Official Review: The Chihuahua Witch by Sally Wilshere

Mbrooks2518 · Post by **Mbrooks2518** » 22 Apr 2021, 20:05

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Chihuahua Witch" by Sally Wilshere.]

2 out of 4 stars

Share This Review

Kara Murphy loves her job fixing up and restoring old homes and buildings, and her newest project is to transform a house, a barn, and the town’s former meeting house into an inn, theater, and restaurant. Unfortunately, the owner, Roger McDoll, insists that she hire his nephew’s construction crew, who definitely aren’t interested in taking orders from a woman. She also begins a romance with Denton Williams, the town surveyor. As the job moves along, Kara has to contend with belligerent workers and a death on the property. Then a skeleton is unearthed, and workers begin to see the ghost of a slave named Mattie. What else could go wrong?

The Chihuahua Witch by Sally Wilshere combines romance, crime, and the paranormal to create a thrilling story that I enjoyed reading despite the problems it has. An intriguing opening chapter quickly pulled me into the story. It has a good pace, and I was never bored. However, the first half of the book focuses on Kara and Denton’s romance and didn’t give much attention to the crime and paranormal aspects. I wish the different plotlines had been better intertwined instead of focusing primarily on the romance before shifting. There was also a good amount of humor, which helped make it a more enjoyable reading experience.

My favorite thing about the story was the characters. They were all very well written and believable. Kara is a fantastic main character. She’s a strong woman and more than able to stand up for herself, but she also has moments where she’s not afraid to be vulnerable with Denton. The only issue I had with her characterization is that it’s stated that she’s interested in the paranormal, but this is only shown once early in the book. Denton is a good match for her. He knows she’s able to take care of herself, but he still worries about her and wants to help her. The author also did a wonderful job of giving some of the side characters some depth by having them act in certain ways, often negative, when first introduced, then later showing other sides of their personalities. A good example of this is Roger McDoll, who seems like a jerk at first, but he later shows a softer side of himself when talking about the aunt he inherited the property from. And by the end of the story, he and Kara have become friends. Even one of the main bad guys of the story has moments where he isn’t so bad.

The biggest problem, and my least favorite thing about this book, was the large amount of editing mistakes. There were misspellings, incorrect words used, and missing and misplaced punctuation, which distracted me and impeded the flow of the story.

With the multitude of editing mistakes and the other things I had an issue with, I am rating this book 2 out of 4 stars, although I would have given 2.5 stars if I could have because of the great characterization. If you enjoy stories with romance, crime, and ghosts, then you’ll enjoy this book. However, there are a few sex scenes, some violence, drug use, and profanity, so I would not recommend it to anyone under eighteen.

******
The Chihuahua Witch
View: on Bookshelves

Kavita Shah · Post by **Kavita Shah** » 26 Apr 2021, 13:33

It needs a round of editing to give a good reading experience. Its a good story but not really my type. Thanks for the review!

Kristy Khem · Post by **Kristy Khem** » 26 Apr 2021, 16:33

I'm disappointed that Kara isn't a witch. Is there even a chihuahua in the story? The title is certainly misleading. Nice review though!

Post by **Becca Olsson** » 27 Apr 2021, 09:59

I’d be very interested in reading this, especially is the problems you mention get cleared up. I like that it brings various genres together. Thanks for the honest review!

Mariana Figueira · Post by **Mariana Figueira** » 27 Apr 2021, 21:03

Sounds like it has a cool plot and great characters, it's a shame it didn't come through. Thanks for the honest review!

C3cilia · Post by **C3cilia** » 27 Apr 2021, 21:51

The plot of the book was captivating but intertwinning romance, crime and paranormal was extraordinary.Thanks for the great and honest review.

Mwatu · Post by **Mwatu** » 28 Apr 2021, 06:02

The book's name is quite interesting and so is the storyline. It is unfortunate the errors were in plenty. Thank you for this review!

Ellylion · Post by **Ellylion** » 28 Apr 2021, 09:17

Even despite all the issues, the book sounds quite intriguing

I love the touch of paranormal that it has! Thanks for a great review!

PeterRabitt20 · Post by **PeterRabitt20** » 28 Apr 2021, 17:59

Interesting, I usually see a black cat symbolized as a witch, not a chihuahua. I wonder if this is to add humor to the story? Either way, I'd get restless with the grammar mistakes. Thanks for your review!

NetMassimo · Post by **NetMassimo** » 29 Apr 2021, 07:13

This seems like a great paranormal thriller, but I understand the annoyance and distraction caused by a text plagued by errors. I hope the author does proper proofreading. Thank you for your honest review!

Mbrooks2518 · Post by **Mbrooks2518** » 30 Apr 2021, 22:30

KristyKhem wrote: ↑26 Apr 2021, 16:33 I'm disappointed that Kara isn't a witch. Is there even a chihuahua in the story? The title is certainly misleading. Nice review though!

Kara does have two chihuahuas, but yes the title is very confusing and I'm not sure why they chose it.
Thanks for reading and commenting!

Mbrooks2518 · Post by **Mbrooks2518** » 30 Apr 2021, 22:32

PeterRabitt20 wrote: ↑28 Apr 2021, 17:59 Interesting, I usually see a black cat symbolized as a witch, not a chihuahua. I wonder if this is to add humor to the story? Either way, I'd get restless with the grammar mistakes. Thanks for your review!

NetMassimo wrote: ↑29 Apr 2021, 07:13 This seems like a great paranormal thriller, but I understand the annoyance and distraction caused by a text plagued by errors. I hope the author does proper proofreading. Thank you for your honest review!

Kavita Shah wrote: ↑26 Apr 2021, 13:33 It needs a round of editing to give a good reading experience. Its a good story but not really my type. Thanks for the review!

Thanks for reading and commenting!

Mbrooks2518 · Post by **Mbrooks2518** » 30 Apr 2021, 22:34

Ellylion wrote: ↑28 Apr 2021, 09:17 Even despite all the issues, the book sounds quite intriguing I love the touch of paranormal that it has! Thanks for a great review!

Booklover Becca wrote: ↑27 Apr 2021, 09:59 I’d be very interested in reading this, especially is the problems you mention get cleared up. I like that it brings various genres together. Thanks for the honest review!

Thanks for reading and commenting!

Mbrooks2518 · Post by **Mbrooks2518** » 30 Apr 2021, 22:45

MarianaFigueira wrote: ↑27 Apr 2021, 21:03 Sounds like it has a cool plot and great characters, it's a shame it didn't come through. Thanks for the honest review!

Mwatu wrote: ↑28 Apr 2021, 06:02 The book's name is quite interesting and so is the storyline. It is unfortunate the errors were in plenty. Thank you for this review!

C3cilia wrote: ↑27 Apr 2021, 21:51 The plot of the book was captivating but intertwinning romance, crime and paranormal was extraordinary.Thanks for the great and honest review.

Thanks for reading and commenting!

Post by **Kirsi Cultrera** » 02 May 2021, 10:42

The setup and the characters certainly sound interesting and entertaining. I think I’d love the mixture of romance, crime and paranormal activity combined with excellent characters! Unfortunately, bad editing destroys even a good story.

Thanks for a beautifully written review!