Speaking of Audiobooks: September 2010 Releases
In my search for those hard-to-find romance audiobook gems, I recently found myself happily buying several in cassette tape format. Ah, the joys (or should I say with our present day technology – the challenges) of listening to audiobooks on a tape player. I recalled accurately the ease of backing up to replay a passage but I had forgotten the required fast forwards or worrying about the temperature in my car. Fortunately my old boom box (that looks so out of date these days) still plays the cassettes just fine once I got it going although the volume was a little tricky. Then there’s the old bright yellow (trimmed with black) Sony Sports Cassette tape player my son proudly purchased for me 20 years ago. It was considered so high tech and I found such joy in attaching its small case (5” x 3 ½“x 1 ½”) to my clothing as I went for a run. Now, I have to wear a belt just to support its weight and I can’t help comparing its clunky body to my iPod nano. The end of each side of a cassette seems to come so quickly before I hear, “Please fast forward to the end of the tape before turning over (or changing to a new tape).” To think this all used to be so routine to me and never seemed to be a bother. But you know? It’s so worth the minor hassle to hear Karen Robards’ One Summer while knowing such audiobooks as LaVyrle Spencer’s Morning Glory, Nora Roberts Carnal Innocence, and Susan Andersen’s Head Over Heels are waiting in the wings.
Leftovers from August
Here are just a few of those surprise audiobooks that failed to make last month’s New Releases column.
Ashley, Jennifer – Immortals Narrated by Rebecca Cook
Brockmann, Suzanne – Prince Joe Narrated by Ashley Adlon
Dodd, Christina – Tongue in Chic Narrated by Christina Traister
Holt, Elizabeth – Wicked Intentions Narrated by Ashford MacNab
Hunter, Madeline – Provocative in Pearls Narrated by Polly Lee
Hunter, Madeline – Ravishing in Red Narrated by Polly Lee
Kenyon, Sherrilyn – Seize the Night Narrated by Fred Berman
Miller, Linda Lael – McKettricks of Texas: Garrett Narrated by Jack Garrett
Shalvis, Jill – The Heat is On Narrated by Gayle Hendrix
Shayne, Maggie – Kill Me Again Narrated by Rachel Butera
Silver, Eve – Sins of the Heart Narrated by Savannah Richards
Thompson, Vicki Lewis – Claimed! Narrated by Felicity Munroe
Audiobook Romances on Sale in September
Abridged
Evanovich, Janet – Wicked Appetite Narrated by Lorelei King
Howard, Linda – Killing Time Narrated by Joyce Bean
Kleypas, Lisa – Lisa Kleypas CD Collection: Sugar Daddy, Blue-Eyed Devil, Smooth Talking Stranger Various Narrators
Michaels, Fern – Cross Roads Narrated by Laural Merlington
Michaels, Fern – Sins of the Flesh Narrated by Joyce Bean
Robb, J.D. – Survivor in Death Narrated by Susan Ericksen
Roberts, Nora – Hidden Riches Narrated by Sandra Burr
Steel, Danielle – Legacy Narrated by Arthur Morey
Unabridged
Brown, Sandra – French Silk Narrated by Renee Raudman
Delinsky, Barbara – Heart of the Night Narrated by Sandra Burr
Evanovich, Janet – Wicked Appetite Narrated by Lorelei King
Jeffries, Sabrina – A Hellion in Her Bed Narrated by Antony Ferguson
Kenyon, Sherrilyn – No Mercy Narrated by Holter Graham
Macomber, Debbie – Call Me Mrs. Miracle Narrated by Jennifer Van Dyck
Macomber, Debbie – First Comes Marriage: A Selection from Married in Seattle Narrator unknown
Macomber, Debbie – Perfect Partner: A Selection from Married in Seattle Narrator unknown
Mallery, Susan – The Best of Friends Narrated by Renee Raudman
Mallery, Susan – Lip Service Narrated by Julie Francis
Mallery, Susan – Straight from the Hip Narrated by Julie Francis
Michaels, Fern – Cross Roads Narrated by Laural Merlington
Michaels, Fern – Sins of the Flesh Narrated by Joyce Bean
Miller, Linda Lael – Sierra’s Homecoming Narrated by Nellie Chalfant
Robards, Karen – Scandalous Narrated by Justine Eyre
Roberts, Nora – Best Laid Plans Narrated by Christopher Lane
Woods, Sherryl – A Chesapeake Shores Christmas Narrated by Christina Traister
Woods, Sherryl – The Inn at Eagle Point Narrated by Christina Traister
Recent Listens
Envy – Sandra Brown
Narrated by Victor Slezak
Envy is part of my Unofficial 2010 Listening Challenge. I haven’t been a fan of romantic suspense in the past and Envy changed that – completely. Sandra Brown has to be one of the more refined voices for sophisticated suspense combined with romance. I wasn’t bored for a moment as I listened to Victor Slezak’s superb narration – he simply entrances the listener. The characters voices are clearly distinguished one from another including several male characters with Southern accents. The intriguing storyline centers on two old friends, now enemies, and the woman connected to both who is unknowingly being used as a pawn. I found myself totally caught up in the action as well as the romance and experienced such a sense of loss at its completion that I immediately started listening all over again. Thanks to Diana for the recommendation. A definite A+.
One Summer – Karen Robards
Narrated by Kate Fleming (Anna Fields)
Knowing this audiobook would be a total winner for me, I finally purchased this hard-to-find gem in cassette tape format. One Summer is one of my favorite contemporaries and it’s usually readers’ number one Robards book as well. This character driven romance featuring an ex-con hero framed for a murder he didn’t commit (while still in high school) and his former high school teacher successfully meets every one of my requirements for great romance. On top of that, narrator Kate Fleming, aka the Anna Fields of Susan Elizabeth Phillips’ numerous audiobooks, performs flawlessly. Her depiction of Johnny is even better than the voice that played in my head when I read One Summer in print. I had a better understanding of his attitude (no narrator does a belligerent male better IMO) and his vulnerabilities. Of course, as expected, Fleming’s performance of Rachel’s character is spot on as well. I encourage you to look for this one through your local library. However, if you locate or not, I encourage you to sign on to Audible and suggest that they consider bringing this one to the masses. Maybe if they hear that request again and again – who knows? And, this is another A+.
Dead as a Doornail – Charlaine Harris
Narrated by Johanna Parker
The fifth in the Sookie Stackhouse books, my enjoyment of the series continues as well as my amazement that an unending story of vampires, werewolves, humans, shapeshifters, etc. holds my attention so completely. I did feel this one contained just a few too many dangerous scenarios (the action doesn’t have to keep coming hard and fast to please me). Regardless, this stimulating series with its myriad characters remains fresh. Harris simply knows how to write very well and Johanna Parker knows how to deliver her stories.
Tempt Me at Twilight – Lisa Kleypas
Narrated by Rosalyn Landor
No more than a B grade for me when I read in print last year, I was hoping to better appreciate the storyline in audio. Unfortunately that didn’t prove to be the case. I have to work at enjoying Rosalyn Landor’s narrations and her depiction of the leads only worked to the book’s detriment. Poppy’s character once again seemed a little too good even with her hint of self-righteousness and her ever so sweet problem with non-forgiveness. Landor’s high voiced performance of Poppy reinforced this façade of sweetness to an uncomfortable degree for my tastes. In a similar manner, Harry’s hard character still rang true with me but Landor’s delivery of his lines made him seem too abrupt. Overall the narration didn’t flow easily and I found myself fighting it throughout the audiobook. As I consider other bothersome issues for me in both print and audio (namely the matter of consummation and the contrived separation) along with the lack of realistic narration, the audio version of Tempt Me at Twilight rates no higher than a C grade.
Recent Additions to my Audio Library
Wicked Intentions – Elizabeth Hoyt
Narrated by Ashford McNab
A Hoyt fan, I was excited to see this unexpected Audible offering before I had time to read the print version. I’m finding I enjoy listening to new releases rather than reading the printed word as long as the plots are not overly complicated or highly detailed. McNab is a first time narrator for me but the sample sounds promising.
Smash Cut – Sandra Brown
Narrated by Victor Slezak
I’m on a Sandra Brown audiobook glom and this is my third of her romantic suspense audios.
Provocative in Pearls – Madeline Hunter
Narrated by Polly Lee
The second in Hunter’s Rarest Bloom series, I’m ready for another Hunter historical but am taking a chance with this narrator. Her voice sounds quite pleasant on the sample but also possibly a bit too slow and measured. I’m hoping the overall delivery is speedier than that sample.
Night of Fire – Barbara Samuel
Narrated by Jill Tanner
A European historical romance that is also hard-to-find in audio. Thanks to MaryK for finding this one during our Those Older Hard-To-Find Romances column’s discussion. Jill Tanner has excelled as narrator each time I’ve heard her perform in the past.
Gabriel’s Ghost – Linnea Sinclair
Narrated by Dina Pearlman
Based on recommendations in our last Speaking of Audiobooks discussion, I decided to try a Sci-Fi romance.
Montana Sky – Nora Roberts
Narrated by Erika Leigh
Wanting to experience a few of Roberts’ audiobooks, I asked for recommendations in our last column. Montana Sky was the number one readily available recommendation.
Definitely Dead – Charlaine Harris
Narrated by Johanna Parker
I’m continuing my grand adventure with the Sookie Stackhouse series. This sixth in the series, this one looks to have a most interesting change for Sookie.
Time for Your Thoughts
What new releases are you looking forward to?
Do you know of any September releases that failed to make this list?
What are the latest additions to your audio library?
And, as always, what are your latest audio successes or failures?
Ending Notes
I’m announcing new audiobook releases as they occur each weekday on Twitter. I don’t cover every new release, but attempt to include the more significant titles. To follow me on Twitter, look for LeaAAR.
For those new to our Speaking of Audiobooks column, be sure to check out our audio archives for further recommendations and discussions.
See you again mid-September.
– Lea Hensley
Hi Alaina
Thanks so much for your info. I just wrote to you about Lora Leigh’s books so I hope you received it. I had a few questions about who will be carrying her books in the email but just in case you don’t receive it will it be Audible? Brilliance? and do you have a release date? I like her Elite-Ops series as well the Breed series. I just wondered if Megan’s Mark & Harmony’s Way were chosen because of a female main character. Lora’s men are so alpha it would be hard to hear a woman trying to read the hero’s part if she can’t do male voices well. In the perfect world we’d have men reading male voices and women reading females! ;-)
Nina
Alaina – I just attempted to email you and for some reason, it was returned. Could you email me at afriendatheart at cox dot net?
Thanks!
Hi Nina and Jennifer,
Penguin Audio will be releasing two Lora Leigh titles, Megan’s Mark and Harmony’s Way, in November. These are a bit of an experiment, and I am really excited to be doing them. Please feel free to email me with comments, criticisms, suggestions, etc at alaina dot mauro at us dot penguingroup dot com. I would really appreciate it.
Hi Nina,
Listening to our books on your iPod is no problem! Your iPod plays mp3s. Most likely all the music you listen to on it is in mp3 format and you’ll handle our audio files the same way you add an album to your iPod.
When you purchase a book from us, you’ll receive a download link and you can save the file anywhere on your computer’s hard drive you want it to go. Make sure you remember the location you save it.
Then, open iTunes, go to File – Add Folder to Library, navigate to where you saved the audio book files (they will be in a folder with the name of the book on it) and click “”Select Folder””.
iTunes will add the folder of mp3 files (each chapter is a separate file) to your iTunes library. The next time you sync your iPod, the audio book will land on it.
The only tricky bit is that iPods generally only recognize Audible’s DRM files as audio books, so the audio book you purchase from us will most likely land in your “”music”” list rather than your “”Audio Book”” list unless you manually put it there.
Otherwise, you’re good to go.
I don’t carry Lora Leigh at this time, but will certainly send an inquiry to Berkeley if she’s not already in audio.
I will send the download link to your free book now – it will come in a separate email from BMT Micro, our download processor. Enjoy it and please feel free to ask questions any time!
Jennifer
I just visited the audiominx site and signed up for the newsletter. I’m a little confused about how the books are downloaded. I don’t have an mp3 player but I own several iPods. Do the books download via OverDrive? I want to be able to put them in my iTunes. Thanks for any info you can give. I don’t see myself buying anything I can’t put on iTunes. I buy LOTS of books! I looked over your authors and know a few. Do you have any audio books by Lora Leigh?
Anne Stuart
I have the unabridged version of LH’s ALL THE QUEEN’S MEN on CD. Happy to loan it to you if you’re really serious!
Jennifer – I’m sure many romance audio enthusiasts would love to find romances from the 70s, 80s, & 90s. How we wish you could find a way to make that possible. Best of luck!
True – depending on how “”old”” you mean, it might be hard to track down the original recordings.
With all the “”retro”” style Greek millionaire romances I’ve seen in the stores lately, what’s been on my mind are classic romances – like the old ones from the seventies I read way before my mother thought I should be reading them…
I work with publishers who retain audio rights or authors who either retained them or have had their rights revert to them. It would be so much fun to put out a few retro titles. I imagine Harlequin and the others will eventually think of that themselves.
Jennifer – I assume it’s not cost effective to do audio versions of older books. You’d think they’d snatch up the old stuff that’s already been recorded and reissue them, but we all know how hard it is to find some treasures.
katyco – Can you email me at afriendatheart at cox dot net? I’d like to ask a couple of specific questions.
Thanks!
Lea – I’m not Peggy P but I’ll just say I could not get into Veil of Night. I wasn’t really enjoying it from the start, but when the heroine started having a temper tantrum like a 2 year old, I gave up. I liked the hero, so I may give it another try if I hear enough good things about it, but there are too many books I want to listen to. I would be interested to know how others felt about it and if it got better.
Yup, we’re looking at getting the Avon and Signet backlist available via ebook ASAP. Audio would be even better but that’s probably too good to hope. It’s amazing how many good people aren’t in audio.
Anne,
Why do you think so many good authors aren’t getting audio books made of their work?
I know every time I put out a call for narrators/audio people for my company I get inundated with talent looking for work. This is a great time to be producing audio books!
Peggy P – if you listen to all or even a portion of Veil of Night over the next few days, could you please email me at afriendatheart at cox dot net.
Thanks!
Loving Maybe This Time so far. Welcome to Temptation (in audio) is one of my go-to comfort reads.
All The Queen’s Men (unabridged on cassette) narrated by Kate Forbes will most likely be buried with me. Look for it on the BBC America Chivers Sound Library website.
Loved Anne Stuart’s Ice series on audible.com and wish all her books were available (in unabridged format). If I had to pick a favorite, it would probably be Ritual Sins, but love them all. The House of Rohan series rocks!
Thinking about Tucker Longstreet in Carnal Innocence makes me wonder if Nora Roberts could be persuaded to write a sequel. It has been long enough since it was published that she could write a story about their children. Tucker would be a great dad.
Oh. God, I’d kill for an unabridged version of ALL THE QUEEN’S MEN. One of my all-time LH favorites!
As for Anne Stuart — my agent is busy negotiating with Audible. I’ve told her I’d pay Audible to take them but we’ll see what happens. I’ll give you an update when I get it. I’d love for the House of Rohan series to be on audio!
@ Anne Stuart
:)
So would I!!!!
Hopefully your older historicals will be available either as audiobooks or ebooks one of these days – I’ve heard such great things about your backlist but the books are OOP and very hard to find (but you already knew that) :)
I find Audible’s website confusing. They used to give you a “”wish list”” in your account so you could list authors you’d like to have in audio, but the feature disappeared at some point.
Gamatst – glad to hear your opinion on Open Season since I just paid handsomely for cassette tapes!
Jennifer – thanks for telling us about these sites. I didn’t know of them. Do you all have an upcoming releases list?
MaryK – I didn’t know where exactly to find this request info on Audible. I hope we’ll all make use of it. Thanks for directing us.
Maryfranc – another Sony cassette player listener! Hauling it around is not convenient, to say the least, and I’m afraid I may drop it one of these days. Will you let us know what you think about Crusie’s Maybe This Time?
I had posted September’s list – looks like it got edited out by the staff. Email me at jennifer@audiolark.com and I’ll send it to you.
I purchased Carnal Innocence by Nora Roberts in unabridged format on 16 CDs from Recordedbooks.com narrated by Tom Stechschulte. It is well worth the extra bucks to get the unabridged format. Sylvester by Georgette Heyer narrated by Richard Armitage is hilarious, the only negative is the abridged format. Thanks MaryK for advising how to make requests to Audible.com. I have the cassette format unabridged audio of One Summer by Karen Robards and have never listened to it, although it received rave reviews. I use my portable Sony cassette player and carry it in my fanny pack around my waist. It is mucho cumbersome compared to my Creative Zen MP3 player though. Love Victor Slezak’s narrations, Envy, Smash Cut, Tough Customer. He is an original. Just finished listening to Spider Bones by Kathy Reichs and loved it. Today I plan to start listening to Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie. Still haven’t listened to The Search by Nora Roberts, can’t wait! Thanks for all the recommendations.
From the Audible website, here’s how to request a title from them:
Content Requests: If you’re interested in a particular author or title, please let us know about it by sending an email to:content-requests@audible.com.
I sent in a request for One Summer a while back with a note that it was already recorded by . . . whoever, can’t remember now. I don’t know if including the recording company makes any difference but it can’t hurt. Maybe older, existing recordings are easier to acquire.
Two other great resources for romance audio books are AudioLark and AudioMinx.
We carry romance audio books at very reasonable prices and offer full-length new releases for only $2.49 on our Debut Tuesdays.
Our audio books are never abridged, and are in mp3 format – you can listen to them on any device that plays mp3s, and move your audio book from device to device without running into DRM hassles.
We carry a wide variety of romance genres. AudioLark specializes in sweet to sensual romances. Listeners wanting something hotter can find erotic romances on AudioMinx.
Try an audio book for free! Visit either website and subscribe to our newsletter. You’ll be instructed to pick out any title on the site and you’ll receive your download link for free within 24 hours!
Hmm, I enjoyed the audio of Open Season a lot, but then I enjoyed the book too. Except for the prologue, wimpy me again, I don’t like the prologue at all. Open Season did have a real laid back / small town feel to it which I thought the narrator captured well. Then again, guess where I live, smalltownsville!
So I’m thinking All the Queens men is going to be a bigger hit with me if Kate Forbes gets even better. Yea! Thanks for letting us know Peggy.
Just lost a full two minutes of a heart melting scene in One Summer to a gouge in the CD, so I can sympathize a bit Lea. Hope the tapes get better.
Open Season – I was a little hesitant to buy this one since it was not a keeper for me in print. I was hoping it would come alive on audio. I doubt now that it will be high on my list of listens any time soon.
My listen to Carnal Innocence has hit a rough spot. This set of cassettes has been used a LOT and probably been left in a hot car one too many times. I’m on the fourth cassette and not only am I hearing the echo but the sound is going up and down every few seconds. I keep telling myself to ignore it and I am for the most part but I’m finding myself getting a little irritable! I started looking online for a copy to purchase but this is one expensive audiobook. Maybe if I just make it through tape 4, the sound will get better. I want to enjoy this one to the max!
So glad you are enjoying One Summer Gamatst. I’ll definitely listen to it more than once. Fortunately, the tapes are in very good condition!
OK, my report on All the Queen’s Men narrated by Kate Forbes – I liked her, she does a good job with male voices and I thought John Medina sounded “”just right””. I thought there was a fair bit of romance in this story and the pacing was good. Kate also narrates Open Season though I found that to be a bit slower paced … kept wishing she’d get through it and move on.
I recommend All the Queen’s Men over Open Season – and isn’t that funny? The same narrator and author but I really enjoyed Queen’s Men much more and thought her narration much more appropriate to the story.
Had to DNF Twist of Fate by Jayne Ann Krentz narrated by Nellie Chalfant today after about 1.5 hours, this story was going nowhere! The narrator was OK but the story was just too simplistic and sloooow for me today. I hope for better “”listening luck”” tomorrow and will start Veil of Night.
@ Lea – I couldn’t get a copy of Wicked Intentions from Audible. Shame – I have 2 credits to spend too… but, I did manage to finagle a copy from elsewhere by subverting geo restrictions.
I’ve managed to pick up almost all of the SEP audiobooks I want to get. I have one more to go on my Audible wishlist. This is one author I don’t have too much trouble getting, but Linda Howard and Nalini Singh and Lisa Kleypas and so many others – much harder. I do have quite a few audiobooks though so it’s not all bad – I can always listen to Outlander again if I get stuck!! (wouldn’t that be a hardship!)
Moriah – thanks! I have to fess up that apparently I’ve been a little sloppy – I take Audiofile.
Peggy P – I too want to know your thoughts on the narration of All the Queen’s Men and, like Gamatst, I recall little romance but a great appreciation of Medina – wow, he deserved more romance or maybe I deserved more of his romance.
Kaetrin – what did you find on Audible for Wicked Intentions? Although Breathing Room was not a favorite SEP for me, it is still the reliable SEP/Fields (Fleming) combo that wins me over every time (and always better than most contemporaries out there). Do you have access to most of SEP’s audiobooks?
Gamatst – I was all prepared today to follow your example and purchase an inexpensive MP3 player that is compatible with the WMA files from my library. But first, I made a quick check with the library and discovered that they now offer 1,000 audiobooks for Apple devices. I’m quite enthused – let’s just hope I can actually make it all work.
Exactly my feelings!! :)
I hope your able to find some treasures via your library downloads at some point. But with the line up of books you’ve got going it’ll be awhile before you have to go searching!
Despite the huge “”coincidence”” in Breathing Room I too really enjoyed it. Ren and Isabel provided both LOL moments and sweet ones too. And Ren with those kids… loved it. Then Anna Fields enhanced it all with her narration!
About halfway through One Summer and Kate Fleming is definitely working magic with her portrayal of these characters. I could only vaguely remember the bare bones of this story and that I had enjoyed it. But now it’s being brought to life in a way that re – reading it never could have equaled.
Lea my Carnal Innocence has a few blips in it but at least it was originally in CD format so no echo. The exact reasons Audible needs to get these older books re-released. They make money and we get “”pure”” listening enjoyment. :)
Peggy I have the unabridged All The Queens Men but have never listened to it. I’d love to hear your take on the narration. It’s been a long time since I read it but I do remember enjoying the story even though I don’t remember a lot of romance. John Medina was still hot stuff. And I’ll second True Betrayals as a good Nora listen!
Kaetrin if your interested in borrowing an extra MP3 player that I have, with audiobooks on it that I already own, e-mail me at tstgma at gmail dot com. We can talk about what I might have in my library that you aren’t able to get there in Australia. I send out copies of books I own to share with friends, why not a book loaded MP3 player I’m not using at present??
I’m so jealous of the library system you guys have over there – our local library in Australia has very little and the search functions are poor so it’s hard to find anything. Thank God for Audible!
I’ve just finished listening to Breathing Room by SEP, narrated by Kate Fleming/Anna Fields. This was my first ever SEP in print and I had very fond memories of it. I gather that it is not regarded as one of her better books, but I really enjoyed it then and now. I think Kate Fleming’s narration added something special to the banter between Isabel and Ren – I was laughing out loud at quite of a few of their “”arguments””. And Ren is delicious, IMO. :)
Before that I listened to Jenny Crusie’s Manhunting, narrated by Renee Raudman and it was pretty great too.
I’m listening to Anyone But You, also a Crusie at present.
I think I’ll head off to Audible and see if they’ll let me buy Wicked Intentions or if I come up against those darn geo restrictions again…
All the Queen’s Men is an unabridged audiobook that I downloaded from Clevenet, my library system, I see they also have Open Season as an unabridged audiobook and I think Audible still only has the abridged version.
You are right, I did say I was going to listen to Veil of Night and I’m going to, soon! I got waylaid by All the Queen’s Men and then The Last Secret by Mary McGarry Morris – they both were good listens.
Oh, Carnal Innocence – that was a good one – might have to reload that for some future listening! I just recently listened to True Betrayals by NR and recommend that also. I’m lucky that Clevenet carries just about every audiobook of NR’s, man, that’s some backlist!
lea:
I got some of them from audio file magazine, but blackstone audio’s website (http://www.blackstoneaudio.com/) listed the upcoming elizabeth hoyt and paula quinn books. Elizabeth Hoyt’s other two books, To Beguile a Beast and To Seduce a Sinner are set to come out in October and November. Harper Collins coming soon for audiobooks also lists some upcoming books. I know that in addition to the Liz Carlyle release, harpercollins is also releasing Cathy Maxwell’s November release in audio. Hopefully that helps some.
Peggy P – Linda Howard’s All the Queen’s Men – is this an unabridged audio cassette? I didn’t realize it was in audio…or possibly I forgot. Did you listen to Howard’s Veil of Night? I knew you mentioned you might.
June – I’m glad you’ve come over to the audio side. Not that audio enthusiasts don’t enjoy print but there’s so much to discover and enjoy in audio format. I entirely agree with Melinda’s suggestion to try your library. You can find cassette or CD of many romance favorites and libraries often borrow from other libraries if you request a particular title. And Audible is the best game in town for downloadable audiobooks. Yes, you pay a fee and own the book but it need not take up physical space. I have yet to download audiobooks from my library since my iPod is incompatible with that offered.
Moriah – thanks for these releases! May I ask how you found these titles? I have found that looking for upcoming audiobook releases is such a puzzle and I need all the help I can get when making up these lists.
Kathy – Virginia Leishman does a fantastic job narrating. Have you listened to Private Arrangements? It was my favorite audiobook produced in 2009 and that is mostly due to Leishman’s talent.
Gamatst – I’m listening to Carnal Innocence right now. The tapes are worn and I hear an echo but I’m thoroughly, thoroughly enjoying it. When I checked it out at the library, the librarian exclaimed over my choice telling me what an excellent book it was. And it wasn’t just chit-chat – she was truly sold on it in print and audio.
I also found Sandra Brown’s White Hot (only in tape format) at the library and it’s also narrated by Victor Slezak. This is another Diana recommendation and I was pretty excited when I saw it sitting on that library shelf when I was picking up Carnal Innocence. I also found an unabridged cassette tape copy of Linda Howard’s Open Season online and splurged. AND a friend loaned me an unabridged copy of Susan Andersen’s Head Over Heels (another hard-to-find). So much great listening! On my iPod, I just finished Elizabeth Hoyt’s Wicked Intentions (wonderful) and am now continuing my Sookie Stackhouse adventure. I’m overwhelmed with all these truly magnificent audiobooks!
I was able to pick up Envy and One Summer on Friday and am looking forward to them!
The upcoming releases for September aren’t ringing any bells for me, I hope there are a couple of good surprises in store.
I ended up downloading Brockmann’s Prince Joe although I’d sworn to myself that narrations by Ashley Aldon were off my list. The good, her narration skills have improved, the bad, she still has a long way to go. She caught the voices well but there was no real inflection/emotion, at least not to my ears.
I will admit that the re-listen I did of Carnal Innocence last week has made it very difficult to get into another book. Going back to the best of the Tucker Longstreet portions (love “”Bookmark””) has been a must. :)
I have every confidence that Anna Fields and One Summer will break me away though.
I’m considering giving G Heyer another go with an abridged version narrated by Armitage. Should it be Venetia or Sylvester if I’m looking for her humor?
June, some of the audio book producers do have “”rentals””, some even with a monthly fee like audible. I just feel if I’m going to pay a monthly fee, I might as well own the thing, unless I can’t get it any other way. Try RecordedBooks.com.
you should also check with your public library for downloadable audio books.
Donna – I also sent a Private Message to you yesterday and, I must admit, it took ME a while to find just where to do so! Thanks for the email address. I’ll be in touch shortly and thanks for helping us out!
I’ve just finished “”Delicious”” read by Virginia Leishman and I really liked her narration. June, have you heard of Audible? They let you download their books for a small monthly fee.
sinful in satin by madeline hunter, liz carlyle’s one touch of scandal, paula quinn’s ravished by a highlander, and elizabeth hoyt’s to taste temptation are all suppose to release this month.
I’m a new convert to audiobooks. When Matter of Class was checked out in print form my local library, I borrowed it on CD. Loved it. Then I looked for Anna Fields-Susan Elizabeth Phillips books (thank you AAR); they are terrific and LOL funny. For SEP’s more recent books like them better in audio than print.
I don’t suppose there is a Netflix equivalent for audiobooks, a company that offers a flat monthly flat fee for the rental of audiobooks. I rather pay a fee then own them.
Donna – I announced the audio release of Love and Scandal on Twitter the day of its release at Audible. I was so pleased to see your first audiobook. At least we are hoping it is only your first!
Listening to the sex scenes does take some getting used to – I think. It’s not listening to them that bothered me in the beginning but worrying that someone would hear and think “”What in the world is she doing?!”” With earphones it’s never a problem. Right now I’m listening to Elizabeth Hoyt’s Wicked Intentions and it contains a number of scenes that definitely rate “”Hot”” but they are so beautifully written and narrated that it’s just another part of the book.
I have wanted to talk with someone at Carina Press about their partnering with Audible. I think it would make a good Speaking of Audiobooks column. Could you email me or send a Private Message (Lea AAR)? I’d like to ask a few questions.
Thanks for stopping in!
Lea, for the life of me I can’t find your email address and I don’t know how to private message someone… I’d be happy to talk to you, and hook you up with someone from Carina re:audio books… drop me a line at: donna at donnaleasimpson dot com
Donna
I don’t know if it’s made anyone’s radar yet, but Carina Press and Audible.com are teaming up to release audio books of Carina Press titles. I’m happy to say my June Carina Press release, Love & Scandal, an historical romance set against the backdrop of Victorian literary society, is one of them! There is a link to a clip within this blog:
http://carinapress.com/blog/2010/08/more-carina-press-audiobooks-added/
I have to tell you all… this is my very first audio book, and listening to the clip gave me shivers down my back.
By the time a writer has a work published, she has read it so many times that it kind of ‘dies’ to her. She is too accustomed to its rhythms for it to give much pleasure anymore. But to hear my words in a lovely lilting English accent! The reader has a beautiful voice, and my words suddenly sprang to life for me. It is an awesome experience!
I don’t know if I could listen to the whole thing, though… what do sex scenes sound like when in an audio book? I blush to think of it!
I do hope others enjoy the book, though.
I just finished Tough Customer by Sandra Brown and can recommend it! Great narration by Victor Slezak (as always) and a great romantic suspense story. Characters from Smash Cut carry over into this story which I find always interesting. This story has a twist at the end which was a little weak but overall I enjoyed this story.
I am just beginning All the Queen’s Men by Linda Howard, somehow I’ve never read it … well, you just can’t read everything! So far – pretty good listening.
I’m going to check out Hoyt’s Wicked Intentions – I usually like her books.
Looking forward to everyone’s recommendations.