Blog Tour & Giveaway: Spell Booked by Joyce and Jim Lavene

What’s a male witch to do?
By Jim Lavene

I’m Brian Fuller – part-time student – full-time witch.

That’s right. Not a warlock. We don’t like to be called that. I’m a male witch.

I’ve never ridden a broomstick but I have attended a few Sabbats or witch holidays. I don’t have a black pointy hat or a cape. I do have a wand because I’m an air witch and that’s my tool.

So I’m going through my life, enjoying everything as the grandson of a powerful member of the Grand Council of Witches. My parents give me anything as long as I stay out of their way. It’s been like that for years. I don’t mind.

Then I meet this crazy bunch of old witches. Olivia was nice. Elegant and sexy. We went out on a date and she was found dead the next morning. For some reason, her friends thought I had something to do with it. Me! I’ve never killed anyone in my life. I don’t even like squashing bugs.

This one older chick, Molly, was really obnoxious. So I warned her off. She went into hyper-protective mode, worried about her family. She’s chasing me around Wilmington, trying to prove I murdered Olivia. She even put a summoning spell on me to get me where she wanted me. I fought that off but we came to a truce of sorts. She wouldn’t bother me anymore. I wouldn’t bother her. I even admitted that I owed her one.

What’s the first thing she does? Summon me in a big cauldron full of hot water. It’s sitting over a huge fire in a cave under her shop by the river, and I’m in my underwear. She says she needs me to prove who killed Olivia. As long as she’s not looking at me, I’m okay with that.

Too bad Cassandra, the herald to the council of witches, sees me there. She’s bound to tell my parents and my grandfather. They won’t like it.
But I kind of like the new witch, Dorothy, that is joining their coven. She’s a librarian, of all things. She’s funny and sassy. She’s just learning magic (at her age) but that doesn’t bother me. She still thinks magic is fun and exciting. I like being around her.

Not enough to join the crazy old witch coven with her friends, but I figure I can hang with Dorothy without joining up. The three of them (even Olivia’s ghost) are like a family. I’ve never needed that in my life, but I admire it. And I sure admire Dorothy, you know? She is sweet!

About the Author:

Joyce and Jim Lavene write bestselling mystery fiction. They have written and published more than 60 novels for Harlequin, Berkley, and Charter Books along with hundreds of non-fiction articles for national and regional publications. They live in rural North Carolina with their family, Quincy, their black cat, Stan Lee their tabby and their rescue dog, Rudi.

Website/Twitter/Facebook

Once upon a time in Wilmington, North Carolina, three witches ran a curio shop named Smuggler’s Arcane. But as the years passed, their magical powers started to fade—leaving them no choice but to conjure up a retirement package…

Before they could blink their eyes or twitch their noses, Molly, Elsie, and Olivia somehow became eligible for AARP. But they can’t fly off to Boca Raton just yet. First they must give up their magic, recruit and train three new witches, and pass on their cherished spellbook.

They’ve barely begun to consider potential practitioners when Olivia winds up dead and their spellbook is stolen. To honor their friend and reclaim their spells, Molly and Elsie are about to go wand-to-wand with a dangerous young witch more powerful than the trio was in their prime. And this time they’re going to need more than magic up their sleeves…

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Jennifer’s Review of Spell Booked

Review (4.5 Stars): What a great start to a series!  I was simply enchanted by the ladies of Spell Booked and these fun characters will definitely put a spell on cozy readers.  I loved Molly, Elsie and Olivia in this story and how these ladies were looking for replacements since they were getting so close to retirement.  Dorothy was cute as a witch-in-training and I found myself laughing out loud at all the magic spells that didn’t go the way they wanted them to.

The murder mystery was well-written and had so many different plot twists that I had a hard time trying to figure out the true killer, which is always a plus for me.  Spell Booked was a delightful and intriguing mystery and I can’t wait to see what is in store next for these lovely ladies.

Giveaway

I’m excited to give away a copy of Spell Booked. This giveaway is for US Residents only.  To be entered in the drawing by December 18th, leave me a comment below: