The Apothecary of Mantua: A Supernatural Sequel to Romeo and Juliet

By: Aaron Hollingsworth

Narrated by: Scott Richard Ehredt

Length: 4 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

This is the story of a drug deal gone bad.

Having committed the crime of selling a potent poison to a desperate youth, a destitute apothecary must decide how to spend his ill-gained fortune. Resolving to start his career afresh, he flees to the city of Verona to set up a new shop of medicinal healing and alchemical discovery.

Plans go awry when he finds himself in the middle of a woeful tragedy he had unwittingly helped to cause. Can his knowledge of nature's secrets and the inspiration of a fairy queen help restore the six lives lost? Will his exploits go undetected by a hellbent inquisitor and a noble assassin? Or was the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet only the beginning of Verona's doom?

This sick-minded sequel is both travesty and tribute to Shakespeare's classic play. New characters are introduced as old ones are reenvisioned in a madcap escapade of murder, magic, mystery, man eating, and malicious mayhem. No flesh is safe from the eerie evil hidden in the minds of men, not even the flesh of the dead....

©2013 Aaron Hollingsworth (P)2015 Aaron Hollingsworth

Fantastic tale of the human condition

Would you consider the audio edition of The Apothecary of Mantua: A Supernatural Sequel to Romeo and Juliet to be better than the print version?

I have not had the opportunity to read this book, but I found the audio version to portray an excellent story of the folly of man. Always fallible in all emotions and never learning from past mistakes and misdeeds.

What did you like best about this story?

I have always been a lover of the macabre and all of Shakespeare's work. I have recently been rereading several of Shakespeare's plays and have listened to this brilliant tale several times. I found that Mr. Hollingsworth is a true genius. He took a classic play and blended it with a bit of all the literary genres. He expertly incorporated the supernatural, a touch of the zombie craze, crime, mystery and fantasy to create a unique story that takes all of humanities desires and faults and twists and turns them throughout the book and ends it with a bang! Plus, Scott Richard Ehredt was the perfect narrator for the audio book. His rich tone and intonation gave each character a unique voice that enriched all aspects of this story. He used a mixture of the Old English dialect and added that with great portrayals of lunatics, madmen, creatures and even pious women.

Which scene was your favorite?

I loved all the interactions between the apothecary and his crocodile. They brought all the aspects and intrigue of the book to light.

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

I thought the portrayal of Juliet was exquisite. When she discovered the truth of her situation and addressed it in a truly unexpected manner, really showed the strength of the author's imagination. Plus all the other macabre twists made this book a delight.

Any additional comments?

I was given this audio book by the author and Audiobook.Boom and was richly rewarded with a story that I still hear clearly, whereas most others just fade along side the thousands I have read. Thank you Mr. Hollingsworth. It was a true pleasure!

Better than Pride Predjudice and Zombies

See, this is how a real writer reimagines a classic. Instead of retooling a story with the insertion of werewolves, zombies, or vampires he picks up where the original left off, and throws the monkey wrench in. What happens when you try to make up for something? Well, as the saying goes the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Things don't go awry as he attempts to remedy all the pain and death that he caused, they go atomic. All hell breaks loose, and it does so in a most graphic and gorey way. What fun!!!!!!

I have really enjoyed Hollingsworth's other works, but this one was really just pure candy to me. I would love to know where his idea came from to make the apothecarey be the impetus that brings back Romeo and Juliet.

Ehredt does a great job narrating this story, it takes one heck of a storyteller to pull off Shakespeare and zombies.

This is just brilliance from page one to the last. It is a sweet ride into the imagination ofa great storyteller, so go get a ticket and hop on before it passes you by.

The Apothecary of Mantua

I loved this story. The way it was written, the humor involved, the layers of vampirical madness... I even liked the ending. I was hesitant to start this book because I didn't want another version of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (which I really enjoyed). Romeo and Juliet is such a classic tale, I wanted a story to turn it on its head. Boom, mission accomplished. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone so I will avoid specifics. Just know that this is a great combination of both humorous and horrific. I knew those 11 herbs and spices were important!

Insightful and Interesting

Any additional comments?

An enjoyable book with good narration. Highly recommended!

This review copy audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost."

The Bard Unleashed!

What if Shakespeare met Edgar Allan Poe? I loved this story! It’s very creative and unique.

Now this is the story of Rome and Juliet I wanted

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Oh god yes. The story is great, dark and man oh man did it have some great characters narrated by Scott Richard Ehredt.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Apothecary of Mantua: A Supernatural Sequel to Romeo and Juliet?

It's hard to say one without giving the story away. Lets just say the outcome of the assassin.

Which character – as performed by Scott Richard Ehredt – was your favorite?

Any of the villains but more importantly Ori, his reptilian like hissing sound send shivers the first time I heard it.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

No good deed goes unpunished

Any additional comments?

At first I did not think this was going to be the story for me but man was it perfect. I want more of this author now and Scott Richard Ehredt did a fantastic job narrating that I want to hear more of his work. Thank you guys for such a great book.
"I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom."

solid

A fairly powerful reading and a story that made me smile and laugh loud enough to make it socially awkward in public places. Just by it and enjoy the ride. The bard should have had faith in reincarnation.

Original and Imaginative

I was given a copy of this audio book free of charge so that I could listen and then provide my honest review. I found this book enjoyable to listen to and Scott Richard Ehredt's voice seemed to be the perfect narrator to carry us back to this shakespearean period in time. An original twist to the Romeo and Juliet classic. Credit worthy listen.

This book is so good… It’s so good!

Aaron Hollingsworth is quickly becoming one of my new favorite authors he has the most Corkys imagination and thank the Lord above he shares his wit and humor with us. This is the seventh or eighth book I have read from Aaron and he has yet to disappoint. This Romeo and Juliet take with narcissism so OK awesome with intelligence and the list goes on and on if you’re into all these things you’ll love this book. If you don’t know what I mean just get the book and trust me you’ll love Aaron Hollingsworth as I did. Not to mention how great is that freaking narrator he is so awesome I think his name is Scott is Scott you’re freaking awesome. If you think that I am just an upbeat positive happy person you’re wrong I’m negative, better and usually angry this is how this book made me feel when it was over cannot wait to read another by Aaron as I said I loved it!

this was an interesting take.

I liked this book. it was very creative. although the ending was very different than I expected. I would recommend it. the performance​ was great.