Best Soneela Nankani Audiobooks

The best audiobooks narrated by Soneela Nankani — 12 titles spanning Thriller, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Romance, Horror, averaging 4.08 ABR stars.

Soneela Nankani has quietly built a reputation as one of the more versatile voices working in genre fiction today, with a particular foothold in the Star Wars universe that feels genuinely earned. Her solo performance in Tempest Runner — a full-cast audio drama format that put her front and center as the Nihil villain Lourna Dee — showcased her ability to carry a morally complex character with a cool, coiled intensity that never tips into melodrama. That same control shows up in her work on the anthology From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back, where she had to pivot rapidly between wildly different characters and tones without losing the thread. Her voice is clear and precise — not flashy, but deeply committed — with an emotional intelligence that suits character-driven material across mystery, fantasy, and horror. Listeners who want a narrator who disappears into the story rather than performing over it will find a lot to love here.

Where to Start with Soneela Nankani

  1. 1
    The President's Daughter cover

    The President's Daughter

    by Bill Clinton, James Patterson

    Narrated by Tony Goldwyn, Fajer Al-Kaisi, James Chen, Jeremy Davidson, Amanda Dolan, Peter Ganim, Dion Graham, January LaVoy, Mary Stuart Masterson, Soneela Nankani

    4.62 ABR Score (62.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.28 Goodreads (53.5K) ★ 4.69 Audible (8.6K)
    14h 21m listening time • Released 2021

    Tony Goldwyn leads an all-star ensemble cast through a propulsive thriller that feels like watching a prestige TV series unfold in your ears. The multiple narrators give each character distinct weight, turning what could be a pulpy premise into genuinely immersive storytelling.

  2. 2
    The Empire of Gold cover

    The Empire of Gold

    The Daevabad Trilogy • Book 3

    by S.A. Chakraborty

    Narrated by Soneela Nankani

    4.52 ABR Score (79.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.49 Goodreads (76.6K) ★ 4.76 Audible (2.4K)
    28h 37m listening time • Released 2020
  3. 3
    The Kingdom of Copper cover

    The Kingdom of Copper

    The Daevabad Trilogy • Book 2

    by S.A. Chakraborty

    Narrated by Soneela Nankani

    4.44 ABR Score (96.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.38 Goodreads (93.4K) ★ 4.7 Audible (2.7K)
    23h 14m listening time • Released 2019
  4. 4
    The City of Brass cover

    The City of Brass

    The Daevabad Trilogy • Book 1

    by S.A. Chakraborty

    Narrated by Soneela Nankani

    4.13 ABR Score (161.4K ratings)
    ★ 4.14 Goodreads (157.5K) ★ 4.41 Audible (3.9K)
    20h 1m listening time • Released 2017
  5. 5
    Trial of the Sun Queen cover

    Trial of the Sun Queen

    Artefacts of Ouranos • Book 1

    by Nisha J. Tuli

    Narrated by Corvin King, Soneela Nankani

    4.04 ABR Score (157.9K ratings)
    ★ 3.89 Goodreads (152.3K) ★ 4.41 Audible (5.5K)
    11h 53m listening time • Released 2023
  6. 6
    Elsewhere cover

    Elsewhere

    by Dean Koontz

    Narrated by Edoardo Ballerini, Imani Parks, Josh Bloomberg, Brian Holden, Kevin T. Collins, Soneela Nankani, Alexander Cendese, Amanda Leigh Cobb

    4.03 ABR Score (27.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.13 Goodreads (23.4K) ★ 4.26 Audible (4.1K)
    11h 3m listening time • Released 2020

    A stellar ensemble cast elevates Koontz's multiverse thriller, with each narrator bringing distinct voices to characters jumping between realities, making the disorienting jumps feel genuinely immersive.

  7. 7
    Tempest Runner (Star Wars: The High Republic) cover

    Tempest Runner (Star Wars: The High Republic)

    Star Wars: The High Republic • Book 6

    by Cavan Scott

    Narrated by Jessica Almasy, Dan Bittner, Orlagh Cassidy, Sullivan Jones, January LaVoy, Kathleen McInerney, Tara Sands, Vikas Adam, Jonathan Davis, Neil Hellegers, Saskia Maarleveld, Soneela Nankani, Marc Thompson, Shannon Tyo

    4.02 ABR Score (7.3K ratings)
    ★ 3.85 Goodreads (4.8K) ★ 4.51 Audible (2.5K)
    6h 5m listening time • Released 2021

    A full ensemble cast elevates this High Republic villain origin story into something cinematic—each narrator inhabits their character so distinctly you forget you're listening to a book.

  8. 8
    Tempest Breaker (Star Wars: The High Republic) cover

    Tempest Breaker (Star Wars: The High Republic)

    Star Wars: The High Republic

    by Cavan Scott, Jessica Almasy, Jonanthan Davis, Sean Kenin Elias-Reyes, Manoel Felciano, January LaVoy, Saskia Maarleveld, Dani Martineck, Sneha Mathan, Soneela Nankani, Kristen Sieh, Marc Thompson, Shannon Tyo

    Narrated by Cavan Scott, Jessica Almasy, Jonanthan Davis, Sean Kenin Elias-Reyes, Manoel Felciano, January LaVoy, Saskia Maarleveld, Dani Martineck, Sneha Mathan, Soneela Nankani, Kristen Sieh, Marc Thompson, Shannon Tyo, Full Cast

    3.94 ABR Score (1.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.03 Goodreads (1.1K) ★ 4.55 Audible (313)
    6h 7m listening time • Released 2024

    The full-cast narration transforms this High Republic story into a cinematic experience, with each actor bringing distinct energy to morally complicated characters you actually want to root for.

  9. 9
    From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back cover

    From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back

    Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View • Book 2

    by Elizabeth Schaefer, Mark Oshiro, Rob Hart, Michael Moreci, Mike Chen, Beth Revis, Zoraida Córdova, Kiersten White, Lilliam Rivera, Mackenzi Lee, Amy Ratcliffe, Catherynne M. Valente, Emily Skrutskie, Tracy Deonn, C.B. Lee, Karen Strong, Delilah S. Dawson, Lydia Kang, Adam Christopher, Cavan Scott, R.F. Kuang, Tom Angleberger, S.A. Chakraborty, Seth Dickinson, Alexander Freed, Jason Fry, Christie Golden, Hank Green, Michael Kogge, John Jackson Miller, Daniel José Older, Anne Toole, Austin Walker, Martha Wells, Django Wexler, Gary Whitta, Brittany N. Williams, Charles Yu, Jim Zub, Katie Cook, Sarwat Chadda

    Narrated by Jonathan Davis, Sean Kenin Elias-Reyes, Dion Graham, Jon Hamm, January LaVoy, Soneela Nankani, Marc Thompson, Sam Witwer, Emily Woo Zeller

    3.93 ABR Score (7.5K ratings)
    ★ 3.85 Goodreads (5.9K) ★ 4.39 Audible (1.6K)
    17h 59m listening time • Released 2020

    Forty writers and an all-star cast of narrators (including Jon Hamm and Sam Witwer) transform Empire into a anthology of revelation, making you hear the galaxy's most pivotal moments through entirely new eyes.

  10. 10
    Dating Dr. Dil cover

    Dating Dr. Dil

    If Shakespeare Was an Auntie • Book 1

    by Nisha Sharma

    Narrated by Soneela Nankani, Vikas Adam

    3.90 ABR Score (67.2K ratings)
    ★ 3.58 Goodreads (66.6K) ★ 4.46 Audible (566)
    10h 49m listening time • Released 2022
  11. 11
    The Ruin of Kings cover

    The Ruin of Kings

    A Chorus of Dragons • Book 1

    by Jenn Lyons

    Narrated by Feodor Chin, Soneela Nankani, Vikas Adam

    3.76 ABR Score (17.6K ratings)
    ★ 3.82 Goodreads (16.1K) ★ 4.19 Audible (1.5K)
    27h 22m listening time • Released 2019
  12. 12
    Cursed cover

    Cursed

    by Marie O\u2019Regan - editor, Paul Kane - editor

    Narrated by Helen Lloyd, Shiromi Arserio, Lisa Flanagan, Simon Vance, Tim Campbell, Esther Wane, Soneela Nankani, P. J. Ochlan

    3.63 ABR Score (100 ratings)
    ★ 4.14 Audible (100)
    9h 38m listening time • Released 2020

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 →