Award-winning filmmaker and novelist Nicole Conn has released Descending Thirds, a groundbreaking audiobook that blends narration with classical music
Hello again, dear audiobook friends! Today’s spotlight article is dedicated to Descending Thirds, a sweeping romantic drama from award-winning filmmaker and novelist Nicole Conn.
This twelve hours and a half audio production is available as a groundbreaking audiobook that blends narration with classical music for a fully immersive listening experience.
Set between 1944 and 1975, the novel is an epic love story at its core: a gifted young pianist is drawn into a dangerous love triangle with two brilliant brothers, where rivalry and desire collide. Sensual, emotionally charged, and psychologically intense, the book reimagines the world of classical music as visceral, seductive, and cutthroat.
Narrated by multi-award-winning performer Mary Jane Wells, the audiobook features performances by Conn’s own mother. Original compositions for the two brothers at the core of the story were written and performed by Royal Academy-trained pianist Sally Bishop Melbourne — whose personal journey closely mirrors the novel’s own heroine. The collaboration amongst the women, born from shared grief and resilience, makes the audiobook itself a powerful story of healing through art.
More than 25 years in the making, the novel is deeply personal for Conn. Inspired by her late mother, a classical pianist who appears as a character in the novel, the book explores legacy, ambition, and the emotional cost of perfection. Perfect for fans of romance and character-driven dramas, Descending Thirds bridges love, music, and artistry in a story where passion and power are ultimately inseparable. It is currently in development as an Emmy Epic limited mini-series.
The author, Nicole Conn, is an award-winning writer and filmmaker known for crafting bold, emotionally intelligent stories centered on complex women navigating love, identity, and resilience. Conn is known for her signature, searing romance — the kind of films audiences watch over and over again.
Her debut feature, Claire of the Moon, became a cult classic and a pioneering work for the LGBTQ+ community, helping expand lesbian representation in independent cinema. The film launched a career devoted to strong, smart, female-led storytelling that explores passion, vulnerability, and personal transformation. Conn went on to write and direct acclaimed features including Elena Undone, recognized as a defining modern romance, and A Perfect Ending, praised for its emotional depth and sensual honesty. Her documentary Little Man, chronicling the premature birth of her son, received multiple Best Documentary honors and was acquired by Showtime. But perhaps her most personal film, More Beautiful for Having Been Broken, is also her best.
She is also the author of several novels, including Descending Thirds, a sweeping romantic drama set in the high-stakes world of classical music. The novel has received multiple fiction awards and is currently in development as a limited television series. Its cinematic audiobook edition uniquely integrates classical repertoire and original score. You can see more about the book at DescendingThirds.com.
Multi-award-winning Conn continues to create character-driven stories that champion women’s interior lives, ambition, and emotional truth. She lives and works in Los Angeles and advocates for women-led storytelling through NicoleConnFilmsGlobal.com.
Our narrator, Mary Jane Wells, is a storyteller drawn to transformative work. Trained at the Royal Scottish Conservatoire, she spent 12 years performing across the UK and Europe before building a career in the US, including appearances at the Mark Taper Forum and touring internationally with her solo show Martha.
Now based in Los Angeles, she is an award-winning voice actress who expanded into writing and story development, contributing to the Sundance Select documentary Holy Hell (2016), later acquired by CNN and Netflix. Her acclaimed solo show Heroine (2017), based on a survivor of military sexual trauma, won multiple awards, toured Scotland, and played to sold-out audiences at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Kennedy Center. The project later became an award-winning audiobook, earning an Earphones Award and the Audie Award for Best Original Work.
Mary Jane has spoken and performed at major international events, including the UN Conference on Sexual Violence in Conflict. Her work focuses on authentic, impactful storytelling that uplifts without exploitation. Her upcoming solo show, The Good Girl, continues this mission with a more personal, irreverent lens.
I will return with a full review for Descending Thirds soon, but until then, take care, stay safe, and don’t forget, always listen with your heart!
Victor Dima
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