I loved this book. Very well written, enjoyable storyline, and well-crafted characters. A must read.

This book was a mixed bag for me. I love the overall premise and plot. I liked the characters. Furthermore, I kind of wish the sex/love interest had been left out. I've read plenty of books that include steamy scenes, and the ones included in this just felt awkward and forced. I'm not sure how else to describe it. Overall a decent read and a fun way to pass the time.

A very interesting read set in 1920's Prohibition era .
Thank you for the ARC to the publisher and to Net Galley. My opinion is my own.

This is a multi layered book with fascinating characters and set during a tumultuously interesting time . A law has been passed against witches and use of magic. I love every aspect of this book from the magic, the spell casting to the deception of society during this time, the dialogue and the culture.

The main character Anna is a PI that often gets cases involving witches because she is sympathetic to them since the prohibition laws. Anna gets hired to help find a missing male witch.

Anna lost a lover, Cy. She is grieving so she keeps reliving memories with a memory spell. I love spell casting so i really enjoyed this aspect of the book. the memory spell was fascinating . The spell acts to put her back with Cy and activity relive their happy times together.

The mystery about the missing witch has multi layered clues and many directions. I enjoyed the mystery, the charcters and loved the magic aspect of this book. I look forward to further works by this author.

This is a mystery, with magic and set in the 1920s. Honestly, how could I ever resist it?

The story is set in a 1920s America where Prohibition is on magic rather than on alcohol. Some decades previous, the magic community revealed itself and witches and humans have lived side by side, knowingly, ever after. A person can either be born a witch or a human, and a human can never become a witch (well, unless they perform unspeakable acts). This slowly created some kind of segregation, since magic and magical tools can be dangerous to humans. Ultimately, a form of Prohibition was put in place, though – like the real Prohibition – it was actually very loosely enforced.
I really liked the concept. I especially liked how it played out in the story. The relationship between humans and witches – including the characters here involved – is complex but realistic and interesting. I’d say this fantasy aspect of the story was the best – at least from the perspective of this fantasy reader.

The mystery was intriguing, especially at the beginning. To a certain point, I found it complex enough to keep my interest, and yet handled with logic, which also kept my attention.
Unfortunately, towards the end, the mystery slid into a strained idea which didn’t really work, in my opinion. I mean, the way it started off, the mystery could have ended in a stronger way. But it was adequate, so I won’t complain too much.

There’s also a romance element to the story that becomes ever stronger the more the story unfolds. This has proven to be the weakest part in the end.
Although I’m not a romance reader, I appreciated this aspect of the story, in the beginning, because it was focused on Anna’s growing as a person. The way she handled (or tried to handle) loss and grief, though grounded in the fantasy world, was realistic and relatable. But as the story progressed, several romance clichés emerged. Since the end of the story hinged on the romance element, clichés greatly affected its strength. I’ll just say that I discussed this story with a friend who does read romances and she could guess the entire closing sequence without hesitation and without my help.

But this doesn’t mean the story was ruined. I still think it was a great story and a great set up for a series. I’ll read more if I have a chance.

I really, really enjoyed the worldbuilding in the this one. It was a unique take on the melding of a paranormal world with that of the mundane, and I felt setting it in the 1920s only added to the atmosphere. Anna Caill is a supremely interesting main character, and I love the element of her having an addiction to the Living Memory spell in order to get over the grief of the loss of her fiancé.

Unfortunately, while In Search of A Witch's Soul hits all the right notes in terms of urban fantasy, where it falls short is its mystery. What turns out to be a rather major plot point is easily guessed towards the beginning of the book, and once that is guessed, the book feels like it's simply careening towards an expected ending.

Had some more time been taken on the mystery aspect, I feel that this could have been an easy 5 star read. Unfortunately, as it stands, I left feeling unsatisfied.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC! I received an early review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Ink & Magick and Netgalley for a copy of **In Search of a Witch's Soul**. This is my honest opinion.

I saw the cover of this story as I was scrolling through Netgalley, and it absolutely drew me in. I love the Roarin' Twenties. I find the style and language of this time classic and enchanting. The cover is beautiful with its sepia coloring and a dash of green will-o'-the-wisp Anna just drew me in with her intense gaze that says she has quite a story to tell.

D. Lieber writes an enchanting tale of how Anna uses her skills as a PI to help find a missing witch. I loved how she kept the story in the time period with the vernacular, style, and historical events. In this story, magic was prohibited instead of alcohol, which I found interesting. And witches actually had different souls than normal humans. I loved the story it sucked me and I read it in 2 nights! She wrote it in first POV from the viewpoint of Anna and once in a while one of the other characters. I found it easy to follow along. There is suspense and mystery with lots of magic! The magical system she described is fun and imaginable. I want to walk the streets with Anna and Jesse.

I wish she would have had more of Jack's story. I felt drawn to him and was sad that he wasn't more integral part of the story.

The reason I am giving it a three star review is because of the ending. I found it predictable and I felt like she ended the story too quickly. I knew what was going to happen halfway through. It also felt like there should be another book following this one. I wish Anna would have grown more as a person. She still had the same problems that we started the book with.

Overall, I enjoyed the story as it was a wonderful escape to another time.

This wasn't a book that I got on with terribly well. I liked Anna as a character but I struggled with what was going on around her. I read about a quarter of the book and put it down never to pick it up again. It just didn't hold my interest.

"Love is always magical; and nothing blows hot and cold like a witch's soul. This is a magical book with a whole lot of soul." — Simon R. Green, author of the Nightside series

Since I love Simon R. Green's urban fantasies set in England, I was happy to read and review this book that has his recommendation.

I even created a new shelf for it using the publisher's own description--urban fantasy noir.

In this alternate Roaring Twenties, the 18th Amendment prohibits magic! In a role reversal, the private eye is Anna Cahill, female and human. The mysterious client who comes through her door is mysterious and a witch, and taking on the case of finding his friend, a high priest in a coven, takes her into atypically typical dark places and recesses of her own mind and addiction.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ink & Magicking for the arc. I highly recommend this to others who like the idea of Roaring Twenties complete with its slang and lingo, magic that can trend to the dark, and noir mystery.

I posted this on goodreads but all attempts to link it here have failed.

The author has a fantastic imagination as demonstrated by the unique setting and storyline of this book. An easy read which kept me entertained and not wanting to put the book down. I look forward to reading of this author’s work.

In Search of a Witch's Soul is a entertaining read with a 1920 flair. Overall it is a great book although the points of view might confuse a reader.

With murder, mystery, and mystical noir, this novel will have You begging for more. Every life hides a secret, and love is the deepest mystery of all.

This one wasn't exactly my cup like I thought it would be but it had some fun bits. I loved all the 1920s slang! And I also appreciated that Anna was portrayed as a highly intelligent woman who had to work for the answers to the mystery; they didn't just fall in her lap, nor was she some Mary Jane character. Ultimately, I thought the plot was a tad lacking and the big reveal was pretty obvious. I'd give this one 2.5 stars.

Thank you to D. Lieber and Ink & Magick for making available an eARC via NetGalley of ‘In Search of a Witch’s Soul’ in exchange for an honest review.

The sepia photographic cover art really sets the mood for this historical urban fantasy with its protagonist looking like the cat’s whiskers and boldly meeting our gaze.

In this alternative 1920s USA Prohibition and the 18th Amendment have banned magic being practiced by witches in public and around humans and so naturally it’s still in high demand just as alcohol was in the real Prohibition. The cops aren’t that interested in witches’ problems so human private detective, Anna Caill, who is friendly with a number of witches, is in high demand.

She is hired by witch Jesse Hunt to find his friend, Leo, who is missing. She soon becomes involved in a complex case. In addition, Anna is struggling to come to terms with her addiction to a dark memory spell.

I always bristle a bit when a fantasy novel has witches as non-humans though it’s a popular trope. Still the concept here of a witch’s soul was an interesting one.

I did find that some of the sex scenes didn’t work for me. Given the period setting the more graphic ones struck a bit of a discordant note.

Yet on the whole I enjoyed this mystery and with its alternative Prohibition targeting magic. The use of 20s slang was fun and there was plenty of noir with the plot and characters. I really felt for Anna and her journey.

While I felt there could have been more world-building, it was a short novel and maybe more stories set in this world are planned by Lieber.

First off, the author uses 1920s slang and I loved it but it may not be everyone's cup of tea. But honestly, I felt like it really just showed the effort and work she'd put into researching. Lieber does a great job of putting magic into this time period and in the style of a prohibition against it. I'm reading another book in this same time period so I think that actually just made this book that much more fun for me to read.

Lieber gives us a protagonist who is not only a private detective but a flapper and I loved that she didn't make our flapper detective a Witch instead she made her just a human and it was fun to see her navigate through magic and witches as a human private eye.

The book was definitely more erotic than I thought and someone who is super selfconscious, I'm so glad I wasn't reading this on the train, but it's not the entirety of the novel and it's not necessarily a romance because of it rather than it just expands the story and gives you some cheeky reading!

I would say her intentions with the character Jack weren't supposed to be a surprise to use the readers but for her protagonist and the little twist at the end was great. Not to mention I'm so hoping there is more to come for Caill.

I read this in just a matter of hours, and it would have been less if I hadn't been so tired when I picked it up last night! I would highly recommend this to those who like Urban/Historical Fantasy with some romance and mystery thrown in! I'll be keeping an eye out on Lieber from now on.

Trigger Warnings: For some, the erotic content might be more of a put off than a trigger, character death, 1920s slang ;)

Anna Caill is a human, private detective who has a steady stream of magically inclined clients due to discrimination from the police. With the 18th Amendment, magic performed for humans is banned, and witches are being driven back underground. Anna gets hired by Jesse to investigate the disappearance of his friend, Leo, the high priest of one of the oldest covens.
The 1920s are probably one of my favorite time periods to read about. Everything about that period seems so larger than life. I really like how the author integrated magic into the real world. How it came “out of the closet” because of the spiritualist movement and now with Prohibition is banned to protect human sensibilities. The concept of the book definitely drew me in. And I never saw the ending coming.
There were times where the period slang felt awkward and clumsy. Yes, I can see trying to maintain the immersion, but anytime someone “ankled” across a room I rolled my eyes. Anna also comes across as the most oblivious person to ever exist. As soon as the concept of soulmates was introduced, it was really clear she was making the wrong choice, and she just didn’t get it. Also, throughout the investigation, she seems unable to move past the fact that maybe Leo just didn’t run off. I mean, we’re dealing with witches. Anything is possible. It seems that Anna has a pretty strong addiction to Living Memory but, once that plot point is over, doesn’t seem to suffer any ill effects from said addiction (or learn her lesson about using magic).
Overall, I enjoyed the beginning, the middle drove me up the wall, and the end had some redeeming characteristics.

I don't like giving indie books low ratings but I really didn't get on with this one.

The big reveal with Jack was obvious almost from the start of the book though I have to say it lead to an ending I did not see coming.

There were some very odd phrases that I hope the editor picks up before it's published - at one point she "ankled" across the room ???? Other than that I enjoyed the writing style, it flowed well and there were a lot of interesting ideas in the plot. I wish the villain's viewpoint hadn't been in first person though I found it a bit jarring when it was dropped in. At first, I didn't notice the names at the start of the chapters so I was very confused!

The first part of the book was taken up with Anna's addiction to the spell to go back into her memories and see her lost lover. It took up too much of the start of the story for my liking, she went under the spell, went home, went back under the spell - repeat a few times. Yes, it set up her issues straight away but then halfway through she just appeared to lose her addiction with not much of an explanation. It didn't cause her problems it just fizzled out.

And the ending was so hard to take and leaves Anna in a very bad place if it's meant to be a series I'm not sure how it can carry on after that. I'm a romantic at heart though, I like a good happy ending.

One thing I did like a lot was the investigating Anna did. The answers didn't just throw themselves at her she actually had to work and use her brain to get there.

There were a lot of bits to it that I did like but I felt like it should have been made darker and grittier or more lighthearted all round, it's a bit too much in the middle to have enough of an impact.

I didn't expect to like this book so much!! It is really good, I can't tell if is the writing or the characters but something in this book bewitched me! I couldn't put it down until it was finished.I really hope this is the beginning of a series because I need to meet this characters again. During the story you may guess about the revelations that will accour later but you won't be sure untill the last pages. I was pleased that there wasn't the classic happy ending,. maybe Jesse isn't the man you will bring home to meet your parents but is far more interesting that the right boy.

Title: In Search of a Witch's Soul

Publisher: Ink & Magick

Author: D. Lieber

Pages: 208pp

Price: $12.95/$3.99

Release Date: 5 March 2019

New York City. The Roaring Twenties. Prohibition is in full force: magic is illegal. Witches have been forced underground -- sometimes literally -- forbidden from publicly performing magic. Anna Caill is a private detective, still mourning the death of her fiancé shortly after his return from the Great War; she is also a magic addict, constantly making use of the Living Memory spell to keep herself upright and functional. She often solves problems for the magical community that the police willfully ignore. And so, when a young high priest goes missing, his friend hires Anna to track him down. Unfortunately, there is more to the case than Anna initially suspects, and more is at the stake than the life of just one high priest ....

I'm always looking for new urban fantasy and occult detective stories to read; those set during the height of the noir and pulp era hold a special appeal. So, when I came across In Search of a Witch's Soul on netgalley, I couldn't pass it up.

Overall, In Search of a Witch's Soul is a highly imaginative, entertaining read. Anna, like so many pulp detectives, is driven, determined, and insightful; she is also emotionally scarred, unable to form new romantic attachments and incapable of moving on after her fiancé's death.

The world that Anna inhabits is a fascinating magical alternative to the real world. Where the real Prohibition led to speak easies and bootlegging, the Prohibition of Anna's world (driven by religious fanatics convinced that magic will damn innocent souls) results in underground magical parlors and practitioners. Tunnels lead from legitimate businesses to witches willing to break the law; but the tunnels are a labyrinth and fae light guides are needed to traverse them safely. Some places can only be accessed by making an offering to one of the ancient Gods, and humans can't get into the Shadow Market at all.

While the United States of this world is definitely a majority Christian nation, the old Gods are still worshipped -- at least by witches. When Anna needs to gain entrance to Erostes, a magical gay bar, she first has to walk down a long, dark hallway; recesses in the wall holds statues to numerous ancient Deities, along with offerings of incense, fruit, flowers, and honey. But Anna has no idea who any of these Deities are, and finally selects the idol of Eros himself at random; only among the witches has knowledge of the Gods been preserved.

While I enjoyed In Search of a Witch's Soul, I do have one serious complaint: the ending is very abrupt. The story did not conclude as I expected, and when it did end, it was suddenly just done. Bam. Case solved, bad guy dead. And then the story leaps immediately into an epilogue set a year later. It was very disconcerting. A slightly longer denouement would have been better, helping to ease the reader through the surprise ending.

Ultimately, In Search of a Witch's Soul is a good addition to the growing urban fantasy/occult detective library, particularly for Pagan readers. Recommended to fans of Jim Butcher, Rebecca Chastain, P. Djèli Clark, Devon Monk, and Dan Willis.

For readers of paranormal romance this will be a truly a wonderful read.
I love the plot so much, I think that I will be tempted to read this book one more time!
I picked this book only because of the title and although, I was not familiar with the author at all, I quickly fell in love with the author's style of writing and way of thinking.
In Search of a Witch's Soul - should be on shelves of those who like a novel with a twist!

A good hard boiled mystery, engaging and entertaining.
The book is good, with some minor issue, and it's a fascinating mix of paranormal, romance, historical fiction, and mystery.
I like the part about the spell and the witches, I'd have preferred some more world building because it let me with a lot of questions about how it worked.
The mystery was good and it keeped me hooked till the last page.
I think that the two weakest point were the sex scenes, a bit boring, and the two POV that can cause some confusion.
I'd like to read more books with these characters and with some more building.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC