New Reviews by Title: P-T

The British science and health journalist puts together a wonderfully organized and helpful guide to understanding and managing our energy. Surveying the research on how our physical, emotional, and mental energy work together, she explains how all kinds of exertion are impacted by rest, diet, sleep, and the thinking or mood we adopt when working. The personal tone of her... Read More

This poetry collection draws, in both theme and imagery, on the minutiae of everyday life, particularly in the working-class neighborhoods of Portland, Oregon, where Michael Dickman grew up. His mother, who worked for the regional power company, has an especially strong presence, as you might expect in this largely autobiographical volume. The poems are not simple but, like all... Read More

Emily Howes's debut novel examines the lives of Peg and Molly Gainsborough, daughters of the renowned portrait artist Thomas Gainsborough. Gemma Lawrence gives Peg a strong, determined voice as she recounts Peg's close, protective ties with her troubled older sister, Molly. Lawrence's subtle changes in emphasis and volume communicate Molly's distance and confusion. As Peg... Read More

All Anna Green, portrayed by Patti Murin, knew about West when she married him in college to gain subsidized family housing at UCLA was that he kept the pantry immaculate. When Liam "West" Weston, portrayed by John Root, arrives on her doorstep five years later needing her help for one last marital ruse, she quickly learns a lot more about him. Mainly, he comes from an... Read More

A woman who's led a colorless life suddenly finds herself in Technicolor Paris, and the delectable result is predictable in the best way. Narrator Kiiri Sandy gives dimension to Reichl's charming, if paper-doll-like, characters. Our heroine Stella's luxury-loving self-centered mother dies, leaving Stella a ticket to Paris and enough money for a long stay. Repressed and... Read More

Chicago private detective V.I. Warshawski is once again delivered vividly to fans of this mystery series. Emotionally recovering from her devastating last case, V.I. has traveled to Kansas for a relaxing weekend to watch a college basketball game. But when a young woman disappears, she is reluctantly drawn into a complex web of suspicious circumstances involving the local drug... Read More

Three centuries of cutthroats, blackguards, and assorted sea swine, women as well as men, set sail again in this audiobook anthology of history's most infamous and dastardly pirates. Editor Katherine Howe introduces each chapter, and her more than three dozen one-chapter biographies are divided among three narrators, each taking a century. Most effective is Matthew Lloyd... Read More

Jeremy Carlisle Parker's lively performance and emotional connection bring a teen fan fiction writer and her favorite fictional character to life. Ivy wakes up to find Weston, the gorgeous magical boy from her favorite show, in her bedroom. With the help of her ex-best friend and crush, along with a new friend, she investigates what brought Weston to life and how he's able to... Read More

Dion Graham's performance will delight young listeners. A boy named Lucas comes home from school with a perfect score on his robot test. At home, however, life is not perfect--his dad's truck breaks down, orange juice is spilled on the floor, his mom works long hours, and the lights get cut off. That night, he dreams about a perfect place where perfect people live. But the... Read More

This intensely interesting spy novel by WASHINGTON POST foreign affairs columnist David Ignatius makes for a gripping audiobook. The setup: Volkov, a mathematically gifted, socially awkward Russian student doing graduate work in Beijing in the '90s, falls for a lively American girl. She abruptly dumps him and disappears. (But why?) Decades later, the world's balance of power... Read More

Barrie Kreinik narrates the story of Helen Montgomery, the beautiful daughter of a blue-blood Philadelphia family in 1927 who would rather raise cattle than seek a husband. With elegance and a touch of innocence, Kreinik portrays Helen's frustration when she realizes that she must abandon her dream and marry for money and connections because of the financial crisis caused by... Read More

Fiona Hardingham and Matt Haynes deliver a fantastic performance as two historical characters who come together despite their very different hardships. In 1666, the plague has left Cecilia a widow shortly after her marriage. David, a foreign Jewish doctor, is hoping to treat Cecilia's mental health. Initially, the protagonists have such different backgrounds that they might as... Read More

Narrator Rebekah Hinds imbues Hazell's compelling debut with a palpable sense of dread. A London cookbook editor known as Piglet prepares for her wedding, complete with a croquembouche wedding cake she's planning to make herself. Then, just 13 days before the big day, her fiancé, Kit, shares a secret that derails everything. Hinds's portrait of Piglet is a triumph, capturing... Read More

Lyle Blaker evokes midtwentieth century Appalachia in this short story collection by national treasure Wendell Berry. Each story revolves around a resident of the fictional town of Port William, Kentucky. In one, a young man falls in love right before he's sent off to die in a war overseas. In another, we follow a man and his beloved hunting dog through the years of the dog's... Read More

The best poets get that way because they have given a great deal of thought to questions such as: "What is poetry?" "How does it get that way?" Mary Oliver was one of those best poets, and in this audio version of her classic work about how to write and read poetry she offers some answers, both detailed and expansive, to John Ciardi's classic question: "How does a poem mean?"... Read More

Narrator Lynnette R. Freeman's creative voice work pulls listeners deep into a world in which witchers, people with magical abilities, are systematically oppressed. Eighteen-year-old Venus, a witcher and potion brewer, joins a dangerous plot to stop a witcher registration law. Freeman deploys a plethora of voices as Venus infiltrates political circles with help from her family.... Read More

This moody coming-of-age novella was a bestseller when it appeared in Japan decades ago. Now it is newly translated and appears in the audio format, narrated by Kathleen Li. She convincingly delivers 19-year-old Yayol's angst, feelings of dislocation, and vulnerability as she seeks answers about her past by trying to uncover lost memories. Li's narration is often precise and... Read More

Yinka Ladeinde elevates a delightful story to new heights with impeccable comic timing and her ability to convey a wide range of characters. She brings the many members of a Nigerian Canadian family to life with infectious energy and charm. Joy is preparing for her mother Mama Mary's 70th birthday, when the matriarch unexpectedly dies before the celebration. When Joy's Aunt... Read More

Tony Award-winning actor Jodie Comer performs this adaptation of Miller's one-woman play with empathy and a thoughtfully calculated pace. Barrister Tessa Ensler is a top criminal defense attorney. Comer's delivery of Tessa's earnest belief in the judicial system lulls the listener into a false sense of security as she clocks win after win through her razor-sharp questioning.... Read More

Sounding similar and yet unique--as sisters often do--Saskia Maarleveld and Grace Experience use a tag-team approach to tell this wild tale of showbiz, double-dealing, cryptocurrency, family secrets, murder, and big dreams gone wrong. Maarleveld brings an urbane resilience to older sister Crissy, who impersonates the iconic "Lady Di" Spencer in an off-the-Strip Las Vegas... Read More

This audiobook is a paean to birds. It's almost poetry, and author Jack Gedney's lyrical style is exactly suited to listening, perhaps even more so than reading. The text is peppered with images like this, referring to Golden-crowned Sparrows: "Their crowns shine in the fading afternoon light." Narrator Jonathan Todd Ross captures the author's style; Ross's smooth voice and... Read More

Author and narrator Ashley Goodall brings to mind the little boy in the story of "The Emperor's New Clothes," who calls out the obvious that all the adults collude to ignore--in this case, that organizational change leaves damage in its wake. Goodall's charming, easy-to-listen-to English accent, his well-tuned and varied pitch, and his perfect pace will draw listeners in and... Read More

In this audiobook, former detective Marlitt Kaplan finds herself investigating the apparent suicide of a college student. She faces two challenges: She has no official authority, and she has to fight rumors about whether the student had an affair with a popular professor who teaches German. Saskia Maarleveld handles the narration well, shaping the introspective tone of... Read More

Shaan Dasani gives listeners a fun listen to this contemporary queer sports romance. Former college baseball teammates Gene Ionescu and Luis Estrada are unexpectedly reunited on the Beaverton Beavers, a Triple-A minor league ball club in Oregon. While their initial friction results in discordant game performances, Dasani charts their growing chemistry during extra practices and... Read More

In this audiobook, we delve into the tale of Balthazar and his band of thieves, embarking on what first appears to be a straightforward heist. Sunil Malhotra's exceptional narration is the highlight; he provides each character with a unique voice that vividly paints the story's universe. The drama quickly escalates as the characters are entangled in a grandiose plot involving... Read More

Narrator Rupert Degas tackles this offbeat "experiment in biography" with conspicuous gusto and the enthusiasm of a man given an assignment he feels born to perform. In 1925, British author Symons was introduced to a previously unknown novel, Frederick Rolfe's HADRIAN THE SEVENTH. This eccentric work led Symons to pursue its even more eccentric author, who styled himself as... Read More

Narrator Rainy Fields portrays Rain Berghoff in this audiobook for young listeners. Fourteen-year-old Rain is facing the challenges that typically come at that age, as well as significant additional struggles related to her family, her Native American identity, and a devastating personal loss. Fields is convincing as young Rain. Her tone is earnest, and her timbre is distinctly... Read More

Sophie Amoss narrates this young adult novel about the Price family, whose matriarch, Rachel, mysteriously disappeared 16 years ago. During the making of a documentary about the disappearance, Rachel just as mysteriously reappears, looking haggard and telling an unbelievable story. Her 18-year-old daughter, Bel, bitter and detached, with no memory of her mother, has questions... Read More

Erin Moon performs this debut novel set in the 1990s among the California redwoods. The Red Grove provides a safe haven for women seeking refuge from patriarchal violence. Luce lives in the Red Grove with her mother, Gloria, and her little brother, Roo. When Gloria disappears, Luce is determined to find her and accidentally uncovers the Red Grove's secret history. Moon's... Read More

Mao Zedong's ten-year Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) forever changed Chinese society and family structure. With a deliberate, evenhanded delivery, Asian American narrator Rebecca Lam traces the origins and repercussions of the attempt to purge bourgeois and capitalistic thoughts and tendencies from hundreds of millions of Chinese minds. A million people died, millions more... Read More

Scarlett Everdeen and J.T. Londale bring to life the adventures of Meara Delcourt and Edge, who are both vampires. Meara, Edge, and their friends are in a battle with a group of evil wizards who want to destroy them. Meara is a 300-year-old aristocrat with a haughty tone matching her personality. Edge has a chip in his head; both Londale and Everdeen successfully convey his... Read More

Jason Grasl performs Ned Blackhawk's National Book Award-winning history of the Native peoples of what is now known as the United States. From contact with early conquistadors of New Spain to the Indigenous activists of the mid-twentieth century, this sweeping work illuminates the histories of Indigenous peoples. Grasl's performance maintains the listener's attention through... Read More

Robin Miles and Moe Egan do fine work narrating this revealing memoir of Chicago's West Garfield Park and the author's life, family, and experiences with race relations--especially during the 1960s. Egan voices the author, and her timbre, tone, and style are just right. The supremely talented Miles depicts the many African American characters and does them well. This is mostly... Read More

With its engaging narration, this contemporary twist on Jane Austen's SENSE & SENSIBILITY is a must-listen. After a series of obstacles, sisters Amelia and Eleanor Bae-Wood--who are half-Korean--find themselves staying on the grounds of the Arcadia Cancer Center with their widowed hippie mother, Tabitha. Each woman's past--combined with family secrets and layers of drama--has... Read More

Tavia Gilbert brings the denizens of Milkweed Meadow to listeners' ears in this middle-grade animal fantasy. Butternut the rabbit comes from a family of storytellers, so she is well suited to tell the tale of the titular rescue. However, she must buck her family's wariness of cross-species relations and her own anxiety, which manifests as metaphorical mental "brambles."... Read More

Patrick Joyce writes of the rapidly disappearing, or already vanished, European peasantry--its characteristics and culture--in this thoughtful, quietly analytic, elegiac audiobook. Narrator Philip Bird mirrors the production's best qualities, its sensitivity and intelligence, and lets its essential sadness emerge unobtrusively. His deft narration softens the frustrations of a... Read More

Author/podcaster RJ Young narrates his own work with focused intensity as he deftly recounts the harrowing events of the June 1, 1921, Tulsa Race Massacre, in which dozens of Black men were killed and thousands displaced. More than 40 square blocks of African American homes, businesses, schools, and churches were burned to the ground. These events serve as a jumping off point... Read More

Author and narrator Anna Shechtman guides listeners through this combination feminist history of the crossword puzzle and personal memoir. As a young woman struggling with the compulsions of anorexia, Schectman discovered that crafting crossword puzzles distracted her from self-destructive behavior. At 18, she had her first puzzle published in THE NEW YORK TIMES. Schectman... Read More

Raquel Willis gives an impassioned and engaging performance of her memoir about her life in trans activism. After beginning with her childhood in Georgia, she reminisces about her various coming-out moments in high school and college--as gay, as a genderqueer drag performer, and as trans. She delves into her career as a journalist and activist in Georgia, California, and New... Read More

The need for rituals to promote a life of meaning is greater than ever, according to this inspiring audiobook. Harvard Professor Michael Norton's easy-listening performance makes his insights accessible. His confidence sounds professional and never overworked, allowing his knowledge and suggestions to speak for themselves. He says rituals have a broader purpose than habits... Read More

In this full-cast production, narrator David Cui Cui takes the role of antisocial SecUnit, Murderbot. Cui Cui never makes Murderbot sound robotic; in truth, its subtle sense of humor while on its self-directed mission sounds human. As the SecUnit searches for evidence of GreyCris Corporation's crimes on planet Milu, it tasks itself with protecting quiet-voiced Abene, portrayed... Read More

At first, Danielle Cohen's performance and Emma Southon's text both seem to come on too strong, trying too hard to be brassy and smart-alecky. But this history of Rome told through the stories of Roman women, legendary and historical, soon shows itself to be thoughtful and deeply informative, and is often amusing in its snarky, sassy, profane way. Cohen's sharp, sometimes acid,... Read More

Rooke Kingston and Keval Shah narrate this emotional roommates-to-lovers romance. Jasmine Allen has never believed in love. Nonetheless, her life was wonderful until an unfortunate plumbing accident in her flat left her homeless. There is only one person she can turn to, her best friend from college, Rahul Khan. Rahul has always had secret feelings for Jasmine but knows she is... Read More

Raquel Beattie narrates a dystopian horror novella with subtle elements of mystery. Rose House, both architectural marvel and sentient AI, has contacted the China Lake Police regarding a dead body within its walls. Beattie creates a wholly unsettling persona for Rose House, giving just enough menace to the flat AI tone that the unnatural state of its existence is forcefully... Read More

Listeners who love the monarchy will snap up this royal romance narrated by Shiromi Arserio, with additional narration from Barrie Kreinik as the voice of the late Princess Penelope. Singer Jennie Jensen meets and falls for Prince Hugh, heir to the UK throne. As she prepares for marriage, she suspects that Hugh's mother, Princess Penelope, was murdered and worries she might be... Read More

Hathaway Lee and Will Damron join forces to deliver this captivating romance. Nora, depicted by Lee, is on the brink of achieving her career aspirations as a sports agent. However, her journey takes an unexpected turn when her first client is her former college flame, Derek Pender, voiced by Damron. Their past breakup casts a shadow over their newfound professional... Read More

Susan Page's narration of this absorbing biography of television legend Barbara Walters is authoritative but somehow intimate, just as the biography is both clear-eyed and sympathetic. There's no denying Walters's burning ambition, which drove her to steal interviewees such as Fidel Castro and Bill Clinton from her colleagues. But in her later years, as ABC cut back her on-air... Read More

Megan Tusing brings home this timely story about American intolerance in a time of war. She perfectly portrays reporter Anne Lemire, who is assigned to dispel unfounded rumors in Boston in the weeks before the U.S. enters WWII. Many of the events in the story resonate with current events, in particular, people objecting to involving America in a European war. Lemire is aided in... Read More

Stina Nielsen narrates the majority of this debut audiobook, set in a stately country home in the Netherlands in 1961. The veil of WWII overlays the action. Nielsen creates a pervasive sense of disquiet that will keep listeners off-balance until the final moments. Isabel takes an instant dislike to her womanizing brother Louis's new girlfriend, Eva, when he brings her to their... Read More

Anne Curzan's knowledgeable, engaging, and laugh-out-loud funny reflection on grammar usage is for all of us who cringe when a friend comments on seeing "less trees" in the park instead of "fewer trees," and winces when a daughter says "for my sister and I" instead of "and me." Narrating with contagious enthusiasm and attentive pacing, the author, an English professor and... Read More

Ryan Hawk, an accomplished host of a successful leadership podcast, is also a former Ohio high school athlete coached by Brook Cupps. They have joined forces to present this highly competitive team- sport-centered treatise on leading by establishing highly personal core values. Hawk's vocal enthusiasm makes him sound much like a cheerleader. Cupps is noticeably slower and a bit... Read More

David Allen Vargo narrates an age-gap romance that blooms from deep sorrow. Jasper has been floating through life with his best friend, Lacy, by his side. When a tragedy brings Lacy's Uncle Rob to Chicago from California, Jasper finds a connection with the handsome older man, which deepens over the months they are apart. But old secrets threaten to destroy their relationship... Read More

This audiobook tour of antiquity's great architectural wonders is rich in detail but somewhat difficult to absorb. Popular historian and narrator Bettany Hughes, who is spirited and personable, investigates both the original and present condition of each site. The narrative is informative, highly visual, and engaging regardless of one's prior knowledge or degree of interest.... Read More

Matt Haynes provides two distinct voices for the main characters in this eclectic audiobook. Set in 1934, the story combines mystery, Egyptology, paranormal occurrences (fake and real), as well as romance and queer representation. Dashiel Quicke is a false medium who travels the country debunking other mystics' tricks. Hermann Goschalk is a college professor/Egyptologist who... Read More

In Q&A format, actor Brendan O'Hea asks intriguing questions of world-famous actor/director Judi Dench. The result is absolutely delicious. O'Hea recorded four years of interviews with Dench, but due to her failing eyesight, the audiobook is co-narrated by Barbara Flynn. In a remarkable performance, Flynn laughs, jokes, and calls O'Hea to task when he's wrong--all sounding very... Read More

Like the captain of a historical sailing ship, Ralph Lister takes command of this sprawling 1975 bestseller about culture clash. He gives a tough, resilient voice to the hero, Captain John Blackthorne, while providing memorable voices for the dozens of characters ranging from Japanese samurai and courtesans to Spanish and Portuguese people. In 1600, after losing his ship and... Read More

Saskia Maarleveld captures a specific kind of magical realism in her performance, which is perfect for this audiobook. It's the 1800s, and Aubrey is on the move. A sickness manifests within her, triggered by a mysterious puzzle ball. To stay alive, she must keep moving, literally traveling the globe. Throughout her journey she encounters mysterious doors, opening to an... Read More

This spunky audiobook is a continuation of the Sideways series of novels about an obstinate California Pinot Noir snob and his ongoing struggles with wine, women, and the meaning of life. Now the owner of a small vineyard in New Zealand, Miles has completed another novel and faces a low-budget book tour. With a vigorous tone, Scott Brick portrays Miles's generally teed-off... Read More

Golden Voice Cassandra Campbell narrates this emotional story about justice. Eight-year-old Ruth fought with and abandoned her friend Ceely in the woods; then Ceely was murdered. The trauma and guilt caused Ruth to develop unending adult issues: alcoholism, failed marriages, and fractured relationships. When the unnamed murderer comes back to town years later, Ruth seeks to... Read More

Josh Bloomberg's narration is a fine match of text and voice. The tumultuous events that took place in Kyiv/Kiev during the Russian Civil War (1917-1922) are interwoven throughout this exciting historical mystery by Kurkov, who has been called Ukraine's most celebrated novelist. The story concerns a young engineer turned police detective named Samson Kolechko and his... Read More

Author/narrator Lucy Strange dazzles with her dynamic performance. Utilizing various English accents and tones, she delivers this story with impressive breadth. Six sisters live on a farm with their bitter father and loving granny. Their father, fearing the curse of the six sisters, betroths his oldest daughter, Grace. Not wanting to marry, Grace runs away. Willa, the second... Read More

Renée Watson turns her sharp introspection and heart to the story of Lena, a 40-year-old Black woman who is on the threshold of a dream wedding and a successful career. Narrator Zenzi Williams provides a steady, assured internal voice for Lena. Lena's aspirations for body acceptance are at war with her struggle to be herself; this conflict is manifested in devastating episodes... Read More

Mara Wilson gives a charming, thoughtful performance of this contemporary novel. The summer after her college graduation, Isabel is house-sitting and wondering what to do with her life. When she discovers a family of skunks living in the bushes, a tiny world opens up before her. Switching back and forth between Isabel's and the skunks' points of view, this novel delightfully... Read More

In this audio mystery, listeners follow the adventures of Kit--wife, mother, devout Christian, and dedicated detective--as she investigates criminal acts in late Victorian London. The marvelously theatrical voice of Nan McNamara animates Kit, as well as a whole cast of characters, ranging from a baby to a cruel murderer who runs an opium ring. The plot is rather improbable but... Read More

The author is a good choice to present this common-sense advice for people who do knowledge work. Cal Newport's earnest tone and clear speaking voice are perfect vehicles for the creative thinking and humane guidance that pervade his audiobook. He says the idea of measuring productivity by time and effort is a relic of the assembly line. The knowledge work that people do today... Read More

Daniel Philpott's vibrant character portrayals create palpable tension in this murder mystery set in Brighton, England. Detective Inspector Edgar Stephens's Christmas is off to a sinister start: Two children have gone missing. Philpott conveys the town's growing anxiety as time passes and they are not found. His diverse voices bring out the personalities of the town's... Read More

Set in 1959, this beautifully written coming-of-age story about 10-year-old Lucas Ross, who lives in Montana, is affectionately narrated by Pete Cross. Cross's plain delivery and sincere tone allow listeners to step into Lucas's shoes as he discovers the joys and revelations of adolescence. When a car crash causes the death of a teenager, Cross voices Lucas's uncertainty about... Read More

Shannon Tyo is the principal narrator of this novel, with Greta Jung and Jeena Yi providing additional narration. Two centuries from now, the world has an average temperature of 50 degrees below zero. Snowglobe, a climate-controlled city, is populated by directors and actors who are producing reality shows 24 hours a day. Outside Snowglobe, most people have a bleak existence.... Read More

Jason De León is a strong narrator of his own work, an eye-opening examination of human smugglers. Many of those he writes about are driven by poverty to join this dangerous trade in Honduras and Mexico. Both they and their customers try to avoid multiple risks, including arrest and violence, on their treks. De León, who spent time with his subjects over almost seven years, has... Read More

Narrator Abigail Reno creates an energetic voice for 8-year-old genius Angeline, who despite her young age is entering the sixth grade. Her new teacher, Mrs. Hardlick, gives her a hard time, and she struggles to fit in with her classmates. Her only respite from class is her friendship with fifth-grader Gary and his teacher, Miss Turbone. Reno captures Angeline's frustration and... Read More

Anne Lamott narrates in her natural speaking voice--sincere, conversational, and authentic--with a slightly nasally tone and a sometimes choppy cadence. An accomplished storyteller, Lamott charms her audience with intensely personal love-themed vignettes from her own life, managing to make them universally relatable. Lamott is not talking about romantic love--but, rather, the... Read More

Carmen Rose narrates this sapphic horror/romance with a sardonic wit that makes for an immersive listening experience. Shesheshen is a shape-shifting monster who, weary of devouring an endless line of hunters seeking to eradicate her kind, constructs a makeshift human body and infiltrates the human world. What she doesn't expect is to fall for Homily, a human woman who is... Read More

What's better than an action-packed, gender-bent account of a wild huntress fighting underworld creatures? This one is grounded by Kristin Atherton's energetic and deeply emotional performance. While Queen thelburg commands the Wessex army, her husband, Ine, struggles to play the political game. Meanwhile, Herla and her sisters, cursed by the thrill of the wild hunt, fight an... Read More

Performing this moving history from surviving members of the iconic singing group The Blind Boys of Alabama, Phil Morris captures the joys, hardships, and pathos woven into their 80-plus years of performing Black gospel music. You can hear the reverence Morris feels as he describes the pivotal periods of American history the evolving members of the group somehow survived. Their... Read More

Sandy Rustin earned an Earphones Award for her narration of Marissa Moss's WOMAN WHO SPLIT THE ATOM, about the physicist Lise Meitner. Now she returns to lend her vocal talents to Moss's follow-up, a biography of another brilliant woman whose contributions have been overlooked. Rustin's clear, musical voice introduces listeners to Elizebeth Smith Friedman, who, with her... Read More

Lisa Flanagan's pleasant voice and skill with characterizations are on fine display in this intriguing new novel by Edgar Award-nominated author Nova Jacobs. Set at the Swiss physics lab CERN, the story--a mix of mystery, science fiction, and romance--starts with the suspicious death of Howard, a brilliant young physicist, in the facility's giant underground particle collider.... Read More

Robert Ian Mackenzie's performance makes you feel right at home as you share the day-to-day joys and crises of old friends at 44 Scotland Street. The 17th in the series finds Angus wrapped up with a whistleblower, Matthew trying to establish a Pictish Experience Center, Big Lou's husband making an unapproved lifestyle shift, and 7-year-olds Bertie, Olive, and Ranald dealing... Read More

Vanessa Johansson adds a youthful, energetic tone to this backstage melodrama. Dance moms and close friends Ever, Josie, and Lindsay-- who are the mothers of Bea, Savvy, and Olive--deal with critical personal issues, but each is always ready to do whatever's necessary to advance her ballet-dancing daughter. Johansson believably handles the heated competition to win choice roles... Read More

Narrator Kristen DiMercurio delights listeners in this heartwarming single-mom romance about healing from the past and learning to love again. Though Ali Morris is a professional organizer, her own life is a mess. Her mother passed away two years ago, and then her husband left. Now, she decides to take off her wedding ring and start fresh. Nothing surprises her more than when... Read More

Tavia Gilbert portrays the alternating points of view of sisters Eddie and Barrett Grant, whose stories revolve around the dreams and heartbreaks of a Nantucket family. At Barrett's request, Eddie takes a leave from her glamorous New York life as personal assistant to renowned romance novelist Dinah Lavender to help Barrett open her new gift shop and take care of their father.... Read More

Kathleen McInerney superbly narrates this perfect summer listen. Set at the iconic St. Cecelia resort on a secluded Georgia island, the story follows Traci, the widow of the owner's grandson, a former local charged with reviving the hotel's former glory. To do so, Traci builds an on-site dormitory and fills it with a team of impeccable workers, including her niece. Tragedies... Read More

Victoria Villarreal performs impressive vocal acrobatics as she narrates this reimagined tale of Zorro. Leonora, the illegitimate mestiza daughter of the Viceroy of Mexico, has a reputation to uphold. But she cannot look away and do nothing as Spanish conquerors subjugate the various Indigenous people of Mexico. Harnessing the power of the sun and the Indigenous gods, she... Read More

Kit Griffiths transports listeners back to Middren for more battles with power-hungry gods and kings in this second installment of the Fallen Gods series. Still reeling from his brush with death, Elogast reckons with his new position as rebellion leader against Arren, the king who is marching through Middren in search of worshippers. At the same time, Inara struggles to find... Read More

January LaVoy's smooth and expressive voice is a perfect match for Karen Valby's history of America's first Black professional ballerinas and the Dance Theatre of Harlem, founded in the late 1960s. These five women cracked open the door that Misty Copeland would dance through decades later. LaVoy is a master at conveying the emotions wrought by the exacting standards of their... Read More

Gutsy, quick-witted, and strong-minded: These are the characteristics that narrator Kate Reading expertly portrays in this novel about a young woman who travels to the New Mexico Territory in 1857. Midwife Carrie Ballentyne treks west via train, steamer, stagecoach and horseback for her new post in Santa Fe, surviving dangers and forging friendships. Reading's crisp narration... Read More

Jane Oppenheimer's resolute cadence and crisp tone create the perfect palette for debut author Hillary Yablon's heartwarming and funny later-in-life makeover story. Coming home to her Florida condo, 63-year old Sylvia finds her husband engaged in passionate gymnastics with the neighborhood floozy. This incident prompts her to leave the tiresome man--who, by the way, has lost... Read More

Andrew Fallaize shines voicing this Sherlock-style mystery set in a fantasy world. The Khanum Empire faces threats from Leviathans that make it most vulnerable during the wet season. In a mansion belonging to a wealthy family, a high-ranking commander is killed by a tree that grows from his body. Discovering the assassin and motive before the upcoming wet season becomes... Read More

Narrators Helen Laser and Dan Bittner delight listeners with this celebrity second-chance romance. Rom-com actress Birdie Maxwell wants to clean up her damaged reputation by taking a chance on her own real-life love story. So she decides to follow up on a love letter from a mysterious former boyfriend. Elliot O'Brien, a star reporter, has a long history with Birdie and wants to... Read More

Listeners will hear a fun performance in this reluctant contemporary romance. Nami's tech start-up is about to be taken over by another tech giant, the company for which her high school rival, Jae, now works. While the takeover is definitely hostile, the relationship between Nami and Jae is much more complex. Will the rivals turn into lovers? Narrators Donald Chang and Chieko... Read More

The January of this audiobook's title is no ordinary month. In this wintry time, we meet six courageous escapees from Nazi death marches who are thrust together in a battle for survival. Rupert Degas is a master of accents and emotions as he delivers conversations featuring Russian, French, German, and Polish characters whose mindsets swing between relieved exultation and... Read More

Narrator Carly Robbins draws the listener into the romance that develops between hairstylist Ashlynn and firefighter Reid in the small town of Sweetbriar Ridge. They knew each other in school and reconnect when Reid returns to town. Ashlynn has been fired from her job. When her former salon burns to the ground, her relationship with Reid becomes complicated, and she is accused... Read More

Max Meyers and Lee Osorio are a dynamic duo in this YA tale of queer love, heartbreak, and revenge. High school student Phil Reyno is the class bad boy, while his former best friend and first love, Jackson Pasternack, is class president. When the attention-hungry Cameron Ellis outs Phil and breaks his heart, Phil and Jackson team up to bring him down. But re-forming the bonds... Read More

Maya Saroya gives an expressive performance in this thrilling historical fantasy filled with vampires, action, romance, and tea. Saroya portrays Arthie Casimir in a smooth, deadly tone that highlights her fierce determination. Arthie's an outsider in Ettenia, but she's created a safe haven in her tearoom, Spindrift, where her crew serves the best tea to high society by day and... Read More

Susan Duerden narrates a gentle Regency romance featuring characters who are tucked away in the remote English countryside. Spinster Persephone Honeyfield was resigned to a life of seclusion on her father's honey farm until she found herself in a compromising position with wealthy Aidon Barrington and was forced to marry him. He is known in the London gossip rags as Lord of the... Read More

Narrator Arthur Grey is a solid choice for this audiobook about an unraveling marriage. Will quits his medical practice and decides to return to his hometown--both without consulting his wife, Laura. Tensions ensue. Grey brings across the irritations between husband and wife in a dramatic fashion. These all increase when Will is involved in a tragic accident that seriously... Read More

In a dual narration, Sophie Amoss and Robb Moreira perform this engrossing thriller. A teenage girl is found by police on the side of the road. Then a man arrives, claiming that she is his daughter, and he has ample evidence to prove it. Due to the girl's amnesia, she has no choice but to believe him and hope for the best. Elsewhere, teenaged Drew's girlfriend, Lola, is... Read More

Swedish Detectives Joona Linna and Saga Bauer team up to catch a methodical killer who is sending riddles about the victims. The late Saul Reichlin, born in South Africa, narrates with an almost regal tone. His pacing is solid, slowing to describe the killer's careful steps with the victims but quickening to capture Saga's frustration on the chase. Reichlin projects Joona... Read More

Brian Holden delivers a portrait of quintessential "theater kids." His amused tone and playfully self-deprecating comments are narrated with candor and appropriate snarkiness. He portrays theater kids (TKs) as oddball individuals who joined the drama club in high school and college, and who kept "playing" long after graduation. Thanks to these self-proclaimed "queer" actors,... Read More

Hanif Abdurraqib's latest book is a transcendent feat of poetry, memoir, and--well, magic. His narration is as breathless and beautiful as his prose; this book is epic in every sense of the word. It's an ode to his hometown of Columbus, Ohio; a love letter to basketball; a meditation on home and belonging; and an exploration of faith, Blackness, music, and place. He delivers... Read More

Megan Tusing pulls listeners into a nail-biting tale of horror inspired by the harrowing Dyatlov Pass incident in the Soviet Ural Mountains in 1959. Dylan and her geologist friend, Clay, are eager to be the first to climb the mountain. Seven months after their hike, three bodies are discovered in horrific states of decay, but Dylan's is missing. Tusing's patient narration... Read More

This new production of the Chinese sci-fi epic may be Rosalind Chao's first turn as an audiobook narrator, but you'd never know it. The veteran actor navigates long stretches of speculative physics and descriptions of shocking violence as ably as she voices colloquies among the characters. Listeners who come to the work from the Netflix adaptation will find Chao's warm,... Read More

Sasha LaPointe, a poet and performer, delivers her edgy essays with a pleasing voice and a sure sense of the significance of her message. She reads in a word-loving style with the tempo of one who appreciates the meanings her words convey. A Coast Salish woman, she was raised on a reservation in the Pacific Northwest, knows the stresses of growing up a Native girl, and... Read More

Narrator Max Meyers grabs attention and holds it throughout Schaffert's exploration of a group of ticketed passengers who never boarded the TITANIC for its maiden voyage. Bookstore owner Yorick, Japanese American candy heiress Zinnia, and handsome photographer Haze meet at a gathering of TITANIC "survivors," folks who missed the boat. As Yorick becomes enamored with Haze, a... Read More

Natalie Naudus narrates a fantasy novel loosely inspired by Chinese history. Ruying lives in an occupied city, and her righteous fury at the occupiers knows no bounds. Naudus captures all the rage and hopelessness that Ruying feels at her situation: She is the granddaughter of a general who lost the city and the daughter of a father who failed to care for his children. As... Read More

Narrator Amy McFadden engages the listener from the beginning with Ismay Chalmers, who is alone in a cottage during a hurricane. Ismay is staying at her fiancé Remy's family home on a small island off the coast of Massachusetts. Bo, the caretaker, comes to help her weather the storm. While looking for matches, Ismay makes a disturbing discovery in Remy's bedroom. McFadden... Read More

Kristin Atherton brings a regal ambiance to this compelling historical fiction featuring Mary, Queen of Scots. After the rebellion of her Scottish lords, Mary is imprisoned in remote Lochleven Castle with three of her ladies-in-waiting. Pregnant and forced to abdicate, Mary suffers her plight, all the while plotting her escape. Atherton's delivery reflects the escalating... Read More

Narrator Robert Petkoff masterfully portrays U.S. Marshal Lucas Davenport and his daughter, Letty, in the 34th addition to the Davenport series. A deranged British medical doctor decides people are killing the earth and he has the solution. Then he disappears in New Mexico. Investigator Letty Davenport is brought in to track him down. With potential catastrophe looming, she... Read More

Meredith Zietlin narrates this WWII story. Seventeen-year-old Eleanor strives to hide her advanced math skills, but she's discovered and recruited to join other women who contribute to the war effort by solving equations. When her ability is determined to be unique, she is sent to a California air base and then to Pearl Harbor to calibrate a new weapon that could help the U.S.... Read More

Nell Greenfieldboyce is an NPR science reporter, so it's no surprise that she has clarity of both argument and speech in her performance of her personal essays. Topics range from the miniscule--fleas, cosmic dust--to the life changing--her difficulty in getting pregnant and her husband's polycystic kidney disease. But all are filled with wit and self-deprecating humor. When her... Read More

Not one accent is beyond the skills of Laura Darrell in this tale based on Scottish history and legend. Listeners meet U.S. Lieutenant Carter Porter, who is grieving for his departed child, and teenaged Loch Ness Hotel employee Hassie Douglass, who is devoted to her dying grandfather. Their storylines mesh seamlessly when Carter meets Hassie after discovering a journal... Read More

This humble and wonderful performance by Hope Newhouse will engage a wide audience. Two Sophies are best friends; one is an elementary school student, and the other is an aging woman who is beginning her struggle with memory loss. When home-care options are weighed, younger Sophie listens to the many memories of elder Sophie. Newhouse's ability to transform her narration to... Read More

Jeremy Carlisle Parker's portrayals of New York City's contemporary queer society do not fulfill any stereotypical expectations. Mel is enjoying her 20s well enough as a bartender in the high-end, though heteronormative, Terror & Virtue bar, where she works with her best friend and roommate. When a power-femme lawyer named Bebe propositions Mel for casual dating, Mel quickly... Read More

Rob Henderson's flat tone may reflect the substance of his life. Still, his material engages as he describes how his three names represent the first people who abandoned him. He frames his early life as a series of eight moves from one foster home to the next. As he describes his eventual adoption by a loving family as he neared his teens, his characterizations deepen, and the... Read More

Narrator Lauren Sweet's dynamic range captures the sweet and spicy aspects of this queer rom-com. Romance novelist Truly and divorce attorney Colin represent opposite professional ideologies. After a combative podcast discussion, Truly swears the two are enemies--despite her lustful thoughts upon initially meeting Colin. Colin feels otherwise, and in his efforts to get Truly to... Read More

There are few novels that are part legal thriller, part family saga, part redemption story, and that do it well. This compelling narrative is brought to life by the tremendous Edoardo Ballerini. With gentle authority, Ballerini invites listeners to meet the Devlin family, a seemingly tight unit who work in a family law firm. The story opens with favorite son John calling his... Read More

Books come from trees, but the trees themselves can tell us stories of their own if we know how to listen. Fittingly, I listened to part of this audiobook while sitting next to a campfire. Kaleo Griffith's narration is almost perfect for such a fireside chat. His straightforward yet conversational tone exactly matches the feel of the work. Author Daniel Lewis profiles a dozen... Read More