Simply The Best Audiobooks in Fiction, Contemporary to Download

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Title: Niagara Falls All Over Again

Author: Elizabeth McCracken

Narrator: George Guidall

Format: Unabridged

Length: 13 hrs and 14 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-18-04

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 42 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Drawn to Vaudeville from a Jewish upbringing in a small town outside Des Moines, Mose Sharp meets Rocky Carter at a comedy club. Missing his usual sideman, Carter enlists Sharp to participate in his routine. On stage, Carter's hilarious emotional exaggeration and absurdity come into their own with Sharp's deadpan delivery, and just like that, the inseparable duo of Carter and Sharp is born. From Broadway to Hollywood in 1939, the duo finds great success in movies before a series of unforgivable acts tears them apart.

Filled with compassion and beauty, Niagara Falls All Over Again builds up intensely before life's toll harkens the bittersweet unraveling of Carter and Sharp. With the experienced voice of veteran narrator George Guidall, McCracken's prose finds its perfect complement.

Critic Reviews:

"Relentlessly eventful, rollickingly funny and heartwarming narrative....In its delicate balance of black humor, irony and pathos, this novel is as exhilarating as the waters of Niagara, its flow mimicking the tumultuous rush of time." (Publishers Weekly)

Members Reviews:

A Keeper!

Whether it is the book itself or the captivating art of George Guidall's reading, I was sad when I finished this book. Funny, insightful, sad in a good way, it remains my favorite and I am looking forward to listening to it again when the memory of it fades enough for me to enjoy it again.

Christine

I found listening to this book just delightful. It kept my interest thoughout and the characters were very real.

so- so

It's hard to pin down what I didn't like about this book. The characters were engaging enough...I think the story just went on and on. George Guidall could read the phone book and I'd listen. He's a gem.

Good but was hoping for more

I like this author. Her short stories are amazing. This book was entertaining and based on what appeared to be an Abbott and Costello relatinship between two comics. It provides a lot of insight into that life but I was just hoping for a bit more. Especially from someone whose writing I really do admire.

Two Guys Walk Into a Theater

I didn't read the synopsis of this book. My mistake. I wasn't interested in the characters or the topic. This is not the fault of the book, just a reflection of my tastes in literature.

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Title: The Piano Tuner

Author: Daniel Mason

Narrator: Graeme Malcolm

Format: Abridged

Length: 5 hrs and 44 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-27-02

Publisher: Random House Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 37 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

In October 1886, Edgar Drake receives a strange request from the British War Office: he must leave his wife and his quiet life in London to travel to the jungles of Burma, where a rare Erard grand piano is in need of repair. The piano belongs to an army surgeon-major whose unorthodox peacemaking methods have brought a tentative quiet to the southern Shan States but have elicited questions from his superiors.

On his journey through Europe, the Red Sea, India, and into Burma, Edgar meets soldiers, mystics, bandits, and tale-spinners, as well as an enchanting woman as elusive as the surgeon-major. And at the doctor's fort on a remote Burmese river, Edgar encounters a world more mysterious and dangerous than he ever could have imagined.

Sensuous, lyrical, rich with passion and adventure, this is a hypnotic tale of myth, romance, and self-discovery: an unforgettable novel.

Critic Reviews:

"A seductive and lyrical novel that probes the brutalities and compromises of colonization, even as it celebrates the elusive powers of music and the imagination." (The New York Times)

"A profound adventure story with an unexpected climax." (The New Yorker)

Members Reviews:

One of the very best

Of course, any review is going to be subjective. Some people love Whodunnits. Some people love History. Some people love Elizabethen Drama. Etc. I love a Good Story which is Well Told, and this one is among the very best titles I've ever "read". The story is complex yet with few enough main characters as not to have me hopelessly confused. The subtlety and nuance are delicate and well placed. The style is indeed reminiscent of Joseph Conrad but without being derivative. The characters are all most engaging so that one feels for them both when things go well and when they go bad. The writing style is compelling. The author has done his homework with even the smallest details, yet these details are all in the service of the overall tale. And the reader is past excellent. The lover of a well-turned word and phrase, the lover of an engaging tale will find this a most rewarding title.

Sensuos, thought provoking, grabbinng

The combination works nearly perfectly - a good reader, a good story. The description of the burmese jungle are really beautiful - but not over lengthy to become boring. The psychological insight into the main character is fascinating. I listen to a lot of books on tape and this is one of my favorites (Along with Poisonwood Bible). I definately reccomend this for fiction lovers.

Superb mixture of story telling and mystery.

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

I already have recommended it to several.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The Piano Tuner - of course!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I found it to be a "I can't wait to listen to what happens next" sort of book. The imagery and story are superb.

Any additional comments?

The pronunciation of Burmese is worth the listen.

Get the Unabridged version

Oooops. I inadvertently got the abridged version, which, no doubt suffers from the abridgment.

This book is loaded with tropical atmosphere, lovely and creepy. The ending will haunt me forever.

Quite good

A heart-of-darkness-type story that was great for passing the time on a long road trip. Interesting, thoughtful, and beautifully written.

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Title: Riley in the Morning

Author: Sandra Brown

Narrator: Alison Fraser

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs

Language: English

Release date: 03-14-01

Publisher: Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 50 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

As the former producer of the popular morning television program Riley in the Morning, Brin Cassidy had not only worked with the temperamental and charismatic blue-eyed star, she had also fallen in love and married him. Their tempestuous, passionate affair was the stuff romances were made of. So why did Brin leave him? She knew in her heart that she owed Riley the explanation he had come for. But did he have to come on this of all nights?

From dusk until dawn the two relive their first explosive meeting, their sensuous courtship, their impetuous elopement, and their blissful marriage. It is an emotional and eventful roller coaster of a night filled with passion, seduction, and deep revelation. And only when the final secret is revealed will there be an answer to the question of whether or not there will be a future for Riley in the morning.

Members Reviews:

Why did she leave him?

Good question! Whole story seemed to revolve around this question. Boy! was the answer a let down!

Riley in the Morning

I loved reading the book when I was 18yrs and I really enjoyed listening to the audio.

love this book I have love it for years

I hope that everyone loves this book as much as I do thank so much

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Title: True Justice

Author: Robert K. Tanenbaum

Narrator: Chris Meloni

Format: Abridged

Length: 4 hrs and 18 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-14-00

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 16 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

For Butch Karp, chief assistant district attorney for New York County, the nightmare begins when a shocking act of negligence results in homicide. Goaded by the media's sensational publicity, the public is screaming for blood, and the DA is listening. It is Karp's unpleasant job to give the public what it wants by prosecuting a poor, Hispanic 15-year-old mother for murder. Complicating matters further is Karp's wife, private investigator Marlene Ciampi, who has decided to return to law. On her first assignment, a case involving an equally unspeakable tragedy, Marlene takes on a publicly ambitious local prosecutor who is pressing to charge a suburban teenager with capital murder.

With Butch and Marlene squaring off on opposite sides of a national debate, things couldn't get worse, until an astonishing turn of events puts their daughter at the center of a horrifying crime. Suddenly, everything they believe in is challenged, as they are drawn into the maelstrom of big city politics and small town values, where justice is sacrificed to the twin gods of public perception and expediency - and Karp must struggle to salvage his self-respect, his career, and his very life.

Members Reviews:

I love these characters

I love these characters; I've read all the series, but somehow, missed this one along the way. Reading an older book in the series is throwback, folks are years younger the advent of the cell phone has just arrived.

Five Stars

Very entertaining like all of the Butch Karp/Marlene Ciampi novels.

Butch and Marlene overcome obstacles!

Robert Tanenbaum always writes an interesting story. I like reading about him and Marlene and the troubles they encounter.

... second time that I read this book and I loved it even more then the first time

This is the second time that I read this book and I loved it even more then the first time!!!

The Karps are back!

Tanenbaum at his best. A flashback in fictional time but the whole Karp family shines. 16 year old Lucy is the star

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Título: El balneario [The Spa]

Autor: Carmen Martín Gaite

Narrador: Macu Gómez

Formato: Unabridged

Duración: 6 hrs and 16 mins

Idioma: Español

Fecha de publicación: 06-30-11

Editor: Audiomol

Calificaciones: 3.5 de 5 de 2 votos

Categorías: Fiction, Contemporary

Resumen del editor:

En los diez magistrales relatos que componen El balneario, se incluye el que da título al libro y que obtuvo el premio Café Gijón de novela corta 1954. No resulta fácil encontrar, en la logia mayor de la literatura española contemporánea, una observadora de la cotidianidad tan aguda, profunda y lúcida como Carmiña Martin Gaite. Nadie como ella para reparar en ese detalle, aparentemente nimio, que revela una dependencia, subraya un ejercicio de poder, señala con el dedo un terror, un ataque de angustia o de soledad. (Luis Alberto de Cuenca).

Please note: This audiobook is in Spanish.

Opiniones de los miembros:

Tough miniatures

Tough, because of the clear-sighted and minutely observed nature of the stories, their often bleak view of life, and, because, at my level of Spanish, the language is difficult. The stories are all scenes from daily life, and often reflect desperation on the part of the usually female central character. They were too difficult for me to enjoy properly (for personal enjoyment, I would have to give only 2 stars), but I think that the literary prizes won by the author are well-deserved. Macu Gomez reads with very expressively, but less clearly than some of the others, further adding to the difficulty of the text. -- In summary, probably great for those with better Spanish than me - hence the 4 stars.

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Title: Past Imperfect

Author: Julian Fellowes

Narrator: Julian Fellowes

Format: Abridged

Length: 6 hrs and 56 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-30-08

Publisher: Orion Publishing Group Limited

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 7 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Damian Baxter is very rich and dying. He lives alone, attended by chauffeur, butler, cook and a housemaid, a life of everything and nothing. Before he goes he needs to know if he has a living heir. At stake is his fortune - in excess, he reckons, of 500 million. By the time he married he was sterile (the result of adult mumps in his early twenties), but what about before that unfortunate illness? Had he fathered a child as a young man?

An anonymous letter from twenty years before suggests so. But finding the truth will not prove easy, as the only man who knows where to look is Damian's sworn enemy.

Often funny and on occasion even shocking, the twists and turns of Past Imperfect will leave readers as intrigued as Damian at the eventual outcome.

Just as in his bestselling book Snobs, Julian Fellowes shows himself a wonderful storyteller with characters superbly observed. Here is the Jane Austen of the twenty-first century with more than an acerbic dash of Evelyn Waugh.

Members Reviews:

Fun but shallow

This book was good fun to listen to, and top marks to Julian Fellowes for reading it himself - he was excellent. However, the characters were all so silly and shallow and similar to one another, particularly the women, that by the end I couldn't give a damn who got the inheritance. In fact, just a few days after finishing listening to it, I find I can't even remember who it was....

A Charming Education!

I thought the whole premise was good and the layering up of the plot was excellent. I thought it was very thought provoking and, being a child of the 80s it made me really consider the changes that took place in society in the 60s & 70s.

Evocative, witty and sad

There are several strands to this book that make it a very satisfying experience. The backdrop is the transition point in the social life of the British aristocracy and their acolytes that occurred in the 1960s. Debutantes are are no longer presented at Court, but are still paraded before potential suitors, though some are questioning whether a 'good' marriage should be their only goal. Julian Fellows, as in his Gosford Park, deftly exposes the petty snobberies, unearned privileges and vacuousness of this world. However, the book is far much more than a witty satire of Society as the main theme of the book is a dying man's quest to find a son, he didn't know he fathered decades earlier, that carries the book along.

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Title: Summary of Miller's Valley by Anna Quindlen | Includes Analysis

Author: Instaread

Narrator: Susan Murphy

Format: Unabridged

Length: 25 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-25-16

Publisher: Instaread

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Summary of Miller's Valley by Anna Quindlen | Includes Analysis

Preview:

Miller's Valley is a coming-of-age story set in a fictional town in Pennsylvania. There, Mimi Miller and her family live under the constant threat of flooding from severe rainstorms and from the government, which hopes to turn the town into a reservoir. As her family falls apart and the town moves slowly toward its inevitable demise, the protagonist begins her life as a successful young adult.

Mimi lives in Miller's Valley with her parents, Buddy and Miriam, her older brother, Tommy, and her aunt Ruth, who resides in a second house on the same property. Mimi's oldest brother, Eddie, 10 years her senior, has already left home. When she's not at school, Mimi passes the time selling ears of corn with the help of her best friends, LaRhonda and Donald. At home, she spends a lot of time visiting Aunt Ruth, who's a shut-in. Sisters Ruth and Miriam have an antagonistic relationship....

Please Note: This is summary and analysis of the book and not the original book.

Inside this Instaread summary of Miller's Valley:

Members Reviews:

Great summary! You never really leave...

This is a Summary and Analysis about "Miller's Valley," a New York Times Bestseller by Anna Quindlen. This novel is an emotionally powerful story about a family you will never forget. It is a study of family, memory, loss, and, ultimately, discovery, of finding true identity and a new vision of home. This is a reminder that the place you grew up can disappear or you may leave the place, but everything will live on in your heart forever.

This summary book provides the reader information on the Summary of the Book, Important People, Character Analysis, Analysis of the Themes and Authorâs Style. This is a good quick read specially for those who don't want to dive in straight into reading all 272 pages of the original book. It will help you with your decision making whether or not to purchase the original book. I appreciate this summary because it has opened a door for me to further delve into this novel and probably more of Miss Quindlen's books.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.

Perfect for school work

"Miller's Valley" is a coming-of-age story set in a fictional town in Pennsylvania. There, Mimi Miller and her family live under the constant threat of flooding from severe rainstorms and from the government, which hopes to turn the town into a reservoir. As her family falls apart and the town moves slowly towards its inevitable demise, the protagonist begins her life as a successful young adult.

This Instaread review distilled the novel into a quick summary and provided additional analysis and insight. Instaread boiled down the story so that I could easily write a book report and even gave me some great points about the characters and their relationships. The exploration of the themes in "Miller's Valley," was the strength of this Instaread review. If for nothing else, you should read this summary just for that.

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Titre: Une vie entre deux océans

Auteur: M. L. Stedman

Narrateur: Martin Spinhayer

Format: Unabridged

Durée: 12 hrs and 25 mins

Langue: Français

Date de publication: 02-14-14

Éditeur: Audiolib

Evaluation: 4.5 sur 5 sur 2 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Résumé de l'éditeur:

Libéré de l'horreur des tranchées où il a combattu, Tom Sherbourne, de retour en Australie, devient gardien de phare sur l'île de Janus, une île sur les Lights, sauvage et reculée. À l'abri du tumulte du monde, il coule des jours heureux avec sa femme Isabel ; un bonheur peu à peu contrarié par l'impossibilité d'avoir un enfant. Jusqu'à ce jour d'avril où un dinghy vient s'abîmer sur le rivage, abritant à son bord le cadavre d'un homme et un bébé sain et sauf. Isabel demande à Tom d'ignorer le règlement, de ne pas signaler "l'incident" et de garder avec eux l'enfant. Une décision aux conséquences dévastatrices...

Un premier roman plébiscité dans le monde entier qui interroge les liens du cœur et du sang. Une interprétation à "cœur battant" qui entraîne l'auditeur dans une histoire pleine de méandres, bouleversante, en immersion totale.

©2013 Grasshill Communications / Éditions Stock pour la traduction française (P)2013 Audiolib

Avis des membres:

Poignant

One of the most disturbing, thrilling and poignant stories I've read in a while...

Wasn't a big fan of the narration, its style was high school like.

Superb!

Great French narrator and brilliant story. I ran, walked, drove and did housework listening to it. Could not 'put it down'. Thank you.

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Title: Shift

Subtitle: Wool Trilogy, Book 2

Author: Hugh Howey

Narrator: Peter Brooke

Format: Unabridged

Length: 18 hrs and 15 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-25-13

Publisher: Random House Audiobooks

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 29 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

The much anticipated prequel to best seller Wool that takes us back to the beginnings of the silo. The full novel which brings together First, Second and Third Shift.

In a future less than fifty years away, the world is still as we know it. Time continues to tick by. The truth is that it is ticking away. A powerful few know what lies ahead. They are preparing for it. They are trying to protect us. They are setting us on a path from which we can never return. A path that will lead to destruction; a path that will take us below ground. The history of the silo is about to be written. Our future is about to begin.

Critic Reviews:

"The next Hunger Games" (The Sunday Times)

"An epic feat of imagination. You will live in this world." (Justin Cronin)

Members Reviews:

I Loved this book

I so enjoyed this book. The story was a little more original than many of these sorts of books and it made me think. I enjoyed the narration too. If you like your science fiction with a little less alien action and with some real world action this is for you. A dark future that you can imagine happening in a way.

Not as as good as the first. 3 1/2 stars

I thought the story was average. Not a huge fan of the narration. Story seemed to drag at places. Hopefully next installment will pick up

Great book, terrible performance!!

Was really looking forward to this book after the excellent Wool that was excellently performed by a lady with a lovely expressive and versatile voice.

Have found this book hard going despite the great story, the narrator sounds like a surfer and I keep waiting for him to say 'duuude'.

It looks as though Audible are looking to cash in on the success of Wool by bringing over this recording from America but it is so difficult to get past the narrator's voice.

Listen to the sample before you buy, if you can listen to narrator then you are in for a great story.

Oh Dear

I wanted to love this as much as I had wool, but its too long winded and gets tied in knots with its time lines.

A rewrite of Wool from a different point of view

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

Stop using silly voices

Any additional comments?

If you've read Wool (which is brilliant) and want to read Dust (which is very good) then you need to read Shift for it to make sense. Apart from that, I'd give it a miss. I would give Wool 10/10, Shift 5/10 and Dust 8/10.

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Title: Imperial Bedrooms

Author: Bret Easton Ellis

Narrator: Andrew McCarthy

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 3 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-02-10

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Publishers Ltd.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

In 1985, Bret Easton Ellis shocked, stunned, and disturbed with Less Than Zero, his extraordinarily accomplished first novel (New Yorker), successfully chronicling the frightening consequences of unmitigated hedonism within the ranks of the ethically bereft youth of '80s Los Angeles. Twenty-five years later, Ellis returns to those same characters to Clay and the band of infamous teenagers whose lives weave sporadically through his but now, they face an even greater period of disaffection: their own middle age.

Clay seems to have moved on hes become a successful screenwriter but when he returns from New York to Los Angeles, to help cast his new movie, hes soon drifting through a long-familiar circle.

Blair, his vulnerable former girlfriend, is now married to Trent still a bisexual philanderer and their Beverly Hills parties attract excessive levels of fame and fortune. Clays childhood friend Julian is a recovering addict running an ultra-discreet, high-class escort service, and their old dealer Rip, reconstructed and face-lifted nearly beyond recognition, is involved in activities far more sinister than those of his notorious past.

After a meeting with a gorgeous but talentless actress determined to win a role in his movie, Clay finds himself connected with Kelly Montrose, a producer whose gruesomely violent death is suddenly very much the talk of the town. As his seemingly endless proclivity for betrayal leads him to be drawn further and further into this ominous case, it looks like he will face far more serious consequences than ever before.

Members Reviews:

Great narrator. Excellent job Andrew McCarthy

Hollywood is and always will be an industry that feeds on hope and dreams. Beware of the predators at the gate.