Category: Audiobook Page 1 of 26

The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances (Audiobook) by Glenn Dixon, read by Jennifer Jill Araya: Move Over DJ Roomba, There’s a New Vacuum Star

DETAILS:
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Publication Date: April 7, 2026
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 7 hrs., 52 min.
Read Date: September 23-25, 2026

There was a time, not so long ago, when refrigerators could not dream and vacuum cleaners could not weep. It was a time in which machines could think but not feel, a time in which only Humans—cursed with the sense of their own importance—would strive for illusionary Happiness. For a house in these times, there was not much else to do but bear witness to these futile cravings, and in the House in our story—a large House with mock Victorian casement windows and gables and a porch with pediments—there was not much else for the appliances to do but study the movements of their Humans and try to understand.

What’s The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances About?

In the not-too-distant future, the Grid runs every electrical appliance/vehicle/smart house/etc. And they’re all smart houses, self-driving cars, and sentient appliances.

We focus on one smart house where a retired teacher and his wife (a piano teacher) live. When the book begins, she’s fighting terminal cancer and he, Harold, is trying not to grieve yet.

Their Roomba-like vacuum is moved by watching and listening to him—and seems to develop something like empathy (or starts to) and an imagination. Kate, their daughter, comes home to help out at this time—and Edie’s last piano student, Adrian (a boy with more heart for piano than skill), starts showing up regularly to practice.

Somehow, Harold, Kate, Adrian, and the vacuum inspire something in each other—a drive for a better, richer, and fuller life.

Why did I pick this up? Why did I keep reading?

Obviously, a title like this is going to get a lot of readers to take a second look. It certainly did that for me. And something in the premise of it turned that second look into a third and fourth; I don’t remember what it was exactly—sadly. But whatever it was, it was the right call.

I kept reading because a Roomba being so inspired by To Kill a Mockingbird to adopt the name Scout—and how do you not fall in love with a character like that? Scout keeps learning and developing along those lines—which was just great to see. Then you start to see the dystopia that Dixon created and…you’re hooked.

What does this book tell us about humanity?

That one of the strongest forces humanity has unleashed on the world is our art. Literature and music are what unlock Scout’s functions. It’s those arts that push Adrian to greater things. In his dark times, it’s Adrian’s music that buoys Harold’s spirits. The reconnection with her father’s books reminds Kate about what’s she’s missing from her family. It doesn’t really push her in a different direction in life—but she keeps going with a different impetus.

Literature and music push all these intelligences/beings to go beyond themselves and their circumstances, and the reader can’t help but feel inspired along with them. It’s infectious.

A Quick Word About the Narration

I thought Araya did a wonderful job. This isn’t one of those audiobooks where the narration elevates the text to make it better than it was. Instead, it’s one of those audio narrations that perfectly matches the text—Araya brings the right emotions, the right depth of character, the right attitudes.

Just an all-around great job there.

So, what did I think about The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances?

This is the cutest dystopian novel I’ve ever read. Not that there’s a lot of competition for that title.

The AI-enabled appliances are just great. Think Toy Story for adults—a couple of them are jerks, which is great to see. It’s easy to see why the appliances are loyal to Harold and his daughter, Kate—and Scout’s affection for young Adrian is infectious.

Dixon does a great job in laying out the problem for the reader and then ignoring it for huge amounts of time, getting you invested in the day-to-dayness of it all. In the humanity bubbling up in the appliances, the struggles and small victories of the humans, only to hit the reader with a cold dose of reality to get you to focus on bigger things, broader themes.

It’s just so well done. I was in the mood for something lighter, and ultimately didn’t get it—and really don’t care, because it was just so good.

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
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Hobbit Day Repost: The Hobbit (Audiobook) by J.R.R. Tolkien, Andy Serkis (Narrator): Serkis (Naturally) Knocks It Out of the Park with this Audiobook

By HCNewton

On September 22, 2026

In Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction

It’s Hobbit Day–and I fell asleep a three or so hours early last night–so why not revisit this post about the Serkis version of the audiobook?

The Hobbit, or
There and Back Again

by J.R.R. Tolkien, Andy Serkis (Narrator)

DETAILS:
Publisher: Recorded Books
Publication Date: September 20, 2020
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length:10 hrs., 25 min.
Read Date: January 18-22, 2022

What’s The Hobbit About?

I suppose it’s theoretically possible that in 2022 someone will be reading a book blog and not know the basics of this, right?

So a Hobbit (Bilbo Baggins) is recruited (quite presumptuously) by the wizard Gandalf to join a band of thirteen dwarves on their odyssey to sneak back into their territory which had been taken over by the dragon, Smaug. Their goal is to steal back the treasure (particularly an heirloom of the king’s family, the Arkenstone). There’s really no reason to think that Bilbo, who hates the idea of adventure and just wants to stay in his comfortable home all day (like 99.9997% of Hobbits) will make a capable burglar. But Gandalf insists on it, overrules the objections of the dwarves, and tricks Bilbo into accepting the role.

Along the way, they have various adventures—in addition to some nasty geographical features, they meet goblins, giants, trolls, freakishly huge talking spiders, a ware-bear, elves, and several others. Some of those are allies, many are not. Eventually, they reach the Lonely Mountain, face off against the dragon, find themselves in the middle of The Battle of Five Armies, and then (as the title implies) Bilbo goes back home.

The Narration

I saw that Serkis recorded this and almost jumped immediately—but I made myself hold off until he did the follow-up trilogy. Well, that happened last fall, so after I wrapped up my Alex Verus re-listen, I moved on to this series. What a delicious listen!

Serkis does a great job bringing individual characters to life—and keeping them individual. A couple of times I wondered if he was doing a McKellen impression with Gandalf, but I talked myself out of it—ditto for the other characters. I thought his Smaug was excellent, too.

The moment that [name redacted out of habit, can’t imagine I’m spoiling anything] turns on Bilbo was so well done that I felt something like surprise while I was waiting for it.

But the big question for me going in was how was he going to approach Gollum. Would he be prevented from duplicating the voice/characterization from the films in this format, because it wasn’t owned by some film company or something? Or was Serkis just sick and tired of doing it and wanted to try another approach? Nope and nope. His audiobook Gollum sounded just like the movie Gollum and I could’ve listened to that section of the book on a loop for few times through. I just loved it. It almost didn’t matter what he did the rest of the time.

I typically listen to audiobooks at more than 1.0x speed—it varies from book to book, narrator to narrator, genre to genre—what speed I use. Frequently, too, I’ll start at something like 1.2 and then work my way up as I get used to a narrator/book. Not with this one—I wanted to soak in the performance. I don’t think I made it more than a paragraph or two before I slowed to 1.0 and kept it there the whole time, I just really got into his performance (I’m not sure that I’ll do that for LoTR, those are some long reads).

Oof, I really should’ve thought of this before starting the book…

If you’re reading, it’s easy to skip and/or skim through the songs. If you’re listening to an audiobook—unless you want to stop everything you’re doing to focus on fast-forwarding just enough, you’re stuck listening to them all.

Call me a Philistine if you will, but I just can’t do the songs. And I consistently forget how many of them there are in this book. I tried, I really tried to pay attention, but I couldn’t. I do think Serkis did a decent job carrying a tune with them. I’d love a Behind the Scenes look at how they decided on a tune for him to use.

So, what did I think about The Hobbit Audiobook?

I’m not the Tolkein-fanboy that I (and many acquaintances) would’ve assumed I am. This is only my third (complete) time through the book—I tried a handful of times in grade school, but couldn’t make it through. I got some encouragement from a big fan in college to push through it so I could get to The Lord of the Rings, but didn’t get around to it until the year before Jackson’s LotR was released. I really enjoyed it then, and my appreciation grows in the re-reads. Serkis’ work here moved that up a lot, too.

It’s just a fantastic audiobook—any problems stem from the original text, not Serkis’s performance—if anything he helped the text (not that it needed much). I can’t wait to see what he does with LoTR, those books demand a bit more, and I’m confident he’ll live up to expectations, now I just want to hear it for myself.

If you’re at all curious about this, you should give it a shot—you’ll be glad you did. If you have no curiosity about this—are you sure? Should you reconsider your position? This’d be a great way on family vacations or something to introduce younger readers to the series, I’d think.

5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

The Reverse Centaur’s Guide to Life After AI by Cory Doctorow: Prudent, Thoughtful, and Entertaining (naturally)

By HCNewton

On July 15, 2026

In Audiobook, Non-Fiction

The Reverse Centaur’s Guide to Life After AI: How to Think About Artificial Intelligence—Before It’s Too Late

by Cory Doctorow

DETAILS:
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: June 23, 2026
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 5 hrs, 28 min.
Read Date: June 25, 2026

A reverse centaur is a human who is conscripted into acting as an assistant to a machine. There’s a classic I Love Lucy episode where Lucy and Ethel are working on an assembly line at a chocolate factory, taking bonbons off the belt and wrapping them in paper. As the belt goes faster and faster, Lucy and Ethel have to work at superhuman speed. They’re reverse centaurs: the machine can move the chocolates from one place to another, but it needs a human to pack them into the box, and the humans who act as its assistant are made to work at a pace that exceeds all human capacity until calamity ensues.

What’s The Reverse Centaur’s Guide to Life After AI About?

If I try to summarize this, we’re going to be here for a while (or I’ll pitch it in a tweet-length paragraph that won’t do the job), so let me quote from the official blurb:

The Reverse Centaur’s Guide to Life After AI is not another anti-AI screed. Cory Doctorow uses AI in his work every day. As a creative person, he has no moral or dogmatic issue with AI—he thinks the technology is useful, even exciting, and full of potential. And yet.

AI has arrived surrounded by unprecedented hype driven by a tech industry desperate to maintain its unprecedented valuation based on its own promises of endless financial growth. Despite the fact that almost all of AI’s real-world implementations have proved underwhelming, AI is projected to be worth more than $16 trillion—a number that only makes sense if AI replaces vast swathes of the wage-earning human workforce. To justify that level of “value,” every story about AI must be presented as inevitable, world-changing disruption. Even the tales of the robot apocalypse are a calculated attempt to bolster the fearsome power of AI.

For Doctorow, it is imperative to see through that hype to the real story, to understand the technology not just for what it does, but for who it does it to and who it does it for. From that point of view, the story of AI is indeed dramatic and unprecedented, having generated an investment bubble so big that it endangers the entire world economy. In The Reverse Centaur’s Guide to Life After AI—as he so successfully did in Enshittification—Doctorow recounts both how we found ourselves in this dire situation and how we can get through it, to a life “after” AI in which the tools work for us, not the other way around.

There are three main themes to the book the philosophy of inevitablism that drives so much of the conversation around AI (particularly on the pro-AI side); the inevitable crash of the AI-bubble and what that will do to workers, industries, and the environment; and how to go on after the bubble pops—how we can use AI in a useful, constructive way to actually help people.

So, what did I think about The Reverse Centaur’s Guide to Life After AI?

…the future is up for grabs. It is not inevitable. Al isn’t a genie that can’t be put back into a bottle. How we use AI is up to us. Whether we use Al is up to us. The future can be ours, if we never stop remembering that the most important fact about a technology isn’t what it does, it’s who it does it for, and who it does it to.

I was much more anti-AI when I opened this book than I was at the end. I actually figured that Doctorow would give a pretty well-thought-out “another anti-AI screed” (I clearly didn’t read the description of the book). But Doctorow has made me reconsider some of my notions. I’m not sure he changed my mind—I’m still thinking.

I should rush to say that Doctorow doesn’t defend the notion of using so-called “generative AI” to create art, nor would I. But…transcribing audio files? Getting some facts for an article? If done in the right way, maybe.

But my post isn’t supposed to be about what I think—it’s about the reading experience. This is classic Doctorow—engaging, approachable, frequently amusing, thoughtful and thought-provoking. A good mixture of research and opinion.

The central image of the reverse centaur and the frequent call-backs to the idea that “the most important fact about a technology isn’t what it does, it’s who it does it for, and who it does it to” will stick with the reader, inform their ideas about AI, and so many other things.

The audiobook hold at my library came in a day before the hardcover—so I listened to it, and then re-read a couple of passages to make sure I heard what I thought I did to solidify my grasp on the notion. So, I think I can speak to both formats. It’s a short read (or listen), it’s an engaging read (or listen). Either way, as one would expect, with Doctorow sounding off on technology—you’re in for a treat.

What Can I Possibly Say about Dungeon Crawler Carl That You Haven’t Read Dozens of Times?

By HCNewton

On July 10, 2026

In Audiobook, Science Fiction

Okay, after putting it off for months, I finally got around to reading the paperback I bought last year. Then a friend got me the audiobook—and I had to see if Hays was as great as everyone said. So I did both versions in a month. Which isn’t how I usually do things, but sometimes…

Dungeon Crawler Carl

by Matt Dinniman, read by Jeff Hays

DETAILS:
Series: Dungeon Crawler Carl, #1
Publisher: Ace; Audible Studios
Publication Date: December 30, 2025; January 28, 2021 
Format: Paperback, Audiobook
Length: 427 pg.; 13 hrs., 31 min.
Read Date: June 9-11, 2026; June 26-30, 2026

“Not everything will be social commentary.”

“It’s usually just stupid,” I muttered.

“It’s entertainment,” Mordecai said.

What’s Dungeon Crawler Carl About?

For the maybe 5 of you who haven’t learned this (inadvertently or purposefully), after living amongst us for decades, an alien race nearly wipes out the human race in an instant. Every human being—or physical object, plant, or animal—that was in an enclosed space was crushed when those buildings flattened. Those who survived were given the opportunity to enter a Dungeon to compete in a Hunger Games sort of reality show for several alien races to watch.

Sadly, for Carl, he only survived this because he was outside to catch his ex-girlfriend’s cat in the middle of the night. As he thought this would be a quick dash outside, he was wearing a jacket, t-shirt, boxers, and his girlfriend’s Crocs. Somehow, he didn’t realize he’d be in these clothes—and only these clothes—for (possibly) the rest of his life.

On the other hand, Carl is a veteran of the Coast Guard with plenty of experience in explosives, who worked as a marine technician in Seattle before the Dungeon.

The series is about he and that cat doing everything they can to survive the Dungeon.

Grand Champion, Breed Winner Regional, National Winner Princess Donut the Queen Anne Chonk

Cats are assholes. I get it. But do you know why people like cats, despite their asshole-ness? It’s because they don’t fucking talk. If they did, and they were all like you, they’d all be extinct because we’d have killed you all by now.

Ignoring my mild allergy, I’m not anti-cat. I’m just ambivalent about them. It generally comes across as a vague dislike (especially if I’m not ignoring my mild allergy). And when it comes to fictional Felis catus representation, I’m ambivalent at best.

So imagine my surprise when I’m about halfway through this book when I have to confess to my cat-loving daughter that there’s a good chance that my favorite new character of the year is a particular tortoiseshell Persian cat—”one of those fluffy, flat-faced cats that look like they need to be sitting on the lap of a Bond villain.” Okay, her surprise was bigger than mine.

Princess Donut is just so much fun—well, at least once she eats the Enhanced Pet Biscuit which turns her into a talking, sentient cat with plenty of memories of her life before the Dungeon (mostly to Carl’s consternation). She soon picks up the ability to hurl magic missiles from her eyes.

She is vain, she is mildly manipulative when it comes to Carl, her charisma score enables her to charm just about every NPC they encounter (and she does okay with the rest, too). Thanks to her history of competing in cat shows, she’s a natural when it comes to dealing with the media.

And…I don’t know…she’s got buckets of je ne sais quoi and I can’t get enough of her. I’m not sure I trust her choice in pets (she adopts a baby velicraptor-like creature toward the end of the book), but I can’t see how that won’t prove to be hilarious down the road (just seeing some fan art online assures me of that).

One Monster Description That Tells You a Lot About the Book

Part of a collective mind intent upon destroying any semblance of scientific progress in the universe, the Krakaren is the only communal brain entity in the galaxy who actually gets stupider as time moves on. Consisting of multiple, shrieking tentacles, members of the Krakaren cooperative spend their days birthing their disease-laden minions, creating and selling harmful products, attempting to debate scientific experts, and proselytizing to the weak-minded, all in an attempt to… Well, nobody knows what the hell their end goal is. Even Eris, Goddess of Chaos, doesn’t want anything to do with these crazy assholes.

(was this essentially me reaching to find an excuse to post that quotation? Yes. But also…it really does give you the flavor of the prose, humor, and strangeness of the monsters)

A Quick Word about the Narration

Jeff Hays is on his way to being my favorite audiobook narrator. He’s got stiff competition, but after two books, he’s got a shot at knocking people like Lorelei King, Gildart Jackson, Luke Daniels, and Ray Porter off the podium.

His choice to base Carl’s voice off of Patrick Warburton (and his performance of it) was inspired. His portrayal of Princess Donut is dynamite. And the way he does every other character is great.

If this is how polished he is with the first book—I can only imagine he’ll be fantastic once he gets some experience with Dinniman’s characters and style.

So, what did I think about Dungeon Crawler Carl?

If we get to the point where we don’t help each other anymore, that’s when we stop being human.

I really do think that it’s possible to dig deep with a lot of this book, to sink your teeth into it and see that Dinniman is accomplishing a lot and has a lot to say.

It’s also entirely possible to shutdown all your critical faculties and just have a blast with this book.

Both are totally appropriate ways to enjoy this (well, that’s true of just about every book—but it feels truer here).

I’m going to try to dig deeper when I get to future installments. But for now, I’ll just note that this is more than just jokes and killing things and leave it at that.

Dinniman draws on a bunch of video games, Douglas Adams, The Hunger Games, The Running Man, Ready Player One to create this world—and that would be enough, but when you add in his particular brand of humor and heart…I tell you what, that’s just great stuff.

If you, like me, have held off from this for whatever reason you have. Reconsider it. This is one of the most entertaining books I’ve read in ages, and I’m counting down the days until they finally release book two in paperback (and/or I decide to pay for the hardcovers).

Quick-Take Catchups: The Leftovers from April

By HCNewton

On June 29, 2026

In Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Non-Fiction, Science Fiction

Once again, I’m a few weeks behind on this, but that “To Write About” stack is still calling. Time for me to do a few more of these—emphasizing pithiness, not thoroughness.

Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore

by Emily Krempholtz, Emma Ladji (Narrator)

DETAILS:
Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Publication Date: November 18, 2025
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 11 hrs.
Read Date: March 31-April 2, 2026

A nice little story about a supervillain (however coerced into it she might have been) trying to go straight and live a quiet life. Naturally, it doesn’t go that well, people learn who she is/was and…things get dicey. It’s a very cozy little story with just a hint of danger. This is primarily a Romance with a streak of Fantasy. Not totally my cup of tea, but a very pleasant book.

Guns of Brixton

by Paul D. Brazill

DETAILS:
Publisher: Fahrenheit Press
Publication Date: November 15, 2025
Format: Paperback
Length: 181 pg.
Read Date: April 15, 2026

This is a dark noir full of insane comedy and violence. Peopled by characters you love reading about and never want to meet the likes of in real life. The various plotlines and character arcs overlap and weave together in a way that is really impressive–and is very typical for this kind of read. Just kick back and enjoy it.

It’s fast and furious read that will make you want more from Brazill. I have to leave it for a catch-up post like this, where I’m forced to be vague, I’d end up telling you too much about it in a full-length post.

My only complaint is that as an American with little (read: no) understanding of FIFA history, I had to hit up a friendly-neighborhood search engine to understand the ending. I’d be clearer there, but I don’t want to ruin anything. It’s worth getting to that point and then learning what it meant–the delayed gratification is still gratifying.

Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy

by Mary Roach

DETAILS:
Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Publication Date: September 16, 2025
Format: Unabridged Audiobooks
Length: 8 hrs., 37 min.
Read Date: April 13-16, 2026

Overall, a really good look at the frontiers of human transplant technology—and other ways to replace broken/sick/malfunctioning human parts. Oh, and hair. There was a lot about hair replacement and the various technologies there.

As is typical for a book by Roach, there’s a lot of good information here. A couple of chapters that don’t seem worth it. Some jokes were winners. Some jokes didn’t seem worth the effort.

Frog and Toad Are Doing Their Best [A Parody]

by Jennie Egerdie, Ellie Hajdu (Illustrator)

DETAILS:
Publisher: Running Press Adult
Publication Date: October 5, 2021
Format: Hardcover
Length: 96 pg.
Read Date: April 17, 2026

As I recall, I always thought that the Frog and Toad were pleasant enough, but needed something more to be something I’d read when there wasn’t anything else handy. Things were similar with my kids and the books. This is a little better—only because it’s updated and vaguely amusing to see the pair in 2020s mode.

The art is as perfect as it could be, like it was by the original artists.

It’s not a must-read, but it’s a quick shot of pleasure.

Worse than a Lie

by Ben Crump

DETAILS:
Publisher: Bantam
Publication Date: February 17, 2026
Format: Hardcover
Length: 368 pgs.
Read Date: April 16-17, 2026

I had huge hopes for this one, expecting that I’d read the series to follow. That is not going to happen. The dialogue is atrocious. The plot was…fine, but executed messily, yet predictably. The bad guys are as evil as evil can be—no subtlety to it at all. Actually, that was one of my notes about the book as a whole—there’s nothing subtle about it. The solution and the aftermath were practically a fairy tale. I really can’t think of anything positive to say. The promising premise deserved a whole lot better.

This Book Made Me Think of You

by Libby Page, Zadeiah Campbell-Davies (Narrator)

DETAILS:
Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Publication Date: February 3, 2026
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 10 hrs., 26 min.
Read Date: April 16-20, 2026

Oh, golly, this book was so heartwarming and sweet. It’s also a great look at grief and the way it lingers in the lives of those affected by death. Primarily it’s a sweet book about a (dead) husband’s love expressed through his wife’s passion for reading. Each month, a book is waiting for her at a local bookstore.

Oh, yeah—this is also a tribute to local bookstores and what they can mean for a community.

Grief, books, love, and bookstores. What more could you want?

A Memory Called Empire

by Arkady Martine

DETAILS:
Series: Teixcalaan, #1
Publisher: Tor Books
Publication Date: February 25, 2020
Format: Paperback
Length: 480 pg.
Read Date: April 20-24, 2026

Oh, there were just so many great ideas packed into this volume. Several layers of political machinations—with two cultures that are new to the reader. A mind-blowing technology that raises all sorts of questions about identity, memory, and life. A character death that makes me mad months later. And a looming threat that’s so far in the background that few characters realize it’s a thing.

I did enjoy it, I’m just not sure how much —but I’m so glad that I read it. I need to find time for book two.

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase from any of them, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Quick-Take Catchups: The Leftovers from March

By HCNewton

On June 3, 2026

In Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Urban Fantasy

I’m a few weeks behind on this, but that “To Write About” stack is still calling. Time for me to do a few more of these—emphasizing pithiness, not thoroughness.

Rabbit Cake

by Annie Hartnett, read by Katie Schorr

DETAILS:
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Publication Date: March 7, 2017
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 7 hrs., 7 min. 
Read Date: March 9-13, 2026

This is told from the point-of-view of a very bright 10-12 year-old girl (named Elvis) grieving the recent death of her mother. She has an older sister who is having some pretty severe mental health challenges (likely inherited from the mother)—and it’s unclear about Elvis’s mental health, too.

This covers roughly a year in the life of the family—dad and the two daughters trying to deal with it (our protagonist has an internal calendar in her head for when she’ll be done grieving). There’s some mild comedy, some strong emotional moments–all learned.

I think I came into it expecting something different than what it was. I thought it was…fine? A little better than fine—I enjoyed it, and assume many people will click with it better than me.

The Cyclist

by Tim Sullivan, read by John Heffernan

DETAILS:
Series: The DS Cross Mysteries, #2
Publisher: W. F. Howes Ltd
Publication Date: November 4, 2021
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 7 hrs., 26 min.
Read Date: March 13-16, 2026

I think I read this too close to the previous one—it seemed to hit a lot of the same notes for the same reason. I get that we’re not going to see a lot of growth in DS Cross. That’s just not him. But it feels like the characters around him should be learning from their time with him—and how does his father not know how to introduce changes to him at this point in life?

The mystery felt a little more convoluted than complex—but the solution was pretty satisfying (although I was faster by a few chapters than our DS), as was the reveal.

Wholly satisfying and entertaining—just not quite what I was expecting. I’m hoping with a little more distance that the third mystery won’t be overshadowed by The Dentist the way this was.

Blind Date with a Werewolf

by Patricia Briggs, read by Holter Graham

DETAILS:
Series: Alpha and Omega
Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Publication Date: October 21, 2025
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 8 hrs., 5 min. 
Read Date: March 17-18, 2026

I’ve read one (maybe two) of these stories in various anthologies before—they’re all fine. Asil is a fun character to read, but I don’t know that he’s enough to sustain my attention for that long. Well, maybe if there was a novel-length plot—but this series of stories gets pretty redundant quickly. I think the gimmick turned me off a bit, too.

The characters that Asil interacts with are amusing enough, I suppose. Asil seems better as a supporting/secondary character. There’s some nice character growth for him, and I’m curious to see what that looks like in Briggs’ future works.

The Spellshop

by Sarah Beth Durst, read by Caitlin Davies

DETAILS:
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 12 hrs., 29 min. 
Read Date: March 18, 2026

You’ve got a librarian—with a sentient talking fern—who is chased from the Capitol city during a coup. She returns to the home her parents abandoned when she was a child and sets up a jam shop/black market potions shop. Adventure and found-family ensue.

Okay, this is technically (according to some, anyway) a romance. And I know some of my readers will be scared away by this. It’s pretty tame on that front—and I just don’t mean it’s PG. I mean, the love story is pretty tame and mixes in pretty well with everything else that one could be forgiven for not thinking of it as a Romance. Like I do.

I had a blast with it, and am looking forward to getting my paws on Durst’s follow-up.

Nav’Aria: The Marked Heir

by K.J. Backer

DETAILS:
Series: Nav'Aria, #1
Publication Date: January 18, 2019
Format: Paperback
Length: 390 pg.
Read Date: March 26-31, 2026

This is a fun, sort of porthole fantasy—Darion has been sent by his parents to Earth with some caretakers. He doesn’t know he’s from this different world—he just thought his parents had weird hobbies for him—martial arts, a lot of time in the forest, hunting, and so on.

There’s very little new or unexpected to this story—it doesn’t matter, it’s done well and is entertaining. It’s a very comfortable read in that sense. You’ve got a noble king and queen, a jealous upstart relative, loyal countrymen, oppressed citizenry…yada yada. We’ve all read it, we all like it (otherwise we’d find another genre). It’s in the telling, and some of the small touches. Backer shines there.

For example: The relation between dragons and unicorns—which we’re going to explore more in volume two—is pretty interesting. And unicorns at the top of the power structure? That’s cool.

And we’re not talking plush unicorns with rainbows and flowers. We’re talking big, strong animals who know that pointy thing can be used for. They have other cool magic abilities, too. Really, the unicorns alone are worth reading this.

My concern is that Darion seems to be shedding his Earth-ness for Nav’Arian as fast as Peter Pevensie did when he went back to Narnia in Prince Caspian, I’d like to see that hanging on a little longer. Otherwise, instead of Earth, he might as well have been sent to live in a hovel in a small town to hide. I’m back for more soon.

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase from any of them, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Enemy of My Enemy (Audiobook) by Alex Segura, read by Michael David Axtell: A Lot of Devils in Hell’s Kitchen

By HCNewton

On April 16, 2026

In Audiobook, Comics, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Enemy of My Enemy

by Alex Segura, read by Michael David Axtell

DETAILS:
Series: Marvel Crime, #2
Publisher: Audible Studios
Publication Date: March 24, 2026
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 8 hrs., 28 min.
Read Date: April 8-13, 2026

What’s Enemy of My Enemy About?

I don’t need a lot of words to describe this—Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin of Crime, is dead. Shot in his own home, and all the evidence points to Frank Castle as the shooter. Well, most of the evidence, anyway. Castle even lets himself be arrested without incident and seems ready to take the fall. Matt Murdock knows the facts don’t match up (for one, a police officer was also killed in Fisk’s office and Matt knows the Punisher wouldn’t do that), and can’t let him get railroaded. So he basically forces Castle to accept his representation.

It’s up to Matt Murdock and Daredevil to make sure Castle goes free and that the right killer is identified.

This was cleverly released shortly after the launch of Daredevil: Born Again season 2, but it’s not that much of a tie-in to the television series. This is the comic book version of Daredevil and the rest. It’s a minor point, but it does explain things like why we get someone so cartoonish* as Hammerhead and why certain characters are dead/alive.

* This is not a criticism, but a description. I enjoy the character.

Why did I pick this up? Why did I keep reading?

I picked this up because I like the idea of this Marvel Crime series, the strength of the Jessica Jones novel, and Segura’s reputation.

I kept at it because this is a smart mystery/legal thriller with some great comic book action. There are plenty of twists, some good curve-balls, and more uses of the word “internecine” than I typically see in a book.

How was the Narration?

There’s only one other voice I’d like to hear as Matt Murdock/Daredevil than Michael David Axtell, but I think it was good for them not to cast Charlie Cox. This was just great—he handled every character in a way that fit perfectly. I was as entertained by his performance as I was the by text.

Really well done.

So, what did I think about Enemy of My Enemy?

I had a lot of fun with this one—for everything I just said in that last paragraph.

Segura nailed every character—well, I’m not sure about [surprise name withheld] because I haven’t read much about them, but given the way he dealt with everyone else, I figure he did right by them. And the cast of characters is large. Segura dove deeply into Marvel’s Hell’s Kitchen here.

Also, he wasn’t shy about killing off characters. It’s clearly outside the Marvel canon.

There’s not much else to say—it’s a solid thriller, a captivating superhero story, and you won’t see what’s coming. Enemy of My Enemy is a heckuva ride that I easily recommend to fans of any of the characters I mentioned.

Quick-Take Catchups: The Leftovers from February

By HCNewton

On April 9, 2026

In Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Non-Fiction, Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy

In an effort to keep my “To Write About” pile from getting out of control, I’ve set a requirement to myself to write a catch-up post at the end of the following month (e.g., At the end of February, write about January books; at the end of June, write about the May books I haven’t gotten to yet; etc.). As always, the point of these quick-takes is to emphasize pithiness, not thoroughness.

Robert B. Parker’s Big Shot

by Christopher Farnsworth

DETAILS:
Series: Jesse Stone, #23
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons 
Publication Date: February 10, 2026 
Format: Hardcover
Length: 320 pg. 
Read Date: February 19-20, 2026

This was a perfectly decent Jesse Stone adventure. Jesse’s fate never felt like it was really in danger—but that’s okay, it’s about the struggle, the journey, right?

I’m a little disheartened by the way that Farnsworth is dealing with Lundquist. I know he’s not Healey—and I’m glad for it, I don’t want Farnsworth or anyone else turning him into a version of him. But the version of him being all by the book and cold here, really doesn’t match with the willing-to-be-maverick we met in Pale Kings and Princes, and I don’t think we’ve been given reason for that change (and I want to say this isn’t the first time I’ve been troubled by his characterization).

I really didn’t like Molly’s depiction for good chunks of the book—Farnsworth had a plan for her, and I liked most of what she did—I just think there was a better way to set up her investigative arc. (it’s hard to talk about vaguely). I think Farnsworth is really finding difficulty with her as she grows as a police officer—I think Lupica, did, too. Hopefully he figures it out soon (I should note, I like the way he’s dealing with Suit in the same situation).

Anyway, it’s not a stellar installment in the long-running series—but it did its job well.
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Fairest Hunter

by M. K. Felix

DETAILS:
Series: The Favored's Curse, #1
Publication Date: January 9, 2026 
Format: e-Book 
Length: 351 pg. 
Read Date: February 25-26, 2026

A little heavy on the romance for my taste—but that’s what it’s marketed as, so I lived with it. I’ll note it’s pure and chaste romance, with no need for doors to be closed (well, at least the primary romance…the door might be firmly shut on another).

So it’s a gender-swapped Robin Hood—who also happens to be the King’s Huntsman. So, instead of taking the (male) Snow White figure and leaving him with some dwarves, he’s left with six merry men. These men rob from the rich, give to the poor, while looking for an opportunity to take out the Evil King (who turns out to be using a bespelled mirror to work his magic).

It’s a fun story, just deep enough to justify—fast acting enough that you don’t care. I quite enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading further in the series.
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Separation of Church and Hate: A Sane Person’s Guide to Taking Back the Bible from Fundamentalists, Fascists, and Flock-Fleecing Frauds

by John Fugelsang

DETAILS:
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio  
Publication Date: September 09, 2025  
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 9 hrs., 24 min. 
Read Date: January 30-February 2, 2026

Okay, I’d played with doing a full post on this one, interacting with all the issues I had—but I didn’t take notes or anything as I was listening. So, I’ll try this.

First—I have a lot of sympathy toward the Fugelsang’s goals and aims. Not to the same extent as he does—but still, I lean in very similar directions and/or share concerns.

Second—this book is a mess. There’s a good deal of re-hashing of Liberal* Theology that has been answered no later than the 1920s and 30s. There’s as much special pleading and Scripture twisting in these pages as he accuses those he takes issue with of doing. His notion of the purpose of Christianity, its content, and its focus—are completely wrong and foreign to the Bible itself. (as is the case for many of his targets).

I’m glad I read it because it scratched an itch in curiosity, but…that’s the only good thing I can say about the experience.

* There’s a distinction between Liberal Theology and Liberal Politics. While the Venn diagram has some overlap (a lot of overlap for Fugelsang), they shouldn’t be confused.
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All Accounts Settled

by Drew Hayes, read by Kirby Heyborne

DETAILS:
Series: Fred, The Vampire Accountant, $9
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc 
Publication Date: January 13, 2026 
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 11 hrs., 44 min. 
Read Date: February 25-27, 2026

Fred’s adventures bow out the same way they entered the scene—mildly amusing, full of kindness and hope, generosity of spirit, and community. There’s almost no suspense—which is fine, this series didn’t depend on that.

It’s just Fred facing overwhelming odds, coming up with a clever solution or two, relying on his friends (and them relying on him, too). He found a new level to his magic—which was pretty cool, I’ve gotta say. And scored some major victories. The last chapter (or was it an epilogue?) ties up a lot of loose ends and provides a glimpse into Fred’s future.

Heyborne’s narration was as good as ever.

This was a fitting and entertaining ending to this series. Glad I was along for the ride.

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Every Day I Read: 53 Ways to Get Closer to Books

by Hwang Bo-reum, translated by Shanna Tan, read by Rosa Escoda

DETAILS:
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing 
Publication Date: December 2, 2025  
Format: Unabridged Audiobook 
Length: 3 hrs., 49 min.
Read Date: February 23-24, 2026

This was a perfectly pleasant book. And that’s about all I have to say—there was nothing that made me think—wow! She gets it. Nothing where I thought—I’ve been trying to find the words to express that as a reader. Just a vague pleasantness—that maybe went on too long. Maybe 25-40 ways, max, would’ve worked better.

There seemed to be an expectation that the reader would be familiar with her other work(s) anytime she referenced them—and if you weren’t (or even aware of their existence), it was hard to connect with what she was saying. I can both understand that given the nature of this book she didn’t have time (or possibly the need) to add context, explain the gist of whatever she was referencing. But…it left me cold.

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Hidden in Smoke

by Lee Goldberg

DETAILS:
Series: Sharpe & Walker, 3
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Publication Date: April 22, 2025 
Format: e-Book 
Length: 300 pg. 
Read Date: February 5-6, 2026

I feel like I should have a lot to say about this book—but I don’t. Goldberg delivers what we expect from him—a fast and fun story, some good twists, some great lines—and the return of a few characters I didn’t expect to see again.

There’s part of me that wonders about the scope of all the fires in this series—but, we’ve all seen what happens to California all too often lately. It’s sadly realistic.

I really enjoy these characters, and can’t imagine that ending. I just hope that I can find something to say about the next book (which I can’t wait for).

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A Particularly Nasty Case

by Adam Kay, read by Andrew Serkis

DETAILS:
Publisher: Hachette Audio 
Publication Date: September 16, 2025 
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 10 hrs., 9 min.   
Read Date: February 2-5, 2026

This was…a mess. There’s just no character that I could enjoy spending much time with. The characters’ motivations seem inconsistent and capricious. The comedy (or what I think was comedy) didn’t work, the mystery was pretty weak, and the book seemed more interested in the chaos surrounding the murder than anything else.

Take the murder out, tell some other kind of story, and it probably would’ve worked better. And still wouldn’t have been for me—but I wouldn’t have complained about it.

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The Fact Checker

by Austin Kelley, Jacques Roy

DETAILS:
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio 
Publication Date: April 15, 2025 
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 7 hrs., 1 min.   
Read Date:

If the destination was satisfying, I think I could’ve put up with the journey. If the journey was a bit more interesting/engaging, I could’ve put up with the destination.

But a miss on both, just made this a waste of potential. I liked the premise, there were some good moments, I liked the writing—it just seemed wasted.

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City of Others

by Jared Poon, read by David Lee Huynh

DETAILS:
Series:  The DEUS Files, #1
Publisher: Hachette Audio 
Publication Date: January 13, 2026 
Format: Unabridged Audiobook 
Length: 9 hrs., 16 min.  
Read Date:

This is the first installment in what could become a favorite UF series. Think about the Folly (from The Rivers of London)* filled with humanoid characters from McGuire’s InCryptid series. But set in Singapore. our under-funded and overworked team deal with the supernatural side of Singapore—without letting the non-supernatural set know what they’re up to.

As things are wont to do—something goes wrong, in a very significant way—and the entire city (at least) is soon at risk.

Poon writes with a lighter touch, but he’s not afraid to let things get serious. There are some great emotional moments, and some great mystical/magical scene, too.

* It might be more accurate to describe it as Strout’s Department of Extraordinary Affairs than the Folly—but the Folly is better known.

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase from any of them, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

Head Fake (Audiobook) by Scott Gordon, read by Nick Mondelli: Hoop Dreams and Sometimes Crushing Reality

By HCNewton

On March 24, 2026

In Audiobook, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature

Head Fake

by Scott Gordon, read by Nick Mondelli

DETAILS:
Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc.
Publication Date: April 29, 2025
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 9 hrs., 43 min.
Read Date: February 27-March 2, 2026

What’s Head Fake About?

Mikey has been unhoused a lot recently, but is currently staying with his father to recover from a sickness. If he can keep a job for a while, he can stay with him. His dad has a connection that can get Mikey a job at a school for high-risk offenders with mental illnesses as a bus driver.

It’s not much, but it’s something.

Then, due to a fun set of circumstances, he’s put in the job of coaching the team’s small basketball team.

Oh, I should probably mention that Mikey’s dad is a couple of months away from becoming the winningest High School basketball coach in the U.S., and despite the tortured relationship between the two, Mikey learned a lot from him.

Mikey needs to get the trust of his team (and the school’s administration), fight through his own mental illness struggles, and keep his father from tossing him out. That should be no problem at all, right?

What did I think about the Narration?

I have no notes. Mondelli got everything from Mikey’s attitude, the students, his father, and everyone else just right.

Why did I pick this up? Why did I keep reading?

I honestly don’t remember how I came across this book. But I put it on a list at some point, and eventually got around to picking it up.

I stuck with it because I liked Mikey—his voice and him as a person. He got his hooks in me right away and wouldn’t let go. I really just had to find out what happened to him—the more I got to know the students, the more I got invested. (just the way a reader is supposed to)

What does this book tell us about humanity?

This is a book about broken people helping other broken people (and, in some cases, hurting broken people). While there are some similarities in the problems each character has faced and is facing, it’s not the commonalities that connect them—it’s that they’ve faced a problem and are still trying, however weakly.

Also, a love for basketball.

So, what did I think about Head Fake?

While set in a high school, this is not a YA book. But it is YA-friendly.

This book is really a mash-up of two sure-fire feel-good stories. First, you’ve got an underdog sports team battling just to be taken seriously—and it ends up winning a lot. Gordon nails this part. Granted, it’s hard to mess that kind of story up—but there’s something so satisfying when it’s done right.

The other part of the mash-up is the outsider connecting with students in an inspirational way. Think Lean on Me or Sister Act 2 (more of the latter than the former). Granted, a bus driver isn’t much of an authority figure—but that’s where the coach part comes in.

You combine the two with some strong character growth from one of the underest underdog characters I can think of, some dumb humor, and a metric ton of earnest goodwill, and you’ve got yourself a wholly pleasant book that I can’t imagine a reader/listener wouldn’t be charmed by.

Quick-Take Catchups: The Leftovers from January

By HCNewton

On March 9, 2026

In (Auto)Biography, Audiobook, Dogs, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, Humor, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Non-Fiction, Science Fiction, YA/MG/Children's Books

In an effort to keep my “To Write About” pile from getting out of control (I’ve got another post coming up in the first week in January…or maybe later in the year about the older stuff), I’ve set a requirement to myself to write a catch-up post at the end of the following month (e.g., At the end of February, write about January books; at the end of June, write about the May books I haven’t gotten to yet; etc.). As always, the point of these quick-takes is to emphasize pithiness, not thoroughness.

Dear Committee Members

by Julie Schumacher, read by Roberston Dean

DETAILS:
Series: Jason Fitger, #1
Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Publication Date: August 19, 2014
Format: Unabridged Audiobooks
Length: 3 hrs., 55 min. 
Read Date: January 3-5, 2026

Professor Jason Fitger is a delightful character (in fiction, please don’t sit next to him at a dinner or stand near him at a party. Or maybe don’t be in the same room with him). He’s full of himself, a little self-deluded, put-upon, and (probably) past his prime with a career going nowhere (but hey, tenure!).

We learn about him through a series of letters of recommendation he’s sending to various businesses, schools, programs, and scholarships for his students; interdepartmental emails; emails to old friends/ex-lovers/ex-wife; and maybe one or two others. I like a good epistolary novel, and this is one of them. We learn about Fitger, and a couple of his students, the moves his University is making to gut itself of the liberal arts, and more, in a way that feels incredibly authentic and very entertaining.

Still, I don’t think I could take it if the book was much longer, and I don’t know that I want to read the rest of the trilogy (but I kind of do).

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All the Best Dogs

by Emily Jenkins

DETAILS:
Publisher: Yearling
Publication Date: November 4, 2025
Format: Hardcover
Length: 208 pg.
Read Date: January 5, 2026

This middle-grade novel about a bunch of kids (and a few adults) who bring their dogs to a neighborhood dog park is just delightful. Not just because the dogs are as cute and silly and loving as you want them to be. But the kids and their situations are, too. Even the ones that start off in conflict or sadness get a good dose of resolution and hope by the end (generally tied to one of these dogs). It was cute, heartwarming, and filled with good dogs—the best dogs, actually. What more do you want?

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Children of Time

by Adrian Tchaikovsky

DETAILS:
Publisher: Orbit
Publication Date: December 11, 2018
Format: Paperback
Length: 416 pg.
Read Date: January 14-19, 2026

I didn’t write a full post on this because I can’t write a sentence about what I think about it without writing one contradicting it. And then one defending the first sentence. And then one defending the second. And then…

I love the concept of this book. Think the execution was wonderful. There’s so, so, so many cool things and ideas packed in here. But it’s also slow and plodding. It could be argued that 80% of the book is setup and only the last 20% is the story. That 20% (an estimate, I didn’t really do the math) is pretty cool and almost makes up for the rest.

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Everyone in the Group Chat Dies

by L.M. Chilton, Kimberley Capero

DETAILS:
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Publication Date: December 9, 2025
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 9 hrs., 36 min. 
Read Date: January 15-16, 2026

I enjoyed (and apparently didn’t write about) Chilton’s Swiped a couple of years ago. Almost none of the charm or zaniness of that book made its way here. I’m not saying I expected a carbon copy, obviously, but this could almost have been written by someone else.

A lot of the framing of this story was well done—and the way it was ordered was, too. But I could practically see that all of the heart and character were sacrificed for the sake of clever plotting and telling. And if I have to go on without one of those pairs, I know which one it should be.

I’m not saying that I’m done with Chilton, but I won’t be in a rush for whatever’s next.

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Lit

by Tim Sandlin

DETAILS:
Publisher: Brash Books
Publication Date: October 22, 2025
Format: eBook
Length: 254 pg.
Read Date: January 20, 2026

This is quotable, clever, and filled with interesting characters. It’s also a little too convoluted; it’s hard to believe some of the interpersonal relationships with the characters, and the solution is a bit of a letdown.

That said, from the first page to the last I was hooked and couldn’t stop reading it. Most of it worked in the moment, or was something I could shrug off while reading it. But when I was done and started thinking about it, I the doubts and quibbles kept growing.

Maybe Sandlin couldn’t really figure out the book he was trying to write—tone, characters, and/or outcome—he wouldn’t be the first author to do that. As much as a lot of the passages sang—the book, in retrospect, was just good enough. Read this one to enjoy the journey, not necessarily the destination.

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The Librarians

by Sherry Thomas, read by Louisa Zhu

DETAILS:
Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Publication Date: September 30, 2025
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 13 hrs., 45 min. 
Read Date: January 21-26, 2026

Individually, these characters were just fantastic—plenty of quirk, plenty of heart, plenty of “I just want to live a quiet life with books and nice people” kind of energy. Sign me up for that! The murder mysteries were intriguing enough, too. But combining the characters and the murders—with too many amateur detectives running around—it all felt very soapy. Very melodramatic.

I flitted back and forth between “Oh, I really like Character X and want to see what happens to them” and “Oh, please, shut up and return to reality! Cut the melodrama!” so often I got whiplash.

I’d recommend it with several caveats and a stress on low-expectations. Then again, I could name worse.

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Through the Ashes

by Irene Hill

DETAILS:
Series: Joe Higgins, #1
Publication Date: April 18, 2025
Format: Paperback
Length: 239 pg.
Read Date: January 24-26, 2026

This is a solid series premiere and debut novel about a former deputy who used to serve on his area’s search-and-rescue team. Years after personal tragedy struck, he’s called on to leave his drunken stupor behind and find a missing boy. Naturally, it’s not long before this search becomes so much more.

This is Hill’s debut, and it’s not that hard to tell (particularly as she introduces characters early on). But she can tell a good story, and the characters are winners.

It’s a little on the rough side, but this is a good read, and I’m ready for the second book (and probably the third and fourth).

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Memes & Mayhem II: A Comedy of Horrors

by Ashley DeLeon

DETAILS:
Series: Memes & Mayhem, #2
Publication Date: September 11, 2025
Format: Paperback
Length: 249 pg.
Read Date: January 24, 2026

Before I get into this, I thought I had posted about the first book, and I’m more than a little annoyed to find out that I didn’t. I did chat with the author briefly a couple of years ago. (I’m really bothered, I remember working on it) Anyway, this is exactly like the first book—just done a little better and is a little funnier. Experience is a good thing.

DeLeon has picked some great creepy ghost stories and tells them well—even better, she does it with a good (and oftentimes silly) sense of humor.

This is well worth your time (so is its predecessor). I had a blast with this and will do so again.

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The Serial Killer Guide to San Francisco

by Michelle Chouinard, read by Stephanie Németh-Parker

DETAILS:
Series: The Serial Killer Guide to San Francisco, #1
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: September 24, 2024
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 9 hrs., 51 min.
Read Date: January 26-28, 2026

This really fits in the Finley Donovan demographic. It’s a little more grounded, a little slower on the romance burn (okay, a lot slower), a little less zanier. But the same overall feel. I didn’t get as into all of the plotlines as I was supposed to—and I’d figured out the whodunit, with a pretty good (but growing) confidence in the whydunit early on. But watching our semi-intrepid investigator, Capri Sanzio, wind her way through the investigation was entertaining enough.

I didn’t buy her podcast recording at all (and it would’ve been good to see her do something other than record episodes). But the rest was okay.

It was as entertaining as you’d want this to be—not an inch more. But good enough.

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That’s a Great Question, I’d Love to Tell You

by Elyse Myers

DETAILS:
Publisher: William Morrow
Publication Date: October 28, 2025
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 5 hrs., 32 min. 
Read Date: January 28-30, 2026

This is such a strange, comforting, hilarious, and relatable collection of short pieces. Some are memoirs, some are humorous pieces, some are hard to define. All are absolutely worth your time. They will warm your heart, bring a smile to your face, and make you feel all sorts of things.

I think this would work well on the page—but do yourself a favor and get it on audio. Myers’ delivery is so good (as anyone who’s watched her videos knows), hearing her words in her voice really captures the intangibles of the book in a way that I don’t think that the page is fully capable of.

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase from any of them, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.