The Audiobook All-Stars and the Hall of Shame
I listen to audiobooks the way some people scroll social media: constantly, critically and with a growing sense that most of what I’m encountering did not need to exist.
Over the last five years, audiobooks have accounted for roughly 70–80% of my annual reading. That kind of volume turns into pattern recognition, where you stop reacting to individual performances and start noticing who reliably elevates material and who consistently drags it down.
With a few notable exceptions, my favorite audiobooks tend to be books I already liked. The same goes for the worst. When a book and its narration are aligned, the experience disappears in the best possible way. When they aren’t, it’s brutal.
What follows isn’t a definitive ranking or an attempt at neutrality, rather it’s a long-term field report. These are the narrators I’ve learned to trust, the ones I approach with caution and the ones who have repeatedly reminded me that “professional narrator” is not the same thing as being “good at this.”
The Audiobook All-Stars
These are the voices that show up again and again because they understand the assignment: serve the text, disappear into the story and don’t make it weird (unless the story asks for it).
Rebecca Lowman (4×)
The most consistent performer across five years. Lowman anchors books without announcing herself, which remains the rarest skill in audiobook narration.
Alma Cuervo (3×)
Authoritative, warm and emotionally grounded. Whether solo or ensemble, she makes characters feel inhabited rather than performed.
Justine Lupe (2×)
A precise, character-first narrator who understands restraint. Her embodiment of Holly Gibney alone justifies repeat all-star status.
Vikas Adam (2×)
Range without showboating. Adam has repeatedly carried books that were structurally or emotionally uneven, which is not nothing.
January LaVoy (2×)
Exceptional control of tone, especially in satire. She sharpens humor without tipping into caricature.
JD Jackson (2×)
Gravitas in small doses. Jackson elevates everything he touches without overpowering the material.
Steven Weber (2×)
At his best, Weber sustains tension over marathon runtimes with control and commitment.
Marin Ireland (2×)
Dry wit, sharp timing and emotional intelligence. She consistently elevates dialogue-heavy, character-driven work.
Kirsten Potter (2×)
A steady, grounding presence in speculative and literary fiction. Particularly strong in ensemble casts.
Michael Crouch (2×)
A quiet powerhouse. Crouch lands emotional blows without overselling them.
Arthur Morey (2×)
A strong ensemble performer with a clear, steady delivery — though, as you’ll see below, context matters.
The Hall of Shame
Once can be a bad fit. Twice is a pattern.
Daniel Henning (4×)
The most consistent repeat offender. A nasally, sarcastic delivery that repeatedly veers into stereotype, especially with queer characters.
Cassandra Campbell (3×)
Detachment, creeping camp and emotional mismatch show up too often to ignore.
Tom Parker (2×)
High-risk, high-chaos energy that rarely benefits the material, especially when paired with poor production.
Santino Fontana (2×)
Aggressively overacted performances that drain tension and flatten tone, particularly in thrillers.
Will Patton (2×)
Capable of subtlety, but too often indulges in distracting affectations that pull focus from the text.
The Questionable Tier
These are narrators who have appeared on both best and worst lists. They aren’t untalented, but they’re inconsistent.
Julia Whelan (2× Best, 2× Worst)
Exceptionally skilled and deeply prolific. When consumed in bulk, her male character voices blur together, which exposes limits in range.
Will Patton (1× Best, 2× Worst)
At his best (“Mr. Harrigan’s Phone”), he’s intimate and restrained. At his worst, he sounds like he’s auditioning for community theater.
Arthur Morey (2× Best, 1× Worst)
Effective in ensemble settings; less so when paired with similar voices or strange production choices.
Kevin R. Free (1× Best, 1× Worst)
When aligned with tone, he’s excellent. When not, he goes full theater kid. There is no neutral mode.
Tom Parker (1× Best, 2× Worst)
Occasionally his chaos works, but often it does not. He requires very specific material to succeed.
