13 Phenomenal Audiobooks You’ll Love Listening To

An audio original novella from the bestselling author of Ordinary Grace and This Tender Land, The Levee is a powerful, captivating story of a family, a storm, a complicated rescue, and the true cost of survival.

It’s 1927, and the most devastating flood in American history has swelled the Mississippi River to a width of eighty miles. In an attempt to save a family trapped by the rising water, four men in a tiny rowboat battle the treacherous flow: three are convicts, on loan from the local prison and pressed into service; the fourth, the leader of the team, is driven by his own hidden motives. But to their surprise upon arrival at Ballymore, an ancestral home protected by a high, circular levee, not everyone in the family feels the need to be saved. Pride, greed, loyalty, and even love create their own complex currents behind the massive wall. As the threat from the flood increases and time ticks away, the crew and the family must decide on a course of action, and a desperate plan is hatched to save the weakening levee and all it was built to protect.

The Levee is a propulsive, heartfelt tale of courage, cowardice, and sacrifice in a historic moment when the indomitable human spirit is pitted against the awesome and destructive power of nature.

When Mia Dennett, the daughter of a prominent Chicago judge, is abducted as part of a wild extortion plot, things take an unexpected turn when her kidnapper decides to hide her in a secluded cabin. An addictively suspenseful and taut thriller, THE GOOD GIRL exposes how, even in a perfect family, nothing is as it seems.

Narrated by Lindy Nettleton, Johnny Heller, Tom Taylorson, and Andi Arndt

Set against the scenic yet austere backdrop of the Ozark Mountains, this stunning audiobook follows sixteen-year-old Ree Dolly as she sets out to find her father, who has skipped bail on drug charges. Filled with graceful storytelling on a devastating subject, WINTER’S BONE is an unsettling portrait of rural poverty and survival.

Narrated by Emma Galvin

Escaping a cheating ex, finance whiz Sara Dillon moves to New York City looking for excitement. There she meets an irresistible Wall Street bad boy, and the manner—and speed—with which he melts her inhibitions turns him from a one-time hookup into her Beautiful Stranger.

Narrated by Grace Grant and Jonathan R. Cole

Inspired by events in the life of revolutionary anthropologist Margaret Mead, EUPHORIA is an enthralling story of passion, possession, exploration, and sacrifice from accomplished author Lily King.

Narrated by Simon Vance and Xe Zands

This 2013 Audie winner is a luminous, haunting, and unforgettable debut about twelve-year-old Julia’s coming-of-age set in an utterly altered world where the earth’s rotation has slowed and suddenly there is too much time.

Narrated by Emily Janice Card

Filled with hilarious and heartfelt observations on aging, this Grammy-nominated memoir by one of America’s favorite comedians outlines the absurdities and challenges that come with growing older. This 2014 Audie Audiobook of the Year is read by Billy Crystal himself with his trademark wit and heart.

Narrated by Billy Crystal

Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet reads the tale of Matilda, a brilliant and sensitive child whose parents think of her only as a nuisance. When one day she is attacked by her odious headmistress Matilda suddenly discovers she has a remarkable power with which to avenge herself.

Narrated by Kate Winslet

A stunning accomplishment, Khaled Hosseini’s follow-up to the beloved classic THE KITE RUNNER is a haunting, heartbreaking, engrossing story of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love.

Narrated by Atossa Leoni

When a dead man and a living baby wash up on the shores of a remote island off the coast of Australia, the lighthouse keeper and his wife decide to claim the baby as their own. M. L. Stedman’s extraordinarily compelling characters are imperfect people seeking to find their North Star in a world of incomprehensible complexity.

Narrated by Noah Taylor

In this thought-provoking audiobook, Liane Moriarty deftly explores the reality of parenting and playground politics, ex-husbands and ex-wives, and fractured families. In her pitch-perfect way, she shows us the truth about what really goes on behind closed suburban doors.

Narrated by Caroline Lee

For the Posts, a two-week trip to the island of Mallorca with family and friends is an escape from the tensions simmering at home in Manhattan. But all does not go according to plan: secrets come to light, old and new humiliations are experienced, childhood rivalries resurface, and ancient wounds are exacerbated.

Narrated by Kristen Sieh

Composed with the skills of a master, THE GOLDFINCH is a haunted odyssey through present-day America and a drama of enthralling force and acuity. This Audie Award winner is an audiobook of shocking narrative energy and power.

Narrated by David Pittu