Now, there’s been quite the debate amongst readers about whether or not audiobooks constitute reading, and far be it from me to try and settle that debate right now. What no one is debating, however, is the power of audio while being used to carry storytelling. In the past few years, more and more writers have been writing stories that are strictly audio, and we think these might just convert a few paper purists to pop in their headphones and give these a try.
The Original by Brandon Sanderson and Mary Robinette Kowal
In a world where the government can grant immortality, eradicate social inequality, and allow you to pursue your greatest passions in unending life, what’s the matter with paying the favor back with endless personal information and constant surveillance? Holly Winseed has been granted strength in both body and mind as a Provisional Replica. The only condition: Find and kill her Original, who is wanted for the murder of her husband. Upon successful completion of her mission, she will walk freely and assume the place of the Original Holly. Fail, and she is the one eliminated instead. As she follows the clues to her Original, she also discovers more about the world around her as well as the circumstances of her husband’s death.
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
Moriarty: The Great Chaos by Charles Kindinger
James Moriarty: The great rival of Sherlock Holmes. An intellectual of the ages. In the thrilling finale of this auditory saga, we follow him as his own genius threatens to be his– and the world’s– undoing. As his greatest discovery threatens to destroy the world, Moriarty’s rivalry with Sherlock Holmes reaches a heated peak as the two race around the world in a race to the finish where their own obsession and secrets could destroy everything.
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
The Summer Oath by Claire Friedman
Who doesn’t love a great rom-com based off of Shakespeare? Clueless, 10 Things I Hate About You, and now The Summer Oath, based off of Love’s Labour Lost. Livia Gaines, played by Maya Hawke, has really been striking out in every department. She’s been dumped by her boyfriend and is about to be dumped by her publisher if she can’t get this next book together, but every sentence she writes out is worse than the last. In a final act of desperation, she takes to total isolation to find her spark and save her career. Only problem being this “total isolation” is in a beach house in the Hamptons, so her friends totally want in. Fine, sure, but they all must swear to keep the summer free of romance. They’re all fine with that bargain, but Livia’s college crush, Ezra, shows up more shirtless than he ought to be and throws a wrench in every single one of her plans. Oh, and they might all get evicted before it’s all said and done. Nothing makes writing a best-seller easier than distracting summer romances and shady, undisclosed summer home secrets!
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
Just Kiss Already by Lily Chu
Authors tend to be more introverted creatures, more keen to do just about anything else other than go viral on the internet for their accidental candid and sour reaction to an adaptation of their book. Dr. Ben Song, who really only writes his bestselling cozy mystery series as a moonlight gig for his daytime career as a forensic Anthropologist, is no different. After being forced into the next big reaction gif, Dr. Song is forced to take advantage of the press attention and share the press with the teen starlet-turned-filmmaker Lauren Wei, who seems to soak up the limelight wherever she goes. He’s grouchy and she’s determined to make her persona shift work, and there’s no reason at all why the two of them should be around each other once the cameras shut off. So why can’t they seem to get enough of each other?
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
Speak Now by Ash Perez
What constitutes success, really? Is it becoming the youngest head chef ever at a famous fine-dining restaurant in a luxury hotel, with a sprawling career ahead of you that can take you anywhere you want to go within the culinary world? Or is it finding love? For Alex Perez, who is on the cusp of reaching a new height in her career, it’s a no-brainer. All she has to do now is execute the catering for the perfect fairytale wedding for a real estate investor so he’ll invest in the hotel. The bride-to-be is, however, a bit of a sticking point. She is Genevieve Jones, Alex’s former best friend and one who got away. They haven’t spoken in years, but now Alex is torn between taking fate in her hands and choosing to execute the most beautiful wedding in her career, or chasing her love for the bride and destroying everything she’s worked for in the process.
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
That Friend by Sabrina Brier
Everyone knows the internet is real life, right? That’s why, for Sabrina and her glamorous life advice podcast, things couldn’t be going better. She isn’t unlucky in love, about to be out of her apartment and on her rear, nor is she losing friends left and right as she chases social stardom. To her followers, she’s got all the answers. The best drama comes from word of mouth and the star-studded cast of this audio production even includes talent like Nicola Coughlan and Rachel Zegler. For those of us who wonder about the darker side of life behind the screen of our favorite content creators, That Friend pulls back the curtain in a hilarious, intelligent fashion.
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
#CrimeTime By Jeneva Rose and Drew Pyne
Non-stop vloggers have definitely had an… effect on how we view our private lives. Nadiya prefers to spend her time out of the limelight and penning the latest installment in her ongoing crime novel series. When her estranged half-brother Chase reappears in her life needing a place to crash as well as a launch pad for his growing TikTok career. Chase has taken to flooding the For You Page with every second of content he can squeeze out of his personal life, much to Nadiya’s chagrin. He finally hits his big break when he posts a recording of the break-in that’s happening to the upstairs neighbors and it goes wild. Ignoring the ethical implications of posting a violent crime to the internet, Chase has taken himself and his sister far past the deep end when they realize the attack was planned, and now they’re hot on the radars of underground criminals. Now they have two options: Figure out a way to clear their name, or become the next viral true crime trend.
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
Love at First Latte by Sarah Saville
Natalie Harrows is brilliant at falling in love, thank you very much. As a distinguished rom-com actress, she knows love like the back of her hand. That’s why her divorce from her A-list actor husband is such a shock to the system. Natalie knows that, sometimes, the best way to put out a fire is to run away from it entirely. Across the ocean. To become a barista in Edinburgh. It’s even better because the owner of the cafe she now works for, Nick, has sworn himself to a life of solitude. That means their chemistry can stay purely platonic as Natalie finds her footing in her new life. The deeper their connection grows, though, the more looks linger, and the more feelings become undeniable. Will their life continue to play out like the movies, or will they be forced to make the curtain call?
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
Please Remain Seated by Marcus Kliewer
This bingeable audiobook is made up of three brand new thrilling short stories. It will transport you from the nightmareish skies to a car crash deep in the woods to one last stop on a deep-sea expedition gone wrong. A young woman is left desperate after she misses her flight home. This leads to her booking a ticket on an airline she’s never heard of before without a single other passenger on board. A driver, deep in the Pacific Northwest, has hit something causing his car to spin off the road. When he goes to offer his help, rather than finding a deer or even a human, he finds a dangerous predator that wants to eat him for its’ next meal. Far away from any land, on a deep-sea expedition, a first-time diver joins a seasoned crew on a simple mission or at least it should have been. Things get a lot less easy when everything goes horribly wrong.
Listen to the audiobook now: Amazon
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