Tag: reading

9 Trending-On-Social Audiobooks To Appeal to Your Inner Influencer

Spotify Premium Audiobooks Audiobooks to Appeal to Your Inner Influencer. Illustration of Woman in red bathing suit laying on a striped towel at the beach

Sometimes you might notice a thoughtful review from a friend on your feed, or stumble upon a flash summary straight out of your favorite social influencer’s mouth. Either way, it’s great to end up with a good book recommendation. From modern reimaginings of Greek mythology to fantastical worlds, twisted mysteries, or steamy romances, there’s no shortage of audiobooks out there to live rent-free in our heads.

So get that like button ready: Here are nine audiobooks trending on social media.

A Touch of Darkness

Written by Scarlett St. Clair

Narrated by Meg Sylvan

In Scarlett St. Clair’s new take on Greek mythology, A Touch of Darkness tells the story of a Persephone who is the Goddess of Spring by title only. Truth be told, flowers have shriveled at her touch since she was little. So, after moving to New Athens, she disguises herself as a mortal journalist in the hopes of leading a normal, unassuming life.

Meanwhile, Hades, God of the Dead, has built a gambling empire on the mortal world. His favorite bets, it’s rumored, are of the impossible kind. After a chance encounter with Hades, Persephone finds herself in a contract with the God of the Dead, and the terms are impossible: She must create life in the Underworld or lose her freedom forever.

The bet does more than expose Persephone’s failure as a goddess, however. As she struggles to sow the seeds of her freedom, love for the God of the Dead grows—and it’s forbidden.

Red, White & Royal Blue: A Novel

Written by Casey McQuiston

Narrated by Ramon de Ocampo

What happens when America’s First Son falls in love with the Prince of Wales? In Red, White & Royal Blue, author Casey McQuiston imagines what that might look like. 

When his mother became president, Alex Claremont-Diaz was promptly cast as the American equivalent of a young royal. Handsome, charismatic, genius—his image is pure millennial-marketing gold for the White House. There’s only one problem: Alex has a beef with an actual prince, Henry, who lives across the pond. And when the tabloids get hold of a photo involving an altercation between the two, U.S. and British relations take a turn for the worse.

In response, heads of family and state, and other handlers, devise a plan for damage control: staging a truce between the two rivals. What starts out as a fake, Instragramable friendship, however, grows deeper and more dangerous than either Alex or Henry could have imagined. Soon Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret romance with a surprisingly unstuffy Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations, which begs the question: Can love save the world after all? 

The Cruel Prince: The Folk of the Air, Book 1

Written by Holly Black

Narrated by Caitlin Kelly

The Folk of the Air, Book 1 is the first entry in Holly Black’s Cruel Prince series, centered around a mortal girl who finds herself caught in a web of royal faerie intrigue.

Just seven years old when her parents were murdered, Jude and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. As civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters . . . and the land of Faerie itself.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Written by V. E. Schwab

Narrated by Julia Whelan

France, 1714: In a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore who remembers her name.

Thus begins The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, a dazzling adventure by V. E. Schwab that plays out across centuries and continents as a young woman learns just how far she’ll go to leave her mark on the world.

They Both Die at the End

Written by Adam Silvera

Narrated by Michael Crouch, Robbie Daymond, Bahni Turpin

With his novel They Both Die at the End, author Adam Silvera reminds us that there’s no life without death and no love without loss in this devastating yet uplifting story about two people whose lives change over the course of one unforgettable day. 

On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today. 

Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day.

Neon Gods

Written by Katee Robert

Narrated by Zara Hampton-Brown and Alex Moorcock

In this reimagining of Greek mythology, author Katee Robert’s Neon Gods brings a modern retelling of Hades and Persephone that’s as sinful as it is sweet.

Society darling Persephone Dimitriou plans to flee the ultra-modern city of Olympus and start over, far away from the backstabbing politics of the Thirteen Houses. But all of that is ripped away when her mother ambushes her with an engagement to Zeus, the dangerous power behind their glittering city’s dark facade. With no options left, Persephone flees to the forbidden undercity and makes a devil’s bargain with a man she once believed a myth… a man who awakens her to a world she never knew existed. 

Hades has spent his life in the shadows, and he has no intention of stepping into the light. But when he finds that Persephone can offer a little slice of the revenge he’s spent years craving, it’s all the excuse he needs to help her—for a price. 

Yet every breathless night spent tangled together has given Hades a taste for Persephone, and he’ll go to war with Olympus itself to keep her close.

The Paris Apartment: A Novel

Written by Lucy Foley

Narrated by Clare Corbett, Daphne Kouma, Charlie Anson, Julia Winwood, Sofia Zervudachi, and Sope Dirisu

In The Paris Apartment, Lucy Foley’s new locked-room mystery, everyone’s a neighbor, everyone’s a suspect, and everyone has something to hide.

Jess needs a fresh start. She’s broke, alone, and just left her job under less than ideal circumstances. Her half-brother Ben didn’t sound thrilled when she asked if she could crash with him for a bit, but he didn’t say no, and surely everything will look better from Paris. Only, when she shows up to find an almost too nice apartment (could Ben really have afforded this?), he’s not there.

The longer Ben stays missing, the more Jess starts to dig into her brother’s situation, and the more questions she has. Ben’s neighbors are an eclectic bunch, and not particularly friendly. Jess may have come to Paris to escape her past, but it’s starting to look like it’s Ben’s future that’s in question.

The Kiss Quotient

Written by Helen Hoang

Narrated by Carly Robins

A heartwarming and refreshing debut for Helen Hoang, The Kiss Quotient sets out to prove one thing: There’s not enough data in the world to predict what will make your heart tick.

Stella Lane thinks math is the only thing that unites the universe. She comes up with algorithms to predict customer purchases—a job that has given her more money than she knows what to do with . . . but she has way less experience in the dating department than the average 30-year-old.

It doesn’t help that French kissing reminds her of a shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish. She decides that she needs lots of practice—with a professional—which is why she hires escort Michael Phan. The Vietnamese-Swedish stunner can’t afford to turn down Stella’s offer, and he agrees to help her check off all the boxes on her lesson plan.

Before long, Stella learns not only to appreciate his kisses but also to crave the other things he’s making her feel. Their no-nonsense partnership starts making a strange kind of sense. And the pattern that emerges convinces Stella that love is the best kind of logic.

The Lost Apothecary: A Novel

Written by Sarah Penner

Narrated by Lorna Bennett, Lauren Anthony, and Lauren Irwin

The Lost Apothecary is Sarah Penner’s subversive and intoxicating debut novel of secrets, vengeance, and the remarkable ways women can save one another despite the barrier of time.

Hidden in the depths of eighteenth-century London, a secret apothecary shop caters to an unusual kind of clientele. Women across the city whisper of a mysterious figure named Nella who sells well-disguised poisons to use against the oppressive men in their lives. But the apothecary’s fate is jeopardized when Nella’s newest patron, a precocious 12-year-old, makes a fatal mistake that sparks a string of consequences that echo through the centuries.

Meanwhile, in present-day London, aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her tenth wedding anniversary alone, running from her own demons. When she stumbles upon a clue to the unsolved apothecary murders that haunted London two hundred years ago, worlds collide in a stunning twist of fate, one where not everyone will survive.

Eligible Spotify Premium users in the U.K. and Australia can now look forward to 15 hours of audiobook listening per month on any audiobook marked “Included in Premium.” Learn all about it. 

Author Colleen Hoover Takes Us on a Journey With a Playlist Inspired by Her New Book, ‘It Starts With Us’

graphic art depiction of the cover of "it starts with us" by colleen hoover

You can’t pin author Colleen Hoover to a specific genre. The Texas native is responsible for both suspense thrillers like Verity and heart-wrenching romances like Reminders of Him. Readers never quite know what story will unfold through the pages. In 2016, Colleen published It Ends With Us, a romance novel that introduced readers to the lives of Lily, Ryle, and Atlas. Fans followed Lily’s journey of love and loss, from Maine to Massachusetts. Now, six years later, her story continues.

Photo credit: Chad Griffiths

Colleen wasn’t planning to write a sequel to the best-selling book, but requests from readers made her realize she wasn’t quite done. And today, fans can get their hands on the next installment of the story: It Starts With Us. As a bonus, Colleen created a Spotify playlist that incorporates songs that stuck with her as she worked on the novel and built onto the lives of Lily and Atlas. For the Record had a chance to chat with Colleen about her work, her playlist, and audiobooks.

Do you listen to music while writing? Does it help you get into a certain mindset?

I actually can’t listen to anything at all while I’m writing. In fact, if there’s any noise, even the sound of a clock, I have to remove the batteries. Yet music is what inspires books and characters for me, and gets me into the mood to write. And yes, I definitely have to listen to songs that I feel fit with the story. For example, “Bride & Groom” by The Airborne Toxic Event was a big one for me when I would pump myself up to write All Your Perfects. 

Is the music you listened to for It Starts With Us the same as It Ends With Us?

I tend to be a creature of habit when it comes to music. If I want to get into a certain mood, I use music for that. And for me, I’m almost always searching for sad music. 

How did you approach picking the songs on this playlist?

After writing It Ends With Us, I had a lot of readers who would send me songs that remind them of the book. I almost always go listen to the song to see how they interpret the book and the characters. A lot of those songs have stuck with me, so I chose them. Some songs I chose because they are common recommendations, like several of Taylor Swift’s songs. 

Can you tell us about a few of the songs and what they mean to you or your characters?

She Dreams of Boston” by Erick Baker was actually written specifically for Lily. Erick and I met because I had reached out to him years ago regarding his music and hopefully collaborating on something. He was on board immediately and wrote such a perfect song for Lily’s character. 

As for Atlas, I feel like “All For A Woman” by The Airborne Toxic Event is a good fit for him. He just has so much love for Lily, and that song bleeds heartache. 

I’d go back to X Ambassadors for Ryle’s character. The song “HISTORY” is my anthem for Lily to Ryle. I imagine him hearing it and being full of guilt and regret, but knowing there’s nothing he can do to get her back. 

Can you share how The Avett Brothers inspired you to write?

I found their music at a time when I felt lost inspirationally. I had young kids; I worked full time; I was in college. I was going through the motions of being a wife and a mom and an employee, and had absolutely no time for myself. I think I was losing myself, not because I wasn’t happy—because I was—but because I wasn’t spending time nourishing my artistic side. That’s when I found their music. 

Their lyrics spoke to me, and the passion they had when they played made me jealous. I used to have passion like that, and until I saw them play live, I didn’t realize how much I missed being passionate about life and using my imagination. Their music reignited my love for my hobby, and I think that’s a beautiful thing when one artist’s art can remind another artist how important it is to make time for what feeds your soul. After attending my first concert of theirs, I immediately went home and started writing. I’ll always be grateful to their music for that, and to every artist in any area who continues to create. 

Your new book, It Starts With Us, begins right where It Ends With Us left off. Why did you decide to continue with the story of Lily and Atlas?

I honestly never thought I’d continue with their story. I always received pleas for more It Ends With Us, but I thought that was because people wanted Ryle to be redeemed, and I’ll never go that route. But when more people began to read the book and make videos on social media, I’d watch these videos and see them begging firsthand for more Atlas. I love Atlas, so the requests from readers, combined with a storyline that was slowly beginning to build for him, ultimately sparked an idea that I finally felt would be good enough to create a book out of. I may not have intended to write this sequel, but I couldn’t be more excited that I did. 

If Lily and Atlas had a song, what would it be?

Definitely “If It’s The Beaches” by The Avett Brothers. I feel like Atlas would give Lily the world if he could, and that is such a beautiful love song. It always reminds me of the two of them when I hear it. 

For audiobook lovers, how do you think having someone read aloud your words changes the experience for the listener?

If it’s done right and the reader feels that the voice fits the character, I feel like it gives it an entirely extra dimension. Audiobooks breathe a little more life into the story for me. I’m a huge movie lover. Watching movies is my second-favorite pastime after reading, so for me, audiobooks are a way to bridge the gap and enjoy the best of both worlds.  

What aspect of audiobooks do you like, and when do you turn to them in favor of reading from the page?

I love audiobooks! I do a lot of driving and long road trips, so my favorite time to listen to them is when I’m alone in the car for long stretches of time. It makes the trip go by so quickly, especially when it’s an engrossing story.

 

Let music accompany you along the pages of the upcoming It Starts With Us by listening to Colleen’s playlist below.