Witch for Hire

A Witch's Path, Book 1

By: N. E. Conneely

Narrated by: Jeff Hays

Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

Most witches don't work for police departments, but Michelle isn't your average witch. She's clanless, looking for a wizard who isn't offended by her lack of family connections, and in danger of losing her job if she can't find the escaped trolls before they start eating the local residents.

Trolls, angry police, and misbehaving spells are the least of her problems. Statues attacking homeowners might be problematic for your average witch, but to Michelle it's another day at the office. Her real concern is the wizard suddenly interested in dating her and an old elf set on pestering her. When her happy family is rocked by a long kept secret her stable life falls apart faster than she can pick up the pieces.

And she still hasn't found those trolls.

©2014 N. E. Conneely (P)2015 N. E. Conneely

lots of fun to listen to,

great price the story is fun and the main character is so cute! I'm buying the next one!

OK but

the story is good but the guy reading it needed a little help. is it one person reading it or two?

Witches, Warlocks, and Brownies, Oh My..

Any additional comments?

Ok, I really liked the female lead, Michelle, she is smart and fearless.

She is also a Police Consultant, and her most recent job is to track down a few recently freed Trolls.

This book has a bit of everything, including trolls, illegal magical creatures, and a bit of Romance.

The author has created an interesting world and an overall good read.


Jeff Hays did really well with the different character's voice, tone and pitch.

Note:
"This audio book was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review."

Quite a magical twist on a P. I. story.

What made the experience of listening to Witch for Hire the most enjoyable?

I could really get a picture of the characters and what they were like, I certainly liked the characters voices.

What did you like best about this story?

I liked that Michelle was trying to be independent of a clan, so she could have her own life and not be restricted by their culture.

Which scene was your favorite?

The plant going bezerk in her bathroom made me laugh.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

When they are keeping trolls on reservations, and avoiding witches is paramount, you know you aren't in Kansas anymore....

Any additional comments?

I received a free audio book for an unbiased review. My unbiased review is that this was a great book!

Fantastic immersive story and excellent narration.

This is one of those books that really grips you and pulls you in. I am a huge fan of fantasy however Witch for Hire wraps you up in a fantasy world based in our world. Connelly creates a fantastic world of what everyday life would be like if we lived with paranormal and fantasy creatures.

Inside this world we follow a young Witch working alongside police as a consultant. There is a love interest however it does not completely take over the story.

It's a real page Turner so to speak so far as I finished it in one night could not stop listening.

The narration is fantastic the narrators did a really good job defining all the characters and making sure all the characters have their own distinct voices. Really made me fall into the story.

The only thing I did not like about the story is that the author does have trouble telling us what is going on instead of showing us. However this is easily forgivin with how good the story itself is and the world he set it in. Great read for his first book and I look forward to reading the next one.

Cool Witchy Cozy Mystery!

Would you consider the audio edition of Witch for Hire to be better than the print version?

Without a doubt, I'd consider the audio edition to be better than the print because of Jeff Hayes, the narrator. When I finished listening to WITCH FOR HIRE, I had checked audible for the sequels only to find that none of the other books were available in audio. But when I checked the author's website, I was glad to read a relatively recent update that the other books will be released in audio soon! She posted on June 12th:
• A Witch’s Path, A Witch’s Trial, and A Witch’s Concern are coming out as audiobooks! I don’t have release dates yet, but I think all of them will be out this fall and winter. A Witch’s Path will start production next month and the rest will follow.
I truly hope that Jeff Hays, the narrator for this book, returns to narrate the rest. He was phenomenal! I was blown-away at how one single male narrator voiced all those characters - female and male - so well. I certainly plan to listen to more books narrated by him in the future. I would rate the narration 5 Wine Glasses!

Would you be willing to try another book from N. E. Conneely? Why or why not?

I feel that WITCH FOR HIRE heralds promise for the series with some really cool characters. The fast-paced, climatic ending actually had me on the edge of my seat! I'm definitely thinking this series will get stronger and I'm looking forward to seeing that happen!

Which character – as performed by Jeff Hays – was your favorite?

I'd have to say Michelle. I even double-checked that Jeff Hays was listed as the sole narrator as his female voices were so amazing for a male actor. If I hadn't known better, I would have thought that there were multiple voice actors performing this audio.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The fast-paced, climatic ending actually had me on the edge of my seat!

Any additional comments?

WITCH FOR HIRE by N.E. Conneely was an enjoyable urban fantasy listen which held my attention from the get-go. It's the first book in a series about Michelle, a clanless witch who runs her own business assisting various law enforcement agencies with their magical creatures' issues. The setting is in a world where humans as a minority coexist with legions of paranormals including good and bad witches, brownies, elves, unicorns, satyrs, centaurs, trolls, vampires, dwarves, shifters, mermaids, giants and much more. It was a diverse population, for sure, and the traits of each species seemed to ensure that Michelle was kept super busy.

Michael please come back

I love this series it's her best work nothing comes close. I have the set

Bogged down by a bad production

I am the kind of listener who tries to finish everything she starts, but I could not do that with this book. I will try to explain so that you will know whether or not the difficulties I had will affect you or not.

STORY

The story is one we’ve seen before, and it’s a fairly good one. The witch works with the police to solve crimes. Her skill set is exactly what is needed with cases that involve magic in a world that has open magic beside mundane humans. In fact, in this world, it’s humans who are the weaker species dominated by all the magical ones.

The heroine, Michelle Oakes, is a busy witch. She barely has time for friends and family. Sometimes she wishes for a love life, and the elf she met at her boarding house could become something if his very presence would stop bothering her. So, yes, there are romantic undertones, but this reads mostly as a magical procedural.

NARRATION

The narrator’s command of voices is very good. Jeff Hays has distinctive voices for all his characters. Michelle is so authentically feminine sounding that at first I thought this audio had separate male and female narrators. Some of his male voices remind me of Luke Daniels, who is one of my favorite narrators of all time.

PRODUCTION

This, unfortunately, is where they lost me. As good as the narrator or writing might be, I could not stand listening to this audio. There are entire passages where Michelle’s voice is at one loudness level, and you can barely hear what the other characters are saying. When you can hear it, it’s good. It’s not Jeff’s performance that’s the problem. It’s that you can’t hear it consistently. At first, I thought everyone was on the phone with Michelle because it took that tinny far-away sound.

I got nearly to the halfway point with no change in the sound leveling. I made myself stop and do a mental/auditory palate cleanse. I listened to two separate books thinking it would help. When I started back to this one again, there were still the same problems that made me not enjoy it. Had I actually paid for this audio, I would have immediately returned it to Audible for a refund.

LAST THOUGHTS

While I am a voracious listener of audios, this may be one of those stories that is simply better as an ebook. Paranormal procedurals can be quick fun.

The narrator is skilled and very capable, but that is buried under a very bad production. Listen at your own risk.

Disclaimer: I received this audiobook free in exchange for an honest review.

Doesn't every PD have paranormals on staff?

This tale is really great fun, and the plot twists are more than entertaining. Another plus is that the editors did not force any awkward explicit sexual encounters just to boost sales appeal.There are a few oddities that seem unnecessary, but, as this is the first of a series, I suppose that is to be expected. It starts out a little overburdened, but then evens out and captivates. The length is just about right for an audio. I noticed before reading, that some folks found the acoustics irregular--I listened on a Samsung tablet via speaker, and heard none.
I can't really testify to the merits of the print copy, but JH presents as a marvelous audio performer! The multiplicity of voices is amazing. Tonality, inflections, and cadences are remarkable. Truly looking forward to more!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. and I got the best of the deal!

Compelling Read

To be honest, I picked up this book after the second (though I've yet to read the second, preferring a cohesive story line). I really enjoyed the book, owing largely to the ability to relate to the characters. The story itself was also quite compelling with just enough minutia to break it up nicely. Jeff Hays does an excellent job as narrator, making each character distinct. It's rare to find such obvious discussion transition without having multiple narrators. I'll definitely be listening to more from this author/narrator duo.