Charleston Reporter

 by Jennet Alexander; narrated by Natalie Naudus 

Ready for her close-up: When Noa Birnbaum lands a job doing horror movie makeup, she finds her film star crush Lilah Silver sitting in the makeup chair. Will the Hollywood pressure cooker bring them together or send them running in terror?

Narration: Natalie Naudus imbues her engrossing reading with animated character tones.  

 by Tarana Burke; narrated by Tarana Burke

What it is: activist and Me Too movement founder Tarana Burke's memoir chronicling her commitment to social advocacy.

Narration: Burke offers an intimate and well-paced reading of her empowering debut. 

 by Kira Jane Buxton; narrated by Robert Petkoff

What it is: the sequel to the cheeky post-apocalyptic Hollow Kingdom, starring S.T., the foul-mouthed crow with a heart of gold.

Narration: Series narrator Robert Petkoff returns with a wry and briskly paced reading.

 by Kat Chow; narrated by Kat Chow

What it's about: After her mother's death from cancer in 2004, Kat Chow struggled with her traditional Chinese family's refusal to acknowledge the loss.

Narration: Listeners familiar with Chow's reportage for NPR's Code Switch podcast and new fans alike will appreciate her warm and emotional narration.    

 by Katie Crouch; narrated by Marni Penning

The setup: Amanda Evans leaves her career in Silicon Valley to join her Fulbright scholar husband in Namibia. There, she's forced to adapt to a disorienting expat social scene full of frivolous "trailing spouses" who are much more complex (and dangerous) than they seem.  

Narration: Katie Crouch's satirical novel comes to engrossing life with Marni Penning's distinctly voiced narration.

 by Darynda Jones; narrated by Lorelei King

What it's about: Sunshine Vicram, sheriff of her small hometown and single mom to 15-year-old Auri, looks for the men responsible for a stabbing attack (which also injured Sunshine's long-time crush). Meanwhile, Auri thinks a senior citizen is a serial killer, so she and a friend investigate.

Narration: Lorelei King returns to energetically narrate this 2nd fast-paced and banter-filled Sunshine Vicram mystery.

 by Joe R. Lansdale; narrated by Jason Culp

The premise: As a child, Daniel Russell survived his father's attempt to kill them both by driving into the titular Moon Lake. As an adult, he returns to the area to deal with his father's recently dredged up remains and, hopefully, to find some closure.

Narration: Jason Culp's twangy Texas accent imbues Joe R. Lansdale's crime novel with an evocative Southern Gothic atmosphere. 

 by Francine Prose; narrated by Tristan Morris

Starring: Simon Putnam, a young Jewish man working in the publishing industry during the Red Scare, who tries to balance career, identity, family, and personal ethics after being assigned to edit a tawdry, anti-Semitic novel based on the recent trial of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg.

Narration: Tristan Morris' serious and well-paced reading heightens the tension in Francine Prose's suspenseful and thought-provoking novel.

 by Cadwell Turnbull; narrated by Dion Graham

Here be monsters: In an event dubbed "the Fracture," supernatural beings come out of the shadows and reveal society to itself.

Narration:  Dion Graham kicks off this 1st in the Convergence Saga with well-characterized narration of a diverse ensemble cast.