Book Review: Cookies & Clairvoyance by Bailey Cates

Hedgewitch Katie Lightfoot is juggling wedding preparations, a visit from her father, and home renovations on top of her long hours at the Honeybee Bakery, where she and her aunt Lucy imbue their yummy cookies and pastries with beneficial magic. But when firefighter Randy Post is accused of murdering a collector of rarities, and his prints are on the statue that was used to kill the man, Katie steps in.

Randy is not only Katie's fiancé's coworker, but also the boyfriend of fellow spellbook club member and witch Bianca Devereaux. Bianca and Declan are both sure Randy is innocent, and so is Katie. However, to prove it she'll have to work with ornery detective Peter Quinn again—and this time around he knows she's more than your everyday baker.[summary via Amazon]

Cookies and Clairvoyance is the 8th book in the Magical Bakery Mysteries. This time the spellbook club members are at hand to help find another killer! The police are determined to point the finger at Bianca's boyfriend, resident nice guy and firefighter, Randy, for the death of a local collector. However, with Katie, Declan and others on the case, they will do all they can to prove Randy's innocence.

It's been a little while since I've taken a visit to the Honeybee Bakery. I was instantly welcomed into the fold of the spell book club, and the magic that surrounds the Honeybee Bakery. From the enchanting mystery to the delectable treats, I was absolutely enthralled. Bailey Cates described the most mouth-watering treats, I wish I had been able to pluck a treat right off the page!

The mystery itself is very magical. The victim in question is a collector of paranormal items, and it was interesting to see the different branches of magic intertwine as Katie tries to unravel the mystery.

I like that Bailey Cates delivers more than just a mystery. Yes, there is the delectable treats and recipes, but there is also the well-developed magic sub-plots. It's these extra doses of witchiness that has me coming back for more!! I particularly enjoyed the direction the magic takes in Cookies and Clairvoyance and I can't wait to see what happens in the next book!

As mentioned earlier, I've not read the last couple of books in this series. With so many new series on the shelves, I'm finding it hard to keep up. However, I wanted to jump right back into this series, and Bailey Cates does a great job of enabling readers to do that! She gives a little background information, without spoiling the previous books, and I didn't feel lost at all. If you haven't read this series yet, you can certainly "jump right in" with Cookies & Clairvoyance. Of course after one book, you will be wanting to go back and devour the rest!

Book Review: Some Enchanted Eclair by Bailey Cates

Hollywood has come to Savannah with the shooting of a film called Love in Revolution. Katie and her Aunt Lucy are called in to step in as caterer, when the previous caterer was fired. However what starts as just another job turns out to be a deadly murder mystery when Simon Knapp, the Production Coordinator, is found killed – stabbed with a knife from the Honeybee Bakery! Katie and the gang at the Honeybee Bakery start to investigate and try to unravel the mystery.

I’ve really enjoyed the previous mysteries in this series. They are simply spellbinding with mouth-watering recipes after the adventure. This latest adventure, however, tops the previous mysteries and provides a page-turning mystery, that is one of the best I’ve ever read.

With each book Katie Lightfoot is finding out more about her witchy powers. She’s a lightwitch and also a “catalyst”, meaning she seems to attract trouble! She, nor the members of her spellbook club (coven), are surprised when the victim Simon, reveals via a psychic, that it will be Katie that will find his killer! It was enjoyable to read the subtle blend of magic and mystery, with Katie heading the adventure and solving the mystery.

My favourite thing about this series is that it evolves at a realistic pace. From the start I was captivated by the spark between Declan, fireflighter, and Katie, and I really enjoyed the twist that Bailey Cates put into their relationship in Some Enchanted Eclair. Fans of Declan and Katie will certainly enjoy this sub-plot, as much as I did.

If you haven’t discovered the Magical Bakery Mysteries I highly encourage you to race to your bookstore and pick them up today. While you are there pick up all four because you are going to want to read them back-to-back and fall head over heels for these spellbinding witches!

Audiobook Review: Charms & Chocolate Chips by Bailey Cates

Katie Lightfoot is keeping herself busy. Between working at the bakery and volunteering, she barely has time to see her firefighter boyfriend, Declan. She's not avoiding Declan, but moreso avoiding her fate and destiny as a witch, and a powerful one at that. However she can't constantly run away from it, especially when her powers are needed to solve the murder of a fellow volunteer at the conservation group.

Charms and Chocolate Chips is the third book in the Magical Bakery Mysteries and I adored the first two books in this series. They combine my love of culinary cozies with paranormal elements just perfectly and often leave me [im]patiently waiting for the next book. I read the first two books in this series, and opted to listen to the latest book as an audiobook.

I like Katie Lightfoot. She's discovering lots of things about herself and her family that she didn't know before. She's only recently learnt that she's a witch and that's a lot to take on - especially when she learns that she's a "catalyst" and might be more powerful than she first thought. She's also taking baby steps with her relationship with Declan, given her previous disaster relationship. Add in another murder and well she's certainly got her hands full. However, what Katie soon discovers is that she can handle more than she thought she could!!

Charms and Chocolate Chips felt like a turning point for Katie. Her mother, who she hasn't spoken to very much since learning that her mother hid from her that Katie's a witch, is in town and it's great to learn more about Katie's family history and putting pieces of her own life's puzzle into place. For the reader we get a hint at exactly how much power Katie has and it's very interesting. I cannot wait to see how her powers progress as the series go on, as I'm sure it's going to be a great magical journey.

Charms and Chocolate Chips was a fantastic listen on audio. I listened while I dug into some holiday baking and it was a fantastic experience. Amy Rubinate was already one of my favorite narrators (based on her narration of The Selection series by Kiera Cass) and I'm so happy to see her narrating this series. She does a fantastic job of telling this story and her narration of Katie and her aunt, Lucy, are simply spot on. I plan to listen to future books in this series on audio.

I highly recommend this series to fans of culinary mysteries and paranormal mysteries. If you are looking for a series to try on audiobook, then definitely pick up the audio version, and Amy Rubinate's narration does not disappoint.