Contemporary Women Audiobooks | Fiction

"Sixteen-year-old Caitlin Dale died unexpectedly on the Fourth of July. Like other affluent families of Briar's Green, Caitlin joined hers at the country club's annual party. They say she slipped by the pool. A tragic accident. But her cousin Alice knows the truth. Caitlin was murdered. And Alice saw who did it. Twenty years later, Alice returns to her childhood hometown, seeking answers. The club where Caitlin died has barely changed. But its secrets, Alice soon discovers, are carefully hidden-and there are powerful people in Briar's Green who would like them to stay that way. In her deliciously dark debut novel, Kelsey Miller transports readers to a brooding enclave, one with a long history, a short fuse and a narrator determined to seek justice, at all costs."

Kelsey Miller (Author), Helen Laser (Narrator)

Audiobook

Marrow

"A searing take on femininity and power, Marrow transports readers to a small island off the coast of Maine, where a coven has done the seemingly impossible. The day Oona was kicked out of her mother's coven, she gave up on her dreams of harnessing the witchcraft that was her birthright. Years later, she's carved out an ordinary life with her husband, though she is filled with a longing she can barely name. If she could only become a mother, then-according to island lore-she will come into her magic. But after years of being unable to carry a pregnancy to term, Oona begins to feel desperate. Without the money to seek medical treatment, she decides she must return to the rugged, windswept island where she was raised-and to her dark, enigmatic mother . . . a witch who gives childless women the chance to become mothers. Oona returns under the cover of anonymity, hoping for an answer. But, despite a celebrity clientele and a long wait-list, there are dark forces at work on the island, and as her time there grows more harrowing, the truth threatens to come to light. How far will Oona go to access the power her mother commands? Tender and intense, witchy and wise, and written in prose that glitters and seethes, Marrow is a gripping novel about the complex bonds between mothers and daughters, about what we must believe in order to imagine a future for ourselves, and what we must let go in order to fully live it."

Samantha Browning Shea (Author), Saskia Maarleveld (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Heartbreak Hotel

"A bed-and-breakfast for the brokenhearted might hold the key to another chance at love in this achingly hopeful debut romance. Louisa Walsh emerged from a tumultuous childhood with a degree in counseling, a wealthy boyfriend, and her sunny outlook on life mostly intact. But that optimism is tested when she's dumped and left unable to afford rent on their gorgeous house in the mountains of Colorado. Even with her life in disarray, Lou knows losing the one stable place she's ever called home is not an option. Her plan: ask her reclusive landlord, Henry Rhodes, to let her stay for free in exchange for renting out the house's many rooms as a bed-and-breakfast. She's shocked when he agrees to her terms, and even more surprised to discover Henry is a handsome thirtysomething veterinarian with silver at his temples and sadness in his eyes. One who does not take it well when Lou starts marketing her B and B as a retreat for the recently heartbroken. But as the Comeback Inn opens its doors to its weary, hopeful guests, Lou and Henry find themselves dancing around both their undeniable connection and the closely held secrets that threaten to topple this fragile new start. A chance at love, here, could be too close to home…or it could be exactly where their hearts finally heal."

Ellen O'Clover (Author), Brittany Pressley (Narrator)

Audiobook

Sooner or Later

"The sequel to #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber's classic Someday Soon! When stubborn but proper Texas postmistress Letty Madden hires a rough soldier, Jack Murphy, to help her find her brother for the price of one night together, she has no idea that he will fall deeply in love with her."

Debbie Macomber (Author), TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Scot's Seduction: A Novel

"A deliciously fun romance blossoms between a fiercely independent woman and a reserved Scotsman, in the latest installment of Megan Frampton’s Heirs and Spares series. She’ll never say yes… Lady Drusilla Courtenay has sworn off marriage, though she still dabbles in romance, much to Society’s shock. She’s determined to help other women remain independent, but she lacks the means to see her vision through. When Murdoch, Earl of Cragmore, arrives on her doorstep with his niece, he makes her an offer she can’t refuse; if she assists with his niece’s debut, he’ll turn her dreams into reality. But accepting this bargain doesn’t mean she can’t also have some fun with the burly, handsome Scot—as long as they both keep their stronger emotions in check. He can’t say no… Murdoch has never met a woman like Drusilla. Proud, opinionated, intelligent, and fiercely independent, she is also the most passionate woman he’s ever encountered. When she proposes they extend their bargain into something more intimate, he agrees, even though he knows it will end at the conclusion of the Season. As he gets to know her, he falls deeply in love. He knows it is hopeless, since the Drusilla he’s desperately in love with would never agree to upend her life to be with him. Will the two most stubborn people finally compromise, or will they deny their hearts? "

Megan Frampton (Author), Morag Sims (Narrator)

Audiobook

A Prologue to Love: A Novel

"The story of a Boston heiress who wishes for nothing—except happiness—by a New York Times bestselling author who 'never falters when it comes to storytelling' (Publishers Weekly). Caroline Ames is rich beyond imagining. But after a childhood with a cold, rejecting father, she is irrationally terrified of poverty, seething with hostility, and incapable of giving or receiving love. Those who cross her path tend to find themselves at the very least suffering, if not thoroughly broken. A Prologue to Love introduces three generations of the Ames family during the Gilded Age and the early twentieth century—painting a compassionate portrait of a difficult woman, those who have hurt her, and those she has hurt. It is a vivid, profoundly moving novel that explores the damage that everyday evil can do—and what it takes to overcome it."

Taylor Caldwell (Author), Romy Nordlinger (Narrator)

Audiobook

Many Mothers of Dolores Moore

"For fans of Rebecca Serle and Elizabeth Acevedo, a magically insightful novel about a woman's journey to discover her roots and what it means to carry our ancestors with us. In the span of a year, Dolores Moore has become a thirty-five-year-old orphan. After the funeral of the last living member of her family, Dorrie has never felt more lost and alone. That is, except for a Greek chorus of deceased relatives whose voices follow her around giving unsolicited advice and opinions. And they're only amplifying Dorrie's doubts about keeping the deathbed promise she made to return to her birthplace in Colombia. Fresh off a breakup with her long-term boyfriend, laid off from her job as a cartographer, and facing a daunting inheritance of her mothers' aging Minneapolis Victorian and two orange tabbies, how can she possibly leave the country now? But when an old flame offers to housesit, the chorus agrees that there's no room for excuses. Armed with only a scrap of a handdrawn map, Dorrie sets off to find out where—and who—she came from."

Anika Fajardo (Author), Stacy Gonzalez (Narrator)

Audiobook

Lucy Carmichael

"Brought to you by Penguin. The Mermaid Collection Originally published in 1951 from the author of beloved holiday classic The Feast comes a glorious coming-of-age tale about a heroine whose wedding day does not go entirely to plan . . . With a foreword by Lucy Mangan ‘People seem to get over things, don’t they? I don’t know how, but they do – ordinary people. I’m very ordinary, so I expect I shall do what they do.’ Lucy Carmichael is jilted at the altar. But no matter. Her loving and kind family never liked her explorer fiancé anyway. Instead of moping or falling into her supportive family’s arms, however, Lucy abandons their suburban home. Heading for the country, she takes up a teaching position in the industrial town of Ravonsbridge. There, she finds solace in her work, in her new (rather gossipy) colleagues – and rediscovers her sensible young self. But if Lucy has, despite everything, kept her head – where lies her heart? Praise for Margaret Kennedy: 'She is not only a romantic but an anarchist, and she knows the ways of men and women very well indeed' Anita Brookner 'Kennedy was immensely popular in her heyday' Washington Post 'Margaret Kennedy's poised style, cool wit and skilful characterization kept her novels welcome for three decades' Cambridge Guide to Literature in English © Margaret Kennedy 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025"

Margaret Kennedy (Author), TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Down Among the Women

"Brought to you by Penguin. The Mermaid Collection A classic from beloved national treasure Fay Weldon sees four women break the shackles of patriarchy and domesticity in 1950s London, from the author of The Lives and Loves of a She-Devil With a foreword by Jenny Colgan ‘Down among the women. What a place to be!’ So says Wanda, a former radical who left her husband and raised her daughter Scarlet to be as liberated as she. But twenty-year-old Scarlet, with an abortion already behind her, is about to discover real liberation – as a single mother in Fifties’ London. Yet Scarlet’s not alone. Meet her friends: Sylvia, the born victim; respectable Jocelyn, willingly trapped in a dull, bourgeois marriage; Audrey, bristling to break free of her conventional life; and Helen, beautiful, vibrant – and very doomed. Over the course of twenty years, from the Fifties to the Seventies, Scarlet, Wanda and their friends will wonder if they can ever become the women they always dreamed of being. Praise for Fay Weldon: 'A national treasure' Literary Review 'Wickedly stylish. Bursting with intelligence and fire' Daily Telegraph 'Prolific and provocative, Weldon shines brightest in the league table of British women novelists' Time Out 'A queen of words' Caitlin Moran © Fay Weldon 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025"

Fay Weldon (Author), Charlotte Davey, Tamryn Payne (Narrator)

Audiobook

Rosamond Lehmann: A BBC Radio Collection: Four Full-Cast Dramatisations including The Weather in the

"BBC adaptations of four of Rosamond Lehmann’s best-known novels, plus short stories and a bonus documentary Rosamond Lehmann’s first novel, Dusty Answer, was published in 1927 when she was just 26. It was a scandalous success, and was followed by six more acclaimed novels exploring human relationships and the emotional lives of girls and women. Four of the finest are dramatised here, alongside readings of two of her short stories and a fascinating profile of Lehmann herself. Dusty Answer – Growing up, Judith Earle’s only friends are the Fyfe family cousins, who live next door. As Judith moves from childhood to adulthood, Charlie, Roddy, Julian and Martin drift in and out of her life, bringing with them romance, heartbreak and disillusionment. Starring Julia Hills, Rosina Carbone, Jack Farthing, Brodie Ross, Oliver Gomm and Tom Ferguson. Invitation to the Waltz – Waking on her 17th birthday, Olivia senses her rite of passage has begun. Anticipating her very first dance, she is both anxious and excited – will it live up to her hopeful expectations? Mary Nighy stars in this adaptation of Lehmann’s 1932 classic. The Weather in the Streets – Now living a bohemian life in London, Olivia embarks on a passionate affair with the handsome and unhappily married Rollo. Eve Best and Jonathan Firth star in this sequel to Invitation to the Waltz. The Echoing Grove – After 15 years apart, two sisters meet to seek reconciliation. Between them lay various ghosts – not least that of Rickie, husband of Madeleine and lover of Dinah… Starring Janet Suzman, Susan Engel and Christopher Cazenove. ‘When the Waters Came’ – Ensconced in an English village during wartime, a mother and her two children experience a sudden sharp freeze and a violent, torrential thaw. Read by Lin Sagovsky. ‘A Dream of Winter’ – In the midst of a great frost, a woman in bed with flu is visited by the bee man, who has come to remove the swarm living in the walls of her country house. Read by Maureen O’Brien. Kaleidoscope: An Inner Life – Presented by Richard Mayne, this absorbing profile from 1985 features interviews with Rosamond Lehmann, in which she discusses her debut novel, the impact of World War Two on her work, the death of her beloved daughter and her subsequent spiritual visions. With contributions from Sybille Bedford, Anita Brookner, Valentine Cunningham, Marghanita Laski, John Lehmann and Gillian Tindall. First published 1927 (Dusty Answer), 1932 (Invitation to the Waltz), 1936 (The Weather in the Streets), 1946 (‘When the Waters Came’, ‘A Dream of Winter’) 1953 (The Echoing Grove) © 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd"

Rosamond Lehmann (Author), Annabel Scholey, David Lloyd, Diana Quick, Eve Best, Full Cast, Janet Suzman, Jonathan Firth, Julia Hills, Lin Sagovsky, Maureen O'Brien, Rachel Lewis, Rosina Carbone, Susan Engel, Tom Ferguson (Narrator)

Audiobook

Lies and Sorcery

"Brought to you by Penguin. The first unabridged English translation of the electrifying novel of secrets and delusions, from one of the greatest Italian writers of the twentieth century. Elisa – orphaned as a child, raised by a ‘fallen woman’, fed by fairy tales – has lived in an outlandish imaginary world for years. When her guardian dies, she feels compelled to confront her family’s tortured and dramatic past, weaving the tale of her mother and grandmother through a history of intrigue, treachery, deception and desire. But as her saga of three generations of Sicilian women proceeds, it becomes something else entirely, taking in a whole legacy of oppression and injustice. By turns flamboyant and intense, raging and funny, Lies and Sorcery is a celebration of the female imagination, and the power of storytelling itself. First published in 1948, Elsa Morante’s debut novel won the Viareggio Prize and earned her the lasting admiration of generations of writers from Italo Calvino and Natalia Ginzburg to Elena Ferrante. Translated by Jenny McPhee 'Thrillingly addictive, magnificent, luxurious . . . as staggering and absorbing as a great 19th-century novel' Telegraph 'I loved it and it had been a long time since I had read anything that gave me such life and joy' Natalia Ginzburg WINNER OF THE ALTA 2024 ITALIAN PROSE IN TRANSLATION AWARD WINNER OF THE JOHN FLORIO PRIZE LONGLISTED FOR THE OXFORD-WEIDENFELD PRIZE 2024 © Elsa Morante 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025"

Elsa Morante (Author), TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Shadows of Wildstone: the emotional brand new 2025 rural romance release from a bestselling author f

"What happens when the past won't let go? Buried secrets rise to the surface in this rural-set romance and mystery from bestselling author Mandy Magro. Even after leaving small-town Wildstone behind her, Nyah Love hasn't been able to escape the soul-deep tragedy of her dark past. How's she meant to live a happy life when her younger sister is still missing after sixteen years? But fate plays a devastating hand when her mother loses a battle with an illness that Nyah knew nothing of. With no other choice, she must return to her hometown and sort out her mother's estate - heartbroken at losing her longed-for chance to fix their shattered relationship. Caleb Hart has had his heart broken way too many times. By his first love, Nyah, when she abruptly left town, then by a cheating ex-girlfriend. Now a sergeant with the Wildstone police, he's never given up on trying to find out what happened to her little sister. Nyah's homecoming is the kindling that soon ignites this cold case. As buried secrets gradually find their way to the surface - firstly with the reading of the will, and then when an unexpected emergency in the neighbourhood uncovers new evidence - Caleb is there to support her through it all. She doesn't want the complication of love, but how long can she resist her reignited feelings for him? As the past returns with a vengeance, they must face the shocking truth ... PRAISE FOR MANDY MAGRO: 'If you're looking for the perfect romance to curl up with, you can't go past Jillaroo from Jacaranda. Steamy, heartfelt and quintessentially Australian, this was an absolute delight.' - Better Reading 'The land is always a key feature in Mandy Magro's books and Jillaroo from Jacaranda is set to a spectacular Aussie landscape ... A staple summer read.' - Mrs B's Book Reviews"

Mandy Magro (Author), Alicia Banit (Narrator)

Audiobook

Contemporary Women Audiobooks in Fiction