Heather Blake – A potion to die for.

The first book in the Magic Potion Mystery series, published November 5, 2013.
Genre: paranormal cozy mystery
Cover: Love it



TROUBLE IS BREWING...
As the owner of Little Shop of Potions, a magic potion shop specializing in love potions, Carly Bell Hartwell finds her product more in demand than ever. A local soothsayer has predicted that a couple in town will soon divorce - and now it seems every married person in Hitching Post, Alabama, wants a little extra matrimonial magic to make sure they stay hitched.
But when Carly finds a dead man in her shop, clutching one of her potion bottles, she goes from most popular potion person to public enemy number one. In no time the murder investigation becomes a witch hunt - literally! Now Carly is going to need to brew up some serious sleuthing skills to clear her name and find the real killer - before the whole town becomes convinced her potions really are to die for!


Welcome to Hitching Post, Alabama, a quaint little village dedicated to marriage and romance. Our heroine, Carly, is a good witch, who brews love potions and other healing potions. But it is not the kind you can slip someone in his drink to make him fall in love with you. The person who takes it, has to believe in it and want to fall in love. She owns a real potion ship too, called Little shop of potions.
Carly’s cousin Delia is not such a good witch, she has embraced the Voodoo side of their heritage, and deals in liquid hexes in her shop Till Hex Do Us Part. They have never been close friends in their lives, so why does Delia suddenly so desperately want to talk to Carly?

Well, she will have to take a number, as half the town is after Carly at the moment! Apparently her neighbour has made another forecast: Sunny, with a chance of divorce. And now they all want a love potion from Carly to make sure they are not the ones getting divorced. But they will all have to wait, as Carly and Delia find a dead man in Carly’s shop…

Carly did not know him much, Nelson never visited her shop, but he is clutching one of her potion bottles in his hand. But how did he get in? Or his murderer? There is no sign of breaking and entering, and she did lock up yesterday. To Carly’s dismay, the detective assigned to the case is none other than her former fiancé, Sergeant Dylan Jackson. Twice they tried to get married, and twice they did not go through with it. The first time, Dylan’s mother interfered (as she really hates Carly), and the second time Carly ran off when she sensed Dylan’s misgivings about getting married to her. Accidentally setting the chapel on fire when she left Dylan standing at the altar.

The bad thing is, people are thinking that Carly’s potion killed the man, and suddenly her shop is empty of customers. Carly will have to rescue her reputation before she is forced to close her shop!


Heather Blake has created an unique little town in Alabama, with a lot of weird characters. And I loved it. Carly is a witch, and everyone knows it, although not every believes in it or in her powers. Her mother owns and operates a wedding chapel, and her father is the head librarian. They are still not married as her mother doesn’t believe in marriage… Her mother also has three crazy older sisters, who all have their own bed and breakfast. Only her aunt Marjie doesn’t really want customers, so she chases everyone of her property with her trusty shotgun.

I loved getting to know every one of them, and how they all interact. The mystery was well done, but the characters are the fun part. I would so love to visit there and befriend the cousins. I think this book might be the start to them becoming friends. And Dylan certainly wants Carly back in his life, although his mother is important to him and she still hates Carly. Carly is not a meek kind of woman though, she does what she wants, and she knows what she wants. She also has a big rambling house in the middle of renovations, and no money to have it done professionally. The two cats on the cover are Roly and Poly, and they add a fun note to the story.

I do recommend this new series to everyone who loves a paranormal cozy mystery.

9 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian