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The Luminaries
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The astonishing and epic novel that won the 2013 Man Booker Prize

About the Author

Eleanor Catton was born in 1985 in Canada and raised in New Zealand. Her debut novel The Rehearsal garnered prizes and acclaim around the world, including the 2009 Betty Trask Award. It has since been published in 17 territories and 12 languages. She holds an MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where she also held an adjunct professorship, and an MA in fiction writing from the International Institute of Modern Letters. She lives in Auckland, New Zealand.

Reviews

Irresistible, masterful, compelling. It has a gripping plot that is cleverly unravelled to its satisfying conclusion, a narrative that from the first page asserts that it is firmly in control of where it is taking us... The things that most impress are the cunning withholding of information, the elegant foreshadowing, the skilful looping back on the narrative
*Telegraph*

An immense feat of structuring and plotting which means that this novel starts as a gentle stroll and ends with the exhilarating sense of running downhill... Ambitious, intricate, spectacular
*Independent*

A breathtakingly ambitious mystery... Catton's playful and increasingly virtuosic denouement arrives at a conclusion that is as beautiful as it is triumphant
*Daily Mail*

Remarkable... A true achievement. Catton has built a lively parody of a 19th-century novel, and in doing so created a novel for the 21st, something utterly new. The pages fly, a world opening and closing in front of us, a human soul revealed in all its conflicted desperation [and] glory... Dazzling
*New York Times*

Every sentence of this intriguing tale is expertly written, every cliffhanger chapter-ending making us beg for the next to begin. [It] has been perfectly constructed as the consummate literary page-turner... Extraordinary
*Guardian*

The Luminaries blew me away. Such a wild, strange world, such unforgettable characters, all brought together with such devilish charm and ingenuity. A novel like this from a writer so young gives me hope for the future of the artform. Stellar in every sense of the word
*Skippy Dies*

Sometimes - rarely - a novel arrives that is so good all you can do is shake your head in wonder. Brilliant in design, masterful in execution, and intensely pleasurable to inhabit, The Luminaries is a masterpiece, the work of a writer of apparently limitless range and talent
*The Short Day Dying*

A bold mixture of Victorian sensation novel and avant-garde constraint... Even on a fourth reading it still delivers
*Scotland on Sunday*

Carefully executed, relentlessly clever, easy to read... Catton sustains a human comedy that sweeps through the hope, the mud, the lies and the secrecy underlying gold fever. It is not so much a morality play as an astute celebration of the power of the story
*Irish Times*

[A] sweeping, sprawling tale... a triumph from a phenomenally talented young writer
*Stylist*

A dense, intricate historical saga, criss-crossed with literary eccentricities... Wonderfully inventive
*The Times*

[A] cunningly design[ed] mosaic of tales
*Independent*

Slowly reveals a complex structure raising questions about fate, free will and the human search for meaning
*Guardian*

Intricately constructed... An accomplished work of traditional storytelling
*Financial Times*

Incredible... virtuoso... You will devour [this book], only to discover that you can't find anything of equal scope and excitement to read once you have finished. Sheer rip-roaring readability
*Independent on Sunday*

A virtuoso performance... [It] is resplendent: a twenty first century Victorian novel that couldn't be more original... Steeped in history, The Luminaries feels completely fresh... The literary firmament has birthed a new star
*The Millions*

Quite unlike anything I've ever come across, so graceful is its plotting and structure... A dazzling feat of a novel
*Observer*

A dream novel: stellar in every way
*Economist*

Expansive and quite superb... Catton writes with real sophistication and intelligence
*Scotsman*

This epic novel of light and shadow affirms the radiant talent of its author
*Independent*

With astonishing intricacy and patient finesse, Catton brings to life the anomalous nature of 19th-century New Zealand
*Sunday Times*

An impressive novel, captivating, intense and full of surprises
*TLS*

A gorgeously elaborate fabrication
*Sunday Telegraph*

Brilliant... wonderfully intricate
*Spectator*

All really good books shatter their generic origins, becoming a thing unto themselves. But rarely has this axiom held more firmly than in [this] thrilling novel... [Catton] is among the finest of storytellers... Time falls away in her writing, and the mystery of creation shimmers through the cracks in the story. I didn't want this novel to end, and - in a sense - it doesn't. Catton's illuminations last
*The Last Station*

Every now and then you get to read a novel that elevates you far beyond the bric-a-brac of everyday routine, takes you apart, reassembles you, and leaves you feeling as though you have been on holiday with a genius. Eleanor Catton's astonishing new novel does just that... Essential reading
*New Zealand Herald*

Irresistible... The kind of book that really doesn't come around often. Everyone should read it
*Stylist*

The reviewer says it's so good he's been unable to read another book since
*Independent on Sunday*

A great addition to my impressive pile of great novels
*Observer*

A rollicking mystery... rivals almost any Victorian triple-decker... Fascinating
*We Love This Book blog*

It is a pacey and beautifully written tale of love, lust, greed and murder... It could well be regarded as the first great New Zealand novel
*Bookseller*

A remarkable tour de force... Breathtaking
*Brisbane Times*

Wonderfully vivid... The characters are so lush and the mystery is so complex... Exceptional
*Booker Marks blog*

Highly original, meticulously constructed, thematically convincing, this is a richly evocative mystery
*Good Book Guide*

It might be the Great New Zealand Novel
*Guardian*

Addictive [and] very clever
*The Times*

Irresistible and gripping... the things that most impress are the cunning withholding of information, the elegant foreshadowing, the skilful looping back on the narrative
*Irish Independent*

Remarkable... I found myself frequently slowing down to savour Catton's characterisations and gentle wit. The Man Booker judges have really struck gold
*Sunday Express*

For the scale of her ambition and the beauty of its execution, somebody should give that girl a medal
*Daily Telegraph*

A book to curl up with and devour, intricately plotted and extravagantly described, a pastiche of the Victorian sensation novel in the same smart yet playful vein as Sarah Waters
*Guardian*

One of the most purely enjoyable novels to have appeared in recent years... [It] offers large rewards for the reader's diligent attention. It dividends are both narrative and linguistic... Remarkable
*Literary Review*

Richly evoking a mid-19th century world of shipping and banking and goldrush boom and bust, it is also a ghost story and a gripping mystery
*Hindu*

A tremendously technically accomplished piece of work
*Evening Standard*

A highly innovative, structurally experimental project that tells a captivating story
*Bustle*

Experimental [and] bold... A gripping read... Catton's star is definitely on the ascendant
*The Lady*

Utterly immersive reading
*Metro*

Fine storytelling, plenty of plot twists and a colourful cast of characters
*Mail on Sunday*

Perfect
*New Zealand Herald*

Mesmerising
*BBC History*

A beautifully-wrought minuet
*Independent on Sunday*

A fantastic achievement and a gripping read
*Vice*

Ingeniously arranged
*Recorder*

Spin for a while in this novel's orbit, then return to terra firma with a tighter grip on your own resolve
*Independent*

Here is a book to lose yourself in... If you haven't yet succumbed to the hype of this huge saga, don't resist. A delight from start to finish
*Oxford Times *****

Every sentence of this intriguing tale is expertly written, every cliffhanger chapter-ending making us beg for the next to begin. Great
*Guardian*

With patient finesse, Catton brings 19th-century New Zealand to life
*Sunday Times*

Intricate... On every page you are aware of minute design
*Guardian*

Exceptional and phenomenal... As gorgeous and complex as an orrery
*Intelligent Life*

A page-turner
*Observer*

Truly dazzling
*Sunday Herald*

Catton's irresistibly intricate plot makes the pages fly by. Snappy dialogue, crisp humour and grand vision sets this far above its rivals
*Daily Telegraph ******

Big, bold and beautiful... A literary thriller that keeps you hooked
*Daily Gazette Colchester*

A carefully crafted door-stopper of a novel
*Observer*

[It] has got me gripped
*Independent*

Daring and colourful
*Irish Times*

A modern masterpiece... Catton deserves her praise
*Stylist*

I enjoyed The Luminaries, Eleanor Catton's game of literary Cluedo, so much I had to ration myself to 50 pages a day
*‘Books of the Year’ Observer*

The Luminaries portrays the lush landscapes of New Zealand in exquisite detail
*Good Housekeeping*

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