Your basket is empty.
-
- Books
From a beguiling cast of charlatans and spies, Atkinson builds a labyrinthine plot that dazzles even as it leads you deeper into the fog. Enthralling, witty and worldly-wise fiction.
Think of it as an adventure, Perry had said right at the beginning of all this. And it had seemed like one. A bit of a lark, she had thought. A Girls' Own Adventure.
In 1940, eighteen-year old Juliet Armstrong is reluctantly recruited into the world of espionage. Sent to an obscure department of MI5 tasked with monitoring the comings and goings of British Fascist sympathizers, she discovers the work to be by turns both tedious and terrifying. But after the war has ended, she presumes the events of those years have been relegated to the past for ever.
Ten years later, now a producer at the BBC, Juliet is unexpectedly confronted by figures from her past. A different war is being fought now, on a different battleground, but Juliet finds herself once more under threat.
A bill of reckoning is due, and she finally begins to realize that there is no action without consequence.
Transcription is a work of rare depth and texture, a bravura modern novel of extraordinary power, wit and empathy. It is a triumphant work of fiction from one of this country's most exceptional writers.
Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd
ISBN: 9780552776653
Number of pages: 416
Weight: 283 g
Dimensions: 198 x 127 x 25 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'No other comtemporary novelist has such supreme mastery of that sweet spot between high and low, literary and compulsively readable. Brimming with dancing dark wit that reminds you how deeply satisfying good fiction can be.' - The Sunday Telegraph
'...a pacy, witty, atmospheric novel.' - The Financial Times
‘From Behind the Scenes at the Museum onwards, she has been chipping away at the fourth wall, mischievously drawing attention to her craft. What elevates her fiction above mere playfulness is the emotional integrity of her characters… Atkinson always puts on a damn fine show.’ - The Guardian
'A shadowy, decades-spanning story that asks whether it is ever possible to fully know another person - or indeed a character in a novel.' - The Mail
'An unapologetic novel of ideas, which is also wise, funny and paced like a spy thriller.' - The Observer
'Kate Atkinson is a wonderful writer. I want to write like her when I grow up. Transcription shows she's at the peak of her powers. Full of beautiful, delicate, sharp sentences and characterisations. A spy novel that dismantles the whole genre. A class act, as ever.' - Matt Haig
Praise for Kate Atkinson:
'Inexhaustibly ingenious.' - Hilary Mantel
'Kate Atkinson is a marvel.' - Gillian Flynn
'Kate Atkinson is the author who really made me want to write.' - Jojo Moyes
'Very witty and compassionate about the human condition.' - Marian Keyes
'The kind of book you shove in people's faces, saying 'You gotta read this!'' - Stephen King
'Thought-provoking and non-conformist.' - The Sunday Times
'Funny, bracingly intelligent...a genuinely surprising novelist.' - The Guardian
'Atkinson is brilliantly, defiantly playful with the stuff of fiction.' - The New Statesman
You may also be interested in...
“Simply wonderful....”
As far as I am concerned nobody writes like Kate Atkinson. Her books are full of intriguing storylines and fantastic characters.
‘Transcription ‘ is set against the backdrop of the Second World War and its aftermath....
More
“Step back in time...”
Kate Atkinson is back with her new novel. Delivering an enthralling tale of Juliet Armstrong, a BBC producer who believes here wartime espionage is behind her.
“The war was a clumsily stitched wound and it felt like...
More
“Magnificent!”
What an extremely beautiful book!
This is book I raced through I couldn't put it down for a moment. Set mostly in the 40s and 50s, it tells the story of a young woman Juliet Armstrong, who is enlisted to MI5.
I...
More
Please sign in to write a review
Sign In / Register
Sign In
Download the Waterstones App
Would you like to proceed to the App store to download the Waterstones App?