Piranesi: WINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE 2021
Sep 2020 · Bloomsbury Publishing
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156 reviews
Ebook
272
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About this ebook
Winner of the 2021 Women's Prize for Fiction
A SUNDAY TIMES & NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
The spectacular new novel from the bestselling author of JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL, 'one of our greatest living authors' NEW YORK MAGAZINE
__________________________________
Piranesi lives in the House. Perhaps he always has.
In his notebooks, day after day, he makes a clear and careful record of its wonders: the labyrinth of halls, the thousands upon thousands of statues, the tides that thunder up staircases, the clouds that move in slow procession through the upper halls. On Tuesdays and Fridays Piranesi sees his friend, the Other. At other times he brings tributes of food to the Dead. But mostly, he is alone.
Messages begin to appear, scratched out in chalk on the pavements. There is someone new in the House. But who are they and what do they want? Are they a friend or do they bring destruction and madness as the Other claims?
Lost texts must be found; secrets must be uncovered. The world that Piranesi thought he knew is becoming strange and dangerous.
The Beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite.
__________________________________
'What a world Susanna Clarke conjures into being ... Piranesi is an exquisite puzzle-box' DAVID MITCHELL
'It subverts expectations throughout ... Utterly otherworldly' GUARDIAN
'Piranesi astonished me. It is a miraculous and luminous feat of storytelling' MADELINE MILLER
'Brilliantly singular' SUNDAY TIMES
'A gorgeous, spellbinding mystery ... This book is a treasure, washed up upon a forgotten shore, waiting to be discovered' ERIN MORGENSTERN
'Head-spinning ... Fully imagined and richly evoked' TELEGRAPH
**ORDER NOW - THE BISHOP OF DURHAM ATTEMPTS TO SURRENDER THE CITY, a long-lost chapter in the lore of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Out October 2026**
A SUNDAY TIMES & NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
The spectacular new novel from the bestselling author of JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL, 'one of our greatest living authors' NEW YORK MAGAZINE
__________________________________
Piranesi lives in the House. Perhaps he always has.
In his notebooks, day after day, he makes a clear and careful record of its wonders: the labyrinth of halls, the thousands upon thousands of statues, the tides that thunder up staircases, the clouds that move in slow procession through the upper halls. On Tuesdays and Fridays Piranesi sees his friend, the Other. At other times he brings tributes of food to the Dead. But mostly, he is alone.
Messages begin to appear, scratched out in chalk on the pavements. There is someone new in the House. But who are they and what do they want? Are they a friend or do they bring destruction and madness as the Other claims?
Lost texts must be found; secrets must be uncovered. The world that Piranesi thought he knew is becoming strange and dangerous.
The Beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite.
__________________________________
'What a world Susanna Clarke conjures into being ... Piranesi is an exquisite puzzle-box' DAVID MITCHELL
'It subverts expectations throughout ... Utterly otherworldly' GUARDIAN
'Piranesi astonished me. It is a miraculous and luminous feat of storytelling' MADELINE MILLER
'Brilliantly singular' SUNDAY TIMES
'A gorgeous, spellbinding mystery ... This book is a treasure, washed up upon a forgotten shore, waiting to be discovered' ERIN MORGENSTERN
'Head-spinning ... Fully imagined and richly evoked' TELEGRAPH
**ORDER NOW - THE BISHOP OF DURHAM ATTEMPTS TO SURRENDER THE CITY, a long-lost chapter in the lore of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Out October 2026**
Winner of the 2021 Women's Prize for Fiction
A SUNDAY TIMES & NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
The spectacular new novel from the bestselling author of JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL, 'one of our greatest living authors' NEW YORK MAGAZINE
__________________________________
Piranesi lives in the House. P...
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Ratings and reviews
156 reviews
Ansu Singh
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September 3, 2026
I think it was a flawless execution, I loved the premise. I like how innocent Piranesi was, looking for the good in everyone. I guess the House actually makes you forget what it is to be human, because humans have deceit, jealousy, selfishness within them; none of which Piranesi could relate to. He even tried to warn the man who wanted to kill him of the impending doom. The man so polluted by our world, that perhaps he could not fathom a person as pure as Piranesi. Matthew Rose Sorensen was definitely from our world, as he was reluctant to believe in the theory of the Labyrinth. Maybe Matthew could have been saved if he had an open mind. As for people who went in and out of the Labyrinth - Dr Ketterly, Prophet, Raphael, they had totally different approaches to it. Ketterly - wanted something that had to do with greed. The Prophet - I think it was greed in his case too. Though I am not sure what he did to poor Ritter. And also the fact that he could have murdered atleast one of the Dead People. Raphael was probably the only other person who could see the house for what it was apart from Piranesi. All in all, a really weird book. I was about to give up just when it got interesting. So my advice is, don't give up on the book. It gets good. I promise.
Caroline Price
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January 2, 2021
I loved this book! Susanna Clarke ably assisted by Chiwetel Ejiofor, who does a wonderful job of narrating her book, has written a masterpiece. It's a study of a man living virtually alone in a labyrinthine house. How loneliness and the abandonment of the outside world has changed him completely, so that he doesn't remember his former life. He knows that Piranesi is not his real name but has no idea what that might be. His life before is a mystery. Partly lyrical fairy tale, partly mystical mystery, this a book to be submerged in. I couldn't stop listening to it and recommend it unreservedly to fans of Susanna Clarke and Neil Gaiman.
2 people found this review helpful
Doctor R. Lecter
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January 30, 2026
The poetic universe of endless halls, tide-filled labyrinths, and a solitary memory mesmerized me so deeply that when I closed the book, my own room felt alien. Piramesi's world seeps into you, calm and slow, convincing you of its reality. This immense epicness within sinplicity completely captured my mind. Simply put, an unforgettable escape.
About the author
Susanna Clarke's debut novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was first published in more than 34 countries and was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Guardian First Book Award. It won British Book Awards Newcomer of the Year, the Hugo Award and the World Fantasy Award in 2005. The Ladies of Grace Adieu, a collection of short stories, some set in the world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, was published by Bloomsbury in 2006. Piranesi was a New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller, and shortlisted for the Costa Novel of the Year Award and won the Women's Prize for Fiction 2021. She lives in Derbyshire.
Susanna Clarke's debut novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was first published in more than 34 countries and was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Guardian First Book Award. It won British Book Awards Newcomer of the Year, the Hugo Awa...
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