I am an avid audio book listener, but I don't usually listen to books from the romance genre. The first reason is that I'm given to inappropriate giggling when hearing some chapters, rather than reading them, and that takes you right out of the story. The second reason is that I think it is very hard to get the voices right for a romantic novel. A recent experience I had listening to the latest by a favorite author made me recoil every time the narrator used a man's voice. The voice she used for the hero reminded me of the millionaire on Gilligan's Island, who I'm sure was a very nice man, but not really the figure I wanted to imagine.
I don't know if I've overcome my inner 12-year-old, but I decided to try again and I am really enjoying To Taste Temptation [2] by Elizabeth Hoyt, the first in her Legend of the Four Soldiers series. The narrator for this one manages to change her voice and tone just enough to make each character sound distinct and not ridiculous. The time period -- set in London after the French and Indian Wars -- is an unusual one for me and the characters and dialogue are appealing.
If you're interested in trying an audio romance, any of the titles listed below would give you a good place to start. All received good reviews from AudioFile [3] magazine, a professional publication that offers honest critiques that focus on audio presentation. Have you discovered any romance audio books or narrators that you thought were really great?
Summer Rental [4]by Mary Kay Andrews When Beauty Tamed the Beast [5]by Eloisa James
Fall of Lucas Kendrick [6]by Kay Hooper A Night Like This [7]by Julia Quinn
Sleepwalker [8] by Karen Robards The Spymaster's Lady [9] by Joanna Bourne
The Unexpected Husband [10] by Debbie Macomber
Flickr CC [11]: Photo [12]by Lester Public Library [13]
