What if a woman had been on Ernest Shackleton's ENDURANCE expedition in 1914? Li Shun Lai creates just this scenario, and narrator Jade Wheeler steps up with just the right blend of moxie, defiance, and wit to bring Clara Ketterling-Dunbar to life. Clara is an 18-year-old American suffragist who travels to England to fight for the vote with Emmeline Pankhurst. But when the suffragists put their fight on the back burner with the advent of the war, Clara applies for a place on an expedition to the Antarctic. Wheeler's energy and timing are perfect; she burns with injustice when mocked or asked to make biscuits and is near tears when the dogs are lost. The upper-class captain, bullying villain, and multiple supportive working-class crew members each have their own believable accents and personalities.
(Historical fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Feb. 13, 2024
Duration: 8 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781797177908
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Both narrators express the story’s mounting tension, contributing to the gothic horror of this historical fantasy.
This audiobook opens from the perspective of Ygnacio, portrayed by narrator Omar Leyva. His attention is on 16-year-old Minerva, who has left a broken home. It’s only later that listeners learn Ygnacio’s distant voice belongs to a ghost seeking revenge. Leyva’s accent gives a strong sense of the novel’s Latin American setting. Minerva becomes a maid for wealthy Señora Encarnación in a crumbling, haunted home whilecivil war rages around them. Krysta Gonzales performs Minerva’s chapters with a mix of youthful exuberance and lack of confidence that reflect Minerva’s age and her tragic past. As Miranda’s courage and resolve strengthen, we hear it in Gonzales’ voice.
Both narrators express the story’s mounting tension, contributing to the gothic horror of this historical fantasy. (Paranormal. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 29, 2026
Duration: 8 hrs, 19 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217349845
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2026
Themes of inheritance, identity, sacrifice, and belonging resonate through three voices.
This multigenerational family story comes to life through an ensemble performance. After high schooler Dawn receives an assignment to interview her grandmother, she begins uncovering a family history that stretches from 19th-century China to Taiwan and then New York. Eunice Wong, Katharine Chin, and Kenneth Lee shift among generations with careful attention to rhythm, pitch, and emotional texture, making the transitions easy to follow. Their performances capture the family's guardedness over its old secretsas well as Dawn's curiosity as a young woman seeking answers. As the layers of the Chin family history emerge, the narrators maintain a strong sense of continuity across time.
Themes of inheritance, identity, sacrifice, and belonging resonate through three voices. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2026
Duration: 11 hrs, 42 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063238039
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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