Muse

(Run Time: approx. 8.5 hours)

American Royals meets The Winner's Curse in the first book of a dazzling duology from New York Times bestselling author Brittany Cavallaro about revolution, love, and friendship in a reimagined American monarchy.

The year is 1893, and war is brewing in the First American Kingdom. But Claire Emerson has a bigger problem. Claire's father is a sought-after inventor, but he believes his genius is a gift granted to him by his daughter's touch, so he keeps Claire under his control.

As their province prepares for war, Claire plans to escape, even as her best friend, Beatrix, tries to convince her to stay and help with the growing resistance movement that wants to see a woman on the throne.

When her father's weapon fails to fire on the World's Fair's opening day, Claire is taken captive by Governor Remy Duchamp, St. Cloud's young, untried ruler. Remy believes that Claire's touch bestows graces he's never had, and with political rivals planning his demise, Claire might be his only ally.

The last thing that Claire has ever wanted is to be someone else's muse, but she finally has a choice: Will she quietly remake her world from the shadows, or bring it down in flames?

Brittany Cavallaro (Co-Author) is the New York Times bestselling author of the Charlotte Holmes novels, including A Study in Charlotte, and the historical fantasy duology Muse (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books). With Emily Henry, she is the author of Hello Girls (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Books). Most recently, she wrote the young adult verse novel Sunrise Nights with Jeff Zentner (HarperCollins/Quill Tree).

Cavallaro is also the author of the poetry collections Girl-King and Unhistorical, both from University of Akron Press. A recipient of a National Endowment in the Arts fellowship, she received her MFA in creative writing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her PhD in English literature from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Currently, she teaches creative writing at the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, where she lives with her husband, cats, and golden retriever.

Julia Whelan (Narrator) is an author, screenwriter, lifelong actor, and acclaimed audiobook narrator of over 700 titles.

She is, most recently, the recipient of Spotify's Narrator of the Year Award (the most listened-to narrator globally), the first-ever Gracie Award for Best Fiction Narrator (presented by the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation), the SOVAS (Society of Voice Arts and Sciences) Lifetime Achievement Award, and winner of the Audie Award for Best Fiction Narrator of 2025. She also captured both the winner and runner-up slots in the inaugural audiobook category of the Goodreads Choice Awards.

Her latest books — the Audie nominated duet romance, Casanova LLC (coming in print, Spring 2027), and the annotated Victorian poetry anthology The Poetry Of My Oxford Year — debuted exclusively on Audiobrary. jmwhelan.com