Featured Audiobooks | LoveReading

The Beekeeper of Aleppo: A moving testament to the human spirit

Narrated by Art Malik, The Beekeeper of Aleppo is a moving, powerful, compassionate and beautifully written testament to the triumph of the human spirit. Told with deceptive simplicity, it is the kind of book that reminds us of the power of storytelling. In the midst of war, he found love In the midst of darkness, he found courage In the midst of tragedy, he found hope Nuri is a beekeeper; his wife, Afra, an artist. They live a simple life, rich in family and friends, in the beautiful Syrian city of Aleppo - until the unthinkable happens. When all they care for is destroyed by war, they are forced to escape. Afra has lost her sight, and so they embark on a periluosjourney towards an uncertain future in Britain. As they travel, Nuri is sustained by the knowledge that waiting for them is his beekeeper cousin Mustafa, who is teaching fellow refugees in Yorkshire to keep bees. Nuri and Afra set off through a broken world, on a dangerous journey in which they will confront the pain of their unfathomable loss, and in doing so find a way back to each other again. 'This is a novel of international significance. Courageous, provocative, haunting, it will open our eyes.' Heather Morris, author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz 'This book dips below the deafening headlines, and tells a true story with subtlety and power' Esther Freud 'This compelling tale had me gripped with its compassion, its sensual style and its onward and lively urge for resolution' Daljit Nagra 'Christy Lefteri has crafted a beautiful novel, intelligent, thoughtful; and relevant. I'm recommending this book to everyone I care about. So I'm recommending this book to you' Benjamin Zaphaniah

Christy Lefteri (Author), Art Malik (Narrator)

Audiobook

What Red Was

Random House presents the audiobook edition of What Red Was written by Rosie Price, read by Eleanor Tomlinson. 'I think this is the best debut fiction I've ever read... I'm still in awe of it, I think about it all the time. If you like David Nicholls, Tessa Hadley, Elizabeth Day, Meg Wolitzer, Donna Tartt, then pre-order this book. It's exceptional.' -- Pandora Sykes, The High Low (12 Dec 2018) 'Kate Quaile,' he said. 'I like your name.' Kate frowned. 'How do you know my name?' Through their four years at university, Kate and Max are inseparable. For him, she breaks her solitude; for her, he leaves his busy circles behind. But loving Max means knowing his family, the wealthy Rippons, all generosity, social ease and quiet repression. Theirs is not Kate's world. At their London home, just after graduation, her life is shattered apart in a bedroom while a party goes on downstairs. WHAT RED WAS is a startling debut novel. It explores the effects of trauma on mind and body, the tyrannies of memory, the sacrifices involved in staying silent, the courage of a young woman in speaking out. And when Kate does, this question: whose story is it now?

Rosie Price (Author), Eleanor Tomlinson (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Scent Keeper: A Novel

Erica Bauermeister, the national bestselling author of The School of Essential Ingredients, presents a moving and evocative coming-of-age audiobook about childhood stories, families lost and found, and how a fragrance conjures memories capable of shaping the course of our lives. Emmeline lives an enchanted childhood on a remote island with her father, who teaches her about the natural world through her senses. What he won't explain are the mysterious scents stored in the drawers that line the walls of their cabin, or the origin of the machine that creates them. As Emmeline grows, however, so too does her curiosity, until one day the unforeseen happens, and Emmeline is vaulted out into the real world--a place of love, betrayal, ambition, and revenge. To understand her past, Emmeline must unlock the clues to her identity, a quest that challenges the limits of her heart and imagination. Lyrical and immersive, The Scent Keeper explores the provocative beauty of scent, the way it can reveal hidden truths, lead us to the person we seek, and even help us find our way back home.

Erica Bauermeister (Author), Gabra Zackman (Narrator)

Audiobook

Girl, Woman, Other

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo, read by Anna-Maria Nabirye. Teeming with life and crackling with energy, told through many distinctive voices, this novel follows the lives of twelve very different characters. Mostly women, black and British, they tell the stories of their families, friends and lovers, across the country and through the years. Joyfully polyphonic and sparklingly contemporary, Girl, Woman, Other is a gloriously new kind of history, a novel of our times: celebratory, ever-dynamic and utterly irresistible.

Bernardine Evaristo (Author), Anna-Maria Nabirye (Narrator)

Audiobook

Stop Doing That Sh*t

From the author of the New York Times and international bestseller Unfu*k Yourself Gary John Bishop presents a no-holds-barred guide to breaking through our cycles of self-sabotage to get what we want out of life. In Unfu*k Yourself, Gary John Bishop told us it was time to stop making excuses- to recognize and take responsibility for the negative self-talk holding us back. In Stop Doing That Sh*t, he builds on that message, teaching us how to stop self-sabotaging behavior. Bishop explains how our destructive cycles come down to the way that we're wired. He then identifies different types of people and the ways we fu*k ourselves over: We can't save money. We land in the same type of toxic relationship. We're stuck in a rut at work. Analysing why we act the way we do, including what our common grenades are that blow up our lives, Bishop then shows how we can interrupt the cycle and stop self-sabotaging our lives. Written in the same in your face style as Unfu*k Yourself, Stop Doing that Sh*t will help us get in touch with our psychological machinery so we learn to interrupt negative thoughts and behaviour before they start, allowing us to give our attention to something else, and start to find success in the areas we thought we never could. We can take back our lives. We may have fu*ked up in the past, but Stop Doing That Sh*t will show us how to break the patterns in order to live the lives we yearn to have.

Gary John Bishop (Author), Gary John Bishop (Narrator)

Audiobook

Let Love Have the Last Word

Common—the Grammy Award, Academy Award, and Golden Globe–winning musician, actor, and activist—follows up his New York Times bestselling memoir One Day It'll All Make Sense with this inspiring exploration of how love and mindfulness can build communities and allow you to take better control of your life through actions and words. Common's warm and rousing narration is accompanied by music written and performed exclusively for this audiobook. Common believes that the phrase "let love have the last word" is not just a declaration; it is a statement of purpose, a daily promise. Love is the most powerful force on the planet and ultimately, the way you love determines who you are and how you experience life. Touching on God, self-love, partners, children, family, and community, Common explores the core tenets of love to help others understand what it means to receive and, most important, to give love. He moves from the personal—writing about his daughter, to whom he wants to be a better father—to the universal, where he observes that our society has become fractured under issues of race and politics. He knows there's no quick remedy for all of the hurt in the world, but love—for yourself and for others—is where the healing begins. Courageous, insightful, brave, and characteristically authentic, Let Love Have the Last Word shares Common's own unique and personal stories of the people and experiences that have led to a greater understanding of love and all it has to offer. It is a powerful call to action for a new generation of open hearts and minds, one that is sure to resonate for years to come.

Common (Author), Common (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Doll Factory

'A sharp, scary, gorgeously evocative tale of love, art and obsession' Paula Hawkins, author of The Girl on the Train The Doll Factory by Elizabeth Macneal is the intoxicating story of a young woman who aspires to be an artist, and the man whose obsession may destroy her world for ever. London. 1850. The greatest spectacle the city has ever seen is being built in Hyde Park, and among the crowd watching two people meet. For Iris, an aspiring artist, it is the encounter of a moment - forgotten seconds later, but for Silas, a collector entranced by the strange and beautiful, that meeting marks a new beginning. When Iris is asked to model for pre-Raphaelite artist Louis Frost, she agrees on the condition that he will also teach her to paint. Suddenly her world begins to expand, to become a place of art and love. But Silas has only thought of one thing since their meeting, and his obsession is darkening . . . A Radio 2 Book Club Choice.

Elizabeth Macneal (Author), Tuppence Middleton (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Butterfly Room

Full of her trademark mix of unforgettable characters and heart-breaking secrets, The Butterfly Room is the new spellbinding, multi-generational story from Sunday Times bestseller Lucinda Riley. Posy Montague is approaching her seventieth birthday. Still living in her beautiful family home, Admiral House, set in the glorious Suffolk countryside where she spent her own idyllic childhood catching butterflies with her beloved father, and raised her own children, Posy knows she must make an agonising decision. The house is crumbling around her, and Posy knows the time has come to sell it. Then a face appears from the past - Freddie, her first love, who abandoned her and left her heartbroken fifty years ago. Already struggling to cope with her son Sam's inept business dealings, and the sudden reappearance of her younger son Nick, Posy is reluctant to trust in Freddie's renewed affection. And unbeknown to Posy, Freddie - and Admiral House - have a devastating secret to reveal... Praise for the Author: "Masterful storytelling and imaginative power are the trademarks of Riley's novels." LANCASHIRE EVENING POST

Lucinda Riley (Author), Nicolette Mckenzie (Narrator)

Audiobook

Cross My Heart

Ten years ago, a seventeen-year-old Lily Dumont faked her own death to escape an uncle who wanted her inheritance, leaving her old life-and love, behind . . . but Lily never forgot Ty Benson. When Ty discovers Lily's uncle is about to have her declared legally dead in order to finally get his hands on the family money, Ty seeks out Lily and urges her to return home, face her past, and reclaim what rightfully belongs to her. Can Ty reclaim Lily as well? Or will she leave him again, this time for good? Contains mature themes.

Carly Phillips (Author), Summer Roberts (Narrator)

Audiobook

How to Own the Room: Women and the Art of Brilliant Speaking

Most books about public speaking don't tell you what to do when you open your mouth and nothing comes out. And they don't tell you how to get over the anxiety about performance that most people naturally have. They don't tell you what to do in the moments when you are made, as a woman, to feel small. They don't tell you how to own the room. This book does. From the way Michelle Obama projects 'happy high status', and the power of J.K.Rowling's understated speaking style, to Virginia Woolf's leisurely pacing and Oprah Winfrey's mastery of inner conviction, what is it that our heroines do to make us sit up and listen - really listen - to their every word? And how can you achieve that impact in your own life? Here's how.

Viv Groskop (Author), Viv Groskop (Narrator)

Audiobook

Hinch Yourself Happy: All The Best Cleaning Tips To Shine Your Sink And Soothe Your Soul

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Hinch Yourself Happy, written and read by Mrs Hinch. All the best cleaning tips to shine your sink and soothe your soul. Discover how to transform your home. Cleaning doesn't have to be that job you dread. Not when Mrs Hinch is here to show you her sparkly ways! Mrs Hinch has taken the nation by storm with her infectiously addictive charm, clever cleaning hacks and her passionate belief in the life-changing magic of tidying. With the help of her cloth family, Mrs Hinch will help you turn your house into a home. Whether you're a daily duster or looking for a monthly makeover, HINCH YOURSELF HAPPY shows you how to create not only a cleaner house, but a calmer you. If you want your kitchen to sparkle like Meghan Markle, then this is the book for you.

Mrs Hinch (Author), Mrs Hinch (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Heat of the Moment: Life and Death Decision-Making From a Firefighter

Random House presents the audiobook edition of The Heat of the Moment written and read by Dr Sabrina Cohen-Hatton. '[One of] the wonder women of our emergency services' Glamour 'An inspirational woman' Good Housekeeping In the face of urgency and uncertainty, would you respond analytically or trust your instincts? How would you decide who lives and who dies? Dr Sabrina Cohen-Hatton has been a firefighter for eighteen years. She decides which of her colleagues rush into a burning building and how they confront the blaze. She makes the call to evacuate if she believes the options have been exhausted or that the situation has escalated beyond hope. This is her astonishing account of a profession defined by the most difficult decisions imaginable. Taking us to the very heart of firefighting, Sabrina uses her award-winning research to reveal the skills that are essential to surviving - and even thriving - in such a fast-paced and emotionally-charged environment. And she immerses us in this extraordinary world; from scenes of devastation and crisis, through triumphs of bravery, to the quieter moments when she questions herself and the decisions made in the most unforgiving circumstances. Here is the truth about how we respond in our most extreme moments.

Dr Sabrina Cohen-Hatton (Author), Dr Sabrina Cohen-Hatton (Narrator)

Audiobook