The Best Sci-Fi Audiobooks With Incredible Narration and Performances
Brilliant audiobooks need to combine a great story with a great reader. That doesn’t always happen. I’ve also come across some that are great books and have great narration, but are poorly edited – for example, no gap between one section and the next, so you are constantly being caught out when the POV suddenly shifts.
So, if you are looking for a new science fiction audiobook that is a great story, well-performed, and well-produced, I have compiled some suggestions.
I should add that these are ones I have personally listened to and highly recommend. They aren’t a definitive list. So if you have a suggestion, feel free to add it in the comments.
I have included a couple of radio plays and dramas. There is nothing wrong with variety, and they are usually sold at the same places. I listened to all these on Audible, and they’re all available for my monthly audiobook credit, so they totally count as audiobooks.
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Project Hail Mary – Andy Weir (2021)
Audiobook narrated by: Ray Porter
A near-perfect modern sci-fi audiobook combining hard science, humour, and one of the best alien friendships in recent fiction.
I read the book and then, a year or two later, listened to the audiobook. If you want something funny and thoughtful, but filled with accurate science, this is great. Ray Porter’s narration is superb. Basically, if you like The Martian, you will like Project Hail Mary. You may well be aware that there is a pretty decent movie, but you should give the book or audiobook a go as well.
The Horus Rising – Dan Abnett (2006)
Audiobook narrated by: Toby Longworth
The opening novel of the Horus Heresy series and still one of the best entry points into the grim darkness of the 41st millennium.
If you want to learn more about Warhammer 40k, or are already a fan but curious about what happened before the main series of books and games, the first three Horus Heresy novels are a great way to start. I was already reading one of the Gaunt’s Ghosts series, but wanted more grimdark in my life (plus I was curious).
I listened to the first one by the always reliable writer Dan Abnett and was hooked on both the series and Toby Longworth’s narration. He makes all the characters sound completely different – which is handy, as there are a lot of them. The production is great, too, with ominous music that separates sections and gets you into a decent, grim mood.
The series is 54 books, but the first three provide a great intro. All are narrated by Toby Longworth.
You can start what might be an epic journey in darkness here.
The Blade Itself — Joe Abercrombie (2006)
Audiobook narrated by: Steven Pacey
Arguably one of the greatest audiobook performances ever recorded. (I will argue about it.)
Continuing with the grimdark theme is the utterly superb first book in the First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. I’d read this over a decade ago and adored the trilogy. I then thought I would read some of the other books set in the same world, and I wanted a recap of some of the characters. So I gave the audiobooks a go, and my god are they good.
These are such good novels (as are all Abercrombie books), and Steven Pacey really brings them alive. I cannot recommend these highly enough.
You can listen to this awesomeness here.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy — Douglas Adams (1978)
Performed by: Original BBC Radio cast including Simon Jones, Geoffrey McGivern, and Peter Jones
Still one of the funniest and most imaginative sci-fi audio productions ever made.
I make no secret of my adoration for all things Hitchhiker’s, and the original BBC radio production was where it all began. As I mentioned in my post about funny sci-fi books, the series is what got me into science fiction. I had read all the books multiple times until someone gave me a cassette of the original radio plays. They are different and split off in a different direction from the books (and the TV shows and film) and are a constant delight.
You can get the original radio plays here.
Impact Winter — Travis Beacham (2022)
Performed by: Full cast including Liam Cunningham and Bella Ramsey
A cinematic vampire apocalypse audio drama that feels halfway between prestige television and a blockbuster movie.
I listened to this on a whim as it was free on Audible. I’m now on season 3, but you can read my review of the first series here. The premise is that a comet plunged the world into darkness and winter. It then turns out there have been vampires hiding out everywhere, and now that the climate is ideal, they rise up and kill lots of people. But some humans survive.
This is a really well-made drama. If you like the idea of an apocalypse filled with vampires, you can listen to it here.
Garth Marenghi’s TerrorTome — Matthew Holness (2022)
Audiobook narrated by: Matthew Holness
A gloriously ridiculous horror-comedy audiobook packed with absurd metaphors, overwriting, deliberate madness, and buckets of gore.
Back in the 90s, in a tiny back room theatre in Soho, London, I saw Matthew Holness and Richard Ayoade perform a strange show about a cult horror writer called Garth Marenghi. Ayoade introduced Marenghi (played by Holness), who talked about horror and told some stories. The basic idea was that Marenghi wrote the darkest and most twisted horror tales of all time and was a cult legend.
Well, now you can listen to one of Marenghi’s utterly insane books – and it is read by Holness playing the character of Marenghi. It is all very complicated. This is comedy horror, and I loved it, but it is utterly demented and twisted and only for the more deviant of listeners.
If that’s you – check it out here.
Dungeon Crawler Carl — Matt Dinniman (2020)
Audiobook narrated by: Jeff Hays
Part comedy, part apocalypse, part game-show nightmare. Jeff Hays and the production somehow make the chaos even better.
A while back, I wanted to see what all the fuss was about with LitRPG. I read a few forums, and Dungeon Crawler Carl sounded exactly like my cup of tea. Lots of people mentioned the audiobooks being awesome, and they were right.
The premise is that aliens flatten the Earth, turn it into a multi-level dungeon, and make humans fight monsters and each other. It sounds grim, but as Carl is in boxer shorts and he is aided by Princess Donut, his ex’s talking cat, you can rest assured it doesn’t take itself too seriously.
The production values and narration set an already great book and make it awesome. It’s almost like a one-man dramatisation. Dungeon Crawler Carl is a perfect example of why audiobooks are great.
Crawl with Carl here. Or at least read the reviews.
We Are Legion (We Are Bob) — Dennis E. Taylor (2016)
Audiobook narrated by: Ray Porter
The start of the Bobiverse series and one of the most entertaining modern space opera audiobooks around.
This is a fun book. A guy gets his intelligence uploaded to a spaceship and heads out into the galaxy. He then copies himself, and his ship, finds that each time he does so, the personality is slightly different. But he isn’t the only human this has happened to, and there are also aliens in space. Soon, there will be lots of Bobs. This is a fun book that has great ideas and doesn’t take itself too seriously.
It is also narrated by the always superb Ray Porter.
14 — Peter Clines (2012) – also, The Fold, and Paradox Bound
Audiobooks narrated by: Ray Porter
Peter Clines and Ray Porter are an incredibly reliable combination if you enjoy mystery-heavy sci-fi thrillers.
My first Peter Clines book was 14, and it was a great idea. It led me to listen to the audiobooks for The Fold and the Paradox Bound. I usually read the text form of at least one book before I try the audiobook, but this time I started the audio version and never looked back. Not only are they intriguing books, but they are also all narrated – yet again – by Ray Porter.
I recommend starting with 14 and seeing what you think.
The Shadow over Innsmouth — H. P. Lovecraft (1936)
Audiobook narrated by: Richard Coyle
One of Lovecraft’s best stories and an excellent atmospheric audiobook performance.
This is a classic tale of horror by HP Lovecraft. Something is wrong with the people of Innsmouth… I won’t say more. I’m a big Lovecraft fan, and this production has ominous music and effects that enhance the atmosphere, along with brilliant narration by Richard Coyle.
Get mildly unsettled by listening to it here.
Bonus: The Hunger Games — Suzanne Collins (2008)
Audiobook narrated by: Tatiana Maslany
You can also check out my review of the audiobook version, which has an excellent performance from Tatiana Maslany.
You already likely know the book and the narrator, so there is no need to add much beyond I really enjoyed it. I reviewed it here.