The Secret Places of the Heart by H. G. Wells AUDIOBOOK

Published in 1922, The Secret Places of the Heart finds H. G. Wells, renowned for his penetrating studies of both human nature and society, venturing into the realms of psychology and personal crisis in postwar England. This introspective novel follows Sir Richmond Hardy—a prominent yet emotionally frayed figure—who seeks counsel from the amiable Dr. Martineau. The story opens in the decorously impersonal setting of a Harley Street consulting room, where even the indifferent furnishings become a silent chorus to Hardy’s inner unrest.

Wells guides the listener through a delicate inquiry into the turbulence of the mind at a time when the aftermath of war has left both individuals and society afloat above existential abysses. Encounters between Hardy and Martineau unfold as a subtle dialogue, sometimes tense, sometimes searching, in which the atmosphere is laden with fatigue, uncertainty, and moral frustration. The social and political anxieties of the era—especially the apprehensions around public service, national responsibility, and the ethical limits of personal influence—form a background against which the personal is seamlessly interwoven with the public. 

Here, Wells is less the prophet of science fiction than the thoughtful observer of psychological malaise, of lives overtaken by the pressures of modernity and the sense of an impending social crisis. The prose is refined and often gently ironic, with heartfelt exchanges probing not only political dilemmas but the very sources of human will and fatigue. Listening to this work offers a unique window into the private struggles that underpinned the public life of Wells’s world—an era caught between certainty and the chasms of a new age.

Audiobook time & format : 6h38m10s, OPUS, 310 Mo
Audiobook free extract time & format : 5m (see below to listen), WAV
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