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Precipice

A Novel

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

"Robert Harris is, simply put, masterful."—Karin Slaughter

A spellbinding novel of passion, intrigue, and betrayal set in England in the months leading to the Great War from the bestselling author of Act of Oblivion, Fatherland, The Ghostwriter, and Conclave.

Summer 1914. A world on the brink of catastrophe.

In London, twenty-six-year-old Venetia Stanley—aristocratic, clever, bored, reckless—is part of a fast group of upper-crust bohemians and socialites known as "The Coterie." She's also engaged in a clandestine love affair with the Prime Minister, H. H. Asquith, a man more than twice her age. He writes to her obsessively, sharing the most sensitive matters of state.

As Asquith reluctantly leads the country into war with Germany, a young intelligence officer with Scotland Yard is assigned to investigate a leak of top-secret documents. Suddenly, what was a sexual intrigue becomes a matter of national security that could topple the British government—and will alter the course of political history.

An unrivaled master of seamlessly weaving fact and fiction, Precipice is another electrifying thriller from the brilliant imagination of Robert Harris.

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    • AudioFile Magazine
      With a crisp delivery, Samuel West narrates this compelling story of Prime Minister H.H. Asquith and his all-consuming love affair with a woman half his age just before WWI. For this novel based on recently discovered letters, West uses his British accent to paint 1914 London with a colorful and detailed palette. Asquith's focus should be on the preparation for war, but, as expressed by West in a tone of disdain, the affair considerably distracts the prime minister. West ratchets up the tension as Asquith reveals his love for Venetia Stanley--along with government secrets. A young intelligence officer investigates the leak of top-secret documents that changes the course of political history. R.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from September 23, 2024
      Bestseller Harris (Act of Oblivion) fictionalizes the real-life love affair between British prime minister H.H. Asquith and 26-year-old aristocrat Venetia Stanley in this fascinating historical thriller. In the summer of 1914, Stanley conceals her flirtations with the married Asquith from her upper-echelon social circle. Meanwhile, Det. Sgt. Paul Deemer responds to a call about a potential drowning, and crosses paths with Stanley. The narrative then stretches into the early days of WWI, with Asquith begrudgingly sending British forces to fight the Germans and detailing his distresses in tender letters to Stanley. As Asquith’s letters become increasingly forthcoming, someone in his cabinet starts leaking crucial government telegrams, leading Deemer to investigate. In the process, he begins to unravel Asquith and Stanley’s affair through their letters—many of which are authentically reprinted, some for the first time. Themes of national loyalty and the ravages of war permeate the novel, but Harris resists grandiosity, leaning on his background as a journalist to make the stakes feel at once personal and profound. Stanley, in particular, emerges as a fascinating historical figure, caught between a life of easy luxury and an intoxicating love for a desperate man several decades her senior. Readers will be astonished. Agent: Suzanne Gluck, WME.

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  • English

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