Ilium

An unnamed narrator dreams of escaping her less-than-happy life in England, even if it means pretending to be someone else. On the night before her 21st birthday, she meets Marcus. Even though he is 33 years her senior, she is swept off her feet and into his dazzling world. They marry in Mallorca, and on the honeymoon he asks her to help with a special project—posing as an art adviser to a family on Cap Ferret. Soon she finds herself participating in a covert CIA operation planned by Marcus’s friend Raja, who is intent on capturing the head of the Cap Ferret family, a Russian spy. Narrator Tanya Cubric gives voice to the unnamed woman as she navigates a dangerous and unfamiliar landscape. Listeners will appreciate Cubric’s performance, but those expecting a more traditional thriller may be disappointed with the pacing, which begins at a clip and then slows to a languid tempo. What the novel lacks in action and twisty reveals, it makes up for with layered characters and pathos.