Caught Dead Handed

Witch City Mystery, Book 1

By: Carol J. Perry

Narrated by: C.S.E Cooney

Length: 8 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Most folks associate the city of Salem, Massachusetts, with witches, but for Lee Barrett it's home. This October she's returned to her hometown - where her beloved Aunt Ibby still lives - to interview for a job as a reporter at WICH-TV. But the only opening is for a call-in psychic to host the late-night horror movies. It seems the previous host, Ariel Constellation, never saw her own murder coming.

Lee reluctantly takes the job, but when she starts seeing real events in the obsidian ball she's using as a prop, she wonders if she might really have psychic abilities. To make things even spookier, it's starting to look like Ariel may have been an actual practicing witch - especially when O'Ryan, the cat Lee and Aunt Ibby inherited from her, exhibits some strange powers of his own.

With Halloween fast approaching, Lee must focus on unmasking a killer - or her career as a psychic may be very short lived.

©2014 Carol J. Perry (P)2015 Tantor

Critic reviews

"The atmosphere of this mystery is delightfully spooky, and the psychic elements add mystical touches that enhance the plot." ( RT Book Reviews)

Unusual and interesting story, awful reader

A few aspects of this book made it especially unusual. Without giving too much away, what I mean, are the psychological history and relationships of some of the main characters.
Unfortunately, the person who read the book was the worst reader I've ever heard! She read the book in a completely flat voice, and at the same time, over-annunciated constantly. This distracted from enjoying the story. It might have been much better than I thought it was, had it been read by a professional.

Good read

enjoyed the book,wished reader voice wasn't so flat, but plot was great. will get the next one ,
, since I already have the print one.

Predictable

I enjoyed this audible book but I could see the “big plot twist” a mile off. The other annoying thing is the narrators breathy performance. It’s like she’s trying to make every female sound like Marilyn Monroe.

Shows promise, but...

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Sadly, I can't recommend this particular book. The writing is perfectly serviceable and the character is fairly likable. However (CONTAINS SPOILERS)



The solution to the mystery is A) fairly obvious and the protagonist just remains oblivious for far longer than she should.
B) Incredibly transphobic. This is the sort of story that we saw all over the place in the mid-90's thrillers like Sliver. It's outdated and unfortunate and kept me from enjoying the story.

Cats Meow

Great book. Reader has very nice voice. Classic style mystery which is interesting and yet makes you smile.

Really good book!

Loved the characters and the story. A few sad topics but thoroughly enjoyed! Get it!

Great start to a new series!

I hope we get more of these as soon as possible! There is much to like about this first book, starting with the reader. She's excellent! She does opposite sex characters well, multiple different characters with distinction and interest (the voice she uses for Janice, in particular, is just amazing), and has a very pleasant voice to listen to. She doesn't get lost in her sentences, and knows her materiel.
As far as the book itself goes, the set up is unique and has room for growth. The heroine has an interesting back story, and is self assured and assertive. The setting, (in Salem, Massachusetts, right before Halloween), makes it distinctive and fascinating, and more specifically the setting in the small town TV station, with our heroine deciding to take on the hosting of the late night horror movie call-in show is funny and effective. Some of the scenes on the basement set late at night are quite creepy.
The supporting characters are probably the strongest part of the book. Some of them are funny, some of them are complex, and all of them are interesting. They are all well drawn and distinctive, and since this is the only book (so far) that takes place at the TV station, I'll miss some of them quite a bit as the series goes on. Even the victim is a strong and interesting presence.
The major weakness is that it's so clear, for so long, who the murder must be to the reader, that it's very hard to understand how Lee (the protagonist) doesn't see it as well. I enjoyed the setting and the characters so much that I didn't care much. It should be noted that in book two, I had no idea who the murder was until it was revealed, so this series gets better from that point of view.
Overall, I loved this book, and will doubtless listen to it repeatedly. I can't wait for book three!

Enjoying a new premise!

Any additional comments?

The narrator is good. She has room for improvement, but I have so heard much worse on Audible. Really, the narrator is not new to reading and does an above average job. I enjoyed the plot and the addition to the broadcasting world to a cozy mystery. (Been tiring of cupcakes and coffee). Delve in and give it a try. New authors need support!

Standard

Cute little cozy. Worth the listen, but just average. One of those listens that are fine when listening, but that you forget a week later.

Great, compelling book

This was the first time I had listened to a book by this author and narrator and I was very satisfied. It flowed very easily, had a compelling and believable storyline, with interesting and colorful characters. I’m looking forward to the next book in this series.