Last Christmas in Paris audiobook vs book: which should you choose?
A First World War love story told mostly in letters between Evie Elliott and Thomas Harding, framed by Thomas returning to Paris at Christmas 1968. With a different narrator for each letter writer, it’s made for audio.
Listen on Audible
Listen to Last Christmas in Paris for its nine narrators: each letter writer gets their own, so Evie, Thomas, Alice and Will each speak in a distinct voice and the correspondence comes alive. AudioGals says everyone ‘does a splendid job’, and that Alex Wyndham gives the older Thomas ‘the weight of his years’. The story does move between the war and 1968, which is slightly easier to follow in print.
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The audiobook at a glance
| Recording | Audible UK, our verdict | Audible US |
|---|---|---|
| Performed by | Alex Wyndham, Billie Fulford-Brown, Morag Sims, Gary Furlong, Greg Wagland, Antony Ferguson, Derek Perkins, Jane Copland and Mary Jane Wells | Same nine narrators |
| Length | 8 hours 8 minutes (8h 8m), unabridged | 8 hours 8 minutes (8h 8m), unabridged |
| At 1.5x | about 5h 25m | about 5h 25m |
| At 2x | about 4h 4m | about 4h 4m |
| Audio publisher and date | William Morrow, 3 October 2017 | William Morrow, 3 October 2017 |
| Audiobook price | £12.20 on Audible UK | $23.39 on Audible US |
| Kindle price | £5.99 on Amazon UK | Not listed |
| William Morrow paperback (sold in the UK), 400 pages, October 2017 | William Morrow paperback, 400 pages, 3 October 2017 | |
| Listener rating | Performance 4.79 from only 67 ratings | Performance 4.82 from 1,257 ratings |
The same William Morrow recording is sold on both stores. No separate UK edition was found, in audio or in print: UK shops sell the William Morrow paperback.
The parts come from a named reviewer (AudioGals), not from a publisher cast list. Which characters Greg Wagland and Jane Copland read is not confirmed. Ratings and prices checked 4 November 2026. They change often. Amazon US does not show Kindle prices outside the US, so US Kindle prices are not given.
Lengths checked 4 November 2026. Speed times are calculated.
Last Christmas in Paris
Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb
- Genre
- Historical fiction
- Set
- 1914 to 1918, and Christmas 1968
- Published
- October 2017
- Length
- 400 pages
- On audio
- 8 hrs 8 mins, nine narrators
- Told in
- Letters and telegrams, with a 1968 frame
On this page
Why we reached this verdict
Every book on this site is checked against the same thirteen questions. They are based on research into what most people find easier to follow in each format, not on whether the book is any good.
Checked, not a factor here (10)
The cast of narrators (10 points) and their praised performances (6) give listening 16, and the jumps between the war years and 1968 give reading 8. That puts it at 66%, leaning to audio.
Every book gets the same thirteen checks, set in advance. Verdicts are never paid for or influenced by affiliate links. Last edited 5 November 2026, and rechecked every year as editions and narrators change. Read the checks in full · Is listening the same as reading? See what the research says.
The recording in detail
- Scored
- Alex Wyndham, Billie Fulford-Brown and seven others, William Morrow, 2017, 8h 8m, unabridged
- Critic review
- AudioGals (Caz): everyone “does a splendid job”
- Alternatives
- None found: one recording, sold on both stores
- What you miss
- Seeing the dates and switches between 1968 and the war years on the page
What this book actually is
Last Christmas in Paris is a First World War novel by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb. It is told mostly in letters, and occasionally telegrams, between Evie Elliott, her brother Will, his best friend Thomas Harding, Evie’s friend Alice and others, from 1914 to 1918 (Reading Reality).
The letters are framed by the elderly Thomas returning to Paris at Christmas 1968 with a letter still waiting for him. It covers combat at the front and wartime loss. What the last letter says is not covered here.
The case for reading it
The story moves between two times. Library Journal says the 1968 visit ‘alternates with’ the letters that begin in 1914, and each war year is bracketed by the 1968 scenes. On the page it’s easier to see where you are.
If you like to see a correspondence set out, with its dates and sign-offs, you may also prefer print.
The case for listening to it
Each letter writer has their own narrator, so a novel of letters becomes a conversation between real voices. Nine are credited, and AudioGals (Caz) names the main parts: Alex Wyndham as Thomas, young and old, Billie Fulford-Brown as Evie, Morag Sims as Alice and Gary Furlong as Will.
The cast is praised too. AudioGals says everyone ‘does a splendid job’ and that Wyndham’s older Thomas carries ‘the weight of his years’, and the recording has a 4.82 Performance rating from 1,257 listeners on Audible US.
The audiobook in detail
The William Morrow recording runs 8 hours 8 minutes, unabridged, and the same recording is on Audible UK and US.
It’s the full text read by nine narrators, one for each letter writer, rather than a dramatisation, and no PDF comes with it.
Who should ignore this verdict
Read it if you find a story that moves between two times hard to follow by ear.
If you love hearing letters read in different voices, the audiobook is the one to choose.
Kindle
- 400 pages
- Easier to see the switches between 1968 and the war years
- About 6½ hours to read (our estimate)
Related verdicts
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Start hereHow we decide
The thirteen questions behind every verdict on this site.
Questions people ask
Who narrates Last Christmas in Paris?
Nine narrators. Alex Wyndham reads Thomas Harding and Billie Fulford-Brown reads Evie Elliott, with Morag Sims, Gary Furlong, Greg Wagland, Antony Ferguson, Derek Perkins, Jane Copland and Mary Jane Wells in other parts (AudioGals).
How long is the Last Christmas in Paris audiobook?
8 hours 8 minutes. About 5 hours 25 minutes at 1.5x and 4 hours 4 minutes at 2x (calculated).
Is the Last Christmas in Paris audiobook abridged?
No, it is unabridged.
How many pages is Last Christmas in Paris?
400 pages in the William Morrow paperback.
Is Last Christmas in Paris told in letters?
Mostly, yes: letters and occasional telegrams from 1914 to 1918, with sections set at Christmas 1968 between them.
When is Last Christmas in Paris set?
During the First World War, from 1914, and at Christmas 1968.
Who wrote Last Christmas in Paris?
Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb, as co-authors.
Should I read or listen to Last Christmas in Paris?
Listen. Each letter writer has their own narrator, nine in all, and reviewers praise the cast. Read it if you find the switches between the war years and 1968 easier to follow on the page.
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