He Said, She Said: Why Creators and Fans Love Dual and Duet Narration

The sex scene called for enough steam to power a locomotive, and Brooke Bloomingdale and Sean Masters, the narrators of Lauren Blakely’s Audible Original The Flirting Game, know how to deliver the racy dialogue and get sparks flying, given that they’ve lent their voices to hundreds of romance and erotica audiobooks between them. But recording a romance while the actor narrating their love interest is in the same studio at the same time? That was a first for them—and for Audible—and it revved that chemistry even higher.

“I really like what actors can discover when they're together, in terms of story and performance,” says Sara Pagluica, Audible’s producer for The Flirting Game. “They might get ideas from the other actor that they wouldn't have if they were alone in the booth.”

This in-person recording also lends itself well to duet narration, which has become the hottest thing in romance audio. In duet narration, each narrator reads their own character’s dialogue, regardless of whose point of view (POV) a chapter might be in.

“Listeners love the feeling of getting lost in this romantic world, and duet makes it feel even more real,” says romance author Lauren Blakely, who has been working exclusively in duet narration since early 2024 because she values the movie-like experience that comes from it. Blakely has an expertise earned from producing independently on Audible’s Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX) since 2014; The Flirting Game is the 126th audiobook she’s released and her eighth Audible Original. She’s worked with an enormous roster of narrators over the years, many of whom she found by being an avid listener of romance on Audible, including Bloomingdale. “I heard her years ago and thought, ‘I have to work with her.’” She adds, “I also ask audio fans, ‘Who are the new voices you are listening to?’ And Sean (Masters) was repeatedly mentioned.”

Romance author Lily Chu also has a special relationship with her audiobook narrator, Phillipa Soo (Hamilton), who has performed all five of Chu’s Audible Originals, including her latest one, Rich Girl Summer. In it, Soo voices female lead Valerie Peng, but this time Soo is joined by her real-life husband, Steven Pasquale (Bloodline, The Good Wife), who voices Valerie’s unlikely ally and eventual lover, Nico. They perform in dual narration, which differs from duet in that each narrator reads their own chapter, including any lines of dialogue from the other person.

Chu first experimented with dual narration for her fourth title, Drop Dead, where she decided to try something new by adding a second POV. “I thought it would be fun to explore the main male character’s perspective and get more into what he is thinking and experiencing,” Chu explains. “To delve more into his arc and his emotions.” She likes dual narration because it complements this intent, allowing the listener to be deeply immersed in both characters’ internal lives, a feat easily accomplished by the talented Soo and Pasquale. “I really appreciated their ability to convey the characters’ vulnerability, emotions and growth,” says Chu.

Whenever two professional narrators are going to be voicing the same characters in their respective chapters, they create audio references for the other one to follow, explains Alex Lopez, Audible’s producer and director on Rich Girl Summer. “They have to know how the other person is going to voice their own character so they can at least match that same vibe, even though their voices are different.” It’s even better if they can sync up before recording, she adds. “With celebrity narrators, we don’t always have the luxury of them being able to talk to each other first, but this time, we were fortunate that they were married!”

As Pasquale says of his wife, “Phillipa is a world-class actor, so trusting her side of it was the easiest part.” Soo was equally confident. “I knew Steven, as one of my favorite storytellers and performers, would be a great co-narrator,” she says. Fans are also loving the undeniable cuteness of the couple’s social media posts about working together on the title.

There’s the unique chemistry that comes from actors being real-life coupled up, and there’s the chemistry that happens when actors record together in the same room, as Bloomingdale and Masters did for The Flirting Game. But those in-person duet recordings can be rare, given the sheer volume of such projects and the complexity of scheduling. When it does happen, though, “It lends a certain je nais c’est quoi,” says Blakely. “It’s like this unique spontaneity they can bring to the performance when they are together—it’s magic!” Masters confirms, “Even the air changes, you can hear their breath.”

That said, the more people there are in the room for vulnerable scenes, the more consideration you have to give the performers, so Pagluica advised Bloomingdale that a female engineer, or even she herself, could record her during the more explicit scenes. But Bloomingdale didn’t think it necessary. “Narrating a sex scene live isn’t for everyone,” Bloomingdale admits. “It’s a little weird, but you just acknowledge it, be mature and do your job.”

Adds Masters, “You have to make each other laugh; you make the engineer laugh.” “And then you all just go to lunch,” says Bloomingdale.

For more on romance’s duet and dual narration styles, with perfect examples of each, see our Audible Blog post.