I'd Rather Be a Witch

The Witching Hour Collection

By: Erin Hayes

Narrated by: Kristin James

Length: 3 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

Jordyn wasn't careful with what she wished for. After making a reckless choice that destroyed her life along with the life of her high school sweetheart, Jordyn fled her small town and became a professional mermaid. Being around water suppresses her earth-based magic, something she desperately needs. Yet Jordyn can't suppress who she really is - a witch.

When she learns that her mother is dying of cancer, she returns home. But it isn't until people end up dead and everyone points fingers at her that she realizes her past is coming back to haunt her. Because her ex-boyfriend Zach has been waiting for her. And he hasn't forgotten how she brought him back to life that night three years ago. Jordyn will finally have to embrace being a witch to learn the truth. And it will change her life forever.

I'd Rather be a Witch is a tie-in with How to be a Mermaid. It uses some of the same characters and can be heard as a standalone or as a complement to it.

©2015 Erin Hayes (P)2016 Erin Hayes

Interesting take on witches

Any additional comments?

I really enjoyed listening to this story. The narrator did a great job and helped to bring life to the different characters. The story seemed to end a bit quickly but I enjoyed how the story was wrapped up.

loved it

"I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com."

this was a great book. i absolutely loved it. i would love to read the rest.

Mysterious plot

After making a mistake in judgement 3 years earlier, Jordyn had to leave her home and start fresh, leaving her family and high school sweetheart behind. When she was called back home, she had to figure out how to undo what she had done in the past. Overall this was a quick read that had me guessing until the end.
This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast.

Cute

very cute read with some very cute characters. The story overall could be read by teenagers to geriatrics. I would consider reading more in this series.

Mysterious darkness

I'd Rather be a Witch is definitely darker and more mysterious than How to be a Mermaid. It is a good read and the story is excellently woven with mystery and intrigue that keeps you guessing and involved in the storyline. Kristin James does a good job at changing her voice for different characters and creating inflection for different emotions and situations while she is reading. I would have preferred that she not try to sound so deep for the main character. It fits and makes sense for the character but seems unnatural for her voice.

I'm Conflicted on this book.....

I'm Conflicted on this book.....THIS IS A 3 1/2 STAR BOOK!! The Story is SO MUCH DIFFERENT then all the other Books I've read!! DIFFERENT IN AN AWESOME WAY but I feel the book fell just a bit short! with that I mean I WANTED MORE(so yes that's a good thing)I guess all I can say is we all see what transpires next!
I am NORMALLY A HUGE FAN of Kristin James! So much so that she's 1 of the narrators that if I see a book read by her I just grab it NO MATTER WHAT THE BOOK IS ABOUT! With that said, I'm not such a fan of this 1! It has a LOT to do with the way it sounds! I'm not sure if there were recording problems or what!!! HOWEVER I'LL STILL BUY BOOKS NARRATED BY HER CAUSE I'M A FAN FOR LIFE!!

A Mixed Bag But Mostly Good

This is a novella about a powerful but young witch named Jordyn, coming home to see a dying loved one before it’s too late. The problem is that will force her to face the consequences of a grave problem she created in her teen youth. A good premise to start with, but then the story takes a soap opera style turn with what I feel are really contrived plot elements to create over the top drama. An example would be a love triangle with two brothers and the main character that has no established foundation. The reader/listener is just told there is a triangle, even though what is revealed in the story doesn’t set that up and makes it pretty much an impossibility. Not to mention the Jordyn’s reaction to the second man’s love interest toward her is not very believable. Jordyn’s reaction to the news of being loved by Luke is something like, oh he likes me, well then I guess I like him too, even though I’ve never given one second of thought to him before this moment in time.

Kristin James does a wonderful job as the narrator of this book. If I wrote a novel and was looking for a female narrator, Ms. James would certainly be among the top of my wish list. Her performance makes it even harder to dislike “Id Rather Be A Witch.”

The bottom line is that I think there is more to like than dislike even though the basic story, in my opinion, didn’t need any plot contrivances and could have stood strong on its own.

Finally, this audio book was provided by the author at no cost in exchange for an honest review, courtesy of Audio Book Blast..

A Nice Listen

I picked this book up after my welcome surprise at loving the first in the series "How to be a Mermaid." While these stories are on the shorter side, they bring a well developed plot, fully fleshed out characters, and a comfortable story tone that draws the listener in like a familiar family member telling you a story about their lives. I didn't love this second book as much as the first as I didn't feel as drawn in to the main characters life. To be fair, the story has a feeling of almost starting in the middle of a larger tale and then slowly backtracks to fill in the details over the remaining 3 hours. If you are a fan of the series or Erin Hayes in general, you'll likely appreciate this book as much as the others in the collection.

Facing our mistakes.

I received this book for free by the author/narrator for an honest and unbiased review of the book.

Someone makes a mistake and has to live with the consequences and try to make up for it. Humbling, heroing, and wonderful!
I really enjoyed this book, I am needing to go back and read the first book to learn the background of all the decisions made.
Worth a credit? Yes!!!
The narrator did a great job, no complaints.

Happy Reading/Listening!!!

Oh my. Love! Witch facing her past

What does Kristin James bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Kristin brings the tender heart that fills Jordyn to the surface as she gives Jordayn voice. Kristin voices each character with a different timber and voice. She also does an echo for Jordyn's thoughts, which I love.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes. Jordyn has made mistakes, huge mistakes, that affect everyone. She wants to fix those while home visiting while her mom is ill with terminal cancer. I wanted to see what Jordyn would do to help her mother, and right the wrong that happened a few years ago before she left.

Any additional comments?

We have a mystery mixed with love! Jordyn returns home to help her family as her mother nears her last days. She wants to do anything to help her mother, but even as a witch there is only so much that can be done. The dark magick will not help but hurt in the end.

We get the current story but also the history of Jordyn and Zach when younger. The beautiful and terrible night. The second chapter tells their story and how things went so wrong with magick. This sets the stage and makes us weary of returning home with Jordyn. It just can't turn out well with what we learn... I'm worried with Jordyn.

Jordyn also faces the man she's loved from childhood. There is a deep and dark past between them. It's sort of sad to see it as Jordyn still loves him. But the surprise of the story is there is a possibility of a new love interest for Jordyn, if she'll let herself go and forgive what happened to Zach.

Ooooh. And the mystery! Jordyn returns home to suddenly find there was a double murder at Shady Point, the place where Zach and Jordyn's past turns dark. And she's the prime suspect. How is this possible? It is. Jordyn wants to help Zach as she thinks it could be him, but what she learns when she casts her spell draws new light to the story. Jordyn is determined to prove herself innocent and save her mother.

Wonderful shorter story. I was drawn to the characters and invested with them. In the end I had to work to stop the tears.