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MURDER.exe
Lucien Crowe is dead.
Which would be considerably easier to deal with if people would stop seeing him around town.
After my last encounter with murder, magic, and homicidal technology, I was hoping Willowford might settle down for a while. Apparently I was feeling optimistic.
It's October, Halloween is approaching, and the whole town has enthusiastically embraced the season. There are pumpkins on porches, skeletons in yards, and enough fake cobwebs draped over Main Street to constitute a serious fire hazard.
Unfortunately, something genuinely frightening is happening underneath all the decorations.
Lucien's murder doesn't add up. Something distinctly supernatural is stalking Willowford, my best friend Nate is keeping secrets, and Milton keeps producing random bursts of genius that suggest there may be considerably more going on inside his head than any of us suspected.
Meanwhile, fear is spreading faster than gossip at the diner.
Someone decides a vampire is responsible for Lucien's death. There's just one small problem.
There aren't any vampires in Willowford.
At least, that's what everyone believes.
Soon garlic is hanging from doorways, wooden stakes are appearing beside Halloween decorations, and neighbors are looking at one another a little too closely. The question isn't just who killed Lucien anymore. It's who might be hiding among us.
And fear has a nasty habit of becoming more dangerous than whatever started it.
Now I have to figure out what really happened to Lucien before Willowford tears itself apart.
Fortunately, I have magic, friends, and Ash.
Ash has opinions.
So many opinions.
Welcome to Halloween in Willowford, where the monsters are supposed to be decorations and everyone is suddenly wondering if they know their neighbors as well as they thought.
Which would be considerably easier to deal with if people would stop seeing him around town.
After my last encounter with murder, magic, and homicidal technology, I was hoping Willowford might settle down for a while. Apparently I was feeling optimistic.
It's October, Halloween is approaching, and the whole town has enthusiastically embraced the season. There are pumpkins on porches, skeletons in yards, and enough fake cobwebs draped over Main Street to constitute a serious fire hazard.
Unfortunately, something genuinely frightening is happening underneath all the decorations.
Lucien's murder doesn't add up. Something distinctly supernatural is stalking Willowford, my best friend Nate is keeping secrets, and Milton keeps producing random bursts of genius that suggest there may be considerably more going on inside his head than any of us suspected.
Meanwhile, fear is spreading faster than gossip at the diner.
Someone decides a vampire is responsible for Lucien's death. There's just one small problem.
There aren't any vampires in Willowford.
At least, that's what everyone believes.
Soon garlic is hanging from doorways, wooden stakes are appearing beside Halloween decorations, and neighbors are looking at one another a little too closely. The question isn't just who killed Lucien anymore. It's who might be hiding among us.
And fear has a nasty habit of becoming more dangerous than whatever started it.
Now I have to figure out what really happened to Lucien before Willowford tears itself apart.
Fortunately, I have magic, friends, and Ash.
Ash has opinions.
So many opinions.
Welcome to Halloween in Willowford, where the monsters are supposed to be decorations and everyone is suddenly wondering if they know their neighbors as well as they thought.
426 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 13, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 4, 2026
Mari Hightower could have done without the visit from her supercilious ex-fiancé, but that didn't mean she wanted to see the man dead, drained of his blood, his life force, and his magic. Now, with the town of Willowford involved in a witch- er, vampire hunt, Mari must track down the killer before the community pulls itself apart.
MURDER.exe is the second in the MacWitch Mysteries series. I haven't read the first book yet, but this one is self-contained and easy to read on its own. The characters quickly introduce themselves, and their banter fills in the gaps nicely.
As an older reader, I found that the one-word and partial sentences grated a little, as did the constant playful bickering between characters, although I did enjoy the relationship between Ash(ford) the demon stuck in the phone & laptop and Milton, Mari's unexpectedly self-hired house manager. I suspect the story will strongly appeal to a younger crowd. And I need to shout out the cover, which is both breathtakingly beautiful and chilling.
Thank you to Marye Audet and BookSirens for the opportunity to read this digital ARC. As always, my opinions are my own, honest and true.
MURDER.exe is the second in the MacWitch Mysteries series. I haven't read the first book yet, but this one is self-contained and easy to read on its own. The characters quickly introduce themselves, and their banter fills in the gaps nicely.
As an older reader, I found that the one-word and partial sentences grated a little, as did the constant playful bickering between characters, although I did enjoy the relationship between Ash(ford) the demon stuck in the phone & laptop and Milton, Mari's unexpectedly self-hired house manager. I suspect the story will strongly appeal to a younger crowd. And I need to shout out the cover, which is both breathtakingly beautiful and chilling.
Thank you to Marye Audet and BookSirens for the opportunity to read this digital ARC. As always, my opinions are my own, honest and true.
October 26, 2026
Feedback for Murder. exe
While I did not read Book One of the series the story in book two had enough stand alone content that I could follow along. The story kept moving and did hold my attention.
At times I felt like characters were introduced to the story without any background information. I assume these characters were introduced in Book One. Some characters came into the book and seemed to not be major characters but suddenly they were actively involved in the plot. I went back and looked when the character entered the story to make sure I did not miss something about their story line.
Some of the character backgrounds were hard to map. The mother issue is discussed a lot but you have very little interaction with the mother in the book so it's hard to relate.
One word used over and over in the book made me want to try and figure out how many times I saw it used. "Fair" It was a response used by the main character over and over when she questions what someone says, does etc and once they respond she says, fair. I went and looked up the age group that uses fair for answers and I found Millennials and Gen X. I would have thought that to be the answer. I am not sure if the author was attempting to use verbiage that would fit the age group of her main character or her own language use was coming through in the book. Either way it was over used.
Overall, I enjoyed the read. Interesting plot and I liked the story line surrounding how a group of people can come to unsupported decisions that can negatively affect others.
I look forward to Book Three that I got a sneak preview at the end of the book.
While I did not read Book One of the series the story in book two had enough stand alone content that I could follow along. The story kept moving and did hold my attention.
At times I felt like characters were introduced to the story without any background information. I assume these characters were introduced in Book One. Some characters came into the book and seemed to not be major characters but suddenly they were actively involved in the plot. I went back and looked when the character entered the story to make sure I did not miss something about their story line.
Some of the character backgrounds were hard to map. The mother issue is discussed a lot but you have very little interaction with the mother in the book so it's hard to relate.
One word used over and over in the book made me want to try and figure out how many times I saw it used. "Fair" It was a response used by the main character over and over when she questions what someone says, does etc and once they respond she says, fair. I went and looked up the age group that uses fair for answers and I found Millennials and Gen X. I would have thought that to be the answer. I am not sure if the author was attempting to use verbiage that would fit the age group of her main character or her own language use was coming through in the book. Either way it was over used.
Overall, I enjoyed the read. Interesting plot and I liked the story line surrounding how a group of people can come to unsupported decisions that can negatively affect others.
I look forward to Book Three that I got a sneak preview at the end of the book.
October 4, 2026
Mayre Audet has done it again! She’s humanized a demon stuck in electronics, created a fun and festive Halloween atmosphere in a town where everybody knows your name and served up a murder mystery that we can sink our teeth into! I was pleased to see the same cast of characters in this book as her last but felt I needed more Birdie this go-round than she appeared in the story line. What we got instead though are some pretty interesting new or returning characters who might have only gotten a bit part in the previous book. We also were treated to more of Nate’s story and for a time felt a distance between him and MacWitch. This left me with more questions than the murder did! What is Nate hiding? Is he in cahoots with Ash? Does he know more about Lucien than he’s saying? When is he going to kiss Mari?
Overall this book was very satisfying as a murder mystery, as a look into a town’s judgements and graces, as a place where we can think we know all there is to know about someone only to find out there’s more to them than we imagined! I loved that Audet delved deep into the knee-jerk opinions we form with the tiniest amounts of information and how those opinions can then feed into a group mindset that is not only unhealthy, but dangerous. Lucky for Willowford, there is a way out of the mess the townspeople created. How, you ask? Read the book! It’s all there! I’m already looking forward to MacWitch and Ash’s next adventure coming in January 2027!
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and am leaving this review voluntarily.
Overall this book was very satisfying as a murder mystery, as a look into a town’s judgements and graces, as a place where we can think we know all there is to know about someone only to find out there’s more to them than we imagined! I loved that Audet delved deep into the knee-jerk opinions we form with the tiniest amounts of information and how those opinions can then feed into a group mindset that is not only unhealthy, but dangerous. Lucky for Willowford, there is a way out of the mess the townspeople created. How, you ask? Read the book! It’s all there! I’m already looking forward to MacWitch and Ash’s next adventure coming in January 2027!
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and am leaving this review voluntarily.
Review of advance copy
I am sic, but by page 20 I was laughing outloud at home with myself and the dog. Irony, fate, bad luck, karma??? I was going off on tangents with a flight of ideas! I felt a bit insane for awhile. Lucien (an ex) visits Mari and others with evil intentions, and she finds him dead in an alley less than 24 hours later!!! He has two puncture wounds, and the alarms sound, because no one knows any vampires in town. Unknown factors create fear in the town. Then, another murder happens. Everyone is questioning everyone else. A secret vampire in their half supernatural community!!??
Lucien reappears walking the streets, but it's only his body, because Lucien was drained dead! Things go from wild to wild crazy with twists and turns. An entertaining, suspenseful, enjoyable read.
I voluntarily read a free copy of this book provided by book sirens and am giving an honest review.
Lucien reappears walking the streets, but it's only his body, because Lucien was drained dead! Things go from wild to wild crazy with twists and turns. An entertaining, suspenseful, enjoyable read.
I voluntarily read a free copy of this book provided by book sirens and am giving an honest review.
October 25, 2026
MURDER.exe is the second installment in Marye Audet’s MacWitch Mysteries series. When the recent murder of Mari’s ex leads to his ghost appearing around town, fear grips Willowford. Vampires quickly take the blame even though no known vampires live in the town, forcing Mari to uncover the real killer before paranoia tears the community apart.
Having vampires face discrimination was a refreshing twist, especially since most paranormal fiction places them at or near the top of the hierarchy. I thoroughly enjoyed this installment and am looking forward to seeing where the series goes next!
I read an ARC of this book.
Having vampires face discrimination was a refreshing twist, especially since most paranormal fiction places them at or near the top of the hierarchy. I thoroughly enjoyed this installment and am looking forward to seeing where the series goes next!
I read an ARC of this book.
October 19, 2026
Willowford is a lovely small town with the falling leaves Halloween decorations on display. Mari Hightower was enjoying the excitement of season as it was always a big celebration.
When her ex is found dead under very unusual circumstances - Mari, her friends and the sheriff raise lots of red flags to consider figuring out the whys and how's of what happened to Lucien. The town is fracturing with all the happenings - good and bad - can they find the answers needed before everything falls apart?
Great read!!!
When her ex is found dead under very unusual circumstances - Mari, her friends and the sheriff raise lots of red flags to consider figuring out the whys and how's of what happened to Lucien. The town is fracturing with all the happenings - good and bad - can they find the answers needed before everything falls apart?
Great read!!!
October 29, 2026
I don’t usually read paranormal cozies, but this one was quite entertaining. There were witches, warlocks, demons, vampires, and more, all in one small-town’s bookshop/cafe.
Interestingly, it also dealt with more serious questions of discrimination and the madness of crowds, but in a light and entertaining way.
I was happy to receive an advance review copy of this book, since it gave me a chance to read a new-to-me author.
Interestingly, it also dealt with more serious questions of discrimination and the madness of crowds, but in a light and entertaining way.
I was happy to receive an advance review copy of this book, since it gave me a chance to read a new-to-me author.
October 21, 2026
This was just so good. I loved it!!! Great storyline, I couldn't put the book down. I was so involved with what was going on. I like Nate so much and Ivy. I'm sure the next books are gonna be awesome.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews