I just couldn’t get into this book. Was a bit all over the place, especially the character’s personalities and perspectives. ( )

I knew what I was getting into when I bought this; as a self-published book, my expectations weren't very high but the cover was so gorgeous, I thought... maybe. Plus I needed a "book based entirely on its cover" for a challenge.

I gave 1 star for the cover, and 1 star because the author has the kernel of a good cozy mystery here. The plot had potential: three women - natural born witches - and their cats, hiding in plain sight face exposure when their coffee shop is burned down with their chef inside and a black magic spell book is stolen.

Unfortunately the writing itself isn't strong; as usual the book would have benefitted greatly by going under the pen of a quality editor. A copy editor, too, would have had a lot of work ahead of them, correcting grammar and pointing out all the missing words (articles are important!).

It's not enough to have a good idea and a great cover artist at your disposal, you have to be able to write in a way that allows you to communicate clearly; if you're writing fiction, you have to paint a picture with your words.

But man, I do love that cover.


[PopSugar 2015 Challenge: A book based entirely on its cover.] ( )

The concept for this novel is wonderful, but the execution is flawed. A Hiss-tory of Magic is a print on demand book sold through Amazon, but clearly shows it needed an editor’s guidance from its choppy plot movement to its repetition of whole paragraphs at the beginning of three or four chapters. I enjoyed the characters, but wanted so much more out of the situation and plot.

A Hiss-Tory of Magic by Harper Lin is the first book in A Wonder Cats Mystery series. Cath Greenstone is thirty-three and a witch. So is her cousin, Bea (and soul sister) and her Aunt Astrid. Together they run the Brew-Ha-Ha in town. Cath has the power to speak with animals. She seems to have a special affinity for cats. Cath “owns” (as much as you can own a cat) named Treacle. Treacle was a street cat who stills likes to roam about the town (he can open the cat door). They live in Wonder Falls, Ontario (Canada).

Cath wakes up with the image of a fire in her head (thanks to the cat) and immediately checks in with her Aunt Astrid (via her cat). When they arrive at the Brew-Ha-Ha, they discover that their baker, Ted Lanier is dead. When they can get back inside the café, they immediately go down into the secret space. This is where they kept the family spell book. While the book is gone, they only got a fake. Aunt Astrid takes the real book home with her to keep it safe. Detective Blake Samberg is the newest member of the Wonder Falls Police Department. They cannot, of course, tell him about the spell book. Bea’s husband, Jake Williams is Blake’s partner (he does not know about their magic either). Who wants their spell book? Who even knew that they are witches? Bea, Cath, and Aunt Astrid set out to find the culprit before their secret gets out. Cath discovers a pendant at the fire. Blake seems to recognize the symbol, but he is keeping the information to himself. Cath is happy to discover that her old friend, Min Park is back in town. They were good friends growing up but lost touch when he went away to college and work. Is it a coincidence that Min returned to town the day before the fire? Cath hopes Min is innocent and what could Blake be hiding.

A Hiss-Tory of Magic is an interesting book. The magic is complicated and confusing (I prefer simple magic). The characters are intriguing and I look forward to learning more about them in the next book. I give A Hiss-Tory of Magic 3.5 out of 5 stars. It is an easy book to read (there are some rambling sentences) and can easily be finished in a couple of hours. ( )

Neither plot nor characters made much sense to me. ( )