
Release
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $17.09
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Michael Crouch
-
By:
-
Patrick Ness
About this listen
Inspired by Judy Blume’s Forever and Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway, this novel that Andrew Smith calls “beautiful, enchanting, [and] exquisitely written” is a new classic about teenage relationships, self-acceptance—and what happens when the walls we build start coming down. A Kirkus Best Book of 2017!
Adam Thorn doesn’t know it yet, but today will change his life.
Between his religious family, a deeply unpleasant ultimatum from his boss, and his own unrequited love for his sort-of ex, Enzo, it seems as though Adam’s life is falling apart. At least he has two people to keep him sane: his new boyfriend (he does love Linus, doesn’t he?) and his best friend, Angela.
But all day long, old memories and new heartaches come crashing together, throwing Adam’s life into chaos. The bindings of his world are coming untied one by one; yet in spite of everything he has to let go, he may also find freedom in the release.
From the New York Times bestselling author of A Monster Calls comes a raw, darkly funny, and deeply affecting story about the courage it takes to live your truth.
©2017 Patrick Ness (P)2017 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
-
Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars
- A Dangerous Trans Girl's Confabulous Memoir
- By: Kai Cheng Thom
- Narrated by: Adri Almeida
- Length: 4 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A haunted young girl (who happens to be a kung-fu expert and pathological liar) runs away from an oppressive city, where the sky is always grey, in search of love and sisterhood - and finds herself in a magical place known only as the Street of Miracles. There, she is quickly adopted into a vigilante gang of glamorous warrior femmes called the Lipstick Lacerators, whose mission is to scour the Street of violent men and avenge murdered trans women everywhere. Can our intrepid heroine find the truth within herself in order to protect her new family and heal her broken heart?
-
-
Engaging and imaginative
- By t3f0 on 12-19-24
By: Kai Cheng Thom
-
More Than This
- By: Patrick Ness
- Narrated by: Nick Podehl
- Length: 11 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the acclaimed author of the Chaos Walking trilogy and A Monster Calls comes one of the most provocative teen novels of our time. A boy named Seth drowns, desperate and alone in his final moments. But then he wakes. He is naked, thirsty, starving. But alive. How is this possible? He remembers dying, his bones breaking, his skull dashed upon the rocks. So how is he here? And where is this place? The street seems familiar, but everything is abandoned, overgrown, covered in dust.
-
-
What is reality?
- By Ryan on 12-24-13
By: Patrick Ness
-
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
- By: Junauda Petrus
- Narrated by: Junauda Petrus, Bahni Turpin, J. D. Jackson
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Told in two distinct and irresistible voices, Junauda Petrus' bold and lyrical debut is the story of two black girls from very different backgrounds finding love and happiness in a world that seems determined to deny them both. Junauda Petrus' debut brilliantly captures the distinctly lush and lyrical voices of Mabel and Audre as they conjure a love that is stronger than hatred, prison, and death and as vast as the blackness between the stars.
-
-
My Gawd
- By AmazonCustomer on 09-21-19
By: Junauda Petrus
-
And the Ocean Was Our Sky
- By: Patrick Ness
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 2 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With harpoons strapped to their backs, the proud whales of Bathsheba's pod live for the hunt, fighting in the ongoing war against the world of men. When they attack a ship bobbing on the surface of the abyss, they expect to find easy prey. Instead, they find the trail of a myth, a monster, perhaps the devil himself.... As their relentless captain leads the chase, they embark on a final, vengeful hunt, one that will forever change the worlds of both whales and men. This remarkable work turns the familiar tale of Moby Dick upside down and tells a story all its own with epic triumph and devastating fate.
-
-
Brilliant, beautiful, not just a unique retelling
- By Amber Wixtrom on 07-14-19
By: Patrick Ness
-
The Rest of Us Just Live Here
- By: Patrick Ness
- Narrated by: James Fouhey
- Length: 6 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What if you aren't the Chosen One? The one who's supposed to fight the zombies or the soul-eating ghosts or whatever the heck this new thing is with the blue lights and the death? What if you're like Mikey? Who just wants to graduate and go to prom and maybe finally work up the courage to ask Henna out before someone goes and blows up the high school. Again.
-
-
My teenage son told me I had to read this book. I'm so glad I listened.
- By Kristin M. Slonski on 12-14-15
By: Patrick Ness
-
The Charm Offensive
- A Novel
- By: Alison Cochrun
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam, Graham Halstead, Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dev Deshpande has always believed in fairy tales. So it’s no wonder then that he’s spent his career crafting them on the long-running reality dating show Ever After. As the most successful producer in the franchise’s history, Dev always scripts the perfect love story for his contestants, even as his own love life crashes and burns. But then the show casts disgraced tech wunderkind Charlie Winshaw as its star.
-
-
Tiresome
- By Paula on 11-18-21
By: Alison Cochrun
-
Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars
- A Dangerous Trans Girl's Confabulous Memoir
- By: Kai Cheng Thom
- Narrated by: Adri Almeida
- Length: 4 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A haunted young girl (who happens to be a kung-fu expert and pathological liar) runs away from an oppressive city, where the sky is always grey, in search of love and sisterhood - and finds herself in a magical place known only as the Street of Miracles. There, she is quickly adopted into a vigilante gang of glamorous warrior femmes called the Lipstick Lacerators, whose mission is to scour the Street of violent men and avenge murdered trans women everywhere. Can our intrepid heroine find the truth within herself in order to protect her new family and heal her broken heart?
-
-
Engaging and imaginative
- By t3f0 on 12-19-24
By: Kai Cheng Thom
-
More Than This
- By: Patrick Ness
- Narrated by: Nick Podehl
- Length: 11 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the acclaimed author of the Chaos Walking trilogy and A Monster Calls comes one of the most provocative teen novels of our time. A boy named Seth drowns, desperate and alone in his final moments. But then he wakes. He is naked, thirsty, starving. But alive. How is this possible? He remembers dying, his bones breaking, his skull dashed upon the rocks. So how is he here? And where is this place? The street seems familiar, but everything is abandoned, overgrown, covered in dust.
-
-
What is reality?
- By Ryan on 12-24-13
By: Patrick Ness
-
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
- By: Junauda Petrus
- Narrated by: Junauda Petrus, Bahni Turpin, J. D. Jackson
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Told in two distinct and irresistible voices, Junauda Petrus' bold and lyrical debut is the story of two black girls from very different backgrounds finding love and happiness in a world that seems determined to deny them both. Junauda Petrus' debut brilliantly captures the distinctly lush and lyrical voices of Mabel and Audre as they conjure a love that is stronger than hatred, prison, and death and as vast as the blackness between the stars.
-
-
My Gawd
- By AmazonCustomer on 09-21-19
By: Junauda Petrus
-
And the Ocean Was Our Sky
- By: Patrick Ness
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 2 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With harpoons strapped to their backs, the proud whales of Bathsheba's pod live for the hunt, fighting in the ongoing war against the world of men. When they attack a ship bobbing on the surface of the abyss, they expect to find easy prey. Instead, they find the trail of a myth, a monster, perhaps the devil himself.... As their relentless captain leads the chase, they embark on a final, vengeful hunt, one that will forever change the worlds of both whales and men. This remarkable work turns the familiar tale of Moby Dick upside down and tells a story all its own with epic triumph and devastating fate.
-
-
Brilliant, beautiful, not just a unique retelling
- By Amber Wixtrom on 07-14-19
By: Patrick Ness
-
The Rest of Us Just Live Here
- By: Patrick Ness
- Narrated by: James Fouhey
- Length: 6 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What if you aren't the Chosen One? The one who's supposed to fight the zombies or the soul-eating ghosts or whatever the heck this new thing is with the blue lights and the death? What if you're like Mikey? Who just wants to graduate and go to prom and maybe finally work up the courage to ask Henna out before someone goes and blows up the high school. Again.
-
-
My teenage son told me I had to read this book. I'm so glad I listened.
- By Kristin M. Slonski on 12-14-15
By: Patrick Ness
-
The Charm Offensive
- A Novel
- By: Alison Cochrun
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam, Graham Halstead, Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dev Deshpande has always believed in fairy tales. So it’s no wonder then that he’s spent his career crafting them on the long-running reality dating show Ever After. As the most successful producer in the franchise’s history, Dev always scripts the perfect love story for his contestants, even as his own love life crashes and burns. But then the show casts disgraced tech wunderkind Charlie Winshaw as its star.
-
-
Tiresome
- By Paula on 11-18-21
By: Alison Cochrun
-
Only Mostly Devastated
- A Novel
- By: Sophie Gonzales
- Narrated by: Mark Sanderlin
- Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Will Tavares is the dream summer fling - he’s fun, affectionate, kind - but just when Ollie thinks he’s found his happily ever after, summer vacation ends and Will stops texting Ollie back. Now Ollie is one prince short of his fairy-tale ending, and to complicate the fairy tale further, a family emergency sees Ollie uprooted and enrolled at a new school across the country. Which he minds a little less when he realizes it’s the same school Will goes to...except Ollie finds that the sweet, comfortably queer guy he knew from summer isn’t the same one attending Collinswood High.
-
-
Only Mildly Entertaining
- By CMB4062 on 07-28-20
By: Sophie Gonzales
-
The Serpent King
- By: Jeff Zentner
- Narrated by: Michael Crouch, Ariadne Meyers, Ethan Sawyer
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dill has had to wrestle with vipers his whole life - at home, as the only son of a Pentecostal minister who urges him to handle poisonous rattlesnakes, and at school, where he faces down bullies who target him for his father’s extreme faith and very public fall from grace. He and his fellow outcast friends must try to make it through their senior year of high school without letting the small-town culture destroy their creative spirits and sense of self. Graduation will lead to new beginnings for Lydia, whose edgy fashion blog is her ticket out of their rural Tennessee town.
-
-
Once and future king
- By Robert J on 03-31-16
By: Jeff Zentner
-
Goodbye Days
- By: Jeff Zentner
- Narrated by: Michael Crouch
- Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Carver Briggs never thought a simple text would cause a fatal crash, killing his three best friends, Mars, Eli, and Blake. But now Carver can't stop blaming himself for the accident, and, even worse, a powerful judge is pressuring the district attorney to open up a criminal investigation. Luckily, Carver has some unexpected allies: Eli's girlfriend, the only person to stand by him at school; Dr. Mendez, his new therapist; and Blake's grandmother, who asks Carver to spend a "goodbye day" together to share their memories and say a proper farewell.
-
-
Text "car accident"
- By Robert J on 04-22-17
By: Jeff Zentner
-
Jay's Gay Agenda
- By: Jason June
- Narrated by: Mark Sanderlin
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There’s one thing Jay Collier knows for sure - he’s a statistical anomaly as the only out gay kid in his small rural Washington town. While all his friends can’t stop talking about their heterosexual hookups and relationships, Jay can only dream of his own firsts, compiling a romance to-do list of all the things he hopes to one day experience - his Gay Agenda. Then, against all odds, Jay’s family moves to Seattle, and he starts his senior year at a new high school with a thriving LGBTQIA+ community. For the first time ever, Jay feels like he’s found where he truly belongs.
-
-
Jay is toxic AF lol
- By Semaj journee on 06-22-21
By: Jason June
-
The Space Between
- By: Michelle L. Teichman
- Narrated by: Abby Craden
- Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Everything's great for Harper Isabelle, the most popular girl in grade nine. That is, until she meets Sarah Jamieson. Sarah is a reclusive artist, a loner who wears black makeup and doesn't have any friends, but for some reason, Harper can't stop thinking about her. Sarah isn't used to people looking her way, especially popular girls like Harper Isabelle. Scared, religious, and unsure of herself, when Sarah begins to realize that her feelings for Harper might go beyond friendship, she is afraid to take the plunge and tell Harper how she feels.
-
-
Best book
- By Maggy Castrejon on 12-01-22
-
Making Faces
- By: Amy Harmon
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 10 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ambrose Young was beautiful. He was tall and muscular, with hair that touched his shoulders and eyes that burned right through you. The kind of beautiful that graced the covers of romance novels, and Fern Taylor would know. She'd been reading them since she was 13. But maybe because he was so beautiful he was never someone Fern thought she could have...until he wasn't beautiful anymore.
-
-
Great (low heat) romance :)
- By Malinda on 05-28-14
By: Amy Harmon
-
Two Boys Kissing
- By: David Levithan
- Narrated by: David Levithan
- Length: 6 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Based on true events - and narrated by a Greek Chorus of the generation of gay men lost to AIDS - Two Boys Kissing follows Harry and Craig, two 17-year-olds who are about to take part in a 32-hour marathon of kissing to set a new Guinness World Record. While the two increasingly dehydrated and sleep-deprived boys are locking lips, they become a focal point in the lives of other teens dealing with universal questions of love, identity, and belonging.
-
-
A Powerful Book with a Unique Voice
- By The Reading Date on 02-05-14
By: David Levithan
-
When We Were Worthy
- By: Marybeth Mayhew Whalen
- Narrated by: Joshilyn Jackson
- Length: 9 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When the sound of sirens cuts through a cool fall night, the small town of Worthy, Georgia, hurtles from triumph to tragedy. Just hours before, they'd watched the Wildcats score a winning touchdown. Now, they're faced with the deaths of three cheerleaders - their promising lives cut short in a fatal crash. And the boy in the other car - the only one to survive - is believed to be at fault. As rumors begin to fly and accusations spin, allegiances form and long-kept secrets emerge.
-
-
Another Author I Will Look Out For
- By DCD JERSEY GIRL on 03-05-18
-
Always Something There to Remind Me
- By: Beth Harbison
- Narrated by: Orlagh Cassidy
- Length: 9 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Can you ever really know if love is true? And if it is, should you stop at anything to get it? Two decades ago, Erin Edwards was sure she’d already found the love of her life: Nate Lawson. Her first love. The one with whom she shared everything--dreams of the future, of children, plans for forever. The one she thought she would spend the rest of her life with. Until one terrible night when Erin made a mistake Nate could not forgive and left her to mourn the relationship she could never forget or get over.
-
-
For all those with a romantic heart...
- By Missy on 10-27-11
By: Beth Harbison
-
Burned
- By: Ellen Hopkins
- Narrated by: Laura Flanagan
- Length: 5 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Raised in a stern, abusive Mormon household, a teenage girl starts to question her religion and struggles to find her destiny.
Her father is abusive, her mother is submissive, and her church looks the other way. Confused and angry, Pattyn Von Stratten acts out and is sent to live with an aunt on a Nevada ranch. She finds the love and acceptance she craves, with disturbing consequences.
-
-
I cried
- By Anonymous User on 04-28-17
By: Ellen Hopkins
-
Perfect
- By: Ellen Hopkins, Christina Wildson
- Narrated by: Aya Cash, Heather Lind, Aaron Tveit, and others
- Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Everyone has something, someone, somewhere else that they’d rather be. For four high-school seniors, their goals of perfection are just as different as the paths they take to get there. Cara’s parents’ unrealistic expectations have already sent her twin brother spiraling toward suicide. For her, “perfect” means rejecting their ideals to take a chance on a new kind of love. Kendra covets the perfect face and body - no matter what surgeries and drugs she needs to get there. Sean will sacrifice more than he can ever win back....
-
-
Omg
- By Remi Rosado III on 01-29-16
By: Ellen Hopkins, and others
-
The Art of Starving
- By: Sam J. Miller
- Narrated by: Tom Phelan
- Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Matt hasn't eaten in days. His stomach stabs and twists inside, pleading for a meal, but Matt won't give in. The hunger clears his mind, keeps him sharp - and he needs to be as sharp as possible if he's going to find out just how Tariq and his band of high school bullies drove his sister, Maya, away. Matt's hardworking mom keeps the kitchen crammed with food, but Matt can resist the siren call of casseroles and cookies because he has discovered something: the less he eats the more he seems to have...powers.
-
-
Transformative book!
- By Uno Person on 01-01-20
By: Sam J. Miller
What listeners say about Release
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- T Cyr
- 04-26-20
Think I Missed The End Point!
Brilliant concept with how it starts, like Mrs Dalloway, but then gets lost in the 2nd story that weaves through out. Loved the Adam story line, really nailed the core of gay teen angist; but then totally confused by the Queen and Fawn narrative. These sections get quite boring and derail what I thought was the main story, but then never seems to satisfy in the end.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- jsolo
- 08-18-19
I loved one story, didn't really get the other.
it is very well written. I loved Adam's story, had a little trouble following the ghost story. I would have preferred it being a bit more of a straightforward narrative, I didn't see the point in alternating between what felt like two completely different books. Overall, I still definitely reccomend the book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Boo
- 02-02-19
Disappointed
I had great hope for this book. It was formatted in a style I abhor, mixed stories. I also am not s fan of fantasy. Mixing the two made this a book I had wished overlooked. If the the book had just been the story of Adam it would have been a 5 star book. Narrated by one of my favorite narrators had me listen to this listening to the end.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Shawn
- 02-05-20
Well, 50% of it was great
Um... the main story was great but there's this second interwoven story that takes away from it, I hated every time that the story shifted. it was really weird honestly.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- ZippyBippy
- 03-10-18
I mean, Michael Crouch is everything!
Mr. Crouch’s narration really brings this book to life. He’s so adept at stories like these, designed to pull at your heartstrings. His empathy and obvious feather-light touch (to really honor the source material) is so, so appreciated and invaluable. Loved him! The book was challenging for me at times, but Mr. Crouch was a constant throughout. Really great listen! In the end, two big thumbs up.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- A. M.
- 08-06-18
Beautiful
This book required two listens for me (and has gotten three now, so far). On the first listen, I was confused about the double story line - it felt.... off? Out of place? I wasn't really sure what to do with it - it didn't fit into my concept of what a novel should be. But I loved the primary story line enough that a second listen was no hardship. On the second listen, I took in more of the second story - the exploration of different kinds of abuse and how to let go of the people who love you and yet hurt you.
Even if you only read it for the primary story, Patrick Ness has given you a beautiful one. And Michael Crouch is fabulous as always.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful