How many pages is The Disappearers?

640 pages, which is about 192,000 words and 13 hrs of reading. Editions vary, and only Hardcover lists a page count for it, so treat it as approximate.

Is The Disappearers worth reading?

On early ratings, we score it 6.4 out of 10 for the time it takes — worth it for some readers. Only 12 readers have rated it on Hardcover so far, so the score leans on the library average and will move as more ratings arrive; at about 13 hrs at an average pace it gives back 0.4 for its length.

How long is The Disappearers audiobook?

About 21½ hrs, estimated from the 192,000 words at a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute. Real editions vary by narrator, usually by well under an hour.

Find a copy Listen on Audible · ≈21½ hrs

The Disappearers

Name: The Disappearers
Author: Marlon James

Marlon James

13 hrsto read

6.4early score

At your speed≈ 13 hrs

Pages640

Audiobook≈ 21½ hrs

Times shown for 250 words a minute (average)

640 pages works out to roughly 192,000 words. At an average 250 words a minute that is 13 hrs — a week or more of evenings.

12 readers have rated it on Hardcover so far — enough for an early score, not yet a firm one.

Worth-it score 6.4/10 — Worth it for some readers (early). Readers 6.8 (12 early ratings on Hardcover) − length 0.4 = 6.4. How the score works →

How long does it take to read The Disappearers?

The Disappearers is 640 pages, or roughly 192,000 words. How long that takes depends on how fast you read:

Estimated reading time for The Disappearers at three reading speeds.
Your pace	Words per minute	Time to finish
Slow	175	18½ hrs
Average	250	13 hrs
Fast	400	8 hrs

Estimated at about 300 words per page. Most adults read between 200 and 300 words a minute — set your own pace and every time on the site adjusts. Prefer to listen? At a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute the audiobook runs about 21½ hrs — an estimate from the word count, since narrators vary.

Common questions

How long does it take to read The Disappearers?: About 13 hrs at an average reading speed of 250 words per minute. The Disappearers runs 640 pages, roughly 192,000 words — so at a slower 175 wpm it is nearer 18½ hrs, and at 400 wpm closer to 8 hrs.
How many pages is The Disappearers?: 640 pages, which is about 192,000 words and 13 hrs of reading. Editions vary, and only Hardcover lists a page count for it, so treat it as approximate.
Is The Disappearers worth reading?: On early ratings, we score it 6.4 out of 10 for the time it takes — worth it for some readers. Only 12 readers have rated it on Hardcover so far, so the score leans on the library average and will move as more ratings arrive; at about 13 hrs at an average pace it gives back 0.4 for its length.
How long is The Disappearers audiobook?: About 21½ hrs, estimated from the 192,000 words at a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute. Real editions vary by narrator, usually by well under an hour.

From the publisher

In 1988, eight men in Kingston, Jamaica, begin rehearsals for a play. The men are strangers to one another and each has a different reason for being involved. But they all share one inescapable truth: All of them are gay-a ‘batty man’ in Jamaican argot-and all of them must contend with the dangers that such a truth lays bare. One night…

a mob savagely attacks them, killing one of the men. For the survivors, their recovery is as much emotional as it is physical: As their bodies heal, each man must grapple with the violence, the hatred, and the rage that the attack made plain. Some try to ignore what the attack has unearthed, while others double down on retribution. The Disappearers is both a dramatic page-turner and an unflinching exploration of queer life in Jamaica during the 1980s and 1990s. The Disappearers was longlisted for the Booker Prize 2026.

RevolutionEric Metaxas