Catriona Silvey

First, a confession: I am not an audiobook listener.

It's not because I don't think audiobooks count as real reading, or any of that nonsense that surfaces in the internet discourse from time to time. It's because, for whatever reason, my auditory attention span is terrible. If I don't actively concentrate every second I'm listening to an audiobook or a podcast, my thoughts tend to drift, and by the time I tune back in, I've missed a crucial plot point or a key piece of dialogue.

In the case of my own book, I know the plot and most of the dialogue off by heart, so at least that's not a problem. But on the flip side, there's the factor of being massively self-conscious at the prospect of listening to my own writing -- particularly now, when the book is out, and if I spot any mistakes I missed, it's too late to fix! (I only noticed one instance of a repeated word I should have caught in the proofread. Answers on a postcard if you spot it.)

But the audiobook of Meet Me in Another Life blew me away. Within a few sentences, I'd forgotten I was listening to a story I'd written, and it was all down to Kristin Atherton's incredible narration. She made me notice so many things: images that repeat and change over time, most of which I had no conscious idea about; ways the characters echo each other across chapters, beyond those I intended or was aware of. And speaking of the characters, she makes them live. I felt like I met them all anew, especially Thora and Santi, who I thought I knew so well already. I'm still processing all the nuances she gets across: how their state of mind changes from chapter to chapter, how they become weary and wise and angry and serene over the course of their many lives. I actually felt bereft and had a bit of a book hangover after I'd finished, which is genuinely insane as the book in question is something I made up in my head. But it is a testament to Kristin's amazing and possibly supernatural powers. I feel like audiobook listeners are going to come away thinking my book is much better than it is, because her performance elevates it so much. And I've already seen some reactions on Twitter suggesting as much.

Here's a snippet (taken from the first chapter) to show you what I mean:

The audiobook is available now in North America; in the UK, it will be released along with the hardback and e-book on 8th July, but you can preorder it or request it from Netgalley in the meantime if you choose. As for me, I'm off to find more audiobooks to listen to.