Audio Review: Against the Grain by Charlie Cochet – Narrated by Mark Westfield

Title: Against the Grain (Thirds: Book Five)

Author: Charlie Cochet

Narrator: Mark Westfield

Run Time: 7 hours and 58 minutes

At a Glance: Awesome on every level.

Reviewed By: Amy

Blurb: As the fiercest Defense Agent at the THIRDS, Destructive Delta’s Ash Keeler is foul-mouthed and foul-tempered. But his hard-lined approach always yields results, evident by his recent infiltration of the Coalition. Thanks to Ash’s skills and the help of his team, they finally put an end to the murdering extremist group for good, though not before Ash takes a bullet to save teammate Cael Maddock. As a result, Ash’s secrets start to surface, and he can no longer ignore what’s in his heart.

Cael Maddock is no stranger to heartache. As a Recon Agent for Destructive Delta, he has successfully maneuvered through the urban jungle that is New York City, picking up his own scars along the way. Yet nothing he’s ever faced has been more of a challenge than the heart of Ash Keeler, his supposedly straight teammate. Being in love isn’t the only danger he and Ash face as wounds reopen and new secrets emerge, forcing them to question old loyalties.

Review: I’ve reviewed every audiobook for this series. When the characters switched, and the story was now centered around Ash and Cael, I was so excited and yet, I was nervous on two levels. The First, I adore Cael and Ash as secondary characters but was worried that once they took center stage, the magic that is Dex and Sloane would be lost… I shouldn’t have worried. Charlie Cochet is such an incredible writer. She is able to give a new couple a different voice, yet keep the magic from the previous stories. To me, this author can do no wrong as of late. Cael was a perfect blend of shy and confident in his feelings for Ash. Ash was his typical A-hole self, but with loving undertones. What more can you ask for than to have the person you love make you a better person, while not losing your core self? Well, Ash shows how this is done.

Narration: The second concern I had was with Mark Westerfield. I adore him as a narrator; however, his voice is so engrained in my head as Dex and Sloane that I was worried it would pull me out of the story. Again, I was completely wrong. As usual this man is AWESOME. I found myself still laughing through the antics of Cael and Dex, while completely getting lost in the story.

Awesome on every level.