Download Best Sellers Audiobooks in Fiction, Literary

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Lie in Wait

Author: G. J. Minett

Narrator: Joe Jameson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-23-17

Publisher: Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 20 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

A dark, addictive thriller, ingeniously plotted with a twist that will make you gasp.

A man is dead. A woman is missing. And the police have already found their prime suspect....

Owen Hall drives into a petrol station to let his passenger use the facilities. She never comes back - and what's more, it seems she never even made it inside. When Owen raises a fuss, the police are called - and soon identify Owen himself as a possible culprit, not least because they already have him in the frame for another more sinister crime. Owen's always been a little different, and before long others in the community are baying for his blood. But this is a case where nothing is as it seems - least of all Owen Hall....

Members Reviews:

LIE IN WAIT..

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I honestly don't know if I would. The narrator was awesome, just great, however, the storyline was choppy, the characters were hard to keep up with. Except OWEN! The author did one heck of a job getting into his mind.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Unfortunately not, I found myself thinking about other things constantly while listening to this book. This is through no fault of the narrator, he did a wonderful job with the main character, and that, my friend wasn't easy!

Have you listened to any of Joe Jamesons other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, but I will after this book.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

OWEN, I AM? OWEN??? WILLIE???

Any additional comments?

HAS THE POTENTIAL FOR BEING A FIVE STAR (in my opinion.) JUST NEEDS CLARIFICATION OF CHARACTERS, FEWER CHAPTERS, AND LESS CHOPPY.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Ghachar Ghochar

Author: Srinath Perur - translation, Vivek Shanbhag

Narrator: Neil Shah

Format: Unabridged

Length: 2 hrs and 41 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-07-17

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 34 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

Bangalore, present day. A young man's close-knit family is nearly destitute when his uncle founds a successful spice company, changing their fortunes overnight. As they move from a cramped, ant-infested shack to a larger house and try to adjust to a new way of life, allegiances realign; marriages are arranged and begin to falter; and conflict brews ominously in the background. Things become "ghachar ghochar" - a nonsense phrase uttered by one of the characters that comes to mean something tangled beyond repair, a knot that can't be untied.

Elegantly written and punctuated by moments of unexpected warmth and humor, Ghachar Ghochar is a quietly enthralling, deeply unsettling novel about the shifting meanings - and consequences - of financial gain in contemporary India.

Members Reviews:

Short, with Room for Development

Ghachar Ghochar is a very short and darkly comic novel that explores the problems a family encounters when making the socioeconomic leap from scraping by to being well off. The unnamed narrator lives in a small house in Bangalore with his parents, sister, and uncle. When his father loses his job, he decides to risk it all and start his own spice company with his younger brother. They purchase large amounts of spices wholesale and repackage them in smaller, more convenient packets. The business is successful, the family moves to a larger home, and the son collects a comfortable monthly salary for doing nothing at all.

But the change in status is not totally positive. The family members that struggled together are now more often at one another's throats, and they seem to have more ties to the objects they purchase than to one another. When the narrator marries the girl of his dreams, trouble rears its ugly head. Anita is appalled to learn that her husband doesn't really work; how can a man have any pride or sense of identity if all he does is sit around and rely on his family's money and a future inheritance? She questions the ethics of his shady uncle and the family's cruel rejection of a woman with apparent ties to him.

The framework here is that the narrator is telling his story to Vincent, a waiter in a cafe that he frequents and who he seems to believe has special insights. There's an unexpected twist at the end--one that came a bit too abruptly for this reader. I would have liked the author to have fleshed out the story a bit; there's definitely room for some deeper characterization. It's a quick read, good for an evening's entertainment.

Wonderfully Engaging Family Drama From South India

This novella shows what a talented fiction writer can do. The family drama that plays out within this six member South Indian will stick with me for a long time. It's left for the reader to decide whether an actual murder takes place or is purely aspirational. You decide.

Listen to this audiobook free with a 30-day trial. Go to http://hotaudiobook.com/free

Title: After the Blue Hour

Author: John Rechy

Narrator: Cooper North

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 48 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-07-17

Publisher: HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

Fleeing a turbulent life in Los Angeles, John accepts an invitation to a private island from an admirer of his work. There, he joins Paul, his imposing host in his late 30s; his beautiful mistress; and his precocious teenage son. Browsing Paul's library and conversing together on the deck about literature and film during the spell of evening's "blue hour", John feels surcease until, with unabashed candor, Paul shares intimate details of his life. Through cunning, seductive charm, he married and divorced an ambassador's daughter and the heiress to a vast fortune. Avoiding identifying his son's mother, he reveals an affinity for erotic "dangerous games". With intimations of past decadence and menace, an abandoned island nearby arouses tense fascination over the group. As "games" veer toward violence, secrets surface in startling twists and turns. Explosive confrontation becomes inevitable.

Contact me for any questions: [email protected]

Listen to this audiobook free with a 30-day trial. Go to http://hotaudiobook.com/free

Title: Signals: New and Selected Stories

Author: Tim Gautreaux

Narrator: Joe Barrett

Format: Unabridged

Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-17-17

Publisher: HighBridge, a Division of Recorded Books

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 12 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

After the stunning historical novels The Clearing and The Missing, Tim Gautreaux now ranges freely through contemporary life with 12 new stories and eight from previous collections. Most are set in his beloved Louisiana, many hard by or on the Mississippi River, others in North Carolina, and even in midwinter Minnesota. But generally it's heat, humidity, and bugs that beset his people as they wrestle with affairs of the heart, matters of faith, and the pros and cons of tight-knit communities - a remarkable cast of characters, primarily of the working class, proud and knowledgeable about the natural or mechanical world, their lives marked by a prized stereo or a magical sewing machine retrieved from a locked safe, boats and card games, and casinos, grandparents and grandchildren and those in between, their experiences leading them to the ridiculous or the scarifying or the sublime; most of them striving for what's right and good, others tearing off in the opposite direction.

Contact me for any questions: [email protected]

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Affair

Subtitle: A shocking story of a schoolgirl and a scandal

Author: Amanda Brooke

Narrator: Avita Jay

Format: Unabridged

Length: 13 hrs and 31 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-12-17

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 58 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

A shocking story about a 15-year-old girl and the man who took advantage of her.

"You might as well know from the start, I'm not going to tell on him, and I don't care how much trouble I get in. It's not like it could get any worse than it already is. I can't. Don't ask me why, I just can't."

When Nina finds out that her 15-year-old daughter, Scarlett, is pregnant, her world falls apart.

Because Scarlet won't tell anyone who the father is. And Nina is scared that the answer will destroy everything.

As the suspects mount - from Scarlett's teacher to Nina's new husband of less than a year - Nina searches for the truth...no matter what the cost.

Critic Reviews:

Praise for Amanda Brooke: "An emotional journey and a great read!" (Fionnuala Kearney)

"Full of twists, this is a deeply emotional, poignant tale that will remain with you long after it ends." (Ella Harper)

"[A] touching sensitive story...an extraordinary, moving tale." (The Bookseller)

"Enchanting, moving and hard to put down." (Closer)

"Life affirming." (Sunday Mirror)

"A haunting and heartbreaking story that stayed with me long after I'd finished." (Fern Britton)

"Magical and unputdownable." (Katie Fforde)

"An extraordinary debut novel" (Daily Express)

Members Reviews:

Whodunnit with a Twist(s)

The Affair is one of those stories that makes you want to scream at the characters, "open your eyes!" I had a love- hate relationship with this. The story is told from several alternating pints of view and centers around one 15year old girl's relentless need to keep a secret from her mother, having been suspected of an illicit affair with her English teacher. In the process, her stubbornness born of immaturity and obsession threatens the very core of her mother' sanity, her marriage, the teacher's young family, and her community. I strongly disliked the character of Scarlet and sympathized likewise little with her mother. The soft yet hidden toughness of the voice of the teacher's young wife lends a sense of truth and reality to an otherwise oft-unbelievable tale. I kept blaming the victim and that wasn't fun, but I'd be dying to know what other readers think! Overall, worth listening to, even though it seems long and is terribly frustrating at times, the end result brings you some relief and sense of fulfillment for the characters. Recommend with caution.

The Teacher Gets The

Amanda Brooks created a literary masterpiece that Avitia Jay narrated to perfection. This story is definitely worth the credits.Fans of Pretty Little Lairs...get this audiobook now! I was hooked and surprise at the true villian in the story as it unfolded...I didnt want to put it down. I listened none stop to the very end. Well done Ladies.

Official DeAnn DeVille Review: writer, narrator, philanthropist and Mom

Not Brooke's Best

I first discovered Amanda Brooke with her novel "Where I Found You" and recently followed it up with "The Child's Secret". I found both were stronger reads - either because of the choice of narrator or because the characters were more sympathetic.

With this book, I massively disliked almost all the characters.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Chanakya's Chant

Author: Ashwin Sanghi

Narrator: Sagar Arya

Format: Unabridged

Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-02-17

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 7 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

Chanakya's Chant is a thrilling novel that tells its listeners about a sharp parallel story between two individuals. One of these individuals is the very person who brought the scattered Indian subcontinent under the reign of Chandragupta Maurya-Chanakya. Chanakya is one of the wisest political strategists to have ever lived in the history of India. The second protagonist is Gangasagar Mishra, who is a rather insignificant Brahmin teacher who seems to be struggling to make ends meet but is actually a reincarnation of Chanakya himself.

The author gives you an intricately woven plot that is set in two parallel worlds but is tied together by its two protagonists, namely Chanakya and Gangasagar. Chanakya's tale, set in 340 BC, is a tale of revenge that Chanakya seeks against the king and how he brings in Chandragupta Maurya to take over the throne. The second tale, based in modern-day India, is that of Gangasagar grooming a young girl from Kanpur to eventually become the prime minister of India.

Will Chanakya's ingenious ways bring about a drastic turn in the events of the nation? This captivating book answers just that through its exploration of Chanakya's ingenious and calculated moves that have altered the course of events in the past.

Members Reviews:

4 for the Nerrator

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Already recommended and few are already listening

What other book might you compare Chanakya's Chant to and why?

beautiful way of comparing the Past and present day politics

What about Sagar Aryas performance did you like?

5 For narration with humurous tone at applicable

5 For making me listen again and again and again and ..............again

3 for pronunciation of Indian terms and Shlokas and the Indian names (ex: Sharangrao pronunced as "Sharangro")

I felt his voice may not be apt during the prologue however, he made me to hear time and again and pulled it off beautifully

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

1. Debate between Chandni and Jeff

2. The Thug Home Minister Ikram- First shoot then ask

3. Every chapters from Chanakya's time

Any additional comments?

I would rather rated 10 of 5 for offering such a book especially to Indians..

MUST MUST MUST READ and LISTEN and Transform

The brilliance of Mr Sanghi.

Not what I expected

I hated how the performer spoke Chandnis part. It sounded like she was a helpless poor girl deprived of love and whos life was made miserable by Ganga sagars own dreams. She was rather a very intelligent and brave girl as story tells while she was growing up.

Also the story gets monotonous and too political in the middle chapters. I was looking for more of Chanakyas teaching to Chandragupta and shaping him up for the role of a King. That part was hardly mentioned.

Apart from that its a good read.

Escuche este audio libro completo gratis en https://hotaudiobook.com

Título: El plan infinito [The Infinite Plan]

Autor: Isabel Allende

Narrador: Alberto Santillán

Formato: Unabridged

Duración: 14 hrs and 43 mins

Idioma: Español

Fecha de publicación: 12-15-16

Editor: Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial

Calificaciones: 4.5 de 5 de 19 votos

Categorías: Fiction, Literary

Resumen del editor:

Historia de grandiosa concepción, El plan infinito recrea medio siglo de la sociedad norteamericana en la vida de su protagonista.Ésta es la historia de Gregory Reeves, un gringo que sobrevive en el difícil mundo de los hispanos de California. Gregory quiere llevar a la práctica el peculiar "plan infinito que se trazó a sí mismo en su infancia. Sin embargo, para conseguirlo debe recorrer un duro camino lleno de obstáculos: la marginación social, el racismo, el brutal contraste entre pobreza y riqueza o la guerra de Vietnam.Reseña:"Sin ninguna duda, esta novela ambiciosa y totalizadora certifica la plena madurez de Isabel Allende, que conquista por mérito propio un sólido espacio en la escritura del continente mestizo. Nelson Marra, El Mundo

Please note: This audiobook is in Spanish.

Opiniones de los miembros:

Comentario

Trama aburrida y cansada. Micho pesimismo. Se pude entender el libro, leyendo por partes. Muy lejos de lo que La casa de los espíritus.

A work of love

I read this book in Spanish and enjoyed it thoroughly. For some reason, I wasn't very enthusiastic at the beginning about reading it and once I started I could not put it down. Allende's wonderful story telling abilities are fully displayed in this book. Dedicated it to her lover, 'companero', friend, husband, partner... it tells the story of the Reeves family in San Francisco... so endearing, loving, hard, funny, sad, and tender that you can't help feeling the deep emotions the characters and the story reflect all the way. In the most true style of literary magical realism this book is a jewel about life, love and resilience. Loved it.

simplemente maravilloso, ameno, lleno de suspenso como todas ...

simplemente maravilloso, ameno, lleno de suspenso como todas sus novelas, que uno las coge y no las puede soltar, siempre con ese sentido tan humano, tan propio de su autora. con las características que les encuentro a todas sus novelas. amenas, sencillas pero tan profundas, llenas de personajes extraordinarios, descripciones asombrosas, sentido de humor, tan humanas, la solidaridad, generosidad, están siempre presentes en todas sus obras! genial!!

A totally entertaining novel

This book, like many of Isabel Allende's novels is filled with colorful, earthy characters whose lives are filled with "drama". Allende never disappoints as her story flows from one location to another, each described so vividly that the reader comes to know the area intimately. Her description of the protagonist's coming of age in a world so unlike that in which he was raised reflects the naveté, the disillusion and the frustrations of a young man finding his own way in the world.

The print in the paper back version is very small. If I were to purchase this book again, I would buy the hard cover edition.

The Plan

I think we all have a "plan infinito". Although complex at times I enjoyed this novel. I would definitely recommend it!

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Offshore

Author: Penelope Fitzgerald, Alan Hollinghurst - introduction

Narrator: Jot Davies, Alan Hollinghurst, Stephanie Racine

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 1 min

Language: English

Release date: 12-15-16

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 15 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

Penelope Fitzgerald's Booker Prize-winning novel of loneliness and connecting is set among the houseboat community of the Thames and has a new introduction from Alan Hollinghurst.

On Battersea Reach, a mixed bag of the temporarily lost and the patently eccentric live on houseboats, rising and falling with the tide of the Thames.

There is good-natured Maurice, by occupation a male prostitute, by chance a receiver of stolen goods. And Richard, an ex-navy man whose boat, much like its owner, dominates the Reach. Then there is Nenna, an abandoned wife and mother of two young girls running wild on the muddy foreshore, whose domestic predicament, as it deepens, will draw this disparate community together.

Critic Reviews:

"An astonishing book.... Offshore is a marvellous achievement: strong, supple, humane, ripe, generous and graceful." (Bernard Levin, Sunday Times)

"Perfectly balanced...the novelistic equivalent of a Turner watercolour." (Washington Post)

"This Booker prize winner is a slightly dark, witty novel.... The brilliant Fitzgerald takes a subtle squint at thwarted love, loneliness and the human need to be necessary." (Val Hennessy, Daily Mail)

Members Reviews:

Puffing insincerity

Disappointing reading of fine novel. Every phrase is overspoken and preceded by a rushed and audible intake of breath.

Adequate reading

How did the narrator detract from the book?

He renders the characters' voices well (even when faced with a Canadian accent), but I found his tone when reading the narrative sing-song and infantilising, like he was reading me Winnie the Pooh. Quite unsuitable for a bleak, grown-up novel like this one.

Any additional comments?

Not Fitzgerald's best, but a strong book compressed, allusive, subtle and often funny, much like her others. The voice of Alan Hollinghurst's baritone reading his insightful Introduction to the reissue is a treat and almost worth the price of the audiobook.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Summary, Analysis & Review of Jodi Picoult's Small Great Things by Instaread

Author: Instaread

Narrator: Susan Murphy

Format: Unabridged

Length: 30 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-25-16

Publisher: Instaread

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 7 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

Please note: this is a summary, analysis and review of the book and not the original book.

Inside this summary, analysis and review of Jodi Picoult's Small Great Things:

Members Reviews:

Entertaining summary

This was an entertaining summary! "Small Great Things" is about a black woman nurse who is charged for murdering the son of a white supremacist. The summary gives an overview of the plot and then lists and analyzes the main characters and their relationships. An analysis of the book's themes is also included. The summary was written very well and I looked forward to reading what would happen next. I don't have much time to read, so these Instaread summaries are perfect for me. It will take you less than half an hour to read and will give you a good idea of what the original book is about!

A book about race and gender in America

In Jodi Picoultâs Small Great Things, Ruth Jefferson, an African-American delivery nurse is accused murdering the infant son of a white supremacist. Jessica Bennett, a white lawyer, pushes to be her defense attorney, even this will be her first major case.

Summary, Analysis & Review of Jodi Picoultâs Small Great Things from Instaread is a comprehensive overview of this novel. It discusses the main characters and themes, and analyzes the authorâs style, concluding that, while it shows the problems of race and gender in America, the main character, Ruth Jefferson, is not developed as fully as that of Jessica Bennett. This summary only takes about 15 minutes to read, but it gives an excellent idea of the content, tone, and worth of the book.

After reading this summary, a reader is left with an excellent impression of the worth of the book, making the buy/donât buy decision one that can be made with an informed mind.

Great summary of the novel

This is a well-written summary of Jodi Picoult's latest book, Small Great Things. I've read the full book and wish I had read this summary first. The summary does an excellent job of presenting the major plot points as well as offering a good analysis. I recommend this to book clubs, as these summaries make wonderful reading companions, and often have analysis sections that offer fresh insights.

The problem with Picoult's storyline is that it falls back on the usual stereotypes of whites as being all bad, all being privileged and proponents of white supremacy all the time. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth, and I was disappointed to see Picoult follow such an obviously biased viewpoint as if it were fact. The story has the usual plot points and expected turning points, all of which are well covered by this summary. I don't recommend the full book, but I do recommend this summary. It will give the reader a good look at what the full book is all about before deciding to make the purchase, or even make it a library selection. I highly recommend the summary, but sorry I can't say the same about the full book.

A powerful summary of a must-read novel

Small Great Things is book one of the Ruth Jefferson series. At the time of this writing, there is also the short story, "Shine", which takes place when Ruth is starting third grade.

This is nominally a murder trial, and under the surface a trial of racism and hate, both in the courts and in the characters themselves. I love the echo in that.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Brandons

Subtitle: A Virago Modern Classic

Author: Angela Thirkell

Narrator: Jilly Bond

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 23 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-03-16

Publisher: Hachette Audio UK

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 12 votes

Genres: Fiction, Literary

Publisher's Summary:

Lavinia Brandon is quite the loveliest widow in Barsetshire, blessed with beauty and grace as well as two handsome grown-up children, Delia and Francis. So thinks their cousin, Hilary Grant, when he comes to stay and - like many before him - promptly falls for his fragrant hostess.

Meanwhile the Brandons' ill-tempered dowager aunt is stirring up controversy over her legacy, and Lavinia's attention is further occupied by the challenges of making a match between the vicar and gifted village helpmeet Miss Morris and elegantly deterring her lovestruck suitors.

Angela Thirkell's 1930s comedy is bright, witty and winning.

Members Reviews:

What a joy!

It is such a pleasure to revisit Mrs Thirkell's books through Audible. I hope they will all be converted soon.

If you've never read the Barsetshire novels, do start! And The Brandons is a very good place to start; introducing many of the characters I love most including Mrs Brandon herself, Lydia and Keith Merton.

The Barsetshire novels begin in the perpetually sunny 30s between the wars and continue into the 60s: one book a year, intertwining the families of the various towns. They begin where Trollope leaves off, but that is no barrier. You can read them without Trollope but do try to read them in order.

The War years books are particularly fascinating. Read as a whole they give a marvellous socio-economic view of middle class England from the 30s to the 60s, and show Thirkell's growth from full-on snob to much more generous observer of social mobility. Note particularly her gradually creeping fondness for Mr Adams and women like Jimmy's family.

Do read on and encourage the publisher to convert her entire oeuvre to Audible files.

Very enjoyable antidote to 2017.

If you fancy a dose of completely un-taxing, stress-free fiction, try this. It all seems like light and frothy nonsense - and yet it does also shine a gentle light on some aspects of English Upper Middle Class life in this era (1930s) versus their servants/the Lower Classes. It is gentle satire, really. Lots of lovely domestic details too which I like; you feel as if you are at the tea parties, picnics and outings.

It is mildly funny, except the fun-fare scene at the church fete which is - I hope deliberately -hysterical. It might just be my mind...

Well read - the narrator hams it up when needed, is good at mens' voices and has a great range of characters.