New Reviews: Fantasy

Narrator Mary Jane Wells's outstanding performance transports listeners to 1911 Vienna. When Gustav Klimt spies a nude woman floating in the Danube, he can't resist sketching her. But it turns out that she's alive, and he takes her to his studio. With a little help from Freud and Jung, she recovers her memory. She realizes that she's more than 100 years old and the involuntary... Read More

A full cast of experienced narrators breathe life into this thrilling supernatural tale filled with magic, mystery, and a hunt for objects with enormous power. Marissa Clay portrays kindhearted, self-assured private investigator Nevada Baylor, whose power is instantly recognizing lies. She teams up with Connor "Mad" Rogan, portrayed by Henry Kramer, a ruthless killer who has a... Read More

It's up to listeners to decide if they need a deep dive into the early childhood of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, who is the protagonist of the international phenomenon WICKED: THE MUSICAL. For those who do, Edoardo Ballerini's storytelling is grand and decisive as he wades through this dark addition to the canon. Elphaba is born to a father who is a pious missionary... Read More

Actor Cynthia Erivo narrates this WICKED prequel about future witch Elphaba's childhood. In the land of Oz, Erivo introduces listeners to precocious Elphie and her missionary family as they travel across the swamps and marshes of Quadling country. Elphie's complex relationship with her disabled sister, Nessarose, and curiosity about the world at large are at the center of this... Read More

This feel-good audiobook is the sequel to THE SPELLSHOP. Narrator Caitlin Davies delivers a warm, emotionally rich performance, capturing Terlu's vulnerability and Yarrow's gruff charm with heart and nuance. Davies's character voices, especially that of the lively sentient rose, Lotti, bring the magical world to life. After being turned into a statue for practicing illegal... Read More

Sean Patrick Hopkins and Adenrele Ojo narrate a compelling addition to the world created by Stephen King in THE STAND. The anthology collects stories set during, after, and long after the events of the iconic novel. Hopkins's steady, engaging narration captures the essence of each story. With his clear enunciation and varied pacing, the different characters and harrowing... Read More

Nathaniel Priestly ushers listeners into the mind and heart of Sydney Carton, who listeners may remember is the unfortunate protagonist of Charles Dickens's TALE OF TWO CITIES. Author Parry has given Carton a backstory that explains both his uncanny resemblance to Charles Darnay and his dissolution: He was stolen as a toddler by fairies and raised in their Realm. Now Carton is... Read More

Jennifer Pickens narrates this darkly unique retelling of "Snow White." Anja is an expert on poisons who regularly drinks small doses of them in her quest to find cures. The king is desperate to prevent his daughter, Snow, from dying, and summons Anja to prevent it. Pickens adjusts her approach appropriately for several characters: Anja is depicted with straightforward... Read More

Lead narrator Colleen Delany takes on the lion's share of this full-cast dramatization of the second half of Book 3 of the Crescent City series. Plucky, talented Bryce Quinlan, portrayed by Kit Swann, wields a sword and a long knife against evil yet agile foes, including the godlike Asteri, who have conquered her world. Bryce and her warrior husband, Hunt Athalar, voiced by... Read More

Alma Cuervo's polished narration is perfect for this unconventional, dreamlike tale blending folklore and fantasy, seamlessly translated from Spanish. Listeners are drawn into the final day of Bernadeta's life, which takes place in a remote farmhouse in the rugged Guilleries mountains of Catalonia in northeastern Spain. As she lies dying, the voices of her female ancestors,... Read More

Jen Jayden takes listeners on a quest driven by two determined women who fall in love along the way. Aleya, a noble-born soldier, must travel to the famed city of Nivela to secure a legendary item that will win the hearts of her family and the people of the country she hopes to rule. Kirby heads toward Nivela to break an ancient curse that has left the townspeople of Wall's End... Read More

In this queer dark academia fantasy, narrator Zara Ramm is so committed that it's hard to know where she ends and Chetwood Academy's Director of Magic, Dr. Walden, begins. Walden is a magician in her late 30s, a powerful demon wrangler, and an excellent teacher. She's equally responsible for managing teenage angst in the classroom and keeping the demons that infiltrate campus... Read More

Ralph Lister narrates this first installment in The Scriver Archives. Jack, the sole survivor of the Scriver Trials, is on a mission to document the monsters who are plaguing every continent on earth and discover how to kill them. Jack has been recruited to kill the High Stryga, in particular, before she uses stolen magic to enslave all humans. But he can't do it alone, so he... Read More

Morag Sims and Will Watt provide fittingly erudite performances of this layered audiobook. Cambridge is home to a top-tier academic Magick program. When an esteemed professor is killed, star graduate students Alice and Peter embark on a quest to rescue him from hell. How else to get that coveted recommendation? The underworld is soon revealed to be a university campus of its... Read More

Magical creatures abound in this audiobook. Tiny flying dragons, a giant golem who gardens, and two young humans--Nyssa, a librarian, and Roan, a wandering adventurer--try to bring the Misty Mountain Library back to life before the Tales and Tomes Festival begins. Narrator Jess Moran portrays Nyssa as a bright, bubbly young woman who is in love with books and the characters... Read More

Edoardo Ballerini narrates this tale of two kingdoms that were set to enforce an arranged marriage in order to save the princess's kingdom. But right before the wedding, the princess fell in love with a lowly scribe. Anatole, once a prestigious magician, was ordered to create a potion to make the princess acquiesce to the arrogant prince. But Anatole felt fatherly towards the... Read More

Channie Waites delivers a committed narration of this queer fantastical thriller about memory and legacy. Key, one of the most celebrated memory hunters of her time, is able to dive back into history to pull out relevant stories for the Museum of Human Memory. Vale serves as Key's guardian, protecting her from black market hunters. When Key dives too far back, she uncovers a... Read More

Joe Jameson guides listeners through a dark yet hopeful fable of a boy who is reborn at a terrible cost. From the moment Willem awakens--neither fully alive nor wholly revenant--Jameson's gruff tone and English accent suggest a rugged, intimately human presence. Jameson's storytelling strikes a deft balance between eerie surrealism and heartfelt warmth, drawing listeners into... Read More

Fiona Hardingham and Christian Coulson's performances bring swoon-worthy tension to this epic fantasy sequel. Kel's role as bodyguard, spy, and confidante to Prince Conor unfolds against a backdrop of whispered conspiracies and royal betrayals. Coulson anchors the narrative with a measured cadence. His subtle shifts in pitch and restrained character voices demand rapt... Read More

Grace Gray narrates this WWII historical fantasy from the perspectives of three characters: Lydia Polk, a British woman who recently graduated from the Royal Academy of Witches; Rebecca Gagne, a Jewish resistance fighter in France; and Henry Boudreaux, a Haitian American art historian with a little magic of his own. Lydia must enlist the help of Rebecca and Henry to obtain a... Read More

Dive into Celtic mythology with an excellent narration by Siobhan Waring. An acclaimed voice actor, she brings her considerable skills to this captivating story, told from the point of view of Quinn, a selkie whose hide is hidden by a controlling and abusive man. Waring's accents and vocal range are exemplary, with appropriate emotions and pitches to suit each character and... Read More

Book 10 of the Rivers of London series delivers an audiobook mix of mystery, magic, and adventure. The plot is rich and layered, unfolding at a pace that lets Aaronovitch's intricate world-building shine. Kobna Holdbrook-Smith expertly portrays Peter Grant's trademark wit and dry humor, while Shvorne Marks brings Abigail Kamara to life with warmth and intelligence. Their... Read More

This paranormal thriller proves to be a formidable audiobook production. The second volume of Roth's Curse Bearer duology requires the highly skilled quartet of narrators to present concepts based on Slavic folklore, often while speaking in Polish accents and employing foreign terms. Happily, the four narrators clear those hurdles, making for a smooth listening experience. The... Read More

In this first installment of a duology, Ella Lynch's British-accented narration introduces listeners to an epic fantasy filled with political intrigue. Humble deputy courier Elen is tasked with leading an arrogant prince and his entourage on a secret footpath through a land infested with poisonous spores. Elen is keeping many secrets. One is that a spore-eating viper lives... Read More

Snuggle up with this cozy magical performance by Samara MacLaren. Sera is a shadow of her former self. Once one of the most powerful witches in Britain, she now runs an inn with her great-aunt, whom she resurrected from death, and a snarky fox who was once human. Still bitter from having been cast out of the Guild, Sera is trying to deal with eccentric inn patrons and to regain... Read More