Secondhand Spirits: A Witchcraft Mystery, Book 1

I've read a all these books long ago! I had forgotten how good they are. This book introduces all the players and gives you an idea of who they are. Now, on to the next!

I like the concept of this series in general, the plot of this particular book, and the writing style. I generally like the main character and all the side characters, but our main character, Lily, seems to suffer a bit from the “not like other girls” trope, or in her case “not like other witches.”Lily manages to be both self-doubting and self-aggrandizing at the same time, constantly remarking on how powerful she is and how real her magick and abilities and experiences are compared to others, while at the same time needing to be reassured that she’s powerful/special enough to complete the task at hand. She constantly thinks her love interest is on the verge of breaking up with her and she doesn’t trust other people to like her for herself, constantly worrying that people will think she’s a “freak” even though everyone immediately seems to like and accept her, even admiring her witchy abilities when they’re revealed, and the love interest remains crazy about her. There was this big buildup about what would happen if people found out about “who she really was,” and then nothing came of that, everyone was just like “hey, that’s super cool!” with a couple of characters being like “huh, it’s fine, I guess.”She has a lot of “not like other girls” quirks like she doesn’t like to use the internet, she has an email account because she has to but she doesn’t check it ever, she doesn’t like to talk on the phone, she doesn’t have a cell phone. She’s an amazing cook/gardener/seamstress/domestic goddess in general and is extremely well travelled and financially successful for a 31 year old who just moved to the expensive city of San Francisco during the Great Recession and yet can afford to own her own business and apartment. She doesn’t appear to actually struggle with/be bad at anything, and seems to be a bit haughty when she compares herself to others, especially to “kids these days,” despite her being only 31 herself. I kept getting the distinct impression that the book was written by an older middle aged author forcing their views into the 31 year old protagonist.But these are minor quibbles, overall, and while they did take me out of the story a few times and cause me to roll my eyes, I was never tempted to not come back to the book. I didn’t solve the mystery before the character did, and the solution made logical sense to me while still being interesting. I really like the side characters in this series. I love that our heroine has female friends that she doesn’t compete with or mistrust just because they’re women. The love interest threw up a few red flags for me with the typical macho/possessive behavior we see too often from the male love interest in most books with a romantic subplot, but he’s not irredeemably abusive or creepy. I enjoyed that the book was peopled by a diverse cast of characters and no one seemed to be overly tokenized or stereotyped. I also got the sense that the author either really knows San Francisco very well, or else is very good at constructing a believable setting.

Secondhand Spirits is a well plotted and well written mystery that held my attention from cover to cover. The first in a planned series, Secondhand Spirits is the story of Lily Ivory, a powerful witch who has spent much of her life both hiding from and running from what she is. At age 31, she decides it's time to settle down and she chooses to do so in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco where she opens a vintage clothing store. As the story progresses, we learn that Lily is more than just a powerful witch; she is also a strong, admirable and very likable woman.Nor was Lily the only character I liked. In fact, while the plot of Secondhand Spirits was fresh and absorbing, what really stood out for me were the well-drawn, fully-dimensional characters. Blackwell has created a book that's just chock full of darned interesting people. I enjoyed meeting them, but more than that, I was (and am) intrigued by them. They have hinted-at-histories that promise to be woven into future entries in the series and I look forward to seeing what Blackwell has in store for each of them.Comments:* I found Secondhand Spirits to be somewhat darker than the cover seemed to suggest. (For me, this was not a drawback.) While there are moments of humor - many of them involving Lily's newly acquired familiar, Oscar - the story has a rather more serious overall tone and themes that I feel place it on the grittier side of cozy.* The vintage clothing aspect didn't interest me on its own, but the way Blackwell made it an important part of the plot did. I can see its potential for driving the story in future entries as well.* I'll admit that I was pretty sure who the `bad guy' was long before he/she was revealed (and I was right), but it didn't matter because I was enjoying the book and was involved with the characters.* Secondhand Spirits is enriched by wonderful descriptions of San Francisco, its various neighborhoods and by snippets of the city's history.* The descriptions of witchcraft were detailed and sometimes complicated. I have very little knowledge of the subject, but this "felt" real, making the story work that much better for me. Early on, I did think some of the descriptions of cleansing spells, etc. went on a little too long and slowed the story down a bit.* Occasionally, the vintage Mustang should probably have been referred to simply as "the car". :-)I like mysteries and I like stories with a paranormal aspect but I haven't had a lot of luck finding books that combine the two to my satisfaction. Secondhand Spirits did. I'm definitely on board for the sequels.Recommended.***(I'd like to read more paranormal mysteries and if anyone would like to offer a recommendation or two - perhaps as a comment? - I'd appreciate it. Some time ago, I tried the first volume in both Victoria Laurie's Psychic Eye series and in Madelyn Alt's Bewitching mysteries and didn't care for either of them.)***

As the first in a series, Secondhand Spirits offers a fun introduction to the main character, Lily Ivory, a San Francisco shopkeeper, and what may be her nemesis, Aidan Rhodes, both of whom are witches. Yes, he is a male witch, not a warlock nor a wizard, and his intentions are questionable, at best, so his archenemy status is still up in the air.In this initial installment we learn Lily has led a difficult, solitary life as she learned to embrace and control her witchiness while estranged from her family. There are hints about her father but nothing definite, and mom isn't in the picture either. There are a lot of questions about her family left unanswered; hopefully these will be addressed as the series progresses.In this series opener, Lily risks her life to save a child and goes up against some powerful dark forces, with the help of Aidan, to whom she is now indebted. San Francisco is chock-full of mystical goings-on and all-too-real murders.The one drawback is how quickly, and too easily, Lily 'grows' in this book. Sure the reader wants to see growth and character development, but it's a bit too fast, even for a witch. However, perhaps too fast is better than stagnant.The secondary characters are a hoot, from Conrad the homeless fellow on her doorstep to Oscar, her shape-shifting goblin familiar who takes the form of a pig. Then there are Maya and Bronwyn, women who help out at her shop and become her friends. Add a love interest, Max, and a couple cops and the cast is ready for adventure, real with a touch of magic.

I almost didn't try this book based on the lone 3 star on Amazon.ca, I'm glad I also read the Amazon.com reviews and downloaded the sample.I found this book to be very entertaining and well written. I almost wonder if the other Amazon.ca reviewer read the same book. There was no troll, it was a gnome and was referred to as a gnome through the entire book. He wasn't a worthless addition at all, he had his part to play and did make a difference for the protagonist. (and she didn't accept the gnome, she had no choice in the matter) Also the story didn't 'jump' into a lifestyle at all, in fact every facet I found to be well thought out and explained thoroughly. The other point I disagree with is how the main character interacted with people - she had been isolated socially and as a result is unsure of herself when reaching out to others but being shy and isolated doesn't mean uncaring. In fact reaching out to another isolated person makes sense for her character.Anyway I hope that others take the chance too and read this book for themselves. I'd be very surprised if you don't enjoy it.

Reclusive witch Lily Ivory has moved to San Francisco and opened her vintage store Aunt Cora's Closet in hopes of connecting with the wider world and finally having a normal life. Her spell-casting tends to attract mischevious spirits and her powers make her unique even amongst other witches. Lily's gift to sense the vibrations in vintage fashion soon makes Aunt Cora's a hit, but when a client is murdered and children start disappearing across the Bay Area Lily finds her unique talents might be the only thing that can solve this mystery.I really enjoyed this book: Lily is a great lead character, and the author has done a great job of creating a detailed and believable world for her to inhabit. Her descriptions of San Francisco suceed in making you want to visit, and make the book great to read for the setting alone. This doesn't suffer too much for being the first book in a series as the characters are introduced gradually and without info dumping.I really like Lily's gargoyle familiar Oscar and his favourite guise of a pet pig (so unique given the standard witch's familiar being a cat), and he really lends a paranormal bent to the story. I also like how the other local stores are developed and the characters described, especially how the author doesn't shy away from having a homeless character called Conrad. There is the groundwork for a potential love triangle between Lily, local powerful witch Aidan Rhodes and myth buster Max Carmichael. It isn't particularly prominent and I'm hoping it stays that way; not growing too large or taking over future books to the detriment of the story.I loved how the story used La Llorona as an integral part of the storyline as it is rare for non-European myths to be covered in paranormal fiction. I also liked how distinct varieties of witchcraft were presented - Lily's natural gifts that had been developed by training within her family, Bronwyn (who work's at the store) and her wiccan coven and also hints of Voodoo and mentions of curanderas (latino magic workers with touches of Christianity).All in all I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to picking up copies of the second book,  A Cast-Off Coven  available now, and  Hexes and Hemlines  the third book out in June 2011.Plot: 10/10Characters: 10/10Ending: 10/10Enjoyment: 10/10Cover: 7/10Overall: 47/50 A Cast-Off CovenHexes and Hemlines

This is the first book from the Witchcraft Mystery Series which introduces our protagonist Lily Ivory who is a practicing witch who has just moved to San Francisco and opened up a vintage clothing shop. When a elderly lady who offers Lily her collection of vintage clothing to sell in her shop dies mysteriously and a child just down the road goes missing, Lily must solve the mystery of what great evil lies behind these tragedies. She is helped by her new and mysterious familiar Oscar as well a whole host of fascinating and entertaining characters who each have their own story to tell.I loved this book, the story is exciting, the characters engaging and the wiccan eliment really well researched. I suppose this might fall into the cosy mystery genre, but this book goes much deeper than the usual books like this with some genuinely dark and creepy moments. The prose is nice and smooth and easy to follow, perfect for a bedtime read! All in all I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a good quality read.

This is a great series introducing Lily Ivory, who has just moved to San Francisco, to open her second hand vintage clothing store Aunt Cora’s Closet....Ivory just happens to be a witch! This is the first in a series of books featuring Ivory and her new found friends and their adventures.I bought this first as a paperback then preceded to buy the rest of the series as it was a great read, couldn’t resist completing the collection by purchasing a copy on kindle.

I got this for free on the kindle on the basis that it was a cosy mystery. It's not. It's a supernatural mish-mash of covens, pentagrams, voodoo, and child abduction. If you like vampire and fantasy novels, you might like it, but if your taste runs more towards Miss Marple sleuthing, best to avoid.