Freida McFadden Dominates Northern Ireland Library Loans as Audiobooks Surge

In Northern Ireland, audiobook downloads surpassed physical book loans from October 1, 2025, to September 30, 2026, with Freida McFadden's The Housemaid being the most popular. She dominated the adult fiction audiobook charts, occupying eight of the top ten spots, with only Rebecca Yarros's Fourth Wing and Laurie Gilmore's The Pumpkin Spiced Café breaking her streak. The Housemaid also topped physical loans, with over 3,000 borrowings, which Jillian McFrederick from Libraries NI attributed to its film adaptation featuring Sydney Sweeney. Niall Williams's Time of the Child was close behind. McFrederick noted that books with "short chapters" and "exciting" themes were especially popular. In non-fiction, Mark Manson's The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck led the audio category, while Mel Robbins's The Let Them Theory topped physical non-fiction. Harry Potter remained a favorite among kids, with all seven titles in the children's audio top ten. These insights were shared during Book Week NI 2026, a collaboration between BBC NI and Libraries NI.