Earlier this year I decided that I wanted to do theme books for my reading -- Jaws for summer and spooky for Halloween and a fun cheesy Christmas story for .. well .. Christmas.
During the spring I was at a Barnes and Nobel on the hunt for the elusive Jaws [my review] and I walked into the non-fiction murder mystery section. How? Well .. I am not too sure but I always seem to gravitate there no matter what I am looking for. While reading the synopsis of the selection I looked over and saw a few shelves of Heather Blake's Wishcraft series. Normally I would not be interested in such books but after I read the book descriptions I thought 'well at least these won't give me nightmares like some of the other horror books that have been recommended'. I put them on the reading list along with The Ruins, The Terror, Birdbox, The Shining and Pines [which by the way I saw the series Wayward Pines and man was it is addictive] and I will play it by ear and see what I would be in the mood for.
Well .. October came and while I was scrolling through the Libby ap I saw the Wishcraft series again. I was so pleased that the audiobooks were available and I thought 'perfect because with finishing a project [posting soon] I do not have time to sit and read'. I enjoyed listening to The Good, the Bad and the Witchy so much that I listened to The Good-Bye Witch and A Witch Before Dying all within a span of 2 weeks. The only reason I did not get to the other books is because they were checked out. Yes .. the series seems to be that popular and that is because it is a cute little book series. The main setting of the story is that there is a theme village in Salem, PA called The Enchanted Village where witches can live a semi-typical existence as store proprietors for unbeknown non-witch people. There are different types of witchcraft and skills among the community and Marci Merriweather is a wish-crafter - an ability to grant the wishes of other that she inherited from her mother. She and her Aunt run an event planning business named aptly As You Wish. Each book had a murder happen around or involving Marci which she felt compelled to solve. There was a bit of repetition throughout the book but besides that it was a nice read. I can say that I did like it better that the Aurora Teagarden book.
I am going to publicly admit today that I like Hallmark Mystery and some Christmas movies. There .. I said it. Yes, their movies are cheesy and overly acted but I do not care. I like to sit down to a murder mystery which is not bombarded with bad words or with gory realistic images. I like my sleep and sometimes those other shows just mess with my brain - especially when I binge watch. Last year I was channel surfing and the Good Witch movie was to start so I decided to sit and watch since I wanted to kill a morning relaxing in bed. And well … that movie led to the another movie which led to another movie and eventually to the show which was premiering that night. The small town set up reminds me of Gilmore Girls but without the quick banter. The close knit mother/daughter dynamic, the romantic interest [with a son] who is no-nonsense but lovable and colorful townsfolk characters in a small and idyllic town that love their festivals. The series is a continuation of the movies but it is taking place 10 years after the last movie. Our female protagonist, Cassie, is now a widow raising her super smart and kind 16 year old daughter, Grace, in a Bed and Breakfast [yes .. really] she has two grown stepchildren, one is a freelance writer and the other has taken his father's profession of being a police officer. Cassie also owns a store with unique treasures named Bell, Book and Candle. The love interest who happens to live next door is Dr. Sam Radford, the new doctor who came to the small town to be more connected to his trouble-finding son, Nick, who is the same age as Grace. The town busy body is Martha, who was the Mayor's wife but is now the Mayor herself, who is VERY active in the community and it's goings on. Cassie's compassion and how she genuinely encourages others is what draws people to her. She uses her 'ability' to sense what others might need by giving them loving words and allowing them to find their own path. Even though the new season does not start until spring/summer Hallmark shows a 2 hour premier around Halloween. Also, you can stream the series on Netflix.
During the spring I was at a Barnes and Nobel on the hunt for the elusive Jaws [my review] and I walked into the non-fiction murder mystery section. How? Well .. I am not too sure but I always seem to gravitate there no matter what I am looking for. While reading the synopsis of the selection I looked over and saw a few shelves of Heather Blake's Wishcraft series. Normally I would not be interested in such books but after I read the book descriptions I thought 'well at least these won't give me nightmares like some of the other horror books that have been recommended'. I put them on the reading list along with The Ruins, The Terror, Birdbox, The Shining and Pines [which by the way I saw the series Wayward Pines and man was it is addictive] and I will play it by ear and see what I would be in the mood for.
Well .. October came and while I was scrolling through the Libby ap I saw the Wishcraft series again. I was so pleased that the audiobooks were available and I thought 'perfect because with finishing a project [posting soon] I do not have time to sit and read'. I enjoyed listening to The Good, the Bad and the Witchy so much that I listened to The Good-Bye Witch and A Witch Before Dying all within a span of 2 weeks. The only reason I did not get to the other books is because they were checked out. Yes .. the series seems to be that popular and that is because it is a cute little book series. The main setting of the story is that there is a theme village in Salem, PA called The Enchanted Village where witches can live a semi-typical existence as store proprietors for unbeknown non-witch people. There are different types of witchcraft and skills among the community and Marci Merriweather is a wish-crafter - an ability to grant the wishes of other that she inherited from her mother. She and her Aunt run an event planning business named aptly As You Wish. Each book had a murder happen around or involving Marci which she felt compelled to solve. There was a bit of repetition throughout the book but besides that it was a nice read. I can say that I did like it better that the Aurora Teagarden book.
I am going to publicly admit today that I like Hallmark Mystery and some Christmas movies. There .. I said it. Yes, their movies are cheesy and overly acted but I do not care. I like to sit down to a murder mystery which is not bombarded with bad words or with gory realistic images. I like my sleep and sometimes those other shows just mess with my brain - especially when I binge watch. Last year I was channel surfing and the Good Witch movie was to start so I decided to sit and watch since I wanted to kill a morning relaxing in bed. And well … that movie led to the another movie which led to another movie and eventually to the show which was premiering that night. The small town set up reminds me of Gilmore Girls but without the quick banter. The close knit mother/daughter dynamic, the romantic interest [with a son] who is no-nonsense but lovable and colorful townsfolk characters in a small and idyllic town that love their festivals. The series is a continuation of the movies but it is taking place 10 years after the last movie. Our female protagonist, Cassie, is now a widow raising her super smart and kind 16 year old daughter, Grace, in a Bed and Breakfast [yes .. really] she has two grown stepchildren, one is a freelance writer and the other has taken his father's profession of being a police officer. Cassie also owns a store with unique treasures named Bell, Book and Candle. The love interest who happens to live next door is Dr. Sam Radford, the new doctor who came to the small town to be more connected to his trouble-finding son, Nick, who is the same age as Grace. The town busy body is Martha, who was the Mayor's wife but is now the Mayor herself, who is VERY active in the community and it's goings on. Cassie's compassion and how she genuinely encourages others is what draws people to her. She uses her 'ability' to sense what others might need by giving them loving words and allowing them to find their own path. Even though the new season does not start until spring/summer Hallmark shows a 2 hour premier around Halloween. Also, you can stream the series on Netflix.
