A tour-de-force performance by Gemma Whelan makes listening to this audiobook worthwhile. Jane Boleyn--Lady Rocheford--is a canny observer. She watches, she waits, she gathers information, and she reveals secrets to her spymaster, Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell then uses the damaging particulars against his enemies. Whelan portrays each character with enthusiasm, growling dangerously as the narcissistic, mercurial King Henry VIII, infusing Anne Boleyn with spite and paranoia, while making "Kitty" Howard a simpleminded innocent in a court of devious courtiers. Fans of Gregory's Tudor series will be disheartened because much of the material feels reworked from her earlier novels, and the many inconsistencies regarding Jane's person are irksome. An interesting afterword with Gregory and Whelan's superb narration take some of the sting out of this disappointing audiobook.
Pub Date: Oct. 14, 2025
Duration: 19 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063439658
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Ayla, one of the "others," is adopted by a clan of Neanderthal cave people. She struggles to conform to their ways, but her advanced human traits overwhelm and threaten their primitive culture in this initial installment of an immensely popular series. Although the story might benefit from abridgment, Rowena Cooper easily carries out the formidable task of enlivening the mostly silent and stereotypical characters with consistent, diverse personalities and human dimension. Through skillful phrasing and inflection, she maintains the reader's interest and suspense, especially with Ayla and her plight, throughout this rambling and imaginative story.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This lyrical, sensual novel of woman's lot in Manchu, China, is as well researched as it is well written. Authentic in tone, it's nonetheless written for Westerners by a Western expert on China. Moreover, Susan Clark performs the demanding text superbly, with only occasional signs of fatigue. For the most part she not only sustains the quaint diction and Asian atmosphere, but also, creates whole worlds with her voice. She acts the book, rather than reads it, and, in so doing, turns a pretty trifle into a stupendous beauty.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 4 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Audio Literature
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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