Meet Chris Tester: an Award-Winning, UK-Based Voice Actor Bringing Booktok’s Favorite Passages to Life

A couple of years ago I had an idea for a fan art project for the book community that I affectionately called ‘The Book Boyfriend Hotline’. One of the things Romantasy readers love about their book boyfriends, is the way they speak to their love interest. The running joke is men IRL say, “I love you,” but your book boyfriend says so much more. So why not create a place for readers to hear those words any time they want from some of their most cherished characters? The only problem? I didn’t have the voice to bring the idea to life. A couple years later, award-winning voice actor, Christopher Tester, came across my FYP doing a rendition of Rhysand’s A Court of Mist and Fury monologue, and I decided to reach out to see if he’d be up for making this fan project idea a reality. Essentially a cheeky landing page where some of Booktok’s favorite, more meaningful quotes could be heard. So think Rhysand, Xaden, Rowan, Kitt, and more. More Ch 54, rather than Ch 55. And I’m so grateful he was up to the challenge! It gave him a chance to expand his audiobook portfolio samples, and allowed me to create a gift for the book community to enjoy. You can check it out here.

I also sat down with Chris and talked through his journey of becoming a voice actor, his classically-trained theatre background, and even how his mum was the inspo for him originally starting to post cold reads on social media. We also discussed his favorite audiobook narrators, his first-ever voice acting gig, and his creative process. I hope you’ll take a watch, and enjoy learning about the audiobook side of our vibrant book community. And if you’re an indie author or publisher looking for a narrator, you can’t go wrong with Chris.

Find Chris here

Have you checked out The Book Boyfriend Hotline yet?!