Romance Recs

Audiobook Recs

• Jordan & Devonnie • Season 3 • Episode 8

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If you love listening to your romance books or you've been interested in trying out audiobooks and don't know where to start this is the episode for you! Jordan and Devonnie share their favorite listens and discuss their favorite voice actors. 


*There were some technical difficulties while recording so our audio in this episode sounds a bit different than all our others. We apologize for the lower quality and will be back to our clear sounding selves soon. 

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Devonnie:

Welcome to Romance Recs. We are romance obsessed besties, sharing book res, broken down by genres and tropes so you can be sure you're getting exactly what you want out of your next read. Hey guys, step here.

Jordan:

Hey. Hi, and what are you reading, dev?

Devonnie:

Why every week you gotta remind me what I'm reading. This is crazy that I never remember to go right

Jordan:

Ever. It's like it gets worse the longer we do

Devonnie:

yeah. Yeah. This is so crazy. Honestly. Right now we've got a couple things on the table. I'm probably gonna start Curse Spindle by Chelsea Ann Tompkins. I'm also gonna start broken ties by Jabre. And then for our listening pleasure, I am considering Starting Blood Moon by Brittany Lewis.

Jordan:

All right. We got a lot going on. Hello. Book besties. I am Jordan. I am currently reading Hunt by Penn Cassidy in the Dark by Chelsea, and I am of course listening to. Hollow by Caroline Peckham and Suzanne Valenti,

Devonnie:

The cover of that book is honestly so gorgeous. I've seen it everywhere.

Jordan:

both of'em. There's the tra, or not trad, but indie bookstore edition too, which is dragon, I believe

Devonnie:

Mm-hmm.

Jordan:

who saw at Hardcovers last week, and they're back in their stock room. Ooh, so good.

Devonnie:

It looks so good. Okay.

Jordan:

Welcome, everybody. Welcome.

Devonnie:

Hi. Hello. How are you guys doing? I think I need a sip of coffee. My throat is feeling a little scratchy.

Jordan:

yeah, I get it. I'm so excited for this. I hope you are too. As any, if you've listened to us before, you know, most of my reads are listens. I listen to audio books the most because life and I am a mom of an almost 4-year-old and like we're just on the go. And so I'm always listening. And let's face it, audio books. In this point in time are fire. They're doing some amazing things with audio books. So we're here to, yeah, we're here to talk to you about our favorite books that are recorded into audio books. And we're also gonna to just focus too, a lot on the narrators themselves because there are just some people that you know, you can count on to make. Phenomenal work every time, no matter what character they're reading.

Devonnie:

Right? You just know that it's gonna be fire whenever you pick a book up to listen.

Jordan:

Mm-hmm.

Devonnie:

I do wanna start off with a quote.

Jordan:

Okay.

Devonnie:

Before we get into some audio books. Now I did get an arc of this book, but I also got a Libby copy, so I listened and read. Y'all know, that's like my favorite thing to do. If you've been listening for a while, that's like how if I wanna be in the book, I have to listen and read. So this book is an academic McAllister. It's a five star read. It's a five star read for me, and I don't exactly know what makes it a five star read, but I know that I had a good time from beginning to end and that's all that matters. So here's a quote. This is our FMC and EMMC talking to each other. And she is basically trying to come up with reasons why he sh he should leave, basically, you know, and this is what she says. I'm also gonna read his response. I'm all fists. I'm all teeth. One day you're gonna remember that and it is going to hurt me so much more when you leave me than if we just end it now, he responds, do your worst Shaw. And then a little, I'm sorry, a little later, he goes, well this is the Narrat reader as well. Spread my arms wide. Try it, take a shot, scream the worst things you can think of at me. You think I'm gonna leave you, try and make me. Now here's

Jordan:

a do your worst. I love a do your worst.

Devonnie:

a do your worst is like it's. I don't know. It's just something else. And then saying, I love you, or I see you do your worst is saying, I accept every version of you. So there's no version of you that you're gonna present me. That's gonna have me hightailing. You know what I'm saying? I really do love that. And the best part about this is this book is not a fantasy. It's not a romantic. These are real people. These are people in academia. Okay, you have to go read this book. I'll about it a little. It an audio listening. No fantasy, no magic. These are two regular humans who are English professors essentially. And this is the kind of talk we're getting. So that's my quote.

Jordan:

I had my eye on that one. So love that quote. And I love a do your worst, so I'm excited to look into that too. I chose one from one of my recent reads. Now, I wish this was an audio, but I don't have it in audio. Okay. This was the highly anticipated kind of like a surprise out of nowhere project from J. Bree, which if you can count on Jabre for anything, it's to be absolutely wild and unexpected so anyways, we have I, and that's the best way I can describe it. I'm gonna be totally honest with that. The Queen of Chaotic Releases I'm sorry. You've earned that title.

Devonnie:

Yeah.

Jordan:

You've earned it. So

Devonnie:

broken ties.

Jordan:

Broken Ties. Thank you. Broken Ties is the first book in the series, only from the POV of the men. And first of all, before I read this quote, my entire ranking system of these men, which is very highly contentious among fans of the series. I do know there are some people that are stands of certain characters that like. Get really mad and upset when you don't like this character. It's it's wild. Okay. But I'll say my entire ranking system changed. Atlas's. POV. The first time I read Atlas's, POV, I cried. I cried.

Devonnie:

My God.

Jordan:

This is one of my favorite quotes and I did have to immediately share it with Deb when I read it, but here we go.

Devonnie:

Mm-hmm.

Jordan:

What a time to be alive. I get to watch North Draven find his true calling as a brat tamer. I almost choke to death on my coffee. And that was North choking on his own coffee and this is Kyrie talking. Griffin's

Devonnie:

She was talking to North.

Jordan:

So, a couple of the guys were hanging out with Kyrie

Devonnie:

Okay.

Jordan:

and they were like exasperated about stuff that are happening. And so Kyrie goes, what a time to be alive. I get to watch North Draven find his true calling as a brat tamer, and then North almost chokes because, but he's trying to keep his like professional facade, you know,'cause North and he is trying to not show hourly that it affected him because he is oh yeah.

Devonnie:

Yeah. I didn't realize that he was in that. I thought she was just talking to Griffin or something.

Jordan:

No, it was,

Devonnie:

makes it better.

Jordan:

that was from North point of view.

Devonnie:

Yep. Yep. That makes it so much better. And the fact that he cracked his little facade, I, I can't wait. I might move that to the top of the list.

Jordan:

Yeah. No, it was. It was good. And though I feel like the whole thing whenever you're in North POV, is him trying not to crack his facade. Yeah.

Devonnie:

So he's having a hard time. Interesting.

Jordan:

Yeah. And the in the facade that he's been able to maintain since he was young, right? Because he is been through so much and

Devonnie:

Yeah.

Jordan:

going through that book could be it's whole deep dive. I'm gonna be so honest right now'cause there's so much in that. She answers the big, one of the big major potholes that I saw that I'm always screaming about. She

Devonnie:

second incident, the

Jordan:

No, not that, but

Devonnie:

Oh.

Jordan:

Like. What was Gabe doing before the game?

Devonnie:

Oh, right,

Jordan:

it's actually so important to the plot, like of this book. And I'm like she had to have had this planned the whole time. It's diabolical.

Devonnie:

Because we never go back there for

Jordan:

No, and I had been screaming about it. I was like, J. Bree, what is this? Like how are you gonna drop this? Weird thing that kind of speaks, could speak to his character. We don't know. But no, it's amazing. It has to do with I, it has to do with the resistance. It has, it's has these big, oh man. Anyways we're here to talk about audio books.

Devonnie:

I cannot wait because I really actually do wanna talk about the best audio books that I've read this year.

Jordan:

Okay. Yeah.

Devonnie:

It's a series,

Jordan:

It's a recent really read series. An obsession.

Devonnie:

Yeah, I'm obsessed. Okay. It is the Bourbon Boys Series by Victoria Wilder.

Jordan:

You talk about your obsession, and then I'll talk about my obsession.

Devonnie:

Okay, perfect. So the Bourbon Boys series has six narrators. We get three books, different couple in each book, and each book has two narrators. We have Connor Crais. Samantha Brightmore, Lee Samuels, Megan Wicks, Victoria Connolly, Sean Masters, all heavy hitters in the audiobook space, only person who doesn't ring a bell for me is Lee Samuels, and that's because I can't immediately think of another book that I've listened to by them, but. Everyone else in that list, multiple books. Samantha, Brentmoor is one of my favorite audiobook, narrators.

Jordan:

Oh same.

Devonnie:

Her voice is like her normal speaking voice is, there's something rich like honestly, her voice to me sounds like a full bodied red wine that you let breathe in the decanter and then pour out in a very delicate, very thin red wine glass. That is what her voice feels like to me. And sounds like it's, there's just something, there's oh, she's

Jordan:

Gritty. It's

Devonnie:

yes.

Jordan:

but without being grading

Devonnie:

No it's like rounded and like hard. But I don't, Samantha, if you're listening, I'm obsessed. Thank you so much for your work.

Jordan:

So I just looked up Lee Samuels.

Devonnie:

okay. Yeah. And I'm curious

Jordan:

look up Lee Samuel.

Devonnie:

To see what else

Jordan:

no, you should look up him.

Devonnie:

Oh

Jordan:

but he has over 300 titles. He did the Mistake on the off-campus series from L Kennedy.

Devonnie:

Okay, so I've listened

Jordan:

done. I mean, a bunch of stuff. Let's see. Find me on

Devonnie:

Risky business. I listened to that.

Jordan:

Mm-hmm.

Devonnie:

Shut up. Say you swear is on my, it was on my list for a while. Wait a minute. Okay, so

Jordan:

he, yeah, he does a lot of the Richie sisters. So Becca and Krista, Richie. Richie, not Richie. Richie, he does a lot of that. He does? Yeah. I think maybe just

Devonnie:

and broken things. Yeah. Oh yeah. I've totally. I take it back. I know exactly black ties and white lies. Yeah, so I've listened to, he did Grumpy Romance by Neo authors. I loved that book. Okay, I'm done, Lee Samuels. I'm so sorry. I am so sorry. Come pick up your crown. I didn't realize that I was actually also in love with you. Thank you so much for your work. I've listened to plenty of your work. Thank you so much. I'm bugging for not realizing who you were. I didn't see your game, my bad. Yeah. Love him down too. I guess, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, so that series by Victoria Wilder, you can read it. Honestly, if you read it, it's written so well. There's so much good action in it. It's gonna be a good read, but I specifically need you to listen to it. And I need you to listen to books one and two so that you can finally get to book three and understand where we are because who's in book three Shawn Masters.

Jordan:

Oh yeah.

Devonnie:

I am biting at the bars of my enclosure for you as daddy Ace. Good God. I just, you know what I'm saying? That's how that book series makes me feel. So if you listen to it, please come back and message me and let's chat about how you

Jordan:

Anything or

Devonnie:

and yeah. Or

Jordan:

literally just talk to me, just.

Devonnie:

Yeah please. So, yeah, that's that. I think the Bourbon Boys are gonna take my top spot today of, or this year. Honestly, the year's almost done. Who knows? There's still time to read another audio book or listen to that I might love, but they take the top spot, all six narrators, all three books, whole series top spot.

Jordan:

I love that. So I had quite a few obviously, but it's hard. I'm gonna say it, and I don't think it's just because I'm literally listening to it right now, but the work that Bridget and Jake Bordeaux are putting into Hollow is. Some of their absolutely best work that I've ever listened to and I've listened to hundreds of hours of their voices. They are up there for me. So Bridget and Jake Bordeaux are married in real life. They have their own Bordeaux vo. So they produce their own, they also work for other people. They, they also offer coaching and workshops. Like you can go on their website. They have over 350 titles, so they do a lot with Caroline Peckham and Suzanne Valenti. If you are looking at their stuff, I mean, they do so much, so many different authors have worked with them. I, they just seriously go look at their. stuff, it's amazing but hollow. So the nature of hollow is very, it's a cursed forest that's encroaching every night like more and more onto different lands and it's eating up and killing people. And it's like the trees can move, there's spirits in there, and it.

Devonnie:

The trees.

Jordan:

It's haunting and there are like singing voices that like, there's this song that, that this our FMC can hear. And there was like a whole song that. Peckham and Valenti wrote, and the way that not only Bridget wrote, sang this, but recorded it and produced it was haunting. I wanted to go back and listen to it again because I was enthralled with the way that they captured this. Like just the work that they do and they can do so many different characters.'cause they do a lot of why choose too and duet, narration. And so you can, like hollow is duet. A lot of times Peckham and Valenti don't do duet. But this one they are, yes. And. It's just so good. And the character, personalities that they bring out in every single character that they perform. Is amazing. Like they leave it all out there and hollow. And I'm only a few hours into hollow and I'm obsessed. Yes.

Devonnie:

I've just added it because I don't know, I'm really drawn to the cover and I'm curious.

Jordan:

and that's, and it's like the spirits of the It's, and it's not like anything they've done. Peckham and Valenti, this is a completely new world and series. It already feels different. And just so cool. I was so impressed with both, like the song, like the writing of the song.'cause it was

Devonnie:

eerie.

Jordan:

kinda like a prophecy type, but also a warning and just, I don't know, I can't get over the way that they recorded that either. So good. So I highly recommend listening to Hollow instead of just reading it or listen while you read. I think it will definitely be worth it and check out Bridget and Jake Bordeaux because I have not listened to one that they've done and been disappointed so.

Devonnie:

Well, I just added that because yeah, that review sounds right up my alley. Something I'd like,

Jordan:

I think so. I think you'd like it.

Devonnie:

Okay, next I'm gonna talk about an academic affair, which is the quote I read earlier. I just finished this book yesterday, day before, not yesterday, and

Jordan:

you did finish it. I didn't realize you had finished it.

Devonnie:

Yes, I finished it, I finished the book. I, this was like a 24 hour turnaround time

Jordan:

Yeah.

Devonnie:

Right. Like I, I started it. Yeah. So, yeah, I, I ate it up. It was for me. So the audio book, actually, you know, I don't know if I know the people in this audio book. Please hold.

Jordan:

Oh, I love when that happens though.

Devonnie:

Yeah, I don't.

Jordan:

it and, oh no. But while you're looking for that, can you please tell everybody the confusion you had this book, because it was my favorite thing ever to listen to the saga of Deb's confusion surrounding why these characters had an accent. Maybe it's the wrong accent. They did. Maybe everyone is wrong except for me.

Devonnie:

Please. Okay. Before I dive into who these people are. Okay, so an academic affair on the blurb, in the blurb of the book on Good Reads and like where it says. It says two English professors, yada yada, blah, blah, blah. The risk is unimportant. That line is the most important. So I'm listening to the book, I'm reading the book, and it's very clear to me that their accents sound English, right? But we're talking about places called Tasmania and Sydney, and they're like Australia. And I'm like, I'm so confused because they're not English. They're in Australia. I know. What you thinking? I think I'm slow. Yeah. This not, I'm so lost. A good 20% of the book lost.

Jordan:

You told me you were gonna dnf. She's I dnf because it's so confusing. Can you imagine if you DN

Devonnie:

right. I was good at DF because my dumb ass brain couldn't realize that they were English professors, math professors, science professor, English professors, not English professors do can project like there not of English. They're teaching English. And the reason I was so thrown off is because while I was reading. I guess it didn't click to me. I wasn't clocking, you know what I'm saying? That they were both in the field of English studies. I thought only our FMC was, and then our MMC was studying something else,

Jordan:

To.

Devonnie:

but it's very clear from the beginning that they're in the same category. So I don't even know why my brain went that way. Anyway, I almost dx the book because I could not understand why we were English, but living in Australia. I struggled. I'm not gonna lie. My brightest moment,

Jordan:

And then finally, dev gets on and leaves me a voice note. She's you know what? I think it is. I think they're just really bad at this accent, and so I'm just gonna go with that in my head so I can get over it and read really bad at.

Devonnie:

I take it back. I take it back. David Barry and Marnie Kennedy. Yeah. I've never heard of them. And I love you too, both of you. I take it back so bad that I thought that you were bad at your jobs.'cause what? The more I listened to it, the more Australian like vernacular speech sayings and things were peppered throughout the damn book. So I just struggled. I had a moment. Okay. And I don't wanna be judged for it. We're allowed moments.

Jordan:

it was great. It was, I was doing I was like going in and out of the grocery store when the bulk of this conversation hit on. In my dms and I'm listening to these like giggling, like putting my groceries away, like getting everything for Thanksgiving, and I'm like he like listening to dev just go off, they were like five in a row trying to solve this mystery out loud to me.

Devonnie:

yes. And I was really, and there were lengthy messages. Like I really just could not understand y'all. Like I could not understand why we were living in Australia, but we were English professors

Jordan:

Yeah.

Devonnie:

And no one spoke about a plane trip ever

Jordan:

But it was a great book, but it was a great book and.

Devonnie:

book. Oh my gosh. Jody McAllister. So the, I think what really. Took this book for me. It was that Jody McAllister was writing about her own work. In the book there, there are guess English professors, they study English, they're academics, they're in academia. That is also Jody McAllister. And so everything was so nuanced, but it was very spec. It was like specific and also you understood what. What was being discussed because it was just real and probably because it came from that background knowledge that this is what Jody Mcal doctor put some respect on her name, Dr. Jody McAllister was doing with her time. So like she could, you know, speak about it really well. But the story was just so good. David Barry, his voice at it's not a duet and duets are my favorite, but his narrating of Jonah Fisher. Oh my God, like I am sending up a prayer that if ever I am blessed with a husband, please make him in the shape of Jonah Fisher. He was so damn caring and so specific. There are things when, like the quote I read you, you know how Sadie pretty much said she's all teeth and whatever. Jonah did not fight her battles for her. That is one of my favorite things. Of course, we all want like a provider or protector, like sure, yes. But there are some instances where I need to lead the charge. I need to be able to be

Jordan:

You need a supporter, someone who's gonna

Devonnie:

I need you to Right, right. Be right there If things get crazy, but don't overrule me kind of. Sadie was subject to some pretty disgusting comments from Jonah's father, and he never stood up for her because he literally loved the way Sadie eviscerated his father. Every time his dad says something that wasn't right, and Sadie never backed down from the dad, it wasn't like she was like, oh man this older, more established professor is talking to me like this. I'm now his peer because I'm in this field and he just talks to me so bad. Sadie, first of all, once she got that doctor in front of her name, she was like, yeah, Christian. Not Mr. Fisher, not professor. So Kristen, a Christian. She, yes, and she literally ripped him apart in every conversation they had, like even if it was just sly stuff. The point is Jonah loved watching that, so he just literally sat back. And said I don't need to step in here. My dad's an asshole. We all know that. Let her tell him'cause I'm tired of it, you know? So yeah, I really loved it. I enjoyed listening. It's just very sweet. Honestly, it's, I felt like I was just watching two normal people fall in love and that rarely happens to me with books, you know? With books. I feel like I'm reading a book, you know? But this, I felt like, oh, I'm just watching these people I know fall in love.

Jordan:

Aw

Devonnie:

beautiful

Jordan:

love that.

Devonnie:

for you, Jody. Thank you so much for that.

Jordan:

You know who I love listening to? I love listening to Troy Duran.

Devonnie:

I know who that is.

Jordan:

Yes you do. Okay. So he is in so much, but so I really love listening to him. He has like a deep, like a man voice. And so I listened to him in Dark Faye in the Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac series. So it's him and Kira Stevens. I love both of them so much, but I'm gonna focus on Troy Duran,'cause Troy Duran does. A lot of JT Geisinger's books. So Pen Pal does HD Carlton's, does it hurt?

Devonnie:

Oh,

Jordan:

Cruel Bru. Tangled in Tinsel, another great one. He's in that one, but it's also Jason Clark and Samantha Brimore. So Tangled in Tinsel is amazing. So he's in that, he's in Pucking the Pucking, wrong guy by CR Jane. So he does a lot of dark romance if you're looking at his catalog. He also was the male narrator voice for PAC Darling, part one and two, which I recently re-listened to. So, PAC Darling, by Lola Rock. If you're looking for a good Omega verse and you haven't checked that one out yet, you absolutely need to. What are you fucking doing? Okay, Troy Duran. He does to bleed a crystal bloom, like so many others, I'm looking at his list. LJ Shen, he does stuff for her, like

Devonnie:

Mm-hmm.

Jordan:

Trey Dran. Okay. I, yes, I appreciate and love certain male narrator voices, but there is something about his deep, mature voice. It is a mature man's voice like. Even when he's doing like happy go lucky, do male characters. Okay. It's still a mature man and there is something about it that's just makes me sit up and listen and then not men don't make me feel that way. What.

Devonnie:

That is so funny.

Jordan:

But I dunno. And he can do so many different voices. So for example in Dark Fae, he plays four different male main characters. Right. And they're also different and.

Devonnie:

and he does that nuance well.

Jordan:

the nuance is so good. He's just amazing. Also, Keira Stevens is amazing. I love hearing Keira Stevens. It's a little bit of a higher, but not like whiny voice. So Kira Stevens did, does stuff for Marina Kent. Where is this one? Black nine. Oh, the Royal Elite Series by Rena Kent. Her and Troy Durant work a lot together on basically any of the other books by Peckman Valenti that aren't voiced by the Bordeauxs.'cause they did the Deadman walking series too. And just like a bunch of other stuff, but so good them together too is just so fun. Like their chemistry. And that's the thing sometimes. Sometimes the voices, their chemistry is so good too. They can make it fit those characters perfectly. So

Devonnie:

I love that. I'm actually just seeing that Troy Duran is in a series that I've wanted to start. So I,

Jordan:

He's an auto Listen for me.

Devonnie:

yeah I'm adding, and it looks like Libby has the books.

Jordan:

Oh

Devonnie:

I need to,

Jordan:

what? What's the book?

Devonnie:

me. So there's an author, Tal Martin, who I've wanted to read her books and she has a series called The Black Wife Effect. And so there's three books in there in that series and he is in book two and book two has six different narrators. So I'm really curious about that. But the first book is called The Black White Effect. So I wanna listen to it. Hopefully it's good. Fingers crossed. But yeah, since I see Troy in that one, I'm very curious. I dunno any of the other names, but I think there in the third book, there's a couple there. Ashley and Jay Hobbs.

Jordan:

That sounds familiar. I'm gonna have to look this up.

Devonnie:

Wait, Ashley, oh no, I think her name is just spelled no, it's not a couple, it's just Ashley J. Hobbs. But they. Oh, on the book they did actually j Hobbs. J Hobbs. So, yeah. Okay. But yeah I'm just very curious about that series. So now that I know Troy's in there, and you and I have listened to him,

Jordan:

Mm-hmm.

Devonnie:

I'm excited to. Yeah, there are definitely some authors who are who, or sorry, narrators who are instant listens, like Connor, Craig, Samantha, Brent Moore, Victoria Masters,

Jordan:

Teddy Hamilton is when everyone I wanna I wanna be like critical, just to be critical because everyone loves and knows Teddy Hamilton, but there's a reason for

Devonnie:

There's a reason because he's good.

Jordan:

so good, I have no

Devonnie:

He can do comedy and then he can also do get over here you know, like dark and, yeah. And I think that range is important because there are some comedic narrators who, when I hear them go to the like, dark side of romance, something doesn't click for me. The same way that there's some FMC or female narrators who when their voice is too high, it pulls me outta the book. And, but that same voice is. Perfect. In other stories, you know? So, yeah I just, yeah, Jason Clark. Oh my gosh. I love all of those people. So when it, for me, what makes a really good audio book is a duet narration that is my top tier audio book. I

Jordan:

so much. I feel so bad for authors. That's a, so I do wanna just do that little asterisk for anyone who yes, obviously preferred, and I'm gonna let you, I'm gonna let you cook on that for a second. I just want other people to know. Don't bully authors into doing stuff the way you want them because it's fucking expensive. You have no idea. Anyways, I'm sorry, that was my,

Devonnie:

Yes. Yeah it does, it, it does take a lot to get a duet, narration and that's why you don't get so many of them. So when I do get a duet, it is just it touches my spirit because again, I like to read and listen to my books at the same time because I wanna be in it, right? Nothing is more like. All encompassing. Then you're listening to the audio book and they're just in each other's sentences, like you're in the mailman character's, POV, but as he's speaking, our SMC cuts him off, and you hear that narrator jump in the middle of a sentence. I love that. I don't have to wait to listen to see if my mail. My male narrator is gonna do a good female voice.'cause not, also, not a lot of people can do that. Julia Whalen is like top tier. Her man voice. Her man voice, you know what I'm saying? Like when she switches to the male, it's, it works. She just, she hits this deeper register and she actually has been trying to show people how to do it as well, but perfect. There are some male narrators when they try to do a female like boys. I wanna scream and scratch my ears out because Why you talking like that? What do you, it's something that they just don't understand. You don't? I don't know. I don't know.

Jordan:

For me, the best male narrators don't overperform female narrators. They don't try to lower their voice, so I've heard. Voice actors talk about when they do female voices or they have to, they usually just try to stay at their normal register, and it's just they, it's the way they put inflection on different words. They do that differently, and I think that is key because some of them overdo it like this, or they give every single girl a belly voice and I.

Devonnie:

Yes. Yes. I, and that's what I hate. And there are some people, y'all lucky, I can't remember your names because I'll call you out, but there are some male narrators that do that. Oh my God, he's, and I just, no, just keep your voice, but just, yeah. Inflection the way you throw out your syllables you know, just do that. Like you not need. Yes. Oh my God. Yeah. And then there are

Jordan:

Or when they get to the sexy scenes and they're doing the female face like this, oh my gosh. Oh no. And I'm like, oh, Jesus God. Is this like early porno days?

Devonnie:

Yeah,

Jordan:

this? Like I can't.

Devonnie:

Yeah. Sometimes that voice will, the audio book will take me out. It'll take me out and then I'll decide, okay,

Jordan:

You're welcome for all those voices, by the way, I know you're really in love with that.

Devonnie:

welcome. This should be premium, but

Jordan:

I know you should be paying extra for

Devonnie:

yeah.

Jordan:

or paying something, not even extra.

Devonnie:

Right. Something good grief.

Jordan:

That's how you can pay us. Thank you,

Devonnie:

Yes, engage with our stop if you want us to keep recording stuff. I do have an a good example of duet though I wanted to mention. It's Lauren Asher's love arranged series. I really love that series. Well it's not, it's the Lakefront Billionaires series,

Jordan:

Mm-hmm.

Devonnie:

but the last book that came out was Love Arranged that I think does do it really well. So.

Jordan:

Mm-hmm.

Devonnie:

If you're looking for something.

Jordan:

I don't, you know what? I'm just realizing. So one of my top books of this year, was actually one that's getting rereleased and I was able to listen in a LC for this and it made me obsess with the whole series. So I went, but the first book I got to listen to, but because she just got a tra deal, the rest of the series, I had to go fricking read. And so I'm gonna re-listen once they come out. Psycho shifters.

Devonnie:

Mm-hmm.

Jordan:

From Jasmine Moss.

Devonnie:

Mm-hmm.

Jordan:

Okay. This has Molly Stark. Jamie Lincoln Smith. Teddy Hamilton. Jeremy York. Okay. So, so fucking good. It was so good. I, and I love when it's a wide choose and they're able to have different narrators for each character.

Devonnie:

Yeah. That's

Jordan:

I mean, I would, even if it's not duet, but they still have a different one for each. I will take that too, because it really adds range to everything. And if it's produced correctly, they're working with those narrators to ensure continuity in the way they're speaking about other characters when they're doing it. And to me, that's where. Production comes in and it's something I've just started paying attention to very recently because I've been listening to so much and in the space long enough. But it, I'm so excited to reread that entire series of the Cruel shift, reverse. Once the rest of them come out in audio. So yes, I will be contacting Jasmine Moss and I'm like, listen, what do you need from me to get the rest of these and can I get early release copies and do you wanna come talk to us because.

Devonnie:

Right, right.

Jordan:

I am literally just a girl. I'm just a girl who loves books and audio. Yeah. Yeah. And I think when we, for me, when we listen to romantic in particular and getting those voices can really bring me into that world even more because just the way they express things, the chosen different accents they choose to do, can. Just pull me right outta my own house and drop me into a new world. So I love that.

Devonnie:

Yeah. There, there are definitely some I would say like things that I need for an audio book to hit. So, yeah. A big cast. We love that.

Jordan:

Mm-hmm.

Devonnie:

If we get multiple people in a book that has like more than two characters the duet narration. I love sound effects. Sometimes I don't want, I don't want a full production, but like you were mentioning with Hollow, the song, like Eerie Music or stuff like that I do appreciate some of that.

Jordan:

Yeah. I'm not a big what do they call

Devonnie:

graphic audios.

Jordan:

audiobooks. I don't, it takes me out. It takes me out. It's, it is like too overly

Devonnie:

Yeah. Right. I would rather watch that than listen to it only in my ear.

Jordan:

Yeah, and sometimes the way they choose to do different characters is so far removed from what I thought of them, that I can't do it. So that was like Zodiac Academy. That's the only format that I will never listen to or read of theirs is I tried and I was like, disgusting. This is not Bridget and Jake Bordeaux. And this is so opposite of how. I've listened to these characters, they complete, it felt like they completely rewrote a character because of the way they were portraying one of them. And I was like, she's not this weak girl. Knock it off. I don't wanna hear this.

Devonnie:

Yeah.

Jordan:

So that took me right out. But I will say, and this is a perfect, because in the vein of having like sound effects, the Bridge Kingdom by Daniel L. Jensen, the. Top to me, top tier audio book. So the trouble with this though, is it's Audible exclusive. It's, she has a, she's had a deal from the beginning with them. So if you have Audible, it's free to listen. And she releases her titles six months. Six months ahead of time on Audible. So like I've listened to the final and sixth and final book in that series, but the book doesn't come out until April. I believe

Devonnie:

Interesting.

Jordan:

so. And when I tell you that is. Possibly the best. One it's in my top three audio books I've ever listened to. The last one, the Tempest Blade, I believe it is. So good. So they do like thunder in the background. They do. Those are the transitions between between POVs too. So it gives you that that the cue in your brain that you're switching.'cause you know, sometimes when you're listening you're like, wait a minute, what did I miss? How am I switching? But it does it in a seamless way because they're also on islands during storm season. And so it fits without being distracting or taking away from the ambiance of the story. And they had shed so many different narrators. I'm gonna look at the tempest blade real quick to see because oh my God, it was so good. Yeah, I did wanna

Devonnie:

remember adding it my, because.

Jordan:

Yep. So Max Roll, summer Morton, Lauren Forte, summer Roberts, JF Harding, and Sean Masters. So Sean Harding. Yeah. And j and JF Harding is amazing too. And the women in this were so good and I feel like I hadn't heard them as much in other ones, which is also nice when you get a new voice that you really enjoy. I think it was Lauren for and summer. There's two summers, summer Morton and Roberts. But because by the end, in this series, the first two books follow one couple the books three and four follow another and five and six follow the last couple. But they're all, some people are related to others. They're all from different kingdoms. But there's big political moves happening that. Things from Book One, I didn't realize affected something in book six that we didn't hear about until the very end. And it was so well written, the books themselves that then when it came time to perform them, it just blew me away. So everything together made it perfect, but also then we got all the, we got POVs from all the former couples in this last, final and sixth book. So we actually heard from everyone and we got to revisit. We got to. See scenes with them like past their last prologue and it's just, it was Chef's Kiss. Amazing.

Devonnie:

interesting. Yeah. I'm looking at all the covers and you can kind of see like how it's following the couples, even when you just look at the covers and stuff.

Jordan:

And I love her writing. It's very much, I'd say, a fantasy romance. So yes, I the plot would not go forward without the romance, but the romance at its base starts in political necessity and everything else. Also, the plot wouldn't move forward if it wasn't for the political scheming and intrigue outside of the romance. So I loved the balance. Of the two. It kept me engaged, entertained

Devonnie:

Are these ya books? Are they ya?

Jordan:

No.

Devonnie:

why did I think they were ya?

Jordan:

I don't know. They're spicy. They're not like spice first, but definitely like the spice helps the plot, I'd say. But it's still hot.

Devonnie:

Yeah. I don't know why I had it in my head that they were, ya. A lot of people love Book two, the Trader Queen

Jordan:

Oh man, Laura was Laura's so good. Laura is the main, the FMC she was trained as an assassin and sent to marry him just to kill him.

Devonnie:

right. Those two books have over 10,000 ratings on audible. So book one and then book two. I do wanna mention Ruby Dixon, and I'm mentioning Ruby Dixon because Ruby writes Ice Planet Barbarians, which at this point I don't need me talking about this series anymore. If you've listened to us for a long time, we already know how I feel. We're gonna skip that. But the reason I'm talking about Ice Planet barbarians is because number one, you have, I don't know, 20 something books. In that series, maybe 15 at least, I think at least 20 books. There are only two narrators, if I'm not mistaken. I'm just double checking real quick. Only two narrators. Yep. Holly Jackson and Mason Lloyd. And those two take on a different couple in every book. So every book follows a different couple, but. It's the same two narrators and they kill it with changing the tone or an accent. And not only do they have to be themselves, but they also have to be the characters around them. And they do such a phenomenal job with this series that if you. If you honestly just want to listen to a series and you want it to go on, you wanna be stuck in a world for a little bit. I would highly suggest Ice Explan, barbarians tons of books. So you're gonna be stuck there for a while and I pretty, I'm pretty sure you can listen to all of them on Libby, so it's, they're accessible. And yeah, you'll just have a really good wholesome time with this Icy Small Town Romance. So I think you should listen to it. If you want to, I wanted to mention them'cause Holly Jackson and Mason Lloyd are just amazing and I'm pretty sure Mason Lloyd has been in quite a few other things too that I've listened to, but that's just what comes to mind off the top.

Jordan:

I'll say if you listen to our interview with Lizzie b Brown, if you haven't, you should go back and listen to it. Her top number one obsessed obsession is. The first book in it is called Obsession. It's the Mate Games book one by Kay, Lorraine and Meg Ann. Now they have duet Narration, and this is a Why choose and it is Stella Hunter, Jason Clark, JF Harding, James, Joseph, Aaron Shedlock. Okay. It's so good. I did go and listen to it and read it when after Lizzie. Yes. What are you

Devonnie:

I am confused. Are these books free on Audible?

Jordan:

Oh, actually they might be okay. You looking it

Devonnie:

I, yeah, I, so I went because I, you reminded me to go get it and I'm on Audible and it just says play or add to library.

Jordan:

Jason Clark is amazing too. Stella Hunter is actually one of the authors, and I can't remember if it's Kay, Lorraine or Meg Ann. I think maybe it's Kayla, Lorraine, but she also does voice work, so. Stella Hunter, who you probably rec would recognize Stella Hunter's voice,

Devonnie:

absolutely.

Jordan:

She does have a pen name and I believe it's Kay Lorraine. I can't remember. It could be Meg Ann, though I couldn't find it in this moment before I reced it. But it is cool that the FMC is one of the authors, like the voice of the FM fmc. So, it's gonna be read the way that it was intended to be read, and they're great. All the men obsessed. It's paranormal. So good. Another auto listen for me came from what was the book

Devonnie:

Oh,

Jordan:

Plus Size Player by Danielle Allen. That audio book by Wesley. My, my Voice is not like that Wesley. Shavonne, right? Shavonne? Yeah. Wesley Shavonne. Okay. She also does Kennedy Ryans before I let go. Can't get enough. She did Curvy Girl Summer. She does some by JT Geisinger. Morgan Elizabeth Cruel Summer. Her voice, whenever I hear it I'm in it. I'm in it. She's amazing. Amazing and different. Than everyone else that you're gonna hear out there right now. She's different and that's what I love about it too. And those are all of my top, like when I think about it, those are all the names and titles that come to mind. There are still so many others and maybe we'll make a post a greater catalog of it. I think I'll make that and throw that out there for everybody

Devonnie:

Yeah, I think this is a good starting point for you to go check some things out,

Jordan:

or find some new ones.

Devonnie:

yeah, find some new recs and audio books. Especially because Jordan mentioned, like sometimes you just to get through life. You gotta listen to an audio book. We love listening. We love reading books, but sometimes life doesn't always present the opportunity to sit down and hold your book or even hold your Kindle. So audio books are a great way to still be able to do the things you wanna do. If you're on a drive or using public transportation or cleaning your house or cooking, this is a great way to read and it's still reading. I don't, do not listen to the naysayers. When you listen to an audio book market on your good, reads, your story graph, your fable,

Jordan:

Yeah, I don't wanna hear any of this. It's not really reading.

Devonnie:

a real

Jordan:

Who gives a fuck, even if it's not. Even if it's not. Let's say for the sake of argument, it's not reading.

Devonnie:

For what reading is,

Jordan:

cares? Are you in school? Do you need to mark this off to get a pizza? I don't care. Are you trying to up your reading level?

Devonnie:

it

Jordan:

No.

Devonnie:

that. But this counts towards your reading goal, I

Jordan:

Does it make you happy? Did you consume the story? Did you enjoy it? Maybe you didn't. You are doing it. You're spending your time, possibly your money. Seriously. People go on Libby, get a get your, go to your local fucking library. Support them. Get a library card. It's free. Then use their Libby app to download any of their audio books. Okay?

Devonnie:

Mm-hmm. I'm literally converting people at work to getting their library card so they can use Libby. It's a beautiful and inexpensive way to not only support your local library, but to listen to books.

Jordan:

Also, there's different, don't, you don't need to give money to the Z, you don't. I have Audible, but it's just because it's been so many years. And if you, I think it's Libro and there's other, there are other apps you can do, and you can also buy those audio books from your local indie bookstores through them, through this app. So you're supporting your local economy. So if that's your shtick, there's so many options for you.

Devonnie:

Mm-hmm. Absolutely. There's so many ways. If you want us to talk more about audio books and how you can listen to them. Hit us up, you know, send us a

Jordan:

We'll make a graphic. Let's make a graphic.

Devonnie:

Yeah. We can tell you how to get,'cause we did do that for books a couple, like last year or something a while ago, but we'll definitely, yeah. Post something about how you can listen to audio books specifically, because why the hell not, let's enjoy audio books next year and this year. Mm-hmm. You know?

Jordan:

And on that note, please, everyone make sure you are following us on socials at Romance Recs Pod. Make sure you are subscribed.

Devonnie:

I just realized Wesley Siobhan did the female narrator of JJ McAvoy's princess Bride series and I Oh, that series. Anyway, continue. That's another rec for you.

Jordan:

another rec for you. Can't stop. Won't stop. I love us so much. I hope you do too. And if you love us please make sure to rate us. Leave comments wherever you listen. It helps us so much and if you wanna help us also go into our sub stack, go subscribe. It's free to subscribe you get bonus content, you get updates, you get so much more, you are not gonna, it's once a month. Maybe twice a month during December, because bonus content, we have so much coming up. I please. That's how you can just be a part of our community. We'd love to hear from you. We love it. Whenever I hear from someone that I got them to read Zodiac Academy or any other. It just makes me so happy. So, so do something for me for once and tell me how much I mean to you,

Devonnie:

Right.

Jordan:

mom. Guilt,

Devonnie:

Period.

Jordan:

we love you guys so much. Thanks for sticking around and we'll see you next time. Next time we will have guests from Paperback Pleasures and we'll be talking the best of 2025.

Devonnie:

So buckle on bitches.

Jordan:

Bye.