A Witch In Time

February 22, 2010
Alt is in no hurry to get to the bloodshed in her mild sixth paranormal mystery featuring Stony Mill, Ind., psychic empath Maggie O'Neil, Alt's first in hardcover (after 2009's Where There's a Witch
). When Maggie's sister, Melanie, goes into labor, Maggie rushes to the hospital. En route to the delivery floor, Maggie gets stuck in an elevator, where she overhears an ominous conversation between two men (“It's in the bag. No way she'll ever suspect. Not until it's too late”). Maggie later breaks her foot after missing a step on the hospital stairway, offering an opportunity for her hunky wizard boyfriend, Marcus Quinn, to invite her to stay with him while she mends. Plenty of make-out scenes pass between Maggie and Marcus before a corpse turns up. The explanation for the suggestive dialogue she heard will strike many as a letdown. Those expecting only a simple puzzle tacked on to the heroine's continuing quest for romantic fulfillment will be satisfied.

March 1, 2010
Though Maggie O'Neill isn't overly impressed by her witchlike powers, she can't help but be pleased when a little voice in her ear helps solve a murder.

Maggie has succeeded in hiding her hot romance with hunky Marcus Quinn from her inquisitive mother until she gets a call to rush to the local hospital. Her perfect sister Mel is about to give birth, turning Maggie's romantic night with Marcus into a very long night indeed. Stuck in an elevator, she overhears a mysterious conversation. Even more interestingly, her sister gives birth to twins that no one in the family expected. In the waiting room, the family strikes up a conversation with prospective first-time grandparents Joyce and Harold Watkins, who are overjoyed when their daughter-in-law produces a long-awaited baby boy, but troubled when she cuts off all her baby's hair and hides his bassinet card. The last straw in a strange night comes when Maggie trips on the steps and breaks her ankle. She loves being pampered by Marcus, who takes her to stay at his house, but there's little rest for either of them when Mel's husband takes off and a man is shot at the Watkins's house. Maggie and Marcus persist until they unravel all the strange happenings.

Maggie's sixth (Where There's a Witch, 2009, etc.) is for those who like a little mystery with their romance.

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