November 1, 2019 - December 2, 2019
This contest period's winners were Shelley H. from Aurora, CO and Carolyn W. from Fayetteville, NY, who each received an audiobook copy of Mary Higgins Clark's KISS THE GIRLS AND MAKE THEM CRY, read by January LaVoy, and Martin Cruz Smith's THE SIBERIAN DILEMMA: An Arkady Renko Novel, read by Jeremy Bobb.
Ricki
Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Narrator Name: Full Cast
Rating the Audio Performance
Listening to the full-cast audiobook of this was like listening to a serious version of This Is Spinal Tap. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
Easy to see the parallels with real-life rockers - would have liked a little more originality.
Angie
Troublemaker by Leah Remini
Narrator Name: Leah Remini
Rating the Audio Performance
It's her voice! Her voice makes her sound like a troublemaker even though she actually seems like she had a heart of gold. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I enjoyed learning about why she left Scientology and also learning a little about her career since the only thing I really knew her from was The King of Queens.
Richard N B
The End of the Affair by Graham Greene
Narrator Name: Colin Firth
Rating the Audio Performance
Colin Firth does a marvelous job voicing the audiobook. He’s a talented actor and breathes life into Bendrix’s sad tale of obsession and loss. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3.5 stars. Maurice Bendrix recalls the affair he had with the married Sarah Miles. Bendrix is a writer, and he uses his experience exploring characters’ motivations and emotions to look at the attraction, passion and ultimate love-hate relationship he had with Sarah. That push-pull of the love-hate relationship is at the center of this little novel. And this pretty much describes my relationship with this novel. On the one hand I love the way Greene writes, and the way he draws these characters. On the other hand, I really disliked all of them.
Andrea
The Next Best Thing by Jennifer Weiner
Narrator Name: Olivia Thirlby
Rating the Audio Performance
Terrific narration by Ms. Thirlby. Emotionally convincing with the fluctuations in the characters’ mindsets. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
Loved this book. Though it is difficult for me to relate to Hollywood writers, the author brought you into this world effectively. There are points where the secondary characters seemed to superficially developed but on the whole, loved the book.
Francisca
Angels at the Table by Debbie Macomber
Narrator Name: Kimberly Farr
Rating the Audio Performance
Kimberly Farr is a talented voice artist and she does a fine job reading the audiobook. She kept the action moving along and it was easy to follow. I was a little confused a few times about which angel was speaking, but it really didn’t matter all that much. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
This is a typical schmaltzy Christmas romance with more than a little humor thrown in. Some of the situations are downright ridiculous, and the angels, for all their good intentions, seem mostly inept. But it’s a fun read and everything turns out okay in the end.
Mary G Frisbie
This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger
Narrator Name: Scott Brick
Rating the Audio Performance
Wonderful narrator, you could almost hear the characters speaking to you, telling their story. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
Wonderful story of adventure during the depression. A historical novel of the trials faced by the country in 1932. I didn't want the story to end.
Shelley
Becoming by Michelle Obama
Narrator Name: Michelle Obama
Rating the Audio Performance
So powerful to hear Michelle read this memoir. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
What an amazing woman married to an amazing man. Wonderful book.
Toni
The Book of Lost and Found by Lucy Foley
Narrator Name: Fiona Hardingham
Rating the Audio Performance
The performance was delightful. I enjoyed every minute and hated having to stop. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
It is a wonderful story. It is very romantic, but has exciting secrets that are revealed.
Patricia
Shortest Way Home by Pete Buttigieg
Narrator Name: Pete Buttigieg
Rating the Audio Performance
Perfect. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I really wanted to learn more about Pete the person and the candidate. This book did just that! Good luck to Pete...
Linda
Host by Robin Cook
Narrator Name: George Guidall
Rating the Audio Performance
I honestly found this narration to be difficult. Mr. Guidall seemed to stop for breath almost randomly, and often. The words did not flow. That said, I think he did a really good job with Michael’s voice. I’d listen to more of Robin Cook’s books, though not with this narrator. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I had not read (or listened to) a Robin Cook book in years, and was excited to listen to this one. The story itself, though a little predictable, was good. Seemed improbable that three patients could fail to come round after general anesthesia in such a relatively short time without a major investigation. But I could put that aside to enjoy the intrigue! The dialogue between the two main characters, Michael and Lynn, seemed very forced at times, and the use of “sis” and “bro” happened too much; a constant reminder that Michael was black. It just didn’t seem necessary. The Russian thugs were very believable!
John
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Narrator Name: Nicholas Guy Smith
Rating the Audio Performance
An excellent, very skilled voice actor! Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
A Russian count is stuck in a hotel room.
Tessa
I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon
Narrator Name: Jane Collingwood and Sian Thomas
Rating the Audio Performance
The dual timelines are voiced by two talented artists - Collingwood voicing Anna’s chapters and Thomas taking on Anastasia’s storyline. They do a marvelous job. I particularly liked the youth and innocence of Thomas’s voice as the teen-aged Anastasia. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3.5 stars. I’ve been fascinated by the possibility that Anastasia Romanov survived the slaughter of her family during the Bolshevik Revolution since I was a little girl. I am not alone. Lawhon relies on the reader’s desire to believe Anna Anderson’s claim that she was the Grand Duchess Anastasia as she crafts this work. Using dual timelines and narrators, she carefully brings the reader to the fateful events of 1918 and a completely believable conclusion.
Leeza
The Witch Elm by Tana French
Narrator Name: Paul Nugent
Rating the Audio Performance
Paul Nugent breathed life into what had seemed an insurmountable print book. His performance made the difference between this being a plodding read and a great, attention grabbing one. He offered color and nuance that the text didn't, at least for me. His talent allowed me to barrel through this audiobook in three evenings of listening, not bad for a 20+ hour long book. He brought each character to life, gave them each a distinctive voice (for the most part), and made them as likeable as they could possibly be. He made the main character, Toby, sound a bit like Hugh Grant, and that worked well for him. My very favorite is his presentation of Uncle Hugo. Nugent did a remarkable job in lifting this story up and making it tangible. Go audio. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
If you can stick through the first several chapters, this turns into a fairly good story. I had a terrible time plowing through those early chapters in the print version. I think my biggest problem was that through a good part of those, the main character, Toby, is mostly telling the story from inside his head. The story starts with Toby Hennessy on top of the world, with a great job and a future. Then, he's attacked and his life changed forever. As Toby struggles to overcome his injuries, he visit his dying uncle at Ivy House. That's where the Witch Elm resides. Uncle Hugo, the elm tree, his cousins, Suzanna and Leon, they all hold secrets. Can Toby figure out what's going on? Is he part of the mystery? Will his actions destroy him?
Carolyn
The Leavers by Lisa Ko
Narrator Name: Emily Woo Zeller
Rating the Audio Performance
It did not feel as emotional as the context in the story. A mother and son are separated and we don’t know the reasons, but it is emotional! Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
A unique and likely realistic story!
Richard N B
In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson
Narrator Name: Bill Bryson
Rating the Audio Performance
2.5** Bryson narrates the audiobook himself. I found his delivery rather dry and somewhat slow-paced; he hardly sounded excited about any of the sites he visited. I wound up reading at least half the book in text format, and found I preferred the “voice in my head” to the author’s actual voice on the audio. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
Bryson turns his journalistic skills to an exploration of the only continent that is also a country, and an island. It’s a wonderful memoir/travel journal. If Australia weren’t already on my bucket list, it certainly would be now.
Sherri
One Summer by David Baldacci
Narrator Name: Ron McClarty and Orlagh Cassidy
Rating the Audio Performance
I liked the male/female voices and thought they carried the story along well. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I thought it had an interesting storyline (even though it involves hospitals, illness, death at a time I was going back and forth to see my husband who was in the hospital for 45 days of the last 3 months) about rebuilding family relationships after trauma. I am conflicted about the writing style of the author - little detail where I wanted more and a lot of detail in parts where I felt it was less necessary. It did keep my attention and I wanted to find out what would happen next. It had a little bit of everything - illness, grief, friendship, redeeming family relationships, forgiveness, city vs small town life, fights over child custody, work, teenage angst, and romance. Maybe trying to fit too much into one book?
Kimiko
Nowhere to Run by C. J. Box
Narrator Name: David Chandler
Rating the Audio Performance
I love hearing David Chandler as "Joe Pickett" in this series. He also does an excellent job of voicing the other characters, such as Nate Romanofski. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
As I'm reading/listening through the entire Joe Pickette series, I feel as if he's become an old friend and I am itching to hear each of his new adventures as a "lawman" (i.e., Game Warden) in Wyoming.
Linda
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
Narrator Name: Clare Corbett, India Fisher, and Louise Brealey
Rating the Audio Performance
The narration of these three ladies is excellent. Rachael comes over as a sad and very self-absorbed loser; Meghan likewise, sad and self absorbed, but also manipulative, and Anna is just unlikable from the start. The choice of English narrators (I’m assuming they are English, and if not, they did an amazing job with those accents) for a story set in and around London was the right one. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
It took a while to get really invested in this story; it seemed a little disjointed at the beginning, and it was difficult to find any character to like and identify with. However, after a couple of hours, I started to really enjoy, and even drove around the block a couple of times when listening in the car to find out what would happen next. I’d get really frustrated at times with the really bad decisions made by Rachael! And didn’t like any of the three main characters at all, or Scott or Tom. The only sympathetic character was the therapist! And the scene towards the end, where Anna is making tea for Tom and Rachael - well, that was kind of crazy. But for all the faults in the book - a riveting read, once I got into it!
Tessa
Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan
Narrator Name: Anne-Marie Piazza
Rating the Audio Performance
Anne-Marie Piazza does a find job narrating the audiobook. She has quite a few characters to handle and managed to give them distinct voices. Huckle and Reuben being Americans required some stretch in providing authentic accents, and Piazza did make them sound rather stereotypical. But it was still a fun listen. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
This is a fun chick-lit romance with some over-the-top coincidences and new-adult drama. Not much of a spoiler to say that it all works out with a fairytale HEA (happily ever after) ending. I didn’t realize it was a series when I picked it up, and I don’t really feel that I was missing all that much for not having begun with Book One. Have to say I really appreciated the recipes at the end – especially the hot chocolate!
Pat
The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant
Narrator Name: Linda Lavin
Rating the Audio Performance
Wonderful accent from Linda Lavin. She really makes a great story leap off the page! Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I am reading this book with a group of senior citizens who just love the idea of first person narrative talking to a favorite grandchild. Diamant captures the spirit of a grandmother revealing what it was like back in the olden days.
Debra
The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman
Narrator Name: Judith Light
Rating the Audio Performance
The richness of Judith Light’s voice lends depth to this already deep novel. Her unflinching presentation of difficult subject matter compelled me to continue and hope for more. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
The atrocities perpetrated during the Nazi regime are not sugar-coated in this story. Somehow, Alice Hoffman offers the readers hope in the face of unspeakable conditions. I was forced to suspend my beliefs and expectations based on this ordinary world, and embraced the mystic forces presented in her impeccable characters and plot. And, of course, love conquers all evils.
Dottie
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Narrator Name: David Pittu
Rating the Audio Performance
Very good. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
Interesting.
Kristen
Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
Narrator Name: Euan Morton
Rating the Audio Performance
As always, Mr. Morton does an impeccable job with a wide cast of characters. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I just can't believe it's over! I am gasping for the third book!
Lindy
Winter Cottage by Mary Ellen Taylor
Narrator Name: Kristen Watson Heintz
Rating the Audio Performance
Great job with the southern twang, but could have used a little more inflection of tone. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I really enjoyed the heritage journey among the family's mariner bloodline.
Julie
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Narrator Name: Bahni Turpin
Rating the Audio Performance
I have listened to several books, and this was far and away the best narration ever! This narrator should get an award! The different voices she used were wonderful, and I could perfectly picture everything that was happening, and also FEEL what the characters were feeling! I highly recommend the book as a whole, but I tell everyone they should definitely “read” it on audio. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
Excellent book that really explores the complexities of racial stereotypes, profiling, mixed relationships, etc., and all with such sensitivity! Terrific character development, too! And even though the subject matter was a little heavy, there was a lot of humor peppered in to counter it. I continue to think about this book and highly recommend it!
Mary Lou
The Guardians by John Grisham
Narrator Name: Michael Beck
Rating the Audio Performance
Michael Beck did an outstanding job on this book. John Grisham is such a fine storyteller, and Michael Beck feels like a master performer of the story. It was all so believable, the story unfolded unrushed, technical in parts, and Michael Beck's was the perfect voice for all of it. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
The Guardians is a non-profit law center dedicated to freeing innocent individuals who were wrongly incarcerated. The justice system failed and the Guardians take it one case at a time to right the wrongs. Attorney Cullen Post, also an ordained minister, is one of the underpaid and overworked, devoted and disciplined attorneys working at The Guardians. Quincy Miller is the innocent person wrongly convicted of the murder of Keith Russo, 23 years ago. I feel like I learned so much in listening to this book, and the storyline never wavered, even though it was teaching as it unfolded. I thoroughly enjoyed the character development, and found the plot line outstanding.
Tessa
Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai
Narrator Name: Doan Ly
Rating the Audio Performance
Doan Ly has a wonderful delivery for this book. Great pace and she’s believable as a young girl. I did read at least half the book in text format, however, because I was anxious to finish it. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
This middle-grade novel focusing on the immigrant experience is told entirely in verse, and I applaud Lai for how much she manages to convey in so few words. It is at once complex and straightforward, nuanced, and simple.
Jane
The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff
Narrator Name: Elizabeth Knoweldon, Henrietta Meier, and Candace Thaxton
Rating the Audio Performance
Loved the book. The narrators did a fantastic job of making the story interesting and bringing to life the people in the story. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I truly enjoy books related to that era and like to pick up events at that time, even if it is fictional.
Kelly
Me by Elton John
Narrator Name: Taron Egerton
Rating the Audio Performance
The narrator was excellent and it almost seemed that Elton, himself, was telling the story. I loved the film Rocketman and this autobiography filled in lots more of Elton’s life. He is an incredibly talented musician and a wonderful human being. I very much enjoyed this audiobook. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
The story filled in all the information about Elton’s life that was not available in the film Rocketman. I felt a personal connection to Elton while listening. I do have to admit I have always been a huge fan and was very happy when this book came out after the film.There were many times when I laughed out loud and others where compassion was felt. He is a remarkable person and has had a very interesting life.
Kelly
She Said by Jodi Cantor and Megan Twohey
Narrator Name: Jodi Cantor, Megan Twohey and Rebecca Lowman
Rating the Audio Performance
Excellent narration that was definitely presented the way the authors chose to present it in the book. It really held my attention. I couldn’t stop listening. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
I knew some of the stories behind the #MeToo movement, but this presented the facts and concerns in an organized and thoroughly researched format. I am grateful to Jodi and Megan for this book and their work to inform us how much this still impacts women. I had been glued to the TV during the Kavanaugh hearings and also appreciated how they described this from Dr. Ford’s perspective. It’s still tough to read and witness this.
Francisca
Us Against You by Fredrik Backman
Narrator Name: Marin Ireland
Rating the Audio Performance
Marin Ireland does an excellent job of narrating the audiobook. She has a lot of characters to handle: men, women, teens, elderly, officious jerks and tender hearts. She brings all of them to life and clearly differentiates them. Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3.5*** Backman returns to Beartown to explore what happens in the aftermath of the first book’s stunning events. I love the way that he writes these characters. He moves back and forth between characters’ points of view as he tells the story of the town. Yet the story is always moving forward, keeping me enthralled and interested. Best enjoyed if you’ve read BEARTOWN first. 
