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July 1, 2020 - August 3, 2020

This contest period's winner was Kris S. from Denver, CO, who received an audiobook copy of NEAR DARK by Brad Thor, read by Armand Schultz, and THE BOOK OF LOST NAMES by Kristin Harmel, read by Madeleine Mabyell.

Donna
After the End by Clare Mackintosh
Narrator Name: Louise Brealey, Matt Reeves and Nathalie Armin

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Well done. Easy to listen to the voices.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Excellent story albeit painful. Told from two different paths.

Richard N B
Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King
Narrator Name: Will Patton

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Will Patton does a superb job reading the audiobook. He sets a good pace and he’s a marvel interpreting the many characters. I particularly liked how he voiced Holly and Jerome.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Book Number 1 in the Bill Hodges trilogy, featuring retired Detective Bill Hodges in an unnamed midwestern city. King is a masterful writer and he doesn’t disappoint in this thriller/police procedural. The reader always knows who the perpetrator is, but that doesn’t lessen the suspense as Hodges and his assistants race the clock to solve the puzzle.

John
The Oracle by Clive Cussler
Narrator Name: Scott Brick

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Mr. Brick gives a very solid performance!
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Vandals fight Byzantines as if their lives depended on it!

Allison
In Five Years by Rebecca Serle
Narrator Name: Megan Hilty

Rating the Audio Performance
5
I loved this story and audio performance.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Imagine having a premonition five years into the future and your life is completely different - living somewhere you never thought you'd live and being married to someone you never met! This happened to Danielle "Dannie" Cohan and it's turned her life upside down. Currently, she is engaged to her fiancé David and the two live in Midtown Manhattan. Dannie is an star attorney, interviewing for one of the most influential law firms in the world, and her fiance David works in the financial services industry. After her premonition, Dannie reflects on her future, but ultimately moves on. Fast forward four and a half years later, Dannie comes face to face with the man in her dream.

Gretchen
The Last Flight by Julie Clark
Narrator Name: Khristine Hvam and Lauren Fortgang

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Excellent (based on the few audio books that I have listened to).
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
After listening to the podcast I knew that I needed to get the book immediately. I decided to do the audiobook as I am still new to listening rather than reading books. This was a perfect choice. Wonderful story! The author did a great job on her first book.

Cherry
Walk the Wire by David Baldacci
Narrator Name: Kyf Brewer and Orlagh Cassidy

Rating the Audio Performance
4
If you need to hear distinct differences between characters, the reader's various voices have little difference. However, if like me, you follow the story it's not an issue. I always enjoy the Audible version of Baldacci books. They are fast-paced and I've been known to pass an exit or sit in my car until I reach a stopping point.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Number Six in the Amos Decker series continues to deepen our knowledge of Amos and Alex, which in turn, allows more detailed understanding of their characters and reactions to various storylines in the book. In WALK THE WIRE, the pair find themselves in London, ND investigating the death of a young woman dumped in the country after being autopsied. Amos and Alex quickly find nothing is as it seems in London, a booming fracking town, where everyone seems to have a secret to hide. I finished the book with sadness because I have to wait for another episode in the life of Amos Decker.

Betty
Masked Prey by John Sandford
Narrator Name: Richard Ferrone

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Love to listen to the narrator. He does a great job.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Have read all his books. This is better than his last masked book, but not his best. I will probably read all his books because I feel like I know the characters.

Tessa
The Vintage Caper by Peter Mayle
Narrator Name: Erik Davies

Rating the Audio Performance
4
Erik Davies does a fine job reading the audiobook. He sets a good pace and has the skill to differentiate the characters. I loved his interpretation of Reboul.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
This is book #1 in the Sam Levitt series. Mayle has given the reader a crime caper with a plausible (if fantastic) plot, a wonderful cast of characters, and mouth-watering descriptions of food and wine. Mayle’s love of France shines through; I could practically smell the aromas from a restaurant’s kitchen and feel the sun on my face. And I love that twisty ending! A fast, fun, delicious read.

Carole
Miracle Creek by Angie Kim
Narrator Name: Jennifer Lim

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Ms. Lim did a great job. In general, I don't like when narrators do typical Asian voices so I was a little put off by it. What I found interesting is that she talked in her normal voice when the characters were conversing with each other in Korean and when they talked with others in English, she used the Asian accent. It was a very interesting technique. Other than that, I enjoyed her performance.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
When I read the synopsis, I wasn't sure this book was for me, but I admit I just skimmed the synopsis. I fully read the book because it was on many lists of books that should be read and I was really glad I did. What a great story and I enjoyed learning about HBOT and its various uses. I loved the ending, especially how it all worked out for Young and Teresa in the end. I look forward to more books by this author.

Cathy
When We Meet Again by Kristin Harmel
Narrator Name: Justine Eyre

Rating the Audio Performance
5
The story and the reading keep me so involved that I don't move onto chores I needed to do, but I couldn't listen at the same time. I like to listen when I am exercising or sewing.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
The premise of the story is a woman meets a German POW in Florida. I find it very interesting because we had a local man who was a POW in Michigan who chose to stay here. My grandfather managed a canning plant in NY state that was staffed by German POWs.

Lynda
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Narrator Name: Cassandra Campbell

Rating the Audio Performance
5
The soft spoken style of the narrator was a beautiful accompaniment to this amazing story. There was a dramatic change and noticeable distinction among the different character voices. When Kya spoke, you could picture a southern little girl.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
The poetic prose and author's style made this book come alive and was one of the main reasons it stayed at number one on the NY Times Best Seller's list.

Lynda
The Friends We Keep by Jane Green
Narrator Name: Jane Green

Rating the Audio Performance
4
Listening to Jane Green narrate her own book made listening to the story even better. She speaks with an amazing amount of emotion, elongating pronunciations with her elegant English Accent.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Amazing character development is what drew me into this story of lifelong friendship. All three main characters overcome internal struggles and, with a few twists and turns, discover what is really important in life.

kris
The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
Narrator Name: Julia Whelan

Rating the Audio Performance
5
The audio performance on this book was very good, easy to listen to read with passion.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
I love stories about strong independent women and I also love historical fiction - this book provided both! I also love books and stories about books or bookshops.

Faye
A Death in Vienna by Daniel Silva
Narrator Name: John Lee

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Very relaxing narration and good cadences of different characters. The narration was fluent so it's clear the narrator is familiar with this series. The diction is very clear. Voice is male and relatively soft-spoken which is good for me. It's easily audible. I could listen to Mr. Lee's narration all the time. He reads consistently regardless of the acuity in the conversation. This goes well with the prosaic writing of this author. While he is not as much of a performer as Jim Dale, he is easy on the ears and I would choose other books he is narrating to hear his audio narrations. There is no perceptible accent in the performance beyond American. He does get the Israeli names spoken with correct accent. No errors in pronunciation.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Fascinating story portraying the decades of damage Holocaust survivors endure and uses that angle to tell an intriguing story of espionage in Silva's typical fashion. The protagonist is still Gabriel Allon at his spy game best.

Sarah
His & Hers by Alice Feeney
Narrator Name: Richard Armitage and Stephanie Racine

Rating the Audio Performance
5
I tried to listen at 2.0 speed but Richard is hard to understand at that speed. 1.5 did well.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Alice Feeney has done it again. I'm such a fan of her ability to totally shock me. This was very suspenseful. There are two sides to every story. This one has his (Jack) and hers (Anna). Also, a murder that connects them. His- Detective, was with the victim the night she was killed and knew her in the past. Her- reporter, ex of Jack, used to be best friends with the victim. We also get to read (hear) from the killer. The who shocked me so much. I love a good twist like that! The past of Anna and her group of friends is so horrible and we get to see it play out little by little.

Cheryl
The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate
Narrator Name: Lisa Wingate, Sophie Amoss, Sullivan Jones, Robin Miles, Bahni Turpin, Lisa Flanagan and Dominic Hoffman

Rating the Audio Performance
5
I loved all of the different voices. Each character's voice reflected their personality perfectly.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Brilliantly written for our current times.

Nicolette
The Outsider by Stephen King
Narrator Name: Will Patton

Rating the Audio Performance
5
I absolutely love Patton’s narration of King books. He proved to me just how good an audiobook can be with the MR. MERCEDES trilogy, and THE OUTSIDER was right in line with the rest.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
This story tows the line of creepy but is not so much that it becomes unenjoyable. I’m a recent fan of the books involving Holly Gibney and have found King’s balance of this world and the next very well put together.

Anna Servati
The Room on Rue Amelie by Kristin Harmel
Narrator Name: Madeleine Maby and Jacques Roy

Rating the Audio Performance
3
The narrators were good but I liked the male better.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3
I love historical fiction but this book to me seemed more of a romance novel. It was also a little too tidy as the main character falls in love at first glance not once but twice. I enjoy listening to it but not as much as other historical fiction books.

Cherie
The Secret Letter by Deborah Rix
Narrator Name: Jacqueline King

Rating the Audio Performance
5
The narrator was terrific, played multiple roles with different accents.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Very engaging story to show perspective of WWII through the eyes of a British girl and German girl through the war years. The English girl shows what women did during the war in non-combat roles.

Tessa
Summer Hours at the Robbers Library by Sue Halpern
Narrator Name: Josh Bloomberg, Dara Rosenberg and Allyson Ryan

Rating the Audio Performance
5
The audiobook is performed by Josh Bloomberg, Dara Rosenberg, and Allyson Ryan, each voicing one of the central characters. Using this trio of talented voice artists was very effective for the changing viewpoints in narration. Job well done!
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
3.5 stars. Three people running from their past (or present) find the help they need at the library. The novel is told in alternating view points as each of the three central characters reveals his or her back story and experiences in current time. The first time there was a “flashback” it caught me off guard, but I quickly grew used to the style. Halpern gives us a wonderful cast of supporting characters as well. There are moments of humor to balance the heartache and disasters. I’d love a sequel to find out how they cope in the future.

Kathy
The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth
Narrator Name: Barrie Kreinik

Rating the Audio Performance
5
The reader helped me remain uncertain during the entire book. Sometimes I loathed said mother-in-law, sometimes I felt sorry for her and sometimes I loved her. A well-read book can add so much to character development and I feel that was the case with this one. I know I would not have gotten as much from the book if I had read it myself.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Being a mother-in-law, this book was very relatable. Each character has a different idea of what is going on in their lives depending on their own experiences (and other people's lives as well). I remember going through the "my mother-in-law doesn't like me" phase as well as looking to her to be the mother I did not have. It seem everyone thinks they are correct in judging other people and knowing what is best for others.

Lindy
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
Narrator Name: Sean Crisden and Eisa Davis

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Sultry, electric narration of several characters, young and old. Georgia twang, prison dialect. Trauma, passion and elderly squabble included. Great pace, but I usually speed up to 1.25 and was still quite enjoyable. Well done!
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Interesting look into the lives of a young couple that faced an ordeal head on the best they could. Tainted, oppressed and heroic. Helps us look at pride verses self-awareness.

Laura
Two Lila Bennetts by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke
Narrator Name: Karissa Vacker

Rating the Audio Performance
4
The book was well narrated.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3
It was an okay book. Probably a 3-1/2 stars.

Helen
Two Truths and a Lie by Meg Mitchell Moore
Narrator Name: Courtney Patterson

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Excellent!
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
A great read to listen by the pool or beach.

Carol
Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout
Narrator Name: Kimberly Farr

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Listening to the voice of Olive, I really could picture her and felt as if I really wanted to meet her.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Really enjoyed the storyline, especially because I am in my 70s and could identify with so much about Olive. Being a teacher, I could understand her personality but was delighted to see the changes she made, especially after the first book. The ending had so much to say to me and should to everyone. I have visited Maine many times when my son and family were living there. Their motto, "Life as it Aught to Be", and this books fits in with their motto.

Cheryl
Her Last Flight by Beatriz Williams
Narrator Name: Cassandra Campbell

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Very pleasant voices. I enjoyed listening.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
I loved this story. The twists at the end were wonderful.

Christy
The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi
Narrator Name: Sneha Mathan

Rating the Audio Performance
5
What a beautiful narration. Her lovely voice brought me to India. When I read books about other cultures I often don’t know the correct pronunciation of many words and it was wonderful to hear every word as they should be pronounced. I only wish the PDF with the glossary had been available to further the experience. A narrator really makes a difference in how you enjoy a book and I would highly recommend her.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
I really enjoyed this book. Up to the end I was guessing how things could be resolved. The author’s descriptions were so vivid and colorful, the characters were well formed and I could see the “movie” playing out in my mind.

Pat
On the Horizon by Lois Lowry
Narrator Name: Lois Lowry

Rating the Audio Performance
5
As the author of the book she shares her story like no one else can.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Lois takes an old photo from her family album and shares with us the significance of the ship in the background. Lois grew up in Hawaii in the early 1940s and discovers as she looks at a photo of her family at the beach in Hawaii that there in the background of this beach scene is the USS Arizona. Told with a quiet reverence for what is about to transpire, she shares her personal reflection on the events that will follow.

Dianne
Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
Narrator Name: Linda Stephens

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Beautiful presentation of the story - you felt like you were there.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Listening to the book that gave so many details compared to the movie. So many more things were in the book than the movie. Did you know Scarlett had three children? Although it is over 49 hours, it is well worth your time to enjoy this classic.

Francisca
I Always Loved You by Robin Oliveira
Narrator Name: Mozhan Marnò

Rating the Audio Performance
4
Mozhan Marnò does a stellar job performing the audio version. She sets a good pace and her facility with French names and phrases helped me feel I was in Paris.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3
The subtitle – A Story of Mary Cassatt and Edgar Degas – is all the synopsis anyone needs. This immediately drew my attention as I love art, the Impressionists in particular, and I love reading historical fiction about artists. I had previously been content to merely gaze with astonishment and admiration at the works of art they created. But while I appreciate now having learned all the details of their complicated relationships, and while these period elements added color to the story, the book failed to really move me.

Judy
Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker
Narrator Name: Sean Pratt

Rating the Audio Performance
5
The narrator draws you into the story.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
The book alternates between the family story and the history of research into schizophrenia.

Jill
A Cup of Dust by Susie Finkbeiner
Narrator Name: Tavia Gilbert

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Tavia Gilbert’s narration of this book is so well done.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
A coming-of-age story that takes place during Oklahoma’s Dust Bowl in 1935. Pearl Spence is a precocious ten-year-old growing up in a small town In Oklahoma. It tells of the struggles during the depression in the Dust Bowl and hardships they face, but also, the hope they find in each other to get through. I finished this book and immediately listened to Book 2 and 3 in the series.

Peggy
How Not to Die Alone by Richard Roper
Narrator Name: Simon Vance

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Excellent book, excellent reader. The book itself is a wonderful insight into many aspects of our lives: fractured relationships, lack of friends, unhealthy immersion into hobbies that take over our lives and our living space. Since the book takes place in and around London, just reading the book would not do it justice. Vance voices all the characters so well that you can see each one in your mind as the story moves along; after awhile you know who is talking without being told by the author. Would highly recommend it to anyone looking to get out of a reading slump or who would like something light and funny. You will find yourself laughing out loud in parts.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Often written-about subject matter but done in such a way that the characters will be long remembered long after you finish the book.

Stephanie
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
Narrator Name: Tom Hanks

Rating the Audio Performance
4
Tom Hanks voice is so familiar that it took me a bit to separate Tom from the narrative.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
The story is so well told but it is one that needs to appreciated slowly. It isn’t a page-turner. It is more deliberate in the telling.

Peggy
All Adults Here by Emma Straub
Narrator Name: Emily Rankin

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Beautifully done. Easy listening but hated to have it end. Sequel, maybe?
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Hits all the social issues, single woman pregnancy, homosexuality, transgender, etc. Well done, thought-provoking and something for every generation; young adults, seniors and everything in between.

Tessa B C
Uncommon Criminals by Ally Carter
Narrator Name: Angela Dawe

Rating the Audio Performance
3
Angela Dawe does a fine job performing the audio. She sets a good pace and clearly differentiates the many characters. I love how she voices Simon, who is suffering from a cold!
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3
2.5 stars. Katarina Bishop is back with her crew of teen-aged thieves. This time they are after the Cleopatra emerald, despite legend that it carries a curse. There are a lot of twists and turns in this plot, and more than one intricate theft taking place. Not to mention cons and contra-cons. It's a fast read, and I like a lead female who is smart, determined and generally self-sufficient. But I didn't think it was as good as the first book, HEIST SOCIETY. Still, I see the appeal for the target YA audience.

Michele
Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarity
Narrator Name: Caroline Lee

Rating the Audio Performance
2
Sorry - did not enjoy the fake accents and screechy women's voices.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3
This is my third Moriarity read and they have all been centered around spoiled rich people. I enjoyed the story concept but did not really like any of the characters enough to care about their problems.

Kimiko
Extreme Prety by John Sandford
Narrator Name: Richard Ferrone

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Very well done.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Just discovered this series. Reading/listening all out of order (as I can get my hands on these) but thoroughly enjoying everything. I do like the Lucas Davenport character.

Susan
Redemption Point by Candice Fox
Narrator Name: Euan Morton

Rating the Audio Performance
4
He does a fine job.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Very rambling but an okay story.

Lin
The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson
Narrator Name: John Lee

Rating the Audio Performance
5
Easy listening. Managed the various voices and intensity of the characters. Made me laugh out loud a few times.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
Erik Larson is point on with this one. I learned so much more about World War II from a totally different perspective. I was engaged throughout the entire book and enjoyed the little behind the scenes tidbits that only Larson can sprinkle in and make work.

Francisca
Design For Murder by Carolyn G. Hart
Narrator Name: Kate Reading

Rating the Audio Performance
4
Kate Reading does a marvelous job reading the audiobook. She’s a talented voice artist and was able to differentiate the many characters. For a short while I was listening at double speed and her diction was still clear and understandable.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
3
Book # 2 in the Death on Demand series, featuring mystery bookstore owner Annie Laurance. Hart writes a fast-paced cozy mystery with a great central cast of characters and a wonderful premise. I love the mystery bookstore, though I did get a little irritated by how often an author/book was mentioned. I very much liked the Mystery Night puzzle going on at the same time that a real murder was being investigated.

Dorothy
The Possible World by Liese O'Halloran Schwarz
Narrator Name: Tandy Cronyn, Morgan Hallett and John Kroft

Rating the Audio Performance
5
The narrators are spot-on in the reading of THE POSSIBLE WORLD.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
5
A fascinating story of three characters whose lives intertwine.

Michelle
A Hundred Suns by Karin Tanabe
Narrator Name: Angela Dawe and Emily Ellet

Rating the Audio Performance
4
Two women, two points of view. Both crisp and true to the character. Loved the nuance of the accents.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Historical fiction that is compelling story of colonial politics set in French Indochina in the 1930s. It's an unusual plot in an Asian setting. I was transported to a place I didn't know much about (until the Vietnam War) and I was able to learn and broaden my horizons. Love these accounts of colonialism.

Ricki
Ghost by Jason Reynolds
Narrator Name: Guy Lockard

Rating the Audio Performance
4
Totally believable as a 7th-grade boy, but read rather fast.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
Fun read with realistic characters.

Margo
Becoming by Michelle Obama
Narrator Name: Michelle Obama

Rating the Audio Performance
4
I love listening to audiobooks. I had a chance to listen to this one, and I really enjoyed her story. She is very open about her life and seems very honest. I loved it.
Rating the Book's Content/Storyline
4
A pretty good storyline that kept my interest.