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Brimstone Bay #1
Murder Any Witch Way
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Being a witch is hard. It's even harder when you live in a town that doesn't believe in witches.
When young witch River Halloway moves to sleepy Brimstone Bay for her very first journalist job, she doesn’t expect to cover anything ground-breaking. That is, until a paranormal festival comes to town and a body is found on opening night. Now, with all evidence pointing towards a witch, River must find the true killer before she becomes the prime suspect, or worse, the next murder victim.
This is book 1 of the Brimstone Bay Mysteries series. If you're a fan of Amanda M. Lee, Juliette Harper, and Amy Boyles, then be sure to get your fill of magic, mystery, and murder with this cozy new paranormal mystery series.
Being a witch is hard. It's even harder when you live in a town that doesn't believe in witches.
When young witch River Halloway moves to sleepy Brimstone Bay for her very first journalist job, she doesn’t expect to cover anything ground-breaking. That is, until a paranormal festival comes to town and a body is found on opening night. Now, with all evidence pointing towards a witch, River must find the true killer before she becomes the prime suspect, or worse, the next murder victim.
This is book 1 of the Brimstone Bay Mysteries series. If you're a fan of Amanda M. Lee, Juliette Harper, and Amy Boyles, then be sure to get your fill of magic, mystery, and murder with this cozy new paranormal mystery series.
234 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2016
1194 people are currently reading
1828 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 220 reviews
April 24, 2018
Murder Any Witch Way
Brimstone Bay Mysteries, Book 1
By: Nicole Marie Howell
Narrated by: Angel Clark
This was a fun paranormal mystery. It was a little slow in the beginning but picked up and took off and was great. I enjoyed the characters and the plot. Some of the police procedures were a bit off but yeah, I don't think all cops go by the books anymore... just saying.
The narration was good, easy to distinguish between voices. Good performance.
Brimstone Bay Mysteries, Book 1
By: Nicole Marie Howell
Narrated by: Angel Clark
This was a fun paranormal mystery. It was a little slow in the beginning but picked up and took off and was great. I enjoyed the characters and the plot. Some of the police procedures were a bit off but yeah, I don't think all cops go by the books anymore... just saying.
The narration was good, easy to distinguish between voices. Good performance.
February 11, 2017
From the cover and the title’s play on words, I was ready for a lighthearted murder mystery involving witches. However, there were many issues that caused me to struggle through the book, and I can’t recommend it without at least warning potential readers.
PLOT -- N.M. Howell took a long time to start the murder part of the story, spending almost the first third of the book introducing all the characters. I was waiting for the real story to begin, so the large info dump at the beginning seemed more like filler rather than important details. The book would have been better served if the author would have started the mystery aspect much sooner and wove the characterization around that. River is the main character, a newspaper reporter in a small town. Due to her college studies (which included criminology), she is enlisted by the sheriff’s office to help solve the murders. More on this later.
THE WRITING -- The book is written in first person, so we spend a lot of time with River, getting her perspective on life in Brimstone Bay. The difficulty with first person is getting the main character to yield some time, so the other people in the story don’t come off as mostly one-dimensional. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen with this story. We receive a full view of River, and not much on everyone else.
BRIMSTONE BAY – Be prepared to suspend disbelief, over and over and over. I was okay with the main premise, that there are witches and paranormal types in the world, and that non-magical people either don’t believe or might suspect but can’t prove the neighbor down the street is a witch. Throughout the book, though, the author vacillates between people being non-believers to times when suspicion is so high that a suspected witch will be harassed. It is almost as if the people in this small town aren’t aware of each other’s actions. The story would have read better if Ms. Howell had chosen one approach and run with it.
THE PEOPLE – River tells us she found a job after college with a fledgling new paper in a small town. She lives with three other witches (not sure why the three don’t live elsewhere, as River talks a bit about the life for paranormals in the cities) and an older woman who is also a witch. We don’t learn much more about the town’s residents except for the coffee shop owner and his son, as well as the mayor and the sheriff. Character descriptions of everyone besides River are mostly descriptions, and motivations are kept to a minimum.
POLICE PROCEDURE – It was jarring to have River know more about police procedure than the sheriff. Crime scenes were not officially closed off from the public, and officers will never put a gun to a non-suspects head (used in the story to create a false tension). While the book is not a police procedural story, coming close to actual practice would have added necessary realism to the tale.
EDITING & OTHER STUFF – There are enough minor editing errors (punctuation, wrong words that software spell checkers won’t catch) to cause me to notice. The use of vulgarities is at the low end of the spectrum, though in at least one place there is a curse that may upset some Christians.
BOTTOM LINE – The story is “cute” in that it would work with a YA audience, if the author had intended for that to happen. If so, the unbelievable aspects of the story would have been much easier to swallow, and younger audiences are more forgiving or not aware of the missteps. Telling potential readers this is a paranormal mystery leads readers to expect something else, and the story asks for us to ignore too many aspects of how life in the real world actually works. I hope the author finds a balance in subsequent books in this series…unfortunately, I will not be traveling with her. Two-and-a-half to three stars.
PLOT -- N.M. Howell took a long time to start the murder part of the story, spending almost the first third of the book introducing all the characters. I was waiting for the real story to begin, so the large info dump at the beginning seemed more like filler rather than important details. The book would have been better served if the author would have started the mystery aspect much sooner and wove the characterization around that. River is the main character, a newspaper reporter in a small town. Due to her college studies (which included criminology), she is enlisted by the sheriff’s office to help solve the murders. More on this later.
THE WRITING -- The book is written in first person, so we spend a lot of time with River, getting her perspective on life in Brimstone Bay. The difficulty with first person is getting the main character to yield some time, so the other people in the story don’t come off as mostly one-dimensional. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen with this story. We receive a full view of River, and not much on everyone else.
BRIMSTONE BAY – Be prepared to suspend disbelief, over and over and over. I was okay with the main premise, that there are witches and paranormal types in the world, and that non-magical people either don’t believe or might suspect but can’t prove the neighbor down the street is a witch. Throughout the book, though, the author vacillates between people being non-believers to times when suspicion is so high that a suspected witch will be harassed. It is almost as if the people in this small town aren’t aware of each other’s actions. The story would have read better if Ms. Howell had chosen one approach and run with it.
THE PEOPLE – River tells us she found a job after college with a fledgling new paper in a small town. She lives with three other witches (not sure why the three don’t live elsewhere, as River talks a bit about the life for paranormals in the cities) and an older woman who is also a witch. We don’t learn much more about the town’s residents except for the coffee shop owner and his son, as well as the mayor and the sheriff. Character descriptions of everyone besides River are mostly descriptions, and motivations are kept to a minimum.
POLICE PROCEDURE – It was jarring to have River know more about police procedure than the sheriff. Crime scenes were not officially closed off from the public, and officers will never put a gun to a non-suspects head (used in the story to create a false tension). While the book is not a police procedural story, coming close to actual practice would have added necessary realism to the tale.
EDITING & OTHER STUFF – There are enough minor editing errors (punctuation, wrong words that software spell checkers won’t catch) to cause me to notice. The use of vulgarities is at the low end of the spectrum, though in at least one place there is a curse that may upset some Christians.
BOTTOM LINE – The story is “cute” in that it would work with a YA audience, if the author had intended for that to happen. If so, the unbelievable aspects of the story would have been much easier to swallow, and younger audiences are more forgiving or not aware of the missteps. Telling potential readers this is a paranormal mystery leads readers to expect something else, and the story asks for us to ignore too many aspects of how life in the real world actually works. I hope the author finds a balance in subsequent books in this series…unfortunately, I will not be traveling with her. Two-and-a-half to three stars.
November 6, 2016
that was fun ^^ . this story countained 2 of my fav things, witches and mystery . it was a bit of a slow read at the beginning ( the first 3 chapters) but turned up to be a fun , cool story.
April 14, 2021
This was a cute read, not a heavy holy detail read. It was lighter and a first for me in this type of reading. I found the characters fun and enjoyed the atmosphere the author managed. It felt like a scooby doo episode almost....I would read another one. It offered a different feel to a mystery for me as a reader.
October 28, 2024
Author: N. M. Howell
Page Count: 229 Pages
Published Date: 22nd December 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Synopsis:
Being a witch is hard. It’s even harder when you live in a town that doesn’t believe in witches. When young witch River Halloway moves to sleepy Brimstone Bay for her very first journalist job she doesn’t expect to cover anything ground-breaking, until a paranormal festival comes to town and a body is found on opening night. Now, with all evidence pointing towards a witch, River must find the true killer before she becomes the prime suspect, or worse, the next murder victim.
My Thoughts:
I enjoyed this book but I do wish that this book was longer and had more detail to the storyline as I felt that this book went to quick. I liked all the characters in this book and the trying to get all the paranormal people together with the normal humans but without the humans knowing what they are. I do hope the story carries on in the series so I find out what's happens or what else could happen. I have rated this book 4 out of 5 stars just because I do wished the story would of been more detailed.
Page Count: 229 Pages
Published Date: 22nd December 2018
Genre: Mystery
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Synopsis:
Being a witch is hard. It’s even harder when you live in a town that doesn’t believe in witches. When young witch River Halloway moves to sleepy Brimstone Bay for her very first journalist job she doesn’t expect to cover anything ground-breaking, until a paranormal festival comes to town and a body is found on opening night. Now, with all evidence pointing towards a witch, River must find the true killer before she becomes the prime suspect, or worse, the next murder victim.
My Thoughts:
I enjoyed this book but I do wish that this book was longer and had more detail to the storyline as I felt that this book went to quick. I liked all the characters in this book and the trying to get all the paranormal people together with the normal humans but without the humans knowing what they are. I do hope the story carries on in the series so I find out what's happens or what else could happen. I have rated this book 4 out of 5 stars just because I do wished the story would of been more detailed.
October 27, 2024
cute fast paced cheesey murder mystery
August 18, 2018
The murder mystery is interesting enough to keep me reading right now, but there are some serious flaws to this book that are already jumping out at me.
1) River's narration at the beginning sounds much more like a professor lecturing students about the town than an internal dialog setting the scene. The conversation with the boys from Boston right before the festival came off laughable instead of confrontational. River spends a lot of time telling us things that should be obvious to the reader.
2) The book is switching between past and present tense pretty frequently. I've also noticed at least one subject and verb agreement error.
3) Minor detail, but annoying to me none the less. In the scene right after the dead body is discovered and brought to the morgue to be examined, the coroner is continually referred to as a mortician. Unless something comes up on the chapters I haven't read that indicates that the coroner is also the mortician in their small town, this is something that could have easily been fixed by a good editor.
I will finish this book but will not seek out the next books in the series to read.
1) River's narration at the beginning sounds much more like a professor lecturing students about the town than an internal dialog setting the scene. The conversation with the boys from Boston right before the festival came off laughable instead of confrontational. River spends a lot of time telling us things that should be obvious to the reader.
2) The book is switching between past and present tense pretty frequently. I've also noticed at least one subject and verb agreement error.
3) Minor detail, but annoying to me none the less. In the scene right after the dead body is discovered and brought to the morgue to be examined, the coroner is continually referred to as a mortician. Unless something comes up on the chapters I haven't read that indicates that the coroner is also the mortician in their small town, this is something that could have easily been fixed by a good editor.
I will finish this book but will not seek out the next books in the series to read.
July 8, 2017
More paranormal than mystery. There's a murder, but investigation very haphazard and the solution. Method very blah.
January 30, 2019
Not amazing, but entertaining
Not bad. Interesting protagonist, fun side characters, and a murder mystery with a few twists and turns that I hadn’t anticipated.
3 stars
Not bad. Interesting protagonist, fun side characters, and a murder mystery with a few twists and turns that I hadn’t anticipated.
3 stars
August 7, 2020
River Halloway, a 20-something witch, moves to sleepy Brimstone Bay for her very first journalism job in a small town in Maine. She shares a house with three other young women and their landlady, who are all also witches. The town is split between those who believe in witches and those who don’t. A paranormal festival comes to town and a body is found on opening night. The evidence points to a witch being involved. River must find the true killer before she becomes the prime suspect, or the next victim.
I wanted to like this book. River can see and talk to ghosts, which helps her solve crimes and get good stories. The supporting characters show promise (the ghosts have interesting backstories, her landlady is a hoot, and the mayor turns out to be a shapeshifter). The descriptions of the town were well-done. Watching River fit in in a small town while trying to do her job and be true to herself could have been intriguing.
But the book just sort of fell flat for me. It’s like the author picked a profession out of a hat, did some half-hearted research on what small town reporters do, took some paranormal ideas out of another hat, stirred and came up with a cardboard plot. River conveniently studied criminal justice at college, and she knows way more than the police about investigative procedures. And she’s way too cozy with the mayor and the police chief (“’What do we put in the paper?’ I wanted to make sure we were all on the same page.’” Granted, there is some give and take in reporting, but this was just too much to believe.)
This was just passable entertainment for me. Will I read more in the series? I don’t think so.
I wanted to like this book. River can see and talk to ghosts, which helps her solve crimes and get good stories. The supporting characters show promise (the ghosts have interesting backstories, her landlady is a hoot, and the mayor turns out to be a shapeshifter). The descriptions of the town were well-done. Watching River fit in in a small town while trying to do her job and be true to herself could have been intriguing.
But the book just sort of fell flat for me. It’s like the author picked a profession out of a hat, did some half-hearted research on what small town reporters do, took some paranormal ideas out of another hat, stirred and came up with a cardboard plot. River conveniently studied criminal justice at college, and she knows way more than the police about investigative procedures. And she’s way too cozy with the mayor and the police chief (“’What do we put in the paper?’ I wanted to make sure we were all on the same page.’” Granted, there is some give and take in reporting, but this was just too much to believe.)
This was just passable entertainment for me. Will I read more in the series? I don’t think so.
November 16, 2025
2.5/5 ⭐️ I could be mistaken, but I think this book may be targeted to a YA audience. What pulled me in with the cover of the book and what the book was about. Paranormal + murder + witches?? Sign me up! However, it was not that at all. It was a very watered down version at best. The author spent a majority of the book just explaining the town and some of the characters and there was very little murder mystery. The characters were very lukewarm and the mystery itself was very flat. If intended for a younger audience, I think this book would be better suited. Definitely will not be continuing the series.
January 6, 2026
Also zwischendurch wollte ich eigentlich 3 Sterne geben, aber es war so bescheuert😭Das Buch hat irgendwie 230 Seiten und ich hab einfach 3 Tage gebraucht. Außerdem konnte ich am Ende die Namen immer noch nicht zuordnen, weil alle ähnlich heißen. River, Rory, Riley, Rian, warumm, es gibt so viele Namen. Auch gab es Nebencharaktere die zweimal vorkamen und nicht wichtig waren, wofür sind die da. Das Ende war auch echt seltsam. Ich hätte schon lieber den Mörder gehabt, den man vermutet, als das. Es ist einfach bescheuert sorry😭2 Sterne nur für ganz süße Charaktere und das paranormale war ganz interessant
February 8, 2026
3.75⭐️
Cosy, witchy, mysterious, and darker than I expected. Semi-predictable, nothing mind blowing, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and will be looking into the rest of this series and other books by this author! Perfect to get out of a reading slump or as a break from a thriller streak, which I defo needed!
Cosy, witchy, mysterious, and darker than I expected. Semi-predictable, nothing mind blowing, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and will be looking into the rest of this series and other books by this author! Perfect to get out of a reading slump or as a break from a thriller streak, which I defo needed!
July 29, 2023
Cutesy, cozy, low stakes.
Way too much tell, not enough show, though. Romantic interest seemed pulled from nowhere, there was zero chemistry with any of the possible characters. There was a lot of talk of magic but little immersion. There are many inconsistencies: time, attitudes towards magic, relationships between magical beings. Won’t continue the series.
Way too much tell, not enough show, though. Romantic interest seemed pulled from nowhere, there was zero chemistry with any of the possible characters. There was a lot of talk of magic but little immersion. There are many inconsistencies: time, attitudes towards magic, relationships between magical beings. Won’t continue the series.
October 5, 2016
Witches and murder - a bewitching combination. All manner of paranormal activity goes on in small town Brimstone Bay.
River and her fellow witches live together in a house run by Mrs. Brody who is a witch herself. It's great to see how well all the witches get along with little discord among them. Ghosts abound in the household and are frequent guests.
Throw in murder victims with strange symbols carved on their backs and you have a cauldron of trouble brewing. River and her friends try to find the murderer before anyone else gets killed.
River and her fellow witches live together in a house run by Mrs. Brody who is a witch herself. It's great to see how well all the witches get along with little discord among them. Ghosts abound in the household and are frequent guests.
Throw in murder victims with strange symbols carved on their backs and you have a cauldron of trouble brewing. River and her friends try to find the murderer before anyone else gets killed.
April 11, 2023
Aamazing
There was this element of the surprises that I liked which kept me I trigger as to where the story would lead.
There was this element of the surprises that I liked which kept me I trigger as to where the story would lead.
September 8, 2018
River has moved to the small town of Brimstone Bay to get some journalistic experience writing for the local, small paper. She misses the paranormal normalcy of living in NY, where she was surrounded by like-minded folk. Here, River must keep her nature a secret. However, she is renting a room in a house filled with other witches, whom she becomes friends with.
When the Shadow Festival comes to town, River sees it as a chance to relax her guard. After all, there will be plenty of people role-playing as witches, weres, vampires, etc. Unfortunately, on the first day of the festival, a young girl is found murdered, with a ritualistic symbol carved on her back. River finds herself drawn into the investigation, and she enlists the aid of the other witches she lives with. Together, they may be able to solve the case before the body count gets higher.
The book was fun and lighthearted for the most part. The girl's murder was rather gruesome, however. Characterizations were okay, the plot moved along, and I didn't guess who dunnit. Or rather, I did, but I was wrong. Hah! Some things bugged me. For one thing, no sheriff in his right mind is going to ASK a journalist to help with the investigation. For another, the mayor isn't going to be involved, either, except maybe to put pressure on the sheriff to solve the crime. River came across as a bit juvenile, but she is young, so I guess it's to be expected.
When the Shadow Festival comes to town, River sees it as a chance to relax her guard. After all, there will be plenty of people role-playing as witches, weres, vampires, etc. Unfortunately, on the first day of the festival, a young girl is found murdered, with a ritualistic symbol carved on her back. River finds herself drawn into the investigation, and she enlists the aid of the other witches she lives with. Together, they may be able to solve the case before the body count gets higher.
The book was fun and lighthearted for the most part. The girl's murder was rather gruesome, however. Characterizations were okay, the plot moved along, and I didn't guess who dunnit. Or rather, I did, but I was wrong. Hah! Some things bugged me. For one thing, no sheriff in his right mind is going to ASK a journalist to help with the investigation. For another, the mayor isn't going to be involved, either, except maybe to put pressure on the sheriff to solve the crime. River came across as a bit juvenile, but she is young, so I guess it's to be expected.
October 25, 2017
What this book needed was a good editor. I had the feeling that a previous draft had been written in present tense, then the author switched to past. However, not all of those tense changes happened, which was unfortunate. Also there were tons of filters throughout, so people "noticed" and "saw" things, putting the reader at a distance from the action. These were issues I had at the line edit level.
At the story level, there was a total disconnect between the horror of the crimes and the light tone of the book. And I couldn't really buy who turned out to be the murderer.
When the MC and the guy from Boston meet, I expected some kind of tension to develop. She wants this murder story to be her own and not share it with an old TA from her college days. Yet, nothing happens between them--no competition, no undermining of each other's credibility. This seemed like a thread that simply unraveled.
A tribute to the author is that I actually finished this story. I found it a highly imaginative witch-ghost tale, the pacing was good once we got into the investigation, and the main character, along with her witchy friends, were interesting.
Murder Any Witch Way deserves a solid re-write and re-release.
At the story level, there was a total disconnect between the horror of the crimes and the light tone of the book. And I couldn't really buy who turned out to be the murderer.
When the MC and the guy from Boston meet, I expected some kind of tension to develop. She wants this murder story to be her own and not share it with an old TA from her college days. Yet, nothing happens between them--no competition, no undermining of each other's credibility. This seemed like a thread that simply unraveled.
A tribute to the author is that I actually finished this story. I found it a highly imaginative witch-ghost tale, the pacing was good once we got into the investigation, and the main character, along with her witchy friends, were interesting.
Murder Any Witch Way deserves a solid re-write and re-release.
May 15, 2021
Really good read
Great if somewhat unusual witchy storyline filled with murder mayhem even a little humor and did I mention ghosts lots of ghosts. Follow the heroine River as she tries to catch a serial killer intent on framing the witches for the murders he's committing with some killer twists that are guaranteed to keep you turning pages till the end. A well written witchy cosy a must read for fans of this genre, Baz.
Great if somewhat unusual witchy storyline filled with murder mayhem even a little humor and did I mention ghosts lots of ghosts. Follow the heroine River as she tries to catch a serial killer intent on framing the witches for the murders he's committing with some killer twists that are guaranteed to keep you turning pages till the end. A well written witchy cosy a must read for fans of this genre, Baz.
October 18, 2016
I give this book 4.5 stars. I am not one to read paranormal mysteries but I was pleasantly surprised and thoroughly enjoyed it. I received this book for free a long with some other cozy mysteries. It kept me wanting to read more through the book without getting bored. Great start in this series.
October 16, 2016
Great book
Just read the first book of the series and I am waiting anxiously for the next one. I was up until 3:00am just to finish it. I just couldn't put it down. Keep them coming.
Just read the first book of the series and I am waiting anxiously for the next one. I was up until 3:00am just to finish it. I just couldn't put it down. Keep them coming.
February 5, 2017
I really loved this book and hope there will be an entire series. There are enough characters for several threads. Thank you for a great read.
October 12, 2016
I have recived a free copy from Storycartel in exchange of my review. I really enjoyes the Book, the story is very entreteined and the characters are very enjoyable. I highly recommend it
July 21, 2018
Disappointed
This book cover art and all seem to me like a poorly written knock off of Amanda M Lee. If you enjoy light hearted funny "witchcraft" books check out Amanda's books.
This book cover art and all seem to me like a poorly written knock off of Amanda M Lee. If you enjoy light hearted funny "witchcraft" books check out Amanda's books.
December 24, 2018
River Halloway was running her usual path around the ocean Boardwalk, listening on her cell phone to Riley, who rambled on and on until she finally noticed that River appeared to not be paying attention. Then River rushed her off the phone and hung up.
After graduating from NYU with a journalism degree, River moved to Brimstone Bay to get a job and make a name for herself as a journalist. Then she would have something to show a big city newspaper. Now she hurried home to shower and get into work while her ideas were still fresh in her mind.
River’s idea was to invite The Shadow Festival, a traveling fair that went from the West Coast to the East Coast and then back again each year, celebrating all things paranormal, to stop in Brimstone Bay on their way. It was a fun way to celebrate the beginning of the Halloween season, getting everyone in the mood for “spooky”. But when a body is found on their opening night and all evidence points to a witch, River feels she needs to get involved, for her own protection if for no other reason. The small-town Sheriff Reese seemed inadequate for the task, not protecting the crime scene or following police procedures, and it was obvious he could use the help on this case – especially since River had a double major in criminology. Could she help solve the murder?
This book lacked the feel of a cozy mystery for me. In fact, I wasn’t sure what label to put on it. It seemed the beginning of the book dragged since at first I wasn’t sure River was talking on a phone and thought she was jogging alongside a friend. Having heard nothing that would indicate she had an idea for a news article, I was surprised when she rushed home and sneaked past everyone to avoid them so she could get to work quickly while her idea was fresh in her mind. Some of the logical progression of other parts of the story -- that I had expected -- didn’t happen. Other things seemed a little far-fetched to be believed. The reader didn’t get to know the other characters very well; they were not fully developed which would have been helpful. The early focus on paranormal vs non-paranormal and talk about the reactions to witches had me waiting for an incident I expected from this set-up. I just had the feeling the story line was not moving forward at the right pace nor in the right direction and it was sometimes hard to follow. This would not be a favorite book of mine. But it had possibilities and I would still read the next book to see if the author grows this series into something really great.
After graduating from NYU with a journalism degree, River moved to Brimstone Bay to get a job and make a name for herself as a journalist. Then she would have something to show a big city newspaper. Now she hurried home to shower and get into work while her ideas were still fresh in her mind.
River’s idea was to invite The Shadow Festival, a traveling fair that went from the West Coast to the East Coast and then back again each year, celebrating all things paranormal, to stop in Brimstone Bay on their way. It was a fun way to celebrate the beginning of the Halloween season, getting everyone in the mood for “spooky”. But when a body is found on their opening night and all evidence points to a witch, River feels she needs to get involved, for her own protection if for no other reason. The small-town Sheriff Reese seemed inadequate for the task, not protecting the crime scene or following police procedures, and it was obvious he could use the help on this case – especially since River had a double major in criminology. Could she help solve the murder?
This book lacked the feel of a cozy mystery for me. In fact, I wasn’t sure what label to put on it. It seemed the beginning of the book dragged since at first I wasn’t sure River was talking on a phone and thought she was jogging alongside a friend. Having heard nothing that would indicate she had an idea for a news article, I was surprised when she rushed home and sneaked past everyone to avoid them so she could get to work quickly while her idea was fresh in her mind. Some of the logical progression of other parts of the story -- that I had expected -- didn’t happen. Other things seemed a little far-fetched to be believed. The reader didn’t get to know the other characters very well; they were not fully developed which would have been helpful. The early focus on paranormal vs non-paranormal and talk about the reactions to witches had me waiting for an incident I expected from this set-up. I just had the feeling the story line was not moving forward at the right pace nor in the right direction and it was sometimes hard to follow. This would not be a favorite book of mine. But it had possibilities and I would still read the next book to see if the author grows this series into something really great.
June 14, 2024
I enjoyed this book quite a lot due to the delightful cast of characters and an interesting setting.
River Halloway is a young journalist living and working in a seaside town named Brimstone Bay. It’s a small town with a small newspaper and the place where River landed her first job as a newspaper reporter after graduating from New York University (NYU) with a journalism degree. The fact that she graduated from such a prestigious journalism program lets the reader know at the outset that she’s smart and undoubtedly has excellent research skills.
It turns out that River’s also a witch who comes from a long line of witches. In Brimstone Bay, she lives in an old Victorian mansion with four other witches: three young women who live in the upper part of the house and the landlady, an old woman who lives in the basement. All these characters are delightful. They get along with each other and their friendly banter when they’re together is great. The address where they live is 21 Black Cat Lane, which, as River mentions, is quite ironic.
Brimstone Bay has an interesting combination of people who despise witches and other paranormal beings and people who are hiding the secret of their own paranormal nature. When the town hosts a Shadow Festival—which is supposed to be for fun, similar to a Halloween festival—three dead bodies are found. The deceased are all from out of town. They’ve all been murdered, and they all have a symbol gruesomely carved into their back. It turns out the symbol was used by an old order of Salem witches to mark people who were to be cursed. The remainder of the novel involves twists and turns as River, her fellow journalists, her fellow witches, the mayor and the sheriff work to solve the crimes.
Murder Any Witch Way is the first book in a series and a wonderful cozy paranormal mystery novel.
River Halloway is a young journalist living and working in a seaside town named Brimstone Bay. It’s a small town with a small newspaper and the place where River landed her first job as a newspaper reporter after graduating from New York University (NYU) with a journalism degree. The fact that she graduated from such a prestigious journalism program lets the reader know at the outset that she’s smart and undoubtedly has excellent research skills.
It turns out that River’s also a witch who comes from a long line of witches. In Brimstone Bay, she lives in an old Victorian mansion with four other witches: three young women who live in the upper part of the house and the landlady, an old woman who lives in the basement. All these characters are delightful. They get along with each other and their friendly banter when they’re together is great. The address where they live is 21 Black Cat Lane, which, as River mentions, is quite ironic.
Brimstone Bay has an interesting combination of people who despise witches and other paranormal beings and people who are hiding the secret of their own paranormal nature. When the town hosts a Shadow Festival—which is supposed to be for fun, similar to a Halloween festival—three dead bodies are found. The deceased are all from out of town. They’ve all been murdered, and they all have a symbol gruesomely carved into their back. It turns out the symbol was used by an old order of Salem witches to mark people who were to be cursed. The remainder of the novel involves twists and turns as River, her fellow journalists, her fellow witches, the mayor and the sheriff work to solve the crimes.
Murder Any Witch Way is the first book in a series and a wonderful cozy paranormal mystery novel.
October 15, 2024
Review available on my site: https://roxannacross.com/2024/10/15/b...
This cozy murder mystery, written in the first person, introduces River Halloway as the main character. River is a young witch hiding her powers from the small town of Brimstone Bay, where she moved for her first journalist job.
The story could be faster to start, bogged down by character introductions and info dumping in the first third of the book that could have been rewritten and woven into the action part of the book. The fact that a fresh out of NYU journalist major with a minor in criminology knows more about Police procedures than the town Sheriff was far-fetched, but many of the police procedures were left to be desired throughout the storyline.
Howell’s writing style is suited for a YA audience, as they are most likely not aware of the missteps and are more forgiving about the implausibility of the plot line that older readers might have trouble swallowing.
Perhaps it’s Howell’s choice to write the book in the first person that made it fall flat because, in this writing choice, the reader spends a lot of time with River, getting her perspective on life in Brimstone Bay. The trouble is yielding it to ensure the other persons in the story don’t come off as paper dolls or that the setting doesn’t float about but that readers’ are grounded in the story. Regrettably, Howell fails; we receive a full view of River and a few glimpses of everyone else through her eyes. There is not much about the town except for her office and coffee shop beneath it, which makes it challenging to share in the experiences.
It was a cute read, but the jarring mistakes in the police procedures that took away the realism of the tale and the lack of connectivity with the characters and surroundings made it a 1-star read.
This cozy murder mystery, written in the first person, introduces River Halloway as the main character. River is a young witch hiding her powers from the small town of Brimstone Bay, where she moved for her first journalist job.
The story could be faster to start, bogged down by character introductions and info dumping in the first third of the book that could have been rewritten and woven into the action part of the book. The fact that a fresh out of NYU journalist major with a minor in criminology knows more about Police procedures than the town Sheriff was far-fetched, but many of the police procedures were left to be desired throughout the storyline.
Howell’s writing style is suited for a YA audience, as they are most likely not aware of the missteps and are more forgiving about the implausibility of the plot line that older readers might have trouble swallowing.
Perhaps it’s Howell’s choice to write the book in the first person that made it fall flat because, in this writing choice, the reader spends a lot of time with River, getting her perspective on life in Brimstone Bay. The trouble is yielding it to ensure the other persons in the story don’t come off as paper dolls or that the setting doesn’t float about but that readers’ are grounded in the story. Regrettably, Howell fails; we receive a full view of River and a few glimpses of everyone else through her eyes. There is not much about the town except for her office and coffee shop beneath it, which makes it challenging to share in the experiences.
It was a cute read, but the jarring mistakes in the police procedures that took away the realism of the tale and the lack of connectivity with the characters and surroundings made it a 1-star read.
December 26, 2018
River is a witch just out of journalism school and she lands a job with a fledgling newspaper and she usually has to write ten stories a day. River runs everyday trying to think of new stories to write and one day she was talking to her best friend Riley when she comes up with a brilliant idea but she has to get her editor to agree. River goes into the office early to try and find something for her to agree to bring the shadow festival to town and her editor said no way the older more talkative people will shut it down before you can speak to syllables and River says so if I can get the mayor to agree will write the stories and she says yes, so River knowing that the mayor has a crush on her goes over thinking I got this in the bag when she walks in she sees flyers already made up about the shadow festival and she is giddy but she plays it off well by saying how did you get the town to agree and he said better to get the calls afterwards than have it before but he is hoping it will go well and River goes back and tells her boss and she is ecstatic and tells River, she can write the original story and River knows that is because her boss doesn't want her name on that copy. Great book I can't wait for the next book.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
December 27, 2018
Young witch River Halloway has moved to Brimstone Bay to start her new job as a journalist. The town is considered sleepy by nature, so River doesn’t expect to be writing any newsworthy stores for the weekly newspaper. Outside of births, natural deaths, weddings, and lots of senior birthday parties, the paper really doesn’t have much to report on. So River is thrilled to hear that the paranormal festival will be passing through town. This will allow her and her other witch friends the opportunity to “act” like themselves without arising any suspicions and a few juicy stories that she can write for the paper.
Things don’t go as planned when a body is found on opening night and fingers point to the witch community. River sets her sights on solving the mystery before she or one of her friends are taken in as prime suspects and even worse another murder is committed.
The first book doesn’t have a lot of character development and it does take a while for the mystery part of the story to unwind. However, the author does have a good writing style, plot, and there are red herrings so you don’t know the true killer right away. Which means to me a lot of untapped potential that I feel will improve as the series continues.
Things don’t go as planned when a body is found on opening night and fingers point to the witch community. River sets her sights on solving the mystery before she or one of her friends are taken in as prime suspects and even worse another murder is committed.
The first book doesn’t have a lot of character development and it does take a while for the mystery part of the story to unwind. However, the author does have a good writing style, plot, and there are red herrings so you don’t know the true killer right away. Which means to me a lot of untapped potential that I feel will improve as the series continues.
July 20, 2018
I am not sure which version of this book I read, as I was informed Amazon had delivered a "wrong" book to me and I needed to upgrade it. Of course I read the version I had first, before doing the upgrade. I enjoyed it even though it sounded like a second in series.
River Halloway is a new reporter on a new weekly newspaper in a small town where nothing ever happens. She covers births, deaths and unusual birthdays. She is friends with both the sheriff and mayor, as well as a coffee shop employee with a cafe below the newspaper office. She lives in a house on Black Cat Lane with some unemployed females and an odd landlady.
She decides that if nothing is going to happen in town, perhaps something should be MADE to happen. She gets more than she expects. Other secrets are uncovered as well, but she does her best not to reveal them to the world at large.
This was a quick read and a fun book. I enjoyed the characters.
If you like clean reads with light paranormal elements and not too complicated mysteries to solve, I believe you will enjoy this series.
Now, I am going to do that book upgrade and see what changes are made.
River Halloway is a new reporter on a new weekly newspaper in a small town where nothing ever happens. She covers births, deaths and unusual birthdays. She is friends with both the sheriff and mayor, as well as a coffee shop employee with a cafe below the newspaper office. She lives in a house on Black Cat Lane with some unemployed females and an odd landlady.
She decides that if nothing is going to happen in town, perhaps something should be MADE to happen. She gets more than she expects. Other secrets are uncovered as well, but she does her best not to reveal them to the world at large.
This was a quick read and a fun book. I enjoyed the characters.
If you like clean reads with light paranormal elements and not too complicated mysteries to solve, I believe you will enjoy this series.
Now, I am going to do that book upgrade and see what changes are made.
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