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nicolecampbellbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, particularly the writing style. Everything was described so beautifully I actually found myself liking the description more than the dialogue, which doesn't happen for me often. The writing of her magic seemed so effortless I just believed it as truth. I liked the main character, Carlie, but I didn't love her, hence the four stars. It's possible she could grow on me some more though; I will definitely be continuing on in this series.
tmleblanc's review
3.0
As a fan of coffee, waffles and supernatural things (and having met Terry last spring), I was excited to jump into Halfway Dead upon approval from Netgalley.
Halfway Dead is a delightfully quick read. Life in the Adirondack Mountains seems eerily similar to life in rural Minnesota where I grew up; although, if we had witches living nearby they never revealed themselves to me. Maggert did an excellent job of setting the scene in the mountains. Halfway is real to me, I could smell the pine trees, and I certainly wanted to stop by and try Carlie’s waffles at the diner.
I also feel a kinship with Carlie McEwan. Living in a small town where you don’t quite feel like you fit in is tough. And while Carlie seems to have settled into small town life with her Maine Coon cat, Gus, and supportive grandmother, at times, especially later in the book, Carlie seems to want a bit more out of life.
The only downside for me in Halfway Dead is the pacing and forgettable secondary characters. The story is slow to jump into the action and when action does occur it happens in the blink of an eye then the story plods on again until Carlie runs into the next person or supernatural being to drive the story forward again. There’s at least one character, introduced early in the story, who gets lost in the middle of the rollercoaster ride and another one who is so unmemorable that I completely forgot who he was when he showed up in just a chapter or two after he is introduced.
This isn’t to say that Halfway Dead is a bad read. I finished the book. The major characters populating and visiting Halfway make up for some of the poor pacing and plotting. The setting was beautifully painted and has me dreaming of a trip in the Adirondack Mountains. I would definitely take another trip to Halfway if given the opportunity.
This review was originally posted on Second Run Reviews
Halfway Dead is a delightfully quick read. Life in the Adirondack Mountains seems eerily similar to life in rural Minnesota where I grew up; although, if we had witches living nearby they never revealed themselves to me. Maggert did an excellent job of setting the scene in the mountains. Halfway is real to me, I could smell the pine trees, and I certainly wanted to stop by and try Carlie’s waffles at the diner.
I also feel a kinship with Carlie McEwan. Living in a small town where you don’t quite feel like you fit in is tough. And while Carlie seems to have settled into small town life with her Maine Coon cat, Gus, and supportive grandmother, at times, especially later in the book, Carlie seems to want a bit more out of life.
The only downside for me in Halfway Dead is the pacing and forgettable secondary characters. The story is slow to jump into the action and when action does occur it happens in the blink of an eye then the story plods on again until Carlie runs into the next person or supernatural being to drive the story forward again. There’s at least one character, introduced early in the story, who gets lost in the middle of the rollercoaster ride and another one who is so unmemorable that I completely forgot who he was when he showed up in just a chapter or two after he is introduced.
This isn’t to say that Halfway Dead is a bad read. I finished the book. The major characters populating and visiting Halfway make up for some of the poor pacing and plotting. The setting was beautifully painted and has me dreaming of a trip in the Adirondack Mountains. I would definitely take another trip to Halfway if given the opportunity.
This review was originally posted on Second Run Reviews
nelljustice's review against another edition
4.0
You like waffles? You like witches? You like white hat witches? You like nasty scary monsters dripping with gross goo from a filmy, oily pond where souls may or may not spend eternity? The main focus character is a very likable young witch with incredible power. She does good as often as she can and even goes as far as granting wishes.
The story starts out simply and progresses with a lot of twists and turns starting with some idiot glory hound exposes, albeit unknowingly, rare trees that create all sort of a fuss. One thing leads to another and Carlie finds out that an ancestor, a young boy, is trapped – well, his spirit is trapped and she takes it upon herself to save him. She feels it's her duty being a white witch, to save all the people the creature is taking and restoring the stand of special trees. Carlie meets many characters along the way, fun creatures. A tinkerbell faerie and a thousand year vampire help her to expose creatures that should not be left roaming wild and ends up saving the day, with a little help from her friends. Okay, a lot of help from her friends.
I enjoyed this story and I'm looking forward to book 2 in this series.
The story starts out simply and progresses with a lot of twists and turns starting with some idiot glory hound exposes, albeit unknowingly, rare trees that create all sort of a fuss. One thing leads to another and Carlie finds out that an ancestor, a young boy, is trapped – well, his spirit is trapped and she takes it upon herself to save him. She feels it's her duty being a white witch, to save all the people the creature is taking and restoring the stand of special trees. Carlie meets many characters along the way, fun creatures. A tinkerbell faerie and a thousand year vampire help her to expose creatures that should not be left roaming wild and ends up saving the day, with a little help from her friends. Okay, a lot of help from her friends.
I enjoyed this story and I'm looking forward to book 2 in this series.
jenbsbooks's review
3.0
I liked this ... I am afraid it won't really stick in my memory though (which is a problem as far as reading the sequels goes). The tone and voice was fun, as was the narration in the audio edition. There were spots that made me smile.
I'm not a huge fan of witches - this had a lot of paranormal in it though. The search to free a ghost, running into werewolves and vampires, all in a contemporary (while back-woodish) setting.
I enjoyed it while I was listening to it, but even just a few days later coming to review, I'm struggling to remember what it was all about.
I'm not a huge fan of witches - this had a lot of paranormal in it though. The search to free a ghost, running into werewolves and vampires, all in a contemporary (while back-woodish) setting.
I enjoyed it while I was listening to it, but even just a few days later coming to review, I'm struggling to remember what it was all about.
crystalm17's review
3.0
I will admit that the main reason I read this book is because the author, Terry Maggert, approached me on Twitter and offered a free copy of the second book in the series if i reviewed it. After reading the blurb on Goodreads I immediately accepted but first I had to read this, the first book in the series. And I'm actually very glad that I accepted his offered.
Halfway Dead was a very interesting book, combining a couple of things I really like such as magic, mentions of yummy food, and a pet cat (familiar) with an attitude. At first Halfway Dead had a little bit of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer thing going on with the main character Carlie doing part of her witchy duty by taking out a creepy monster creature using her powers and a little bit of snark just like Buffy. And then it turned into more of an adventure mystery.
Carlie gets dragged into a magical adventure involving ghosts from the past, a vampire, and a helpful wisp. The characters are interesting, especially the Viking vampire who actually wasn't as tropey as one might think based on the other vampires in popular fiction lately. And they were written in such a way that I really did care about what happened to them, which is a good thing.
The only thing I really had a problem with, and it wasn't even much of a problem, was some of the ways Carlie's magic worked. I'm still not entirely sure of how her powers worked. But other than that I really liked the book and look forward to reading the second one.
Halfway Dead was a very interesting book, combining a couple of things I really like such as magic, mentions of yummy food, and a pet cat (familiar) with an attitude. At first Halfway Dead had a little bit of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer thing going on with the main character Carlie doing part of her witchy duty by taking out a creepy monster creature using her powers and a little bit of snark just like Buffy. And then it turned into more of an adventure mystery.
Carlie gets dragged into a magical adventure involving ghosts from the past, a vampire, and a helpful wisp. The characters are interesting, especially the Viking vampire who actually wasn't as tropey as one might think based on the other vampires in popular fiction lately. And they were written in such a way that I really did care about what happened to them, which is a good thing.
The only thing I really had a problem with, and it wasn't even much of a problem, was some of the ways Carlie's magic worked. I'm still not entirely sure of how her powers worked. But other than that I really liked the book and look forward to reading the second one.
daniellecalifornia's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
It’s very anticlimactic
chelsjulian's review
3.0
2.5 stars rounded up.
The plot and environment were interesting, but the characters were 2D. Carly's personality was annoying and abrasive and as a heroine, she leaves a lot to be desired. I will not continue the series.
The plot and environment were interesting, but the characters were 2D. Carly's personality was annoying and abrasive and as a heroine, she leaves a lot to be desired. I will not continue the series.