The Keepers

Alchemy Series (Volume 1)

De: Donna Augustine

Narrado por: Laurel Schroeder

Two days ago, Jo Davids was a waitress by night and a college kid by day, with the unnerving problem of things floating around her. One day ago, Jo's sexy boss, Cormac, noticed her for all the wrong reasons when she witnessed a man transform into a monster in the basement of his casino. Today, Cormac ordered her shot. If he's real lucky, she won't die. Because if she does, all hope is lost.

©2013 Donna Augustine (P)2014 Donna Augustine

Exciting & Adventurous!

Would you consider the audio edition of The Keepers to be better than the print version?

I will always say audio is better than reading myself. As much as I enjoy reading, I tend to miss things and not understand some pronunciations. Looking something up to see how to pronounce it only distracts me from the storyline. In audio format, I can kick back & listen to the story & relax!

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Keepers?

Most memorable would be the sexual tension without actually having any sex in the book!

Have you listened to any of Laurel Schroeder’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I don't recall if I have ever heard this narrator before. As a rule, I don't pay much attention to the narrator names.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I loved the protection Cormac always gave Jo, along with constant kindness & consideration. Nothing beats a really strong hero & heroine!

Any additional comments?

This is a really great read! I loved it & look forward to the next book in this series. I love series too. In a series, the story can continue on & on. The author did a fabulous job writing this this book. I was thoroughly entertained & listened to this book in 1 sitting!

Enjoyed the story but not the narration

The story is good, you can tell the series is going to get even better as it goes along. I love this author's H's. The narration is a real downer. It is flat, when there is intonation, it is off and it was distracting. I am going to keep going so I hope the narrator finds her grove.

A Good Start

What does Laurel Schroeder bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The tough edge of Jo

Any additional comments?

I’m going to start with the narration which was good but I kept feeling like the story was more of a old style detective/murder mystery rather than a end-of-the-world, fantasy romance. Schroeder’s voice is strong, clear and well trained in breath control. The protagonist, Jo, needs a savvy, smart-mouthed no-nonsense voice and Schroeder fills that aspect nicely. The story moves at a quick, steady pace with no noticeable errors in editing.

The author uses a lot of old one-liners and saucy talk for Jo, but the accompanying characters don’t seem to be developed enough to truly fill out the story. And, we know Cormack is handsome, Jo has told us over and over and over…..but he doesn’t appear to be a well-rounded character either. Overall there is still too much unknown, it could be that romance novels are like this and I’m not in the loop because I don’t read them, but I like lots of detail. The information on people or abilities is not fully defined but I expect that to change as we move on in the series.

The opening paragraphs are rather mediocre. I’m disappointed that we don’t get a better picture of why the foster families rejected her. What were the weird things? She alludes to the reasons she is “broken” however details are the bread and butter of a really good story and this one is sadly lacking those.

Obviously Cormack is hundreds, if not thousands, of years old so I find it hard to believe that he would just all of a sudden up and fall for a street hardened 22ish year old with few people skills. Yes, she is beautiful and has power, even if unrecognized, so maybe she classes up to her potential. I hope she doesn’t stay a hardened snot forever as that gets really old. The “loyalty” contract was easy to figure.

If Cormack “knows” Jo’s every move then how was it that he didn’t know when she was being attacked? He seems to know through some sensory power connection with her whenever something serious happened prior and then to drop the ball on this attack is odd. If it’s because he was preoccupied with another woman then that’s a possible explanation but not a very convincing one. Also, I’m a bit surprised that the whole Vitor (sp?) angle hasn’t been played up more in this first book; I’d think under the circumstances of getting shot and with his good looks, subtle power and kindly manner she might have shown more interest. That relationship moved too quickly by.

I opt to believe the end of the story isn’t Jo’s final encounter with her father. The scene at the mountain was quite well done. This is a decent story so far. Looking forward to the next book in the series and hopefully more answers.

This audiobook was given to me by narrator Laurel Schroeder and Audible in exchange for a fair and honest review.

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Great start to a promising series

I was not sure what to expect from this book, it was a happy surprise in the end. I love Jo's spunk and attitude! The whole book is in her POV, so ya kinda have to like her. She has dumb girl moments, but they seem more connected with her youth. She really does kick butt when she puts her mind to things!

I would have loved to get into the other character's heads, especially dishy Cormac. There are times you get hints of a romance but it is more about the suspense than the love in this book.

Really great supporting cast, love Buzz, Dodd and Ben. I wanted more of them and really hope to see them play bigger parts in the rest of the series. I might have held more of a grudge against them if I were Jo, but they are just too lovable to hate!

No steam other than the chemistry. I hope that changes cause these two are ripe for love!

The story has plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. I was with it from beginning to end, not a dull moment to be found.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Laurel Schroeder, who rocks! I love all the sass she add to Jo and the gruffness of Cormac. Great pace that keeps the story moving and accentuates the action scenes. She is terrific and I can not wait to hear her in the rest of the series.

Overall this is a great read and sets things up for the series beautifully. I am excited to see what is to come and unravel the secrets of the Alchemists.

Disclosure - I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts, opinions and ratings are my own.

Interesting start to a series.

Story keeps you interested enough, but since it is the first in a series there are questions unanswered. There were however some lines spoken by the characters which my brain thought were rather timely to the goings on in the real world. The characters aren't groundbreaking, it’s the girl meets boy who is there to help her but both fight their attraction and danger. But the story surrounding them is an interesting premise. For what it is, it seems like a decent start to a story.

The narrator gives distinct enough voices to the characters so you can tell them apart, though some of the male voices (of the supporting characters) were a little rough. At first the voice she gave to Jo seemed rather naïve and overly sassy, but as the story progressed I realized it was a good choice - It did in fact fit the character and got across the point that Jo had a chip on her shoulder. A proper amount of drama was added during the faster paced scenes to help get across the action.

[I received a free copy of this book for an honest review via goodreads]