Voices of Audible: Best of 2023

We polled our colleagues from around the globe to find out: In a year of incredible listens, what was the one that rose to the top?

The Audible Editors

November 7, 2023

Our official Best of 2023 list boasts more than 200 audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals, and encapsulates the listens most beloved by editors and listeners this year. But what about Audible staff? In this special edition of Voices of Audible, we're celebrating what delighted our colleagues from around the globe in 2023. Let them whet your listening appetite as they tell you why these listens made it to the top of their own lists, and maybe to yours too.

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Kat Kakanas, Newark
Senior Director of Global Customer Care Operations

The Last Animal by Ramona Ausubel; narrated by Natasha Soudek

I am always in the mood for a good story about worthy, hardworking women coming out on top of a bad situation. The Last Animal by Ramona Ausubel is a captivating and heartwarming story about resilient women navigating challenging situations and finding warmth and connection in unexpected places. This story shows the value of taking risks even with a broken heart and how risk can bring a return to warmth, especially traded between mothers and daughters. The blend of humor, wisdom, and vulnerability in the writing makes it a truly engaging listen.

The Last Animal

Derek Murphy, Newark
Head of Global Business Development, Finance & Growth

Walk Through Fire written and narrated by Sheila Johnson

Sheila Johnson is an entrepreneur, philanthropist, cofounder of BET, and the first African American woman billionaire. Her memoir Walk Though Fire shares her deeply personal journey filled with betrayal, resilience, self-discovery, and newfound love. By any measure, Sheila has led and continues to lead a courageous and successful life. I’m grateful that we’ve been friends for many years, and inspired that she chose to share her story with the world!

Walk Through Fire

Karen Wiggins, Singapore
Head of Content, APAC

House of Skulls written and narrated by Marc Fennell

Award-winning journalist Marc Fennell takes listeners on an engrossing global adventure in his Audible Original series House of Skulls, which begins with a collection of skulls discovered in an American Ivy League university basement. This is a story of racism told as you’ve never heard it before, brought to life by tales of an Australian cannibal, looted ancient Egyptian tombs, and the story behind one of America’s most tragic acts of police violence. Marc makes listeners feel at the heart of the story, seeing events through the eyes of its storytellers as participants in an active investigation. Marc is Australia’s Louis Theroux, a master of bringing listeners into unknown worlds. What makes him distinctly powerful is his ability to turn the unknown into a vehicle for empathy. In House of Skulls, he avoids exploitative shock value and gives each skull specimen its humanity back.

House of Skulls with Marc Fennell

Dan Chastney, Seattle
Senior Director — Web, Growth & Discovery

Breakthrough by AT WILL MEDIA; narrated by Daveed Diggs, Kelly Rowland, Sara Bareilles

I loved following the journeys of aspiring singers in Breakthrough this year. I thoroughly enjoyed the intimacy it afforded the listener, as we got to eavesdrop on each artist working with their producer and then hear Kelly Rowland and Sara Bareilles react to the final product. Daveed Diggs brought his infectious energy to the hosting duties, and it was really touching to listen in as the contestants and mentors got to finally meet in person in the finale, having only heard each other’s voices up to that point. I really hope there will be more than one season!

Breakthrough

Tatiana Smith, Newark
Customer Care Team Manager

I Am Debra Lee written and narrated by Debra Lee

A fond moment from my childhood was sitting in front of our television and watching BET. In particular, I was always excited to watch the yearly BET Awards to see my favorite celebrities, red carpet looks, and Ms. Debra Lee, the multifaceted touchstone of Black music and culture. When I stumbled across her memoir I Am Debra Lee, I knew I had to listen. Here’s what makes it my Best of the Year—she narrates and tells us how BET became BET and shares intimate stories of her friendship with Ms. Aretha Franklin!

I Am Debra Lee

Leonardo Neumann, Sao Paulo
Director, Audible Studios

Possession by Matthew Derby and Brianna Holt; narrated by Lamorne Morris, Kylie Bunbury, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and a full cast

Lately, I have been recommending the compelling podcast Possession. The story takes the listener seamlessly to different genres while bringing very complex social issues. Similar to some of the recent Jordan Peele movies, it was able to raise important discussions about the intersection between race and class embedded in a twisty thriller. Regardless of the specific housing issue at the center of the story, audiences everywhere will relate to the incredible experience Possession offers.

Possession

Alissa Cooper Stein, Newark
Director, Software Development Tech.

Wool by Hugh Howey; narrated by Edoardo Ballerini

While I don’t tend to gravitate toward dystopia and tend to enjoy more mysteries and thrillers, Wool had me curious and wanting to hear more the whole time. The book began with many unanswered questions, and as soon as an answer was revealed, a new question arose. Moving back and forth from past to present and perspective to perspective, this engaging story was filled with twists and turns. It had romance, mystery, and murder, and kept me guessing what was really going on.

Wool

Sarah Ungerleider, Canada
Customer Engagement

The Vaster Wildsby Lauren Groff; narrated by January LaVoy

I’ve devoured everything Lauren Groff has ever written. Her ability to create almost painfully beautiful sentences within equally heartrending stories is unparalleled. She maintains this mastery over the written word with The Vaster Wilds, a historical epic that examines the ravages of colonialism and the desire to escape its clutches. Read perfectly by veteran narrator January LaVoy, this gorgeous novel will leave you wanting more from an extraordinary literary talent.

The Vaster Wilds

Esther Bochner, Newark
Senior Director, Content Marketing

Third Eye by Felicia Day; narrated by Felicia Day, Sean Astin, Neil Gaiman, LilyPichu, London Hughes, and Wil Wheaton

My favorite listen of the year was Felicia Day’s Third Eye. It was a hilarious, fun-filled, action-packed listen that served up the exact warm and goofy energy I needed to get through my day. I found myself listening over and over again. Comedy aside, the story reminds us all to believe in ourselves and come together as a team to solve problems that are too big to tackle independently—and sometimes, it takes a quirky fantasy to ensure that those important lessons hit home.

Third Eye

Jennifer Marquez, Newark
Customer Care, Retention

Night's Edge by Liz Kerin; narrated by Chase Sui Wonders

At the surface, Night's Edge is a vampire book, but at its core, you find a complex family dynamic that many may sadly relate to. For me, the true horror in this book is not the vampires but the underlying message of the damage addiction not only causes to those battling it but to their loved ones too. We follow a mother who is afflicted with the vampire illness and a daughter whose life has been at a standstill being her mother's caretaker as she becomes more of a monster each day. This is not just another vampire story.

Night's Edge

Diego Aguilar, Mexico City
Software Engineer

Eve written and narrated by Cat Bohannon

As person with a wild curiosity, I’ve been interested in genomics lately and always eager to learn more on the subject. I loved how this listen, while offering a lot of information, offers an enjoyable narrative of the evolution of the human species. It’s loaded with knowledge on the subject of biology and even includes social and historic insights. While it is nonfiction, it felt like more of an engaging tale. And always a plus for me is when the creator also narrates.

Eve

Sara Pagluica, Newark
Producer, Audible Studios

Love at First Psych by Cara Bastone; narrated by Santino Fontana, Stephanie Einstein, Mary Ann Jacobs, William Merryn Hill, Emily Bauer, Matt Boren, Piper Goodeve, Gabra Zackman, Mia Jenness, Elliott Fullam, Petrea Burchard, Ralph Lister, and Jack de Golia

This rom-com is SO much fun. The chemistry between Santino Fontana and Stephanie Einstein is adorable, and their banter is very entertaining. The pair have to interview couples about their love stories for a psych class, and each couple has something different to offer, challenging the pair’s views on love at first sight. The sound design is fantastic—it’s fully immersive with music—and you feel like you’re right there with them. Cara Bastone knocked it out of the park yet again!