The Alchemist's Apprentice

I have always loved the writings of Dave Duncan. His characters are rich with personality and life, and his stories are always captivating. He has done it again with "The Alchemist's Apprentice." This time he has wove his characters into an engaging mystery rivaled only by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Clever, fun little tale, with parallels to Nero Wolfe (Rex Stout) throughout. If you like Archie and Nero, you'll also very much enjoy this clever mystery in a historical setting. I'm looking forward to the next one, now that I'm more at home in ancient Venice.

I've found this entire series very enjoyable. The narrator does an excellent job and really makes the series come to life.

The book may be great and really well written, however, the narration was so monotonous I simply could not focus on the story. I could almost hear the narrator turn the page to finish a sentence.

I love this series, the look into the past and what it may have been like. Victor Bevine does a great narration.

Duncan was going for witty and clever, but sadly his main character fell remarkably flat. He came out cliche and annoying, like the author was trying to hard. And the mystery wasn't set up as well as it could have been; the truth of the crime that is brought to life is disappointing, and in some respects, never fully explained.

The narrator was disappointing as well. While his reading is clear and crisp, it leaves the listner feeling cold and unmoved. He sounds too much like he's READING from a script, not telling a story. His words are so carefully ennuciated, the emotion is leached out of it. It makes it very hard to become immersed in the tale. Maybe I expect too much, but after listening to Davina Porter, it's hard to accept anything less.

I did not enjoy this book, but found myself listening only because I wanted to know, ultimately, who had committed the crime. As a result, I never felt fascinated or thrilled by the mystery, but rather disgruntled and feeling as though I had been hijacked and dragged through the story unwillingly.

The Narrator was boring and so was the story; I didn't even listen to the end. The only positive thing I can say is it put me to sleep.

No!

His voice rarely changed. It was like listening to a robot reading.

Disappointment, plus I felt cheated and angry with myself for wasting my money.

I'm a huge fan of Dave Duncan, but this book is way beyond convoluted. For most of the story the reader is left in the dark and then in the final 1.5 hrs the mystery is solved by a long long long long long lecture given by the Master Nostradamus. After 45 mins I was so lost that I just gave up and listened to the book just to finish it.

I much prefer Dave's fantasy novels to this mystery novel.

I am hit or miss on Dave Duncan's works and found myself bored with this book. Far too much about the time period and locale versus plot and characters. I am not going on with this series.