Amy Landon's lively narration unites present-day Ohio and Perceforest, a fairy-tale realm, in this immersive reimagining of the Sleeping Beauty universe. On her 21st birthday, Zinnia Gray is transported into a world resembling that of her beloved Sleeping Beauty stories. At the same moment, a princess about to prick her finger on a spindle calls for help. Landon's characterizations of Zinnia and Princess Primrose illuminate their strengths and vulnerabilities. The story is told through Zinnia's perspective, and listeners absorb her sense of urgency over her chronic illness and Primrose's fate. Landon also creates haughty, slightly British-sounding royal denizens whose tones contrast with those of Zinnia's parents and stalwart best friend, Charm. A powerful sisterhood anchors this entertaining Fractured Fable production.
Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2021
Duration: 3 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781250824486
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Maarleveld’s smooth, dark narration makes this murder mystery hard to pause.
Saskia Maarleveld narrates this dark academia audiobook about five mage healers whose final test is interrupted by the death of their classmate. Ysabel was a talented healer, and despite what others conclude, her cohort is certain she didn’t take her own life—she was murdered. As the healers are put to the test during the five-day exam, they come together despite their differences to solve Ysabel’s murder. Maarleveld masterfully differentiates among the main cast, crafting distinct personalities. Banter between characters shifts as the cohort combats their prejudices, warms up to each other, and even enters into romances. Maarleveld pronounces French names and terminology with a refined air that elevates the setting.
Maarleveld’s smooth, dark narration makes this murder mystery hard to pause.Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2026
Duration: 14 hrs, 18 mins
DD ISBN: 9781250472182
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Review Posted Online: today
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2027
It all makes for absorbing listening.
Narrator Ciaran Saward brings excitement and heart to this compelling fantasy. In a world where powerful entities move castles from one location to another like they’re playing a giant game of chess, it’s the everyday people who suffer the consequences. After 15-year-old Burr’s father is executed by the lord of one of the castles, Burr and two of his sisters, along with a ragtag group of villagers, find themselves inside the castle as it's relocating. Can they claim the castle as their own, and can they survive as rebels? With a variety of mostly British accents, Saward keeps the many characters, both children and adults, distinct, always taking care to make the emotional threads between them clear.
It all makes for absorbing listening. (Fantasy. 13-adult)Pub Date: Sept. 8, 2026
Duration: 13 hrs, 16 mins
DD ISBN: 9798898840914
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Oct. 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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