Secondhand Spirits is light and breezy fun with a bit of darkness for some edge. I just discovered these types of cozy, paranormal mysteries, and I have to say I am ready for more. Witches and fashion - what's not to like! I would like to continue the series, but I might switch to the print version. Otherwise, it was a good story, and the descriptions of vintage clothing, witchcraft, and San Francisco were excellent. It did get slightly better as the book progressed, but overall I found the voice so distracting that I sometimes lost track of the story. Granted, there are some heavy themes in the book, but even Oscar's antics seemed almost depressing when described by this narrator.

The end result is that the book had a heavier feel that I was looking for and that the reviews I read by people who had read the print version indicated. Her accent sounds genuine and she doesn't overdramatize (an annoying habit of some narrators), but the low, gravelly softness of her voice made it sound like she was going for some sort of languid, ultra-sexy sound even when there was nothing languid or sexy about what was happening in the book. She speaks in a throaty almost-whisper that trails off at the end of each sentence, sometimes to the point that I had a hard time understanding the last word. Sands is not without talent, but her style doesn't fit this type of story. A decent story, but the narration is a distraction.

Secondhand Spirits by Juliet Blackwell