The Plot

A Novel

By: Jean Hanff Korelitz

Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne

"I think Jean Hanff Korelitz’s The Plot is one of the best novels I’ve ever read about writers and writing. It’s also insanely readable and terrifying. The suspense quotient is through the roof...It’s remarkable." (Stephen King)

Hailed as "breathtakingly suspenseful", Jean Hanff Korelitz’s The Plot is a propulsive audiobook about a story too good not to steal, and the writer who steals it.

Jacob Finch Bonner was once a promising young novelist with a respectably published first book. Today, he’s teaching in a third-rate MFA program and struggling to maintain what’s left of his self-respect; he hasn’t written—let alone published—anything decent in years. When Evan Parker, his most arrogant student, announces he doesn’t need Jake’s help because the plot of his book in progress is a sure thing, Jake is prepared to dismiss the boast as typical amateur narcissism. But then...he hears the plot.

Jake returns to the downward trajectory of his own career and braces himself for the supernova publication of Evan Parker’s first novel: But it never comes. When he discovers that his former student has died, presumably without ever completing his book, Jake does what any self-respecting writer would do with a story like that—a story that absolutely needs to be told.

In a few short years, all of Evan Parker’s predictions have come true, but Jake is the author enjoying the wave. He is wealthy, famous, praised, and read all over the world. But at the height of his glorious new life, an email arrives, the first salvo in a terrifying, anonymous campaign: You are a thief, it says.

As Jake struggles to understand his antagonist and hide the truth from his readers and his publishers, he begins to learn more about his late student, and what he discovers both amazes and terrifies him. Who was Evan Parker, and how did he get the idea for his “sure thing” of a novel? What is the real story behind the plot, and who stole it from whom?

A Macmillan Audio production from Celadon Books

"Narrator Kirby Heyborne maintains the brisk pace and firm tension of what promises to be one of the summer's most talked about suspense novels." (AudioFile Magazine)

©2021 Jean Hanff Korelitz (P)2021 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

Amazon.com Best Books of the Year, 2021: Long-listed

New York Times Book Review Notable Books of the Year, 2021: Long-listed

Washington Post Best Books of the Year, 2021: Long-listed

Fun. - but ...

Fun book but the narrator almost completely ruined it for me. Robotic voice and miss- pronouces Whidbey (island) at least five times. It's not Whud Bahy.

Excellent read

This was a very enjoyable read – I was surprised at how much I liked this book.

Good Read

I am an avid Audible listener. My husband prefers to read books and rarely reads novels.We traveled from Alabama to FL this weekend and listened to this book while driving. It was so good we brought it inside and listened to it too. I am sure the movie will be coming out soon. We both enjoyed The Plot.

Good story

A good and interesting story. There were some slows spots, but I kept wanting to know what was going to happen, so I kept listening. I didn't especially like the narrator. I think I didn't especially like his voice.

Amazing and spell-binding

Intense and quite the "page-turner" despite it being on audio - excellent narrator (just increase the speed as it's very slow). Very interesting metaphors, themes, and characters. Highly recommended!

Twisty as they come!

Loved it. The narration is a little stiff at first, but don't st that put you off. The narration gets better as does the plot of this book. Very enjoyable.

Predictable

Nod to Steve King using a story within a story. Characters felt a little flat but yet I felt compelled to read on to see if what I had predicted was correct.

A great read

At first I felt like the story was going nowhere, but that’s what ended up making it a delightful surprise later on. It was a fun read with some unexpected twists.

Amazing from start to finish.

loved this book! beginning middle and end were
amazing and totally surprising. I will definitely be checking out Korelitz other work.

Solid but obvious

Engaging for the first half but the plot was obvious and then I was waiting for the book to catch up and tell me what I had figured out