1 of 1 copy available
New Yorkers Michael, a famous writer, and Lizzie, a journalist, travel to Italy with their friends from Maine—Finn, his wife Taylor, and their daughter Snow. “From the beginning,” says Taylor, “it was a conspiracy for Lizzie and Finn to be together.” Told Rashomon-style in alternating points of view, the characters expose and stumble upon lies and infidelities past and present. Snow, ten years old and precociously drawn into a far more adult drama, becomes the catalyst for catastrophe as the novel explores collusion and betrayal in marriage. With her inimitable psychological astuteness, and uncanny understanding of the human heart, Ephron delivers a powerful meditation on marriage, friendship, and the meaning of travel. Set on the sun-drenched coast of the Ionian Sea, Siracusa unfolds with the pacing of a psychological thriller and delivers an unexpected final act that none can see coming.
Cast of Narrators:
“Lizzie” read by Talia Balsam
“Taylor” read by Katie Finneran
“Finn” read by Darren Goldstein
“Michael” read by John Slattery
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
July 12, 2016 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9780735208858
- File size: 215017 KB
- Duration: 07:27:57
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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This stylishly written and razor-sharp novel of manners is perfect for audio since the achievement and pleasure of the book comes from the crossruff among four different voices as each tells his or her version of what happened in Siracusa. Michael and Lizzie, a childless couple from New York, travel to Italy with Taylor and Finn, a not-very-happy couple from Portland, Maine, with their young daughter, Snow. Finn and Lizzie know each other entirely too well, we soon learn, and none of the others have read each other well, not even beautiful, precocious, creepy little Snowy. Each adult is voiced by a different narrator, and all four hit their marks with wonderful crispness and understanding of the characters they play. An absolutely delicious listen. B.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine -
Starred review from May 2, 2016
Ephron (Sister Mother Husband Dog (etc.)) undertakes a seductive and edgy dissection of two imploding marriages—and an unhinged mother-daughter alliance—alternately narrated by two ex-lovers who recount how a lifetime of small disappointments and delusions leads them to share a twisted secret. Ephron builds the mesmerizing suspense around Lizzie, a journalist, and Finn, a restaurateur, now each unhappily married: Lizzie to famed and flamed-out author Michael, and Finn to controlling and insecure Taylor. The couples’ shared vacation in Italy, which includes Finn and Taylor’s shy and manipulative 10-year-old daughter, Snow, unravels like a Greek tragedy in Siracusa, where Michael’s mistress shows up to force his breakup with Lizzie. Each of these toxic relationships puts the characters on course to careen headlong into a dark place of deceit and rage in Ephron’s brilliant takedown of marital and familial pretense. “Husbands and wives collaborate, hiding even from themselves who is calling the shots and who is along for the ride,” Lizzie says at the outset of her narrative. At its end, she marvels “at the person I turned out to be.” Agent: Lynn Nesbit, Janklow & Nesbit.
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