REVIEW: Life’s A Witch by Amelia Ash and Kim M. Watt
Strange magic? Check. A brother who’s still a cat? Check. A cryptic message from an ex-husband who’s in trouble? Wait… what?
Morgan and her ex-husband broke up on bad terms. But when he sends her a cryptic message, Morgan knows that whatever trouble he’s in, it’s likely her fault. Over Ruiner’s protests, she ventures beyond Hollowbeck’s borders to find him.
But instead of finding him, she finds a dead body.
Then she finds the Oubliette, an exclusive gambling club in the town of Darrowdale, which is a mirror image of Hollowbeck – only with a decidedly more dangerous population.
Treachery, dangerous deals, and soul-stealing coffee are all in the cards as Morgan and Ruiner try to find her ex-husband while staying one step ahead of the killer.
But the killer has plans that go beyond murder, and if they get their way, both Hollowbeck and Darrowdale will be lost forever.
Life’s A Witch is the third book in the Hollowbeck Paranormal Cozy Mysteries series from Amelia Ash and bestselling author Kim M. Watt.
Dear Ladies,
This book is not a move back in the right direction. In fact for much of it, it has been an exercise in frustration as our heroine Morgan half-asses her way through situation after situation, not knowing what she’s doing, ignoring common sense, freezing in moments of panic during which she’s also usually in peril, yet also somehow managing to just keep moving in the vague direction of maybe, possibly coming out in one piece.
People as old as I am might remember on certain “Bewitched” or “I Dream of Jeannie” episodes wherein blonde Samantha/Jeannie gets confronted by her snarky brunette evil twin sister Serena/Jeannie II. This book is a little bit like that. Only it’s towns and not women. Once again Morgan is trying to figure out how to use any witchy powers she might have while also discovering who transformed her brother into a cat.
For a person who endlessly whinges about how many times she’s had to go rescue/bail out her feckless brother, Morgan practically hurls herself into saving her mess of an ex-husband. The ex who cheated on her in their house, managed to keep the semi-detached house that Morgan had sunk all her savings into getting, and is a general all around idiot/muppet. Ruiner shakes his head at this in exasperation, telling Morgan that no good will come of her swinging into savior mode for Jason. When she reminds him of how many times she’s done this for him, Ruiner replies that he’s her brother while the muppet took her pride, house, and books.
Of course Morgan does silly things that make me roll my eyes but then again, somehow she also keeps on keeping on, acquiring just the help she needs – okay, I’ll be honest here – often by helping others. It still makes me want to chew nails though. But that, I think, is why she’s written this way. She is intentionally made to wallow through the plot, raising a reader’s blood pressure, yet also managing to snag a reader’s attention if only to discover how she’s going to manage to fall side-ways into a solution.
Dear sweet Lord but I wish Morgan would grow a backbone and finally yell at these feckless men to “do your own damn work!’ or “stop sponging off of me!” Why she feels the need to mop up every man’s spilled problems while getting precious little thanks in return is a mystery to me. This is the third book of this same thing with Ruiner and now Jason whining about how long it’s taking Morgan to arrive and pull their chestnuts out of the fire.
I do enjoy the found family and humor. The cozy paranormal settings are mostly fun and there are some snappy one-liners and banter but I only hope the final book is worth the effort it took me to soldier my way through this one. It’s no wonder her reluctant familiar chitters in irritation at her. There’s a lot that annoys me but by now, I’m invested. C+
~Jayne
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