small town idaho – Cuddle Up With a Cozy Mystery

Three Tainted Tea review

April 22, 2022April 22, 2022 Tari Hann

This is the third in the newer Kitchen Witch Mysteries by another of my fave cozy authors, Lynn Cahoon. I love her other cozy series and have read something in all of them. Actually the only one I’m not caught up in is the Tourist Trap Mysteries. I’ve always found her characters to be like old friends I want to go back and visit when I read one their books. Mia and her crew are definitely like that!

#KensingtonCozies #LynnCahoon

My Goodreads review:

Three Tainted Teas by Lynn Cahoon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Mia had her hands really full this time having to step in as a wedding planner (she couldn’t refuse the huge payment she was being offered, who could?) then become a person of interest in a murder.

When Christina’s character was first introduced, I sure never expected to like her as much as I do! She’s just the best when it comes to Mia and the business as well as being a good friend to her. Like Mia, I dread the day when she’s out of culinary school and possibly ready to move on. Or hopefully Mia’s business might do so well, she’ll be able to entice her stay.

Trent’s mom, Abigail’s such a great character! I enjoyed learning more about her and having her in the storyline a lot more than usual. She really saved the day when it came to the wedding cake, and I’m looking forward to her maybe being someone Gran can hang out with. And it sure never hurts for Mia to get to know and work with her sweetie’s mom! 😉

The takedown of the perp was a crazy one! I hadn’t suspected whodunit at first, but the closer it got to the end, I started wondering about this person. As long as Mia picks and chooses her weddings carefully, maybe she really should go into planning weddings for the extra income, who knows? I’m always eager to read the next book and see what new adventures Mia and her friends/crew get into.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.

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Have a Holly, Haunted Christmas review

October 22, 2021 Tari Hann

This is book #2.5 of the Kitchen Witch series by Lynn Cahoon who also writes the Tourist Trap Mysteries, Farm-to-Fork Mysteries and Cat Latimer Mysteries, all of which are among my favorite cozy mystery series. I really enjoy the novella idea to sort of tide us over between main books, and since Christmas is my fave season, I was definitely eager to read this and not disappointed at all!

My Goodreads review:

Have a Holly, Haunted Christmas by Lynn Cahoon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was such a sweet Christmas story and mystery! Mia’s ghost friend Dorothy needed her help, and with a deadline attached to it, being the good friend she is to everyone, Mia squeezed time in between her Christmas party/open house and tons of delivery orders. Dorothy might’ve been just a ghost, but she’d always been pretty nice to Mia-and we know our girl can’t resist a puzzle, right?

Lots of secrets came to light, but a happy ending was enjoyed by Dorothy and someone else who was very deserving of a merry Christmas. I had slightly suspected the perp, but it was great how Trent and Mia sleuthed it out together. I love these novellas in between the main stories of the Kitchen Witch series. (The author also does it with some of her other series). Even though we aren’t seeing a full-size Christmas mystery, the author packed it with festive fun, and I never felt like anything was missing. Can’t wait for the next book whether it’s regular or another novella. I’m really loving these characters!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.

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Two Wicked Desserts review

July 26, 2021 Tari Hann

This is the second full novel in the Kitchen Witch series by Lynn Cahoon who also writes two of my other fave series, Farm-to-Fork and Cat Latimer. I’m enjoying the Kitchen Witch series a lot. I love how Mia ended up being good friends and now employer to her ex-almost-sister-in-law Christina who doesn’t like her brother a whole lot better than Mia did after some of the stunts he pulled. Grams is a great character and another kind of tough-love grandma who loves her granddaughter like crazy but wants her to learn the ways of her magic. I love seeing Mia and Trent together. They have a great dynamic, and he’s learned when to help but not come off as a hero, lol.

The little pre-novella and 1.5 were good fillers and while not necessarily crucial to the plot, I really enjoyed reading them while waiting on the full novels and highly recommend those books too. I’m curious as to whether the next will be a Christmas or Halloween novella or what. Always eager for the next in this series!

My Goodreads review:

Two Wicked Desserts by Lynn Cahoon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The last thing Mia needed was a dead body on her property, but unfortunately that’s what happened, and while Det. Baldwin wasn’t trying to finger her for the crime, he did seem to think Dorian’s daughter had something to do with it. Meanwhile, Grams was still trying to separate Dorian’s ghost from Mr. Darcy cat’s body, Christina and Levi were going through a bit of a rough patch in their little romance, and the elusive John Louis was at it again. The question was whether he’d finally be caught doing something illegal enough to get put away for good. The author sure did a great job creating a character so loathable that he’s another one I wouldn’t mind seeing as the victim, and a lot of Magic Springs residents would probably agree, lol.

It’s always interesting that while the main murder always gets solved in this series, there’s something else out there like a mystery with the school building or someone from Grams’s magical past. Will poor Ghost Dorian ever get separated from the cat? It’s never dull in Magic Springs!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.

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Murder 101 review

April 29, 2021 Tari Hann

The newest novella, #1.5 just published April 27 in the Kitchen Witch series by Lynn Cahoon. As with all her series, I fell in love with Mia and Gran’s world when I read the first novella. Each book alone is pretty self-explanatory, but I think it’s a lot more fun to read in order whenever possible.

My Goodreads review:

Murder 101 by Lynn Cahoon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love the setting for this series being in an old private school, and it just the right kind of spookyish vibe for a murder set at a class reunion. Even readers who’ve not read the first novella or first book could easily follow along, since there’s enough brief explanations, but I think it’d be lots more fun to start with the first novella, then the first book before this.

The murder was solved fairly quickly due to this being a novella, and the whodunit wasn’t a huge surprise once someone else was cleared. I liked that Mia’s mom came to the reunion and even though she didn’t get along with Grans, it seemed as if they might have actually been talking. It did leave it open for something to happen though, so now I’m anxious as to when this something is actually going to happen.

I read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the author, and my opinions are my own.

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One Poison Pie review

January 28, 2021 Tari Hann

This is the first full-length book in the new Kitchen Witch Mysteries by well-known cozy mysteries author Lynn Cahoon. Even if you’ve never read any of her other books, I think you’ll love this series. If you’re already a fan of the series from reading the prequel…or haven’t read it, you’re going to absolutely love what happens in this book!

My Goodreads review:

One Poison Pie by Lynn Cahoon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What an awesome start for this series! I’d already read the prequel to this, which isn’t completely necessary, but I’d highly recommend it to get a feel for the characters and what happened with Mr. Darcy, the cat. There was a good plot twist later in the book, and I honestly didn’t know which suspect was the killer. There were some other threats Mia got, but some came from other sources. I think I’d be scared to pieces living in that old school she bought!

I love how Mia and Trent were getting closer then let her ex know that he was definitely not welcome around there, especially after a recent rotten thing he did. Christina may have found her special guy which I thought was so sweet. There were a couple of things went missing which were left hanging, but knowing this author, I know they’ll come up again and be explained, similar to another of her series, so I’m not really worried about it.

I’m really glad the next book comes out in July, because it would be way too hard waiting longer than that!

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Who Moved My Goat Cheese?–review

July 4, 2018July 4, 2018 Tari Hann

This is the first book in the Farm-to-Fork series by Lynn Cahoon that came out earlier this year. She’s also the author of the Cat Latimer and Tourist Trap cozy mystery series. The new series is a lot of fun since it involves farmers and a small rural community.

My Goodreads review:

Who Moved My Goat Cheese? by Lynn Cahoon

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I just love this first book in the newest series by Lynn Cahoon! Even though I had pegged the killer, the twist was great and I had no idea that was coming. I have the second book and will be reading it very soon, I’m sure!

Angie Turner and her best friend/business partner, Felicia Williams, were getting ready to open the first farm-to-table type restaurant in the River Vista, ID area. Everything was going to be great: they had their employees lined up, their restaurant was just about ready for guests and Angie had even managed to make friends with the farmers’ market manager, Ian, who had not seemed too friendly to begin with. She even managed to talk to Gerald Moss, the town curmudgeon goat farmer, and since he knew her grandma, from whom she’d inherited her place, he was agreeable to selling her goat cheese for her various dishes. When the old man was murdered, Angie felt a personal draw to investigate this murder since she thought everyone needed someone on their side–and Gerald didn’t have an abundance of friends. She ended up with an adorable baby goat that she adopted that had belonged to Gerald. Dom, her St. Bernard puppy, would just have to get used to it.

When the killer realized Angie was looking into the case, things heated up a bit during the showdown but it all turned out great, along with the County Seat restaurant grand opening. I can’t wait to see what future books hold for Ian and Angie because it looks very promising!

Just as with the other two series of Lynn Cahoon’s that I’ve read/am in the process of reading, she’s introduced a very fun and likable group of characters in this series as well. Felicia is a best friend like no other and Angie’s neighbor, Mrs. Potter, is like having her grandma back since they were best friends. I liked the sheriff too. He didn’t get mean and reprimand her for investigating, only pointed out the dangers and said when you tell someone they can’t do something, they just want to do it all the more, so that was why he wasn’t going to tell her not to look into the case. Ian started out slightly rude but he definitely became a sweet guy and clearly would be my choice for Angie! 😉 I liked how her new kitchen staff worked so well together just on the first practice run day.

I just loved little Precious, the baby goat that Angie adopted when Gerald was killed. I just hope she doesn’t get all destructive like the goats in another series I’ve read lol. For now she’s sweet and Dom, the St. Bernard is a big fuzzball that I would just like to hug! I’m sure before the summer is over, I’ll be reading the next book in the series which just came out this week.

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