Nikki Patel is enchanting, fearsome, and hilarious as she narrates this story about a family reunion that includes a body count. Listeners meet the Swifts, who use a dictionary to name their children (and describe their personalities), including Shenanigan--the ringleader of the kids--and Uncle Maelstrom, who leads the action. The reunion doubles as an opportunity for the family to search for an old mansion's hidden treasure. Most exhilarating is encountering the dialogue and behavior of each character--which, of course, fit their names. Because the Swifts live all over the globe, Patel's skill with accents and dramatic pronunciations is engaging and atmospheric. Puns, wordplay, and definitions abound, with multiple meanings adding to listeners' fun--and education. Since the saga is conversation rich, audio significantly enhances the sterling writing and delivery.
(Mystery. 10-13)Pub Date: Feb. 7, 2023
Duration: 9 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593663394
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
A not-too-scary horror audiobook.
Dan Bittner gives a polished performance of Stine’s middle-grade horror novel, narrating with melodramatic flair and dramatic pauses at the end of each cliffhanger chapter. When the Ferber family moves into a creepy old house on Nightmare Street, Joe’s parents are oblivious to the scary things happening in the house. In a parallel story, the Hannigan family moves into the same house, where Shawn has different creepy experiences. Both Joe and Shawn have nightmares in which they encounter horror tropes—headstones, a creepy rag doll, a looping camera, a ventriloquist’s dummy, and masked teachers—in their house and at school. Bittner’s pacing works well, and fans of the Goosebumps series will enjoy the familiar shivers and tongue-in-cheek humor.
A not-too-scary horror audiobook.Pub Date: today
Duration: 2 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9798228588288
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Review Posted Online: April 7, 2026
Past and present come together seamlessly.
Casey Holloway and Emily Eiden perform alternating chapters of this audiobook about two girls connected through time. In the present day, 13-year-old Penny Marks is angry and resentful about her parents’ decision to move their family to Paris for her mother’s museum job. In 1943, 13-year-old Marie Bonnet and her sister live alone in Nazi-occupied Paris. Holloway depicts the curious, determined, artistic Penny, who pursues the mystery of a painting hidden in a wall and a letter written 80 years earlier. With an accented narration, Eiden reveals Marie’s entry into the French Resistance and her commitment to hiding French art from the Germans.
Past and present come together seamlessly. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2026
Duration: 6 hrs, 42 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063321816
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: March 10, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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