Loved to Listen to (1) Cake, Sisters and Marbles

As you know over the last few months I’ve really been getting into audiobooks. I’ve found that I’m quite the fussy listener and that a terrible narration can ruin a book altogether for me. I figured that if I were to review them it wouldn’t be very fair on the books themselves. It’s not their fault if they’re partnered with a narrator that doesn’t work for me. So instead I decided that I’d start this new feature “Loved to Listen to” sharing with you some of the gems that I’ve discovered on Audible that are worth spending those precious credits on. A narrator can make or break a book and these picks are so good that I’d recommend listening to them on audio rather than buying the actual book. Today I’m starting by sharing three audiobooks about cake, sisters and marbles…

Spectacles by Sue Perkins 
Narrated by Sue Perkins 
Genre: Memoir 
Source: Credit received from Audible in exchange for an honest review 
Buy on Audible 

Review 
Sue Perkins is one of my favourite celebrities. She comes across as intelligent, funny, kind and like someone who has endless fascinating stories to share. I’m not usually interested in celebrity memoirs or autobiographies but was sold on the audiobook version of this with it being narrated by Sue Perkins herself.

Sue’s narration brings this audiobook to life. Listening to her stories is like going to the pub with an old friend for a catch up. I listened to this audiobook whilst doing chores and getting ready in the mornings and it made those mundane tasks so much more bearable. Not many people can make me laugh out loud at 7am on a Monday morning but Sue Perkins did. Not many people can make me cry whilst putting my mascara on but Sue Perkins did.

This book covers cake, travel, dogs, lesbianism, comedy, friendship, family and feminism all delivered in Sue's trademark humorous, warm and intelligent narrative. What's not to love?

Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter 
Narrated by Jennifer Woodward and Robert G Slade 
Genre: Thriller, Crime 
Source: Bought 
Buy on Audible

Review 
Karin Slaughter is an author that I’d heard a lot of good things about, so when her latest standalone crime thriller was recommended to me by somebody who has very similar taste to me in this genre I decided on a whim to try the audiobook with my monthly credit.

The book is told by two narrators Jennifer Woodward and Robert G Slade and they were both fantastic and complemented one another well. I was particularly impressed by Jennifer Woodward who narrates the majority of the book and brought so many characters to life in my mind.

The plot for this book is complex and fascinating with so many twists and turns throughout. I don’t want to spoil any of the twists that begin quite early on the book, so I’ll just say that the plot follows two sisters who begin to uncover the truth about the disappearance of their older sister who went missing twenty years ago. It’s in many ways an old trope but the sinister twists and turns are what make this book really stand out.

If I had to describe this book in three words it would be gripping, gruesome and disturbing. At one point I was listening to this at 1am because I had to know what was happening and I couldn’t sleep for an hour after that because I was so freaked out!

This is simply one of the best Thrillers that I’ve ever read and I really want to check out more from Karin Slaughter.

The Marble Collector by Cecelia Ahern 
Narrated by Aoife McMahon and Aidan Kelly 
Genre: Fiction, Family 
Source: Credit received from Audible in exchange for an honest review 
Buy on Audible 

Review
I’ve been a reader of Cecelia Ahern’s books since her debut P.S. I Love You first released back when I was a teenager. Her books tend to be a bit hit or miss for me but The Marble Collector was one that I really enjoyed.

The book is told in alternate chapters between a daughter and her father and for the audiobook these chapters are narrated by Aoife McMahon and Aidan Kelly. Their Irish accents really helped set the scene for this book and I enjoyed both of their voices.

The book follows a daughter whose father has lost his marbles - quite literally! Throughout his life he has collected marbles and each one has a deep connection to his identity. Now that her father is struggling with his memory she goes on a journey to find his lost marble collection and reunite them and the memories they represent to her dad.

This book really touched my heart, it’s not often you see books about father/daughter relationships and I loved exploring this one. Fergus was a particularly fascinating character and I loved recovering his memories and learning more about his life.

The Marble Collector is such a brilliant book about identity and memory and how they go hand in hand. One of my favourites by Cecelia Ahern.

Those are the three audiobooks that I've loved to listen to recently. 

I'd love to know what books you've loved to listen to on Audible - I'm always looking for new recommendations!

Reading Outside of My Comfort Zone

If you’re a regular reader of this blog then you’ll know that the main pool of books that I like to luxuriate in is YA but in 2015 I’ve found myself dipping my toes into new to me genres. Because I mainly talk about YA on here I thought that I’d share with you some of the gems I’ve been finding in other genres and how my reading tastes have evolved over the past year.

Middle Grade

I re-discovered Middle Grade as an adult when I won a copy of Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens from the lovely Michelle’s twitter giveaway. A lot of my blog friends who enjoy Middle Grade as well as YA had been raving about this book and so I wanted to see what the fuss was about before the second book Arsenic for Tea came out.

Sadly my dog died shortly after the book arrived on my birthday and I needed something to sweep me away to a time when life was simpler, I craved that childhood oblivion again and so I reached for Murder Most Unladylike. I fell in love with the friendship between Hazel and Daisy as the book swept me away to a boarding school set in the 1930s. I feel like I owe my sanity at that time to this series and it has even gone on to inspire me to write my own Middle Grade story.

Graphic Novels 

Graphic Novels have never been something that interested me before this year. I used to think that it was all Marvel and DC Comics – which I am a fan of when it comes to the movies and TV shows but didn’t necessarily want to read about.

Then I noticed more and more people hauling graphic novels that weren’t all about superheroes, no, they covered pretty much every topic imaginable. I was sucked in by glossy artwork and intriguing synopses and decided to check out a little series called Saga which so many people were reading and loving. To my surprise I was swept away to an epic space opera and devoured the series pretty much back to back. I’ve now become a little bit obsessed with graphic novels and am enjoying trying out different art styles and stories to figure out what works for me.

Audiobooks

I tried listening to my first audiobook a year ago but didn’t get through it because, my poor logic at the time, was that I’d rather be reading a physical book. Then when I got a free trial for Audible I decided to try audiobooks again but this time listen to them during the times when I couldn’t be physically reading. I listened when I was getting ready in the mornings, washing up, and on car rides and loved the fact that I could listen to a book at a time when I couldn’t otherwise be reading.

I started to get through more books a month because of the bonus non-reading time spent listening to a book. Audiobooks can be hit and miss for me based on how I get on with the narrator but for the most part I’ve been enjoying what I’ve listened to. My best find has been The Song of Achilles which has gone on to become one of my favourite books and is probably not something I would have picked up otherwise if the audiobook version was not recommended to me by my blogger friend Sophie.

High Fantasy 

While I am a massive YA fantasy fan I’ve always been intimidated by those big chunky epic fantasy books mainly because of the sheer size and number of books that can belong to a series. Being a book blogger I always have a massive TBR pile to get through so can never justify dedicating a lot of time to a big series.

The Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson had been on my must read list for such a long time and I finally decided to read it when Lucy at The Book Belle hosted Mistborn Mondays and I’m so, so glad that I finally picked it up! Reading a big series such as Mistborn feels so much less intimidating when you’re reading it alongside other people and the deadlines to read each book by made me stick to it because I am awful at not completing series. I haven’t read anything quite on the same epic scope as Mistborn since Harry Potter and I loved discovering a new all-time favourite series and an author who I’ve become such a fangirl over and who I will now read anything they write.

This year I have been more diverse and open with my reading choices and it has certainly paid off! The books that I have mentioned in this post have gone on to become some of my favourites of this year. I’m looking forward to delving further into all of these genres and discovering more books to love. In the future I’ll not be so hesitant to pick something up that is a little outside my comfort zone. 

I’d love to know which books outside of your comfort zone did you pick up and end up loving?