The Alternatives cover art

The Alternatives

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Alternatives

By: Caoilinn Hughes
Narrated by: Sarah Bolger, Aisling Franciosi, Caoilinn Hughes, Dominique McElligott, Liam Heslin, John Keating
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £13.99

Buy Now for £13.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

The Flattery sisters were plunged prematurely into adulthood when their parents died in tragic circumstances. Now in their thirties – all single, all with PhDs – they are each attempting to do meaningful work in a rapidly foundering world. The four lead disparate, distanced lives, from classrooms in Connecticut to ritzy catering gigs in London’s Notting Hill, until one day their oldest sister, a geologist haunted by a terrible awareness of the earth’s future, abruptly vanishes from her work and home.

Together for the first time in years, the Flatterys descend on the Irish countryside in search of a sister who doesn’t want to be found. Sheltered in a derelict bungalow, they reach into their common past, confronting both old wounds and a desperately uncertain future.

Warm, fiercely witty and unexpectedly hopeful, The Alternatives is an unforgettable portrait of a family perched on our collective precipice, told by one of Ireland’s most gifted storytellers.

©2024 Caoilinn Hughes (P)2024 Penguin Random House LLC
Family Life Literary Fiction Ireland Witty
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

In Her Place cover art
The Amendments cover art
Our London Lives cover art
Somebody Knows cover art
The Wild Laughter cover art
Bonding cover art
So Late in the Day cover art

Critic reviews

'The Alternatives unfolds in a prose full of gorgeous surprises and glows with intelligence, compassion, and beauty.' (Hernan Diaz, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Trust)
'The Alternatives is fizzy, brainy, and brilliant, always at the service of a drama of great emotional power. Caoilinn Hughes is an extraordinarily gifted writer.' (Joseph O'Neill, author of Netherland and The Dog)
'A massive talent.' (Anthony Doerr, Pulitzer Prizewinning author of All the Light We Cannot See)

What listeners say about The Alternatives

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    3
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    3
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Hard works

Story difficult to follow and trying to be too smart with details, did not enjoy not for taking on holiday

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

brilliant!

I loved this book so much. sweet, witty and engaging. the narrator is excellent. thank you!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Captivating story

I loved the characters and the way the sisters’ relationship was believable.
The sound quality varied throughout though with volume being particularly changeable

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!