Broomsticks and Board Games

A Spooky Games Club Mystery, Book 1

By: Amy McNulty

Narrated by: Danielle Daly

Length: 7 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's Summary

Dahlia Poplar is a genuine witch, an unofficial gofer, and Luna Lane’s only cursed resident.

With a werewolf best friend, a vampire ex-boyfriend, and a ghost for a hanger-on, Dahlia is far from the most unusual dweller of her sleepy small town, but she’s the only one unable to leave. Dahlia has to perform at least one good deed per day - or she’s one step closer to turning to stone.

Fortunately, the residents of Luna Lane have plenty of tasks for Dahlia to complete to avert the curse until Cable Woodward, fetching professor and nephew of her elderly neighbor, stops by for the semester on sabbatical. Attempting to help Cable’s uncle work through the trauma of losing his wife, Dahlia uncovers the man’s collection of board games, which leads to him reminiscing about the long-forgotten Luna Lane Games Club.

Dahlia reestablishes the Games Club, only to find evidence of a number of horrible demises connected to the original group. While trying to uncover the truth about the deaths, Dahlia has to fight off her curse, protect her elderly neighbor from becoming the next victim, and most vexing of all, keep Cable from figuring out Luna Lane’s supernatural secrets.

Only, with eerie board games like these, there may not be a loser - or even a winner - who survives.

©2020 Amy McNulty (P)2020 Amy McNulty

something witchy happening

When will be the next mystery game to come to Luna Lane's residents? Dahlia was different yet the same. I liked her and her quirks. Dahlia and the cast of characters made this a fun rompin' Luna Lane. I want more Dahlia, Cable, and the others from Luna Lane.

I felt like Danielle Daly's voice fit right in with the paranormal cozy mystery vibe. She was Dahlia for me. She gave me a world that surrounded Dahlia and the rest of the community.

I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Amy McNulty. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

Lots of Fun!

Dahlia is a witch who must perform one good deed each day in order to ward off the curse that's slowly turning her to stone. She also can't leave town. Fortunately for Dahlia, this down is mostly populated by other paranormal beings and everyone is aware of her predicament, so there's no shortage of townsfolk asking her to lend a hand. When Cable Woodward, the very mundane nephew of her ageing neighbour shows up in town around the same time that Dahlia catches wind of trouble in the spirit world and evidence of an old murder turns up in her own back yard, Dahlia fears that everything is about to unravel. Can she solve the mysteries popping up around her? Can she get this nosy mundane off her back and protect her paranormal town from the outside world? And what's with the Clue-knockoff boardgame her ageing neighbour is suddenly so desperate for the town to sit down and play?

This is a quick and easy read, and it's so much fun! There are no dull moments to be found, and this perfect blend of fantasy world-building, elements of mystery, romantic teases, and great friendships all add up to a nerdy dream that demands to be read (or listened to) all in one sitting. Dahlia is a very likable and relatable main character and the perfect POV for this story. I think my favourite minor detail is the fact that this witch's very catlike animate broom is actually possessed by the spirit of her first cat. What an adorable detail!

I see that list is labelled as book one and that makes me very excited! Before I noticed that I was going to comment that while this book stands on its own very well and comes to a satisfying conclusion, I don't want to be done with Dahlia or this town. There's definitely a lot more that can be done here, and I'll be back to find out what happens next!

I would recommend this to all lovers of fantasy and cozy mysteries.

In terms of narration performance, Danielle Daly does a wonderful job. This book only contains one POV, so I can't comment too much on the narrator's talent at making different voices distinct, but I definitely didn't have any trouble telling which lines of dialogue were Dahlia vs anyone else, even in places where the written version of this novel might rely on the visual indicators of paragraph breaks. Daly's voice and pacing were perfect for the story, and I listened quite comfortably at my usual 1.5x playback speed.

5 stars all around!

I was granted complimentary access to Broomsticks and Board Games via Audiobookworm Promotions as part of my participation in a blog tour for this title. Thank you to all involved in affording me this opportunity! My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.

Entertaining and Remarkable: A MUST READ!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was the perfect blend of a cozy mystery, YA fantasy, and paranormal thriller. The book builds intrigue by slowly introducing the protagonist and the mystery surrounding the paranormal community of Luna Lane. Quickly however the novel takes readers on a series of twists and turns that not only introduce some memorable members of this cast of characters but keep the reader on the edge of their seat as both personal and grander threats push Dahlia to the edge.

The audiobook did a great job of drawing the reader in. Between the amazing world-building author Amy McNulty does and the genre-fusion that this story becomes and the soothing yet commanding voice work of narrator Danielle Daly that kept the reader invested, this audiobook was both entertaining and enthralling all at once.

A thrilling, memorable, and engaging read, author Amy McNulty’s “Broomsticks and Board Games” is a fantastic start to the Spooky Games Club series. The cast of characters is quite remarkable and both humorous and entertaining, while the chilling mystery behind both the games club and Dahlia’s curse keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. With a powerful story and equally powerful narrator, this is one audiobook you won’t want to miss. Be sure to grab your copy today!

Love it.

it started off a bit slow but when it finally picked up it turned out to be a great story. I enjoyed the characters and the different array of paranormals that live in the town. I would like to listen/read more in this series. I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review.

The narrator did a great job.

Interesting and entertaining

This is a very interesting and enjoyable book. It has paranormal and regular characters interacting in a small, quiet (until it is no more quiet) town called Luna Lane.

It’s a very good introduction to the series. I’m looking forward to future additions to the series.

I received this audiobook free at my request and I voluntarily left this review.

loved the characters

this really broke up the long drives to work. loved the characters a fun read.

Luna Lane

Loved getting to know the characters of Luna Lane! My 2 favorite genres are mystery and fantasy, so reading a book that combined a mystery with the supernatural was right up my alley. The author did a great job developing each character and creating an intriguing plot. I didn’t expect to be as absorbed into the world of Luna Lane as I was, and I found myself wanting to listen the audiobook whenever I had a free moment.

Cute

Vampires, werewolves, ghosts, witches and broomsticks. How can you not enjoy a book with characters like that? especially when broomsticks love cuddling and hugs. If you want more listen to the audible, you won't be disappointed.

The narrator used voices that were perfect for each character. With a soft easy reading the narrator made it a pleasure to listen.

I received a free copy of this audible. it is my pleasure to leave my review.

wonderful

what a wonderful book. The twist and turns kept me guessing until the end a great addition to my library

Fun and compelling

A little bit of everything in here. Would like to see more from this author. Great listen. Would recommend.

Brilliant

Brilliant audiobook
Dahlia Poplar is a genuine witch, an unofficial gofer, and Luna Lane’s only cursed resident.

Great Paranormal Mystery

A great paranormal mystery with wonderful characters, Witches, werewolves and vampires, ghosts, even the mummy. Lovely inventive touches, the cursed board game. A great story with an excellent narrator who does an excellent job with the voices and the backwards words. Highly recommended

Jumanji or clue?

I loved this book. The plot makes me think of the film Jumanji with a paranormal twist and a good dose of clue (cluedo) mixed in and I loved it. Cluedo was my favourite game growing up as a child, although I don't think I would have liked playing this game but it makes for a great story and a uniquely different adventure. This is a new author for me but it won't be my last book as I will definitely be jumping (hopefully not literally) into book two. I loved the characters, from the main character to her many and various friends, I especially liked the way the author gave the old witches broom a personality. The author has created a clever mystery that keeps you guessing not only who the killer was but also where the story was going to go next. I also liked that it was set in a small town, so everybody knew everybody. With the addition of the curse on the main character it is certainly a very different cozy witch mystery and one I will be recommending to my mum.
Dahlia is a witch that is cursed. Everyday she must carry out an act of kindness, if she fails part of her will turn to stone. While trying to do her good deed for the day she is sent up into the attic of an elderly man to collect a board game and unwittingly gets embroiled in a murder. The game is no ordinary game and the players keep changing to towns folk who have moved away from the town or died. But have they? The game unearths certain memories in the elderly and forgetful neighbour which leads to two skeletons buried in Dahlia's garden. What is going on? And will Dahlia and her friends have to finish the game to find out? At the same time the elderly man's nephew has come to help look after his uncle but being a normal can the town keep there secret from him, as well as find a killer?
I liked the narrator and thought she did an excellent job of bringing this magical story to life.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.