I went through my listens for 2022 and picked out the standouts.
The listens which stuck with me, which resonated, which entertained me the most. Where the narrative performance was as good as the story (if not better in some cases). I had six, some of which I reviewed here, some at my own blog and in one case, not at all. What they have in common is that they are all audiobooks I’m happy to recommend and very likely they will be ones I return to. In no particular order, here they are.
The Sign for Home by Blair Fell, narrated by Blair Fell
I picked this one up when it was an Audible Daily Deal. Serendipity! I loved it. It wasn’t a romance exactly – more fiction with romantic elements but there was definitely a HEA and the story otherwise ended happily too. There are two POV characters – Arlo, a 23-year-old deaf blind Jehovah’s Witness and Cyril, a 40-something gay interpreter. And no, the romance is not between Cyril and Arlo. At turns the story made me angry, sad, and joyful as well as opening my experience to what it is like to be deaf blind. It’s often a bit of a crap shoot when an audiobook is narrated by the author – especially when it is a debut novel and as best I can tell, also his debut narration. But it was fantastic as well. I highly recommend this one.
Nightwork by Nora Roberts, narrated by Will Damron
I usually enjoy the annual stand alone Nora Roberts but Nightwork felt like a standout nonetheless. The main character is a thief, the romance is extremely satisfying and I enjoyed the tightly plotted story. I reviewed Nightwork via a Twitter thread but reproduced and expanded on it a little here.
Thank You For Listening by Julia Whelan, narrated by Julie Whelan
I said earlier that it is often a crapshoot when the author narrates but of course that’s not the case at all when the author is Julia Whelan. The narration was, of course, superb. My full review is here.
Book Lovers by Emily Henry, narrated by Julia Whelan
Julia Whelan makes my list twice. I first listened to Emily Henry purely because of the narrator. Nowadays, I’m confident that both the author and the narrator are going to give me a great audiobook experience. My full review is here.
The Bodyguard by Katherine Center, narrated by Patti Murin
I hadn’t read or listened to any books by Katherine Center before and I hadn’t listened to a Patti Murin narration either. But after I finished The Bodyguard I immediately went to my library and borrowed as many Center books as I could. And Patti Murin will be another of those narrators where I’ll try a new author just so I can listen to her. The Bodyguard was also genuinely funny – I laughed out loud many times. Humour is subjective of course but this one certainly worked for me. Full review here.
Clean Sweep by Ilona Andrews, Graphic Audio full cast narration
The last book on my list is the Graphic Audio full cast narration of Clean Sweep. I’d listened to the original audio narrated by Renee Raudman and enjoyed it very much but the full cast brought something extra special to it. I plan to consume the whole series this way. Full review here.
What were your top listens for the year? Do we share any favourites? I love to read favourites lists – I always get great recommendations from them so please share!
Kaetrin
Thank you for your list. I love coming back to these for inspiration during the year. Nora Roberts has been a favorite for years, but not as much recently, so I lost track of her new releases. I’ll definitely look this one up.
I thought Nightwork was right up there with The Witness.
Oh, wow! I’ll definitely give it a listen. I really enjoyed that book.
So interesting! Five of your six were on my top listens of 2022 as well! (didn’t read/listen to Ilona Andrews). There really were a lot of great choices in 2022. Hope this year is equally rich.
Thank you! And wow – nice to have so much in common with you. :)