The rocks seems on the face of things to be an irresistibly sunny beach book. Richard russo this is a sophisticated and ambitious novel but im going to keep my verdict simple. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the rocks. The rocks peter nichols riverhead hardcover 432 pages may 2015. Novelist peter nichols discusses the rocks the san. The rocks by peter nichols overdrive rakuten overdrive. Peter nichols is the author of the novel, the rocks, the international bestsellers a voyage for madmen and evolutions captain, and three other books of fiction, memoir, and nonfiction. Isabel costello literary sofa peter nicholss wondrous novel the rocks is clearly the odyssey he was born to undertake, the book he was destined to write richard russo. The spanish island of majorca sounds like paradise. The rocks tells the story of former lovers, who, despite living on the small island, havent spoken. Though they live in the same small town on an island, the couple has managed to avoid each other since their very brief marriage in the 1940s, and this encounter immediately becomes a confrontation. Set against dramatic mediterranean sea views and lush olive groves, the rocks opens with a confrontation and a secret. The rocks by peter nichols is set in a glamorous resort on the spanish island and makes full use of the lush mediterranean landscape.
And when he submitted a draft of the rocks, a novel quite unlike the bestselling nautical nonfiction hes known for a voyage for madmen, 2001. A romantic pageturner propelled by the 60year secret that has shaped two families, four lovers, and one seaside resort community. The rocks by peter nichols may 26, 2015 hardcover a romantic pageturner propelled by the sixty year secret that has shaped two families, four lovers, and one seaside resort community. Buy a cheap copy of the rocks book by peter nichols.
Since then he has lived all over the world and held a variety of jobs. Hollywood bigwigs optioned screenplays of his that were never produced. The rocks has everything i look for in a work of fiction but rarely find between one set of covers. If there was a goodreads category best novel with a 3. Written by peter nichols, audiobook narrated by steve west. Set against dramatic mediterranean sea views and lush olive groves, th. What was the mysterious, catastrophic event that drove two honeymooners apart so suddenly and absolutely in 1948 that they never spoke again despite living on the same. The rocks, by peter nichols peter nicholss second novel, the rocks, seems on the face of things to be an irresistibly sunny beach book. He spent ten years at sea working as a professional captain and has taught creative writing at georgetown university. What was the mysterious, catastrophic event that drove two honeymooners apart so suddenly and absolutely in 1948 that they never spoke again despite living on the same island for 60 more years.
Peter nicholss second novel, the rocks, seems on the face of things to be an irresistibly sunny beach book. Theres a passage in the rocks out of four, peter nichols amiably erudite, ingeniously structured yet finally underachieving new novel, in. A love story thats as weird as real life, as rich and surprising and tender and affecting. The rocks by peter nichols booksamillion online book store. The rocks peter nichols, 2015 penguin books 432 pp. Nichols expertly weaves a tale that stretches across decades and generations, giving us a unique and unforgettable cast of characters. Richard russo a mediterranean idyll, a family saga, a mystery. On the surface, peter nichols new book is precisely the sort of novel you think of as a summer read. Courtney sullivan, author of maine a wondrous novel. Peter nichols finds the language that perfectly captures a rarefied group of louche and complicated characters, with all their endearing flaws, who drink.
It is also very much a love letter to the gorgeous island on which it resides. O, the oprah magazinea romantic pageturner propelled by the sixtyyear secret that has shaped two families, four lovers, and one. Most of it is set in the brightly lit mediterranean. The rocks by peter nichols 2015, hardcover for sale. But its sunny exterior conceals some sharp observations on human vulnerability and how easily selfpreservation can calcify into mere selfishness. The rocks, the second novel by peter nichols, has everything youd hope for in a great beach read.
Tampa bay times ambitious in its structure, with its vivid island setting and a cast of eclectic and compelling characters, the rocks is a novel that examines the fallout and lasting echoes, across. The rocks a novel the rocks peter nichols the rocks sound recording. Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. While the relationship at the heart of peter nichols the rocks ran its entire course in the late summer of 1948, it reverberates across decades, intertwining with dozens of characters who spend. And how did their history shape the romeo and julietlike romance of their. It starts in 2005 with a longdivorced couple sputtering at each other atop a cliff, and then moves. I feel like im dissing an authors entire raison d etre by giving the nod to a frilly beach read over nichols book as. Nichols novel opens in 2005 with a chance meeting between lulu davenport and gerald rutledge on a clifftop road near the rocks, lulus seaside hotel. What was the mysterious, catastrophic event that drove two honeymooners apart so suddenly and absolutely in 1948 that they never spoke.
Get this book free when you sign up for a 30day trial. Peter nichols adrian kinloch the rocks, a new novel by peter nichols, is told in reverse. Those questions wont be answered until the final pages of peter nichols richly imagined family saga, whose chapters unfold in reverse, like an. Plus, get a free ebook when you join our mailing list. Peter nichols is an american who went to school in england and spent summers on mallorca with his family.
Author of the rocks, a voyage for madmen, and evolutions captain. O, the oprah magazine a romantic pageturner propelled by. Set in the brightly lit mediterranean amid old olive trees and sexual intrigue, music and wine and beautiful women. As intoxicating as a long afternoon sitting at the bar at the rocks, the book features complications. Peter nicholss wondrous novel the rocks is clearly the odyssey he was born to undertake, the book he was destined to write richard russo. Here she remembers geralds seventieth birthday, during which his grandson charlie learnt about geralds book of odysseuss travels though the mediterranean, a book that gerald poured his heart into, giving the modern reader contemporary snapshots of the homeric world. The heartbeat of both the community and the book is the rocks, the small hotel opened by lulu in the 1950s that has become an ongoing party for natives and expats of a certain breed.
Peter nichols writes with a pervading, soulful wisdom and selfknowing humor, and captures perfectly this world of glamorous, complicated, misbehaving types. Author peter nichols reads from the rocks at book passage 060415. Most of it is set in the brightly lit mediterranean, amid old. This fictional tale is told in reverse of the timeline of events that occur over a period of years from 1948 to 2005.
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