoyable I couldn't wait to finish it.Easy to read but just silly.
    • 4/5
      As others have said, far too long, but mesmerising at the same time. Glad that I hung in there with it, after getting a bit stuck in the middle with the feeling that it was repetitive.
    • 4/5
      Marcus Goldman, successful young novelist receives a phone call from long-time friend and mentor, Harry Quebert. The skeleton of Lola Kellergan, a fifteen year old girl who was reported missing three decades earlier is discovered on Harry's property and he is accused of her murder. During an earlier visit, Marcus discovered that the two of them had a secret love affair and were to elope but she disappeared before their departure. In Nola's possession in the grave was discovered a copy of Harry's manuscript finished during the summer of Nola's disappearance inscribed with an anonymous message to Nola telling her goodbye. Now Marcus finds himself traveling to the New Hampshire seacoast to save Harry, who claims he is innocent of the murder of the young girl he claims he still misses.

      I read an advance reading copy of a novel previously released in Europe with accolades but won't be released in the US until the end of May. I found this psychological thriller sustained my interest, page after page, as I accompanied Marcus in investigating the events surrounds Nola's disappearance and attempting to discern the motivations for those who might want to end her life. This is a good mystery with its share of red-herrings and wrong turns. If you are a fan of psychological thrillers penned by Donna Tartt or Gillian Flynn, you won't want to miss this novel when released.
    • 3/5
      Three stars? Two stars?
      I read this because my friend stayed up late into the night to finish -- he couldn't put it down, and that's unlike him. But I don't think the book merits such praise. The biggest thing going for it is the pre-chapter writing tips that are very accurate and should be read by every aspiring author. Okay, the murder mystery itself and how its "solution" slowly unwinds and ultimately resolves is rather interesting. But the writing was not good. I am willing to attribute that to the translation and not the original author, but because I can't read it in the original language I can't be sure. There are times when the writing is fine -- long passages of narration that move the story along fine and with some quirk. It's the female characters and almost all of the dialogue that is caricature of female characters and dialogue -- is it for real? The narrator's mother, for example: caricature mother; waitress caricature love-sick spinster, her mother is a caricature. The dialogue is lame. But the plot is there; I guess that's its appeal. Don't be intimidated by its length, it's a relatively quick read.
    • 4/5
      Billed as a thriller, I felt it to be more a satirical look at modern day life and its distractions and delusions. It was perhaps over long but I enjoyed all of it particularly the twisty ending..
    • 4/5
      Book: The Truth about The Harry Quebert Affair

      Joel Dicker (and translator) has an easy , laid-back style that lulls the reader into thinking this is going to be a book you can consume like a bag of potato chips then feel compelled to go out for a run. You can. But also, this is the sort of whodunnit that can keep the smartest sleuth scratching his hair to the last sentence of the last page. He has complete control over his (many) characters and does not allow the reader to lose sight of them. What's more, this writer has learned a lot about writing from Harry Quebert and the protagonist (both writers in the book). His 'gimmicks' are so clever they seem necessary.
      All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this book - a sordid subject made palatable, a Gone Girl with more panache, not written with Hollywood dreams dancing in his eyes but can easily see it as a great movie.
    • 2/5
      I rarely read crime/mystery fiction, and it took me a while to invest time into this 600 page long thriller. The start was sluggish, but the pace picked up after a 100 odd pages, and I was intrigued to find out more.
      However, by the end, almost every character in the book turned out be to somehow involved in the murder of Nola Kellergan, creating a mess in my head. If I had to explain the story to someone, I would be lost! All in all, a decent one-time read for me.
    • 3/5
      The journey through this story started rather unconventionally, beginning at chapter 31 and ending at chapter 1. Each chapter began with a life lesson from Harry to Marcus and often the more poignant lessons are repeated. The three main characters, Marcus, Harry, and Nola are the driving characters throughout the novel. As the story progresses and new characters are introduced, the reader begins to develop a back story behind each of the characters. The book reads very much like an investigative dialogue with Marcus as the driving force behind it all. It is a tale of friendship, love, tragedy, and mystery. It is an interesting journey with a twist at the end that caught me by surprise. Highly recommended for those who enjoy a good mystery!
    • 4/5
      Still can't make my mind up about this book - which is brilliantly translated BTW - one thing for sure, it is far too long.Bit like a maze, dead end after dead end. You think you know what is going on, then there is another twist and then another. It started so well, and for the first couple of chapters I was hooked; I don't intend to give a plot synopsis as many have done, suffice to say the plot was something of a Curate's egg, good in parts. What did seem VERY unlikely to me is that a well read, well educated man like Harry Quebert would have thought that a pretty, vacuous, 15yr old high schoolgirl was his soul mate. I kept thinking of 'Lolita' ...for me that was an essential flaw. For sure it is a very 'clever' book about writing a book, so in a sense it is like a set of those Russian dolls that nest inside each other.I don't regret reading it, it kept me entertained but by the end was beginning to drag somewhat.
    • 4/5
      A good ending. A book recommended to everyone who aspire to become a writer.
    • 2/5
      As one reviewer said, this is a Russian doll of a novel. Or perhaps a more accurate metaphor might be a witches' cauldron with every outlandish ingredient you can think of thrown in. To start with, there are the copious borrowings. Throw in big chunks of 'Twin Peaks', add lashings of Agatha Christie, sprinkle in a bit of Hitchcock's 'Psycho', toss in a dash of 'Phantom of the Opera' and infuse with essence of Stephen King's 'Misery'.
      There are so many twists and turns that, by the time I got to the end, I felt I had stumbled off of a fairground waltzer feeling giddy and nauseous. It's yet another modern crime novel where murder is carried out by sane, law abiding people as if it was one of a choice of options of how to spend the weekend. This is a pity as there's the makings of a very good novel in the first half that slowly gets buried under a welter of switchback implausibility. It kept me reading to the end to see just how many jaw-dropping twists and turns Joel Dicker could come up with. He takes the prize from 'Gone Girl' with ease.
      Layered over the top of all this nonsense is a riff on the nature of writing and creativity, some of which is common sense advice which the author would have done well to follow, although most of it is made up of platitudes. I could also go on about some of the cardboard cutout characters (not another over-the-top jewish mother) and a complete failure, as far as I was concerned, to explain how a boringly typical pretty blond 15 year old, Nola, could so fascinate and enslave so many supposedly intelligent, mature men.
    • 4/5
      This book is one that seems to have polarized opinions about it. People either love it and can?t say enough good things or loathe it and are happy to expound at length on the reasons they hate it. I respect both camps but fall into the ?loved it? category.I can start by saying I hadn?t read reviews or even knew that the book had won several literary awards in the United States and France. So I went into the book with a blank slate and no expectations. Quite honestly, I don?t even remember where or when I picked up the book and for weeks it has been sitting on a shelf under the coffee table with my thinking that it was a different authors book altogether.It is a long book but for once, the length is justified. The author has written a very complex story with lots of misunderstandings between characters and misinformation presented to the reader that has to be unraveled and would not have done justice to the story if the author had tried to do so in just a few pages.One thing that immediately stands out is that there is a love affair between a 34 year old man and a 15 year old girl. My first thought was ?Are we somehow revisiting Humbert Humbert and Lolita by Nabokov here?? The answer is kind of yes and kind of no. But that is a similarity that readers can decide for themselves.The story is complex. One arm is about a writer, trying to meet the high expectations set by his first novel, while he struggles to write his second. Another arm is the writers? relationship with his mentor who followed a similar path. Another is a love story between a man and a young girl. Another is small town life in New Hampshire in the mid 70?s and the relationships between townspeople and outsiders. Another is a story about a deformed former vet and his mentor, a wealthy magnate.What makes the book so fascinating is that all of these stories are inter-connected. There are tons of themes that run throughout the book and I could write and write and still not cover everything. Nor would I want to do that because there is no way I could do that without exposing the end of the story.It is a book that you have to keep reading because with every page, a new piece of information is exposed that makes the ending difficult to see. In fact, you really have to read to the end to get the entire picture and I loved that. I?m not sure what kind of writing that people who were disappointed in the book were looking for from ?a literary masterpiece.? Hemingway wrote in very short, sharp sentences. He used his journalistic background in his literary art. For me, the wording or authorship is not the standout thing about the book. It is the complexity of the story and the author?s ability to successfully link all the threads together. It would have been very easy for the plot to come easily unraveled. To keep this tightly woven was a real accomplishment. This is a long book- over 600 pages. Even so, I was eager every night to get back to the story and 100 pages flew by very quickly so don?t let the size of the book intimidate you. It held my interest and I have been recommending it to others. To me, this is a strong 4 star book but based on the diversity of opinions about it, it is also a love it or hate it book. I hope you love it. I did.
    • 4/5
      The story follows Marcus Goldman a struggling writer whom mentor and only friend Harry Quebert is accused of murder.Marcus who is suffering from writers block, start his own investigation in the quiet town of Somerset, to clear the name of one of the greatest writers of the 21th century.The book has 640 pages, stars with chapter 31 and ends with chapter 1, each chapter begins with a rule or a lesson from Harry?s 31 rules to become a great writer Well to be honest, the author failed miserably to hook me in the first 200 pages I had considered many times to give up on the book, the beginning is doll, the dialogue is monotonous, and the events were uninteresting, it was 200 pages of pure torture waiting aimlessly for something important to happen or be discovered .Originally written in French, I could say that the problem maybe lays with in the translation but I don?t really have much hope for French books so who knows.The only reason why I continued reading the book, was my friend whom I agreed to have a read along with and I didn?t want to let her down, and who shares the same opinion about the first chapters.However, after passing the poisonous 200 to 300 pages things finally began to move, and eventually you get hooked on the case, although the murderer is easy to deduce, it is the circumstances of the murder and the secrets that the locals keep is what keeps you wanting to read and know more.The book had good ending, a genius one dare I say, and the kind that wipes away the regret of starting the book you had, and makes you close the back cover with a smile of satisfaction.
    • 4/5
      This is a book about a novelist writing a book about a cold case murder. Oh..and at times our dear narrator's version of the truth is not to be trusted. Sound complex...well it is but it's also captivating and exciting and thought provoking. I loved it! I think this will be the book to read this summer.
    • 3/5
      Bought this in L.A. airport to read during a flight to the U.K. - it went off to a flying start each chapter beginning with a short hint or tip on how & why to write a novel after that is usually a longer 'real' chapter and these in the beginning are quick fast paced reads but then, the more you get into the book the the longer and more dragged out it becomes - it's still quite a easy fast paced read but then as you near the three quarter stage of the book more stupid twists and turns appear and yes the thing could've been wrapped up an around about 3 or 400 pages but no I think Mr Dicker just couldn't make up his mind on who to blame and who should come out clean - all in all a reasonable read for a long flight but a slog of a read for a normal book
    • 1/5
      I started to read this mostly to practice my French, so I had few expectations. Even so, I was unprepared for its being quite so ridiculous: middle-aged men lust after a psychologically tormented and vulnerable fifteen year-old girl. She ends up dead and the reader is then meant, over the course of the 600+ pages that it takes for the whodunnit to unfold, to care about the fate of these men. How strange and unreasonable is that? It doesn't help that the author ploddingly trots out one untenable plot twist after another, or that it all plays out in a weirdly cardboard version of New England. While it is understandable that the novel hasn't gained so much traction in the English speaking world, its phenomenal European success is utterly baffling.
    • 4/5
      Easy read, gripping with a good twist at the end.
    • 4/5
      Some of the characters -- particularly the women -- felt like caricatures. But I still enjoyed this campy mystery.
    • 4/5
      A little tedious and drawn out.
    • 4/5
      A fun and funny read, and a great summer book. I'm surprised it's so controversial, since I think it's going to be a crowd-pleaser. I knew nothing about this at all, which surely helped me appreciate this on its own terms. After having slogged through a spate of grim, affectedly literary and intentionally portentous mysteries, I was thrilled to come across something suspenseful but entertaining.It reminds me a little of Twin Peaks, both in its atmosphere and in the continual twists and turns of the plot. The crimes' solution is fairly obvious, but even so, the book takes you on a roller coaster to get to the end and serves up a few surprises along the way.Read it if you are looking for entertainment and humor. Don't read it if you expect beautiful spooling sentences full of classical allusion, or a traditional mystery with a brilliant yet tragically flawed police detective.
    • 4/5
      Wow, just... wow. It's very rare for me to swallow an entire 600+ page book in a weekend, but I just couldn't put this one down. This is a book about writers and writing, mentors and students, life lessons and demons of the past... and a fictional cold case murder mystery in a small New Hampshire town. Shortly after the main character visits his old mentor, Harry Quebert (pronounced like Colbert), to cure a case of dreaded writer's block, the remains of a 15-yr-old girl gone missing several decades ago is discovered on his property. Our writer now has his inspiration! But as the book proceeds it tests its characters' relationships, their stories, and multiple versions of what really happened August 30, 1975.This book was satisfying on multiple levels. It was a mystery that had me constantly thinking I knew the solution... before throwing in a twist that changes everything. There's a lot of books out there that make plot twists ridiculous or predictable but Harry Quebert kept me engaged and on my toes. The pacing was interesting too. I find most books labelled as "fast-paced" to be too frenetic - like commercials that blast high-pitched sounds and flashing lights in short bursts. This book kept me turning the pages, but there's downtime between discoveries and enough time to enjoy the setting and characters. Dicker's style was great - featuring a plucky main character whose dialogue had me laughing out loud every now and then. Some of the side characters felt like caricatures, but I didn't find it distracting. The parallel comparisons between the mystery plot and the process of writing enriched the story, even when they were clearly setting up the chapter to come. It was sort of like having a "reading" coach with you as you read - annotating the book within the book. It's hard to convey in a review unless you read the book and see the structure. All in all I really loved this book and would highly recommend it. Great read!
    • 5/5
      I am so glad that I did not read any reviews before reading this book. The experience is 100% entertaining. As my unofficial third grandmother would say, "The story has more twists than a pretzel factory." For all of those who complained about the writing style, the use of trite phrases, or the uneven writing....it is a translation, people, come on. I do not read French that well, so the original would have been inaccessable for me. For those that snarled that the characters were over the top, I say nay. I grew up in a small town on the East coast and there was at least one of each of these folks in my weenie hometown too. I had five suspects lined up as murderer and none of them turned out to be the guilty party. The whole Nola and her mother thing is too real life. The avoidance of all things unpleasant, Dad, also very a real situation. Talk about secrets, how many did you count in this tale? We have hero worship, good cop/bad cop, jealously, missed signals, underage love, lies, theft, burglary, arson, sneaking around, breaking the law, and murder. Isn't there something in that list that would cause you to read this book? Well done, and 100% entertaining. My thanks to the Penguin First to Read program for a complimentary copy.
    • 1/5
      I am embarrassed on behalf of everyone who recommended this to me.
    • 5/5
      Still early in the year, but I am of the opinion I just finished reading what will be THE best book I read all year.Read innumerable portions out loud to my wife. Mr.Dicker seemed to capture perfectly the differing voices throughout the story.A mystery, a book about books, a book about writers, a book about small town secrets, a love story.From the epilogue..."A good book is judged not by it's last words, but by the cumulative effect of all the words that have preceded them. About half a second after finishing (the) book, the reader should be overwhelmed by a particular feeling. For a moment he should think only of what he has just read; he should look at the jacket and smile a little sadly because he is already missing all the characters. A good book is a book you are sorry has ended." I AM sorry this story ended, and I DO miss the characters already.
    • 3/5
      I can tell a difference in the writing style of international writers. The authors use less words, so it seems more stiffer or just the way the story is told is different. Some times I have problems with this. Not in this case. I liked this book. The way that the author drew out the story piece by piece. Marcus was a likable guy. In fact, he seemed to be the only one that even cared about the truth. To be honest, if Marcus had not been investigating Harry's story then he would have been just another guy. Harry's story involving him and Nola was a tragic love story that had gone wrong. I felt for them both. Harry's story did need someone to tell it and Marcus did a good job of doing so. However about half way through, I could tell where this story was heading. It then seemed to move slowly and be drawn out way too long. It could have been shortened about 100 pages and this book still would have been good. The ending was not a surprise. I do think that Mr. Dicker is a good storyteller.
    • 4/5
      This is a book about a novelist writing a book about a cold case murder. Oh..and at times our dear narrator's version of the truth is not to be trusted. Sound complex...well it is but it's also captivating and exciting and thought provoking. I loved it! I think this will be the book to read this summer.
    • 3/5
      I felt disappointed in this like I did about Dragon Tattoo...much too much hype for what it is. It's okay, but not great.
    • 1/5
      I have been at this for more than a week now and I have decided to abandon it. I don't know if it is because it is a translation but I feel that the writing is pedestrian. At 600 plus pages it is rather voluminous for a crime thriller, and even though I have made a fair effort to give this a chance, having read 20 percent, it has failed to grip my attention in any way. It would be foolish of me to persist with this when there is so much else available to read.