The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August
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4.3 • 461 Ratings
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Wildly original, funny and moving, The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August is an extraordinary story of a life lived again and again from World Fantasy Award-winning author Claire North.
Harry August is on his deathbed. Again.
No matter what he does or the decisions he makes, when death comes, Harry always returns to where he began, a child with all the knowledge of a life he has already lived a dozen times before. Nothing ever changes.
Until now.
As Harry nears the end of his eleventh life, a little girl appears at his bedside. "I nearly missed you, Doctor August," she says. "I need to send a message."
This is the story of what Harry does next, and what he did before, and how he tries to save a past he cannot change and a future he cannot allow.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Suitably shrouded in mystery, this inventive time-travel story is the brainchild of “an acclaimed British author” writing under the pseudonym Claire North. Harry August is a redheaded orphan who discovers he’s a kalachakra—a person destined to be reborn each time he dies, coming into the world in the exact same time and place each time. Whether you’re a fan of sci-fi, thrillers, or literary fiction, you’ll be mesmerized by this iconoclastic hero, who eventually receives a message passed down through generations: the end of the world is accelerating. As Harry August journeys throughout his multiple lifetimes, he embarks on a gripping quest to alter the future.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this novel, Claire North, the pseudonym of an unnamed British author, focuses on the life of Harry August, a man who dies only to be reborn as the same person. The illegitimate son of a wealthy landowner, Harry's life is challenging not only because he is one of the kalachakra, a small group of people who have the ability to relive their lives, but also because he is a mnemonic, an individual who can remember all the details of their past lives. Harrys remarkable abilities make him the victim to all types of people throughout the novel, such as Franklin Phearson, the psychologist who tortures August until he tells him all about the future. North's fast-paced novel gets bogged down by long-winded explanations of time travel. Despite this minor flaw, the novel contains real heart. When Harry confronts his distant father or interacts with an old romance, we are reminded of true love's power and timelessness.
Customer Reviews
About Harry August
I really did enjoy the book from beginning to end. Claire’s story telling have become one of my personal favorites over the years and her themes on hopelessness and responsibility has me yearning for more and more of her work! truly enjoyable.
Unexpectedly Amazing
What i would have given for just five more pages after that abrupt ending! Still, satisfying from the first page to the last. Amazing.
Wonderful
I’ve read it dozens of times.