Contemporary Women Audiobooks | Fiction & Literature

All sixteen-year-old Rose has is what she carries: a pillowcase of clothes, her boyfriend's unborn child, and a heart full of shame. In the face of 1952's strict moral code, Seminole matriarch Ma-Ki Ebbing embraces Rose. Ma-Ki, on the fringe of society, clings to her Native American traditions and secrets surrounding her husband's murder while her adult children unravel from social injustice. When Ma-Ki's children were young, Burl Ebbing approached a wealthy, powerful man who had sexually abused his children. The villain shot Burl's heart right out of him. Twenty years later, Ma-Ki fears that her children will avenge their father's death and refuses to disclose the criminal's identity. The Ebbing women band together, marching through a chorus of grit and grind to unite a family once rendered powerless by a people who invaded their land. Will the tragic death of one of her daughters cause Ma-Ki to identify the villain and embrace Rose's newfound faith?

Kathy Maresca (Author), Amanda Stribling, Christopher Salazar, Delanna Studi (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Secret to Happiness

Escape to Cape Cod—where you just might find the secret to happiness Callie Dixon had the world by the tail … until it all slipped away. Fired from her dream job after making a colossal mistake, she’s escaped to her aunt’s home on Cape Cod for time to bounce back. Except it isn’t a home, it’s an ice cream shop. And time isn’t going to help, because Callie’s bounce has up and left. There’s a reason she made that mistake at work, and she’s struggling to come to terms with it. Things go from bad to worse when Callie’s cousin Dawn drags her to a community class about the secret to happiness. Happiness is the last thing Callie wants to think about right now, but instructor Bruno Bianco—a curiously gloomy fellow—is relentless. He has a way of turning Callie’s thoughts upside down. Her feelings, too. Bruno insists that hitting rock bottom is the very best place to be. But if that’s true, how is it supposed to help her figure out what—or who—has been missing from her life all along?

Suzanne Woods Fisher (Author), Stephanie Cozart (Narrator)

Audiobook

Samantha: Women of Valley View

She’s turned her life around… Four years ago, Samantha Evans was easy prey for con man Louis Cantrell, who left her broke and pregnant. Now, surrounded by a loving family, her life seems to be headed in the right direction as she cares for her young daughter, pursues her dream of becoming a child welfare worker, and dreams of marrying the law student who loves her daughter like his own. He’s all out of faith… A God that made the universe, absolutely. A God that hears and answers prayers, not so much. Patrick Wheeler loves Samantha—and her little girl—but he’s done with Christ. And when Louis shows back up in Samantha’s life, Patrick issues an ultimatum that drives Sam away. They need a miracle… A tragedy followed by a surprising confrontation with God drives Patrick back to Samantha’s side. Can he reconcile with God before Samantha and Bobbie are lost to him forever?

Sharon Srock (Author), Laura Jennings (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Cassandra Complex: the charming new novel from the million copy bestselling author’

Brought to you by Penguin. Cassandra Penelope Dankworth is a creature of habit. She likes what she likes (museums, jumpsuits, her boyfriend Will) and strongly dislikes what she doesn't (mess, change, her boss drinking out of her mug). Her life runs in a pleasing, predictable order. Until now. She's just been dumped. She's just been fired. Her local café has run out of banana muffins. Then, something truly unexpected happens: Cassie discovers she can go back and change the past. Now, Cassie should be able to find a way to fix the life she accidentally obliterated. And with time on her side, how hard can it be...? ©2023 Holly Smale (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Holly Smale (Author), Kristin Atherton (Narrator)

Audiobook

When Irish Eyes Are Lying: The Kilteegan Bridge Story - Book 4

Kilteegan Bridge, Ireland. 1975 Despite the best efforts to the older generation to maintain standards, short skirts, long hair and loud music are all the rage in Kilteegan Bridge. Emmet Kogan has set his sights on an education at the prestigious Stanford University in California, while his cousin Nellie also longs to get away, but for very different reasons. If she’s to escape too, it will mean wrapping herself in a web of lies, but it’s a price she’s willing to pay. Lena and Eli are terrified they will lose their boy to the bright lights of America forever, while Emily and Blackie make a decision to keep a dangerous secret, despite knowing the damage such duplicity can do. On the exciting streets of 1970s San Francisco, two young Irish people have to learn to navigate this new world of wonderful opportunities and dangerous vices, and learn that no matter how open and accepting a society is, there are always rules. Rules that if broken, carry a heavy penalty.

Jean Grainger (Author), Siobhan Waring (Narrator)

Audiobook

Midlife Shift and Shenanigans

Shift is about to get real. All white witch Samantha Sinclair wants is for life to go back to normal. But on the eve of the grand reopening of Damien's restaurant, trouble shows up in the form of a pack of shifters bent on wreaking havoc. A storm is brewing, a hurricane that devours magic and all who wield it. Can Sam find a way to protect her extended supernatural family? Or will she lose everything and everyone she's grown to love?

Jennifer L. Hart (Author), Hollie Jackson (Narrator)

Audiobook

The House in the Olive Grove

‘A glorious story that celebrates the power of love’ – Bestselling author ADRIANA TRIGIANI ‘I adored The House in the Olive Grove. It is a hymn to friendship and love, and is utterly perfect’ – Bestselling author LIZ FENWICK Will one week in Greece change their lives for ever? Chef Maria is running a successful cookery school in her home village of Petalidi, Greece – but she is also running from the secrets of her past. Food journalist Kayla thought this was going to be just another work trip. But right before she leaves for Greece, she discovers that her whole life is built on a lie. Jewellery-maker Alessandra has always lived according to her own rules – despite what it has cost her to do so. But she has just had some devastating news. As these three very different women come together at the house in the olive grove, unlikely friendships blossom and a season of self-discovery begins. Will the sumptuous flavours, sapphire waters and golden sands of Greece give each of them the answers they so desperately seek? The breathtaking, escapist second novel from Emma Cowell, perfect for fans of Victoria Hislop, Carol Kirkwood and Karen Swan. Readers love The House in the Olive Grove: ‘Emma Cowell creates worlds of warmth, laughter, healing and hope in her delicious novels. The House in the Olive Grove is a glorious story that celebrates the power of love.’ – Adriana Trigiani ‘Light your favourite candle, pour yourself a glass of ouzo, play Leonard Cohen’s ‘Bird on a Wire,’ and let author Emma Cowell transport you to Petalidi, Greece.’ Reader Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘I adored The House in the Olive Grove. It is a hymn to friendship and love, and is utterly perfect.’ – Liz Fenwick ‘An homage to Greek cooking, bee keeping and to the closeness of small communities … The book has an exceptionally strong emotional pulse.’ Reader Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘A culinary twist, female solidarity, friendship and romance, what more does one need for a perfect summer read?’ – Nadia Marks ‘This book is food for the soul.’ Reader Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Evocative, compelling, moving. A glorious story.’ – Kate Frost ‘I loved how beautifully Greece and the food were described – it makes you wish you were there yourself.’ Reader Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Sunshine and friendship, broken hearts and secrets. Cowell’s exquisite writing is as delicious as the food she describes.’ – Jennie Keer ‘Eloquent prose brings to life the feel of the breeze off the ocean, the enticing aroma drifting from Maria’s kitchen and the sweetness of the bees’ honey.’ Reader Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘A sweeping novel about sisterhood, courage and new beginnings that will inspire and delight.’ – Tessa Harris ‘Cowell has written a lovely atmospheric novel that will engage and entertain you.’ Reader Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘The glorious setting will instantly transport you to sunnier climes!’ – My Weekly

Emma Cowell (Author), Kristin Atherton (Narrator)

Audiobook

Foaling Season

Spring is a time for renewal…and in horse country, it’s a season of late nights, early mornings, and fresh beginnings. At Briar Hill Farm, professional event rider Jules Thornton-Morrison knows a thing or two about starting all over again. But getting back in the saddle after having a child is an emotional battle she can’t fight on her own. Fortunately, Jules has friends at her back. There’s Alex Whitehall, half of a legendary horse-racing duo who is hoping to carve out her own identity with Jules’s help. There’s Kit Parker, accidental eventing prodigy, who is struggling under the weight of her rise to the international competition arena before she was ready to take it all on. And there’s Gigi Whitehall-Wallace, a whirlwind of nervous energy who comes to Florida’s horse country in search of a happy ending she can’t seem to define yet. Together, they can make their dreams a reality — if old rivalries and prejudices don’t split their unlikely group apart. Along with the students, employees, and friends of Briar Hill Farm, these women will come together for one tumultuous spring in horse country. It’s foaling season in Florida, and fresh starts and new lives are spilling into riotous existence. Briar Hill Farm is a new series featuring characters and settings from beloved novels by Natalie Keller Reinert in the Ocala Equestrians collection. These include The Eventing Series, Alex & Alexander Series, the Show Barn Blues Series, and more. You can read these books in companion with this series or enjoy each series individually.

Natalie Keller Reinert (Author), Naomi Rose-Mock (Narrator)

Audiobook

Windswept Way

One house that deserves a second chance meets two hearts that deserve the same … Buying a haunted house was never in Ashley Scott’s plans, but when an intriguing opportunity drops into her lap after a major life setback, she finds herself trekking cross-country to Hope Harbor on the Oregon coast to launch a new life. Wounded warrior Jonathan Gray isn’t sure what to make of the attractive woman on his reclusive older neighbor’s isolated property, but her presence is none of his business—until she enlists his help with an ambitious project. When Jonathan finds his interest in the new arrival becoming more personal than professional, however, his defenses go up. There’s no room in his life—or his heart—for romance. Yet as these two hurting souls join forces to restore life, laughter, and love to a historic estate, might they also find healing, hope, and happiness themselves?

Irene Hannon (Author), Thérèse Plummer (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Words We Lost

Three friends. Two broken promises. One missing manuscript. As a senior acquisitions editor for Fog Harbor Books in San Francisco, Ingrid Erikson has rejected many a manuscript for lack of defined conflict and dramatic irony—two elements her current life possesses in spades. In the months following the death of her childhood best friend and international bestselling author Cecelia Campbell, Ingrid has not only lost her ability to escape into fiction due to a rare trauma response, but she’s also desperate to find the closure she’s convinced will come with Cecelia’s missing final manuscript. After Ingrid jeopardizes her career, she fears her future will remain irrevocably broken. But then Joel Campbell—the man who shattered her belief in happilyever-afters—offers her a sealed envelope from his late cousin, Cecelia, asking Joel and Ingrid to put their differences aside and retrieve a mysterious package in their coastal Washington hometown. Honoring Cecelia’s last request will challenge their convictions and test their loyalties, but through it all, will Ingrid and Joel be brave enough to uncover a twice-in-a-lifetime love?

Nicole Deese (Author), Libby Mcknight (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Vanishing at Castle Moreau

A haunting legend. An ominous curse. A search for a secret buried deep within the castle walls. In 1870, orphaned Daisy François takes a position as housemaid at a Wisconsin castle to escape the horrors of her past life. There she finds a reclusive and eccentric Gothic authoress who hides tales more harrowing than the ones in her novels. As women disappear from the area and the eerie circumstances seem to parallel a local legend, Daisy is thrust into a web that could ultimately steal her sanity, if not her life. In the present day, Cleo Clemmons is hired by the grandson of an American aristocratic family to help his grandmother face her hoarding in the dilapidated Castle Moreau. But when Cleo uncovers more than just the woman’s stash of collectibles, a century-old mystery and the dust of the old castle’s curse threaten to rise again … this time to leave no one alive to tell the sordid tale. Award-winning author Jaime Jo Wright seamlessly weaves a dual-time tale of two women who must do all they can to seek the light amid the darkness shrouding Castle Moreau.

Jaime Jo Wright (Author), Sara Farrington (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Yada Yada Prayer Group Gets Caught

The Yada Yada Prayer Group is in trouble-and they're having a hard time getting out. Jodi Baxter is feeling overwhelmed, to say the least. Every day it seems that more blessings, problems, and everything in between crop up among her Yada Yada sisters, and their prayer list is getting out of control. Not only are the Yada Yadas still recovering from the vicious racial attack on Mark, but Ruth and Ben's midlife pregnancy takes a dangerous turn, Avis's daughter and grandbaby show up unannounced, Florida's artistic son gets caught tagging, and Uptown is talking about merging with New Morning into one racially mixed church-raising anxiety and stress to new levels. To top it all off, Jodi keeps saying yes-to everything. It's getting harder to see God in the everyday rat race of life, especially in the face of exhaustion. With so many burdens resting on her circle of sisters, Jodi fi nds herself trapped by the good-and bad-habit of trying to fi x everything and everyone. After lots (and lots) of failures, Jodi begins to learn that God can use anything, even the messes we make, to accomplish His good purposes. What will it take to help the Yada Yadas focus on God's promises instead of getting caught by the lies we so easily believe? - Recipes and a reading guide are included in the audiobook companion PDF download.

Neta Jackson (Author), Julie Rogers (Narrator)

Audiobook

Contemporary Women Audiobooks in Fiction & Literature