Rating: 
Summary: A fun read
Review: This was my first Yasmine Galenorn book and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The writing is richly textured and the plot is delightfully suspenseful, with some surprising twists at the end. The touch of the metaphysical adds depth and interest. The "good witch" heroine is very engaging, and all the other characters are lively and memorable. I look forward to Ms. Galenorn's next mystery!
Rating:
Summary: Legend of the Jade Dragon
Review: This was the first book in the Chintz and China series that I read, and from the other reviews, I'm wondering if perhaps it ought always to be. I was immediately ushered in to the town and it's people the same way I would have been had I been out on a week-end antique seeking adventure. As for feeling a kinship with Emerald, the kids and the friends? Ms Galenorn must know some of the same folks I do here in the Northwest, because the penchant for good coffee is just the beginning of all too personal familiarities.
I was drawn in quickly and easily, envisioning each place and person as though I was there. The story line was excellent, and I was hooked until finished. I also have an appreciation for how Ms Galenorn continues to teach, albiet with subtlety; a nice leftover from her non-fiction days. She gives us Harlow to teach us about not allowing ourselves to be affected by false beauty standards, and the rude hairy biker dude (I'm married to one), leaving us with knowing that one can't judge a book by it's cover, so to speak.
I want to add that I then read Ghost of a Chance, and having already been introduced to them all, I enjoyed it .
Rating:
Summary: A Most Excellent Tale!
Review: Yasmine Galenorn's second entry in her Chintz 'n China Series is another fantastically fun read. It's a "pick you up by your bloomers and fly you along to the finish" kind of a tale; in other words, don't plan on getting much else done if you start this on a weekend! Emerald O'Brien is one of those rare literary characters that don't feel literary at all. She's real, her kids are real, her life is real, even her magic is real. Of course, pitted against an ancient Chinese curse that is far outside of her tradition, Emerald has to scramble. I think that Ms. Galenorn's "voice", her choice of clear language and her fantastic sense of humor all work together to make an engaging and comfortable universe for readers to visit - or escape to. I can't wait to read the next installment!
Rating:
Summary: Much better!
Review: Yay, I won't have to be harsh this time around, because I actually liked this second novel in the series! My rating is actually four and a half stars, but amazon doesn't give that option.As I mentioned, this book is much better than the first in the series, Ghost of a Chance. So, don't judge this series by its first book. Anyway, now to the good stuff. I loved almost everything about this book. (No book is perfect, so the 'almost' was expected.) First off, I loved all the characters. (If I didn't like them as a person, I liked how well developed they were.) They were the ones who kept this story from getting boring. And in fact, I think the chracterization was the strongest part of this novel. Second, I actually liked the storyline. While the main mystery wasn't about a murder at all (or only slightly), it was about the statue of the jade dragon, but I still liked it. It kept me intrested. Third, while all the bad events happening right after another could have been a bit too much, the author did an exellent job of weaving it all together. In any other book, I think I would be yelling something along the lines of: "You can't have one bad thing happening right after another like that! Give us a break!" But, as I have just said, the author weaves it all together in a very workable way, which didn't make me wanna stop reading and throw the book across the room. I also liked the 'final fight' that comes up at the end, and how it showed us that Emerald wasn't some kind of a superhero, but a 'real' person who can and does get hurt. There are some other little stuff I liked, but I don't have time to get into them, and they would probably destroy some of the 'surprise' elements that some reviewers who went before me just spilled out. Now, to the stuff I didn't like so much. Not many of these, but there are some. Well, one problem I had was not remembering a character when their name was mentioned. I was like: "Who the heck is that?" But then it came to be after awhile, but the author should have probably mentioned something about them right away to avoid any confusion. I can't imagine how hard it would have been on readers who haven't read the first book! Then there were some things that got repeated in an unnecessary way. For example, Murray, Emerald's friend told her something, and I as a reader remembered it. But then, when they meet up to talk another time, Murray mentions the same thing that was already as clear as day to me! I guess it could have helped readers who were easily forgetable, but it just annoyed me. It happened twice I think, so it wasn't that bad. Other interesting things, to me at least, were some of the astral projections which happened to Emerald. I wish astral travel came as easy to me as it did to Emerald! One can only hope... Yes, I'm finally done with the review! In my opinion, this book is worth the money, and I'm actually proud its on my shelf, unlike Ghost of a Chance. As others have said, this was a much stronger second novel, and well worth your time. -Ater
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