|
|
"This voice was said to turn arias into spells, hymns into love songs, simple requests into commands, my suitors driven to despair in every country I visited, but perhaps especially here." ~ from Alexander Chee's The Queen of the Night
|
|
| Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase; narrated by Nathalie Buscombe, Katie Scarfe, and Cassandra CampbellAdult Fiction. In the 1960s, the Alton family loved their time at their Cornwall manor, nicknamed Black Rabbit Hall by locals, until a tragedy changed everything. Thirty years later, Lorna Dunaway comes upon it as a possible venue for her upcoming wedding. And while it is literally falling apart, there's something about it that tugs at her memories from childhood, and she's determined not only to find out its secrets, but to have her wedding there. Fans of Gothic fiction will enjoy this compelling tale, in which the audiobook's three narrators "maximize the mystery and suspense swirling around" the house (AudioFile). |
|
| The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee; narrated by Lisa FlanaganAdult Fiction. With her distinctive "falcon" soprano, Lilliet Berne is the uncontested star of the 19th-century Paris Opera. Her dream of originating a leading role seems to come true when she's presented with a libretto -- but it alludes to details of her past that could ruin her social standing. Who could have betrayed these secrets? As she tries to solve the mystery, she reflects on her life, beginning with her childhood on the Minnesota prairie. As lush and dramatic as the theatrical world it depicts, this sweeping novel, vividly narrated by classically trained opera singer Lisa Flanagan, brings Belle Époque France to richly detailed life. |
|
|
When Breath Becomes Air
by Paul Kalanithi; narrated by Sunil Malhotra & Cassandra Campbell
An Ivy League-trained, award-winning young neurosurgeon describes how, after receiving a terminal diagnosis with lung cancer, he explored the dynamics of his roles as a patient and care provider, the philosophical conundrums about a meaningful life and how he wanted to spend his final days.
|
|
| Flight of Dreams by Ariel Lawhon; narrated by John LeeAdult Fiction. On May 3, 1937, a total of 97 individuals board the D-LZ129 Hindenburg for what will prove to be the airship's final, fatal flight. Covering the embarkation and three-day voyage, this suspenseful novel unfolds from the perspective of five characters with a wide range of backgrounds. All five have secrets, but whose will bring down the zeppelin? Drawing on extensive research, Flight of Dreams provides an absorbing fictionalized account, enhanced by narrator John Lee's emulation of the "gravity of a radio announcer in pre-World War II Europe" (Library Journal). |
|
| Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys; narrated by Jorjeana Marie; Will Damron; Cassandra Morris; Michael CrouchTeen Fiction. When the Wilhelm Gustloff sank in 1945, over 9,000 of its passengers lost their lives. Yet before the voyage, the doomed ship offered a last chance of escape for thousands of Eastern European refugees fleeing from the brutality of World War II. Salt to the Sea follows four passengers, beginning in the days before the ship's departure: Joana, a guilt-ridden Lithuanian nurse; Emilia, a pregnant Polish teen; Florian, a secretive Prussian artist; and Alfred, a young Nazi soldier. The narrators "excel in capturing the tone of their characters" (Booklist) in this gorgeously portrayed tale of a deadly shipwreck. |
|
|
The Girl in the Red Coat : a novel
by Kate Hamer;narrated by Antonia Bearnish
When her daughter Carmel disappears during an outdoor festival, Beth, despite being told by authorities she may be gone for good, embarks on a mission to find her.
|
|
|
The Life We Bury
by Allen Eskens; narrated by Zach Villa.
"College student Joe Talbert has the modest goal of completing a writing assignment for an English class. His task is to interview a stranger and write a brief biography of the person. With deadlines looming, Joe heads to a nearby nursing home to find a willing subject. There he meets Carl Iverson, and soon nothing in Joe's life is ever the same. Iverson is a dying Vietnam veteran--and a convicted murderer. With only a few months to live, he has been medically paroled to a nursing home, after spending thirty years in prison for the crimes of rape and murder. As Joe writes about Carl's life, especially Carl's valor in Vietnam, he cannot reconcile the heroism of the soldier with the despicable acts of the convict. Joe, along with his skeptical female neighbor, throws himself into uncovering the truth, but he is hamstrung in his efforts by having to deal with his dangerously dysfunctional mother, the guilt of leaving his autistic brother vulnerable, and a haunting childhood memory. Thread by thread, Joe unravels the tapestry of Carl's conviction. But by the time Joe discovers the truth, it is too late to escape the fallout."
|
|
|
The Summer Before the War : a novel
by Helen Simonson; narrated by Fiona Hardingham
Arriving in the 1914 village of Rye, England, Beatrice Nash, a young woman of good family, becomes a first female teacher of Latin at the local school and falls in love with her sponsor's nephew. By the best-selling author of Major Pettigrew's Last Stand.
|
|
| The Nest: A Novel by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney; narrated by Mia BarronAdult Fiction. The four Plumb siblings have been looking forward to the youngest's 40th birthday, when they are all finally allowed to receive funds from the trust their father set aside for them. Having spent the money in their heads, they are devastated to learn that Leo, the oldest brother, has already depleted the fund while cleaning up one of his more disastrous messes. Narrator Mia Barron's expert handling of the patchwork of characters' voices "easily hooks the reader" (Booklist), while the well-depicted Manhattan setting provides a fitting background for this novel about sibling dynamics. |
|
Contact your librarian for more great audio books!
|
|
|
|
|
|