Every month, AudioFile Magazine reviewers and editors select the best new audiobooks for BookTrib’s readers. Settle into fall and get ready for the cooler weather with these essential audiobooks.
FULL MOON OVER FREEDOM: Milagro Street, Book 2 by Angelina M. Lopez
Read by Stacy Gonzalez
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Harlequin Audio | 11.5 hrs.]
Stacy Gonzalez’s fierce narration of Lopez’s second-chance romance is a stormy yet satisfying listen. Fleeing an emotionally abusive ex, Gillian Armstead-Bancroft returns to her hometown of Freedom, Kansas, where she has an awkward reunion with her first lover, Nicky Mendoza. Gonzalez flexes her narrative power as the story moves from soft, revelatory passages to scenes of their shared past and the visceral punch of trauma and loss. She tracks the rising tension with Gillian’s Mexican American family and impeccably delivers the dialogue between the couple. Her boundless sensitivity to the longings of the heart completely transforms the story.
THIRD EYE by Felicia Day
Read by Sean Astin, Felicia Day, Neil Gaiman, LilyPichu, London Hughes, Wil Wheaton, and a Full Cast
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Audible, Inc. | 7 hrs.]
A full cast of talented narrators offers a rollicking rendition of Felicia Day’s audio-only fantasy. Laurel always knew she was the Chosen One, fated to destroy the evil lord Tybus and save the magical realm. However, her plan to vanquish him was an epic failure, and now she is a pariah blamed for Tybus’s tyrannical rule. Exuberant sound effects and music enhance the production. While the entire cast provides perfectly timed, lively performances, standouts include London Hughes as the sexy, sweetly oblivious fairy, Sybil; Sean Astin as the not-so-scary vampire, Frank; and Neil Gaiman as the addled, authorly narrator.
KNOCKOUT by Sarah MacLean
Read by Mary Jane Wells
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Harper Audio | 12 hrs.]
Mary Jane Wells’s performance sizzles in this explosive 1840s mystery-romance. A string of explosions is occurring in East London. Sultry Lady Imogen Loveless, who is passionate about explosives, uses her considerable wit and charms as she alternately butts heads and assists Detective Inspector Thomas Peck of the Metropolitan Police with his investigation. Wells’s silky voice shifts smoothly from narrative to internal dialogue to rapid-fire conversation, keeping pace with the action. The sparkling romantic scenes will have listeners glued to their earphones as Peck pursues Loveless.
SUDDENLY by Isabelle Autissier, Translated by Gretchen Schmid
Read by Carlotta Brentan
[Penguin Audio | 6 hrs.]
AudioFile Earphones Award
A young couple set off on a boating expedition with only themselves as crew. During an unexpected storm they find themselves marooned on an abandoned island. Soon they are forced to carry out acts of banal violence to survive. Narrator Carlotta Brentan’s skill is remarkable. She conveys compassion, fear, and mounting dread simultaneously. This audiobook doesn’t look away from agonizing events and crushing choices. Brentan’s performance fully embraces these heartbreaking moments layered with deep psychological reflection. The impact is dynamic and human.
THE MEN CAN'T BE SAVED by Ben Purkert
Read by Jonathan Todd Ross
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Recorded Books | 9.25 hrs.]
Jonathan Todd Ross’s performance captures the growing unreliability of this novel’s narrator, while maintaining the story’s humor and tragedy. This is no small feat because the audiobook requires this deft, complicated tone throughout its entire running time. After he’s let go, Seth, an up-and-coming copywriter, finds work in a coffee shop, discovering the numbing effects of drugs while attempting to find a path forward. The performance’s tone is crucial, especially when Seth faces a spiritual reckoning. Ross keeps finding the right notes.
THE SECRET HOURS by Mick Herron
Read by Gerard Doyle
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Recorded Books | 12.75 hrs.]
Gerard Doyle performs this stand-alone dispatch from Mick Herron’s cynical “spook street” world with such dry resignation that it is often laugh-out-loud funny, or would be if it weren’t so believable. This novel omits Slough House, but the hapless innocents, villains, and cogs in the system are similarly, wonderfully (or frighteningly) vintage Herron. Doyle’s vocal control is masterly, his pacing, range, and attention to detail a perfect match for Herron’s, which is highest praise.
THICKER THAN WATER: A Memoir by Kerry Washington
Read by Kerry Washington
[Hachette Audio | 9 hrs.]
This heartfelt memoir takes listeners from Kerry Washington’s childhood in the Bronx through her award-winning career thus far. The Emmy and SAG winner and Golden Globe nominee recounts her extraordinary life as a Black female actor and activist who aims to break down barriers, as well as a devoted daughter, mentor, director, and producer. Narrating with grace and style, Washington offers candid moments of joy and anguish — from her elation upon getting her first important roles as an actor to the sadness of the many painful truths she’s encountered and selfless decisions she’s made throughout her life.
THE SPIRIT BARES ITS TEETH by Andrew Joseph White
Read by Raphael Corkhill
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Listening Library | 10.75 hrs.]
Raphael Corkhill takes on this ghoulish version of Victorian London in which violet-eyed mediums commune with ghosts under the jurisdiction of the all-powerful male-led Royal Speaker Society. Silas Bell, who is transgender, would rather perform a hysterectomy on himself than be married off as a violet-eyed breeder. And he has studied enough of modern medicine to know how. Corkhill is an applaudable and respectful choice to portray Silas; he sounds masculine, as Silas sees himself, when telling his story, yet feminine, as the world sees him, when speaking aloud. He also excels at the anxious “inner rabbit” voice that personifies Silas’s fears and unnamed autism.
MAKING IT SO: A Memoir by Patrick Stewart
Read by Patrick Stewart
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Simon & Schuster Audio | 18.75 hrs.]
Yorkshireman Sir Patrick Stewart presents a revealing, clear, and beautifully written memoir, discussing the entirety of his journey from humble beginnings that included domestic violence to the heights of international film, stage, and television stardom. His performance is compassionate, sensitive, and powerful, with well-paced timing and notable precision exercised in every word. The audio effort is nuanced and evokes pathos in the listener. Stewart’s insights and observational skills are fully on display—he easily could have been a great full-time writer. This is an audiobook not to miss.
SWINGTIME FOR HITLER: From Goebbels's Jazzmen to Tokyo Rose to A.I., the Eternal Allure of Propaganda by Scott Simon
Read by Scott Simon
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Scribd | 2 hrs.]
Veteran NPR broadcaster Scott Simon explores the role of music in wartime propaganda in this entertaining, well-produced, and innovative audio program. Simon’s grandfatherly voice guides listeners through a bizarre episode in WWII history, adding context with his own reflections about working in war zones and his tenuous connection to Tokyo Rose. More akin to a documentary or podcast than a traditional audiobook, the program features a wealth of archival recordings. This remarkable audio manages to pack journalistic rigor, wit, poignancy, and originality into an economical two-hour listen.
This story appears through BookTrib’s partnership with AudioFile and contains material originating from the AudioFile website.
