Wednesday, August 3, 2011

HOW TO SURVIVE A KILLER SÉANCE by Penny Warner

Publisher: Penguin Books
Date Published: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-451-23279-3
Mass Market Paperback
Cozy Mystery
Reviewed by Angie
Obtained by publisher


Presley Parker has opened her own business as a party planner after being laid off from her position as an abnormal psych professor. Her latest party to be planned is a séance for the release of a new holographic 4-D product that is going to revolutionalize how films are made and advertisements are shown. Held at the historical Winchester Mystery House, Presley and Jonathan Ellington plan to bring the original owner, Sarah Winchester back from the dead to show just how realistic his new product seems to be.

The séance backfires when Sarah Winchester appears and accuses Jonathan of cheating on his wife – with many of the guests at the party. When Jonathan and his wife rush from the room and go missing everyone is left guessing what will happen. The following day when the programmer who was running the holographic program turns up dead, everything becomes a bigger mystery.

Presley Parker is something of a detective and enjoys solving mysteries. The third book in the A Party Planning Mystery series was a delightful fast paced novel filled with humor. Presley’s quick wit and thinking make her a great main character that will leave readers smiling at her antics. Her mother may be the best secondary character I have read in a long time. She is vibrant and her colorful nature makes her a hoot. She comes across as not the best mother, but one who made her daughter’s life interesting through the years.

Ellington is a sleaze bag who lets you wish he was the villain all through the novel, his only redeeming quality is his love for his father. When Presley agrees to help his father prove his innocence, the reader is left hoping against all odds that he is the killer – and not an innocent victim in another characters plan to ruin his life.

HOW TO SURVIVE A KILLER SÉANCE is an enjoyable read for the beach, a quiet day at home or just to pass the time. Penny Warner is a great author and I will be watching for more novels by this author.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.

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