"All the best stories in the world are but one story in reality -- the story of escape. It is the only thing which interests us all and at all times, how to escape."
--Author Christopher Benson

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Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Cozy Wednesday - How To Survive A Killer Séance by Penny Warner

It's a big month for Cozy Mysteries!!
I reviewed Beaglemania by Linda O. Johnston yesterday! 
I reviewed Lucy Lawrence's Decoupage Series last week!
I am almost done with A Deadly Cliche by Ellery Adams!
I will be reading Fruit of All Evil by Paige Shelton and
Formula For Murder by Diana Orgain next!
Paige will be HERE March 2 Guest Posting and giving away 2 copies of her book!!
Plus Denise Swanson, Laura Childs, and Gail Oust have new books in their series' coming out. 
I know there are more too!  
March 1 is going to be a 
HUGE NEW RELEASE TUESDAY!!!

So make your lists and get ready to visit your local bookstores or use the links in the left sidebar or any of the review posts to pre-order your cozies!!

Today I am reviewing a book from 
one of my favorite series.

An Obsidian Mystery
An Imprint of the New American Library
A Division of Penguin Publishing

A Party Planning Mystery
Third Book In The Series
ISBN-10: 0451232798
ISBN-13: 978-0451232793

Presley Parker is back and finds herself evicted from her Treasure Island barracks office as the building has been condemned. Luckily Brad, the crime clean-up specialist, uses his connections to find new office space for all the evicted businesses. 

Presley has no time to waste dealing with building matters as she plans a Séance Party at San Jose's Winchester Mystery House for Jonathon Ellington. He plans to unveil some really cool holographic technology developed by his company.  Some real A-level guests are attending including George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies.  The idea was to have the image of the late Sarah Winchester appear and actually converse with the people at the séance table. All was going fine until the image of dear Sarah veers off script and starts quite a commotion with her tales aimed at the host of the party. The party comes to an abrupt end but left behind is one dead body.

It is going to take more than a crystal ball, Ouija board or a spiritual guide to communicate and track down this killer.  Presley will have her hands full even as someone tries to scare her to death. 


I have enjoyed this entire series.  This story like the two before is packed with loads of fun. The characters we love are back with a few new ones, some that I predict will show up again in the next book.


The cool thing about this series is that they are set in real places.  This story is no exception, the San Jose Winchester Mystery House is wonderfully described in this book and after you read it you should visit the website.  It is a truly scary place and a perfect setting for this book.  


For those of you like me who are not from California or don't know a lot about the state, Treasure Island and the buildings the author uses as her settings are also very real. 


The author is also a party planner herself, planning over five hundred parties and events. She has also written several books on party planning. 


This reality makes it so easy to step right into these stories. It makes you forget that they are actually fictional, or maybe they are not, or at least not completely fictional. Mark Twain has a quote that starts out "truth is stranger than fiction..." and that may be what Penny Warner is drawing from in these wonderful stories.


Take my advice, pick up this book as soon as it is released and cozy up by the fire and "escape" into the wonderful world of Presley Parker.  You will not be disappointed and I hope you will come back and let me know how much you enjoyed this book.  Be sure to let the author know too! She can be reached through her web page.


Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Obsidion, a division of Penguin Publishing.  I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
The box below just includes a few of Penny's wonderful books, be sure to check her web page for a complete list.

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