Teddy Bear Witch

Like Being Gripped by the Lady Killer Herself

Reviewed: 02-02-24

Simone St. James has a way of placing the reader right in the place of the protagonist. Your breath is caught in your throat just as hers is. You stop dead in your tracks just as he does when he feels chills rippling through his body. Halting but creeping, the fear these characters experience is enough to slither out and into the listener's ear; to stop you in the middle of whatever task you may have been doing so you don't miss the next sound down the hall in the house that shouldn't have anyone in it.

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Fun and Silly and Utterly "Romantic"

Reviewed: 09-15-22

This story, written in romantic and flowery prose, features wonderful descriptions of the surroundings and, almost entirely, terrible people for the main characters. The almost completely lacking of people with whom the listener can like does not detract from the story. Point in fact, it makes descriptions of the thoughts and actions and speech of these characters more fun. Perhaps there is a critique of how self-absorbed and ignorant the ruling classes of the day were. It is more likely not, however, which I personally believe makes the listening in of the frivolous expectations, tone deafness, and misogyny of these "good people" so delicious. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole story.

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1 person found this helpful

romanticized lack of consent

Reviewed: 06-28-22

nope. no, thank you. Cosi said "no" many, many times and her cop boyfriend didn't listen. that was enough for me. that's not sexy or cute. that's coercion at best coerced rape at worst. I'm out.

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Another lovely and lively addition!

Reviewed: 02-05-22

I can't wait for the next installment. It is such fun listening to TE Kinsey's work. I guess I need yo go back and restart the Lady Hardcastle books while I wait for number three of the Dizzying Heights!

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1 person found this helpful

Not for Everyone

Reviewed: 02-05-22

I am not one of the people these are for.
Cringey one-liners and not much interesting aspects of characters make it probably a challenge for most narrators, so I'll give some more grace to the performance. The story, however... Saying "geeky" guys are less masculine than a sporty, muscled, wealthy, chisled-jaw-having guy is so basic and one-dimensional that I'm sure there would be many incels who would revel in hate-reading it to fuel their demented idea of how heterosexual women view men. Unfortunately, I couldn't get past the first story's "I'm-not-like-other-girls" main character, so this is a review biased on just 15 minutes of listening. Take my review with a pinch of salt, of course, but then do also look for better romance writing because it is absolutely out there.

Sorry to be harsh here, but I don't appreciate such bigoted, sexist rhetoric written as cute and understandable. A girl who is excused for saying harsh and rude things about swathes of people because she "reads books" and is a cute girl next door is something society can do without now, I think.

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4 people found this helpful

Good Fun

Reviewed: 01-29-22

Absolutely fun. I'm so glad Kinsey is giving these three more attention. They are always a favorite of mine in the Hardcastle books.

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Great delivery of Really Creepy Stories

Reviewed: 10-31-21

I didn't know of MJ Pack before listening, but I will be seeking our her work from here on out. The gambit of horror to creepy is so broad from story to story without reliance on tropes. Each character has definite individuality, background, drive; each story it's own flavor. The author can write from any perspective, it seems, thoroughly convincingly and the narrator brings each to life with an obviously artistic discernment: never overdramatic nor dry. I cannot recommend this enough. I sent it as a gift to a friend before I was halfway through it.

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Nice Story with Nice Characters

Reviewed: 06-02-21

This is truly a cozy mystery, but with a surprising edge to it that helps to put it apart from others. Zo's unique intelligence in addition to her often cryptic prose puts a almost surrealistic tint to what would otherwise be much more straightforward conversations. The audience is then more aligned with Jenny's point of view of feeling slightly off balance-- not just because her life has taken a different turn quite recently, but also because it's all happening while being framed in archaic, nonsensical, and whimsical words. The murders then further throw both the protagonist Jenny and the reader(listener) into feeling the danger and unease that otherwise should not be present in this sleepy town near Lake Michigan. I enjoyed it and am interested to see what the group might be doing im the next book.

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Hard to get through

Reviewed: 01-02-21

Well-written story, though so dark and explicit it was terribly hard to get through. if you're looking to bring the righteous feminism in your right up to your eyeballs, this is the story for you-- but be warned. it is hard to hear.

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Breath-taking

Reviewed: 05-15-19

This book really reels you in. From the first appearance of Alex, I began listening any time I was able. A true thriller, Try Not to Breathe keeps you guessing until the very end while ratcheting up the tension in well-measured amounts, until you’re listening well past your bedtime and know the following early morning will be hard but totally worth it. Or, at least that’s what I did. Great listen. I actually came because I knew Elizabeth Knowelden was a narrator. I was not disappointed. Give it a try and you’ll be hooked.

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