Simply The Best Audiobooks in Fiction, Contemporary to Download

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Title: Other People's Children

Author: Joanna Trollope

Narrator: Clare Higgins

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-09-12

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

When a man and a woman get married, things can get complicated. When they have children from previous marriages, "complicated" can become the understatement of the year. From the grown daughter who insinuates herself into her widowed father's romantic life, to the sullen teenager whose loyalties lie with her estranged mother; from the awkwardness of tense celebrations to the discovery of surprising sources of strength, Joanna Trollope reveals the laughter and tears, the tension and the tenderness, that live behind the statistics and stereotypes about stepfamilies.

Read by Clare Higgin.

Members Reviews:

disappointing

I am a fan of Joanna Trollope, But i was disappointed wit this one, not much of a story

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Title: The Decision

Author: Penny Vincenzi

Narrator: Sandra Duncan

Format: Unabridged

Length: 30 hrs and 53 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-27-11

Publisher: Headline Review

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 9 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

1960s fashion, affairs and heartbreak feature in The Decision from No 1 best-selling novelist Penny Vincenzi.

Set against a vibrant sixties backdrop, this is the story of two bright young things: Eliza, an ex-deb making a splash in the world of fashion, and Matt, a working-class boy carving out a serious name for himself in property. Their story begins with a love affair, closely followed by a marriage, followed by a baby.

But whilst their relationship is at first fuelled by passion, it's not of the enduring kind, and soon what started out with such promise descends into a harrowing divorce case and an epic custody battle. With everything at stake for both Eliza and Matt, and neither party willing to give up their little girl without a fight, it's high drama in the courts. Let battle begin....

Critic Reviews:

"Teeming with memorable characters." (Woman & Home)

Members Reviews:

Loved every Minute of the 30 Hours!! Best Ever

This is by far the best book I have downloaded yet. 30 hours seemed daunting, but I hated for it to finally end. There were no wasted words, so if you are like me and do not like endless description, this is a great book. The character development was great, the story was great. Well I am not one for long reviews, suffice to say I would give this a 10 if I could. A marvellous family saga, enough romance in it without being too sappy, and certainly it was all believable. It takes place in the 60's to 70's in London. I so recommend this book.

Another success

I have read every Vincenzi book and this was my first audio version. I really enjoyed it and the narrator was superb. I will be sticking with audio from now on as i was truely transported from London to Italy and back again, I loved it!!

Mostly enjoyably but stretched out a bit too much

I made it to the end but lost interest 2 thirds through the story as plot wore thin.

Fantastic

Superb story as always from Vincenzi. l couldn't stop listening. l have been having some treatment, which is an hour long and this book has been a delight to listen to. If you don't have audible you really should join.

Did not want it to end

Would you consider the audio edition of The Decision to be better than the print version?

Yes l would not be able to bring so much life to all the characters I was taken back to my youth, each character was brought to life by the narrator in this wonderful story I fell in and out of love I just did not want it to end.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Decision?

There were so many memorable moments but if I have to pick one it would have to be when Eliza!s barrister explains why she should continue her battle for custody of her child.

What does Sandra Duncan bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you had only read the book?

She brings everything I felt I was listening to a play not just one person she is a genius.

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

There were a few moments that moved me Scarlett's decision to terminate her pregnancy, Matt not making Louise a partner, the break up of the marriage and the way the judge summed it all up at the end.

Any additional comments?

I loved listening to this book the story and the wonderful narrative transported me back to the sixties and seventies a time when I thought we were so modern and forward thinking!!

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Título: Retahílas [Jingles]

Autor: Carmen Martín Gaite

Narrador: Arantza Ugarte

Formato: Unabridged

Duración: 7 hrs and 54 mins

Idioma: Español

Fecha de publicación: 08-03-11

Editor: Audiomol

Calificaciones: 3 de 5 de 1 votos

Categorías: Fiction, Contemporary

Resumen del editor:

En Retahílas, el viaje que realiza una anciana al pazo familiar para morir, acompañada de su nieta Eulalia, y la llegada sorpresa de Germán, el sobrino de Eulalia, producirá durante esa noche un intenso diálogo entre los dos que dará lugar a seis monólogos, en los que cada uno reconstruirá y contará qué ha sido su vida hasta entonces. Carmen Martín Gaite era una bebedora de sueños, por eso su realismo es de tan alta calidad. Paul Éluard decía: Hay otros mundos, pero están en éste. Y añadía: Hay otras vidas, pero están en ti. Podría ser una buena definición de la mirada de Carmiña. Manuel Rivas.

Please note: This audiobook is in Spanish.

Opiniones de los miembros:

Five Stars

It was great!

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Title: In the Blue Light of African Dreams

Author: Paul Watkins

Narrator: Richard Poe

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-26-11

Publisher: Recorded Books

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Halifax had been in French Africa for five years, doing whatever foolhardy, dangerous thing Serailler ordered him to do. It was some time before he finally snapped, but when he did, he opened the throttle, eased back the stick, and lifted straight and high into a dream.

Members Reviews:

A lovely book let down by poor audio

I listened to this book after listening to The Story of My Disappearance and was not disappointed by the writing or the narration. I'd have given it five stars had it not been for an echo with a 2-second delay throughout both parts of the audio file.

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Title: Summer of Pearls

Author: Mike Blakely

Narrator: George Guidall

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 9 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-21-11

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

A once-booming riverboat community, Port Caddo is a now struggling Texas town due to the emergence of the railroad. A series of incidents leads to the discovery of the first fresh water pearl, and the town is rejuvenated. Mike Blakely transports listeners to a time filled with hope in a lost little town. George Guidalls lively narration captures every nuance of this masterfully crafted story.

Members Reviews:

1st review

i have avg >150 audile books a year ... i have NEVER written a review ...i have listened to many actully better books "Atlas Shrugged" narrarted by HURT ! NOT Brick my fav ... BUt since no1 did this book i thought i would try and help people get over fencepost on buying this 1 ... it was REALLY good!!! = i often listen to "sample" and its like a good trailer to moive... it seems good and it was the movie and then i end up quitting the book ... in this case the book is REALLY good for pg 1 to last sentence.

i type poorly so dontlet that discount my advise = its worth time and $ 4sure! -G

Outstanding

This book reminded me of a mark twain novel. The best ending to a story I have ever experienced!! But don't read it first. Must read the entire book first for it to have the impact it had on me. Enjoy!!!

A wonderful memory

A wonderful authentic story. What a great movie it would make. Of course George's reading was perfecto.

Decent Coming of Age Story

This is an interesting, "decent" (aka no gratuitous sex or violence) story of a young man who came of age in the bayou country at a time when steamships plied the rivers and lakes of the great South. Narrated expertly by George Guidall, it is an engaging saga of youth-to-manhood during the late 1890's. It is told in a narrative style, taking listeners back to the day, offering a delightful tale with heroes and villains who will surprise and amaze. I enjoyed this one -- it was an easy listen -- and learned a bit about that era, the art of gleaning pearls from mussels, and steamer history.

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Title: The Woman and the Ape

Author: Peter Heg

Narrator: Jenny Sterlin

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-11-11

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Award-winning author Peter Heg has captured a worldwide audience with his novels of compelling, solitary heroes and powerful landscapes. Smillas Sense of Snow received international praise for its subtle emotional nuances and startling visions of the frozen northlands. Now, Heg turns his attention to England and a wanderer from an even stranger world. Madeline Burden, beautiful wife of a renowned British zoologist, is not surprised when she learns that her husband is holding a stray ape in his laboratory. But when she looks into the creatures eyes, she feels her heart lurch in response to the intelligence and gentleness she sees there. Somehow, she must free the ape from the scientists who would sacrifice his life to gain measurable data about his intelligence. And, in a flash, she also knows that her life is now inextricably linked to his. The Woman and the Ape is the remarkable story of their relationship. Part fable, part romance, and part slapstick comedy, it poses intriguing questions about nature and nurture and builds to a hilarious ending.

Members Reviews:

A neat Postmodern novel

I bought this as a Kindle download after flicking through a second hand copy at a recycling center. I didn't buy it at the time, but the passages I read stuck in my mind and I just had to read the whole thing.

The story has been outlined in sales blurbs and in other reviews, all which are readily available elsewhere on the internet, so I will not offer one up here.

What's it like? Well, it's clear that this is one of those uncatorizable works that either grabs your imagination [at so many different levels] or leaves you wondering why you paid the tax on stupidity that was its purchase price. In my case, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and now wish I run into Peter Hoeg earlier. Probably the easiest way to approach this fun novel is from a postmodern angle: you are free to dive in and see deep allegory in every act or character [as per an earnest university first-year course in modern lit] or you can simply run through it as a light-hearted, amusing yarn with a few sideglances up the "deep and meaningful" alleyways [as you will inevitably do anyway]. In this regard I enjoyed the way Hoeg pokes the borax left, right and center at the pretentious empty shell that is contemporary neo-Blairist Britain with even The Last Night of the Proms and the Queen getting tickled.

Sure, the early parts do chug a little and this is probably the reason why some reviewers opinions curdled, but persevere, the story really crackles from the around the halfway mark.

This modern fable sucked me in and I read it in one delicious go.

It is such a pleasure to read elegant gramatical prose, skillfully translated, and not have my inner editor raise a fuss. A story of great sensitivity and perception on many levels; humour, sometimes tongue-in-cheek, sometimes a hearty guffaw, and always a novel plot line pulling one along. ("no!no! I can't put this down. Go fix your own dinner") I would not for all the world reveal the plot. Why spoil someone else's fun.

Very enjoyable!

If you have issues with inter species relationships, it's not for you. If you enjoy a good story and awesome writing, go for it, you will be delighted.

the most unusual and engaging book I've ever read

And I've read copious amounts! Peter Hoeg is a brilliant writer.

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Title: Next

Subtitle: A Novel

Author: James Hynes

Narrator: LJ Ganser

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-14-11

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 18 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

One of Americas most unique voices, James Hynes taps his dark humor for this startling novel.

Kevin Quinn is a standard-variety American male: middle-aged, liberal-leaning, self-centered, emotionally damaged, generally determined to avoid both pain and responsibility. As his relationship with his girlfriend approaches a turning point, and his career seems increasingly pointless, he decides to secretly fly to a job interview in Austin, Texas. Aboard the plane, Kevin is simultaneously attracted to the young woman in the seat next to him and panicked by a new wave of terrorism in Europe and the UK. He lands safely with neuroses intact and full of hope that the job, the expansive city, and the girl from the plane might yet be his chance for reinvention. His next eight hours make up this novel, a tour-de-force of mordant humor, brilliant observation, and pause-resistant storytelling.

Critic Reviews:

"[T]his funny, surprising, and sobering novel [is] unlike anything in the recent literature of our response to terrorisma tour de force of people ennobled in the face of random horror. (Publishers Weekly)

Members Reviews:

Detailed but slow

the whole book is written in service of the ending. Great writing to keep you engaged while nothing happens at all. the detail he takes to describe the people and settings and mood is impressive. But the book didn't resonate with me. It's more of a study of middle age and your feelings of insignificance when you get to a point in your life where you have feelings of regret and wasted opportunities.

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Title: Bad Bird

Author: Chris Knopf

Narrator: Deanna Hurst

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-18-11

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 27 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Jackie Swaitkowski investigates the death of a female pilot who had a family tree filled with ex-cons and a passenger list packed with Hamptons high society. Just before Eugenie Conklin's plane took a nosedive, she tossed out a camera case that held an unusual set of photos. While defending Eugenie's husband during the accident investigation, Jackie realizes that she recognizes more than a few of the faces in those pictures. They may be able to prove her client's innocence, but Jackie soon learns that to find the answer to Eugenie's death will mean uncovering a mystery from her own family's past as well.

Members Reviews:

A moment of reflection leads to a mystery

If you could sum up Bad Bird in three words, what would they be?

Complex, intertwined, complusive

What did you like best about this story?

the story line and twists and turns to the finish.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

yes, but time refused to stand still.

Any additional comments?

Loved this book. Chris Knopf has a one of a kind voice and an out there story to tell.

Disappointing

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

I have no idea

What could Chris Knopf have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Ihave read other Chris Knopf books and have enjoyed them but this was a boring story and didn't care for the narrater.

Would you be willing to try another one of Deanna Hursts performances?

No

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Title: A Slipping Down Life

Author: Anne Tyler

Narrator: Jessica Almasy

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 47 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-22-10

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 5 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Evie Decker is a shy, slightly plump teenager, lonely and silent. But her quiet life is shattered when she hears the voice of Drumstrings Casey on the radio and becomes instantly attracted to him. She manages to meet him, bursting out of her lonely shelland into the attentive gaze of the intangible man who becomes all too real.

Editorial Reviews:

The ordinary heroines of Anne Tylers small towns step on their skirts and interrupt when they should listen. A Slipping-Down Life, Tylers third novel, yokes Evie Decker to this imperfect sisterhood. At first Evie appears blank as a pot of white paint, just another fat girl walking alone, secretly admiring her own slender wrists. But the smokescreen upends when Evie catches local rock and roller Drumstrings Casey on the radio. Shes a goner. Its the early sixties after all. But Evies infatuation soon defaults into doomed teen marriage after she carves his name across her forehead with nail clippers, thereby inventing his fame and claiming his dependence on her.

Audie Award-winner Jessica Almasy narrates with a perky bounciness that nicely mimics Drums guitar jams at dive bar Unicorn, where he burns up the stage while fan girls catcall and flap eyelashes the size of small whiskbrooms. Evie is murkier, though, and Almasy struggles to connect us to the characters muffled core of unhappiness. Partly to blame: Almasys grating, singsong cadences and uptalking, which ends most sentences on smiley faces. Her southern accent also hinders. A Slipping-Down Life unfolds in North Carolina, yet Almasy affects a stagey Steel Magnolias drawl.

Evie Decker isnt clever or insightful. Rather, shes self-absorbed and pushy in an under-the-radar way. Still, she does have one friend Violet and its she who ultimately redeems Almasys performance. More hulking than Evie, Violet is blazingly gorgeous, with a husky voice that hypnotizes and cranes heads. Almasy channels this source of allure as a blend of wild clover honey and throaty screen siren. Her Violet is so intoxicating it only makes you adore her more for pinning a wiglet to her hair.

Members Reviews:

Great Book - Ruined by Narration

How did the narrator detract from the book?

This narrator was so bad I found myself riding in the car screaming at her. She over enunciated. Her cadence was maddening. Worst of all, her choice of words to stress in her narration was appalling. I never thought so much about the incredibly negative impact a poor narrator can have.

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Título: La iguana [The Iguana]

Autor: Alberto Vázquez-Figueroa

Narrador: Fernando Caride

Formato: Unabridged

Duración: 7 hrs and 43 mins

Idioma: Español

Fecha de publicación: 11-11-10

Editor: Audiomol

Calificaciones: 4.5 de 5 de 10 votos

Categorías: Fiction, Contemporary

Resumen del editor:

A finales del siglo XVIII, existió un hombre llamado Iguana Oberlús, que debido a su terrible aspecto era despreciado y maltratado por todo el mundo. Harto de esa situación, huyó al archipiélago de Las Galápagos, y en el islote de La Española estableció su morada. Allí esperó impaciente durante años, pero al final sus deseos se vieron cumplidos: en ese islote atracaron unos pocos barcos y La Iguana no desaprovechó su oportunidad. Secuestró algunos de sus tripulantes y los sometió a sus órdenes, tratándolos como simples criaturas salvajes, tal y como lo habían tratado a él durante toda su vida.

Please note: This audiobook is in Spanish.

Opiniones de los miembros:

muy entretenido

Would you consider the audio edition of La iguana [The Iguana] to be better than the print version?

el audio libro estuvo bastante bueno ,no se mucho acerca de la otra version

What was one of the most memorable moments of La iguana [The Iguana]?

para mi el final

What does Fernando Caride bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you just read the book?

excelente narrador , me gusto mucho su forma de narrar la historia

Any additional comments?

no es un gran libro ,pero para escucharlo en el tiempo libro esta bien, ademas tienes partes muy comicas