20+ Great Audiobooks to Listen to
If you have been searching for some great audiobooks to listen to, I’ve compiled a list of my absolute favorite audiobooks! Pop in your email address below and I’ll send a printable version of the list right to your inbox.
Years ago, I did a post about my favorite audiobooks for grown-ups.
I wanted a go-to list of terrific audiobooks to pick up whether you wanted something to listen to while you folded laundry or when you were headed out for a walk or a long road trip!
All these years later, there are lots of new audiobooks I’ve listened to and loved! Whether you want something funny and light, a mystery, rich fantasy, historical fiction or non-fiction, there is something for you on this list!
P.S. If you don’t have an Audible membership, this is a great time to try it out, since they have a 3 month 99 cent deal going on right now! It’s 99 cents a month and you’ll get a credit each month to buy any audiobook you’d like and even if you cancel at the end of the 3 months, you’ll keep your audiobooks!
20+ Great Audiobooks in All Types of Genres
Lovely War by Julie Berry
The story takes place during World War I and follows four main characters, so you get two love stories for the price of one. Even more interesting? The story is framed by several Greek gods who are in a tiff of their own during World War II (I lied – THREE love stories!). I know it sounds weird, but trust me, it works. It’s in the top 10 books I’ve ever read. My two older girls (12 and 15) listened to this one and loved it too! The audio has original music and is truly stunning.
Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson
This was our audiobook pick for our Costa Rica trip and it was a huge hit! I picked the full cast version, which was a great call – there are so many different voices and original music and sound effects and it just made for a stunning listen that we were all very into from the first few minutes. Tress has lived a quiet life until her beloved friend (and . .. .maybe more than friend?) is taken away on a voyage by his father and disaster strikes. Now Tress is ready to leave everything she’s ever known behind to stow away on a ship and sail across the mysterious seas where even a single drop of water can spell death for everyone aboard.
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
I wasn’t sure what to expect after The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (which I couldn’t get through), but this Haymitch prequel completely hooked me and reminded me of the grip the original trilogy had on me! Set during the 50th Hunger Games, this is the story of Haymitch as a contender in the Hunger Games 24 years before Katniss volunteers as Tribute. This one is INTENSE and the audio made me feel like I was watching a movie. My 15 year old loved it too.
My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows, narrated by Katherine Kellgren.
This is hands down the MOST fun audiobook you can listen to (and the ones I’ve gotten more positive feedback on than almost any other book I’ve ever recommended). It’s based VERY loosely on the true story of Lady Jane Grey who was Queen of England for a whopping 9 days before she was killed. It’s full of laughs and truly ridiculously plot twists and it’s probably the most fun I’ve ever had listening to an audiobook. (Full review here).
As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride written and narrated by Cary Elwes with Joe Layden.
If you grew up with The Princess Bride like I did, there almost can’t be a more fun book than this one. I LOVED all the behind-the-scenes about the making of this movie. After I convinced Bart to listen to it too, we watched the movie again and loved it even more, knowing so many funny things about various scenes and actors. Best of all, they managed to get almost the entire original cast to record their stories in the book, so hearing their voices is an extra bonus. (Full review here)
The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter
I loved this funny spy romantic comedy with a dose of action packed adventure. Zoe wakes up in Paris with zero memory, but when she is mistaken for her spy twin sister, there are a lot of people who want her dead. This one has dual narrators (there are two narrators on the audiobook, which was extra fun) and I just loved every second of this book. There is a sequel (The Blonde Who Came in From the Cold about the twin sister, which I liked but not as much as this one).
Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Within 10 minutes of turning on the audiobook, I was ALL IN and basically started running at night just so I could listen to another 30 minutes. It’s the story of a rock music in the seventies, and it’s hard to remember that it’s a novel, not non-fiction. It feels THAT real. It’s told through interviews with Daisy and Billy and other members of the band, family members and friends. It could be wildly confusing, but somehow it just WORKS. And the audio version is incredible!
Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera
This is such a fun audiobook listen because the whole thing is like listening to a true crime podcast. It got so much buzz and I listened to it last fall and was completely absorbed by it.
I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
Whenever someone asks which Sophie Kinsella book to start with (a question I get surprisingly regularly), I always recommend this one. I can’t even read my review of it without laughing out loud – that book is HILARIOUS. It follows Poppy, who is in a complete panic. She’s just recently gotten engaged and has now lost her vintage engagement ring which, of course, was a priceless family heirloom. And then her phone gets stolen. So she grabs a cell phone from the top of a trash can and starts using it as her own to track down the lost ring, even though the phone belongs to a business man whose assistant just quit (and ditched the phone). She insists she must keep the phone and will just pass along the messages for him. It won’t be a bit complicated, as no Sophie Kinsella plots ever are. (Full review here).
American Wolf by Nate Blakeslee
O-Six is the alpha female in a pack of wolves living in Yellowstone National Park and this is her story – which also includes the wolf reclamation project. All viewpoints of this heated topic are presented including the ranchers, the hunters, and those that love wolves. This was such a wild ride about something I knew zero about and I couldn’t stop telling everyone I knew about the cool things I was learning. This is one so many couples have told me they enjoyed listening to together on a road trip.
The Favorites by Layne Fargo
Whoa I loved this book! Similar vibes as Daisy Jones and the Six with a dash of Wuthering Heights. Katerina Shaw and Heath Rocha met when they were young and become very close. Both grew up in dysfunctional families and find a safe space with each other, eventually teaming up as ice dance partners and setting their sights on Olympic gold. But you better believe there will be A LOT of drama along the way! It’s told as a documentary which is SO fun! There is some language and spice but I loved this gripping audiobook!
The Outlaw Noble Salt by Amy Harmon
DANG did I love this book. I knew basically nothing about Butch Cassidy and this made me want to know ALL the things. It’s a re-imagining of his life, so it’s not all that historically accurate but that’s part of the fun. What MIGHT have happened if he’d decided to go straight after a life of crime and then fell in love? The audiobook is absolutely TERRIFIC – I could listen to Rob Shapiro read a phone book.
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Remarkably Bright Creatures was one of those books I did NOT expect to like (anything described as quirky is not usually for me, plus I’m not really an animal lover – I know). This book follows three different stories, one of which is an octopus, but it is so well done and I loved it!
Finlay Donovan is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
I’d seen this book everywhere and multiple people had recommended it to me but when someone sent me a message saying it reminded them of Sophie Kinsella, I picked it up at the library THAT DAY. I read (and loved!) this book about a struggling single mom who is mistaken for a hit woman and offered an enormous sum of money to take out a bad husband.
The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower
If you’ve been around for awhile, you know I love this series! I had read the entire series twice before these came out on audio and I was so excited to try out the audio version – wait until you hear all the voices the narrator does!
What the Wind Knows by Amy Harmon
This was an Everyday Reading Book Club book a few years ago and it’s definitely one of the most popular books I’ve ever done in book club – I got a FLOOD of messages from people who were absolutely obsessed with this time travel book about a woman from America raised by her Irish grandfather who, after his death, returns to Ireland to spread his ashes and finds herself back nearly a hundred years earlier, meeting her grandfather who is a little boy. This one is full of history and romance and read by two terrific narrators, who really bring it to life. The first couple of chapters are a bit slow, so be willing to be a little patient – it’s worth it! (Full Review Here)
Call Me Maybe by Cara Bastone
Told in alternating points of view, Vera has spent the last three hours on hold with customer service trying to get her website ready to launch her new business. Kal is the guy who finally picks up and thinks he can help her. As they spend hours together on the phone. . . it’s possible that her website won’t be the only thing that launches. This one is like listening to a movie.
Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt
I absolutely love Gary D. Schmidt books and this one made it on the 2025 Everyday Reading Book Club list! Okay for Now is truly one of my all-time favorite books. It is a companion book to The Wednesday Wars but stands solidly alone. This is middle grade at its finest – I cried reading it on an airplane the first time.
Last Christmas in Paris by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb.
This historical fiction Christmas book is set in WWI and is written entirely in letters (a format I don’t normally go for). Evie’s brother and his best friend are headed off to the front, but like most people, they assume the war will be over by Christmas and they have grand plans to spend it together in Paris. Of course, it doesn’t go that way. I HIGHLY recommend listening to this one – the narration is so good. (It’s not nearly as Christmas-y as the title suggests. You could definitely listen any time of year!).
Fire by Kristin Cashore
I’m not a huge fantasy reader, but this one is terrific! There’s too much plot in this book to sum it up, but it’s got it all: mind-reading, romance, political intrigue, family dynamics, and treachery. Plus, many great twists I didn’t see coming. And not to judge a book by it’s cover, but this is the BEST cover. I think Kristin Cashore could make anyone like fantasy.
Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan
This is one of the books where I feel deeply sorry for anyone who read this book on paper instead of listening. It’s just SO tremendously well done with the musical accompaniment really bringing the magic of this book to life.
I Will Always Write Back: How One Letter Changed Two Lives by Martin Ganda
This is a fantastic non-fiction story of two international pen pals that start as a school project and become lifelong friends. I read it more than a decade ago and still love this lovely story.
And if you’d like a printable copy of this list of great audiobooks that you can take to your library or screenshot on your phone for easy access, just pop in your email address below and it’ll come right to your inbox!
