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Books with author Shawn McGuire

  • Kept Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 2

    Shawn McGuire

    eBook
    If you knew you could catch a killer, would you? Tucked next to a pristine lake, the part-Medieval Europe, part-Renaissance Faire hamlet ofWhispering Pines is a utopia . . . except for the recent murders. One month after arriving in the Northwoods, former detective Jayne O'Shea has settled comfortably into small-town life and is making good progress with her task of getting her grandparents' house ready for sale. Then the shocking death of one of the carnies rocks the community, and the villagers look to Jayne for help, placing her in an impossible middle ground of not wanting to get involved and needing to ensure justice is served. When a second carney turns up dead, and the newly hired sheriff--more concerned with ticketing tourists than catching the killer--dismisses the death as an accident, Jayne has no choice but to step in. Can she uncover the truth before the murderer strikes again? "A cool mix of interesting, realistic characters and surprising folks with amazing talents. Rather like a lighter version of Louise Penny's Three Pines, Whispering Pines is a village you would like to visit (or inhabit.)" ~Elaine, Amazon customer "Shawn McGuire has managed to intertwine Wicca and a murder mystery into an absolutely wonderful story about a very small town. I was positive I knew who the guilty party was, three times. I was wrong. There are twists and turns throughout the book that will keep you reading well into the night." ~Amazon customerWhispering Pines Mystery SeriesFamily Secrets, book 1Kept Secrets, book 2Original Secrets, book 3Hidden Secrets, book 4Rival Secrets, book 5Veiled Secrets, book 6Silent Secrets, book 7Merciful Secrets, book 8
  • Rival Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 5

    Shawn McGuire

    eBook (Brown Bag Books, Sept. 24, 2018)
    What if your nemesis challenged you on your home turf? A sense of community. Quaint surroundings. Deadly rivalries. Welcome to Whispering Pines. As the weather turns crisp, Jayne O’Shea and the other villagers prepare for the last big tourist draw of the season: the autumn equinox festival. It’s a time to enjoy a bounty of food, the company of others, and the ever-popular cooking competition. Events in the baking division, however, turn from friendly to fatal when one of the contestants, a beloved nationally known chef, is found dead in the woods. As all eyes turn to one of the villagers as the killer, Jayne knows that what’s seen on the surface isn’t always the truth, especially in Whispering Pines, and digs deep to clear the name of one of their own.What Readers Are Saying“I can clearly see the thatched roof houses, their wood and stucco exteriors. It reminds me of Shakespeare's house in London."“I've read them all and just want to go back.”“I wish Whispering Pines was a real place”“If you enjoy honest, rather raw characters seeking direction, and the consequences of past mistakes, you'll enjoy this series as much as I have.”“My mind is still in Whispering Pines. I can clearly see the thatched roof houses, their wood and stucco exteriors. It reminds me of Shakespeare's house in London." “I really enjoy how the characters continue to evolve in this series and the new eccentrics fit right in!”“I totally fell in love with both the village and the story.”“I would gladly plan my next trip to Whispering Pines.”Whispering Pines Mystery SeriesFamily Secrets, book 1Kept Secrets, book 2Original Secrets, book 3Hidden Secrets, book 4Rival Secrets, book 5Veiled Secrets, book 6Silent Secrets, book 7Merciful Secrets, book 8
  • Silent Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 7

    Shawn McGuire

    eBook
    In Whispering Pines, even downtime can be deadly. The quiet time of year as settled over Whispering Pines. For months, Sheriff Jayne O’Shea had been looking forward to a little R&R but now she’s not so sure. What’s she supposed to do with herself? Take up knitting? When a brawl breaks out at the local pub during the Thanksgiving gathering, a patron is critically wounded. Not the kind of distraction Jayne was looking for. There’s a long list of suspects, but she’s fairly certain it was one of the vigilantes who came to save the village from “that lady sheriff who doesn’t know her job.” But it might be someone from the growing group of villagers who aren’t happy with their sheriff’s performance. Or maybe it's someone who's not even on her list. The one thing Jayne knows for sure is if she doesn’t get a handle on things, it could be time for her to turn in her badge.What Readers Are Saying“I can clearly see the thatched roof houses, their wood and stucco exteriors. It reminds me of Shakespeare's house in London."“I've read them all and just want to go back.”“I wish Whispering Pines was a real place”“If you enjoy honest, rather raw characters seeking direction, and the consequences of past mistakes, you'll enjoy this series as much as I have.”“My mind is still in Whispering Pines. I can clearly see the thatched roof houses, their wood and stucco exteriors. It reminds me of Shakespeare's house in London." “I really enjoy how the characters continue to evolve in this series and the new eccentrics fit right in!”“I totally fell in love with both the village and the story.”“I would gladly plan my next trip to Whispering Pines.”Whispering Pines Mystery SeriesFamily Secrets, book 1Kept Secrets, book 2Original Secrets, book 3Hidden Secrets, book 4Rival Secrets, book 5Veiled Secrets, book 6Silent Secrets, book 7Merciful Secrets, book 8
  • Sticks and Stones

    Shawn McGuire

    language (Brown Bag Books, June 12, 2014)
    A fatal choice, after a string of bad choices, leaves Desiree broken and dying in a ditch. With seconds left to live, a genie appears. She can live again, he says, if she agrees to serve him for fifty years. She agrees, but after more than four decades of granting other people’s wishes and never getting her own, the former hippie has developed an attitude problem. Mandy Matteo is the perfect daughter and student, never breaking a rule for fear of the repercussions. But her friends want fun, not perfection, and abandon Mandy for parties and boys. Miserable, she makes a wish. Nothing extravagant, just a whisper to the universe to be happy. Never dreaming it will come true. Then Lexi, her childhood imaginary friend, shows up in the field outside her house and life is good again. Magical wishes have conditions, though. Once started, they cannot be altered or revoked. And once Mandy is truly content with her life, Lexi must go back to wherever she came from. Turns out, Lexi likes being alive and she’s prepared to do whatever it takes to stay that way.What Readers Are Saying“Fantasy at its best!”“Not only do we get to follow along on Mandy’s adventure with Lexi, we also get to learn bits about Desiree — the wish mistress who I absolutely fell in love with.”“Desiree is this quirky, hippy chic genie. She lives in the present with her mind in the past. She marches to her own rhythm, her own way of thinking. Desiree doesn’t really fit in, but she has a uniqueness about her that defies rigidity. And she’s ever-evolving, always learning something else. It might take her moment to find the lesson, but she’ll get there. Eventually.”“Desiree even has her own back story that we slowly get to peel away as the story progresses.”“These books are wonderful. They take you into a world where you find you want to live.”The Wish Makers SeriesSticks and Stones, Book 1Break My Bones, Book 2Never Hurt Me, Book 3Had a Great Fall, Book 4Back Together Again, Book 5
  • Back Together Again

    Shawn McGuire

    eBook (Brown Bag Books, March 23, 2016)
    Everyone wants a home. Will Ainsley ever get one?A best friend, a boyfriend, and a coveted spot in the talent show. Ordinary things for most teens, but uncommon pleasures for Ainsley Blue. For fifteen years, Ainsley has zigzagged across the country, moving to a new town every few months. Now, after a year at the same school, Ainsley believes her life is finally normal. Then one afternoon, she comes home to find Mum packing, and everything changes again.Heartbroken, Ainsley sends a wish into the universe. All she wants is to have a home she never has to leave and to understand why they live like drifters. Desiree, a stressed-out hippie genie, arrives to grant Ainsley’s wish but warns that the truth may not be easy to accept. Ainsley insists she can handle whatever happens, but little can prepare her for what she’s about to learn.
  • Had a Great Fall

    Shawn McGuire

    eBook (Brown Bag Books, June 11, 2015)
    After nearly fifty years as an indentured genie, Desiree escaped the magical world . . . for a few weeks. Now she’s the leader of the Wish Makers and it’s been anything but a peaceful transition. The cross-country move was meant to be a fresh start for Robin Westmore. But on the first day at his new high school, Robin ends up face-to-face with the school’s biggest bully. The exact wrong place at the exact wrong moment and right back into his old role of victim. Hopeless, Robin begs for it all to stop. It’s childish, wishing on a dandelion, but he can’t take it anymore and needs a way out. Distracted by her duties, Desiree passes Robin off to a new, inexperienced genie who takes things from bad to so very much worse. What Readers Are Saying“Fantasy at its best!”“Not only do we get to follow along on Mandy’s adventure with Lexi, we also get to learn bits about Desiree — the wish mistress who I absolutely fell in love with.”“Desiree is this quirky, hippy chic genie. She lives in the present with her mind in the past. She marches to her own rhythm, her own way of thinking. Desiree doesn’t really fit in, but she has a uniqueness about her that defies rigidity. And she’s ever-evolving, always learning something else. It might take her moment to find the lesson, but she’ll get there. Eventually.”“Desiree even has her own back story that we slowly get to peel away as the story progresses.”“These books are wonderful. They take you into a world where you find you want to live.”The Wish Makers SeriesSticks and Stones, Book 1Break My Bones, Book 2Never Hurt Me, Book 3Had a Great Fall, Book 4Back Together Again, Book 5
  • Break My Bones

    Shawn McGuire

    eBook (Brown Bag Books, Sept. 1, 2014)
    Desiree is bitter. Understandable. Decades of granting heart’s-desire wishes to other people have turned the hippie girl this way. Fortunately, her fifty years as an indentured genie are almost up, and she can hardly wait. A real life again in the real world. Not having to worry about what others want. Pure bliss. Crissy Sheets is trapped. Her family adores her boyfriend, Brad, and are thrilled over her great catch. They don’t know the truth, though. They don’t see the bruises she hides. Terrified by the future she’s headed for, Crissy makes a wish for a better life. Just a few desperate words uttered as a star shoots by in the night sky. And suddenly, a new path appears. Desiree isn’t supposed to get involved with her charges’ wishes. In fact, it’s forbidden. But when Crissy’s wish goes from bad to worse to a living nightmare, she has no choice.What Readers Are Saying“Fantasy at its best!”“Not only do we get to follow along on Mandy’s adventure with Lexi, we also get to learn bits about Desiree — the wish mistress who I absolutely fell in love with.”“Desiree is this quirky, hippy chic genie. She lives in the present with her mind in the past. She marches to her own rhythm, her own way of thinking. Desiree doesn’t really fit in, but she has a uniqueness about her that defies rigidity. And she’s ever-evolving, always learning something else. It might take her moment to find the lesson, but she’ll get there. Eventually.”“Desiree even has her own back story that we slowly get to peel away as the story progresses.”“These books are wonderful. They take you into a world where you find you want to live.”The Wish Makers SeriesSticks and Stones, Book 1Break My Bones, Book 2Never Hurt Me, Book 3Had a Great Fall, Book 4Back Together Again, Book 5
  • Never Hurt Me

    Shawn McGuire

    eBook (Brown Bag Books, Jan. 22, 2015)
    For years, hippie-genie Desiree has been living in a sort of limbo, granting wishes for others while never receiving her own.Then she learns she’s finally getting what she asked for that day so long ago while laying in that ditch. A second chance at life.She has two choices: her future or her past. Moving forward will allow her to have the normal, independent life she’s dreamed of for so long. Going back to 1969—to when her best friend, boyfriend, brother, and parents are still alive—means she can prevent the tragedies that happened to them. Both options take her away from Kaf. Her intense, exasperating, gorgeous boss. Nothing ever goes smoothly with wishes, however, and Desiree’s path twists again when she meets a beggar girl wearing new, designer clothes. What Readers Are Saying“Fantasy at its best!”“Not only do we get to follow along on Mandy’s adventure with Lexi, we also get to learn bits about Desiree — the wish mistress who I absolutely fell in love with.”“Desiree is this quirky, hippy chic genie. She lives in the present with her mind in the past. She marches to her own rhythm, her own way of thinking. Desiree doesn’t really fit in, but she has a uniqueness about her that defies rigidity. And she’s ever-evolving, always learning something else. It might take her moment to find the lesson, but she’ll get there. Eventually.”“Desiree even has her own back story that we slowly get to peel away as the story progresses.”“These books are wonderful. They take you into a world where you find you want to live.”The Wish Makers SeriesSticks and Stones, Book 1Break My Bones, Book 2Never Hurt Me, Book 3Had a Great Fall, Book 4Back Together Again, Book 5
  • The Wish Makers Series Box Set: Books 1-3

    Shawn McGuire

    eBook (Brown Bag Books, Sept. 16, 2015)
    A series about wishes granted by a genie with an attitude problem? What could possibly go wrong?Mandy simply wants to be happy. Crissy dreams of a better life. Desiree would love a second chance.Get the first three books in the series for one low price!SF Benson – author of The Alliance Chronicles “Desiree is this quirky, hippy chic genie. She lives in the present with her mind in the past. She marches to her own rhythm, her own way of thinking. Desiree doesn’t really fit in, but she has a uniqueness about her that defies rigidity. And she’s ever-evolving, always learning something else. It might take her moment to find the lesson, but she’ll get there. Eventually.”Toni @ My Book Addiction – 5 stars – YA Fantasy at its best! “Not only do we get to follow along on Mandy’s adventure with Lexi, we also get to learn bits about Desiree — the wish mistress who I absolutely fell in love with.”Jan F – 4 stars – “Desiree even has her own back story that we slowly get to peel away as the story progresses.”Jennifer F – 5 stars – “These books are wonderful. They take you into a world where you find you want to live.”
  • Silent Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 7

    Shawn McGuire

    Paperback (Independently published, May 15, 2019)
    Heal yourself or save the people you’re sworn to protect?In Whispering Pines, even downtime can be deadly.The quiet time of year as settled over Whispering Pines. For months, Sheriff Jayne O’Shea had been looking forward to a little R&R but now she’s not so sure. What’s she supposed to do with herself? Take up knitting?When a brawl breaks out at the local pub during the Thanksgiving gathering, a patron is critically wounded. Not the kind of distraction Jayne was looking for. There’s a long list of suspects, but she’s fairly certain it was one of the vigilantes who came to save the village from “that lady sheriff who doesn’t know her job.” But it might be someone from the growing group of villagers who aren’t happy with their sheriff’s performance. Or maybe it's someone who's not even on her list.The one thing Jayne knows for sure is if she doesn’t get a handle on things, it could be time for her to turn in her badge.The Whispering Pines Mystery SeriesFamily Secrets: A Whispering Pines MysteryKept Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 2Original Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 3Hidden Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 4Rival Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 5Veiled Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 6Silent Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 7
  • Kept Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 2

    Shawn McGuire

    Paperback (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, Oct. 30, 2017)
    Tucked next to a pristine lake, the part-Medieval Europe, part-Renaissance Faire hamlet of Whispering Pines, Wisconsin is a utopia . . . except for the recent murders. One month after arriving in the Northwoods, former detective Jayne O’Shea has settled comfortably into small-town life and is making good progress with her task of getting her grandparents’ house ready for sale. Then the shocking death of one of the carnies rocks the community, and the villagers look to Jayne for help, placing her in an impossible middle ground of not wanting to get involved and needing to ensure justice is served. When a second carney turns up dead, and the newly hired sheriff—more concerned with ticketing tourists than catching the killer—dismisses the death as an accident, Jayne has no choice but to step in. Can she uncover the truth before the murderer strikes again?
  • Rival Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book 5

    Shawn McGuire

    Paperback (Independently published, Oct. 31, 2018)
    What if your nemesis challenged you on your home turf? A sense of community. Quaint surroundings. Deadly rivalries. Welcome to Whispering Pines. As the weather turns crisp, Jayne O’Shea and the other villagers prepare for the last big tourist draw of the season: the autumn equinox festival. It’s a time to enjoy a bounty of food, the company of others, and the ever-popular cooking competition. Events in the baking division, however, turn from friendly to fatal when one of the contestants, a beloved nationally known chef, is found dead in the woods. As all eyes turn to one of the villagers as the killer, Jayne knows that what’s seen on the surface isn’t always the truth, especially in Whispering Pines, and digs deep to clear the name of one of their own.The Whispering Pines Mystery SeriesFamily Secrets: A Whispering Pines MysteryKept Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book TwoOriginal Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book ThreeHidden Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book FourRival Secrets: A Whispering Pines Mystery, Book Five