A great audiobook reader makes so much difference. One I love is Dion Graham, who reads Dave Eggers’ books. And yes, I can’t keep listening to a bad reader.
I just finished Isabel Allende’s latest historical novel, and the reader was generally solid. But his imitation of female voices for dialog was so cringey. And he kept mispronouncing Valparaiso!
Listening to a book is still reading it. Unless it’s a dramatization.