Best Simon Vance Audiobooks
Simon Vance is a British narrator whose refined, versatile voice has graced over a thousand audiobooks. With dozens of Audie Awards and AudioFile Earphones Awards to his name, Vance is widely considered one of the finest narrators working today. He excels at literary fiction, historical novels, and British mystery — genres where his ability to shift between accents and registers makes every character feel fully realized. From Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall to Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose, Vance brings intelligence and subtlety to complex texts that reward careful listening.
Where to Start with Simon Vance
- New to Simon Vance? Start here → Dracula
- What fans keep coming back to → The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
- Short listen, big payoff → God's Smuggler
- Highest rated by listeners → The complete Sherlock Holmes
- Best narrator–author pairing → The Girl Who Played with Fire
Best Simon Vance Audiobooks
- 1
The complete Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes #1-9
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.82 ABR Score (226.9K ratings)★ 4.51 Goodreads (217.8K) ★ 4.74 Audible (9.0K)58h 4m listening time • Released 2013Simon Vance's narration transforms these detective stories into pure listening pleasure, giving each character distinct voice and energy across 58 hours that feel effortless to devour.
- 2
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
Millennium Series • Book 3
by Stieg Larsson, Reg Keeland - translator
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.73 ABR Score (810.0K ratings)★ 4.24 Goodreads (779.5K) ★ 4.69 Audible (30.5K)20h 17m listening time • Released 2010The trilogy's conclusion delivers on every promise — Salander's courtroom showdown is one of crime fiction's most cathartic climaxes.
- 3
The Girl Who Played with Fire
Millennium Series • Book 2
by Stieg Larsson
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.73 ABR Score (1.0M ratings)★ 4.26 Goodreads (991.2K) ★ 4.66 Audible (32.3K)18h 35m listening time • Released 2009Larsson's second Millennium novel deepens Lisbeth Salander's backstory in ways that are both shocking and deeply satisfying.
- 4
Knowing God
by J.I. Packer
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.70 ABR Score (67.9K ratings)★ 4.33 Goodreads (65.2K) ★ 4.84 Audible (2.7K)Simon Vance's measured, contemplative delivery transforms Packer's dense theology into something intimate and urgent—you'll absorb arguments about God's nature that would've glazed your eyes on the page.
- 5
Dracula
by Bram Stoker
Narrated by Alan Cumming, Tim Curry, Simon Vance, Katherine Kellgren, Susan Duerden, John Lee, Graeme Malcolm, Steven Crossley
★ 4.68 ABR Score (1.5M ratings)★ 4.02 Goodreads (1.5M) ★ 4.61 Audible (37.6K)15h 27m listening time • Released 2012 - 6
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Millennium Series • Book 1
by Stieg Larsson
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.67 ABR Score (3.5M ratings)★ 4.18 Goodreads (3.5M) ★ 4.56 Audible (42.2K)16h 19m listening time • Released 2008Larsson's genre-defining trilogy opener introduced Lisbeth Salander — one of fiction's most indelible heroines — in a propulsive blend of family saga, serial killer mystery, and corporate corruption.
- 7
The Vampire Lestat
The Vampire Chronicles • Book 2
by Anne Rice
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.66 ABR Score (225.7K ratings)★ 4.11 Goodreads (218.3K) ★ 4.7 Audible (7.5K)21h 40m listening time • Released 2011Simon Vance commands this operatic vampire saga with theatrical flair that matches Lestat's own irresistible charisma—his performance transforms what could be grandiose into genuinely seductive.
- 8
Dune
Dune • Book 1
Narrated by Scott Brick, Orlagh Cassidy, Euan Morton, Simon Vance, Ilyana Kadushin, Byron Jennings, David R. Gordon, Jason Culp, Kent Broadhurst, Oliver Wyman, Patricia Kilgarriff, Scott Sowers
★ 4.66 ABR Score (1.8M ratings)★ 4.29 Goodreads (1.6M) ★ 4.67 Audible (126.5K)21h 2m listening time • Released 2007The Godfather of science fiction epics: a richly imagined desert world where politics, religion, and ecology collide in a story that feels more relevant every decade.
- 9
God's Smuggler
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.63 ABR Score (50.5K ratings)★ 4.38 Goodreads (47.8K) ★ 4.9 Audible (2.6K)8h 48m listening time • Released 2009Simon Vance's measured, trustworthy delivery transforms this true account of Bible smuggling into a page-turner that feels both intimate and urgent. A modern classic that still grips because the stakes, and the faith, feel devastatingly real.
- 10
Hercule Poirot
Hercule Poirot #0.1-0.51
Narrated by David Suchet, Hugh Fraser, Nigel Hawthorne, Isla Blair, Simon Vance
★ 4.62 ABR Score (12.7K ratings)★ 4.36 Goodreads (10.9K) ★ 4.81 Audible (1.7K)35h 5m listening time • Released 2021David Suchet's definitive performance as Poirot anchors this collection of 51 short stories, each a perfectly compact puzzle that rewards listening in one sitting.
- 11
The Broken Eye
Lightbringer • Book 3
by Brent Weeks
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.61 ABR Score (81.0K ratings)★ 4.44 Goodreads (69.5K) ★ 4.81 Audible (11.5K)29h 33m listening time • Released 2014Simon Vance transforms this sprawling dark fantasy epic into unmissable audio—his command of dozens of distinct voices keeps you locked in through 30 hours of political intrigue, magic systems, and genuine stakes where nobody's safe.
- 12
The Elephant Whisperer: Learning About Life, Loyalty and Freedom from a Remarkable Herd of Elephants
Elephant Whisperer • Book 1
by Lawrence Anthony, Graham Spence
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.61 ABR Score (41.2K ratings)★ 4.5 Goodreads (33.3K) ★ 4.76 Audible (7.9K)10h 55m listening time • Released 2012Simon Vance's narration transforms this true story into an intimate portrait of grief and redemption, letting you hear the quiet breakthroughs between a man and a traumatized herd he refuses to abandon.
- 13
The Blinding Knife
Lightbringer • Book 2
by Brent Weeks
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.58 ABR Score (105.9K ratings)★ 4.41 Goodreads (94.1K) ★ 4.78 Audible (11.8K)24h 14m listening time • Released 2012Simon Vance transforms an already ambitious magic system into something you can feel in your chest—his voice work sells the moral collapse of a protagonist who's literally crumbling from the inside.
- 14
The Burning White
Lightbringer • Book 5
by Brent Weeks
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.54 ABR Score (48.7K ratings)★ 4.26 Goodreads (38.1K) ★ 4.83 Audible (10.6K)39h 4m listening time • Released 2019Simon Vance transforms the epic conclusion into a masterclass of vocal control—wielding distinct voices across dozens of characters while maintaining the emotional gut-punch of Weeks's finale across 39 hours without a stumble.
- 15
The Blood Mirror
Lightbringer • Book 4
by Brent Weeks
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.52 ABR Score (66.9K ratings)★ 4.32 Goodreads (53.2K) ★ 4.76 Audible (13.7K)20h 30m listening time • Released 2016Simon Vance's vocal range makes the sprawling cast feel like distinct people, turning a massive fantasy epic into something intimate. The fourth book's emotional gut-punches land hardest in audio form.
- 16
Interview with the Vampire
The Vampire Chronicles • Book 1
by Anne Rice
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.51 ABR Score (667.7K ratings)★ 4.02 Goodreads (655.2K) ★ 4.5 Audible (12.5K)14h 24m listening time • Released 2011Simon Vance's performance transforms Rice's gothic confession into something hypnotic—his voice captures both the seductive languor and existential despair of a vampire's immortality with unsettling precision.
- 17
The Black Prism
Lightbringer Saga • Book 1
by Brent Weeks
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.47 ABR Score (147.6K ratings)★ 4.23 Goodreads (132.5K) ★ 4.71 Audible (15.0K)21h 26m listening time • Released 2015Weeks's Lightbringer series is built on one of fantasy's most original magic systems — wielders can split light into physical power, and the politics around that ability are masterful.
- 18
Bring Up The Bodies
Thomas Cromwell • Book 2
by Hilary Mantel, Unknown Author
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.40 ABR Score (109.1K ratings)★ 4.3 Goodreads (105.7K) ★ 4.54 Audible (3.3K)14h 34m listening time • Released 2012Simon Vance's narration transforms Mantel's intricate political prose into pure suspense—you'll hear the machinery of power and betrayal click into place across 14 hours you won't want to pause.
- 19
The Chosen: Come and See
The Chosen • Book 2
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.39 ABR Score (895 ratings)★ 4.78 Goodreads (624) ★ 4.99 Audible (271)8h 59m listening time • Released 2022Simon Vance's narration elevates Jenkins' reimagining into something genuinely alive—his distinctive voices for each disciple make you feel like you're actually there witnessing the chaos and wonder unfold.
- 20
Retribution: The Battle for Japan, 1944-45
by Max Hastings
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 4.38 ABR Score (6.0K ratings)★ 4.28 Goodreads (5.3K) ★ 4.77 Audible (712)27h 41m listening time • Released 2015Simon Vance's crisp, unflinching delivery makes Hastings' brutal Pacific endgame feel immediate and vital, transforming a massive military history into something you can't stop listening to.