A Witch Before Dying

Wishcraft Mystery, Book 2

By: Heather Blake

Narrated by: Coleen Marlo

When Darcy is hired by Elodie Keaton to clean up her missing mother's disorderly home, the Wishcrafter is certainly up for the task. After all, the motto of her Aunt Ve's personal concierge service As You Wish is "No Job Impossible." But beneath the piles of old newspapers and knickknacks Darcy discovers something much more disturbing - Patrice Keaton's body.

Darcy's determined to give Elodie peace of mind by investigating her mother's disappearance and death. Patrice was last seen over a year ago after a fight with her Charmcrafter boyfriend. Was her murder a crime of passion? Or were Patrice's troubles caused by the Anicula, a wish-granting amulet? Now Darcy has to not only find a killer, she has to find the Anicula - before the power of ultimate wish fulfillment falls into the wrong hands.

©2012 Heather Webber (P)2014 Tantor

book 2 reveals more in a fun style

I know more about the main characters and the secondary characters which is great. I like how some characters have the opportunity to return in later books.

I am looking forward to Darcy's PI career becoming legit.

I am getting used to the narrator's voice.

love the premise and the development of the story

Good Story!! I love a humorous, witch-y mystery!

While I love the humor and the eccentric characters, I do not love the narrator. Sounds like Energizer Bunny and William Shatner had a daughter. Speed of narration is often a little too fast and emphasis is given on every other syllable at least at the beginning of the book. Once she gets into a rhythm, it gets better, but still a little like sandpaper to the ears. That being said, it's NOT bad enough for me to abandon the series if she continues to be the narrator. I have listened to much worse that have caused me to stop listening and resort to the written word.

Interesting Read

Would you listen to A Witch Before Dying again? Why?

Probably not only because I have so many books ahead to read.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Darcy. She was portrayed as a sensible character, not too overbearing or careless and not whimpy.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

I had a problem with the narration throughout the whole book. I couldn't get my mind off of the narrator's slight British accent that came through regularly even when she wasn't narrating the characters that were meant to have a full on British accents. It distracted me. To me there should have been a Bostonian accent for Darcy and the other local characters because of the area the story took place in. She did an excellent job of the various characters and I enjoyed the female, male, and creatures voices. I was pleased that the narrator didn't sound like a teenager as is found in many books these day which is off-putting.

Any additional comments?

Overall, it was a good book and I enjoyed it.

Good continuation

Enjoyable continuation of the series. Dialog is a bit simplistic and the narration isn't the best, but the overall story is fine and the characters work well.

Great book

I love the story and the fun of this book as well as the narrator. She does an incredible job with all of the voices and sound effects and makes the book a laugh out loud enjoyment