Rosamund Pike to read audiobook of new Hawkins thriller

Golden Globe winner and star of "Gone Girl" Rosamund Pike will read the audiobook edition of Paula Hawkins' A Slow Fire Burning (Transworld).

A Slow Fire Burning is the third novel from Hawkins, bestselling author of The Girl on the Train (Transworld). Her new thriller tells the story of a series of characters caught up in a murder, all with something to hide and something to prove. It will publish in hardback, e-book and audio on 31st August 2021.

Pike made her film debut as Bond girl Miranda Frost in "Die Another Day" (2002), and was nominated for an Oscar for her role as Amy Elliott Dunne in the adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s "Gone Girl" (2014). Most recently she won a Golden Globe for her performance in "I Care a Lot" (2020). She has previously showcased her voice work on television in "Thunderbirds Are Go" and "Watership Down" as well as radio dramas and audiobook narration.

Pike said: "I love working on audiobooks when the characters are as rich and vivid as Paula’s. I remember David Suchet’s audiobooks of Poirot from when I was a child, and how they rescued long car journeys from tedium. I always vowed to give back for these hours of escape! Paula’s latest novel is all set in Islington and it was wonderful to be able to tell a story of murder and intrigue set in this postcode, and bring to life damaged and mysterious characters who all inhabit streets I know so well. I love Paula’s writing, full of wonderful observations on the way people behave, a beautiful sense of place, and a wonderful ear for dialogue.”

Hawkins added: “Rosamund Pike is absolutely one of my favourite actresses—I was absolutely delighted when I heard she was going to read A Slow Fire Burning. Listening to Rosamund read my words has been a great thrill.”