Take an Unforgettable Journey with These Exciting Action and Adventure Listens | Audible.au

Take an Unforgettable Journey with These Exciting Action and Adventure Listens | Audible.au

Take an Unforgettable Journey with These Exciting Action and Adventure Listens

Looking for your next listening adventure? Here's a roundup of the best action-packed audiobooks, with something to thrill listeners of all ages.

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24 January 2022

Take an Unforgettable Journey with These Exciting Action and Adventure Listens

Who doesn't love a story with a little adventure—or maybe a lot? No matter your age, there’s something truly engrossing about a tale that’s a nonstop adrenaline rush. If you’re anything like us, you just can’t press pause on those daring storylines and intrepid characters that compel you to keep listening until the thrilling conclusions. Here are action and adventure audiobooks for both adults and kids that will keep you hooked—and have your heart racing—from start to finish.

The Best Action and Adventure Listens for Adults

The Best Action and Adventure Listens for Kids

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Project Hail Mary

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If you're craving space adventure, then just listen to anything by Andy Weir. His latest (and our 2021 Audiobook of the Year!) is Project Hail Mary, the story of astronaut Ryland Grace, the sole survivor of a last-chance space mission. If he fails, the future of the world and all of humanity will pay the price. But he doesn't know this—in fact, he doesn't remember anything, not even his own name. So, how on Earth (and beyond) will he remember his assignment or what he has to do to complete it? Audible listeners and editors alike are loving this story, thanks in large part to the expert narration of Ray Porter, who reads this audiobook with heart, enthusiasm, and humor.

Great Circle

Maggie Shipstead

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If you love history and adventure, pick up Great Circle, the epic story of Marian Graves, a female aviator with daredevil sensibilities and the drive to accomplish great things in her life, no matter what stands in her way. Her dream is to circumnavigate the globe by flying over the North and South Poles. This stunning audiobook is split into two sections. Cassandra Campbell narrates the sections about Marian, and Alex McKenna narrates the story of Hadley Baxter, an actress who is cast to play Marian in a film a century after Marian's disappearance in Antarctica.

The Dispatcher

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The Dispatcher is a genre-bending Audible Original, written by sci-fi sensation John Scalzi and narrated by Emmy-nominated actor Zachary Quinto, best known for his portrayals of Spock in the Star Trek film reboot and Sylar in the TV hit, Heroes. This audiobook is set in a near future where it's impossible to murder someone. Nearly every time—999 times out of 1000—anyone who is intentionally killed comes back, and no one knows why or how. Tony Valdez is a professional Dispatcher. As a licensed assassin, his job is to humanely dispose of people at death's door, giving them a chance to avoid dying for good. But when a fellow Dispatcher goes missing, it's up to Tony to find his friend before it's too late for even a pro to save him.

The Division: Hearts on Fire

Tom Clancy, Kc Wayland

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The Division: Hearts on Fire is a full-cast dramatic action-adventure experience, starring Katee Sackoff and Shannon Woodward. This Audible Original, based on the RPG/action combat Ubisoft video game Tom Clancy’s The Division, is nothing short of action-packed. Melanie Hoskins is a firefighter-paramedic who has been recruited by a secret organization known only as The Division. She is called to New York City to help The Division deal with an outbreak of the "dollar flu," but not everyone agrees with how the outbreak should be handled. In the meantime, civilians have developed a group called "The Cleaners," who believe the only way to keep the city safe is to burn away the infection—including anyone who has it.

The Girl with Ghost Eyes

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The Girl with Ghost Eyes is a historical fantasy action- adventure story set in San Francisco's Chinatown at the end of the 19th century. In this world inspired by Asian folklore, ghosts are real, but ghost hunters from the Maoshan traditions of Daoism work to keep evil spirits at bay. Li-lin has the unique ability to see into the spirit world. When an evil sorcerer threatens to summon an ancient force that could destroy everything, Li-lin is the only one who can stop catastrophe in its tracks. Narrator Emily Woo Zeller brings Li-lin's story and its unique setting to life.

Agent Zero

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Jack Mars's Agent Zero takes listeners on a spy thriller adventure across Europe. Kent Steele is a professor of European History at Columbia University who lives in the suburbs with his two teenage daughters. One night, his quiet life is abruptly disrupted when he is kidnapped by terrorists and flown to Paris to be interrogated. They're convinced Kent is a CIA operative, but they've got the wrong man. Or do they? This Audible Original listen is narrated by the incomparable Eduardo Ballerini, who brings tension and energy to this gripping story.

Sooley

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Sooley is the exciting and, at times, heartbreaking story of Samuel Sooleymon. At 17, Samuel gets the chance to travel to the United States and play in a showcase basketball tournament with his South Sudanese teammates. It's an opportunity for Samuel to be scouted by college coaches, which could change his life forever. Then, the unthinkable happens. During the tournament, Samuel receives news that a civil war has broken out across South Sudan. His father is dead, his sister is missing, and his mother and two younger brothers have been placed in a refugee camp. With no way to return home, Samuel takes a scholarship at a North Carolina school. Now his best chance of success is playing basketball for his college team, and hoping that success helps him find his family again. Hall of Fame narrator Dion Graham captures all the action and emotion in this powerful novel from John Grisham.

Assassin's Creed: Gold

Anthony Del Col

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Whether you're an avid player of the action-packed video game or you're new to the Assassin's Creed universe, this standalone listen is perfect for fans of action adventure stories. Aliyah Kahn has made it through life by scamming and using her street smarts. But when she's out-hustled by a mysterious man named Gavin Banks, she is faced with a debt to pay and no other option but to become an assassin for him. As she trains for her new killer job, she is introduced to an exciting, complex world involving a centuries-old battle between the Assassins and Templars. This full-cast Audible Original features the work of Emmy winner Riz Ahmed and Anthony Head, a British actor perhaps best known for his role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The Teeth of the Tiger

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The Teeth of the Tiger is the 12th installment in the Jack Ryan universe created by best-selling author Tom Clancy, and the first book in his Jack Ryan Jr. series for YA listeners. Jack Ryan Jr. is working for "the Campus," an intelligence consulting firm secretly set up by his father years ago. Along with his cousins, Dominic and Brian Caruso, he becomes an assassin for the government, targeting terrorist threats. This audiobook is the thrilling start to a brand new chapter in the world of Jack Ryan.

The Lost Gate

Orson Scott Card

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You probably know of Orson Scott Card from his Ender's Game series, but The Lost Gate is another action adventure hit from the author you should check out, especially if you love a bit of a fantasy element. Danny North's family is far from average—in fact, they're full of magic. But Danny? He's not, and he worries he'll never be able to fit in and will always be a disappointment unless his talents reveal themselves. Yet his family is also full of secrets—some that they conceal from even Danny, including a few that could lead to disaster for them all.

Angel Catbird

Margaret Atwood

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Acclaimed author Margaret Atwood is widely known for her works of dystopian fiction, including The Handmaid's Tale. Angel Catbird is her homage to fantasy comic books and radio hour thrillers. This is the story of a young genetic engineer by the name of Strig Feleedus. One dark night, Strig finds himself mutated by his own experiment, merging with the DNA of a cat and an owl. This Audible exclusive recording features a full cast of Canadian narrators, including Christo Graham, Kelly Van der Burg, Andrew Jackson, Mike Kash, Kyra Harper, John Cleland, Alegra Fulton, Lisa Repo Martel, Julie Lemieux, Dylan Trowbridge, Amy Matysio, David Ferry, and Margaret Atwood herself.

Stan Lee's Alliances: A Trick of Light

Stan Lee, Kat Rosenfield, Created by Stan Lee, Luke Lieberman, Ryan Silbert

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Stan Lee's final collaboration is available exclusively from Audible. Alliances: A Trick of Light is the story of Nia, a mysterious young woman whose fate becomes intertwined with Cameron Ackerson, a seemingly average teenager just looking to find YouTube fame. When Nia and Cameron's paths cross, they hatch a plan to create a more righteous online universe, and in the process, they come face-to-face with a shadowy organization called OPTIC. This audiobook is narrated by Yara Shahidi, the dynamic actress who stars in the TV hit Blackish and the Netflix adaptation of The Sun Is Also a Star.

Shadow and Bone

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Welcome to the Grishaverse, a complex fantasy world created by best-selling author Leigh Bardugo. Shadow and Bone is the thrilling beginning to her fantasy trilogy series that was recently adapted into a hit Netflix series. The nation of Ravka has been torn in two by darkness. The Fold is an impenetrable wall of darkness filled with monsters who feed on human flesh. The only one who can stop the Fold? Alina Starkov, an unlikely hero who reveals a power that might be the key to saving the country from the war—and the darkness.

The Log of a Cowboy

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For young children looking to dip their toes into adventure stories, a great place to start is Where the Wild Things Are. From the brilliant mind of Maurice Sendak. it tells the story of Max, a young boy who one night sails away to a distant island, tames the wild things, and returns home in time for supper. This audiobook includes illustrations, so little ones can enjoy the full experience of the classic picture book as they listen to Peter Schickele's delightful reading.

The Jumbies

Tracey Baptiste

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The Jumbies is an adventure story mixed with just the right amount of spine-tingling horror that's perfect for middle grade listeners. Corinne La Mer always thought Jumbies were made up by parents to scare their children. But after a trip to the forbidden forest, she begins to suspect they might be real, and they might just have a plan to take over the entire island Corinne calls home. The Jumbies is inspired by Hatian folktales, and if you love this listen, there are two more audiobooks in Tracey Baptiste's series: The Rise of the Jumbies and The Jumbie God's Revenge. And they're all read by Audible Hall of Fame narrator, Robin Miles.

The Dragonet Prophecy

Tui T. Sutherland

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The Dragonet Prophecy is the first installment in Wings of Fire, an exciting series from Tui T. Sutherland that's a must-listen for middle grade fantasy adventure lovers. In this audiobook, seven dragon tribes have been warring over a lost treasure for decades. A prophecy tells of a great sacrifice that will end the fighting, and the Talons of Peace is a secret organization working to make the prophecy come to fruition. And so, they collect five dragonets to fulfill the prophecy. This story is read by award-winning narrator Shannon McManus.

Holes

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If you've never heard Holes, a contemporary classic middle grade novel that won the 1999 Newbery Medal for most distinguished American children's book, do yourself a favor and listen in. Narrator Kerry Beyer brings the story to life, and he sounds like he's having a whole lot of fun doing it! When Stanley Yelnats is sent to a juvenile detention center, he's not surprised. After all, his family always seems to run into bad luck. At the center, everyone is told to dig five-foot holes in the dried-up soil where Green Lake once sat. They're told it's supposed to build character, but Stanley soon realizes they're all being used to search for something. Could it be a buried treasure?

A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix

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Sure, almost everyone is familiar with the story of Treasure Island. In A Clash of Steel, C.B. Lee gives the Robert Louis Stevenson classic a fresh and exciting spin, In this remixed version, two girls search for the legendary treasure of the Dragon Queen. But the South China Sea—and those who sail it—are more treacherous than anything they could have imagined, let alone prepared to take on.

Paradise on Fire

Jewell Parker Rhodes

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In Paradise on Fire, best-selling author Jewell Parker Rhodes offers a contemporary adventure story that takes on climate change, racism, and classism. Years after Addy's parents tragically died in a fire, Addy's grandmother enrolls her in a wilderness camp. Along with five other Black city kids, Addy ventures into the forest to learn skills like camping, hiking, rock climbing, and surviving in the wilderness. But when the kids encounter a forest fire, Addy is forced to come face-to-face with the trauma of her past.

Tides of Mutiny

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From award-winning YA author Rebecca Rode, Tides of Mutiny tells the story of Lane Garrow, a 16-year-old girl who longs to be a sailor in a world where women sailors are executed. To live her dreams and stay alive, she must disguise herself as a captain's boy. Lane is determined to experience adventure on the high seas, but things get even more complicated when she hears a devastating rumor: her father was once a pirate. And when a prince shows up, Lane finds herself falling for him—even though pursuing him could reveal her secret. To further complicate matters, the prince may have a mysterious agenda of his own.

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