The Apothecary cover art

The Apothecary

City of Dreams, Book 1

 Preview

Get 30 days of Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30-day free trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options
Buy Now for £14.99

Buy Now for £14.99

About this listen

Makoud, a middle-aged apothecary, has come to Málaga with his family to work. Shortly after they arrive, the khalifa Yahya I dies. Rumors say he was poisoned. Makoud is worried that the poison used by the assassins was bought from his shop. His son Umar, now a soldier in the khalifa’s army, decides to investigate - but he underestimates the power of the people behind the assassination and finds himself arrested and accused of murder. His father, family, and friends pool all their resources to try and help him, but the closer they get to the truth, the greater the danger they find themselves in.

In the first novel in a new historical series set in Moorish Spain, Joan Fallon sets the action in the busy medieval port of Málaga. Following on from the successful al-Andalus series, we meet again with the younger members of the family who had escaped from the besieged city of Córdoba.

©2019 Joan Fallon-Cook (P)2020 Joan Fallon-Cook Historical Historical Fiction Romance Middle Ages
All stars
Most relevant
For at least halfway, I really struggled to get into this book... which I couldn't understand, because it had all the individual aspects of a story I'd enjoy - it has a historical and cultural basis, contains good use of language, engaging story and is character-driven... but for some reason I found it quite difficult to follow the plot. Having thought about it, I think the reason is that there are so many characters and plot threads, that are introduced too early on in the book. I found it difficult to remember how everyone is connected with one another. As the course of the book progressed, I did feel it got better though, as I was starting to get to know the characters a little better. I feel like this is one I'll have to listen to a second time to fully get every detail of the story.

Narrator Jacob Daniels is perfectly cast. I will admit to being possibly a little biased because I know him personally - but truthfully I can't imagine anyone performing it better. Every character has a distinct voice and his narrative is engaging and consistent. I do think there are a couple of technical issues with the production side of it, but not to the extent that they ruin the story.

Enjoyed it... but too many characters!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.