There’s never a bad time to get down to business, but there is something about this particular time of year that really gets the juices flowing. There has never been a better time to be a lover of adult fiction, and the world is filled with erotic audiobooks specifically designed to set pulses-a-racking. What’s more, you also get to combine hotter than hot texts with some seriously good stories. What a time to be alive! The best erotic audiobooks bring together steamy scenes, unpausable passion and seriously good stories, all with mighty memorable results. Strap in, things are about to get a little hot in here.
After began as a hugely popular Wattpad fanfic with more than one billion fans; now it’s revised and extended in audio, making it even more engaging and exciting than the original. Narrator Elizabeth Louise–who has proved her mettle by narrating more than 30 audiobooks in the erotic and romance genres–paces the heart-quickening love scenes and handles the London accent of main character Hardin without crossing into caricature. In her care, the push and pull relationship between darkly seductive, bad-boy Hardin and sweet, naive Tessa has real bite. It becomes a frustrating listen in the best, most irresistible way as listeners wait to see what becomes of these two unlikely lovers.
In Try, you’ll be introduced to Logan Mitchell, a magnetic, self-described sexual aficionado, and Tate Morrison, a divorcé getting back on his feet and the most recent subject of Logan’s unignorable attention. At first, Logan and Tate seem at odds; Tate’s never been attracted to a man before, and Logan knows emotionally investing in someone hasn’t worked for him in the past. But the pair decides it couldn’t hurt to try. One of the story’s most enticing elements is the extended flirtatious will-they-or-won’t-they aspect, and narrator Shannon Gunn has a deep, velvety voice and a languid style that’s a perfect fit for this slow-burning title. When the tension finally breaks, the love scenes that follow are made more sizzling by the distinctive, equally alluring voices he creates to differentiate each character.
This selection is another fanfiction-turned-audiobook with millions of dedicated followers, and as Chloe and Bennett have increasingly hot sex all over their office (and attempt to avoid scrutiny), it’s impossible not to understand the allure. Beautiful Bastard features Chloe Mills and Bennett Ryan, a fiery duo who toe the line between love and hate as they close the gap between manager and employee in a passionate, steamy affair. Grace Grant gives voice to both driven, smart protagonists as they trade barbs, and seamlessly transitions between each character so that the listener is never lost and the fast-paced, snarky dialogue never suffers. Hearing the repartée between the two leads makes the chemistry crafted by author Christina Lauren more evident, and the eventual breaking point inevitable and red-hot.
Narrator Vanessa Chambers is excellent at generating emotional tension, and author Laurann Dohner gives her a lot of it to work with. Chambers’s authentic performance as Ellie, an employee of a corrupt pharmaceutical company experimenting on humans, and Specimen 416 (also known as Fury), the animalistic, brazen result of those experiments, drives home both the emotionally impactful and blisteringly sexy aspects of the story. Ellie and Fury must navigate their complex relationship and unwise but unavoidable attraction to each other as they take on a daunting, risky endeavour, freeing the rest of the experiment subjects from captivity. With a fully realised universe, Fury doesn’t shy away from the complex subjects and settings it introduces, but it also doesn’t skimp on the torrid details. It’s a well-crafted meeting between sci-fi and erotica that’s as seductive as the muscled, lustful Fury himself.
Alayna Wither is at the heart of best selling author Laurelin Paige’s Fixed on You. Alayna, a woman with obsessive tendencies, is attempting to work through her issues and begin again when she meets the rich and handsome Hudson Pierce, who she worries will trigger her unhealthy behaviour by being, well, extremely desirable. It turns out that Hudson has a difficult past of his own, so instead of a rich-man-saving-troubled-woman narrative, listeners are treated to regular people attempting to heal and love, interspersed with super explicit, shockingly hot sex. To bring their complex and heated relationship to life, listeners are lucky to have narrator and bonafide legend Carly Robins, a seasoned performer who’s lent her talent and voice to hundreds of audiobooks, at the helm.
Listeners and critics alike have compared the sexual style and dynamic between the two main characters in Bared to You to the feverishness of Fifty Shades of Grey, but we think this title stands on its own as a relentlessly sexy listen. Gideon Cross and Eva Tramell have the kind of sensuous, darkly twisted connection that entices listeners, and this chemistry crafts some irresistible bedroom scenes. If you’re looking for palpable tension that builds into BDSM, this audiobook will absolutely deliver, scene after scene, each different from the last. Narrator Jill Redfield is so adept at pacing and performing those scenes that even experienced erotica listeners may find themselves blushing.
Up in the mountains of Colorado in the US, Nina Sheridan is taking a vacation from her life in England to reflect on her engagement to a man she feels doesn’t really know her, let alone love her. There, she meets Holden Maxwell (Max for short), the owner of the home she’s retreated to. Oh, and he also just happens to be a ruggedly-handsome lone wolf. After Max nurses Nina back to health when she becomes sick on her vacation, sparks fly, and romance is uncovered. The pleasant lilt of narrator Emma Taylor’s voice adds to the serenity and loveliness of this title. The story is sweet and the love scenes equally so, perfect punctuations to the delicately enchanting relationship that slowly unfolds over 25 hours of captivating audio.
Alternating narrators make this selection stand out as a particularly great listen; Cooper North and Brooke Bloomingdale both exhibit a deep understanding of their characters’ inner emotions and of what makes a steamy love scene so captivating. They’re a treat to listen to as their complementary styles bring Flynn Godfrey and Natalie Bryant to life. Natalie is loving her first winter in New York City when her beloved dog, Fluff, bites Flynn Godfrey, movie star and modern Adonis, who has recently been named People’s Sexiest Man Alive. It’s a tense meet, cute for just a moment before Flynn is enthralled by Natalie and decides he’ll do anything to woo her. The only thing that stands in the way of their fairy tale is distrust: Natalie worries about revealing her traumatic past, while Flynn is unsure about sharing his BDSM proclivities.
Another addition to our list wherein the characters toe the line between love and hate, This Man explores the scintillating relationship between Ava O’Shea, interior designer, and Jesse Ward, the owner of a country mansion, as they meet, loathe, and then (finally!) love each other. Edita Brychta showcases her talent and range for creating distinctive voices in a story filled with funny side characters and a sultry male lead, even subtly differentiating their accents and dialects to communicate characterization. As Brychta moves between humour and passion, Jesse and Ava argue, make up, argue, and make up again. Listeners are tempted into the drama and ardour of their cycle that plays out in the perfectly maddening way only erotica can.
When Marie’s brother steals from the Reaper Motorcycle Club he’s been in business with, Marie has to bargain with the club for his life. What she offers is something they couldn’t refuse; to give her body to the taciturn, burly hunk known only to her by his club nickname: Horse. Stella Bloom delivers Horse’s dominating, desirous lines in a matter-of-fact, stern way, creating an effect that’s irresistible and magnetic. The audiobook flips from Marie’s perspective to Horse’s as they reckon with their desire for each other and the brutal authority of the club they now both serve. For listeners who enjoy rough, brusque male leads, control play, and intense sex scenes, Reaper’s Property is a hot gateway into the deliciously troublesome world of crime, loyalty, and masculinity.
We like this title for its genuine depiction of a polyamorous relationship, and we love it for incredibly sexy love scenes that feature both twosomes and threesomes. The way the relationship between Will, Sullivan, and Adrienne evolves from uncertain to rock-solid lends nuance and impact to the love scenes that are all the more enticing for their realism. Add to its plot three narrators, one for each lead’s POV, whose voices complement and play off one another to create a seamless listening experience, and Bedfellows has the makings of an erotic classic. Another thing we love is that at only five hours and 55 minutes, listeners can enjoy this in just one unforgettable night.
The title of this selection says it all; if dirty talk is what you’re into, this audiobook is sure to satisfy. Veteran erotica narrator Sebastian York voices male lead Derrick, a radio personality with the moniker The Love Whisperer...and a talent for talking dirty. And in York’s smooth, deep voice, there’s nothing quite as sexy. Tracy Marks joins him to voice Kat, a computer programmer blown away by Derrick, and her breathy, affected performance sells the relationship. From the first call Kat makes to Derrick to the last line of this well tied-up story arc from Lauren Landish, Dirty Talk is irresistibly filthy. The engaging, surprising, and romantic plot almost feels like a bonus.
Being both the only person in her magical family without any demonstrable powers and the only one without a thin figure, Emma Krist is certain there’s no chance she’ll be selected as the Bloodlust Sacrifice for the vampire Sovereign of her community. She couldn’t have been more wrong. Soon, Emma finds herself at Aiden James’s mansion, naked and expected to be ready for sex at any given moment. After the first time – which really is her first time – Aiden proves himself insatiable even as Emma begins to exert her own type of power over him. We love how narrator Mackenzie Cartwright makes the magical sound ordinary, the ordinary sound magical, and the otherworldly sex scenes wickedly real.
The perfect gentlemen (from which this series gets its name) are the men who graduated from Creighton Academy; wealthy, debaucherous, and irresistible to everyone they meet. Narrated by the equally irresistible Kaleo Griffith, whose voice and intonation are the perfect match for the insolent main character, Gabe, this first instalment comes from the authors of the Masters of Ménage series and is just as excellent as those best sellers. Scandal Never Sleeps is a sexy thriller beginning with a murder that brings the graduates together to solve it, and a one-night stand that becomes a tense, incendiary surprise when Gabe and his fling, Everlee, find out that they’re new coworkers. There’s hot sex, intense emotion, and enough action to keep this listen purely pause-resistant.
Nominated for a 2018 Audie Award, Taking Turns focuses on an unusual ménage à quatre—three male friends, Bric, Quin, and Smith, who find a woman named Chella in a swingers club and decide to play a game of sorts together. There are twosomes, threesomes, and foursomes, and each man has a distinctive style and set of sexual interests that make for a variety of encounters. What we didn’t anticipate about this title were the thrilling plot discoveries outside of the bedroom that add another layer of allure and curiosity to the listening experience. Spot-on voice casting for Taking Turns elevates the already engrossing story JA Huss has crafted; each character has their own voice, which makes this otherwise delightfully secretive and mysterious story easy to follow.
Evelyn’s 21st birthday is everything a celebration in Las Vegas should be, but the surprise that greets her in the morning goes beyond an average hangover. She doesn’t remember the part of the evening where she got married to a famous and super-hot rock star. Unfortunately, rock star David does remember and is supremely disappointed in her lapse of memory; for him, it was unforgettable because he met the love of his life. The selection absolutely lives up to the double-entendre of its title, Lick, boasting steamy, tenderhearted love scenes to make listeners blush. The high highs and low lows of this touching love story unravel extremely well in audio because listeners can never predict how David and Evelyn will react to each other. Every minute is filled with sexual tension and emotional suspense, especially when they’re voiced by the exceptionally smooth delivery of Audie winner Andi Arndt.
Narrator Melissa Moran and author Elle Spencer make a great team. The latter’s talent for comedic writing and the former’s for bringing that comedy to life make listening to Casting Lacey equally laugh-out-loud funny and sizzlingly enchanting. This title spotlights Quinn Kincaid, primetime television star, and Lacey Matthews, daytime soap actress, as they engage in a fake relationship to help Quinn safely come out as gay to the public. The two actresses are often at odds in entertaining back-and-forths that exhibit their obvious chemistry and make their sensuous moments shine. This is an erotic romance that has real, heartrending substance, a great cast of side characters, and earbud-melting hotness; listening feels like forbidden spying on private conversations between a pair of passionate lovers.
Before Nick Fuller and Bryce Tanner met each other, neither would have described themselves as bisexual. But when they meet after Nick moves next door to Bryce, post-divorce from his high school sweetheart, sparks fly. The two quickly become best friends before transitioning to much more after a night of vulnerability and confessions. Though this selection is undeniably romantic, the passion between Nick and Bryce is equally undeniable. In love scenes narrated by Sean Crisden, who knows exactly when to quicken and slow the pacing of the narration for top-notch tension, their simmering chemistry comes to a boil. Listeners enjoy not only the racy sex scenes they’d expect from the genre but also sweeter, emotional scenes, like the one in which Nick and Bryce experience their first times with another man.
This listen is one of the most provocative, boundary-pushing audiobooks on our list. It slowly builds both its fantasy and hardcore sex elements, each hour revealing some new hidden depths of the main characters, their relationship, or the world author Tiffany Reisz has constructed, making the listen a tease in and of itself. The story kicks off with Mona Lisa St. James deciding to sell The Red, the failing art gallery she inherited from her mother. Just as she begins to lock up the gallery for the last time at midnight, a mysterious older man appears to make her an offer; he’ll rescue The Red if he can act as her dominant for the year. That titillating agreement is just the start. Trust us when we say the audiobook takes off at a breakneck, impassioned speed from there.
