The Witch's Grave

Of the ones I have read so far in this series...This has to be my favorite.

Ophelia is finally accepting who & what she is as well as her "gift". Abby is there only as a guide and a sometime companion.

While at a library fund raiser Ophelia (librarian) meets Stephen (literally the man of her dreams), but as he takes her in his arms they are disturbed by crows...and then a near fatal shot that downs Stephen.

As Ophelia goes about her nosing around, other "accidents" befall her, thus forcing her to send Tink back to Appalachia to stay with the Great-Aunts.

Ophelia's dreams continue....with her in a past life as a Nazi resister in France, a lover who will not commit until it's too late, a Romany family fleeing France for their lives.

How show more Ophelia's dreams of her past life come into play is very interesting. The tie-in to occupied France, moving targeted families & the relation to the plight of migrant workers is very well done.

In my opinion, this is definitely the best in the series, so far...and I am so glad for the improvement! show less

The author seems to like experimenting to keep the series fresh. Sometimes she takes them out of town, sometimes she introduces new characters like adopted daughters and eccentric aunts, sometimes she shakes up whether they're investigating a murder or something else, and in this book she does some kind of weird merge with flashbacks of a woman in Nazi times who has to say goodbye to a love interest.

The backstory was interesting but it's not a personal preference for me when an author does that. Color me uncreative, but I don't care for keeping track of two main characters with two different time lines. I'm woefully limited that way. That aside, the back story worked to tie together the beautiful and somewhat surreal introduction to show more this one where Ophelia acts completely un-Ophelia like with a new man.

The mystery is different in that she is not trying to solve a murder or find a missing person, but instead is trying to solve an attempted murder and find out the story of the her visions and what her new suitor has been up to. It has potential to be fascinating, but falls short at times, missing a step and curtailing by being too calm and with no big twists or shocks. For the past life, that one turned out to be emotionally moving and actually heart-wrenching.

Even if the author changes up the story by trying new things, she keeps the same old mannerisms that drive me bonkers - such as exaggerated hand and head movements for the main characters as they decide things, wonder things, and point out things. The intelligence is only so-so for Ophelia and she goes from lukewarm to friendly for her personality. Abby is still not my favorite as she's too over the top cliche, but Tink is an enjoyable delight as the introduced daughter of her own unique powers.

Overall this is an enjoyable book if you're a fan of the series, but it falls short of the others, missing something I can't put my weak detective finger on. show less

Ophelia has come a long way from book 1. I personally have been waiting for her to tap into her power like she did in book 1 again. This book was satisfying in her progress with her powers and most characters in the story were well done. The past life plot I felt was handled deftly and added a great flavor to the story.

The one aspect of the story that is getting progressively tiresome with each book is Sheriff Bill Wilson. He even somehow blames Ophelia when someone tries to shoot her in her very own backyard and even expects her to only be at the library if not home. If she visits the hospital and meets the mother of the shooting victim then she is somehow meddling. He is getting very aggravating. Whether he ever respects Ophelia's show more gifts is different than the character just being impossible. show less

This Shirley Damsgaard series revolves around a witch named Ophelia who keeps getting entangled in mysteries. In the first book, Ophelia is unhappy and unaccepting of her 'powers'. Then with each following book, she grows a little stronger and more confident in her abilities. This sixth book, "The Witch's Grave", has Ophelia coming into a new level of power while experiencing dreams of another, possibly past, life.

Ophelia is happy when she meets a handsome blond stranger and they seem to have an instant 'connection'. So when he asks her to walk with him and discuss a date, she's glad to comply. Their walk is interrupted when he is shot right in front of her. He manages to pass her a diary before he collapses at her feet and in the show more flurry of the rescue, she forgets to give it to the police. That night she reads the diary and becomes interested in what could possibly make this man a target for a killer. That night, she also begins to dream of a woman. The further she gets into the mystery, the more of this mysterious woman's past life is revealed. Can Ophelia figure it out before the killer comes for her?

I've enjoyed Ophelia's journey so far and in past books, the balance between magic and mystery has been weighted more towards mystery. However, in this book the balance shifted quite a bit towards the magical side and I think the mystery suffered as a result. Hopefully, Damsgaard will adjust the balance and I certainly intend to keep reading about Ophelia's life, loves, and mysteries. show less

Sixth in Shirley Damsgaard's Ophelia and Abby series, about a witch and psychic, Ophelia, her grandmother, Abby, and Ophelia's foster daughter Tink. In this outing Ophelia meets Stephen Larsen and realizes he is the man she has been dreaming about, and they take a walk, both feeling a strong attraction. But a shot is fired, and Stephen falls, critically wounded. Ophelia feels a duty to find out who hurt him and why,

The story begins on a rather unbelievable note - Ophelia meets, literally, the man of her dreams, and then he gets shot -but by the end Damsgaard has written a unique story about how past lives interweave with the present. Nicely done.

Not a bad story about Ophelia, her life and her complicated and involved life that includes magic and psychic powers. When her boyfriend is shot she investigates.

Sweet story but it was all about Ophelia and people from the past. These books are usually so good because they involve all of the character and their personalities. This book was looking in that area. Still good story though!