The Big Easy is about to be buried in big trouble.Again.For Ofelia Archer, that means she’s knee-deep in an investigation … even though she’s not quite sure how she got there.Zach Sully thinks he’s in for an easy night at Ofelia’s speakeasy – maybe a little flirting as a lead-up to a date included – when a scream in a neighboring abandoned building draws his attention. Upon further investigation, … investigation, he finds a young woman dead and a real estate developer traumatized.
The dead girl is a street performer who lived on the edge. That’s bad enough, but when voices from the past cause Ofelia to break open a wall, they find more bodies … and a mystery more than ten years in the making.
The new murder mimics the old deaths, but who are the girls in the wall? Ofelia was a child when stories of street girls going missing were prevalent … and then Hurricane Katrina hit and people forgot their fear in the face of a life-changing storm.
Now, all these years later, Ofelia and Sully are determined to uncover what happened then, tie it to what’s happening today, and find vengeance for all of the victims in the here and now.
That’s easier said than done.
There’s a malevolent force stalking the French Quarter and Ofelia suddenly finds herself in the killer’s path. Someone wants to keep a secret, and he or she is willing to kill to make sure that the past stays buried.
Can Ofelia and Sully evade a killer and uncover the truth? It will be a race to the finish to find out.
more
4.5 Stars! Book two in the Supernatural Speakeasy series, Witch Confidential takes place only a couple of weeks after the events of book one and continues the story of NOLA witch, Ofelia Archer.
Summary:
Zach Sully is hoping for an easy night at Ofelia’s supernatural speakeasy. If he’s honest, he wants a chance to flirt and hopefully gather the courage to ask the raven-haired witch for a date. Just when he thinks his plan is working, a scream sounds from a neighboring building, pulling both him and Ofelia to the scene of a murder. But the situation escalates dramatically when voices from the past start whispering in Ofelia’s ear. Turns out, there wasn’t just one murder, but seven. One new murder, and six from before Katrina hit. Suddenly, Ofelia finds herself knee-deep in another murder investigation, and Sully finds himself with an unofficial partner. It’s clear there is a killer on the loose, but where? And why did they stop killing for so many years only to return to it? Ofelia is convinced they need to find out who the original six girls are in order to find out who killed them. Upon further research, Sully and Ofelia find a link to a bunch of missing street performers in the months leading up to the hurricane. Unfortunately, even with that knowledge, the questions still outnumber the answers. But Sully and Ofelia are determined to see justice served. But can they uncover what’s really happened before the malevolent force stalking the French Quarter can make them a target?
Ofelia’s second book was a great read. I’m loving getting to know more about Ofelia, her magic, family, and her growing relationship with Sully. Ofelia is a wonderful heroine. I appreciate her compassion, smarts, and strength. While we know that Ofelia is a confident witch, I was pleasantly surprised at the skill we saw in her in this book. I loved it. I still feel like there is so much more to her and her magic, though, and I can’t wait to see it. I wish we saw a little more alpha tendencies from Sully, but I still like him very much. He was a bit more firm in this book, but as a shifter, I think I expect more for some reason. I definitely want to see more from his shifter side. I almost forget that about him until something happens that he prepares to shift. It still hasn’t happened yet, and I wonder if there is a deeper reason for that, that we will eventually understand. The mystery that still clouds his past and family is also intriguing and urges me to read more just for that information. As a couple, I was expecting a longer period of awkward almost-but-not-quite dating between Sully and Ofelia. That did happen for a while, but there was also a marked jump in their relationship, and I was there for it. I love them together, especially when they aren’t arguing over who will protect who, and I love that fate seems to be working behind the scenes to push them together instead of waiting for them to come around to it. In the end, I was engaged in the mystery and romance from page one. The mystery was a good one, and I honestly had no idea what was happening until the big reveal. It was a bit of a sick surprise. Lol. I do feel that we were left hanging with some questions from early in the investigation, though. For example, was one of the girls Laura? The romance is a big draw for me, so no issues with how that developed. I just want more and faster. Supporting cast is still giving me fits, though. I still like Felix, and really hope we see a side story with him in future. Oscar is a bit over the top for me, but I did like his characterization a bit better than in book one. I don’t particularly like Ofelia’s mother at all. The setting of New Orleans is perfect. I love how LHH weaved real NOLA history and lore into the fictional story. This is an entertaining series, and I definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a good cozy mystery with supernatural elements and romance thrown in.
oh, this was great, as a new series it’s hit with a bang for me I love the New Orleans setting, the characters are awesome and the stories are entertaining.
Just as good as the first book in the series! Great characters with a magical backdrop of New Orleans. Excellent read.