My introduction to Shakespeare’s JULIUS CAESAR was when my sixth-grade teacher made our class read the play aloud for “dramatic effect.” I read the part of Calpurnia. There is something searing about watching a painfully awkward sixth-grade boy theatrically cry out, “Et tu, Brute?” Needless to say, I never forget the Ides of March. This year I’m celebrating with 15 other works of fiction with dramatic and memorable betrayals.
15 Stories of Betrayal to Read for the Ides of March
1984
This classic follows a man struggling under an oppressive government—and there is absolutely no shortage of betrayal involved.
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The Woman Upstairs
Nora Eldridge is a quiet, reliable schoolteacher suddenly drawn into a complex and exciting new world with the arrival of the Shahid family—particularly the glamorous artist Sirena. Little does she know that Sirena’s ambition will lead to a shattering betrayal.
The Woman Upstairs
The Woman Upstairs is a masterly portrait of Nora Eldridge, a thirty-seven-year-old elementary school teacher on the verge of disappearing. Having abandoned her desire to be an artist, she has become the “woman upstairs,” a reliable friend and tidy neighbor always on the fringe of others’ achievements. Written with intimacy and piercing emotion, The Woman Upstairs is an urgently dispatched story of obsession and artistic fulfillment that explores the thrill—and the devastating cost—of being a woman in America today.
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The Count of Monte Cristo
Young merchant sailor Edmond Dantès returns home to Marseille to marry his fiancée, but is betrayed by his best friends and unjustly imprisoned. After he manages to escape prison and discovers a secret fortune, Dantès sets out for revenge on those responsible.
The Count of Monte Cristo
Young merchant sailor Edmond Dantès returns home to Marseille to marry his fiancée, but is betrayed by his best friends and unjustly imprisoned. After he manages to escape prison and discovers a secret fortune, Dantès sets out for revenge on those responsible.
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The Kite Runner
THE KITE RUNNER is the unforgettable, tremendously moving story of the unlikely friendship between Amir, the son of a wealthy businessman, and Hassan, the son of the businessman’s servant. When Amir and his father flee Afghanistan, he is haunted by his cowardly betrayal of Hassan.
The Kite Runner
Set against the backdrop of tumultuous, war-torn Afghanistan, THE KITE RUNNER is an unforgettable and heartbreaking story of friendship, family, and redemption.
Listen to clip of the audiobook:
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The Paris Wife
THE PARIS WIFE, which imagines the infamous love affair between Ernest Hemingway and his wife, Hadley, is a sweeping and evocative story of ruthless ambition and heartbreaking betrayal.
The Paris Wife
This deeply intimate novel captures the love affair between two unforgettable figures: Ernest Hemingway and his first wife, Hadley Richardson. Despite their extraordinary bond, the Hemingways are ill-prepared for the hard-drinking and fast-living life of Jazz Age Paris, and they find themselves facing a deception that will lead to the unraveling of everything they’ve fought so hard for.
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Atonement
When a 13-year-old witnesses a flirtation between her sister and the son of a servant, she misunderstands the adult moment and accidentally betrays her sister in an act that will change all of their lives.
Atonement
Ian McEwan’s symphonic novel of love and war, childhood and class, guilt and forgiveness provides all the satisfaction of a brilliant narrative and the provocation we have come to expect from this master of English prose. Benedict is the icky Paul Marshall. His scene with the candy bar is worth every penny.
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The Piano Teacher
THE PIANO TEACHER is a tale of love and betrayal featuring Claire Pendleton, a young piano teacher who travels to Hong Kong with her husband to work for a wealthy Chinese couple. This couple also employs a chauffeur named Will Truesdale, who takes up a fateful affair with Claire.
The Piano Teacher
THE PIANO TEACHER is a tale of love and betrayal featuring Claire Pendleton, a young piano teacher who travels to Hong Kong with her husband to work for a wealthy Chinese couple. This couple also employs a chauffeur named Will Truesdale, who takes up a fateful affair with Claire.
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The Hours Count
THE HOURS COUNT is the reimagined story of this very real betrayal—about the young woman who befriended her neighbors, the notorious Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, who were later executed for espionage in the 1950s.
The Hours Count
THE HOURS COUNT is the reimagined story of this very real betrayal—about the young woman who befriended her neighbors, the notorious Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, who were later executed for espionage in the 1950s.
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Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage
A young man is haunted by a great loss and journeys into his past in order to finally understand why his closest friends suddenly cast him out years ago. Hint: he was unknowingly betrayed.
Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage
A young man is haunted by a great loss and journeys into his past in order to finally understand why his closest friends suddenly cast him out years ago. Hint: he was unknowingly betrayed.
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The Blazing World
Harriet Burden, who was involved in an explosive scandal in New York’s art world, recruits three young men to present her work as their own. When Harriet decides to reclaim her work after an enormously successful reception, she is betrayed by one of the men and finds herself involved in a dangerous game that results in his death.
The Blazing World
Intellectually ambitious, electric in its prose, and emotionally satisfying, The Blazing World confronts the joy and fury of Harriet Burden, an artist whose work has long been dismissed and ignored by the male-dominated art world. Longlisted for 2014’s prestigious Man Booker Prize and described by NPR as “complex, astonishing, harrowing, and utterly, completely engrossing,” it is a polyphonic tour de force from one of America’s most fearless writers.
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The Remains of the Day
Mr. Stevens is the epitome of the perfect butler, but when he embarks on a road trip to visit an old colleague, he is forced to confront how the beliefs that have shaped his life have also betrayed him.
The Remains of the Day
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The Girls in the Garden
When Pip; her 13-year-old sister, Grace; and their mother move into an idyllic communal garden square, they could have never predicted the gruesome betrayal that would leave Grace lying unconscious and bloody in a hidden corner of the rose garden.
The Girls in the Garden
When Pip; her 13-year-old sister, Grace; and their mother move into an idyllic communal garden square, they could have never predicted the gruesome betrayal that would leave Grace lying unconscious and bloody in a hidden corner of the rose garden.
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In the Time of the Butterflies
The Mirabal sisters, prominent opponents of Trujillo’s dictatorship in the Dominican Republic, are betrayed by their inner circle. After plotting to overthrow the government, three of the four sisters are found near their wrecked Jeep at the bottom of a 150-foot cliff.
In the Time of the Butterflies
The Mirabal sisters, prominent opponents of Trujillo’s dictatorship in the Dominican Republic, are betrayed by their inner circle. After plotting to overthrow the government, three of the four sisters are found near their wrecked Jeep at the bottom of a 150-foot cliff.
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China Dolls
Three young women from different backgrounds meet at San Francisco’s exclusive Forbidden City Nightclub and become fast friends. When their dark secrets are exposed, a shocking act of betrayal changes everything.
China Dolls
Three young women from different backgrounds meet at San Francisco’s exclusive Forbidden City Nightclub and become fast friends. When their dark secrets are exposed, a shocking act of betrayal changes everything.
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The Sympathizer
Told by a communist double agent and a “man of two minds,” THE SYMPATHIZER is a gripping and suspenseful espionage novel that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
The Sympathizer
Winner of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, this profound, startling, and beautifully crafted spy novel is the story of a man whose political beliefs clash with his individual loyalties. An astute exploration of extreme politics, as well as a moving love story, THE SYMPATHIZER examines the legacy of the Vietnam War in literature, film, and the wars we fight today.
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