What I’ve Been Listening To, February 2026
I’ve read 24 books so far this year, and 17 were audiobooks (we’ve already established I’m not going to say ‘books consumed.’ Listening and physically reading are distinctive, but they’re interchangeable here).
Of the 17 audiobooks, 15 were new. I re-read more than I read new books, but I’ve been using audiobooks to tackle things for the first time. 7 books were Clive Cusslers.
CLIVE CUSSLER
I first talked about Clive Cussler back in 2019. He would die a half-year later, at age 88. He had created an empire, with other authors carrying on his five sometimes-intertwined series’. I revisited his works last Summer. I’ve listened to 7 of his books so far this year, as I am well behind on my Cussler.
Isaac Bell is a turn-of-the 20th Century private eye for the Van Dorn Detective Agency. Justin Scott co-wrote the first 10. Jack Du Brul (who had been co-writing The Oregon Files), took over for the next 5. Though I liked it, for some reason the series hadn’t resonated with me in paperback. They were slow reads through the first 5. But Scott Brick reading them aloud worked for me, and I’ve listened to books 6 through 9: The Striker, The Bootlegger, The Assassin, and The Gangster. I like listening to Bell. So, audiobooks have me invested in a series that I wasn’t into in print. I will continue on. This series has run from 2007 through 2025.
The Oregon Files are the only techno-thrillers I’ve ever gotten into. I’ve not read a single Tom Clancy book. Craig Dirgio ‘co-wrote’ the first 2, succeeded by Jack Du Brul for the next 7. Boyd Morrison took over for 7 books, with Mike Maden having written the last 4 in this 19-book series. I’m still in the Morrison phase, listening to books 12 (Typhoon Fury) and 13 (Shadow Tyrants). These are different from any other series I read, and I like them. I’ll continue on. This series has run from 2003 through 2025.
The Fargo Adventures feature married treasure hunters named Sam and Remi Fargo. These feel a little less intense than the other series’. As with Isaac Bell, listening to the books works better for me than actually reading them. Grant Blackwood wrote the first 4. Thomas Perry took over for the next 2. Russell Blake then wrote 2, and Robin Burcell has written the last 6 in the 13 book series. I listened to book 5 (The Mayan Secrets). This is my fourth-favorite series, just below Isaac Bell. But it’s WELL above Dirk Pitt. I’ll check out Russell Blake here soon. This series has run from 2009 through 2023.
