Alexandra's Riddle

Northwest Magic, Book 1

By: Elisa Keyston

Narrated by: Blair Seibert

Length: 5 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

Lose yourself in the magical forests and charming towns of the Pacific Northwest, where picturesque Victorian homes hide mysteries spanning decades, faeries watch from the trees, and romance awaits...for those bold enough to seek it.

Cass is a drifter. When she inherits an old Queen Anne Victorian in rural Oregon from her great-aunt Alexandra, all she wants is to quickly offload the house and move on to bigger and better things. But the residents of the small town have other plans in mind. Her neighbors are anxious for her to help them thwart the plans of a land developer eager to raze Alexandra’s property, while a mysterious girl in the woods needs Cass’s help understanding her own confusing, possibly supernatural abilities.

And though little surprises Cass (thanks to her own magical powers of prediction), she never could have anticipated her newfound feelings for the handsome fourth-grade teacher at the local elementary school — feelings that she thought she’d buried long ago. Cass has sworn off love, but Matthew McCarthy is unlike anyone Cass has ever met. If she isn’t careful, he could learn her secret. Or worse — he just might thaw her frozen heart.

But falling in love could spell danger for both of them. Because it’s not just the human residents of Riddle that have snared Cass in their web. Cass’s presence has caught the attention of the fae that dwell in the woods. They know she has the Sight, and they don’t want to let her go....

©2019 Elisa Keyston (P)2020 Elisa Keyston

Fantasy, Romance, and Mystery Blended Well!

What could be better than a book laced with mystery, romance, and magic? I can’t think of a thing so I eagerly slipped into Elise Keyston’s Northwest Magic world and enjoyed this first in series.

Cass arrives in Riddle to settle her great-aunt Alexandra’s final affairs. The old Victorian house full of character holds good memories for Cass, but she has no intention of staying in place and keeping it. Or so she thinks, but a lonely little girl, a handsome man and his dog, and the rest of the quirky residents of Riddle have her wondering what it would be like to stay and maybe accept her magical gift of The Sight and the fae that comes with it.

The whimsical tone of the story pulled me right in. I loved the description of Alexandra’s home, her cat, and the fae and I was curious right away as the story introduced characters and situations. Cass was not an easy character for me to like at first the way she denied her gift and always had a foot out the door with the town and relationships. She plans to sell that gorgeous house to the developers. Thankfully, she encountered Matthew and Lily who were easily loveable and I could be patient for her to figure some things out.

I was expecting a more traditional cozy mystery with paranormal elements though that was me and not how the book was described. This leaned more toward a fantasy with romance because the gist of the story is that Cass has a magical gift and there is something extremely important that she has forgotten about her gift. She needs to embrace her gift and fulfill a promise before it is too late and not just for her. I really enjoyed where the story took me.

Blair Seibert was a first time narrator for me. Her storytelling and character voices enhanced to the story and I could see it well in my mind’s eye. I thought her distinction for the fae was exceptional. I would definitely listen to more of her work. The production was good quality.

All in all, this story was a great start to a series, but stands well on its own. The narration work was superb. I can heartily recommend this book to those who enjoy light fantasy romance.

I rec’d this book from Audiobookworm Promotions to listen to in exchange for an honest review.

My first sweet fantasy romance -LOVED IT!

I wasn't sure what to expect when starting this fantasy book, but I encourage others to give it a listen. Elisa, the author, did such a nice job of creating characters that feel real as well as interesting and engaging. The magical characters added so much fun to this real world escape. Blair, the narrator gave life to each character and whenever I heard the little girl and the fantasy characters talking, I couldn't help but smile. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire book and look forward to more from both writer and narrator. Thank you, ladies!

Sweet romance with a dash of magical-realism.

Elisa Keyston’s writing is whimsical, heartwarming, and overall very pleasant. And Blair Seibert reads the story with reverence to those aspects. I love Cass’ character and how she sees the supernatural realm. Down to the species of Fae living in the woods around Aunt Alexandra’s house. I also love that the story is set in Oregon. I’ve never been there, I felt like I was there. Not to mention Matt. Sweet, handsome Matt.
The audio itself was clean. No microphone feedback. No choppy cuts. It was smooth sailing. I actually listened to most of the audio with my eyes closed. I was transported into the story and could imagine each scene with vivid imagination. It was almost like watching a movie. Blair Seibert is a new narrator to me; before this book, I actually hadn’t known about her. I like finding new narrators to add to my list of voices.
Alexandra’s Riddle is a very pleasant read/listen, had me asking all the right questions, and I was rewarded with the answers. I definitely recommend this book. Don’t miss out!

I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Elisa Keyston. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

magical story

Cass has just arrived to Riddle to sort out her aunt Alexandra’s house that Cass just inherited after her death. She is set to sell the house and go n with her moving life. But stranger things starts to happen and she discover she isn’t the only one with the Sight, tha capacity to see fae, and gnomes. Can she save all the creatures and face their fear for once accepting who she really is in order to find happiness and love? A magical story. Blair Seibert does an amzing job with Elisa's mafic world

Delightful

The story in this book kept my interest. I decided I enjoy the audible book as oppose to reading myself. I also enjoyed the narrator's, Ms. Blair Seibert, voice. She helped me image all the characters as she described. Good book.

Great Intriguing Story Life

Cass has lived on the outskirts pretty much her entire life. As someone with a few extra gifts she always tended to keep herself disconnected from the people around her to avoid getting to attached and inevitably hurt. When her great aunt (who shared her gifts) passes on and leaves her this spectacularly old mansion Cass isn’t really sure what to do with herself and it. Further thrust on her are responsibilities that she aren’t sure that she is ready for or really wants.

Cass is one of those FMC’s that I love to hate. She *luckily* shows a lot of self growth through the story but in the beginning of the book she seriously annoyed me. I get self preservation. I get not wanting to get hurt again – but when all the signs are pointing you in a certain direction and you still chose to bugger off into the opposite just because you cant let go of old ways you seriously deserve to bump your head.

Matthew on the other hand is just a little bit too perfect. But then what book boyfriend doesn’t lean towards the perfect side right? Seriously handsome, kind, considerate – plus he doesn’t think Cass belongs in the loony bin.

Add in the bonus of Lily – this really cute, remarkably self aware little girl. She kind of just worms her way into your heart as she does the same to Cass.

Great story line. It kept you intrigued from beginning till end and the detail brought in with the different fae characters was a nice boon. I loved learning more about brownies and being fae led and pixies and so much more.

Great listen.

On that note – the narration was really well done. Ms Seibert had this way of weaving the tale in such a manor that at times I didn’t feel like I was listening to a book – but rather having my mom read me a bed time story. I honestly feel like I could listen to her for hours.

I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Elisa Keyston. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

Magical, Indeed

I love that this book perfectly illustrates the lush pacific northwest. It had me daydreaming as I listened along. It is such a feel-good book and both the author and the narrator do an excellent job on allowing you to get lost in this romantic fantasy.
This is my first book of this genre, but I now am looking forward to book 2!