by Ashok K. Banker ; read by Vikas Adam ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 5, 2019
This audiobook is an epic fantasy retelling of THE MAHABHARATA, an Indian classic about three heirs to a powerful throne whose fight to claim their inheritance could tear apart the very nation they wish to rule. Banker offers listeners exotic imagery that comes from viewing storytelling through the lens of a different culture. Vikas Adam narrates with infectious energy that always gives the story animation--that extra fun factor. His character voices are superb, and it's often easy to forget there's only one narrator. Every word is infused with personality and life. For fantasy listeners looking for cultural immersion and wonderfully diverse storytelling, this audiobook is a great pick.
Pub Date: April 5, 2019
Duration: 24 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781980027010
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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by Gryffin Murphy ; read by Imogen Church ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 8, 2026
This highly satisfying quest brims with humor and friendship courtesy of Church.
Awards & Accolades
Our Verdict
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During a magical adventure set in a traveling bookshop, narrator Imogen Church ensures that each conversation is a dramatic experience. Listeners meet failed book witch Louella Twig, whose strident tones mask her loneliness. She encounters former thief Everett Sharp who, intrigued, parries Louella's defenses with his deep, rolling voice. When Louella's former mentor, Feralorn, asks for her help finding pages from his grimoire, Louella accepts the quest. Church's voice for Feralorn is that of a creaky trumpet—highly distinctive, occasionally overwhelming. Church gives each character their own voice and mannerisms, including gnomes and a European wizard. Pacing, phrasing, and inflection are deployed skillfully to denote emotion, especially between Louella and Everett.
This highly satisfying quest brims with humor and friendship courtesy of Church.Pub Date: Sept. 8, 2026
Duration: 12 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9798898856663
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Sept. 22, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2026
by Alice Hoffman ; read by Mena Suvari ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 8, 2026
Suvari’s strong performance commits to the drama, increasing the stakes of a plot that has more atmospherics than...
This audiobook’s plot satisfyingly deploys familiar motifs of retro New England academia and of witchery as metaphor for the stigmatization of women’s power. Ava and Lauren, in their first year at the elite women’s Radcliffe College in the 1950s, are recruited into the secret Lilith Society of witches. When Mena Suvari is portraying adult Ava and Lauren and their Radcliffe milieu, her narration is delivered as seriously as the women take themselves, in defiance of a sexist era that belittles them. Memories of Ava’s childhood in small-town Maine sound guileless and open, bright with the child’s sparkling potential and curiosity, even as her family cruelly attempts to suppress her magical destiny.
Suvari’s strong performance commits to the drama, increasing the stakes of a plot that has more atmospherics than action.Pub Date: Sept. 8, 2026
Duration: 12 hrs, 50 mins
DD ISBN: 9781668117026
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Sept. 8, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2026
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