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I have long been an audiobook listener, but reading during pandemic times has just solidified my love for reading with my ears. Lots of days, my audiobook listening is the only reading I'm managing to get in right now, between stress and brain fog and cooking so many meals and cleaning the kitchen so many times.
I don't know if you are an audiobook listener yet, but if you are not, my aim is to convert you. I'm going to start featuring some of my very favorite audiobook reads here and encouraging you to support your local independent bookstores by purchasing them with Libro.fm. If you're new to Libro.fm, use the code ABBYLIBRARIAN to get 2 credits for the price of 1 ($14.99) and give this audiobook platform a try. They have an awesome selection and they support an independent bookstore of your choice with every purchase.
Today's pick:
Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld, narrated by Alan Cumming. Simon & Schuster Audio, 2009. 8 hours, 16 minutes. Sequels (also expertly narrated by Alan Cumming): Behemoth (2010) and Goliath (2011).
This is one of the audiobook series I always recommend when someone is open to genre but just wants something that's a REALLY GOOD LISTEN.
Leviathan is a steampunk alternate history WWI story in which the Axis powers have developed massive war machines and the Allied powers have bioengineered living battleships. Prince Aleksander, would-be heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, is on the run. Devyn Sharp has disguised herself as a boy to join the British Air Service and lives in constant fear of being discovered. Their paths cross and they begin a fantastic around-the-world adventure in this action-packed series.
Alan Cumming is absolutely fantastic at accents in this fully-voiced production and he makes the story a pleasure to listen to. The world-building is amazing in this trilogy and it's the kind of story that you can really sink into and get transported into a really engaging alternate historical world. I was completely fascinated by the creative developments of each side of the war and how they engage with each other.
I'd hand this series to middle school and high school listeners and I think it's fabulous for adults, as well. I'd try it on fans of Kenneth Oppel's Airborn series or Neal Schusterman's Scythe series for another immersive trilogy with really strong worldbuilding and unforgettable characters.
