Annoying Audiobook Narrators

[IHateScottBrick]

I recently stumbled upon My Brilliant Friend on TV and loved it. I wanted to get the audiobook but the American narrator has such an annoying voice. I wish there was a version with a British narrator.

No offence to my American friends but I can’t stand most American audiobook narrators as their voices are just so loud and overly expressive, and they often pronounce words strangely or sometimes just plain wrong! (There are several notable exceptions of course. Donna Tartt reading True Grit remains a favourite). The absolute worst is Scott Brick.

Can anybody recommend any good ones?

American Dirt. She's South American and brilliant

Kathleen Turner reading V I Warshawski is good.

Favourite audio book narrators are not American but I love:
Anton Lesser
Hattie Morahan
Fenella Woolgar - just listened to her reading Kate Atkinson's Life after Life and she was superb.

Lots of people really rate Juliet Stevenson as a narrator of audiobooks. She is good but personally I'm not that keen on her narration. I really like Harriet Walter, although I'm not sure how much she's recorded apart from The Balkan Trilogy.

I like Australian narrators (obvs where appropriate), and tthe narrator of Jane Harper's books is very good.

A pet peeve for me is if the narration lacks any expression, is flat, sounds like the reader can't be bothered.

Another really good narrator I can think of - Adjoa Andoh (brilliant at voices).

I really like Saul Reichlin, Candida Gubbins, and Louise Brealey off the top of my head. I often search for books by narrator!

I don’t know who the narrator is but I’m just listening to a year in the merde and the narrator is British and brilliant.

My least favourite is will Patton. He has ruined Stephen kings latest books for me. How can anyone sound so bored and disinterested!

I like Sean Barrett, he has a wonderful voice. And he doesn't do that 'wispy' thing that men often do when they're trying to do women's voices.

I also really like Janine Birkett who does the Vera books.

The women who read Crawdads gave the main character the most awful breathy idiotic voice which didn't help me to like the book!

Oh the best audio narrator by a mile imo is Jonathan Keeble. He has absolutely been the voice of lockdown for me. How he can find so many voices, is amazing. Plus he actually understands the meaning of what he is reading. His "a place of greater safety" was superb. His women's voices are tolerable.

I like AntonLesser v much too. Hate American narrators full stop.

Roc Jerom is pretty damn good too.

I have sent back many a good book because the narrator is poor. I find women's voices touch and go - J Stephenson vv disappointing.

I agree that the wrong narrator can ruin a book.
The ones I have most enjoyed recently were The Binding by Bridget Collins, narrated by Carl Prekopp.
And absolutely brilliant is Michael Sheen reading The Book of Dust by Philip Pullman.

The Help is narrated by lots of different people and is a joy to listen to

Agree with American pronunciation - buoyed was a particular low point when I recently listened to Gatsby read by Jake Gyllenhaal (he was otherwise good though). Elizabeth Moss was fabulous - that was Handmaid's obviously, not sure if she has done anything else.

Lots of narrators here that I have never heard of, so I will be checking them out later - thanks for the tips!

I have listened to quite a few "celebrity" audiobook narrators - Jake G reading Gatsby, Claire Danes reading Handmaid's Tale, etc - and they were tolerable. Dan Stevens and Tom Hiddleston were highlights. Also Michael Sheen reading the new His Dark Materials books.

Agree about the Crawdads narrator - awful!

I really like The Night Circus narrator even if his Irish accent is cringe!

Zara ramm she does the st Mary’s books. Anything with Stephen fry. I listened to the book by Alice platt called the flower girls it was read by Emilia Fox was just wonderful.

@Paranoidandroidmarvin1350

Zara ramm she does the st Mary’s books. Anything with Stephen fry. I listened to the book by Alice platt called the flower girls it was read by Emilia Fox was just wonderful.

I really like Stephen Fry, but I’m currently listening to him narrate 1984 and it doesn’t quite work. It’s not to the point where I’m not going to listen to it, but his voice is too nice for 1984 - he makes being vaporised by the thought police sound like a minor inconvenience that he is dealing with very politely!

Gosh I cannot stand Fry. Just can't not see him, in the voice.

For Australian books (Richard Flanagan, Patrick White, etc) Humphrey Bowers is the man. He has extraordinary range (female, male and child characters all sound true) and you never feel that he hasn’t got the sense quite right. I can only listen to half of the Patrick White books on Audible because the other half is narrated by a women with a ridiculously hyperbolic voice - think Frances de la Tour in Rising Damp!

Anton lesser - peerless.
Michael Jayson
Robin Browne
Miriam margolyse (sp?)
I once returned a book because the narrator was unlistenable. No quibble Re refund !

Oh and Michael Maloney

@Heneage totally agree about Jonathan Keeble. I listened to A Place of Greater Safety back in February. I was amazed at how he did the voices of D'Anton, Camille and Robespierre, really brought them to life for me. He's absolutely fantastic. He also narrates the Last Kingdom series and the characters really are so good.

I also like Zara Ramm for The Chronicles of St Mary's and SaraH Woodward for The Grand Sophy ( Georgette Heyer)

The narrator is absolutely key to my choice of audiobook. I always listen to a sample before choosing

@Heneage I agree with you about Jonathan Keeble. He is the best narrator for historical fiction - he really takes you there.
I also like Davina Porter, who narrates Outlander and Mists of Avalon.
I like Tom Hollander as well.

Sean Barrett is my favourite. I've downloaded stuff just because he's reading it. His voice is so comforting! He reads different parts really naturally and with genuine intelligent inflection. I first encountered him reading the Nakata sections of Kafka on the Shore and that led to me searching out his other stuff. I really wish they'd redo the Game of Thrones series (my guilty pleasure) with him reading it. He'd do an amazing job. Much better than poor old Roy Dotrice who read all the women like they were old fish wives.

Davina Porter is OK too, it took me some time to get used to her voice but she reads really well.

A lot of the time people just read without really seeming to be very interested in what they are reading, or they don't really "get it", even people you'd think would be great - actors that are great on film etc. It is so disappointing and can actually ruin a perfectly good book. Reading aloud really well is obviously a different skill to acting.

Change the speed of the voice.

I had a really slow annoying narrator so I put in on x 1.25 or x 1.5 and he sounded much more normal and less annoying

I've just finished listening to The Promise by Damon Galgut, read by Peter Noble.
Great book. Set in South Africa an Afrikaans family. Not a cheery read but very good. I think I heard it recommended on something on Radio 4.

I loved the narration of The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Art Malik. He was very listenable. I can't think of any I really disliked. I find Stephen Fry and bit dull and his voice send me to sleep!