New Reviews: Fiction

The nature of time permeates Chen's audiobook, and Tina Huang's somber, thoughtful performance fits the narrative perfectly. Alice is a New York freelancer who is pursuing insights into an elusive performance artist whose work includes public displays of punching a time clock. Meanwhile, in California, Alice's father is progressing further into dementia, requiring increased... Read More

Roxanne Hernandez delivers this multilayered thriller in a dispassionate voice as she shifts smoothly between 13-year-old Lorena's two lives. One is her hardscrabble existence in Sacramento, where she lives with her immigrant mother and brother, and the other is the privileged life she is introduced to by the Stallworths, who reside in Sacramento's suburbs. Hernandez gives... Read More

Narrator Sagan Chen deftly handles numerous points of view in this poignant family drama about making mistakes, owning up to them, healing, and making amends. The audiobook charts the intertwined lives of a collection of imperfect characters who are striving for connection: nonbinary teen Morgan; their autistic father, Julian; their alcoholic mother, Zoe; and Zoe's... Read More

This audiobook marks the convergence of two Golden Voice narrators with one of the country's finest fiction writers. Edoardo Ballerini and Julia Whelan narrate these empathic, witty, and finely wrought short stories. Whelan sparkles with her persuasive style, smooth tone, and practiced cadence. Her honey-coated voice is especially memorable in the ironic mode of "Mr. Voice" and... Read More

Peter Ganim's resonant and melodious voice is attuned to this melancholy audiobook. Observation and imagery, rather than a tightly knit plot, propel the novel. Ganim's deliberate pace and reasoned tone suit the novel's themes--love after a tragic death and the challenge of living authentically during dark political times. He captures the angst of protagonist Christopher Bell.... Read More

This audiobook is the ultimate in women's fiction. Gynecologist Maya Rau, the daughter of Indian immigrants, interacts with a diverse set of patients. Listeners also witness her problems balancing her home and work lives, which involves battling hospital bureaucracies, racism, classism, and ignorance about health care. Narrator Soneela Nankani portrays at least 20 characters,... Read More

The Mexican-American War is little known in the U.S., but Mexicans think of it with regret and rage. Narrator Yareli Arizmendl tells this grim story of the American invasion of Mexico with conviction and subtle elegance. Her co-narrator, Aidan Kelly, uses his manly seductive voice to portray both romantic interludes and the grisly details of American barbarism. The hero of the... Read More

Julia Whelan becomes former child star Fiona St. James, offering just the right amount of backstage gossip, romance, and mystery to keep listeners engaged. Fiona was a pivotal character in "Birds of California," a successful fictional TV sit-com. The producers want a reboot of the series, and they need Fiona and her costar, Sam Fox, to make it happen. When Sam tries to convince... Read More

Narrators Amin El Gamal and Lameece Issaq work together to bring to life the many stories in this collection, which is a classic of feminist Moroccan literature. Through a wide cast of characters--from mothers and rebellious daughters to a man with a severe illness--listeners are treated to a wide swath of issues facing Moroccan society. El Gamal maximizes the dramatic dialogue... Read More

Narrator January LaVoy's perfect performance enhances this thriller about middle-aged women taking charge despite society's attempts to keep them down. When Harriet's husband cheats on her and she is unfairly passed up for a work promotion, she cultivates magical botany skills. Gym owner Jo feels her superhuman strength growing. Nessa's ability to hear the dead has resurfaced.... Read More

Gisela Chìpe does a beautiful job narrating this touching--and at times hilarious--novel about fatherhood. The story takes place in Maipú, Chile, and shifts between the 1990s and the present day, centering on aspiring poet Gonzalo and his stepson, Vicente. Gonzalo helps raise Vicente for several years but suddenly goes to New York. Later, when Gonzalo returns to Chile, he... Read More

What do you do when you're the only one left? With a slow, deliberate cadence, Intae Kim shares the first-person perspective of a man who has no clear memory of what turned his home state of California into a hot, dry wasteland. Kim's tone is appropriately exhausted but takes on an appealing lilt during the surprising moments of wry humor that are peppered throughout this... Read More

Narrator Catherine Ho delivers a stellar performance of this fast-paced caper audiobook. She perfectly inhabits Ava Wong, a frazzled wife and mother who is on hiatus from her law career, as well as Winnie Fang, Ava's former shy classmate from 20 years ago, who's now rich and full of confidence. Winnie's been running a global fake handbag scheme, in which Ava becomes entangled.... Read More

John Darnielle narrates an uneasy novel about a true-crime writer who is delving into the Satanic panic of the 1980s. A small town contains a sinister secret: An abandoned porn shop covered with occult graffiti was the site of a double murder. Gage Chandler is a true-crime writer who is eager to discover the human truths that push people to murder. The author himself reads the... Read More

Academia has long been an object of satire, and this audiobook takes the genre to new and lively heights. Ingrid Yang is a doctoral candidate who is struggling to complete her dissertation when she makes a discovery that sends her into investigator mode. Jennifer Kim is a capable narrator, brisk and efficient with both narrative and dialogue. Her delivery demonstrates... Read More

Audrey Schulman's latest novel was inspired by an infamous dolphin experiment done in 1965. Alex Picard's narration is sympathetic to Cora, the young, mostly deaf, young lady who finds her purpose when she is hired to record observations of captive dolphins. Cora's voice is almost maternal as she begins to communicate with the animals. Picard empowers Cora's voice, gradually... Read More

This promising audiobook by the grandson of the real-life Dr. B is set in the world of émigré publishing and spy craft in neutral Sweden under the Nazi hegemony. "Dr. B" was the pseudonymous by-line of Immanuel Birnbaum, a German refugee who wrote for liberal journals and worked as an editor in the Stockholm office of Fischer Verlag, German publisher of Stefan Zweig and Thomas... Read More

A trio of skilled narrators brings to life three figures from Greek mythology whose fates are intertwined in tragedy. Saint's retelling of the Siege of Troy is straightforward in its plot but layered in its approach to the thoughts and feelings of the women caught up in its wake. Beth Eyre narrates as Elektra, an imperious girl full of pride in her heroic father who turns a... Read More

Kim Thuy's English is strongly accented (it's at least her third language, after all), and the rhythms of her speech are not those of a native speaker. But the listener adapts pretty quickly. After that, her tale of Vietnam, as told through the stories of various people caught up in the tragedy of the American War (as it is known there) and its aftermath, comes to life in a... Read More

Raymond J. Lee narrates this beautifully wrought story of Dr. Yungman Kwak, a Korean-American obstetrician who loses his post when the hospital that employs him closes. Yungman's complicated history is revealed in five distinct sections, shifting from his harrowing days in war-torn Korea to his later years in rural Minnesota and as a physician for an international relief... Read More

Konstantina Braoudaki unforgettably conjures a Scottish near-future dystopia. Listeners meet partially sighted Elaine, who is gutsy, endearing, and desperate that her daughter inherit her modest home. One day in the mail she receives yet another overdue bill--and an interesting flyer from an "exit facility." The facility offers people humane assisted suicide, perfect for... Read More

Narrator Frankie Corzo masterfully narrates this audiobook about a complicated family history full of love, loss, and regret. Cuban immigrant Carmen Guerreiro has been estranged from her daughter, Lara, for 30 years. She's never met her granddaughter, Jessica. A formidable octogenarian, Carmen is not giving up on Jessica--or Lara. She sends handsome Luis, the president of the... Read More

Narrators Mia Barron and Callie Beaulieu are a dynamic duo in their portrayals of estranged half sisters who are reunited after their mother Bette's passing. Gabrielle is 55 and dealing with career fallout, which is tied to her ex-husband. Lulu is 48 and grieving her husband's death. The sisters mend their relationship as they catalogue and make decisions about their... Read More

In this charming debut, Will Watt gives a pitch-perfect performance as Danny Scudd, a 20-something gay man who is just trying to survive in 21st-century London. Watt leans into the first-person narration: He does great character voices that are all colored by Danny's feelings and experiences. From his unflappable Canadian therapist to his larger-than-life nonbinary best friend,... Read More

This audiobook is a typical example of literary women's fiction. The strong, controlled voice of Nina Richmond immerses listeners in the emotionally precarious existence of Kate, a young widow who lives alone on an island off the coast of British Columbia. The novel also describes Kate's overbearing mother, Nora, and Ivy, an elderly woman who shares her romantic memories of... Read More

Julia Whelan delivers a charming, romantic listening experience set in small-town Maine. Recently finding herself single again, Laurie Sassalyn comes upon a wooden duck decoy and an old letter among the belongings of her late great-aunt, Dot. After a con artist steals the decoy, Laurie and her friends set out on a heist to get it back. When Laurie reconnects with her high... Read More

Laura Benanti gives a superb narration of this absorbing novel about the eugenics movement in early-twentieth-century America. Mary is the 18-year-old secretary of Dr. Agnes Vogel, superintendent of a facility for "feebleminded women of childbearing age." Benanti provides authentic voices for the large cast, including the staff and inmates of the facility, as well as residents... Read More

Theo Solomon does an incredible job navigating the complexities of this remarkable debut novel about storytelling; Black, queer identity; and the surprising connections between past and present. Kip is an Afro-Caribbean writer who barricades himself in his Brooklyn basement in order to finish his historical novel about Mohammed, the Egyptian lover of E.M. Forster. Soon, time... Read More

Narrator Kathleen McInerney exudes beach-read energy in this entertaining audiobook. Contractor Hattie Kavanaugh has never considered participating in reality television, but she's facing bankruptcy after a failed project. When Hattie's second chance comes via a high-concept home renovation show, the only things in her way are a shoestring budget, an obnoxious costar, and clues... Read More

Narrator Kelechi Okafor's melodious voice brings the British-Nigerian characters in this beautiful debut novel to life. She gives Glory, the daughter who comes home to London for her father's funeral, a voice that can be defensive, confused, angry, or compassionate as she becomes aware of long-buried family secrets that are slowly revealing themselves and upending everything... Read More

Erin Bennett delivers this stellar beach read with a historical twist. The Hotel Nantucket was destroyed by fire in 1922; now a new, British owner has restored it. Lizbet, the general manager, who is coping with a broken heart, is determined that the extravagantly refurbished property will be successful. But listeners soon learn that a ghost is on the premises. While the hotel... Read More

This audiobook features identical twins who have shared a life of privilege from childhood stardom and enjoyed the special bond only identical twins can experience. Samantha, portrayed by Julia Whelan, is the wild twin, the one who was an addict and who has had numerous failed relationships. Ellie, portrayed by Kate Rudd, is the "good girl," who married and lives in a glamorous... Read More

Narrators Lynette Freeman and Tracey Lee bring compassion and understanding to characters who are struggling to survive in segregated America. The novel weaves two plots, one set in the 1920s and the other in the 1960s. Freeman and Lee perform the vibrant characters with distinctive tones, pacing, and verve. A painful incident kept secret for years takes Daisy and Henrietta on... Read More

Unfolding in the early years of the last century, the plot of this audiobook transports listeners to Iceland, and the destination is as interesting as one might expect. Karitas is a young woman who shares her rather desperate coming-of-age experiences; her dreams are focused on one day becoming an artist. Anita Briem offers a decent performance. Her pace is somewhat uneven and... Read More

This medieval-ish, fantasy-ish audiobook covers a year in the village of the title, starting with a bandit raid in which numerous villagers are slaughtered. The story shifts around among a group of characters who are damaged in various ways, all of them working with insufficient, or simply incorrect, information. Although there are many changes in the village--including a... Read More

No one else could have narrated this novel as skillfully and masterfully as Sneha Mathan. Her Indian accent and vocal dexterity infuse all the characters with distinct personalities. This is the story of the last queen of the Sikh empire, Rani Jindan, who rose from humble origins to become the favorite wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh during the mid-1800s. When the Maharaja dies,... Read More

With ease, empathy, and knowing assurance, veteran narrators Adenrele Ojo and JD Jackson become the recurring characters in this dazzling collection of 13 stories. The short works examine the hopes and fears of the rising Black middle class located in a "sliver of Southern suburbia" in the 1990s/2000s. Fathers wanting better lives for their sons. Prodigal brothers returning... Read More

Narrator Marin Ireland delivers a stellar understated performance in this character-driven romantic novel. Ireland captivates listeners as she portrays Merit, a married mother of two who's lost her identity and feels trapped. She experiences a much needed spark once she returns to her career and finds herself working with a beautiful Danish architect named Jane. Jane is... Read More

Ayesha Dharker, a Bombay-born British actor, performs this darkly comic audiobook smartly and sensitively. She gives every character their due. Her intonations, whether for Brits or Indian immigrants, are subtle and unique. Her portrayal of the conflicted heroine, Dr. Yasmin Ghorami, is apt, capturing all her angst. Perhaps her most eloquent renditions are of Yasmin's Bengali... Read More

Cassandra Campbell impressively narrates this immersive multigenerational saga, set mainly in Chicago in 2016. As listeners meet the extended Sullivan clan, the point of view shifts among three people--sisters Jane and Gretchen, and their cousin Teddy. Campbell exquisitely inhabits older sister Jane, mother of two, who questions her marriage and her privileged suburban life;... Read More

Romance-loving listeners will enjoy this Cinderella story about Cate, a high school dropout from an abusive home who becomes the love interest of Joe, "America's most eligible bachelor." This love story is told by two gifted narrators, Caroline Hewitt and Robert Petkoff. Joe is rich, Ivy-League-educated, and socially prominent. Cate is gorgeous, a former model, and a fashion... Read More

Narrators Karen Murray and Adenrele Ojo perform this celebrated debut novel by former attorney Stringfellow with a deliberate rhythm and poignant empathy. Murray and Ojo shine as 10-year-old Joan moves with her mother and sister to live with their aunt to escape an abusive relationship. The narrative moves backward and forward in time, revealing deep wounds inflicted by racism... Read More

George Newbern opens this novel in the matter-of-fact tone of its main character. His voice increases in intensity as the mystery develops: How did lobsterman Ed Thatch--who started from nothing--make so much money? Other than the shop that sells buoys with pictures of politicians painted on them, there's nothing special about Damariscotta, unless it's a noticeably low crime... Read More

Mustique Island draws celebrities and royals on an international level. Narrator Cassandra Campbell's range of accents is perfect in this story about a mother and her two daughters' exploration of what personal autonomy means to them in the 1970s. Willy Mae, a former Texas beauty queen, falls in love with a British brewery tycoon. After she divorces her unfaithful husband and... Read More

Narrator Hillary Huber is enchanting in the role of a daughter who is spilling her mother's dark secrets. Raised in the 1950s, the daughter details the strange habits and lore of her single mother. Dangerous herbs, a father turned into a garden gnome, deadly prophecies--the daughter hardly knows what's fantasy and what's real. Huber's vulnerable confessional tone for the... Read More

This collection of short stories is a listening treat that provides a kaleidoscopic view of Gabriel Garcia Márquez's fictional town of Macondo. Each of the four narrators is paired with specific stories, and their performances offer both variety and enthusiasm. Armando Durán's narration of "No One Writes to the Colonel" depicts the likable but somewhat pathetic titular colonel... Read More

This quirky, dark audiobook is a unique listening experience. Five years ago Ingrid left her old life to take a job on a cruise ship. Having been selected for a mentorship program, she essentially turned over control of her life to the ship's captain, Keith. He is a devotee of the wabi-sabi philosophy, which finds much to admire in imperfection. During discussions with Keith,... Read More

Louis McKenzie portrays indigent but hopeful Sayon Hughes as he grows up in the Caribbean-Somali area of Bristol, England. The Hughes family--large and loving--sell drugs to survive. Sayon is unforgettably rendered as he is torn between the street and his love for Shona and Elia, both flawlessly portrayed, whose friendship helps him to excel in school. As young men, Sayon and... Read More

Narrator Mela Lee's invigorating and multifaceted performance will have listeners eagerly anticipating the ups and downs of Angie--a Ghanaian-American third-year medical student. Plucky Angie has sworn off love, but fate keeps bringing her and Ricky, an empathetic young artist, together. Lee adopts a softer tone for Ricky, whose kindness and big heart draw Angie in. Angie... Read More

Narrator Joanna Scanlan's British-accented voice sets the stage for an audiobook that follows a young woman named Susan from college to middle adulthood. While treated as an exploration of the friendship between Susan and her best friend, Norma, who end up on very different paths, the story is somewhat meandering and lacks a coherent focus. Scanlan's narration does play up the... Read More

Julia Emelin's performance places listeners in the heart of the Soviet Union during the 1980s, a time of tumultuous change. Anya and her teenage friends are approaching the end of school and facing uncertain futures. They spend their days listening to contraband Western music and dreaming of love. Anton Chekhov's famous play THE CHERRY ORCHARD, echoed in the novel's title, is... Read More

January LaVoy and William DeMeritt are well paired narrators for this audiobook, in which a complex family saga is told through multiple points of view. DeMeritt begins with the portrayal of a gifted pianist named Jenry, who leaves his mother in Miami to attend Brown University. In returning to Rhode Island, his birthplace, he seeks answers to questions he has about his father.... Read More

When journalist Sofie Morse is asked to write the biography of Lara Caine, the elusive, Russian-born wife of the president of the United States, both are set on paths that will change their lives forever. Lisa Flanagan narrates this intriguing spy story with ease as the plot weaves between the height of the Cold War in the 1970s and the present day amid scenes of Russia, Paris,... Read More

This hilarious romp through the small-town life of the fictional Italian village of Prometto was tailor-made to be narrated, and Tim Frances is just the man for the job. Frances's believable Italian accents in a variety of flavors and tones roll off his tongue, and he is especially convincing when embodying Signor Speranza, the beleaguered mayor with a very big plumbing problem... Read More

Eugenia Low performs this powerful cross-cultural historical novel about a Chinese mother and young son who immigrate to America after enduring the horrors of the Japanese invasion in 1938. Destitute, Meilin and her son, Renshu, flee on foot with few possessions except an ancient scroll embellished with Chinese folktales. Low portrays Meilin's simultaneous fear and courage as... Read More

Dion Graham's performance of this violent feminist survival story set in the American West is nothing short of incredible. After Ginny cheats on her husband, a group of locals avenge him by gang raping her and then dumping her body in a lime pit. She lives to avenge herself. Graham's tone is urgent when sister Ella nearly drowns and filled with horror when her horse is set on... Read More

Dakota Ray-Hebert's voice encapsulates Ruby with a tough edge, a big laugh, an occasional sneer, and underlying grief. Ruby is Cree and Métis but was adopted as a baby by a dysfunctional white family in Western Canada. The novel moves back and forth in time as connected stories recount the lives of Ruby's birth parents, grandparents, partners, and others. The changing time... Read More

Narrator Johnny Heller affects a "James Cagney" gangster tone--"ya see"--and a slightly askew attitude in this madcap romp set in San Francisco in 1947. This follow-up to Moore's wacky NOIR deploys Heller as the voice of the loopy gang leader and his flaky followers. Sammy "Two Toes" Tiffin and the rest of the Cookie's Coffee Irregulars stumble through a pretzel plot involving... Read More

This fantastical debut audiobook will enchant listeners. Gifted vocal artist Marin Ireland portrays Tova, a 70-year-old widow with a heart of gold whose teenage son died under mysterious circumstances 30 years earlier. Ireland's encouraging tones suit Tova, whose compassion touches everyone, and every creature, in her small Washington town. After she injures herself at her job... Read More

Robert Meldrum's eloquent voice and fluid narrative style do full justice to this darkly humorous novel set in one of the oldest zoological gardens in Italy. At the heart of this slightly surreal story is the relationship between Giovanna, who was hired by the zoo to reimagine the venerable institution's public image, and Chahine, a mysterious Algerian visitor with whom she... Read More

Brian Nishii gives these three novellas a vivid, unforgettable performance. His sense of timing and his pace work well, and he shifts his tone from character to character subtly but intelligently. Honoring the spare prose, Nishii illuminates the harsh existences of the characters. Job loss, beatings, and other violence take place, but there's wit and whimsy, too. Family... Read More

Narrator Hazem Shammas deploys an impressive array of accents in this mesmerizing queer coming-of-age story set in Australia and Turkey. The novel opens when Jamal, a queer Arab-Australian Muslim, is a child, and it weaves slowly through his teen years and young adulthood. Shammas captures Jamal's evolving understanding of himself and his world with quiet poignancy. He gives... Read More

Lauren J. Daggett's performance is truly alive, providing a complete embodiment of characters, and the spaces they live in. Listeners experience Perkins-Valdez's novel as a recitation on injustice. In early 1970s Alabama, Civil Townsend is a young clinic nurse who witnesses firsthand the inequities experienced by her home visit patients. When she discovers that two young Black... Read More

Marin Ireland offers an adroit and heartfelt performance of Emma Straub's clever new novel, which repurposes the time-travel trope to explore what makes life meaningful. On her fortieth birthday, Alice realizes that her perfectly fine single, professional, happy life doesn't feel so satisfying anymore. Plus, her dad is dying. But what to do? Why, go to sleep and wake up on your... Read More

Lucy Liu, Dennis Boutsikaris, and other talented performers rivet listeners with this sequel to ELECTION. Perrotta revisits alpha female Tracy Flick, now a middle-aged assistant principal at Green Meadow High. Liu as Flick sounds no-nonsense yet girlish as she voices Traci's midlife frustration and hope for a promotion. Boutsikaris, as retiring Principal Weede, has a... Read More

This collection of short stories spans genres from magical realism and survival fiction to Lovecraftian horror, the common factors being nature and a pervasive sense of unease. Starting off the collection is Moreno-Garcia's story, set during the Mexican Revolution and narrated by Cynthia Farrell, who employs a slight Spanish accent and conjures a determined protagonist. Next is... Read More

This audiobook, primarily performed by Lisa Flanagan, follows Charlie, the Deaf teenage daughter of hearing parents who has transferred to her first school for the Deaf, and February, the school's hearing headmistress who is caring for her Deaf elderly mother. The story incorporates several of Charlie's school assignments, such as the history of student protests at Gallaudet... Read More

Narrator Stacey Glemboski captures this novel about family and responsibility with her stellar performance. Leaving her husband behind in Brooklyn, Louisa takes off for her parents' summer beach house in Maine with her three kids. At the same time, Kristie heads out from Pennsylvania to Maine with little money to unpack the truth about her father. Both women will spend an... Read More

With voices of childlike clarity, youthful intensity, and sheer menace, Diana Pou, Vico Ortiz, and Gabriel S. Rivera Vázquez lead a skilled group of Latin actors in narrating this surreal, dark fantasy. The audiobook speculates on what would become of the children orphaned and abandoned in the aftermath of 2017's Hurricane Maria. As young survivors follow a charismatic madman... Read More

Narrators Stephanie Willing and Pete Cross transform themselves into a father-daughter duo who are searching for healing in a time of loss. Dave, who has Asperger's, and his 15-year-old daughter, Chloe, are meandering through their lives without their late wife/mother, Jana. As Dave reminisces about his life, Chloe explores a new relationship with classmate Edie. Both Cross and... Read More

Told in three arresting sections, this poignant novel details a life-changing affair between 19-year-old Mallory and an older, married woman who is a professor at her college. Kreinik's delicate narration mimics the sparse beauty of Hart's prose. She lingers on scenes and sentences, letting them stretch out in time, as they do for Mallory. Though this intensely interior story... Read More

Narrators Daniel K. Isaac and Shannon Tyo offer interesting interpretations of Soon Wiley's Pushcart-nominated novel about family, identity, and the pressures of life in contemporary Korea. When Seoul police inform Korean-American Min that his Korean girlfriend, Yu-Jin, has committed suicide, he can't believe that the ambitious college student would do such a thing. While Min... Read More

Shareena Clanton's performance is not always polished, but it is perfect for this hammer blow of an audiobook about mid-century racism in small-town Australia. The "white" girl, Sissy, is being raised by her dark-skinned grandmother, Odette, in a rural county that gives local (white, male) officials total jurisdiction over Aboriginal children. It's not that we don't know... Read More

As one might expect, this eighteen-hour audiobook reveals its story slowly. The premise is an interesting one. It tells the stories of the people whose lives are centered around a factory building in Portugal. That said, those stories are revealed with painstaking slowness and frequent repetition. Campbell employs her usual skill with the narration, but the action is still... Read More

Narrator Mark Bramhall portrays the bold, charismatic Zeno Marigold, a flying ace who survived the Great War to become something of an airborne traveling showman during the Great Depression. With his wing-walking wife and beloved Scottish terrier, Zeno hawks plane rides and daredevil stunts across the American South to scrabble earnings for food and fuel. Bramhall's slow pace... Read More

Brittany Pressley and Gabrielle Glaister alternate the narration of this heartwarming novel about family, friendship, and forgiveness. In her introduction, Jio states she wants to create a "cozy place" for listeners, and both narrators help realize this ambition. Pressley portrays Valentina, a recently divorced 30-something Seattle librarian who comes to London when she... Read More

A thoroughly engaging narration by Tracey Leigh re-creates the depravity rampant in the Puerto Rican slave trade in the nineteenth century. Leigh's voice is clear, her Spanish diction is exceptional, and her pacing and tone bring life to the period and the large cast. Pola, a young African woman, is captured and sent to a Puerto Rican plantation to be a breeder. With an... Read More

Melinna Bobadilla's engaging narration of this magical intergenerational novel makes for worthwhile listening. Luz Lopez, who has special abilities as a tea-leaf reader in 1930s Denver, finds herself going back in time to understand her Indigenous Chicano family's journey through traumatic circumstances. This story of love, loss, and survival is passionately narrated.... Read More

This audiobook is a literary novel, not the usual vampire genre experience. Narrator Jane Lui smoothly moves between characters and the setting of the coming-of-age story. In a dark and sultry tone, she describes Lydia and the various people she crosses paths with in London while navigating her part-human, part-vampire body. Yet Lui also sounds as if Lydia is sharing one long... Read More

Listeners are introduced to Miramar Woo, the eldest of three siblings whose family immigrated to Toronto in the 1970s. After the death of her beloved father, Miramar feels alone even in the presence of the rest of her family. Instead of leaving for university, she finds herself in the shadow of her brother, sister, and mother, who has had a mental breakdown. A slight sibilance... Read More

Narrator Lameece Issaq brings a lot of personality to the first-person story of Mina, a Lebanese doctor who travels to Greece to work at a refugee camp. Each chapter is its own vignette, weaving the various subplots together to get a full perspective of who this doctor is to her estranged family, medical colleagues, patients, and community. Employing boldness, wit, and passion... Read More

Julia Whelan's quiet, graceful narration is the perfect match for Nina LaCour's flowing prose in this stunning, layered story about two queer women who are slowly finding their way to each other--and themselves. After her girlfriend's sudden death, 16-year-old Sara leaves her hometown on the Russian River, looking for a new start in L.A. At the same time, L.A. native Emilie is... Read More

Narrator Ronke Adékoluejo masterfully creates a British-Nigerian community and its delightful inhabitants, especially 31-year-old Oxford-educated banker Yinka Oladeji. Listeners learn that Yinka is frustrated because her younger sister is married and pregnant, while Yinka is still saving herself for marriage and looking for a man who will appreciate her. Adékoluejo skillfully... Read More

Excellent narration from a bevy of capable narrators enhances Maggie Shipstead's incisive collection of 10 short stories. Plots are varied: An actress emerges from a Scientology-type religious movement in the titular story, narrated by Alex McKenna; a Hollywood father and his two daughters clean out his late father's home in "Angel Lust," narrated by George Newbern; and a love... Read More