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A Ladder to the Sky
- Narrated by: Richard E. Grant, Laurence Kennedy, Richard Cordery, Nina Sosanya
- Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins
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A Ladder to the Sky
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Publisher's Summary
Random House presents the audiobook edition of A Ladder to the Sky by John Boyne, read by Richard E. Grant, Richard Cordery, Nina Sosanya and Laurence Kennedy.
A psychological drama of cat and mouse, A Ladder to the Sky shows how easy it is to achieve the world if you are prepared to sacrifice your soul.
If you look hard enough, you can find stories pretty much anywhere. They don’t even have to be your own. Or so would-be writer Maurice Swift decides very early on in his career.
A chance encounter in a Berlin hotel with celebrated novelist Erich Ackermann gives him an opportunity to ingratiate himself with someone more powerful than him. For Erich is lonely, and he has a story to tell. Whether or not he should do so is another matter entirely.
Once Maurice has made his name, he sets off in pursuit of other people’s stories. He doesn’t care where he finds them – or to whom they belong – as long as they help him rise to the top.
Stories will make him famous but they will also make him beg, borrow and steal. They may even make him do worse.
Critic Reviews
"A deliciously dark tale of ambition, seduction and literary theft . . . compelling and terrifying, powerful and intensely unsettling. In Maurice Swift, Boyne has given us an unforgettable protagonist, dangerous and irresistible in equal measure. The result is an ingeniously conceived novel that confirms Boyne as one of the most assured writers of his generation." (Hannah Beckerman)
"Everything the wonderful Irish novelist John Boyne writes is special...a highly entertaining read" (Jake Kerridge)
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What listeners say about A Ladder to the Sky
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
- Anonymous User
- 01-05-2023
Terrific
This author never disappoints & this is another fine story (& performance- loved hearing Richard E Grant).
Related in 4 sections by 4 narrators, this is a terrifically engaging story set in the literary world. Five stars ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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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
- Blossominoz
- 16-11-2022
An extraordinary story
Beautifully written as only Boyne can do, this story contains a plethora of human conditions all contained within the protagonist. The man is a complete narcissist till the very end. Wonderfully narrated. A great listen.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Karina Mereki
- 25-12-2022
Intriguing story
I did enjoy this intriguing book. I felt the stories dark side of ambition and the rise of psychopathic insanity that the main character evolved into or was he just born evil. All too familiar in our modern society with no moral compass.
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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
- Anna Haning
- 13-01-2022
Glad to discover this new brilliant author
This is my second audiobook by John Boyne and he delivered the goods again. I’d sum this one with proverbial “leopard never changes its spots”. It has a very satisfying ending with a funny twist, it’s full of moral dilemmas throughout. To qualify the genre it’s a thriller steeped in dark comedy with philosophical perspective and a moral commentary. It can be hard to digest at times as it revolves around a serial killer psychopath fixated with his literary ambitions. When he finally gets his well deserved uppercomence he proves faithful to his true nature. One must feel sorry for his victims as they discover his true self. Heartily recommend
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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
- Helen H
- 22-01-2023
Fantastic story. One of the best books I've read.
An unexpected gem. Really loved the story. Possibly one of the best books I've read in a while.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Deborah Lawson
- 21-11-2018
Clever, witty and scandalous
9/10 - I loved this book; it's cemented John Boyne as one of my favourite all time authors. Clever and witty and ever so scandalous. Heartily recommend!
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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
- Anonymous User
- 03-05-2019
Loved it. Keen to read more by John Boyne.
A flawed but memorable main character. Will definitely be reading many more of his books.
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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
- Meg
- 14-01-2023
Again!
Another treasure from John Boyne. Fabulous narration which brought already 3D characters to life. I can't recommend Boyne's writing highly enough. About to purchase another!
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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
- 22-01-2023
Exceptional
One of the best books I have read. John Boyne is a master story teller and his characters very engaging.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- David
- 06-11-2022
Can't connect with evil and silly
I don't like stories where the main character is evil and is supported in his evil by silly plot conveniences, the story comes across as unrelentingly evil and silly. Some people call this "cleverness" and love it. I did not like No Country for Old Men, or The Dark Knight, both of which are at the top of many lists. If you like these movies then you will probably like this book, if not then you will probably stop half way through like I did when it all becomes a bit much and the writing is on the wall as to how it will go (for reference I stopped at the introduction of the silly sub-plot about planting illegal content on a computer, I then cheated by reading a summary of the plot, just to confirm that the latest (painfully protracted) act of evil occurring in the main plot was going where it had telegraphed it was going for the last hour and that the story was going to continue being evil and silly, which it most certainly was). It probably does not help that I arrived via one of the narrators (Richard E Grant) from a brilliant Iris Murdoch story where almost nothing happened but all the characters made sense (ironically I did not make it to the section that he narrates).
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