Book Blurb:
Nothing says “small-town journalism” like stumbling over a corpse.
The magic from the amplification stones is gone, and we have no idea where to find it, but by a stroke of luck, we meet a fairy who might.
Unfortunately, she’s got a problem of her own. The deal is simple we shut down the thief who’s been stealing botanicals from the fairy's sacred grove, and she’ll tell us what she knows.
Simple enough. Orion has his shiny Arcane Order badge, after all. Stopping a small-time plant thief should be all in a day’s work, with maybe enough time to spare for a late lunch at Whimzee’s.
But when we go to issue the official warning and retrieve the stolen goods, we walk into a crime scene.
Now we’re stuck solving a murder to honor our end of the bargain. But the deeper we dig, the more suspects we find.
The clock is ticking, the fairies are growing impatient, and we’re running out of time to get answers.
To catch a pair of thieves, first we’ll have to catch a killer.
Tropes:
*Netgalley ALC *Fantasy *Cozy Mystery *Magic *witches *magical beings *romance
*crime mystery *just kisses *amateur sleuth
Thoughts:
Per usual with my requests for ALC's I didn't really do much research only briefly reading the blurb before requesting I somehow missed that this was book 9 in this series, even though it's later in the series I never felt lost so in that way I'm gathering it can potentially be read as a stand alone... but better to read in order as previous situations were mentioned throughout the book.
This starts out with Rosella, a witch who can speak with animals, receiving a late night visit from her owl friend who is distressed that there is a Pixie caught in a trap in the woods several miles away, feeling she needs to help she wakes up her boyfriend Orion and they rush to the rescue.
Once there on scene they realize that there is more going on than they originally thought and that the Pixies are all upset and nervous about someone who has been coming into their homelands and not only poaching endangered resources but also trapping pixies. Rosella and Orion who had been working on a case to find out why the magic is gone from the amplification stone finds that one of the pixies might have some information... but it will cost them catching the person setting traps and stealing from the forest.
Tracking down this thief uncovers additional shadyness as they end up at the suspects home and find him deceased of unatural causes and shortly before the police arrive. Now they not only have a smuggling operation but a murder mystery... but who could be behind this whole situation?
Orion and Rosella are sweet together as they work to solve this case and steal kisses along the way. While Orion is good at his job it is getting a bit old going anywhere the order sends him on missions and maybe it would be nice to settle down in one spot.
Rosella wants to help but perhaps burns the candle at both ends trying to help Orion with the case and work at her families bakery where she has recently been tasked with training a new employee... like she has time for that!
This was a cute cozy mystery that kept me interested in the story, I liked the lead and side characters and loved the element of magic where Rosella could speak with the animals. I think that I may have enjoyed this slightly more if I had read the previous books first as I do feel that I missed a chunk of back story and getting to know you elements by dropping in so late in the series.
The story had enough shady characters throughout so that I wasn't entirely sure who the real suspect was until the very end so I appreciated that aspect.
This was single narration by Kelsey Navarro Foster and she did great with all the characters the voices were clear and it made it easy to do some house chores and still follow along.
If you're looking for a low stakes, cozy mystery this might be the vibes your looking for. I do plan to check out more in this series.
Have you read this one? What did you think?
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