When the effects of the zombie curse don't go away completely, Brighton has to turn to a vampire for help. Unfortunately, a body turns up drained of blood. Brighton and friends have to clear the friendly vamp's name, but will an evil bloodsucker catch the crew in its snare?
Sweep - Stakes is the sixth book in the Wicked Witches of Coventry paranormal cozy mystery series.
Sara Bourgeois is a Midwesterner through and through. She spends her time writing, reading, herding cats, and standing in her driveway during tornado warnings. (You can't see them from the basement.)
When Brighton got whammied in the last book, they didn’t solve the problem. So this book is about finding some vampire blood to fix her and keep her from turning full zombie.
This series started out with such promise, but it’s been heading downhill. Now, it’s not only heading downhill, it’s picking up significant speed. The plot is ho-hum, the writing has gotten worse, and don’t get me started on the editing. Is there even an editor? I’m not so sure. I was going to stop with this book because this series just isn’t worth my time anymore, but decided to give the next book a try. Yeah, don’t. There just aren’t enough cute and funny moments in this to offset the bad. I don’t recommend.
Such a great start with such a terribly anticlimactic denouement. Thre story I'd going along well until about 3/4 if thre way through, and then the author dropped her pen on the desktop and phoned in the ending. If I'd had a physical copy of the book, I'd have tossed it backward over my shoulder while rolling my eyes (but I so was not going to do that with my Samsung S9). *sigh*
There were really great plot elements to the ending, but I can't even classify it as perfunctory. It was just that poorly done. It was like a sloppy first draft of a charcoal sketch on a cocktail napkin when the finished product could have been a vivid portrait on lush canvas. Very disappointing.
I have enjoyed the other books in this series as fun, light, reads, even though there are some glaring editing issues throughout. this book took the issues a step farther. It was a reasonably entertaining read in the same vein as it's predecessors right up until the final 10% of the book. At that point it jumped the rails and crashed. You get right up to the point where things usually start to "come together" and boom! When you turn the page to the part where it should all start to tie up it becomes an unholy stew of WTF. It is as if instead of writing the ending the author just inserted her outline. It did not make since and the what happened came out of left field. it was a very unsatisfying ending.
Was this a series of bad story ideas that was sent to be published by mistake?!?!? Was the editor accidentally turned into a zombie during the last book? This was not a fully realized story. It's a bloody mess. Seriously, don't love giving crap reviews, but this disaster warrants. From beginning to end, it was a bunch of disjointed muck, slopped together and wrapped up with seemingly no thought or planning. Already annoyed that I bought this series in error (spending $20 more than worth) but to be insulted by this miasma of wtf moment after wtf moment is just a slap in the face too much. I'm done.
This series started out ok, not great - but not too bad either. Since I didn't know what else I wanted to read at the time, I continued with the series. It has quickly devolved into an unreadable mess. Continuation errors, sloppy plotting, rushed endings & very poor editing. I gave this series way too many chances & really should have quit after the first book. I can't imagine ever reading this author again, which is too bad because I thought the first book had some potential.
Every book in this series has multiple errors. Incorrect grammar, wrong words used. Words left out completely. These errors do not make reading these books any fun at all. PLEASE HAVE YOUR BOOKS PROOFREAD BEFORE PUBLISHING!!
While Brighton ate fried chicken on the sofa, Remy, Annika, Meri, and Brody tried to figure out how they were going to find a vampire and convince the vampire to give her some of his blood. If they couldn’t, Brighton would be turning into a zombie! There might possibly be a dark web for supernaturals. But they would probably need Ralph Badersmith’s help with that since he was the President of the Coventry Paranormal Historical Society -- but he would expect books in trade for his assistance. Brody would steal something rare from the college that nobody could or would read anyway. Remy agreed to go with Brody to protect him with his magic.
As soon as the guys left, Annika turned to Brighton and asked if she was ready to go find a vampire. She had never intended to wait while they sought Ralph Badersmith’s help. She thought the two of them approaching the vampire would be less intimidating than all four of them! And she knew where to find a friendly vampire – but he lived in a town of vampires. In the vampire village, where they didn’t drink human blood, Annika’s childhood friend Kyle vouched for them and they told him they needed a big favor – his blood! Brighton had been struck by a dead witch’s spell, so the witches could not stop it. Only a vampire’s blood would work. Kyle bit his wrist and gave her a little of his blood. He would ask the Vampire Council’s permission for giving more than that, but this would hopefully keep her from turning sooner. Sure enough, the ravenous urge to eat caused by the zombie spell totally disappeared – at least for now. Her mind and vision also cleared.
On the way home, Annika told Brighton that her brother Brody seemed to be getting more withdrawn and moodier during the 6 months she had known him. He especially gets intense when Brighton does magic, as if he is jealous of her power. When Brody and Remy got home, they told them about the vampire and Brody seemed kind of angry and went upstairs to the library. Remy, Annika, and Brighton decided to go see Ralph as a backup plan in case Kyle couldn’t help them again. Ralph gave them the name and address of a vampire still living in Coventry trying to stay “under the radar”. But instead of being willing to help, Julian was angry at their asking for his blood and he slammed the door in their faces.
Remy went out to pick up their pizza for dinner, but he came back with bad news. The three of them piled into the car and drove to the square. They saw a dead woman laid out at the feet of the founder’s statue and there were two puncture wounds in the side of her neck! The victim was Councilwoman Vivian Landers. The Coventry Town Council immediately hired a sheriff, but Deputy Lundgren drove up to announce he just made an arrest -- Kyle Davorin! Then he refused to tell them anything further. How were they going to get Kyle released? How could they find the killer with no information from Lundgren? And how would Brighton get the additional vampire blood she needed to cure the zombie spell?
This is Book 6 in the Wicked Witches of Coventry series, as Brighton continues to land in the middle of disaster! Hit by a zombie spell cast by a now-dead witch, Brighton is turning into a zombie. The other witches can slow it down, but they can’t cure her with the spell-caster being dead. Only a vampire’s blood can cure her now. But when someone turns up drained of blood, Kyle is blamed and they need to find the real killer! Grab your copy and try to solve the mystery with Brighton and the gang! The characters are awesome and many are familiar to the reader by now. The action never stops as the story line races through to the exciting conclusion. Make sure you follow the witches on their breathtaking journey to save Brighton! [Note: This is not the correct book cover for Book 6.]
Oohhh after that cliffy at the end of the previous book, we know that Brighton is in danger of being a zombie if they don't find a cure soon.
Ofcourse we know what the cure is - Vampire's blood to negate the zombie curse but now Remy, Annika & Brighton along with Meri have to find a vampire in the first place.
We have another exciting and adventure filled ride as we start the search along with Remy, Annika, Brighton and Meri searching through archives and trying their best to find a vampire.
When a past friend comes as help as he's a vampire, and friend of Annika's, things start to look hopeful. But there are vampire politics involved as permissions need to be taken.
Also, there's a new sheriff in town and for some reason he has an instant hate-hate vibes towards Brighton and always seems to be catching the gang at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Among all this, a new crime in town raises red flags as to the nature of who did it or was it the unknown vampire because Annika's friend Kyle seems to be accused wrongly when he was only trying to help and now the vamp council ropes in Brighton for helping them rescue their fellow mate and help prove his innocence in exchange for what she needs to be cured of the curse, vampire's blood.
OH my... I loved taking this suspenseful, exciting and thrilling ride with the trio and our familiar, cat.
I was so shocked with the twists that we see and I gobbled this book within a couple of hours as it is that freaking unputdownable.
The reveals were truly shocking and I was like 😱😱 as I never expected this turn to happen. By the end I was just reading so freaking fast as I couldn't believe what was happening and the reveals that were coming from all sides left me wide-eyed.
Can't wait to dive into the next one. Absolutely loved loved this one. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
totally awry when Kyle is arrested for murder. Brighton needs Kyle's blood and Annika is sure Kyle didn't kill the Councilwoman Vivian Landers, so they begin their own investigation. It's then that they meet the new sheriff, Gunner Black. He already knows about Brighton and warns her to stay out of it.
Then the vampire council arrives. The spokesperson for the council is one of Kyle's brothers, Kirendal and they want Brighton to find the real killer or the whole town will face the consequences. They leave behind Marius another of Kyle's brothers to give her blood as what she's already been given wears off.
Brighton, Remy, Meri and Annika, begin their investigation by breaking into first the councilwoman's office and then because of what they find there, the funeral home. Both times they almost get caught by Gunner, the first time was easier than the second. But Meri puts him to sleep before they could be arrested for trespassing.
Plenty of twists in this one and someone involved I really didn't expect to be. There's also a pleasant surprise in the epilogue.
Brighton is cursed and the gang is trying to figure out a way to cure her from becoming a zombie...but the solution is a little out there? In a town of witches where to find a vampire? Another wonderful addition to the Wicked Witches of Coventry series...I had a hard time putting it down.. Although I found this book with a few mistakes and it's not like the author to have so many but it didn't take away from the story. It was still excellent story. Looking forward to the next installment. I received an ARC from Booksprout for an honest review... If you like cozy mysteries, lovable characters, and stories about witches then I highly recommend. An easy and quick read but please read the series in order so that it will make sense because each book is a continuation of the last
Wow this book was full of twists and turns. I never saw them coming. When everything was revealed at the end i was shocked. Brighton needs the blood of a vampire to cancel out the zombie magic that was thrown at her in the previous book. Annika knows of a friendly vampire from when she was a young girl and they go to see him. On their return they discover the body of a woman drained of blood. Annika vampire friend gets arrested for it. The vampire council appoint Brighton to solve the murder and get Kyle released in exchange for the blood she needs. There was a lot of things happening in this book which has made me very curious. I hope these questions will be answered in future books.
I love this series, but this book must have been rushed....Finding 3 mistakes in the first two pages that should have been caught during editing is not cool. The first mistake was in the first sentence. The story as a whole was good and I really enjoyed it. This is a continuation of the series and must be read in order to understand the whole story and what is going on.
Great characters, good descriptions. All in all a good read.
Would I recommend this book? Yes
Would I read more from this author? Yes
Sassy Beta Reading and Review
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I feel like this book was a bit rushed especially at the end when poof everything is ok and a whole raft of things had occurred with Brighton's brother as well as the evil Meri and where did this Gunner and Annika thing come from? The story continues from where the previous book ended with Brighton needing a cure for her zombieness and the need to find a vampire for their blood for said cure. I hope the next book doesn't feel as rushed and big things glossed over as I really love this series an want to see where things go for Brighton, Remy and Annika.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Wow! What happened to the author of the first 5 books in this series? It was as if she left town right at the ending and somebody else typed in her outline and sent it off to be published. The previous book ended on such a cliffhanger that I immediately downloaded this book. Perhaps she knew her readers were in a hurry to find out of if Brighton survived the zombie apocalypse so she cranked this out as quickly as possible. I hope she learns to slow down and take the time to fully flesh out and develop her stories. I'd rather wait a few months longer for the next installment than read a first draft with an outline for the ending.
Ugh. Another let down of a novella in this series and let's be real, they are not long enough to be classified as "real" books. We ended the previous story on a zombie/vampire note and I was looking forward to this one (love vampires), but this was just a let down all the way around.
I didn't try to figure out who the bad guy was, but there were hints all the way through and it just wasn't imaginative. Also, it didn't actually even fix Brighton's zombie issue. I'd say I'm done with these, but since I'm more than half-way thru these novellas, I guess I'll just keep going, since it really only takes about 3 hours to get each one read.
An entertaining witchy cozy mystery series. A great cast of characters and a fun and entertaining storyline. Young woman inherits her great aunts house in a small town and then finds out she is actually from a family of witches. As she learns how to use her powers and acquires new friends as well as a talking cat familiar. Her and her friends find or create trouble mayhem and occasionally murders. Follow along as they must solve the mystery‘s.. entertaining and funny at times check it out
This is the sixth instalment in the Wicked Witches of Coventry series. The characters are eclectic with interesting personalities. The narrative and dialogue are well done. The storyline flows smoothly and is full of action. The mystery is full of twists and turns and surprises keeping you interested until the end. I think you can read this book as a stand-alone but it would be best to start with book one. If you like witchy cozy mysteries with interesting characters, then you should try this series.
So disappointed that only the first 5 of this series were available as audiobooks; I was liking that reader. So now I’m reading them as e-books, & this had a lot of typos. e.g. This author really needs to learn the difference between prophesy (verb) & prophecy (noun). In the first few pages, it misidentifies who’s speaking—unless Brody was having a conversation with himself. Anyway, the story line felt weak. And it felt really weird that there was no grieving over her losing her brother, whom she’d only just reconnected with. And exactly what happened to him was left awfully vague.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
A really fun series. Brighton and Remy are planning a wedding; although they have to cure Brighton of the zombie curse she is under before she goes full zombielike. Then a dead body turns up and all the loose ends start to unravel. Who murdered the victim, a vampire or is someone framing the vampires? Questions and twists in the story will keep you turning the pages. This is a fun and enjoyable series.
Brighton is still fighting the zombie curse while the others search desperately for a vampire to cure her. Remy, Meri and the others track down information but more and more complications pop up. Dodging a murderer, vampires, black magic, malevolent ghosts and a crazy craving for fried chicken, Brighton needs to solve this mystery before she becomes the walking dead. I received an advance copy of this book and voluntarily left a review.
This books continues directly after the previous book. Brighton is still battling the zombie virus within her all while looking for a cure. The team of friends go on an adventure to solve the latest murder all while uncovering the sinister action and intentions of others. Reading seemed to quite quickly to mirror the pace of this book.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Were you rushed for a deadline¿ The books feels unfinished, poorly planned ending¿ The witches council has nothing to say about Brody? Nothing about the vampire blood and the cure? They didn't know it would work, but no mention if she even got the blood? Did someone other than the author finish the book?
Against better judgement I pre-ordered the next 2 books, but if they are as poorly written as this. . . . I'm out
The ending of this book confused me I don't know who the killer was and how Brody was involved was it the vampire Kyle or Brighton's brother who killed the council women not sure how she was cured of the zombie curse either if she found that the vampire she was to get off was the guilty of killing the women what vampire but her removed her from hangman house left heroin the cemitary
I thought this would be another interesting reading...but it seemed that it wasn’t written by the same person as the others. Half way through it went wonky, breaking into house after house...not noticing one of the foursome turn into dark witch...then all of a sudden it’s over with not much of an explanation of anything other than the remaining three enjoying the weather..... weird. Hopefully the next book is back to normal.
I am really trying to like this series but with the typos, the explaining of the plot at the end and then the epilog, it is increasingly hard to do. But there is always that little cliffhanger at the end that keeps me reading the next book! This series has so much potential if the author would only flesh it out more and give the characters more substance. Oh well, on to the next one and roll my eyes some more.
Wow, i was expecting a real adventure. It starts out well, pretty much where the last book ended, the plot is all set out its ready to go and boom you get a chapter that ties a knot in stuff you didn't even know was happening!! really surreal almost like reading a synopsis of a plot, so very disappointing, very poor book. Took me less than 30 minutes to read.
This is book six in this series. Brighton is still in danger of becoming an actual zombie. Her brother seems to be turning to the dark side. There's an evil Meri, more deaths and a series of sleepwalking 'tours' that she is taking. I think the series is still going strong and I plan to keep reading them.
I read this book because I wanted to know what happened to Brighton. It left it up in the Air at the end of last book. I felt Really bad for Brody. They just wrote him off as bad. And then to find out in the End that all the Vampires were bad. And the never talk about how the Blood cured Brighton. We were just supposed to assume.
Brighton finds out that vampires are real and she needs the blood of one to live. Friends and family can not be trusted and it could cost someone their life. Can the gang solve the murder before it's too late, but it will cost some of them family and friends.
Another good book in this series. I liked the addition of the vampires to the story they where well written as characters go. Also the addition of the new sheriff was nice, especially in the end for Annika. As far as the whodunnit goes I was partially right but it was a more twisted whodunnit than I thought, in a good but bummer way.