Audiobooks Like The Reformatory

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Joniece Abbott-Pratt narrates The Reformatory with a precision that holds the horror and the tenderness in the same space — at 21 hours, the story has room to accumulate its dread slowly, and her performance gives the 12-year-old protagonist a specific, watchful quality that makes the supernatural elements feel earned rather than imposed. The recommendations here are highly rated and sit in similar runtime territory, drawn together by the same seriousness of purpose and emotional weight.

10 audiobooks for fans of The Reformatory

  1. 1
    Beneath a Scarlet Sky cover

    Beneath a Scarlet Sky

    by Mark T. Sullivan

    Narrated by Will Damron

    4.81 ABR Score (445.7K ratings)
    ★ 4.43 Goodreads (396.0K) ★ 4.73 Audible (49.7K)
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    Teenager Pino Lella guides Jews over the Alps then becomes a Nazi general's driver, spying for the Italian resistance. Will Damron captures both Pino's youthful innocence and his growing courage throughout the war.

  2. 2
    Pacific Crucible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942 cover

    Pacific Crucible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942

    The Pacific War Trilogy • Book 1

    by Ian W. Toll

    Narrated by Grover Gardner

    4.75 ABR Score (14.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.61 Goodreads (10.4K) ★ 4.82 Audible (4.2K)
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    Grover Gardner's measured, authoritative narration transforms Toll's meticulous battle accounts into a gripping you-are-there experience—22 hours that feel essential, not exhausting.

  3. 3
    The Evening and the Morning cover

    The Evening and the Morning

    Kingsbridge

    by Ken Follett

    Narrated by John Lee

    4.67 ABR Score (149.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.39 Goodreads (136.4K) ★ 4.71 Audible (12.8K)
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    Set in 997 CE England, three lives intersect during Viking raids and political chaos as a new town rises. Lee's commanding voice spans decades of medieval intrigue in this Kingsbridge prequel about power, faith, and survival.

  4. 4
    Pachinko (National Book Award Finalist) cover

    Pachinko (National Book Award Finalist)

    by Min Jin Lee

    Narrated by Sandra Oh, Min Jin Lee

    4.51 ABR Score (642.9K ratings)
    ★ 4.34 Goodreads (641.5K) ★ 4.64 Audible (1.4K)
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    Four generations of a Korean family navigate exile and discrimination in Japan, beginning with Sunja's unplanned pregnancy in early 1900s Korea. Sandra Oh's narration adds emotional depth.

  5. 5
    Genghis: Birth of an Empire cover

    Genghis: Birth of an Empire

    Conqueror • Book 1

    by Conn Iggulden

    Narrated by Richard Ferrone

    4.45 ABR Score (39.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.39 Goodreads (38.2K) ★ 4.68 Audible (876)
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    Young Temujin survives his father's poisoning and family abandonment to forge the Mongol Empire through brutal determination. Richard Ferrone captures the harsh steppe politics and personal vendettas.

  6. 6
    The Shadow of the Wind cover

    The Shadow of the Wind

    Cemetery of Forgotten Books • Book 1

    by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

    Narrated by Daniel Weyman

    4.30 ABR Score (727.9K ratings)
    ★ 4.31 Goodreads (727.6K) ★ 4.51 Audible (304)
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    Young Daniel discovers a mysterious book in Barcelona's Cemetery of Forgotten Books, launching him into a quest involving murder, love, and literary obsession in post-war Spain.

  7. 7
    The Nightingale cover

    The Nightingale

    by Kristin Hannah

    Narrated by Polly Stone

    5.00 ABR Score (2.3M ratings)
    ★ 4.65 Goodreads (2.2M) ★ 4.84 Audible (116.4K)
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    Two French sisters choose vastly different paths of resistance during Nazi occupation, with Polly Stone capturing both their desperation and courage.

  8. 8
    The Help cover

    The Help

    by Kathryn Stockett

    Narrated by Cassandra Campbell, Jenna Lamia, Octavia Spencer, Bahni Turpin

    4.95 ABR Score (3.1M ratings)
    ★ 4.47 Goodreads (3.0M) ★ 4.81 Audible (46.3K)
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    1960s Mississippi comes alive through the voices of black maids and the white woman who wants to tell their stories. Four narrators create authentic, distinct perspectives on this dangerous collaboration.

  9. 9
    The Other Boleyn Girl cover

    The Other Boleyn Girl

    The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels • Book 9

    by Philippa Gregory

    Narrated by Vanessa Kirby

    4.52 ABR Score (517.3K ratings)
    ★ 4.09 Goodreads (515.4K) ★ 4.77 Audible (2.0K)
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    Sibling rivalry at Henry VIII's court becomes visceral through Vanessa Kirby's performance as Mary watches her sister Anne steal both king and crown.

  10. 10
    Under Fire cover

    Under Fire

    The Corps • Book 9

    by W.E.B. Griffin

    Narrated by Dick Hill

    4.49 ABR Score (6.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.38 Goodreads (4.7K) ★ 4.78 Audible (1.4K)
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    Captain Ken McCoy's controversial North Korea report gets him booted from the Marines, but bureaucratic punishment won't stop him from fighting the next war on his own terms.

How We Rank Audiobooks

Rankings are driven by listener ratings and review counts from Audible and Goodreads. Books with high ratings across a large number of listeners rank higher — a 4.5 with 50,000 ratings says more than a 4.8 with 200.

Unlike most book lists, we weight audiobook-specific factors: narrator performance, production quality, and how well a story translates to audio. A great book with a poor narration isn't a great audiobook.

We don't accept paid placements or prioritize new releases. These rankings reflect what listeners actually enjoy, not what's being promoted.

Rankings update periodically as new ratings come in and new titles are added to the collection.

Read our full ranking methodology →