Emerald O'Brien owns Chintz 'n China where visitors can get tarot readings and tea. She finds herself investigating a death when the dead woman asks her for help. She also has to deal with the fact that her son is exploring magic and has managed to complicate the issue.

Along with her friends she works on the issues and we see into her life and her magic.

It's an interesting look at magic and detective stories with more of a touch of realism than most in this area. You can tell that the author knows her stuff. ( )

Emerald O'Brien wakes up in the middle of the night to find a ghost of Susan Mitchell at her bedside. This isn't all that unusual occurance for Em. She's known as the town witch. Susan has been murdered by her husband, and she wants Em to prove it. The next morning Em sees in the paper that Susan Mitchell has died from an accidental overdose of insulin. Em begins a tentative inquiry with her friends into the possibility of Susan's death not being an accident. The next night Em's son is terrorized by a spirit. It seems Susan isn't the only spirit in Em's house. Em must now fight a malignant force as well as discover the truth behind Susan's death.

All in all it's an entertaining cozy style mystery. The character of Emerald O'Brien is fairly well fleshed out as a mother struggling to make a life for herself and her children. Emerald is also dealing with the sense of betrayal by her ex-husband, and his inattentiveness towards their children. Unfortunately the secondary characters are missing that spark that makes them seem totally real. They have moments, but as a whole I found it difficult to picture them in my mind. The side romance just seemed tacked on, and didn't really add that much to the story. It was if the author needed a strong male character, and borrowed one from the nearest romance book. His reactions seemed too stereotypical romance hero to ring true.

I did enjoy the book. It was a quick read, and I'll probably check out the later books in the series. On a side note I love the cover art on the paperback copy. ( )

Emerald O'Brien owns a tea and china shop in a small Washington town. She is also the town witch and reads tarot cards for her customers. She and her two children are recovering from a recent divorce but things are looking up. Then one night a ghost appears and blames her death on her husband. So Em finds herself trying to resolve the mystery so the ghost can rest. Unfortunately, a very unfriendly spirit has found its way into her house also and this one is out for blood.

Hmmm, I liked this book well enough. I felt that I got to know the characters. But there was a lot going on that had nothing to do with the mystery and it sort of left my head spinning sometimes. At this point I will probably not pick up the next in the series. I just did not get that attached. ( )

if you aren't into "woo woo witchy stuff" you won't enjoy this
much. I'm usually not put off by such things (after all, I'm a tarot reader
myself) but this author writes with a somewhat heavy hand, if you get my
drift. The story seemed to move along in jerks and starts. The whole "new
love" thing seemed to me to be nothing but a distraction and served no real
purpose. Probably because I wasn't attracted to the characterization of the
man involved, but also because it just didn't ring true to the character of
Emerald (I thought) and it moved along too fast. One minute they are
discussing facts of the case and the next, they are in a steamy clinch full
of throbbing and gasping and all like that. I think that bothered me more
than the "woo woo witchy stuff" did! LOL ( )

Someone - perhaps the author's website - described this series as cozies with an edge. In the first of the series, single mom Emerald owns a Tea Room (not Shoppe) and, due in part to her psychic abilities, is also considered the town witch. The ghost of a recently deceased woman appears to Emerald saying she was murdered and wants her to bring the perpetrator to justice. A good beginning for the series. ( )