Paranormal in Manhattan Mystery, #6
Lotta Smith
Self-Pub, Jun 2017
Kindle, 162 Pages
Also available in paperback
Genre(s) Paranormal Cozy Mystery, Magical Romance
Source Purchased
Other books in this series
Wicked for Hire #1, W is for Wicked #2, Wicked Little Secret #3, Wicked of the Christmas Past #4, Sweet Wicked of Mine #5, Wicked, Manor, and Murder #7, Wickedly Ever After #8, Speak of the Wicked #9, Wicked as a Christmas Fruitcake #10
My Disclaimer:
I purchased a copy of this book at the current price. I am voluntarily providing an honest review in which all opinions are fully my own. I am not being compensated in any way.
~ Judi E. Easley for Blue Cat Review
What it’s about…
Romance has arrived in the Wicked series! Rick and Mandy are getting married! Rick’s estranged mother, Alice has decided she will be in charge of the wedding arrangements. A llama as a ring bearer? Tattoos during the ceremony? Not really Rick or Mandy’s style, but Alice isn’t asking their opinion. The former actress is going to the extreme with all her ideas and plans.
In the meantime, Mandy and Rick are working a case with a $3 million ring that’s haunted. The Purple Panther is an organization of jewelry thieves who want the ring. But Alice can’t resist anything shiny, tries on the ring and is taken over by the ghost.
Can Rick and Mandy save Alice from the ring and keep the ring from the Purple Panther? Can they save their wedding from Alice?
Technical Tidbits…
The cover is that fabulous stylized artwork of black, purple and yellow that Ms. Smith has gone with on this series. This time there’s a lovely splash of lime green that works very well.
The storyline is simple but good and solid.
The characters are known to us from previous books. New characters weren’t really well developed, though.
The pace was really good. Alice and her antics balanced against the action focused on the ring and ghost. Then that all combined.
The tension was very closely tied to the pace this time. Each of Alice’s antics added as did the problems with the Purple Panther and the ghost of the ring. So each time there was a breather, the tension lagged a bit.
And this is where you STOP if you don’t want to see any SPOILERS…
The good, the bad, and the ugly…and how much it lit up my life… ✰✰✰✰
This one was fun just because you knew no matter what happened, Rick was going to make sure that Mandy was okay. They haven’t even started planning their wedding and in steps his estranged mother, Alice Wunderlande. What a name. I wonder sometimes where authors get the names for their characters. Alice is planning their wedding to be a freak show on a grand scale. She’s an older actress and she is trying to get as much attention out of the event as she can. That’s why they have to buy her off in the end with a movie role! Gahhh!
Rick’s finally leaving the FBI to work for the family business, USCAB. I have to wonder if he’ll fit in there any better than he does at the FBI. I doubt anyone there will work with him. So Mandy will have to go with him. At least she’ll get a better paycheck! And no more school loans to worry about!
This mystery wasn’t as strong as the previous ones I’ve read, but the book itself was funnier. I don’t read these for a really good mystery, though. I really enjoy the characters and the situations they end up in. And how Rick always saves Mandy! Yeah, I’m a romantic.
606 wc
a thoughtful reveal 