The Fraud

A Novel

By: Zadie Smith

Narrated by: Zadie Smith

Length: 12 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

The New York Times bestseller • One of the New York Times 10 Best Books of the Year • One of NPR's Best Books of the Year • Named a Best Book of the Year by Publishers Weekly

“[A] brilliant new entry in Smith’s catalog . . . The Fraud is not a change for Smith, but a demonstration of how expansive her talents are.” —Los Angeles Times

From acclaimed and bestselling novelist Zadie Smith, a kaleidoscopic work of historical fiction set against the legal trial that divided Victorian England, about who gets to tell their story—and who gets to be believed

It is 1873. Mrs. Eliza Touchet is the Scottish housekeeper—and cousin by marriage—of a once-famous novelist, now in decline, William Ainsworth, with whom she has lived for thirty years.

Mrs. Touchet is a woman of many interests: literature, justice, abolitionism, class, her cousin, his wives, this life and the next. But she is also sceptical. She suspects her cousin of having no talent; his successful friend, Mr. Charles Dickens, of being a bully and a moralist; and England of being a land of facades, in which nothing is quite what it seems.

Andrew Bogle, meanwhile, grew up enslaved on the Hope Plantation, Jamaica. He knows every lump of sugar comes at a human cost. That the rich deceive the poor. And that people are more easily manipulated than they realize. When Bogle finds himself in London, star witness in a celebrated case of imposture, he knows his future depends on telling the right story.

The “Tichborne Trial”—wherein a lower-class butcher from Australia claimed he was in fact the rightful heir of a sizable estate and title—captivates Mrs. Touchet and all of England. Is Sir Roger Tichborne really who he says he is? Or is he a fraud? Mrs. Touchet is a woman of the world. Mr. Bogle is no fool. But in a world of hypocrisy and self-deception, deciding what is real proves a complicated task. . . .

Based on real historical events, The Fraud is a dazzling novel about truth and fiction, Jamaica and Britain, fraudulence and authenticity and the mystery of “other people.”

PRAISE FOR THE AUDIOBOOK

“With the virtuosic agility of an actor in a one-woman play, Smith as narrator so fully embodies each of her many distinct characters that she exposes, sometimes without their even knowing, the ways in which every one of us misrepresents ourselves in one way or another. This is a 19th-century novel of manners in which various people have very bad ones, and the result, thanks to the author’s perfect ear for comic timing, is vigorously, insistently funny…Smith bounces nimbly across the vernacular empire while leaving no mistake about her ubiquitous irony, her vocal side eye.”—Lauren Christensen, The New York Times Book Review

“Smith expertly performs her historical novel inspired by true events…Smith’s performance possesses considerable emotional depth, and she delivers lines with her characteristic searing wit. Smith’s ear for accents turns into perfectly performed dialogue for characters from every corner of London.”—The Millions

©2023 Zadie Smith (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Complex, thoughtful, fantastic characters

I loved it his book, and likely because Zadie Smith does a fantastic job of narrating. The characters and their nuances come to life both in prose and her spoken voice. An insight into the conflicting views and approaches to a colonial England, the enslaved and free, rich and poor, loved and reviled and a fascinating peek in literary circles throughout the 19th century.

Couldn't finish

I love the books I have read by Zadie Smith and was so excited for her new one I pre-ordered it. But, I couldn't finish this one! I am sad that I just could not get into it. Made it to the death of Dickens and just had to stop.

The historical information

Much too long. The author was not a good reader. The book Jumped around too much.
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Historical Fiction at its best!

I will be thinking about this book for years to come--incredible! One of my favorites this year.

Superb

For some reason, I didn’t know it was the author reading it, and what a happy surprise that was.

As for the book, the more things change the more they stay the same.

Perfect- Entirely comprehensive of humanity

Smith’s reading is captivating and her accents charming. The story was so engaging, such perfect details and such an accurate depiction of women’s handling writerly male egos. Bogle received the voice he deserved and the dignity. The intersections of oppression were made clear, but never pedantically. Loved it.

Excellent!

Wonderful story well told. Timely satire of MAGA then and now Shows that the novel lives on as both art and social criticism.

Excellent narration, involving narrative, OK story

The narration was excellent. I’m wary of authors narrating their own books but Zadie Smith has a real talent for it. She effortlessly switches accents and genders and a believable way. There are a handful of musical interludes that she sings which are surprisingly well-done. I’m confused by the few bad comments here about it. I couldn’t disagree more.

The writing is well-crafted and it is full of effortless descriptions of people, places and intimate interactions. Smith evokes a lush wold with her rich language. It feels like a classic novel.

The story is OK. We follow the lives of the main characters across decades, with portions told as flashback. It’s enjoyable to listen to, but there’s no story arc per se. I didn’t feel that the characters changed or grew so much as they experience each other and some notable people of the time. It certainly holds a mirror up to today’s MAGA cult and it provides a study on several types of love. I missed the characters when the book ended, so I’d still recommend this book. It’s a quality addition to my Audible library.

Couldn’t finish

The narration and the accent - just makes it very difficult to grasp and sustain - sorry!!

Needed…………r

a tad more editing, otherwise a great historical fiction novel. Character development and historical research was fabulous.