Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Alchemist and an Amaretto by Annette Marie Narrator: Cris Dukehart
Series: The Guild Codex Spellbound #5
Published by Tantor Audio on January 28, 2020
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Length: 6 hours, 55 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Amazon, Audible, Libro.fm
As a guild bartender, I can handle pretty much anything—mages, sorcerers, witches, the occasional demon. But show me anything family-related and I'd rather run for the hills. It doesn't even have to be my family.
So I have no idea why I thought spending the holidays with Aaron's mom and pop was a good idea.
Meeting his famous parents is already terrifying enough, but I've got a bigger problem. Students of his family's renowned mage academy are being attacked on the grounds--and somehow no one has seen a single assailant? Unexplained tracks litter the nearby woods, rumors of forbidden alchemy are circulating the campus...and Ezra has been acting strangely since we arrived.
Something deadly is brewing in the shadow of Sinclair Academy, and the longer we take to uncover it, the more dangerous it becomes. But no matter the risk, we'll protect the students.
And Aaron's parents too, I suppose. If we have to.
I continue to love the Guild Codex Spellbound series and its world. The books are in Kindle Unlimited currently but I’ve listening to them on audio from the library, and now for review.
Tori is such a sassy and yet caring character. She is all heart and loyalty to her friends, and has some compassion for others. Tori is willing to jump in to protect others, even when her skills are limited and it is very dangerous for her. Thankfully, she has been training and learning more skills and magic. We also get a glimpse of Robin and Zylas before everyone leaves for the holidays.
The Alchemist and an Amaretto is actually kind of a holiday story. Tory and the guys are invited to go with Aaron to his parents. They are exposed to the parents constantly pushing him and how Aaron deals with this difficulty. Tori learns more about why he is in the Crow & Hammer and stays there in spite of the incredible offers he receives from other guilds.
There are some strange incidents both before and after they arrive with some very strange attacks on the students. With their combat experience, Tori and the guys end up working on the mystery of where they are from and trying to stop the attacks.
The other main theme is Tori’s growing attraction to Ezra. He’s been strange lately; it seems like he is avoiding her. But it turns out to be a different thing. We learn a lot more about what is happening with Ezra and how demons / contracts work. The next book can’t be available soon enough!
Narration:
Cris Dukehart is my voice for Tori and with her point of view, it is a comfortable stream in my head. Her male and female voices seem right. She is doing a great job with her performance of this series. I was able to listen at my normal 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip: HERE
About Annette Marie
Annette Marie is the author of YA urban fantasy series Steel & Stone, its prequel trilogy Spell Weaver, and romantic fantasy trilogy Red Winter. Her first love is fantasy, but fast-paced urban fantasy, bold heroines, and tantalizing forbidden romances are her guilty pleasures. She proudly admits she has a thing for dragons, and her editor has politely inquired as to whether she intends to include them in every single book.
Annette lives in the frozen winter wasteland of Alberta, Canada (okay, it’s not quite that bad). She shares her life with her remarkably patient, comparatively sensible husband and their furry minion of darkness—sorry, cat—Caesar. When not writing, she can be found elbow-deep in one art project or another while blissfully ignoring all adult responsibilities.
| Rating Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Plot |
|
| Writing |
|
| Characters |
 |
| Narration (Audio) |
|
| Overall: | |
I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
Friend or follow me at Goodreads.
- Series on Saturday: HGTV Edition @katecarlisle @JulietBlackwell #CallieCarpenter @dianekellybooks @bennett_jenna @mstessabailey #SeriesOnSaturday - September 14, 2024
- 🎧 Death at the Sanatorium by Ragnar Jónasson @ragnarjo#SamWoolf @MinotaurBooks @MacmillanAudio #LoveAudiobooks - September 12, 2024
- 🎧The Swimmer by Loreth Anne White @Loreth @rebabuhr #BrillianceAudio #LoveAudiobooks #KindleUnlimited - September 10, 2024
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- COYER Friends
I love how this one already has you looking forward to the next and it sounds like a fun series. Wonderful review, Anne!
Thank you! This is a really fun series and I’ve been enjoying it a lot. The narrator is excellent, too.
I really like this series. i read the ebooks instead of the audio versions, but it sounds the audio versions are great too, so I might re-read them in audio eventually. This one was a bit of a holiday story indeed. I like how Tori is just a normal human, but she still jumps in danger for her friends. I like how her skills grow throughout the series. Great review!
Yes I sometimes think Tori is a bit too eager to jump in without any of the abilities some of the others have. But I appreciate her loyalty and she has been learning.
I loved this one and agree i need the next audiobook stat!!
Tori’s spirit is just so strong. I have faith she is going to figure things our for our guys.
i love when i can really involved with a character, watching them grow throughout the story, and all things magical.
Character growth is key to a great story.
I had a really nice time with this one as well!
It’s really a fun series. I like Tori.
Glad its still staying strong as a series read for you. I like ones like this that get into the background of characters so it explains why they are the way they are.
It’s also really fun. There’s a light-heartedness to it even in dire situations which makes it easy to read.
This series sounds wonderful! I am pretty sure that I would enjoy it so I will put it on my wishlist.
I really love it. I’ve been on a binge of it this year with the audios from the library. I don’t think I reviewed them all but I was SO excited to read them. I’d love to hear your thoughts on them. I highly recommend them as they are fun and somehow just easy to read. The narrator is a favorite also.
I have the first book and I just know I’m going to have fun with this series. Such cool titles and covers for them too!
I’ve really been enjoying this series!
I wish I would have picked this series up when it first started. Maybe someday I’ll have enough time to give it a go! It just sounds like so much fun. Thanks.
I really enjoy this series! I hope you get to try it because it’s great.