Download the New Releases Audiobooks in Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

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Title: Taking on PJ

Author: Eoin Colfer

Narrator: John Keating

Format: Unabridged

Length: 31 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-25-14

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

"Taking on PJ" is a short story from the collection Dublin Noir.

Brand new stories by: Ken Bruen, Eoin Colfer, Jason Starr, Laura Lippman, Olen Steinhauer, Peter Spiegelman, Kevin Wignall, Jim Fusilli, John Rickards, Patrick J. Lambe, Charlie Stella, Ray Banks, James O. Born, Sarah Weinman, Pat Mullan, Gary Phillips, Craig McDonald, Duane Swierczynski, Reed Farrel Coleman, and others.Irish crime-fiction sensation Ken Bruen and cohorts shine a light on the dark streets of Dublin. Dublin Noir features an awe-inspiring cast of writers who between them have won all major mystery and crime-fiction awards. This collection introduces secret corners of a fascinating city and surprise assaults on the "Celtic Tiger" of modern Irish prosperity.

Members Reviews:

Raunchy and hysterically funny

Loved it. Three solid laughs out loud. The rest was just really funny. This writer and narrator are the best pairing since wine and cheese.

Language

This book wasnt for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

The story starts out with a girl who has stolen something. She is obviously poor and so the language may portray a good description of the character. I just was not invested in the story to put up with the language.

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Title: Max Under the Stars

Author: Anne Frasier

Narrator: Heather Dearly

Format: Unabridged

Length: 16 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-10-14

Publisher: Belfry Press

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 2 votes

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

A writer is born - and his name is Max. Follow Max on his lifelong quest to produce the perfect novel. Touching, irreverent, and hilarious.

Members Reviews:

The glory days of the uterus

Before Max was born, he wrote his first novel while in utero, scratching the words out on his mother's womb. He loved his writing environment there. It was safe, warm, and cozy, and with no worries about food or work, little Max only had to write. Then to his dismay, he was born, and he lost his first novel. This short story is about Max trying to remember that first book he wrote, trying to recapture that special feeling of his first work and the unique way in which it was created. According to Max, he hasn't written anything good since his uterus days.

This is a smart little story, very much funny and tongue in cheek, and also a little poignant in some ways. It captures a writer's need to create, his urge to put pen to paper, and his very real need to use words in such a way as to define life and somehow give it meaning, from beginning to end.

THE WRITING ON HE WALL...This one you will not want to miss.

This little short story is one of the many (actually, one of the most important) reasons I love my Kindle and e-books. This little offering by Theresa Weir was a delight from the first sentence on. What a creative mind Weir has.

The other reviewers here have given a very nice little rundown on the plot so I will not linger long on that aspect of the story. Max, while in utero, wrote his first novel on the wall of his mother's uterus. Then, as bad luck would have it, he was born. Max spends the better part of his life in remorse having lost his novel, and trying to recapture that magic time.

I found myself chuckling several times and actually laughing at least twice while reading this thing. The tongue in cheek wit is catching in a subdued and subtle way...the author uses perfect timing when she uses her "punch line." But, as other reviewers have pointed out, there is a certain reality at play here and we get a very nice peek into the inside of a writer's soul...if that is what you want to call it. I was amused during most of the book, yet just a wee bit saddened and concerned at the same time.

What ever the emotion, Theresa Weir most certainly knows how to tell a story. There was not one thing about this entire tale that I did not enjoy.

These short stories that you are able to download at any time are wonderful. They have taken the place of the old magazine giants of decades past, where a reader could plunk down some change and for relatively little money, have a very good reading experience. The days of those great old publications are long gone now and they left a horrible void for those of us who love reading. This void, to a certain extent, is being fulfilled now and I personally feel we are going to see many more quality reading made available to all of us.

Trust me on this one folks...it is most certainly worth the time spent reading...you will not regret it.

Don Blankenship

The Ozarks

Well-written but a bit nonsensical

I can't fault the talent of the writer and the way Theresa's put it together. However the rave reviews leave me rather cold. There's nothing wrong with the story and I daresay that a lot of people will like it.

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Title: The Murders in the Rue Morgue

Author: Edgar Allan Poe

Narrator: Bart Wolffe

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 43 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-10-14

Publisher: Saland Publishing

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 2 votes

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

Recognised as the first modern detective story, this classic tale by Poe doesn't disappoint.

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Title: Through the Children's Gate

Author: Adam Gopnik

Narrator: Adam Gopnik

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-01-14

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

"Through The Children's Gate" is a short story from the collection Central Park.

Central Park is perhaps the most well-trod and familiar green space in the country. It is both a refuge from the city and Manhattan's very heart; a respite from the urban grind and a hive of activity all its own. Eight hundred forty-three carefully planned acres allow some 37 million visitors each year to come and get lost in a sense of nature. Unsurprisingly, the park also inspires a wealth of great writing, and here Andrew Blauner collects some of the finest fiction and nonfiction - 20 pieces in all, with classics sprinkled among 13 new ones commissioned from great New York writers.

Bill Buford spends a wild night in the park; Jonathan Safran Foer envisions it as a tiny, transplanted piece of a mythical Sixth Borough; and Marie Winn answers definitively Holden Caulfield's question of where the ducks go when the park's ponds freeze over. There are bird sightings and fish sightings; Jackie Kennedy and James Brown sightings; and pieces by Colson Whitehead, Paul Auster, and Francine Prose. This vibrant collection presents Central Park in all its many-faceted glory, a 51-block swath of special magic.

Members Reviews:

Not what I was expecting

I received this book as a Christmas present, and took it with me on holiday to Japan ... because I wished that I were going to New York but was not.

I expected a book of stories about life in New York. While I got this in some ways I got it in such a way as to be at times rendered speechless. This book contains laugh out loud elements (stories of his children) and parts which brought me to tears (the ending of the Giant Metrozoids). It has also inspired me to do a whole lot more reading, all the books which Gopnik refers to are now on my reading list.

I am not a New Yorker, but, after a week there in 2006 now miss this city so desperately from my home in Australia, that I am amazed. Gopnik captured my feelings in this book. The moments of clarity that I had to share with the people I was travelling with, and will become pearls of wisdom for staff meetings when I am required to talk.

Would I recommend this book? Of this I am unsure. It is a highly observationalist book, looking at the society in which the author lives and grasping for the truth that is found within. It is also in the nature of critical literacy, so some deep thinking is required on the part of the reader. I usually read a book every day or two when travelling (particularly when in a country where English is not found readily) my addiction is to the pages, not the 'screens or cards'. But this book took me nearly two weeks, and I feel a need now to re-read it. To high light and mark the pearls I have discovered in the manner of a university text so that I can give these the true depth of consideration they deserve.

All in all though, this was a book I can see myself reading again and again one which spoke to my soul so truly that I can hear the sirens of NYC echoing down the streets, smell the hotdog venders and feel the wind in my face. This book will tide me over until I get to go back again.

nothing better

I have finished this book at 3:19 in the morning sharing with Adam Gopnik the early morning/late night hours of his last essay here. I have laughed out loud at these essays and also cried. It is, at the moment, my favorite book.

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Title: Broken Heart Tails

Subtitle: Broken Heart, Oklahoma, Paranormal Romance, Book 0

Author: Michele Bardsley

Narrator: Hollie Jackson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 31 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-12-14

Publisher: Freeman Publications

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

National best-selling author Michele Bardsley has created a collection of short stories set in everybody's favorite parakind community: Broken Heart, Oklahoma. Contained within this volume are the following humorous paranormal tails...er, tales:

Members Reviews:

Don't read unless you've read the other books

I've read some of the series, but it was a long time ago. These books simply do not make sense without the knowledge of the overall story. I've wasted a credit and am hopelessly confused. This is NOT a stand alone set of stories!

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Title: Nakedness

Author: John Updike

Narrator: Peter Van Norden

Format: Unabridged

Length: 17 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-16-14

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

The Maples Stories consists of eighteen classic stories from across John Updike's career, forming a luminous chronicle of the life and times of one marriage in all its rich emotional complexity. In 1956, Updike published the story "Snowing in Greenwich Village," about a young couple, Joan and Richard Maple, at the beginning of their marriage. Over the next two decades, he returned to these characters again and again, tracing their years together raising children, finding moments of intermittent happiness, and facing the heartbreak of infidelity and estrangement.

In the thirteenth story, "Nakedness," Joan and Richard encounter two errant young nudists at the beach, an experience that exhumes memories of nudity and awakens their sense of their current physicality.

Members Reviews:

Very Well Written - A Lot of Allusions Packed Into One Short Story

"Nakedness" is the thirteenth short story composed by John Updike over the course of several years about a fictional couple, The Maples. In this short story, the Maples observe a naked couple at the beach and the story unfolds from there.

I have mixed feelings about this story. There is no doubt about the obvious skill of Mr. Updike as a writer. I have been reading these stories in the order in which they were written. In this story Mrs. Updike, middle aged, refers to a police officer as a "pig". I no longer like her. Recently, I believe in the story immediately preceding this one, the "c word" is used for the first time. Now comes the "f word". I feel as though Updike may be descending into the same hole he went down in "Rabbit Run".

Additionally there allusion after allusion in this short story. These allusions are to,paintings and other works of literature. It seemed unremitting to me. I have seen other writers do this. It gets to the point that I feel the author is either amusing himself, or trying to show the reader how smart he is,or both.

Of the thirteen stories I have now read, I have liked most of them, and really enjoyed a few. There was one previous story I did not care for. That was "Wife Wooing". But this story may be my least favorite thus far. Thank You.

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Title: Twin Beds in Rome

Author: John Updike

Narrator: Peter Van Norden

Format: Unabridged

Length: 19 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-16-14

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

The Maples Stories consists of eighteen classic stories from across John Updike's career, forming aluminous chronicle of the life and times of one marriage in all its rich emotional complexity. In 1956, Updike published the story "Snowing in Greenwich Village," about a young couple, Joan and Richard Maple, at the beginning of their marriage. Over the next two decades, he returned to these characters again and again, tracing their years together raising children, finding moments of intermittent happiness, and facing the heartbreak of infidelity and estrangement.

As Richard and Joan Maple's story continues in this fourth story in the collection, their marriage is falling apart. Though both intensely desire separation, they continue to hold on to their broken relationship. So rather than get away from each other, they go away with each other - to Rome.

Members Reviews:

An Enjoyable Bitter Sweet Story About A Marriage In Flux

This story is the fourth short story by John Updike about a married couple "The Maples". As I understand it, Mr. Updike composed these stories over many years, not on an ongoing basis. This far I have enjoyed three of the first four very much. The one I did not care for is the second story, "Wife Wooing" although it was undeniably well written.

In "Twin Beds In Rome" the Maples are touring Rome. By now, if one has read the stories in order, the Maples have become a familiar couple to the reader. This story reminds me of other short stories that I have previously read by other authors about Americans visiting Rome. But the story has, what is becoming to me, a familiar Updike style, about a familiar couple. I do not wish to risk spoiling the reading experience.

I do wish to state that reading these stories in order has added a lot of perspective to them. I wish to add just one detail. In American English, there is an idiom stated "squaring the circle". It has to do with solving a seemingly very difficult or impossible problem. In this story, in passing, without flourish, Mr. Updike comments about the Maples that "They circled the square" while on a walking tour. By now I am convinced that Mr. Updike is far too clever an author not to have intentionally inserted this subtle play on words.

Thank You...

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Title: Wife-Wooing

Author: John Updike

Narrator: Peter Van Norden

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-16-14

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

The Maples Stories consists of eighteen classic stories from across John Updike's career, forming aluminous chronicle of the life and times of one marriage in all its rich emotional complexity. In 1956, Updike published the story "Snowing in Greenwich Village," about a young couple, Joan and Richard Maple, at the beginning of their marriage. Over the next two decades, he returned to these characters again and again, tracing their years together raising children, finding moments of intermittent happiness, and facing the heartbreak of infidelity and estrangement.

In this seventh story, "Your Lover Just Called," Richard Maple suspects his wife of having affair after receiving a mysterious telephone call.

This second story from the collection finds the Maples seven years - and three children - into their marriage. Despite the effects of time, Richard is still very much in love with, and sexually attracted to, his wife. But the complexities of Joan still elude him.

Members Reviews:

Talented Slightly Abstract Writing - Very Artistic - For Me, More Interesting Than Enjoyable

This is a second short story about a couple, The Maples. I have read the first story, "Snowing in Greenwich Village", and liked that story very much, more that this story. The couple now have children. The man desires his wife, but life happens.

This story was published in The New Yorker in 1960. The narrative suggests this story is seven years after the first story. The story is prose, but it has a rhythm that is almost poetic. There is no doubt the writing shows very great artistic talent. That being said, I did not like this story nearly as much as the first story, which is written in a regular narrative style. I tend to have simple tastes and my relative enjoyment may only be a matter of personal taste. Thank You...

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Title: Plumbing

Author: John Updike

Narrator: Peter Van Norden

Format: Unabridged

Length: 15 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-16-14

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

The Maples Stories consists of eighteen classic stories from across John Updike's career, forming aluminous chronicle of the life and times of one marriage in all its rich emotional complexity. In 1956, Updike published the story "Snowing in Greenwich Village," about a young couple, Joan and Richard Maple, at the beginning of their marriage. Over the next two decades, he returned to these characters again and again, tracing their years together raising children, finding moments of intermittent happiness, and facing the heartbreak of infidelity and estrangement.

In this tenth story, "Plumbing," Richard Maple reflects on the past as his family moves into a new home.

Members Reviews:

A Well Crafted Short Story

This is the tenth in a series of short stories about one fictional couple, "The Maples". The story itself is well written and interesting standing on its own. The family is moving from one house to another and Mr. Maples is reflecting on the past, his own, and that of his family. Having read the previous nine stories in order, I feel I had a greater appreciation for this story than I would have otherwise. The Maples are something like friends that I have gotten to know.

I purchased the audiobook, and read and listened simultaneously. The narrator is Peter Van Norden. His work is excellent. it is a performance as much as a reading. Thank You...

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Title: The Chesapeake

Subtitle: Legends, Yarns, and Barnacles

Author: Ken Rossignol, Larry Jarboe

Narrator: Ward Paxton

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 50 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-08-14

Publisher: Lawrence D. Jarboe

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories & Anthologies

Publisher's Summary:

From Cap'n Larry Jarboe: Many people ask how is it possible to catch so many fish in a morning or afternoon of fishing. My answer is simple. While most people focus on fishing, I concentrate on catching. There are two major things to know if you want to catch a mess of fish: when to fish and where to fish. In the short stories herein which are pure fiction, any resemblance to any persons is merely coincidental. No persons, living or dead, are represented in these articles unless the story is nonfiction, except in the case of the stories of St. George's Island breaking away from the mainland - if anyone believes that nonsense they need their heads examined. Any and all politicians mentioned here should take their inclusion as a complement except when they were compared with a snake and in all such cases we apologize to the snake. In the case of the various fishing stories, they are all true with the exception of the ones which are invented, falsified and the result of wild conjuring. All persons who venture into these pages without a sense of humor or who are politically correct are warned to leave at once without venturing past this severe admonition or risk being keel-hauled.

Members Reviews:

I felt as if I were there. Very engrossing.

The Chesapeake...Legends, Yarns and Barnacles was a tremendous symphony of humor, tips, history and personalities. It was so engrossing that I couldn't stop reading it until I finished it. Of course that may explain the barnacles on my, well, you know where.

The book felt like I was there sharing the adventures, frustrations and joy of the characters. You certainly made the Chesapeake come to life. Keep up the good work.

Thank you again.

Naftali Landweber

Fun read

I enjoyed reading the short stories about fishing in the Chesapeake . I enjoy hearing/reading true stories about history. Thanks for bundling all these up into an nice little book for us .

Intriguing adventures!

A great collection of stories and articles originally published in the Maryland newspaper, The Chesapeake. Maritime enthusiasts and residents of the states of Maryland (and Florida) will take the most interest, as the stories feature these 2 states.

Ken Rossignol and his friend Larry Jarboe penned quite a few of the articles included in this volume of The Chesapeake, accompanied by many other reporters' pieces. Most of the articles have some sort of nautical interest, whether about boats in general, fishing, or maybe it's just about life in the Chesapeake Bay area.