Audible Recommendations

[blackcat2345]

Looking to download my latest book and stumped what to choose.

Love long winded thrillers (like to get money's worth!), Victorian gothic, classics etc

So far have listened to:

Woman in White
The Goldfinch
The Five (back story to Jack the Ripper's victims)
Dracula
Mr Jekyl etc
Frankenstein
War and Pease
Anna Karenina
Crime and Punishment
Mythos
Sherlock Holmes Collection

You see there is a theme! Any other recommendations most welcome. Did consider working my way through Dickens but as I read a lot of them at school seems waste of a credit.

I'm currently listening to Tana French's new novel, 'Wych Elm'. It comes in at over 22 hours so it meets your money's worth criterion. There's a mystery at the heart of it but it's really all about the character of the narrator who, at half way through, is showing hints of being unreliable. Never read/listened to anything by her before, but I am very much engaged by it and would recommend.

In more classic mode, Anthony Trollope's 'Can You Forgive Her' is one of Audible's £3 birthday offers today. 28 hours. Very good. Plus. if you find you enjoy Trollope, then there's a lot to look forward to if you are not already familiar with him.

They also have a very good new HG Wells collection which is a lot of listening for the money.

I keep meaning to listen to 'Rebecca' and 'Vanity Fair' which I've read but I think the audio experience would be great too.

Thanks Pippi, bit sad that I consider any less than 20 hours not to be good value!

Trollope books look great, hadn't considered them. Also the HG Wells (are they very sci-if?)

No, I'm not a sci-fi fan at all, and I really enjoyed them. They say much more about the time Wells was writing than anything else.

The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins is another favourite of mine (love The Woman In White and it's nearly 19 hours too LOL).

I am not a sci-fi fan at all, but really enjoyed The Martian.

Not a thriller, but enjoyed The Help and another good length one.

South of Broad and Beach Music by my favourite Pat Conroy also not thrillers, but love them and good lengths.

I've just finished The Mere Wife by Maria Dahvana Headley which has had me tearing up on the bus - if you like that sort of thing. It's very powerful and a brilliant story

I think you'd love Affinity by Sarah Waters and possibly The Essex Serpent by Sarah Parry. Both Victorian and deal with the supernatural - both excellently written.

When i was doing a lot of driving i bought Bleak House - 46 hrs! Definitely good value for money, and a totally brilliant narrator. I surprised myself by how much i enjoyed it (i’d never have ploughed through it reading).

I just love the Anthony Trollope books narrated by Timothy West! He's a brilliant narrator and really brings them to life.

The Barchester one are a bit more 'fun' than the Palliser ones, but both series are very good. Also, The Way We Live Now, which is a stand alone novel.

For more modern reads, Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield is probably the best book I've read this year. And try The Mermiad and Mrs. Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gower. Basically, anything narrated by Juliet Stephenson is usually great!

If you like Victorian stuff, there is a very good free series on audible, I think it's called Victorian secrets narrated by Stephen Fry. There's about 15 episodes, 30-40 mins each.

I'm really enjoying Alias Grace by Margaret Attwood at the moment, I think it's based on a true story, in Canada in the 1800's.

Vanity Fair is really good.

Also the Agatha Christies are fantastic, albeit not that long.

Oooh and the Pride and Prejudice read by Lindsay Duncan.

I'd say go for the Dickens.
I read the collection again during a long hospital stay, and got much more from them than when reading them at school.

Poirot and Miss Marple adaptations are both very good.

Not terribly long but have listened to both of Graham Nortons novels which he narrates in his lovely lilting Irish tone.

My first book from audible was The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver which was brill. It’s a bit over 15 hours I think.

Haruki Murakami may be a bit of an acquired taste for but his books are great and long. His latest is Killing Commendatore which is 28 hours.

A Prayer for Owen Meaney by John Irving is 25 hours. I found the audiobook better than print (gave up in print)

Fab suggestions, thank you. Have got so lazy, much prefer listening to books these days and great for long drives.

Tommy do you have any thoughts on which Dickens to start with? Maybe one of the lesser known ones?

Also, just realised I struggle with listening to well recognised narrators, not sure why. Can't seem to immerse myself in the story properly.

The Dickens Bleak House i liked was narrated by Hugh Dickinson i think (and i’m the same - can’t immerse myself if the narrator is recogniseable).