Summer 2025 is bringing us some absolutely incredible audiobooks that perfectly capture the season’s energy! These warmer months deliver everything from heart-pounding thrillers to cozy fantasy escapes, plus some seriously powerful voice performances that turned already compelling stories into unforgettable listening experiences.
The audiobooks below represent the cream of the crop from all the releases I listened to in July. August and September releases will follow shortly! Each of these audiobooks offers something special, whether it’s exceptional narration, brave storytelling, or that perfect combination of both that creates pure audio magic.
July 2025: Hot Summer Listens
Coded Justice
By Stacey Abrams
Narrated by Adenrele Ojo
Length: 14 hours 57 minutes
I just love a thriller that navigates impossible situations. We all like to scream at the top of our lungs about our beliefs. But sometimes, there’s just no right way to go. And that’s the dilemma Avery finds herself in when she’s hired to investigate deaths at a company that has developed a revolutionary medical AI, built to counter racial bias.
This is the third book in a series, but it works perfectly as a stand-alone (I now absolutely have to go and get books 1 and 2 though!). Adenrele Ojo is always such an immense pleasure to listen to. The range this narrator has is stunning, and I could not turn this book off!
Perfect for: Thriller fans who love complex moral dilemmas and outstanding narration!
A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping
By Sangu Mandanna
Narrated by Samara MacLaren
Length: 9 hours 52 minutes
This book was just everything! In this standalone cozy fantasy, Sangu Mandanna once again creates a truly wonderful found family that feels so real.
Sera runs an inn together with her aunt. As one of the most powerful witches, Sera had put a spell over the inn when she was just a child. It’s a complex piece of work that keeps the wrong people away and draws the right people in.
However, Sera has since lost most of her magic, and after years of feeling depressed and defeated about the loss, she has now taken steps to regain her power.
A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping drew me in completely. It’s chock-full of lovable and interesting characters, and Sera’s quest is very intriguing as there are many layers to the meaning and purpose of her magic. Samara MacLaren did a beautiful job bringing Sera and her friends to life.
Perfect for: Cozy fantasy lovers who are excited about found family and magical innkeeping adventures!
Hot Girls with Balls
By Benedict Nguyen
Narrated by Nicky Endres
Length: 8 hours 2 minutes
Hot Girls with Balls is, as the title might give away, a sharp satire on the current state of trans rights. Six and Green are two Asian American trans women who want to play completely by the rules. They are both pro athletes but play on the men’s team.
Their weekly live show is sweet and mushy and not overtly political. But time and time again, the world shows them that it is their very existence that people take offense to, and no matter how much they try to please everyone, it will never be good enough.
I try not to miss any Nicky Endres audiobooks because she has a beautiful voice and I love listening to her!
Perfect for: Readers looking for sharp social commentary and authentic trans representation!
Tusk Love
By Thea Guanzon & Critical Role
Narrated by Teddy Hamilton & Brittany Pressley
Length: 9 hours 6 minutes
Tusk Love is a very cute grumpy/sunshine romantasy. Initially, I wasn’t sure if this would be my thing because, while I love the idea of an orc hero, all books I have tried leaned too heavily into the grumpy “stay away from me” side. However, Tusk Love walks a fine line, always making it clear that Oscar is absolutely smitten with Guinevere.
This is really such a fun and adorable monster romance that quickly drew me in with its beautiful world-building and relatable characters. I particularly loved Guinevere and her personal arc from shy heiress to adventurer!
Perfect for: Romantasy fans who love monster romance and character growth!
Crash Test
By Amy James
Narrated by Patrick Zeller & Gary Furlong
Length: 9 hours 22 minutes
This book GUTTED me! Crash Test is definitely one of those books you need to be in the mood for. But if you feel like being absolutely destroyed by an intense angsty romance that won’t let up, then this is incredibly good.
Travis is a very successful F1 driver. No one knows he’s gay. No one knows he’s in love with F2 driver Jacob. And then Jacob is involved in a horrible accident, and is lying unconscious in the ICU.
Patrick Zeller’s voicing of Travis is intense and absolutely heartwrenching, while Gary Furlong voices Jacob, who has more than enough struggles of his own. The audiobook production is superb! This is a beautiful, deeply emotional duet narration audiobook.
Perfect for: Readers who love sports romance and aren’t afraid of emotional devastation!
August 2025: Hot New Audiobooks
Looking for Group
By Alexis Hall
Narrated by Will Watt, Sam Newton, Morag Sims, Rich Keeble, Matt Godfrey & Chris Devon
Length: 8 hrs and 33 mins
I’ve had the print version of Looking for Group standing in my bookshelf for years because this has been a huge favorite ever since I read the book. You can’t imagine my excitement when this book, that was featured in Alexis Hall’s FAQ as “this probably won’t translate well into audio”, finally got the audio treatment!
Will Watt and the full cast did an amazing job at bringing out the nuances between direct dialogue, guild chat, and private messages. It is an absolute blast to listen to, and Sam Newton beautifully embodied Kit.
Looking for Group is a true audiobook gem that was produced with an eye (or rather, ear) for detail.
Perfect for: Fans of fantastic audiobook productions, especially those who love video game content, and all fans of M/M romance and Alexis Hall!
Make Room for Love
By Darcy Liao
Narrated by Nicky Endres & Natalie Naudus
Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
We stay queer with this truly lovely (and steamy) romance audiobook about a trans woman and a butch lesbian who become reluctant roommates.
Mira manages to leave an abusive relationship, but finds herself without a place to live. What a lucky coincidence that she meets Isabel, who happens to have a free room!
But between Mira struggling to come to terms with the experiences she made in her previous relationship, and Isabel trying to get over a devastating breakup, living together isn’t easy.
Nicky Endres and Natalie Naudus are a narrator dream team for me, and they both brought so much emotion into this audiobook.
Perfect for: Everyone looking for amazing queer and lesbian romance audiobooks with truly excellent narration!
Zomromcom
By Olivia Dade
Narrated by Joy Nash
Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
Spooky season is around the corner, and Olivia Dade gifts us a fantastic paranormal romance to start the season!
One thing I have always loved about Olivia Dade’s books is how this author manages to bring depth and difficult topics into her books with ease, tying them in with humor and banter. And she is also doing that with Zomromcom which deals with pandemic topics we are all too familiar with.
Edie lives close to the fenced-off zombie outbreak zone, and comes to team up with an assortment of supernaturals when the zombies manage to get out and threaten to infect more people.
Joy Nash is an amazing narrator with a range of different voices, it’s such a pleasure to listen to her bring Edie, “Max”, and the group to live.
Perfect for: Fans of paranormal romance, romantic comedy, and romance books that mix familiar tropes with new themes!
Hemlock & Silver
By T. Kingfisher
Narrated by Jennifer Pickens
Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
Let’s go a little bit creepier with T. Kinffisher’s new dark fantasy novel Hemlock & Silver that takes on Snow White themes.
A healer specialized in poisons is hired by the king himself to help his very sick daughter, a beautiful girl called Snow. Healer Anja believes in rigorous scientific testing, be it when testing medication on herself to find that sweet spot where poison turns into potent cure, or to find out what makes Snow so sick – and why she gets even sicker after Anja has tested every single food item in the palace.
Hemlock & Silver is a deeply captivating audiobook, not only thanks to the intricately woven story, but also thanks to Jennifer Pickens’ emotional narration.
Perfect for: A Must-Listen for everyone who loves creepy but not scary stories!
September 2025: Travelling with Audiobooks!
It Had to Be Him
By Adib Khorram
Narrated by Corvin King & Vikas Adam
Length: 11 hrs and 59 mins
It Had to Be Him takes you on a trip to Italy so vividly described that I felt like I was there!
After an ugly breakup, Ramin books his dream vacation to Italy to reinvent himself. But who would he run into in Milan, of all places, but his high school crush Noah?!
Noah believes he is co-parenting with his ex-wife in harmony, when she drops the news on him: She wants to move to Italy! She invites him to the trip as their 9-year-old son has to decide where he wants to live. A difficult situation to navigate and not the best point in time for Noah to become reacquainted with Ramin.
Corvin King and Vikas Adam, with their beautiful voices, make this audiobook an outstanding experience! If you are sad your vacation is over, this book will take you to Italy and fill you with so much joy!
Perfect for: Adult fans of Heartstopper who love steamy M/M romance!
The (Most Unusual) Haunting of Edgar Lovejoy
By Roan Parrish
Narrated by Dani Martineck
Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
Taking you on a tour through New Orleans, our hero Edgar has quite an unusual problem: He can see ghosts – and he is extremely scared of them!
A professional haunter, someone who enjoys building intricate horror houses to scare people, does not seem like the perfect match for our Edgar. But he is instantly smitten by Jamie when he sees them at a burlesque event.
Roan Parrish’s new novel gently explores how these two people build their relationship while not shying away from creeping us out just a little with descriptions of the ghosts. Edgar comes to accept that, if he wants to live a full life, he has to find a way to deal with his anxiety, whatever that means for his ghost problem. And Jamie has to decide which people in their life are worth their time and energy, who is worth all their love and support.
Dani Martineck truly brought out Jamie’s and Edgar’s emotions in this beautiful audiobook.
Perfect for: Fans of queer romance, cozy paranormal, and found family!
Summer 2025 Audiobook Trends
What caught my attention during these sun-soaked months, and how it connects to the bigger audiobook landscape:
Social commentary is still loud and proud! Books like Hot Girls with Balls show that publishers still dare to tackle current political issues head-on. Audiobook audiences are clearly hungry for stories that reflect our complex world, and I’m relieved to see that traditional publishers are still giving authors the chance to meet that demand with nuanced, powerful narratives.
Duet narration reaching new heights! Crash Test exemplifies that duet narration isn’t just a niche fan service from indie authors anymore. Traditional publishers are investing in narrator pairings that create genuine emotional chemistry, and the results are absolutely stunning. I especially love seeing this for an M/M book when publishers just a few years ago tried to keep costs low for same sex romance books and just went with one narrator.
Monster romance going mainstream! Tusk Love is part of a growing acceptance of non-traditional romance in major publishing. What used to be purely indie is now getting the full audiobook treatment from established publishers, and listeners are absolutely here for it!
Ready to dive into any of these summer gems? Check out my favorite must-have audiobook apps that I never uninstall!
Looking for more audiobook recommendations? Here is my complete Best Audiobooks of 2025 guide for quarterly roundups throughout the year!
Eline Blackman (pronouns: she/they) fell in love with books as a child – with being read to and reading herself. 10 years ago, she bought her first Audible book. It was love at first listen! An average of 250 audiobooks per year has become the new normal and you will rarely see Eline without a wireless earbud. Romance and Fantasy are the go-to genres for this audiobook fan.