New Reviews: Fiction

In a marvelous performance, award-winning actor and LGBTQ+ activist Daniel Henning seamlessly provides all the voices, sounds (BEEP, BEEP, HONK, HONK), prompts, and stage directions in Andy Warhol's 1968 anti-story, anti-plot, anti-novel novel. Basically, a word-for-word transcript of tape recordings of various "24-hour conversations," gossip, and asides, the novel stars a... Read More

Greta Jung transports listeners as she narrates this historical coming-of-age novel inspired by the author's great-grandmother. Set between 1924 and 1930, the story unfolds against the backdrop of Japan's turbulent occupation of Korea. During an era when women are forced into early marriage and motherhood and denied educational and personal freedom, Na-Young and her closest... Read More

Narrated in individual sections by four talented actors, Penner's novel presents two timelines, 1821 and 2021, filled with moments of enchantment, romance, and witchcraft. The village of Positano has enjoyed years of safety from pirates due to "stregheria," an ancient form of witchcraft practiced by its women. In 1821, the notorious Mazza brothers kidnap some of the "stregas"... Read More

Narrator Kristin Atherton leads a full cast of performers in this vivid and irreverent retelling of the story of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, beauty, pleasure, and procreation. Despite having been born in utter darkness, Aphrodite has become one of the most connected goddesses on Mount Olympus. Now she finds herself perpetually having to reassert her power while... Read More

Eric Altheide excels at projecting the tension in this compelling novel about a young fiction writer whose actions thrust him into dramas beyond any he ever imagined. Altheide portrays the ambitious writer David Trent, who is determined to publish and thrilled when an award lands him in the limelight. In order to retain his status, he becomes immersed in lies, cheating, and... Read More

Inspired by her family history in China and the U.S., Gish Jen's novel is narrated with nuance, emotional depth, and clarity of purpose by Jen Zhao. Her pitch-perfect performance enhances this multigenerational story, which revolves around a challenging mother-daughter relationship. Retaining her traditional Chinese values, Agnes, the author's mother, immigrates to the U.S. in... Read More

This full-cast audiobook imagines Margaret Dashwood--the younger half sister of SENSE AND SENSIBILITY'S protagonists--as an adult. Longing for more than marriage and motherhood, Margaret visits London at the invitation of Mrs. Jennings. After finding herself lost and tipsy in a less-than-desirable area, Margaret joins a group of independent women, including the beautiful... Read More

Set at Bellerton College, an elite women's school, this audiobook in the dark academia genre begins in 1951, when Deena, a freshman, arrives on the school's Virginia campus. Narrator Adenrele Ojo describes Deena's desperate need to hide her underprivileged past and become accepted by the wealthy popular girls. Deena's secrets unravel as she's drawn into the sinister obsessions... Read More

O. Henry Award Guest Editor Jones' selections of best stories for 2025, performed by an ensemble cast, emphasize what he views as the biggest responsibility of the fiction writer--to make stuff up. Rather than seeming mundane, these 20 stories ignite the quotidian with a sense of wonder. Listeners are given a chorus of small things: a postal worker, a set of hearing aids, an... Read More

Narrator Adam Barr paints a vivid picture of this family saga with elements of suspense. Mild-mannered, cautiously ambitious lawyer Monty Atkins has never strayed very far outside the conventions of Charleston society. When a sudden act of violence sends his family into a tailspin, Monty draws on hidden reserves of strength and cunning to keep a further tragedy at bay. Barr... Read More

Narrator Charlie Thurston infuses vivid drama into this debut novel about a gay man whose life is shaped by two stints on a reality TV show. In 2003, after a car accident ends his football career, 22-year-old Luke Griffin joins the cast of "Endeavor," a cutthroat reality competition show. A decade later, now a stay-at-home father married to a Republican senator, Luke finds his... Read More

As author/narrator Sam Sussman's autobiographical novel begins, a son is summoned home from studying abroad. His mother meets him at the airport, physically and mentally ravaged from chemotherapy. In a voice pulsating with sincerity and reverence, Sussman has only questions. Why hadn't his mother told him the extent of her illness? Why had she left the big city for an... Read More

Three narrators smoothly differentiate three women who live in Lagos in three different time frames. In the late 1980s, Monife, portrayed by Weruche Opia, wrestles with falling in love despite the curse on her family that ruins her romantic relationships. During the early 2000s, Ebun, portrayed by Diana Yekinni, gives birth to a daughter on the same day that Monife dies. Ebun... Read More

Jonathan Letham's fans won't be disappointed with this listen. The stories' range and the narrators' talent are certain to keep listeners entertained. Each narrator brings their own take to the task. Letham's dry delivery doesn't surprise. Jim Meskimen performs "Vivian Relf" as one would hope--straightforwardly and without sounding overwrought. Pete Simonelli's take on "The... Read More

This engrossing drama of a Southern Black family uncovers the sins of Emanuel Winfrey--nicknamed Wonderboy--from the perspectives of the women who love him. Narrator Bahni Turpin delivers his mother's biting commentary with hilarious sarcasm. But, in reality, eternally loyal Priscilla would prefer to keep her son's secrets hidden. Diamond, portrayed by Angel Pean in a silky,... Read More

This audiobook presents a jewel box of late-in-life stories written by a master, and all exceptionally well performed. Rushdie's imagination, wit, and ear for language are on full display in "a quintet" of remarkable fictions. The listener is also treated to five accomplished narrators who capture the author's voice, sometimes standing to the side while explaining the... Read More

Narrator Billie Fulford-Brown delivers this thought-provoking story of empire collapse as imagined by renowned novelist Packer in a cool yet impassioned tone. A frightening future splits society into two camps-- the urban Burghers and the rural Yeomen. Fulford-Brown portrays Doctor Hugo Rustin with empathy and urgency as he makes a mistake that pushes him out of the city and... Read More

Mhairi Morrison's amiable tone and Scottish accent are perfect for this engrossing historical novel, set amid the spiritualist movement of the early 20th century. Two narratives are interwoven: the story of Lottie, the Welsh widow of a Scottish miner, and the story of her granddaughter, Nora Grey. Both Lottie and Nora are exploited in different ways: Lottie by an abusive mine... Read More

Nancy Linari impeccably narrates this exquisite story featuring many characters from Stewart O'Nan's Pittsburgh novels. A group of elderly female choir members form the Humpty Dumpty Club to ensure that those struggling with life's challenges will never go unaided. Linari optimistically depicts the characters' delightfully different perspectives. When Joan, their vital longtime... Read More

Deepa Samuel's narration brings steadiness and emotional clarity to this story of the longstanding friendship between Ruchi and Deepa, who are shaped by class, migration, and unspoken longing. Samuel softly portrays the girls' intimate friendship during their Indian school days. Samuel's voice gradually deepens as the narrative moves into adulthood and the pressures of... Read More

Throughout this audiobook, translated from a Norwegian novel, an aged ferryman who is navigating familiar fjords picks up passengers--all of them spirits of those he once knew. Accompanied by his faithful departed dog, he waits for his late wife to join him for his final journey out of earthly life. Despite the surreal plot, the audiobook is grounded by evocative physical... Read More

This provocative debut audiobook about the lives of two women is enhanced by the pitch-perfect narration of Ellie Gossage. Avery, a 20-something graduate student living in New York City, turns to sex work to finance her education. Her decision is supported by her wealthy best friend, Frances, who drops out of school to marry and later becomes a successful filmmaker. Gossage... Read More

Narrator Daniel Weyman portrays István, an awkward teenager who, as the novel opens, lives in an apartment complex in Hungary. Tragically, the earnest, needy teen falls in love with an older woman, and when he declares his love and confronts her husband, István accidentally kills him. Institutionalization follows--from which he emerges withdrawn and almost incapable of... Read More

This is an excellent audiobook for those easing into winter, for nature lovers, for romantics and fans of fantasy--for anyone who desires a beautiful performance with a rewarding conclusion. Winter Fox somberly recounts a saga that toes the line between historical fiction and historical fantasy. Listeners grow to love the people of Lapland, Wendland, Upland, and their neighbors... Read More

Samuel Barnett delivers a fresh interpretation of the St. George and the Dragon legend. George, whom Barnett portrays in a snide, harried tone that makes him bitingly funny, becomes increasingly hysterical as his contemporary London life falls apart. After he inexplicably time travels to the medieval era, his neuroses are subsumed into the immediacy of survival and the... Read More

Narrators Rita Amparita and Stephanie Németh-Parker add emotional depth to this academic thriller. High-achieving and sardonic sophomore Nina Kaur hopes to be accepted into The House, a sorority that promises success, beauty, and power to its alumnae. As Nina is drawn into The House's rituals, her fear of failure begins to ease. At the same time, the House's newest academic... Read More

Experienced narrators of South Asian descent come together to create vivid listening. In a near apocalyptic Kolkata, India, two families battle for survival without fully understanding how each family's decisions impact the other. The varied voices work together to mimic life in a crowded, strained city. The narrators' pacing and tonal changes guide the listener through the ups... Read More

Five narrators give fine voice to Aoyama's newest collection of gentle, wise stories. This time the bestselling author introduces five people who live near Hinode Park playground. Each is struggling in some way, and each soon finds the playground's pink cement hippo, rumored to heal the wounded. The visitors include a schoolboy with failing grades; a new mother without friends;... Read More

Deepti Gupta and Vikas Adam beautifully narrate the frustrations, joys, disappointments, and hopes of Muslim women and their families in 1990s India. In a dozen short stories, the characters deal with the pain of childbirth and the sweetness of motherhood, with romantic love and patriarchal oppression. Gupta effusively voices a variety of distinct and nuanced characters, female... Read More

This riveting audiobook about a middle-aged woman in a disastrous marriage is narrated with nuance and conviction by Rebecca Gibel. Charlotte meets Jimbo, a drug addict, and impulsively marries him. Desperately lonely and depressed, she's convinced that being overweight makes her unlovable. Her family connection is strong, especially with her father and her sister, Celia, whose... Read More

Louise Brealey's remarkable performance of the new novel by award-winning author Sarah Hall makes for thoroughly addictive listening. Like the mistral of France and the sirocco of North Africa, helm is a named wind that blows through England's Pennine Hills. Fierce, playful, and unpredictable, it's long been the stuff of folklore. Now it is the central figure in this... Read More

Narrated by Sara Sheckells, this audiobook is a tender but brutal look at motherhood. Two alternating storylines unfold. One features a young mother who is struggling with her sick daughter while mourning her own independence. The other tells the story of a "princess" who lives an ideal life with her "prince" and their two "heirs." Sheckells uses a breathy, almost ethereal,... Read More

This audiobook, the third of the Dalton novels, recounts the hardscrabble lives of people in a rural town in northern Maine. The friendly, gossipy voice of narrator Patricia Shade ensures that listeners become familiar with some of the citizens in this close-knit community--their dreams, secrets, and vulnerabilities. The most compelling character is Rose, a single mother who is... Read More

Time unfolds according to its own rhythms in this historical audiobook, capably narrated by Robert Fass. Despite having been elected to law enforcement mostly against his better judgment, widower, farmer, and reluctant sheriff Clinton Salter is determined to do a good job of it. As he negotiates crimes that range from public drunkenness and tractor theft to arson and possible... Read More

Christopher Grant and Golden Voice Robin Miles jointly narrate this expansive collection of work by groundbreaking author Terry McMillan. Included are both published and unpublished works of short fiction, as well as an intriguing assortment of essays, speeches, and literary sketches. Miles, the primary narrator, moves seamlessly among McMillan's characters as she traces a path... Read More

First, narrator Hillary Huber delivers a short profile by official Harper Lee biographer Casey Cep. Then, award-winning actor Ellen Burstyn performs stories, essays, and articles by Lee, some of which were published in leading magazines of her day. These latter works, some clearly early drafts, are narrated in Burstyn's sharp, expressive voice and feature many of the characters... Read More

Golden Voice narrator Dominic Hoffman narrates his own short story collection with a vocal swagger. His rambling tales, which sound like fever dreams, hook the listener right away. Hoffman's deep, steady voice complements his wily main characters, mostly Black men who are doing their best to navigate an uncertain world. Hoffman is a seasoned actor, and his narration has a... Read More

Ina Barrón, Jay Myers, and Mirai perform the story of a quantum physicist; his wife, an artist; and the dangerous nature of memory. When Noah, portrayed by Myers, is hired to work for the Janus Project, he soon discovers that a paper he wrote in college has opened the door to time-travel research and the opportunity to see his late daughter again. As his second wife, Maya,... Read More

Sneha Mathan soothingly delivers a love story between two writers who are divided by family, geography, and melancholy. Sonia, who writes short stories, is first plagued by loneliness at school in Vermont. Sunny, a journalist, is troubled by the dissonance in his life. An attempt by Sonia's family to match the two is foiled by Sunny's mother, an act that only postpones a fated... Read More

The snowy Pyrenees provide a stark setting for this spare audiobook. Following a confrontation, Miquel's mother goes missing. The novella examines the effects of this life-altering event, as well as the family's complex bonds. Gerard Doyle's performance is direct, clear, and well suited to the simplicity of Tóibín's prose. Sometimes his pace falters, especially in the... Read More

In a somber performance, Sue Jean Kim delivers this collection of 10 dystopian short stories that explore climate disaster in the near future. Her quiet delivery captures a deep human longing for connection, love, and meaning. Standout stories include "Biodome," in which New Seoul is enclosed under a protective dome to shield residents from toxic air pollution, and "Older... Read More

With the right amount of spice and vigor, Telly Leung gives a spirited performance of this humorous story of Chinese American family dynamics. The wealthy Sun family has a rich lineage but no current heir to their name and successful family business. When the matriarch selects her nephew Wayward--who everyone knows is gay--to father a male heir, family scandals, conflict, and... Read More

Khaya Fraites and William DeMeritt perform this Southern short story collection full of rich characters with a lot of heart. Moore's stories feature settings that range from mountain hollers to sprawling cities. In one, a deaconess is tempted to sin, and in another a young Texan is determined to marry despite a family curse. In every work, Moore illuminates the lives of Black... Read More

Narrator Stacy Gonzalez delivers a nuanced and affecting performance of Dolores Moore's search for identity as the sole surviving member of her family. Raised by her biological aunt and her partner, Dolores feels unmoored after their deaths and journeys to her birthplace in Cali, Colombia, seeking reconnection with her heritage. Throughout her travels, she's guided by the... Read More

This festive audiobook reminds listeners that Christmas can be a time of peace and joy--or a time of distraction and family strife. Caroline Hewitt portrays Merry, a 55-year-old woman who is navigating a tumultuous Christmas season when she learns she has a nodule on her lung. As Merry searches for her Christmas spirit--both figuratively and literally--listeners will find... Read More

Narrator Greta Jung deftly brings this collection of Korean ghost stories to life, creating a compelling listening experience. At a research institute, a night-shift worker catalogs the supernatural histories of various objects and people--for example, a handkerchief tied to a fierce sibling rivalry and a stolen sneaker seeking revenge. In one tale, the institute's deputy... Read More

Joy Osmanski provides a steady, clear narration of this poignant audiobook involving interrelated characters and far-flung places. In 1998, Mimi Truang is separated from her infant daughter, Kit, in the Philadelphia airport on her way home to Vietnam. Seventeen years later, Kit, who has been adopted by white parents, is preparing for summer travels to Japan, and her friend... Read More

Masterful narrators add emotional depth and nuance to Lorena Hughes' arresting story. Set in Quito, Ecuador, the novel unfolds across a dual timeline as Hughes explores the complicated friendship between Alicia and Marisa, two women who love the same man. First, simmering tension erupts during the 1949 riots sparked by the "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast. Then, the... Read More

Listeners are drawn into a complex story with two time frames. Part of it takes place in Leonardo da Vinci's world, and part of it in the world of today. The narrators capture the characters' essences. Scarlett, a scientist, and Artie, an art historian, are hired by a nefarious millionaire to authenticate a secret collection of paintings and papers, including the notebooks of... Read More

Frankie Corzo's performance is perfect for this beautifully written novel. Inés, the youngest of four sisters, wants more for her life than what seems inevitable. Deeply in love with Alessandro, a well-known ne'er-do-well, she is warned against marrying him, but she persists. Corzo makes their honeymoon in Italy sound magical, but it's not long before reality intervenes. "While... Read More

Heller's penchant for salt-of-the-earth characters is reflected in Kate Marcin's narration. On an Edenic homestead in Vermont, Frith, a wild girl, is living an unconventional childhood with her bohemian mother, Hayley, a former academic, and their dog, Bear. They support themselves through picking their apples in the fall and tapping their maples in the spring. Marcin balances... Read More

Narrator Raffa Virago's delivery is so on point for this story's main character that listeners may forget she's not actually a second-generation Canadian tween who is wracked with the jealousies, fantasies, and mortifications of growing up. The audiobook shares 100 anecdotes from the life of Alma Alt, from age five into adulthood, including an event at age 14 that the first... Read More

Skilled narrator Clare Corbett delivers an in-depth study of frenemies Sookie, a total narcissist, and Ruth, her former classmate--and a woman no one should have as a confidante. The writing is clever, and the literary style urbane. The listener needs to pay close attention to the nuanced dialogue and the malicious asides that convey the true nature of Ruth, snake in the grass... Read More

Narrator Tanya Eby portrays four women who are brought back together after a chance meeting. Ava was supposed to adopt Cindy's daughter, Shannon, but Cindy kept her. Ava ended up adopting Victoria. Years later, the four encounter each other. Victoria has a strained relationship with her mother, Ava, and Eby adds tension to her voice as the two interact. Shannon and Cindy have a... Read More

"Dear Borrower," sighs narrator Chanté McCormick, voicing the exasperated, exhausted Jada, a 30-something Black woman who has defaulted on her student loans after having lost her job at the mall. College was supposed to be the answer to every question you have at age 18. In her sassy narration, McCormick invites listeners into a perilous and absurd alternate reality for student... Read More

Rachanee Lumayno performs one of the most fascinating and unique novels of the year with skill equal to the quality of the book. Lumayno breathlessly delivers a truly frightening story about an early video game that is too powerful to resist. Her dynamic rendering makes this audiobook as current as today's scary headlines on the future of AI. In the novel, Andi, an aloof... Read More

Narrator Ari Fliakos brings a compassionate tone and exquisite pacing to Irving's sequel to THE CIDER HOUSE RULES--40 years in the making. Complicated, quirky, and enigmatic characters highlight this exploration of anti-Semitism and how Esther Nacht, a Viennese-born Jewish orphan, ends up at an orphanage in St. Cloud's, Maine, where Dr. Wilbur Larch takes her in. Fliakos... Read More

Narrator Rebecca Lowman imbues Kate Riley's parabolic prose with verve and urgency. This ambitious debut unearths universalities of feminine curiosity from within the walls of a strict insular community. Ruth--a relentlessly inquisitive, slightly brainwashed member of a Christian communist cult in rural Michigan--is irresistible. While not overtly rebellious, she is... Read More

Author Benjamin Wood narrates his atmospheric story of a quiet life on the tidal flats of North West England. Over the course of three foggy days, listeners hear the softly sung lullaby of Thomas Flett, an impoverished boy who harbors musical ambitions while practicing the obsolete art of shanking--trawling for shrimp using a horse-drawn cart. Thomas' luck seems about to change... Read More

Beginning right in the middle of the heaving, sweat-soaked fervor of a Y2K dance party, this explosive saga holds its firm grip for the next 20 hours. Narrator Aleksander Varadian keeps his foot on the gas for the length of this epic, shifting with apparent ease between Stockholm place names, Arabic slang, and French intimacies. As he weaves the decades together--unveiling the... Read More

Three distinctive voices portray the Cohen sisters, who reside in a Syrian Jewish community in Brooklyn. As the novel opens, middle sister Fortune is preparing to marry and fulfill her family's traditional expectations. Gilli Messer maintains a restrained, compliant tone that suits her character's personality. Olga Namer depicts the tough eldest sister, Nina, who is... Read More

In 1970s New Hampshire, 17-year-old Coleman Cooper, relatably voiced by narrator David Bryant, is receiving mental health treatment at yet another institution. He follows his therapist's advice to get some work, but when a hospital executive is murdered at a gala where Coleman is serving, he's accused of the crime and must investigate to clear himself. Emma Brace portrays Haley... Read More

This audiobook vividly brings Galilee Kincaid's personal journey to life. The story follows Gali, a young woman raised by the powerful Kincaid matriarchy, who yearns to be normal despite her magical Southern roots. When she meets Lucifer Helel at an opulent party, their electric connection exposes the truth about her hidden power and pulls her into a rising conflict between... Read More

Edward Rowe and Meg Salter narrate this immersive psychological thriller. Birdie, portrayed by Salter, is preparing to avenge her sister's death after 18 long years. Jimmy Maguire, portrayed by Rowe, has been released from prison, and Birdie is determined to make him pay for killing her. As she pursues him, armed with a pistol, years of betrayal and family secrets catch up to... Read More

Sarah Agha captures Meryem's restless inner life as the 25-year-old supermarket intern navigates long shifts, open hostility with her boss, and uncomfortable dates. As Meryem retreats into writing fan fiction about her coworkers, Agha distinguishes neatly between the monotony of Meryem's work life and the heightened tone of her imagined romances and rivalries. Agha lets the... Read More

Allison Hiroto portrays a contemporary 29-year-old woman who is trying to make ends meet in Tokyo. Although it's illegal to donate her eggs for remuneration, that seems to be the only way Riki can climb out of her financial rut. But what was intended to be a simple transaction becomes complicated when she's asked to be a surrogate, the biological father is in question, and the... Read More

Hanako Footman's light tone perfectly contrasts with this chilling speculative fiction, which examines artificial intelligence, technology, and concepts of justice. Thirty-seven-year-old Sara Machina is the architect of the controversial Sympathy Tower Tokyo, a luxury residence for criminals whom society now sees as having been victims of their circumstances. Footman exercises... Read More

Rebecca Lowman and Paul Michael provide the main narration of this audiobook, set in contemporary Los Angeles. With a deep timbre and the mannered cadence of a Golden Age Hollywood actor, Michael portrays Verity, an aging A-list movie star. Dismayed by the endless opportunities his fame affords him, Verity sets up a lottery of his film salary to be awarded to one moviegoer.... Read More

Listeners will be moved as bilingual narrator Almarie Guerra delivers this family saga, which takes place in a barrio in Puerto Rico and in South Beach, Miami. The coming-of-age story follows Maricarmen, a Latina who marries a Black musician who is a kind of Robin Hood figure in their poor community. When he's killed by police, he leaves his youthful widow to cope with raising... Read More

This autobiographical novel, originally published to little fanfare in 2001 and long out of print, has been championed by influential queer poet Eileen Myles and reissued with their introduction. A coming-of-age story and picaresque novel set in the 1970s and '80s, Tramps is narrated by Joe, who flees a tyrannical and abusive father in Kansas City to explore the bars,... Read More

Bestselling author Mitch Albom narrates his imaginative novel about love, loss, and second chances. Albom's background in broadcasting makes him a creditable narrator who proves adept at portraying his characters. At an early age, Alfie discovers that he gets to have do-overs in his life. But he can only relive an episode once, and there are other rules, as well, including one... Read More

The tag team of Sarah Skaer and Arthur Keng narrates the interconnected episodes in this novel featuring different characters spread throughout thousands of years. Some of the protagonists are children, others are adults; some are humans, others are mutants or clones. They live in isolated communities, each with a different culture and history. AI mothers raise the children,... Read More

Austin Ku's understated narration evokes the melancholy atmosphere of this haunting coming-of-age story set in the world of competitive table tennis. The novel opens with a tragedy: Ryan Lo, a table tennis prodigy, is dead at age 24. At his funeral his parents wait for his usually punctual longtime coach, Kristian, to arrive. The narrative then moves back in time, unfolding... Read More

Listeners will hear the prequel to CHOCOLAT from the voice of the author herself, Joanne Harris. After her nomadic mother's passing, pregnant 21-year-old Vianne follows the wind to Marseille. With her special magic and charm, Vianne learns to cook from both a grumpy bistro owner who has lost his son and wife, and an upstart chocolatier who fights for authenticity in his career... Read More

Teen Korero has never met a stranger; her isolated island community and talking parrot are her entire world. Narrator Waikamania Seve's low pitch and warm tone subtly reflect Korero's fear as island resources dwindle. The arrival of mysterious travelers from the wealthy but brutal Tongan empire offers her people a chance at survival. To save them, Korero must use the wisdom of... Read More

Narrators Naruto Komatsu and Natsumi Kuroda capture the magic of cats and their influence on our lives. In an alley in Kyoto, a unique mental health clinic materializes when people who are struggling with problems need help. There, a playful doctor and his impossibly difficult nurse prescribe cats as a form of medication. Lighthearted bonds are presented between humans and the... Read More

In this beautifully performed audiobook, three estranged 40-something siblings, the American-born children of Taiwanese immigrants, are thrown together on a road trip requested by their seriously ill mother. Narrator Vera Chok doesn't modify her delivery to portray the responsible Boston mom, the struggling son from Chicago, and the lesbian artist living in London. Long-held... Read More

On the outskirts of Lahore, violence shatters Lalloo's family when his brother is murdered outside their home. Narrator Jassa Ahluwalia brings empathetic intensity to this novel as Lalloo leaves his family in order to earn enough to free his parents and sisters from generations of debt bondage forcing them to work as brickmakers. Giving space to both memories and present... Read More

Hudes's audiobook is a uniquely compelling experience. April Soto lives in a multigenerational home in Philadelphia. A teen mom, April is raising her daughter, Noelle, when "white-hot" rage takes over, and she walks away. The story is written entirely as a letter from April to Noelle, which Noelle is reading 10 years later. Daphne Rubin-Vega's narration is exceptional. The... Read More

Helen Laser warmly narrates this family drama, closely matching its reflective tone. She shifts smoothly between comic observation and quiet unease as Rocky fixates on a local car accident and her own health concerns amid an otherwise uneventful middle-class life in Massachusetts. Laser captures Rocky's anxious humor and habitual self-questioning with a light touch, allowing... Read More

Narrator Soneela Nankani delivers a nuanced performance of this family drama. After Nikki's engagement party, her mother, Tara, announces that she's divorcing Nikki's father--a revelation that shocks the family even though Tara's unhappiness spans decades. The novel recounts Tara's journey from grad school in 1989 to her life as a mother in an arranged marriage, along with... Read More

Robert Fass's talents as a narrator shine as he inhabits a New Yorker named Bruno, who is newly arrived in Lisbon. While awaiting the arrival of his wife, Cecilia, a neuroscientist, he organizes their apartment. It soon becomes apparent that he's preparing for the end of the world. Fass carefully portrays Bruno's psychological breakdown. The fact that his only companion is his... Read More