If you’re like me, the fall wreath is on the door, pumpkin muffins are on the counter, and it’s time to settle in for some October listening. And have we got a huge trove of supernaturally appealing romances for you! Here are 13 new audiobooks that feature witches, ghosts, and other seasonal spirits.
Curses and Hexes
It’s hard to beat the drama of a curse or hex hanging over your head while love seems eternally out of reach. Blair Fell’s DISCO WITCHES OF FIRE ISLAND promises just that with narration from Daniel Henning. His performance pulls listeners back to the AIDS epidemic of 1989, introducing drag queen “disco witches” who use their powers to try to save men like Joe, whose boyfriend died of the disease. For another small-town hex situation, visit the magic-laced Scottish village of Briarhaven. In LOVE’S A WITCH, Imogen Church and John Hartley voice Sloane and Knox, who work to break Sloane’s family curse. Church’s gently charming reading and Hartley’s Scottish accent set the stage for love.
Ghosts
Whether they’re sending a message from the beyond or hanging around to annoy the living, ghosts feature heavily in this fall’s releases. The ghost tour motif is the central premise of two new audiobooks. WRONG WITCH TO HEX WITH features dual narration from Amanda Ronconi and Teddy Hamilton, who team up to portray Linney and Gray, partners in a ghost tour business in Michigan. Two rival ghost tour operators compete in GHOST BUSINESS, with narration from Jeannie Sheneman. She plays up the enemies-to-lovers journey to good effect.
Ghosts play a starring role in THE MOST UNUSUAL HAUNTING OF EDGAR LOVEJOY, performed by André Santana and Dani Martineck. The frequent ghost encounters that control Edgar’s life are brought into frightening clarity by Santana even as Edgar is intrigued by Jamie, a haunted house designer voiced by Martineck. More ghosts abound in LOVE AT FIRST FRIGHT, featuring an opposites-attract romance between an author and an actor. Dual narration from Naomi Wood and Thomas Frost creates heat between the American author Rosemary, who sees ghosts, and the British actor Ellis, whose smoldering sexuality does not fit Rosemary’s vision for her book’s screen debut.
Witches
No Halloween list would be complete without witchy romance, and here are two new selections. For a standout time travel audiobook, AN ANCIENT WITCH’S GUIDE TO MODERN DATING by Cecilia Edward cannot be beat for both humor and cat cameos. Shakira Shute brings listeners the indomitable Thorn Scarhart, a 17th-century witch who arrives in the 21st century with her cat familiar, Bandit. Her desire to find true love leads to potions gone awry and unusual first dates. An ill-timed Vegas wedding is the kickoff to HEAD WITCH IN CHARGE with dual narration from Aaron Shedlock and Kelsey Navarro Foster. The head of an important witchy family and her enemy marry, then deal with the consequences. Foster’s depiction of the self-deprecating humor and Shedlock’s performance of the confident flirtation feed the unexpected chemistry the characters share.
Fantastical Adventures (Plus Zombies)
A TALE OF MIRTH & MAGIC promises peril and gentle humor around every curve in the path. Elikki and Barra, fae and half-giant protagonists, experience a spark of attraction at a craft fair and decide to travel together to prolong the moment. Narrators Sarah McEwan and Evan Elliot take turns expressing the characters’ self doubt and self discovery while a pesky customer and his hired bounty hunters plague the couple throughout their journey. Witches and other characters pepper Evie and Max’s adventures through the zombie containment zone. The snort-worthy ZOMROMCOM, with Earphones Award-winning narration from Joy Nash, is rife with clever humor. Passion and verbal sparring characterize this unlikely partnership, and Nash is attuned to every moment.
Cozy and Magical
Kelsey Navarro Foster and Tim Paige team up to read HOPELESSLY TEAVOTED. Vickie and Azrael, childhood neighbors, are both back in Hallowcross, and Vicki is now the proprietor of Azrael’s family tea shop. Paige’s smooth, flexible voice captures Az’s latent feelings for Vickie, and Foster grounds their magical attempts to undo past wrongs. In the second romance in the Spellshop series, THE ENCHANTED GREENHOUSE features a librarian sentenced to an unusual punishment for illegal magic. Caitlin Davies strolls listeners through the magical island where Terlu is banished, and the ancient spells she must resurrect to save it.
For a final cozy listen, Samara MacLaren narrates A WITCH’S GUIDE TO MAGICAL INNKEEPING. Sera hosts a magical inn filled with unusual guests, her unlucky destiny after using a spell to bring her great-aunt Jasmine back from the dead. As Sera inches closer to regaining her witchy powers. MacLaren leans into the mood of this warm romance with humor and an entertaining cast of characters.