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For the last few years I have absolutely loved audiobooks and I listen to them all the time. I have kept a subscription to Audible since I had the month free trial a few years ago, and I love choosing a new book to download each month or going through and adding some to my wishlist.
I do think half of the excitement for me is buying a new book – I’ve no idea why, but I seem to be a bit addicted. I did pause my membership a year or so ago because I have so many books to listen to, but I got it back again because there’s always new titles I want and for me, I think the price is worth it. Plus I like the offers that you can when you are subscribed, such as free audiobook series’, audiobook sales and the £1.99 daily deals which I love when they hit my inbox at 12pm each day! It helps me find new books as well as get books I’ve wanted, for a great price.
I am super fussy about the narrators, which is the only downfall for me. Some books sound like they would be brilliant but holy shit the narrator makes me want to poke my eyeballs out and so I have to leave it as a book to actually read instead. I still love reading an actual book but I just don’t get much time to read them – with an audiobook I can listen whilst doing the housework or cooking dinner and so I get through them much faster.
There has been a new update of the Audible app recently which allows you to group your books into collections which is brilliant. It means I can put them into groups such as fiction and non-fiction, Ava’s books and those I want to read next. It really helps when you’ve got loads of audiobooks and sometimes forget about the ones you haven’t yet read.
I thought I would share my thoughts on a few audiobooks that I have listened to recently in case you are looking for any new ones who thinking of trialling an Audible subscription. It’s funny how even out of the ones I really enjoy there are those that are so memorable even after a while and others that I can barely remember at all.
At the moment I’m listening to Olive by Emma Gannon (good narrator, really wanted to like this and it’s OK but a bit boring and repetitive and kind of wanting it to finish) and Brick Lane by Monica Ali and narrated by Meera Syal (brilliant narration, funny at times and really enjoying it so far).
This is the audiobook that I’ve just finished and I enjoyed it so much and couldn’t stop listening and finished it in a couple of days. The three narrators were all brilliant and I was just gripped so quickly. The reviews were reasonably mixed on Amazon but I really loved it. I did feel like it got slightly slower at the end but still great. There was also some criticism in the reviews of the male narrator’s voice and sounds as he spoke, but nope I thought he was great too and I listened to most of it with headphones so could pick up any sounds.
“You escaped. But your nightmare has just begun…
A windowless shack in the woods. Lena’s life and that of her two children follows the rules set by their captor, the father: meals, bathroom visits, study time are strictly scheduled and meticulously observed. He protects his family from the dangers lurking in the outside world and makes sure that his children will always have a mother to look after them.”
For once I didn’t actually guess what was going on or who the ‘bad guy’ was which was nice, although also frustrating because I wanted to be right! There were a few bits that didn’t totally get explained which is slightly annoying, as well as some of the choices the characters made I really questioned, but overall I loved it. The character of Hannah who has Aspergers is brilliant and so interesting and I particularly loved her parts of the story.
Dear Child is a psychological thriller that occurs in Germany (it has been translated from German) so there are ‘Herrs’ and ‘Fraus’ and German place names which I found really interesting. I’m glad I listened to the audiobook rather than reading the book as it works so well that way, with the perfect narrators.
Get it here: Dear Child
Meh. I hate being mean about a book and I’ve really loved some of Lucy Diamond’s books before (I so loved all of The Beach Cafe books) but my god this just wasn’t at all gripping or very engaging for me. Like I said I like the author and I like the narrator (Antonia Beamish) so I expected to enjoy this, but I was often confused with who was who (there’s still a character towards the end of the book – Judy – who I have no idea who she is or where she came from), and some of the time I was thinking “I’m way too young and cool to be listening to this book” (and I’m not at all young and cool). It just all felt a bit cheesy and blah. Not cheesy in a cute rom-com sort of way, but just a bit old fashioned and I felt like maybe I would prefer to snuggle up and read it when I’m old and grey!
I did, however, like how realistic some of the relationships were and the portrayal of those – the friendships, the romantic ones, and the parent-child relationships. Maybe I didn’t enjoy it so much because I seem to be preferring thriller-type books at the moment so this is a bit tame in comparison, and maybe it would be better to read the book rather than listening.
“It’s New Year’s Eve, and at a house party, three women bond over dodgy cocktails and fortune cookies, and vow to make this year their best one yet. But as the months unfold, Gemma, Saffron, and Caitlin find themselves tested to their limits. Under pressure, they are each forced to rethink their lives. But dare they take a chance on something new?”
If that hasn’t put you off, get it here: A Year of Taking Chances
I REALLY enjoyed this. I couldn’t stop listening. I was gripped from the start and just wanted everybody to stop talking to me so I could concentrate on this. I was a bit worried when I saw that the narrator was the author but she is brilliant at it. I really liked her different voices without them being too different and annoying. The only annoying thing is that you can hear her dry mouth too much, especially in the first third or so, and it’s not nice to hear her swallowing etc in headphones! It’s a shame because she’s a really great narrator and I’m bloody fussy with narrators of audiobooks as I said. It did improve as it went on though.
I did like the way that phone calls sounded a bit kind of ‘down the line’. I’ve heard this in other audiobooks recently and while it does take a bit getting used to I do like it and think it adds something like you are listening to a drama or something.
I didn’t love the ending but I think it was probably the right one for the book. I think it just felt a bit anticlimactic after everything that had happened before.
“When a man is found on a Norfolk beach, drifting in and out of consciousness, with no identification and unable to speak, interest in him is sparked immediately. From the hospital staff who find themselves inexplicably drawn to him, to international medical experts who are baffled by him, to the national press who call him Mr Nobody – everyone wants answers. “
I stayed up far too late listening to this and after it was finished I decided I was now going to listen to Catherine’s first book which I’d had for ages and hadn’t got round to listening to.
Update: I enjoyed her first book too (Something in the Water) but nowhere near as much as the second; Mr Nobody. It didn’t particularly stand out to me and it took me a couple of tries to get into it; I only listened to it a few months ago and yet I can remember very little of it already.
Get them here: Something in the Water // Mr Nobody
I didn’t love this unfortunately and had to force myself to finish it. The narrator (Tania Rodrigues) was great and I liked the idea of the story and how things happened and what I could learn from it, but it was just quite boring. I really enjoyed the start of it with Isma and her relationship with Eamonn and I couldn’t stop listening at that point but it just felt too slow after that and not a lot really happens, but then the ending felt rushed.
“Isma is free. After years spent raising her twin siblings in the wake of their mother’s death, she is finally studying in America, resuming a dream long deferred. But she can’t stop worrying about Aneeka, her beautiful, headstrong sister back in London – or their brother, Parvaiz, who’s disappeared in pursuit of his own dream: to prove himself to the dark legacy of the jihadist father he never knew.
Then Eamonn enters the sisters’ lives. Handsome and privileged, he inhabits a London worlds away from theirs. As the son of a powerful British Muslim politician, Eamonn has his own birthright to live up to – or defy. Is he to be a chance at love? The means of Parvaiz’s salvation?”
I think I would possibly get more from the book compared to the audiobook. There are loads of great reviews for the book, but unfortunately, it is the negative ones I tend to agree with and if I had to describe it in one word it would be ‘underwhelmed’.
Get the audiobook here: Home Fire
“Imogen’s husband is a bad man. His ex-wife and his new mistress might have different perspectives, but Imogen thinks she knows the truth. And now he’s given her an ultimatum: get out of the family home in the next fortnight or I’ll fight you for custody of our son.
In a moment of madness, Imogen does something unthinkable: she locks her husband in the cellar. Now she’s in control. But how far will she go to protect her son and punish her husband? And what will happen when his ex and his girlfriend get tangled up in her plans?”
I chose this psychological thriller after really loving Safe House by the same author and listening to the whole thing very quickly. I found Sticks and Stones really enjoyable too and wanted to keep listening. I was hoping for the same narrator because I really like her, but this one was right for this book and I love her voice. Her accents were good and natural I thought too, which can sometimes let a narration down.
Honestly, sometimes I think I can love a book just because of the narrator and how much I enjoy listening to them talk! But I enjoyed the story a lot too and especially the women and their relationship that grows as the book goes on. You do need to suspend disbelief a little and it was slightly strange knowing that the husband was going to die from the beginning (not a spoiler – the book starts with his funeral!), but it still had me gripped and I hope the author has another book out soon.
Find it here: Sticks and Stones
I have so many more audiobooks that I want to talk about and I’m always listening to new ones, so I will share some more soon.
Next up I have My Name is Why, The Rabbit Girls and The Beekeeper of Aleppo to listen to after I’ve finished the couple I’m on now. Plus loads (and loads) more, but those are three that I’ve had for ages and not listened to yet.
Audible currently have a brilliant offer on where you can get three months for just 99p, which means that you get one audiobook for each of the three months, but because you’re subscribed it also gives you access to the daily deals which are usually £1.99, plus loads of great free Audible original podcasts and 241 sales.
You do need to unsubscribe from Audible if you want to, otherwise, you’ll have to pay £7.99 a month after the 3 months are up, but it’s really easy to unsubscribe or pause your subscription and you still keep your books. You can also get a 30-day free trial if you prefer, so you get one book free before you pay for the next month.
As you can probably tell I love audiobooks rather a lot and get through them much faster than I do an actual book. It makes doing housework and boring jobs so much more enjoyable and I love finding a book and author, and narrator that I enjoy.
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Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
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