Reviewed by Jeanne
Lee, aka Maralee, Barrett has just returned to her hometown
of Salem to interview for a job as a television reporter. She’s been away for several years, gone to
college, married, and been widowed.
She’s at loose ends, and this seems a good way to reconnect. Aunt
Ibby, the woman who raised Lee after the deaths of her parents, still lives in
Salem and would welcome Lee back home with open arms. Unfortunately, Lee quickly discovers that the
prospective job is already taken by a photogenic male reporter before she even
gets an interview. She angrily leaves the station, only to find a body floating
in the ocean near the station.
It’s Ariel Constellation, the psychic/horror movie hostess
for the station. As the police investigate, Lee is hired to take Ariel’s place
as the new hostess for “Nightshades.” She quickly discovers the station is run
on a shoestring budget, with employees expected be pretty much jacks of all
trades. She also finds she’s supposed to
play the part of psychic as well, answering callers’ questions during breaks in
the movie.
In addition to her job, Lee also seems to have inherited
Ariel’s cat. Orion, redubbed O’Ryan, is
a chubby orange tabby who makes himself right at home with Lee and Aunt Ibby.
Lee should be pleased, but she’s upset when she thinks she sees something in
Ariel’s crystal ball. Also, it appears
that some people believed Ariel was a real, practicing witch. . . and they seem
inclined to think that Lee is one too.
Given that Ariel was murdered, Lee may need to watch her back.
Mysteries with a touch of the supernatural have become quite
the thing lately. For me, the most
important parts of almost any book are that I like the characters and that the
writing is well done; the rest is just trimmings or, occasionally, a real
bonus.
Lee is a confident young woman who is also intelligent,
kind, and thoughtful. Her marriage was
happy until her husband’s untimely death but while she still grieves, she’s going
ahead with her life. This is my kind of
heroine. I confess I’m a bit tired of the air-headed, needy lead characters of some series; I find myself
wanting to tell them to grow up.
I also like the way that the supernatural elements are
handled. Lee has occasional visions when
she looks into dark, reflective surfaces, something she tries hard to avoid,
but these little glimpses are often difficult to interpret. While Lee finds the idea of Ariel being a
genuine psychic to be highly doubtful, she treats those who do believe with
respect. She takes a crash course in
Tarot for her performance and explains how fake psychics can make people
believe they are getting real answers. It’s a fine line to walk between skepticism
and belief, and Perry does it very well.
Supporting characters are also well done, especially the
lively Aunt Ibby and O’Ryan. Ibby is a strong, intelligent, lively woman who
trusts Lee to do what she thinks best, and has a love for old movies from award
winners to cult classics. She’s also a reference librarian with a good sense of
humor. O’Ryan is a friendly orange cat whose behavior will seem very familiar
to anyone who has had a cat, but he also may be a bit more than he seems. While he doesn’t talk or overtly solve
mysteries, he takes a great interest in Lee’s investigations and may be subtly
guiding her. Lee certainly wouldn’t
think so, and readers are free to decide for themselves. A touch of romance in
the form of a handsome detective rounds out the book.
One very small detail that said a lot to me is that Lee’s
late husband was a NASCAR driver. That opened the door for all sorts of
stereotypes, but Perry declined to walk through it. Instead, the main take-away was that he
taught Lee about driving so that she has a love of fast cars and the knowledge
of how they work. His name also gives her
an “in” to talk to a possible witness.
A strong sense of place adds to a book as far as I’m
concerned, and Perry does a good job with keeping her audience grounded in
Salem with clear descriptions and interesting bits of
history about the town. In addition, we are taken behind the scenes
at a small TV station, where most of the staff have multiple responsibilities
and nothing is particularly glamorous. I watch my local news a little differently now.
The plot was creative and I was surprised a bit at the
conclusion. In a few instances, Lee was
slow to pick up on clues but overall I found it nicely executed. It’s the first in a series, and I will
definitely be reading more.
The series in order:
1.
Caught Dead Handed
2.
Tails, You Lose
3.
Look Both Ways
4.
Murder Go Round
5.
Grave Errors
6.
It Takes a Coven (due out in 2018)
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