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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Stargate with a Fae twist

Where does The Keepers rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I would put it in the top 10%

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I did listen to it in one day

Any additional comments?

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review

great story. Jo is spunky and Cormac is the dark, sexy stranger we all want!! Downlaoding 2nd book as I type this. Cant wait to find out what happens next.

Refreshing

On the jacket: "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."

Whaaaaat?! Yeah, I'm in.

I enjoyed this book so much, that I found myself thinking about it when I wasn't listening to it. It's paranormal with a hint of romance, and it's not at all what I expected. It's refreshing to read a book where the author has found a way to introduce a classic story in a whole new way. I'm already on to book 2 of the series! The narration is good, and works for this story.

I received a free copy of the audiobook for an honest review.