Mary Martin Benton

Bernetta, the Not-so-good Witch Mary Martin Benton

Publisher Marketing: "Bernetta, the not-so-good witch" is a crotchety old woman who is embittered at being left by her cheating husband to raise two delinquent sons by herself. Feeling her neighbors all have better lives than she was dealt, she evens the playing field by hurling spells and curses on anyone who she deems need "attitude adjustments." One day something goes horribly wrong. The curses reverse themselves and bring good luck to her victims. This, in Bernetta's mind, will never do. To counteract this unpleasant turn of events, she utters only good spells, hoping they will bring bad luck to her targets. When her next-door neighbor's daughter disappears, the neighbor asks Bernetta for help, offering to pay her out of reward money she expects to receive. Since the reward money came as a result of one of the errant curses, Bernetta accepts, feeling the money was rightfully hers. Bernetta brazenly immerses herself into the world of "Private Detective" and plunges into solving not only the disappearance, but a puzzling homicide. Quickly gaining the ire of local law enforcement, and locking horns with federal agents, Bernetta becomes obsessed with finding the missing daughter before the police crack the case and deprive her of her fee. With wit, humor, and outlandish behavior, Bernetta manages to uncover the truth about the daughter's disappearance, outrun criminals who are intent on killing her, and gain a wealth of friendships she never knew existed.