I generally feel that Coelho is worth while author.
I started listening to this novel on CD. It was one of the most depressing things I had ever heard, so I did not complete listening.
What made it so depressing was the fact that it was hard to understand why the protagonist was so unhappy with a life that personally and professionally sounded enviable.
Life is too short to waste time on such a "downer".

It's hard to like a book when you truly wish the main character would choke on her own tongue. This book portrays (very well I might add) everything that is wrong with the mind of a human female and the indulgent society in which we live and the pseudo-intellectualism we use to justify our most base actions. If you like to get a bit angry in your reading this book is for you.

Amazing!!.I never put it down!!

Superficial examination of a selfish woman's empty life and marriage with a supposedly spiritually uplifting ending that was completely false.

Reading this juvenile and facile take on the meaning of marital and personal happiness, and the damage done by depression, was a complete waste of time.

Supposedly written from a woman's point of view, the book is filled with stereo-typically male sexual fantasies-- which say much more about the author's prurient interests than his extremely unlikable main character's supposedly repressed desires.

One word sums up this pretentious book: yuck.

oh Paulo. this is not even close to good. the main characters are uninteresting and not relatable. I felt like I was reading a book about someone who read a book and then wanted to act it out so as to make themselves more interesting. the main character is self absorbed and not in a way that i found endearing. She was a total bore and a whiner who never had a real problem so she invented them. and even that would have been fine if paulo didn't want to masquerade it as something deeper. why bring a shaman in? She is as shallow as they come that even the way she described having an orgasm made me want to punch her in the face. Just, no. I can't even articulate how much I didn't not enjoy this. The best thing about this book is the jacket. Read that and leave the book itself on the shelf.

Coelho's "The Alchemist" and "Veronica Decides to Die" have been some of most exquisite, magical, and even life-changing books I've ever read. Unfortunately, "Adultery" fails to come even close. The characters feel artificial, dialogue boring, inner thoughts unconvincing, and the entire book - like it's trying way too hard to be life-changing, without anything to offer, really. Though I was rolling my eyes through most of the book, it was nevertheless surprising to find the last chapters even more tacky and ridiculous. A real disappointment.

"ADULTERY" is a really good book, however not one of my favorites by Paulo Coelho, whom I find to be an inspiring author. The book is well written, but the story takes a little effort to get going. It is not until mid way where the protagonist, Linda, meets a certain character in the shaman where I found myself actually getting interested. At the same time, if one gives the time it deserves and reads through to the end the message is wonderful and quite inspiring. It's a really quick read at only 302 pages in fairly large print, so it is not difficult to spend the time to read it, but if you are not willing to read it through, I would recommend against starting it because it is not until the very end that the story really feels like it means anything universally identifiable. If you are a Coelho fan, then I recommend giving this book a chance. However, if you have never read anything from this author and would like to give him a try, I'd recommend starting with "THE ALCHEMIST". "ADULTERY" does do a wonderful job exploring the reasons of boredom and apathy even in what is perceived as the so-called "perfect life" that I feel is probably universal to most readers (or even humans in general) although those reasons will differ according to one's own experiences in life. Furthermore, the novel concludes with a great message of using the journey to find meaning in those reasons to find true inspiration. Overall, I found it to be a very good book, but not a great book. Coelho has definitely put out better efforts in his writings.

This book is disappointing, a complete waste of my time.

Not as good as "The Alchemist." Coehlo muddies up his work with some superfluous sex that doesn't add to the story. He still has a way with letting you see into a character's mind, which is intriguing. For the most part, this is a good work...just not his best.

SPOILERS AHEAD - - - I was extremely disappointed with this book. The beginning was very promising; the idea that a woman with the 'perfect' life finds herself bored (and apparently on the verge of depression; she can't really decide) is looking for something more fulfilling to satisfy her. What we end up with is the story of a woman who is bored, finds herself reunited with an ex-boyfriend from high school and uses extra-marital relations as a way to stimulate her.

I usually have a problem with men writing sexual experiences from a female perspective and this book is no different. From an author who wrote one of the most popular and inspirational books of our generation, he seems to force a spiritual perspective into this character that I just didn't buy.

Additionally, the pace was very slow and there was little dialogue written between the characters (mostly her inner monologue) that I found boring after a while.