This year’s list of favourites is an interesting mix of tried and true combinations of beloved authors and narrators and new to me narrators whom I can’t wait to here in many more sapphic stories. As in my favourite-books-of-the-year list, some authors appear several times, like E.J. Noyes and her Halcyon Division series (I can’t wait for the final book!) or Rachel Lacey, who released five sapphic audiobooks in 2023, which explains why so many of hers are on my list (I haven’t had time to listen to all of them or they’d all be there). It’s been a hard year mental health wise and Rachel Lacey’s books are consistently comforting, so the timing couldn’t have been better.

I’m not ranking the audiobooks that made my year, so here they are in chronological order of when I reviewed them (more or less).

I got codes from authors or publishers for some of them, I got review copies through Libro.fm—if you don’t know Libro.fm yet, look them up, they’re wonderful and by purchasing through them, you’ll be supporting the indie bookshop of your choice—or Netgalley for others, I listened to a few on Everand (get 2 months for free with this referral code, I’ll get one too, which means more reviews), I paid for some… However I got to listen to them, if they’re on the list, I loved them.

Click on the images below to read my thoughts on each title (I haven’t reviewed A Calculated Risk yet but it’s too good to be left out. Keep an eye out for the review in the early days of 2024 – update, January 3rd: the review is up!)).

The list wouldn’t be complete without these three titles that were released in 2022 but which I only got to listen to in 2023: the sweet and sexy Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Cochrun, narrated by Natalie Naudus, the beautiful We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds, narrated by Tamika Katon-Donegal (new author and new narrator, both of whom I’m excited to have on my radar now), and Rabbits of the Apocalypse by Benny Lawrence, narrated by Blair Baker, the most delightfully unhinged audiobook I listened to this year.

Let me know in the comments what your favourite audiobooks were in 2023 and if there are some you’re already looking forward to in 2024!

Photo by Gaman Alice on Unsplash