Witch Way to Mintwood by Addison Creek #AmateurSleuth, #Ghosts, #Humor

The Plot:

(Witch of Mintwood Book 1)

House falling down? Check. Pet sitting job with annoying clients? Check. Ability to speak to ghosts, which has the unfortunate side effect of having to listen to what they say back? Double check! Hot high school crush still in town being all successful and stuff while you protest his building projects? All kinds of checks! Did anyone say Witch of Mintwood? Yup! Just add murder and this will be a week to remember!

About the Author:

I was unable to find any info on this author. S/he has no bio, photo, website or social media presence.

Review:

Lemmie sees dead things—both people and animals. She speaks to them, too. Unfortunately, she also has to listen to them. Her grandmother was The Witch of Mintwood, and Lemmie inherited the title/job along with her grandma’s Victorian farmhouse and spacious yard. One of the ghosts in the yard blackmails her into checking on her great-great-granddaughter, who goes missing along with a family heirloom. Lemmie doesn’t even like the girl, but the ghostly grannie’s a handful. She doggedly pursues the case with the help of her best friends and roommates—Greer and Charlie, and Paws, the ghost cat, who her grandmother inherited along with the house.

Witch Way to Mintwood had me chuckling on the first page, and kept my attention to the end. I liked Lemmie, even though I didn’t learn her name until the sixth chapter. And I just now skimmed almost the entire rest of the book looking for her last name, but only a few people in the book seem to have last names, a notable one being Jasper Wolf, who makes Lemmie’s knees weak. However, her grandmother warned her to stay away from him, just as his grandfather issued a similar warning to him about her. I had questions about Jasper that were left unanswered.

Greer and Charlie have romantic sub-plots, but otherwise, the background characters could almost be painted on flats had this been written as a play. They’re pretty two-dimensional. Maybe that’s why Ms./Mr. Creek is completely invisible, with no website, Twitter account, or even an Amazon author page.

That said, I’ll probably buy the second book in the series. I still have those questions about Jasper Wolf.

Warnings:  None

Length:  189 Pages

Digital Price:  $0.99

Buy Link:  https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B01N5HIGH5

Thanks for visiting.

Temporarily Insane by Vicki Batman @VickiBatman #Contemporary #HumorousRomance #RomCom

The Plot:

No man. Bad job. And Murder. Hattie Cooks is still searching for her dream job, and one might be available—in the Big Apple, far from friends, family, and Allan Wellborn, the man who still makes her heart race. In the meantime, she finds temporary employment at an accounting firm where two auditor friends turn up dead.

Detective Allan Wellborn dropped Hattie for Blonde Bimbo who, coincidentally, is employed at NLB where fishy things are taking place. When Allan interviews Hattie, he must determine why all signs point to her as a suspect.

Can Hattie discover why Allan dumped her and who is murdering auditors before death strikes again?

About the Author:

Award-winning author Vicki Batman has sold many romantic comedy works to the True Magazines, several publishers, and most recently, two romantic comedy mysteries to The Wild Rose Press. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and several writing groups. Ms. Batman is an avid Jazzerciser, handbag lover, mahjong player, yoga practioner, movie fan, book devourer, cat fancier, best mom ever, And, she adores Handsome Hubby.

Most days begin with her hands set to the keyboard thinking, What if?

Review:

Anyone who follows this blog knows I’m a longtime fan of Ms. Batman. I loved the first Hattie Cooks Mystery, Temporarily Employed, and the second book, Temporarily Insane, does not disappoint.

I have to say, though, I would not want to share a temp assignment with Hattie. She’s had two so far, and people got killed at both. I’m beginning to think maybe she’s a jinx. First, she worked at a car insurance company, and people got killed. Now they’re dropping like flies at the accounting firm where she works. Nope, I think maybe Hattie should become a writer. It’s a nice, solitary job.

But that wouldn’t be any fun for those of us who love to read about her escapades—and those of her fun-sisters, her family, and of course, her favorite detective (when he’s not dating Blonde Bimbo) Allan Wellborn.

Wow—two choking hazards in a row. You’d think I’d have lost weight. Since my twin addictions are reading and eating, fortunately, I’ve gotten good at Hiemliching myself. This is another book you have to buy! Just don’t eat or drink while you read it, unless you’re good at rescuing yourself when you laugh so hard you choke.

Author Website:  http://vickibatman.blogspot.com

Warnings:  None

Length:  272 Pages

Prices:

Print:  $16.99

Digital:  $5.99

Buy Link: 

The Wild Rose Press:  http://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/all-titles/4520-temporarily-insane.html

You’ll notice we always include the publisher’s buy link. That’s because authors usually receive 40-50% of the net proceeds from the publisher. Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%. When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left. So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40-$2.99. If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $1.70-$2.10.

Download the file from the publisher onto your computer as you would any other file. I’ve created a folder for books on my computer, with subfolders by source (Marketing for Romance Writers, Net Galley, Authors who find me on Kindle lists, etc.). That way, if there’s a glitch with your Kindle, the books are on your computer. Some publishers send books in all digital formats. If my Kindle breaks and my kids buy me a Nook, I won’t have to replace all of my books. If you have a Kindle and your hubby has a Nook, you won’t have to buy separate copies, so buying directly from the publisher can save you money.

Moving the file from your computer to your e-reader is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive. Plug the larger USB end of your e-reader charging chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from the folder into which you’ve downloaded the book to Documents/Books directory on your e-reader. You can move the file by highlighting it and dragging it to the documents directory in you Kindle you want to move it to. Or right click on it, and then left click copy or move. Or hit Control/C for copy, Control/X for cut, and Control/V for paste.

Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting.

Her Best Man by Jana Richards @JanaRichards_ #RomCom #Contemporary #HumorousRomance

The Plot:

Sarah Stevens experiences a bride’s worst nightmare: being dumped at the altar. When she goes on the Caribbean cruise meant to be her honeymoon in order to lick her wounds, she discovers her ex-fiancé has sent his brother, Will Marshall, the former best man, on the cruise as well. Everyone on board thinks they’re newlyweds, and Sarah is too embarrassed to set them straight. How is she supposed to share a tiny cabin with a man she barely knows? How is she supposed to pretend she and Will are on their honeymoon? Even worse, how can she keep from falling in love with him? Sarah discovers the best man for her really is the best man.

About the Author:

Jana Richards has tried her hand at many writing projects over the years, from magazine articles and short stories to paranormal suspense and romantic comedy. She loves to create characters with a sense of humor, but also a serious side. She believes there’s nothing more interesting then peeling back the layers of a character to see what makes them tick.

When not writing up a storm, working at her day job as an Office Administrator, or dealing with ever-present mountains of laundry, Jana can be found on the local golf course pursuing her newest hobby.

Jana lives in Western Canada with her husband Warren, and a highly-spoiled Pug/Terrier cross named Lou.

You can reach Jana through her website at http://www.janarichards.com, her Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/JanaRichardsAuthor, or her blog http://janarichards.blogspot.com

Review:

Poor Sarah Stevens—jilted at the author. It’s bad enough when you have to rescind invitations and return gifts from the comfort and relative anonymity of home, but to stand there at the church waiting for her fiancé Brad Marshall to say “I do” only to hear “I can’t do this,”… That’s enough to make a girl want to get out of town awhile.

Will Marshall’s an adventure travel writer recuperating from his latest trip—down the Amazon, and the bug he picked up along the way. His novel is languishing on his laptop, and while home between assignments he serves as his brother, Brad’s, best man. Brad suggests Marshall take his cruise ticket so he can work on his novel aboard ship while Brad grovels at Sarah’s feet trying to get her back. Needless to say, Sarah and Marshall don’t expect to end up sharing a tiny cabin aboard a ship full of people who think they’re newlyweds.

I started laughing on the first page when Sarah’s mother removed her shoe and started whacking Brad with it, chasing him out of the church, wailing about how he’d humiliated her. Even then, Marshall wanted to comfort Sarah rather than his brother, despite the fact he’d only met her at the rehearsal the evening before. Yes, this book, like all of Ms. Richards’ books, comes with a choking warning. Do not eat or drink while reading—you’ll laugh so hard you’ll choke, and liquid will spew out your nose. Buy the book!

Author Website:  http://www.janarichards.com

Warnings:  None

Length:  166 Pages

Print:  $10.99

Digital:  $5.99

Buy Link:  https://smile.amazon.com/dp/1532718322

Thanks for visiting.