Most Annoying Audiobook Voice.
This is my 5th Freida Mcfadden audiobook that I’ve listened to. I went into it assuming it would be like the others…not the BEST psychological thrillers out there…but definitely GOOD. Like, easy to listen to while doing other things, easy to follow the stories, etc. Here are my thoughts on the 4 other Freida Mcfadden audiobooks I’ve listened to:
And now…my 5th Freida Mcfadden book. The one with the most annoying narrator of all time:
Goodreads Synopsis of The Locked Door {Freida Mcfadden}:
Some doors are locked for a reason…
While eleven-year-old Nora Davis was up in her bedroom doing homework, she had no idea her father was killing women in the basement.
Until the day the police arrived at their front door.
Decades later, Nora’s father is spending his life behind bars, and Nora is a successful surgeon with a quiet, solitary existence. Nobody knows her father was a notorious serial killer. And she intends to keep it that way.
Then Nora discovers one of her young female patients has been murdered. In the same unique and horrific manner that her father used to kill his victims.
Somebody knows who Nora is. Somebody wants her to take the fall for this unthinkable crime. But she’s not a killer like her father. The police can’t pin anything on her.
As long as they don’t look in her basement.
Most Annoying Audiobook Voice
I never even got to determine if I liked the story or if it was well written because…THAT. VOICE. It was AWFUL. I can’t even describe it…like an old fashioned detective type voice? Does that even make sense? Like a cartoon? I truly can’t describe that voice….like every word she said had such an intense tone. Terrible.
I talked a bit about this on Instagram saying that there are definitely certain voices (accents, etc.) that I prefer while listening to audiobooks but I’ve NEVER had to stop listening purely due to the voice of the narrator. Until this book. Made it exactly 15% before I was DONE. I could not handle that voice for even 1 second longer.
Have you listened to this book? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Xo,
Jenny
I’m assuming the book is a significantly better choice than the audiobook. The only narrator will be the lovely voice inside of your own head!
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Book Coffee Happy 
Curious, I listened to the audiobook preview. I don’t think she has such a terrible voice, but I could see why you couldn’t stand it. The way she narrates doesn’t sound calm and pleasant and relaxing. It’s more sharp and prodding. Not an audiobook one would want to listen to first thing, early in the morning, or while trying to wind down at the end of a rough day. I think she could sound nice if she lowered the volume of her voice a little, and cooled it with the on-edge sounding intensity and overacting.
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YES! Exactly this, you are so spot on. Perfect explanation.
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GIRL. lol. I too made it about 15 minutes in and then switched to reading the physical copy of the book because OH MY WORD. Definitely the most annoying audiobook voice of all time. So glad I’m not alone, LOL. It was my first FM book so I’m glad to know not all of her audiobooks have the same narrator.
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Ha ha thank you for this comment! Oh you must try some of her other audiobooks, I promise this voice isn’t on all of them. Omg.
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I am currently listening to this, and I am making myself push through, but this led me to search if anyone else commented on the harsh voice for this one, and I found this blog/site! UGHHHH.
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Exactly why I am here. I didn’t have to look far. I’ve made it 61 percent. I’m pushing through, but should stop. But i’m invested now and need to finish. I was tempted to search for spoilers and be done with it.
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I’m currently listening to this book and I had to do an online search to see if I could find out WHY she sounds like this! I’m pushing through, but I cannot stand it and can only listen certain times of day! It even made my car ride home horrible!!!
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Yes! The voice is terrible!!! It’s like that old-fashioned transatlantic accent. I found your page because I searched to see if anyone else thought it was annoying.
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wow I didn’t expect to find much when I googled “locked door book narrator is terrible” and came across your blog. So far I’ve listened to ward D , house maid, and inmate. I choose to listen rather than read because I get through more books this way, I sat down to do some crafting, pressed play , and it was like nails dragging down a chalkboard…..omg! I thought what the hell , no no no I so wanted to listen to this story, so I tried again…..nope! Isn’t happening I just can’t tolerate it. Spent £7.99 on audible for nothing!!! Incredibly bad choice for a narrator.
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You are spot on about the narrator. I actually had to pick up my phone and google this because I am listening to it now and it makes me so angry. EVERY SINGLE WORD SHE UTTERS is awful, terrible, painful. I feel so badly saying this but I truly wince every few mins, maybe even seconds. One characters voice is worse than the next. I like the story but damn this is painful. I listen to a lot of audiobooks and this is the only one that was truly like nails on a chalkboard for me.
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Riiiiiiight?????????
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All I can say is that somebody needs to provide this feedback because it truly is unlistenable. The bartender boyfriend sounds like a robot and she sounds like a crazy psychopath. I’ve been trying to push through, but I cannot stand her voice! Everyone sounds soul-less. Hopefully the publishers recognize this is an issue and change it, or at least make sure she never does another one!
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This narrator is dreadful. I mean, come on!! Did no one listen to her as she was reading it during the taping and think the same thing? McFadden spent a lot of time writing this book, I would think she would have wanted someone to do it justice on the audiobook portion.
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I was listening to the book and had to stop and google the narrator because the voice acting was driving me crazy. I mainly listen to audio books and have never stopped because of the narrator until this book. Couldn’t take it. Will finish on Kindle.
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Like so many others here I am listening to it now and find the narrator incredibly irritating that I had to Google to find out if anyone else felt the same. I can’t believe that the audio version got released. Good to know that the narrators for her other audiobooks are better. On with the torture! 😬
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I just started listening to this book and I can’t stand the narrators voice. I came across your blog because I was googling to see if I was the only one. I hate to stop listening but I can’t even concentrate on what is being said because all I can think about is how much her voice is grating on my. I don’t know what it is. Maybe its because I’ve listened to her other books and liked them so much better.
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I didn’t even make it 10%! Surely an author has a say in who narrates her/his book? I cannot imagine anyone being able to continue past the first ten minutes! Found your blog because I HAD to see if others felt the same! Now a new follower!
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I googled Frieda and horrible audiobook and this post came up. I am so glad I am not alone here. I made it through chapter 1 and just returned it to Libby and now I’m back on waitlist for the ebook. So I saved my ears thankfully but man, what an angry morning run I had with that lol
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It’s the aggressive enunciations for me. Nobody talks like this.
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As I have aged, my eyesight has gone way downhill, so audiobooks are my thing now. It wasn’t so much the actual voice, but the inflections, or lack thereof. I kept replaying sentences in my head as a normal person would say them, or how I would have read them. It was like everything she was reading was in CAPS. I finished it, but it was painful.
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omg I’m so glad it’s not just me! I am trying it again bc o others are available at the library. I now check who is the narrator bc if it’s this one I’ll skip! Glad to find your blog!!!
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I found your blog after googling if anyone else found this voice annoying. I have listened to my fair share of audios and this is just AWFUL. Sounds like a shy, nerdy school girl. All the women she’s narrating sound the same. Quinn is supposed to be beautiful but she sounds like a timid weirdo.. ughhh
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I cannot believe how horrendous this narrator was. Absolutely ruined the entire book. This was the first book my husband heard by this author and now he doesn’t want to hear any more. I’m amazed they don’t have this book redone. Every voice she did sounded angry, crazed, mean etc. I’m just flabbergasted this is on audible. I should’ve turned it off and just read the book myself. Glad to see I wasn’t the only one that feels this way. I thought we were being too judgy. 🤪
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oh my god. I feel so seen. I’ve read so many of her books. Just started this one and felt CRAZY. Started googling how to change a voice or why is this one so annoying and it’s the SAME BOOK you mentioned. It reminds me of Kim possible. Ugh
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This is the first Freida McFadden book I’ve listened to and her voice is the worst. She sounds like a catty valley girl! It’s hard for me to take any of it seriously! Is there somebody we can complain to?
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I am currently listening to The Locked Door. I had to Google who the narrator was as I thought maybe I was the only one that thought she was ABSOLUTELY Horrible. Her voice is so abrasive, monotone and like fingers on a chalk board. I hope I can get through the book as I’ve heard it’s one of McFadden’s better ones. After I read the reviews, I understand I’m not the only one. I listen to a lot of books and I really look at the narrator. They can make or break a book.
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I borrowed this book from Libby and DNF’d it at the 15% point, I refused to torture myself any longer. As someone who listens to 1 or 2 audiobooks a week, this is the first time I’ve gone to Google to see if there were other reviews on the abysmal narration. Good news is that all the negative feedback was taken into account, and the version with this narrator is no longer available on Audible. It’s being re-released with a new narrator in Dec 2024. I’m happy about that because the story seemed interesting, just couldn’t stomach the narrator for a minute longer.
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omg yes, that narrator is awful. I’m pushing through it though as I don’t get time to read physical books, and its easier to listen in my car as I drive a lot. But that voice…I struggle to focus on the story.
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