Founder's Night: Supernatural Witch Cozy Mystery (Sabrina Donner Mystery Book 1) by Zoey Summers

3 out of 5 stars

Sabrina Donner owns the Badger House, a B&B named after her Labrador, located in the small town of Nescott Bay, Oregon. When a series of petty thefts rock the area, Sabrina doesn't worry much. Figuring it's just a bored teenager, she focuses on getting ready for her guests who will be arriving soon. Then she notices some things missing from the yard, a guest arrives and has jewelry taken from her room, and then Sabrina's purse is stolen and she is attacked. Now, not only is she having to solve the robberies, but she's also dealing with the discovery that she may be a witch!

I got this short story free from Kindle. I've had it on my tablet for quite a while and I decided to finally read it as I was looking for something that I could pore over quickly on my lunch hour. It was a cute, fun, and fast little read. I liked all the characters, especially Badger the dog, and the story was well written. My only complaint is that Sabrina could be a bit dense. When weird things start happening to her, like she could nod her head at her phone after talking to someone and it would hang up, or when she needed a pen and it wasn't within reach so she just thought about it being in her hand and then it was, she would write these off as nothing. If it was just one or two odd occurrences I could understand, but there were several and they happened too frequently to just be nothing to be concerned about. It isn't a big deal though. Just something that bothered me a little. Aside from that I enjoyed the story.

If you are looking for something to pass a little time without getting involved in a lengthy novel, I would recommend this Founder's Night.

Total pages: 50 on Kindle app

No longer available on Amazon.

Is currently available as a Nook Book through Barnes and Noble at the link below:

Founders Night by Zoey Summers

A Witch and the Whispering Woe by Raven Cross

2 out of 5 stars

When Bed & Breakfast owner Brianna Olney discovers an employee murdered outside of her establishment, she has to follow the clues to find the culprit, but finding the answers won't come so easily for her. With her magical cat by her side, Brianna uses her natural gifts to try to piece all the mysterious elements together, but soon finds herself in danger.

Are Brianna's natural gifts enough to help her solve the case or is there another, even more magical mystery brewing behind the scenes?
I got this book free from Kindle and I'm glad I did. I wouldn't have wanted to pay for it. The idea of a talking, magical cat will always appeal to me in a cozy mystery, but this story just felt thin and weak. There was no character development and the backstory was virtually non-existent. I couldn't get a grasp of the characters or their connection to each other. Everything was pretty non-descriptive so trying to get a visual was difficult. The mystery was somewhat sloppy and didn't pull me in. It is definitely a quick read if that's what you are looking for. Other than that I don't have much to say about it. The only reason I didn't rate it one star is because I didn't actually hate it and believe it could have been a great story if the author had given more time to developing the characters. Unfortunately she didn't and I probably won't remember I even read this book.

Total pages: 119 on Kindle app

Available on Amazon at the link below:

A Witch and the Whispering Woe

 

In Case We Die edited by Bud Smith & Aaron Dietz (short story collection by various authors)

 

4 out of 5 stars

I won this book as part of a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.

This book is a collection of shorts where the authors answer the question, "What's the weirdest thing that has ever happened to you?" Some of the answers involve ghosts and UFO's while others involve celebrity encounters and strange coincidences. Either way I found it to be a very entertaining book and I finished it in one day. It is a unique collection in my opinion, since not all the stories have a common theme like you see in other books of a similar nature. Each tale varies in size from one paragraph to a few pages and keeps the reader interested in knowing what the next answer will be. Some of the stories are supernatural in nature and provide a good "creeped out" feeling, while others made me laugh a little as I read them. Naturally I liked some more than others, but was overall intrigued by each one. Since it has so many different types of stories, you could recommend this book to virtually anyone.....and I would.

Total pages: 188, paperback

Available on Amazon at the link below:

In Case We Die

 

Starlet's End: A Young Adult Mystery (The Starlet, #4) by Carla J Hanna

Not rated.

I won this book as part of a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.

After Hollywood celebrity actress Liana Marie Michael secretly marries Manny, his sister Janet performs on stage against her parents' wishes before running away. Moments before their honeymoon, the newlyweds find Janet while learning two things: not only is Liana's career over due to her scar, but the doctor responsible for the anti-aging drugs is on the move with funding from Liana's lawyer. With the help of sexy ex-boyfriend Pierre and people from Liana's past, can they find the doctor so Liana can control her future? Will it be in time to save her dying mother?

A couple of things about this book:

One, it cannot be read as a stand-alone. I can’t stress that enough. It was stated that you could, but that is not accurate as there is virtually no backstory.

Two, the reason for it not being rated is because I have added this book to my abandoned pile and although I have in the past rated books that I haven’t finished, I don’t think that’s actually fair.

I will not be going back and reading the first three as I honestly didn’t care for the writing style or any of the characters, especially the main one. Obviously this just isn’t my type of book.

Total pages: 176, paperback

Available on Amazon at the link below:

Starlet's End

Dead Wrong (Blackmoore Sisters Mystery #1) by Leighann Dobbs

3 out of 5 stars

The four Blackmoore sisters live in Noquitt, Maine in a home that has been in their family for over 200 years. The two oldest, Morgan and Fiona, are the main focal point in this story and they have their own shop on the property, Sticks and Stones, an herbal remedies and jewelry store. It is no secret that the Blackmoore's and the town shrew, Prudence Littlefield, don't like each other. When oldest sister, Morgan, is overheard threatening Prudence at a local coffee shop, and then Prudence ends up dead, Morgan is the first and only suspect for the inept town Sheriff. Luckily, Jake, a detective who recently moved from Boston, is also on the case. With his help, the sisters start investigating into who killed Prudence, and why Morgan was set up to take the fall.

This was a quick, cute, and fun little read. I finished it in one day. It wasn't the best cozy mystery I have ever read but it also wasn't the worst. It was a little clunky at times and you never did get to find out what happened to their mother. According to the book, she committed suicide by jumping off the cliff that runs along their property years prior, but it's never stated why or given any type of backstory. It was also ridiculous the way the Sheriff didn't follow some of the most basic and commonly known police procedures while investigating the murders. Which was another thing that bothered me a little. There were 2 murders that occurred, but the focus was mostly on the first one.The second murder really wasn't necessary in order to tie up the investigation and I was able to figure out who the killer was immediately. Even with all that, it was still a pretty decent book.

As far as the characters, I liked all the sisters even though I felt like they could have used a little more development. Jake, the detective, was a nice, if not somewhat predictable, love interest for Fiona. When it came to Sheriff Overton, I had the hardest time with his character. Mostly due to the fact that you never find out his reasons for disliking the sisters so much. You also get a sense that he has involvement in the murders, but you never find out what that is. He seemed to create more questions than answers.

I was a bit disappointed that this was not a witchy or paranormal mystery. Something about it made me think it was. Maybe because the shop the two sisters own is a very New Age type store. There was a feline who was fairly present in the story however and continuously "assisted" the sisters in their investigation so that made up for some of that. I am always up for a good cat cozy and this could almost be classified as such.

All in all if you are looking for a light, rainy day read, then I would recommend this book. Just don't go into it expecting too much.

Total pages: 252, Kindle edition

Available on Amazon at the link below:
Dead Wrong

Colony of the Lost by Derik Cavignano

4 out of 5 stars

Glenwood, Massachusetts appears to be the perfect town, but it's actually home to a long-forgotten secret. Built upon the ruins of a lost colony with a dark part, children start vanishing from the quaint little town one by one, baffling the police. In order to rid the town of the evil that has escaped, an unlikely group of misfits must band together to fight it. Jay, a disgraced math teacher, Time, an awkward teen, and Sarah, a bullied nine-year old. Will they be able to defeat their own personal demons in order to take on a real one?

This book turned out to be quite the surprise. A real page turner, it's an engrossing paranormal thriller that does not suffer from lulls in action. I was pulled in from the very beginning and could not put it down. The story flowed and something was always happening to keep my interest going. The characters were well developed and not your typical "save the day" types. Jay, an alcoholic math teacher who loses his job and his fiancé, is a surprisingly likeable character even when you find yourself shaking your head at his behavior. His internal struggle with his alcoholism is well written and you can't help but start to sympathize and hope he can overcome his addiction. Then there is Tim, the new kid in town, who by talking to a pretty girl, angers her boyfriend and ends up suffering from relentless bullying. And finally, Sarah, a friendless little girl who doesn't understand why the other kids in school don't like her, so instead of suffering from complete loneliness, she holds onto her imaginary friend. Both of these are equally endearing characters and you can't help but root for all of them as they are basically forced to go up against the evil that has infiltrated their town.

If you are looking for a horror novel with a sci-fi/paranormal twist to it, then I would recommend this book.

Total pages: 314, Kindle edition

Available on Amazon at the link below:

Colony of the Lost

Ethereal (Celestra Series Book 1) by Addison Moore

3 out of 5 stars

Skyla Messenger has a special gift. She is able to read people's minds when she touches them.

When her mother remarries after the death of her father, the family moves to Paragon Island into a house that is rumored to be haunted. That's when Skyla meets Logan Oliver, the best looking boy she has ever seen. The best part is he likes her too and he has the same gift she does. Not understanding what this gift means, Logan holds the answers to her questions, but he is reluctant to share them, leaving her to believe that maybe he has a few secrets he is unwilling to share. Secrets he doesn't want Skyla to know. Logan is afraid that the more she knows, the more danger she will be in as a legion of earthbound angels will want her dead once they discover her true bloodline. Will Logan be able to save her? And will Skyla be able to keep Logan?

I had this book sitting in my Kindle for a couple years. I couldn't remember why I got it since it's not typically the type of book I read (I've read a few YA paranormal romance, but not many) and after reading some reviews, I was a little apprehensive in starting it. I'm glad I decided to because it wasn't nearly as bad as some made it out to be. Was this a great book? No. Was it a bad book? No. I actually enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Some of the things that people complained about made me wonder if we were reading the same story. As an example, I saw one review where the person complained that Skyla kept mentioning she was a virgin, yet I only saw this stated twice. I do agree with some though that there wasn't much relationship development when it came to Skyla and her new friends, and the romance between her and Logan did come on very strong, very fast, but it's pretty much your typical YA paranormal romance so that didn't really surprise me. I would have liked it if the author would have focused a bit more on explaining her father's death and also why Skyla had such a strong dislike for her step-father, but aside from that, it was a fun, quick read and I was able to finish it in one sitting. If you like Twilight or books that are similar, then you will most likely enjoy Ethereal.

Total pages: 225, Kindle edition

Available on Amazon at the link below:

Ethereal