New Reviews: Fiction

André Santana's understated performance of these ancient Greco-Roman queer stories creates a thoughtful experience for listeners. Santana's soft pauses between the introduction to each selection and the selections themselves ease listeners into an engaging assortment of mythology, philosophy, satire, and poetry. This production includes notable pieces from Ovid's METAMORPHOSES,... Read More

Rachel Kenney and Jesse Vilinsky each deliver spellbinding interpretations of Alice McDermott's superb new novel. Set primarily in 1960s Vietnam, the audiobook explores the lives of wives-- "helpmeets"--who accompanied their American husbands to a country on the brink of war. Through a series of letters written years later, we hear first from Patricia, a naïve New Yorker swept... Read More

The unnamed narrator of Madievsky's latest novel has always been drawn to big sister Debbie's exciting, chaotic lifestyle. The night of the narrator's high school graduation, she accompanies Debbie to Salvation, an L.A. bar filled with energy healers, hopeful actors, and misfits. Thus begins her journey into addiction. Moniqua Plante gives the protagonist a strong but detached... Read More

Claire Skinner convinces listeners from the onset that she is the one and only amazing Grace Adams. With humor and sarcasm, Skinner portrays the formidable linguist, who has never wanted children. Instead she lands a dream job on a London TV show. But new motherhood role eventually costs Grace her job. Then she discovers unexpected love. Skinner reveals the joy and anguish... Read More

This devastating audiobook from queer Nigerian writer and activist Ani Kayode is not always easy listening--but it's a beautifully told and poignant story. August has been running from himself his whole life, stifled by the weight of his family's expectations. Segun is an activist who is adept at hiding the trauma he carries. When they meet and fall in love at university, it... Read More

Nathaniel Curtis and Octavia Nyombi give moving performances in this debut novel about queer love, making mistakes, and growing up. Tom and Ming meet at university and fall in love, but when Ming decides to transition a few years later, their relationship is thrown into turmoil. Curtis voices Tom with cheerful intensity that highlights his easygoing nature and masks the... Read More

Aaliya Warbus and Jordan Waunch team up to deliver this twisty story about identity, family, and long-held secrets. In Maine, the summer begins like any other. Seasonal workers, including Indigenous families from Canada, are harvesting fruit in the fields. When four-year-old Ruthie disappears, the consequences are lasting, especially for her siblings. Warbus and Waunch trade... Read More

Suehyla El-Attar Young is the perfect energetic narrator for this novel about Muslim sisters who are about to enter "the real world" after graduating from high school. Young contrasts the youth, enthusiasm, and idealism of twins Amira and Lina with the attitudes of their troubled older brother. The girls get a big shot of adulthood all at once when members of the Arab community... Read More

Kelli Tager narrates this tragic story of mental illness with the perfect sense of conviction and heart. Beverly is a very emotional person who is not quite sure how to process her emotions. Henry is a lovely man who meets Beverly at her place of business and is instantly enamored. They marry, and Beverly becomes pregnant, but the romance is short-lived. Beverly still has not... Read More

Diop's love story/epic adventure, written with compassion and skill, is dramatized by a talented team of narrators. Dion Graham portrays Michel Adanson, a French Enlightenment-era botanist; Mark Bramhall, Adenrele Ojo, and Caroline Hewitt portray different members of his family and some friends. Adanson is on a mission to Africa to study plants for a comprehensive book. The... Read More

Jeremy Carlisle Parker narrates this dark, twisty novel about mysterious Vesper Wright, who, six years ago, escaped her strict religious community and her mother's iron fist. Vesper is desperately trying to outrun her past and to forge a meaningful relationship. An unsigned invitation to her cousin's wedding convinces her to return home, where questions remain and fate awaits.... Read More

Torian Brackett and Ozzie Rodriguez offer a powerful performance of this 2023 National Book Award winner in which gay men muse over queer history and life. A young, unnamed man nurses an older dying man named Juan. Before Juan can rest in peace, he wants to pass on his life's project, which is based on a 1930s book titled SEX VARIANTS: A STUDY OF HOMOSEXUAL PATTERNS. Juan... Read More

Nikki Blonsky, Santino Fontana, Jenni Barber, Soneela Nankani, and Joy Osmanski are an amazing ensemble for this captivating drama. As a plus-size woman with a meandering career, Abby feels at odds with societal expectations. But she is rooted in her love of bicycling and her steadfast boyfriend. Now she's about to lead a two-week cycling trip that includes her critical mother... Read More

The vibrant, assured voice of Tavia Gilbert guides listeners through a family story about the trauma of mental illness affecting generations in both Germany and America. In a youthful voice Gilbert portrays 9-year-old Heidi Phillips, who describes life in the small town of Alamo, Michigan, in 1970. She recounts fun at the county fair, camping trips, and other good times, but... Read More

Borges is considered by many to be one of the most important fiction writers of the twentieth century, a very intellectual writer and thinker. Narrator Castulo Guerra, however, finds in these stories considerable depths of emotion and humanity, and delivers them to listeners. The world of Borges's fiction is varied and strange, drawing on science fiction, folklore, philosophy,... Read More

Talented Barrie Kreinik narrates this complicated contemporary story about the hardships of the Connelly family. After their mother dies and their father abandons them, Geraldine, Eddie, and Tara are left to fend for themselves--far too early in their lives. The three siblings have deep loyalty to each other and attempt to protect each other from any more pain and... Read More

Isabella Star LaBlanc tells the story of three generations of Dakota women in a reverse timeline as they recount their pivotal girlhood years. Sissy, born in 1961; Lillian, born in 1925; and Cora, born in 1888, deal with hardships like generational trauma and brutal Indian boarding schools by clinging to the comfort of their dolls. LaBlanc uses bright voices for the various... Read More

This diverse collection of stories explores Lebanese American life in the community of Dearborn, Michigan. Sarab Kamoo and Qarie Marshall trade off delivering narratives that offer insights into the lives of a variety of characters of different ages and genders. From Yousef, a fun-loving boy who loves acting, to women who help each other through domestic violence, the... Read More

Three narrators--Gisela Chípe, Vas Eli, and the splendid Arthur Morey--enrich these tilt-a-whirl stories. They voice simple characters whose lives become fantastically disrupted. To select three of the many outstanding performances: Chípe narrates in a mischievously straightforward way one of the best, "The Little People," about a town that is co-inhabited by two-inch-tall... Read More

In this powerful presentation of Castillo's latest story collection, narrator Stacy Gonzalez brings out the complex emotions of families who are contending with change and straining under the weight of societal expectations. Gonzalez depicts the multilayered experiences of Latin people from Chicago to Mexico City, taking listeners into the varied lives of individuals facing... Read More

In Ellroy's latest audiobook, former cop Freddy Otash finds himself jammed up. He's investigating the death of Marilyn Monroe but has police officials, Jack and Bobby Kennedy, and a swarm of others--actors, a psychologist, and people from the seedier side of Los Angeles--getting in his way. Craig Wasson relishes his narration, bringing a high level of emotion when needed. A few... Read More

Sue Jean Kim performs National Book Award-winning (TOKYO UENO STATION) author Yu Miri's new novel. Yu, an author of Korean descent writing in Japanese, fictionalizes her grandfather's experience in the 1930s as one of Korea's top athletes. In the story, he's a candidate for the Olympics, but because of the Japanese occupation, he would have to compete for Japan. Kim perfectly... Read More

Award-winning Irish actor Brid Brennan employs her melodic contralto to fine effect in her excellent narration of Louise Kennedy's debut short story collection. Uncompromising and often dark, with flashes of humor, the stories explore the lives of women in Ireland--addressing issues of identity, poverty, marriage, and sexuality. Brennan won an Earphones Award for her... Read More

Julie Schumacher, author of the Thurber Prize-winning academic comedy DEAR COMMITTEE MEMBERS, now turns her satirical eye on that classic college experience, the study-abroad trip. When Professor Jason Fitger unwillingly takes a motley student group to England in soggy, cold January, nothing goes as planned. Schumacher, a University of Minnesota Regents Professor of Creative... Read More

Nadia Albina is a powerful narrator of this inventive novel, which features a prodigal daughter returning home from a long-term self-exile abroad. Sonia Nasir is a British Palestinian actor who returns to the West Bank discouraged and tired. The powerful narrative tone conveys Sonia's myriad emotions when she is tasked with staging a performance of HAMLET. Albina's heartful... Read More

Michelle Sekine performs this debut short story collection by Native Hawaiian and Japanese American author Megan Kamalei Kakimoto. The stories celebrate what it means to be Knaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian) in all its complexities and contradictions. A girl grapples with her Indigenous culture's ceremony of womanhood. A woman wrestles with ideas of motherhood. A queer Knaka author... Read More

Vaneh Assadourian and Gail Shalan perform this intimate story of a woman in her thirties. Yara, the daughter of Palestinian immigrants, has it all--a husband, two daughters, a job at a local university--but she still feels burned out. Through every disappointment, Yara tells herself to be grateful. Her marriage might have been arranged, but at least her husband isn't violent... Read More

André Santana gives a standout performance in this layered novel about grief and family. Santana portrays Cam, who returns home to Houston after the sudden death of his boyfriend, Kai. As he struggles to find himself again amid overwhelming loss, he reconnects with his childhood best friend, TJ. Santana's narration ranges from numb observation to moments of feeling overwhelmed.... Read More

Set again the backdrop of the 2016 U.S. election and the #MeToo movement, this dark listen is a story of justice, family, and revenge. Jessie Mooney travels from Ireland to attend a prestigious graduate program in law at Franklin University. Her sole purpose is to enroll in the selective Law & Literature class with Professor Jay Crane. Jessie blames Crane for her sister's death... Read More

Greek mythology is reimagined through contemporary authors and talented narrators in this dynamic short story collection. A pantheon of all-star performers, including Soneela Nankani, Robin Miles, and Donnabella Mortel, creates listening experiences that are at times poignant, joyous, and thoughtful. Stories incorporate mythological characters and themes to explore contemporary... Read More

Guinevere Turner and Natalie Naudus confidently lead the sweeping ensemble of voices who tell this devastating story of the end of the world, caused by the evils of technology and power. Once the fate of the planet becomes clear, a small group of super wealthy individuals jump into action, seeking refuge in secret predetermined locales. Assisted by the key performances of... Read More

Catherine Ho brings out the immense charm in Chau's nod to PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, set in New York's Chinatown in the 2000s. After her pushy mother, a realtor, sells a dilapidated community center to Hong Kong investors, Elizabeth Chen finds herself butting heads with one of them--the aloof Darcy Wong. Ho peppers Elizabeth and Darcy's diverting exchanges with increasing tension.... Read More

Tovah Ott performs this debut story collection from East Tennessee author Halle Hill. The 12 stories all feature Black women who are confronting societal expectations of how a "good woman" is supposed to look and act. One woman is secretly taking birth control pills while she and her husband are supposedly trying to have a baby. Another woman is attending a weight-loss group,... Read More

Shannon Tyo, Sean Patrick Hopkins, and Thomas Pruyn narrate this riveting story, which begs the question: How well do we truly know the members of our family? Twenty-year-old Mia and her twin brother are home from college during the pandemic when their father goes missing. He was at the park with their younger brother, Eugene, an autistic teenager with Angelman syndrome, but... Read More

Everyone thinks they know the story of Hercules, but this retelling changes everything. A talented ensemble brings to life those who surround the famed hero. Previously untold or ignored stories of family, lovers, enemies, and more are included. Each narrator represents a different person connected to Herc; the story unearths secret lovers, violent interactions, buried crimes,... Read More

One of this year's finest novels is also one of its most satisfying audiobooks. Set in colonial Malaya (now part of Malaysia), it marks this author's third nomination for Britain's Booker Prize. These narrators convey the full grace and subtlety of his prose. David Oakes narrates the chapters in the third person, which depict author W. Somerset Maugham's visit to Penang in 1921... Read More

Lauren Fortgang performs this clever satirical novel with a quick pulse and a snappy cadence. She does a fine job adjusting to the mood swings as two courses of action--science and revolution--intersect. She gives Helen, the protagonist and self-referential narrator, a sense of the absurdity of her plight. A brilliant scientist with an extraordinary ability at calculation,... Read More

High school seniors Nell and Fay come to a crossroads in their intense friendship while attending a Quaker school in New York City in this character-driven production. Kristen DiMercurio adeptly shifts her tone as she moves between Nell's and Fay's viewpoints as the narrative weaves between the 2002-2003 school year and the present day 15 years later. DiMercurio's... Read More

Narrator Kathleen McInerney's range is perfect in this touching comedic drama. When a beloved patriarch dies suddenly, his wife, three children, and four grandchildren unite for his funeral in a small Georgia town. During the eulogy, Gerry's best friend shares a secret, which sets the town abuzz with gossip. Over the course of a week, each family member faces their own... Read More

Feodor Chin recounts this illuminating story of a Chinese American youth sent to an institution for those with leprosy, more benignly called Hansen's disease. Taking place in the 1950s, it is a coming-of-age novel that includes phobias, prejudice, teen romances, family obligations, and a considerable amount of medical information. Chin, an experienced actor, displays his skills... Read More

Courtney Patterson brings mid-century North Carolina to life with her narration of this coming-of-age story. Mattie Lee Watson, age 15, is living an ordinary life when salesman James T. Cullowee pulls into town. Patterson brings the innocence and passion of a teenager's crush to fruition as Mattie strives to gain his attention. When Cullowee organizes a kudzu festival, Mattie... Read More

Eunice Wong performs this immersive novel about a female Asian American chef who is experiencing an apocalyptic event in Earth's near future. The unnamed narrator is unable to return to the U.S. after smog covers the globe, blocking the sunlight and killing most of the planet's plants and animals. To escape impending disaster, the chef takes a job cooking for a billionaire who... Read More

Curtis Michael Holland portrays Noah York, who is kind of a jerk. A struggling not-so-young artist and the son of a Pulitzer-winning poet, he spends the several days of the story trying hard not to grow up despite the pressure of events. And those days are full of a remarkable number of events, including deadly disease, long-lost relatives, felonies, and romantic entanglements.... Read More

Esmeralda Santiago lovingly narrates her novel about Puerto Rican mothers and daughters. Luz was 15 when a car accident caused significant brain damage that affected her memory. Forty years later, in the Bronx, lesbian couple Ada and Shirley look after Luz and her daughter, as well as their own daughter. To celebrate Shirley's birthday, all five women travel to Puerto Rico,... Read More

Narrators Sura Siu and Caroline Hewitt deliver gripping performances of this suspenseful family drama. In the first-person, Siu voices Jasmine Yang, a young woman who flees to New York City from China to track down the daughter her husband gave up for adoption. Siu captures Jasmine's desperation and determination. In contrast, Hewitt's third-person narration portrays Rebecca, a... Read More

Cassandra Alling was clearly meant to narrate this poetic story bursting with magical realism in a small town in Pennsylvania. Listeners meet elderly, reclusive Ruby; betrayed 20-something Jenny; and troubled 12-year-old Lydia. Each of Alling's characters is distinct and compelling; past and present events seamlessly intermingle. Ruby, Jenny, and Lydia have tragedies to... Read More

Arinze Kene and Sheila Atim excel at narrating this cautionary tale--disguised as a #MeToo novel. Michael, portrayed by Kene, and Ola, portrayed by Atim, are a young, Black power couple who live in London. While they are planning their wedding, Michael's name appears on a list of abusers and rapists that quickly spreads all over social media. Kene and Atim's dramatic styles... Read More

Elle Cleviden gives a quiet but satisfying performance of this queer contemporary romance. Parkie is a disabled white woman who is working as an appraiser for a New York auction house. Glory is a Black artist who's just inherited her great-aunt's Harlem brownstone. The two hit it off immediately when Glory brings in her aunt's belongings for appraisal. They soon get caught up... Read More

Tara Sands deftly narrates this heartwarming debut novel. Poppy, a 32-year-old would-be writer, has been meeting secretly with her Aunt Margot, who is estranged from the rest of their family. When Margot dies, she bequeaths Poppy a vacation to the French Riviera. During a grueling dinner with her family, Poppy realizes the vacation is a real opportunity. Once in France, she... Read More

Ell Potter offers an outstanding narration of author Eekhout's speculative fiction. What might have inspired Mary Shelley's now classic horror story? Mary; her soon-to-be husband, poet Percy Bysshe Shelly; and her stepsister, Claire, spend the summer of 1816 in Switzerland with Lord Byron and his personal physician, Dr. John Polidori. One cold, rainy night, Byron proposes a... Read More

Katherine Littrell skillfully narrates a love-triangle romance set in New York City. Littrell ably navigates the multiple storylines and jumps in time periods. Thirty-something Maggie, portrayed by Littrell in a subtly determined tone, is an aspiring singer-songwriter. She finds herself in a unique predicament when two former loves come back into her life for her 35th birthday.... Read More

Jonathan Todd Ross's performance captures the growing unreliability of this novel's narrator, while maintaining the story's humor and tragedy. This is no small feat because the audiobook requires this deft, complicated tone throughout its entire running time. Seth is an up-and-coming copywriter until he's let go. He finds work in a coffee shop, discovering the numbing effects... Read More

Narrator Eilidh Beaton wraps listeners in a warm Christmas blanket while introducing the delights of an Edinburgh holiday. Beaton chronicles Carmen's difficult year--her breakup with her Brazilian boyfriend, Oke, and her struggle to keep Mr. McCredie's ancient bookshop solvent. Every character becomes a person listeners will want to meet. From the tacky businessman Jackson... Read More

This surely rates as one of the more challenging audiobooks to perform. (The novel was published in 1999.) The story's narrator, Lionel Essrog, has Tourette syndrome. Geoffrey Cantor delivers his eruptions of words effectively, seamlessly moving from Lionel's verbal tics to his straightforward storytelling. He does convincing New York accents and delivers the gangster patter... Read More

This scathing satire blows the lid off Texas politics, revealing the power that lobbyists have over politicians and how even the most well-intentioned can get caught in the meat grinder. Television and film actor Steven Weber is pitch-perfect as struggling ranch owner Sonny Lamb, who finds himself in the spotlight after he rescues a girl and her horse from a fire.... Read More

Vikas Adam gives a wonderfully affecting performance of this audiobook about almost everything--parent/child relationships, family secrets, immigration, disability, adoption, elder care, marriage, and friendship. With his gift for illuminating moments of emotional complexity, Adam immerses listeners in the complex dynamics between 30-something Remy, who returns to India from... Read More

Skyhorse's timely dystopian tale comes to life, thanks to Alejandra Reynoso, the voice of Iris, an American citizen born of undocumented immigrants. Iris's struggle to "be American" has taken a toll on her. When she was a child, her mother insisted that she speak only English and eschew bilingual education. Then there was the teacher who changed her name to Iris because Inez... Read More

Good performances abound in this audiobook. At its heart is ConaLee, a child swept up in the cruelty and uncertainty of the antebellum South. Karissa Vacker, the primary narrator, is a strong voice throughout the production. Similarly, Theo Stockman's performance of male points of view and Maggi-Meg Reed's renditions of the female characters are well paced and emotionally... Read More

It makes sense that a story this expansive would employ a wide array of audiobook narrators. The result is too good to miss. A secluded spot in Massachusetts becomes home to a wide expanse of life over a four-hundred-year span. With each tale of shifting inhabitants, the listener is treated to a performance by one of several gifted narrators. Simply put, there is not a weak... Read More

Zuzu Robinson narrates this novel of family, trauma, and forgiveness. Sara Lancaster never wanted to return to her hometown of Savannah, Georgia. She especially did not want to bring back her daughter, Alana, whose birth was the result of a sexual assault that nearly broke Sara's spirit. But when circumstances demand her return, Sara seeks to forge a new path forward. Robinson... Read More

In this short, witty audiobook, author Christine Coulson briskly delivers the text of various museum wall labels that tell the long life story of Caroline Margaret Brooks Whitaker, known as Kitty, who is portrayed as a precious object to be admired--like a work of art. As Kitty's "provenance" grows through multiple marriages and the labels become hilariously longer, Coulson... Read More

Narrator Shiromi Arserio captivates listeners in this moving coming-of-age story. Ai, the daughter of Cambodian refugees, recalls growing up in Australia in the late 1990s and trying to figure out how to navigate dating and friendships. Seventeen-year-old Ai and her group of friends regularly encounter bigotry and anti-immigrant sentiment. After their close-knit group suffers... Read More

Anita Gail Jones's narration transports listeners across centuries and continents as she details the complex history of a Southern Black family. This saga centers on 70-year-old Fletcher Dukes, whose unexpected reunion with his long-lost love, Altovise Benson, upends his life and forces him to consider the true meaning of family and forgiveness. While the events Jones describes... Read More

Laura Brydon narrates this novel, which has been longlisted for the Booker Prize 2023. It is the story of Marianne and the long-lasting repercussions of the disappearance of her mother when she was eight years old. Now a mother herself, she has spent her life dealing with her grief, guilt, and desperation for answers. Brydon paints a remarkable, believable picture of a child... Read More

Daniel Henning narrates this unconventional novel with light humor and a hefty dose of bemusement that is fitting for the main character, Eli, who wakes up one day in his wife Elizabeth's body. Elizabeth, who is now inhabiting his body, has vanished without a trace. As he adjusts to life in his new body with both curiosity and unease, Eli sets off across Europe to find her--and... Read More

Colin Mace portrays the two seniors in this novel. Wittold Walccyzkiecz, a Polish pianist specializing in Chopin, falls in love with the woman who organized his concert in Barcelona. With skill and empathy, Mace uses pauses, changes in pitch, and emphasis as he navigates the complicated plot. Wittold's pursuit of Beatriz is deliberate and sensuous. Mace enhances the story's... Read More

Three extraordinary narrators guide listeners through two timelines, three lives, and multiple locations involving the immigrant experience. Marguerite, intelligently portrayed by Suehyla El-Attar Young, is musically gifted and composes brilliant sonatas even as civil war rages in Beirut in 1922. Ali Andre Ali is terrific while recounting a story set 50 years later involving... Read More

Five talented narrators join forces to deliver nuanced performances of Jhumpa Lahiri's new collection of short stories. Written in Italian, the author's third language, and translated by her into English, the contemplative and elegant stories revolve around outsiders who are drawn to the City of Light. The mix of voices--Indian subcontinent, mid-American, British-African,... Read More

Narrator Emma Spurgin Hussey performs the first in the Italian Escape series in which 50-year-old somewhat insecure Beth finds herself in Rome after her daughter leaves for uni and her husband takes a temporary job in Paris. During her six-week stay in a Rome apartment, the owner, British expat Ronnie, and feisty Irish-born tenant Marina challenge her to renew her life. Hussey... Read More

In a dreamy and mesmerizing delivery, Sophie Amoss describes how Belle detests her Egyptian complexion, inherited from her father. All her life she's been in the shadow of her French mother's flawless beauty and obsessive hunt for youth. When Belle's mother mysteriously dies, Belle flies to California to make arrangements. There she discovers a terrifying spa, La Maison de... Read More

Narrators Karissa Vacker, Shaun Taylor-Corbett, and Soneela Nankani breathe life into Habeck's novel, creating a unique and deeply emotional listening experience. The story follows newlyweds Lewis and Wren as they grapple with love amid an extraordinary circumstance: Lewis undergoes a rare transformation, becoming a great white shark while retaining his human consciousness.... Read More

Victoria Fox's incredible performance elevates this reimagining of the Old English poem featuring Beowulf's legendary battle with the treasure-hoarding fire dragon, Fyrdraca. Here the famed warrior-king becomes a favorite uncle to Fryda, an aspiring shield maiden who is caught between her love for Theow, an enslaved Gaelic man in her father's household, and the emotional... Read More

Like his writing, Caleb Azumah Nelson's narration employs a musical cadence. This story is about a young first-generation Black Englishman whose parents are from Ghana. He navigates coming into his own through a variety of experiences. Nelson's voice is steady and consistent. He employs a poetic structure in each line. The descriptions of his relationships, whether it is the... Read More

Claire Keegan narrates her story about a Friday in the life of a Dublin office worker. Her deep voice, a trifle raspy, conveys its darkness of mood. An Irishman named Cathal ventures home to his flat, where no one welcomes him, not even his cat. This story depicts the endemic misogyny that can thwart relationships. Ingrained in Cathal is a stinginess of spirit. He was once... Read More

This is a truly powerful narration by the versatile Daniel Henning. When Pete dies from suicide, his Gen X friends uncover his note. Then the former speech team members discover that Pete was cyberbullied by their old coach, Mr. Gold. As the team confronts him, the members recall hurtful memories and bond in their search for justice. Henning's voice offers the perfect blend of... Read More

Narrator Rachel Schwab delivers a cool performance as graduate student Laura, who is positive she doesn't want children. Schwab provides a calm, steady voice that is perfect for the intellectual, curious young woman. Her friend, Alina, confesses she wants a child. After seeking infertility treatments, Alina becomes pregnant with a baby that develops a devastating neurological... Read More

Sarah Bernstein performs her critically acclaimed novel in which an unnamed narrator moves to an unnamed northern country to become her brother's housekeeper after his wife leaves him. While her brother is figuring out his affairs, the woman attempts to make friends with the townspeople. But after a series of strange events--a dog's phantom pregnancy, diseased potatoes, the... Read More

Three friends, Daphne, Lanier, and Mary Stuart, have returned to their hometown to save their childhood summer camp. Jennifer Jill Araya as Daphne gives a stunning performance as a hopeless addict who becomes a successful lawyer. Araya's emotional range gives her character depth and strength. Lanier, deftly portrayed by Reena Dutt, is a selfish, jealous woman who sincerely... Read More

Audiobook narrator Marni Penning delivers an entertaining and memorable performance of Tady's debut novel, an inspiring story of personal growth and second chances. Massage therapist Joan Johnston is overwhelmed by grief at the accidental death of her boyfriend when she meets her new client, the hotheaded and narcissistic romance author Carmen Bronze. Penning transitions... Read More

The Sweet Spot is the name of this novel, a pub, and the feeling one gets when everything goes just right. Eight narrators bring multiple dimensions to this story about relationships, adultery, aging, parenting, and finding oneself in New York City. At the heart of the book is Lauren, an overworked mom who is trying to juggle her work as an artist while also being a good... Read More

Shaun Taylor-Corbett performs this immersive audiobook in a restrained style. He modulates his voice depending on the scene, shifting his tone to reflect the various characters and authentically delivering the Diné language that is sprinkled through the text. Taylor-Corbett inhabits the soul of Damien, who has just lost his younger brother. He seeks refuge from his wounds by... Read More

Bill Andrew Quinn portrays this audiobook's protagonist in a halting style that fits an academic. His deliberate cadence pushes the action forward as the characters' lives unspool. The first-person narrator, Zach Wells, a geologist, is a man who shares chess moves and scientific data but has trouble with his feelings. His life is fraught, to say the least: His father committed... Read More

This audiobook features parallel stories of several people from different walks of life in Athens, Georgia. A local pharmacy is the connection among them, but before we get there, we hear the characters' interesting backstories. Anna Caputo and Jane Oppenheimer do a masterful job of crafting individual voices that fit the personalities of each person. Each chapter focuses on a... Read More

Narrator Alyssa Bresnahan affects a hypnotic tone, drawing the listener into a groovy, magical world in which pregnant women live without men in an expansive Victorian manor house in the woods in rural California. Their sons live there, as well. Sharon, who has changed her name to Ursa, collects "the mamas" to protect them and to allow participants to "transport" to the past.... Read More

Hannah Choi generally does a fine job with this collection of short stories, but she has some minor trouble with several of the male voices. Most of the major characters are Chinese or of Chinese ancestry, and Chinese immigrant culture is an important factor--but listeners won't need to have that background to understand and sympathize with the problems the characters face.... Read More

Atta Otigba and Yetide Badaki give outstanding performances of this imagistic, nonlinear novel. They are grand guides to a world of art, history, and criticism. Badaki has precise diction and a lovely artistic tone with a slight Nigerian lilt. Otigba, also Nigerian, delivers his parts in a powerful and authoritative voice. The narrative switches from one to the other... Read More

Lynnette R. Freeman offers a driven narration of Lockhart's latest, the story of Lottie Rebecca Lee, a Black daughter-spirit born to heal her family's generational trauma. Lottie's story grows out of the violence that haunted her ancestors--from her enslaved great-great-great- grandmother to her viciously abusive great-grandfather and her grandfather. In an expressive... Read More

An exemplary ensemble narrates a dramatic, insightful story. Debut author Harold Rogers's powerful novel is told from the points of view of three generations of a dysfunctional Brazilian family. Lies and betrayal threaten to tear the family apart--several of the characters are not sure of their paternity, for example. On the other hand, the family members' love keeps them... Read More

Laura Horowitz brings a charming narration to the small-town life of Sadie Revelare. Sadie wants nothing more than to bake, garden, and practice helpful magic for the people she loves, but too much abandonment has left her heartbroken. The letdowns continue with the return of her ex, Jake, and her twin, Seth, which coincides with her grandmother's dire medical diagnosis. At the... Read More

January LaVoy gives a breathtaking narration of an astonishing historical novel. Listeners meet a servant girl in the winter of 1609 as she escapes certain death by fleeing into the unknown dangers of the forest. What follows is a beautifully wrought story of survival, narrated with precision, emotion, and a keen sense of the drama that unfolds. The girl's past is slowly... Read More

Hillary Huber's warm, expressive tones engage listeners with this contemplative novel set in New York City in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The narrative centers on a female writer at a "vulnerable" age who moves into the apartment of a friend to care for the friend's pet macaw, Eureka. Award-winning author Nunez's unique writing style fuses meditations, facts, and... Read More

Will Damron's passionate narration of this first novel adds additional layers of emotional depth as two men who were once married and had children discover they're gay. As Thomas and Matt's marriage creates a blended family, the two fathers have strained relationships with their complicated children. A plumbing disaster in their large apartment forces them all into a tiny... Read More

Narrator Marysia Bucholc creates an air of skewed reality in this collection of interconnected stories. Charlotte Farrier moves from South Africa to Canada with her single mother and struggles with both the ordinary and peculiar difficulties of young womanhood. Bucholc's tones are slightly flat by design, perfectly signaling Charlotte's objective gaze upon her own life. From... Read More

This audiobook's excellence makes its nearly 19-hour time span fly by. Ari Fliakos is superb in this complex yet supremely accessible performance. He lends his skill to the depiction of Jack and Elizabeth's relationship and all its backstories and subplots. No nuance of this novel escapes Fliakos: satirical social commentary, tender love story, hilarious missteps of modern... Read More

Caroline Hewitt narrates this tale of the wealthy Costa family so intimately that listeners will be convinced she has insider status with this dysfunctional group. Sal Costa, family head and manager of a financial institution in serious trouble, hopes to provide for his two children, Rachel and Roberto, who are complete strangers to work and the value of money. His ex-wife,... Read More

Narrator Kirby Heyborne embodies the gruesomeness and terror and beauty in Daniel Kraus's story. Listeners will feel its intensity in the pit of their stomachs. Teenage scuba diver Jay Gardiner is consumed by guilt as he seeks to find the remains of his father, who died by suicide, in the Pacific Ocean. As Jay searches the ocean's depths, he is swallowed by a sperm whale. As... Read More

Jennifer Kim narrates this story of the Kim family. In 1999, the Korean immigrants are struggling with the disappearance of their matriarch, Sunny, a year earlier. Kim captures all the raw emotion of a family that is having a difficult time connecting in the midst of a crisis. When a deceased Black man is found in the Kims' backyard with a note addressed to Sunny by his side,... Read More

This poignant audiobook features five deceptively simple parables about how libraries inspire the pursuit of one's passions. Each of the interconnected stories is narrated by a single narrator who portrays a member of Japanese society whose current existence is unfulfilling and unsuccessful. The international narrators bring a blend of accents that highlight the vast... Read More

With a quirky protagonist, a wide range of unconventional characters, and a storyline spanning more than 40 years, this is an engaging listen. Author/narrator Winman pulls listeners in with her beautiful prose and vivid descriptions. At the start, Elly is a girl in England in the late 1960s. She questions everything--even when she gets in trouble--and Winman captures her... Read More

Clara Harte is perfect as she narrates this beautifully written timely novel about connections, transitions, and authenticity. Phoebe Ford is starting a new life as a trans woman in Copenhagen. Originally from Ireland, she is reinventing herself but leads a relatively solitary life. Harte infuses Phoebe with wit, humor, and compassion in this story told over a long weekend.... Read More

Anne Enright, Aoife Duffin, Owen Roe, and Liza Ross perform Enright's latest novel. Duffin narrates the perspective of Nell, a 20-something who is navigating the complexities of young love and desire. When she meets her new boyfriend's parents, they only want to talk about her grandfather, the famous Irish poet Phil McDaragh. Duffin beautifully captures the frustration and... Read More