Review of Magically Murdered

Blurb: Moonstruck Manor is a perfect little bed & breakfast for a romantic getaway…or a murder.

The police enlist free-spirited witch Kyla to go undercover to find the killer. Her quirkiness and magical abilities make her the perfect candidate to pose as their new chef. Unfortunately, she has a secret - while she can sense hidden magic, she's not so great at making breakfast. But that’s not her only problem. The magical deaths she’s investigating were of the previous two chefs, and Kyla has become the bait to lure out the killer.

The Paranormal B&B is swarming with potential suspects, ranging from the mysterious gardener to a rival neighbor. And then there’s Mr. Shade, the alluring manager who possesses a special magic Kyla can’t identify. A magic that runs deeper than his talent of drawing women into his arms.

Will Kyla be able to stay focused and uncover the killer before getting lost in Mr. Shade's mysterious eyes? Will her burned bacon and soggy pancakes betray her true identity? Or will she meet her fate and become another of Moonstruck Manor’s unsolved mysteries?

Review: Kyla is helping her sister at her bakery and working as a magical consult for the cops. She has no dreams of her own and floats through life. Yet when she's recruited to go undercover at a paranormal bed & breakfast to find out who has been killing the cooks, she starts to like working at the manor and really likes the boss, Luke Shade. Her feelings for him grow as she starts to uncover secrets, but she's walking on the edge lying to Luke and knowing she could be the next victim. Will Kyla unmask the murderer before the B&B has to bury another cook?

This was the first book in the light-hearted cozy paranormal mystery series, Paranormal Bed & Breakfast Mysteries. I do love a murder mystery in a cozy setting, and the B&B catering to supernatural guests is perfect. Lots of red herrings and twists. You never know who to trust. I also really like that Luke is a free genie. Rarely do we get to see such beings in a contemporary fantasy story. Give me your unusual supernatural beings. I still love vampires and werewolves, but I love new versions of the lesser seen ones.

Kyla is a witch, except she doesn't know what kind of witch. She's quite flaky and flighty, never committing to anything or anyone. It does get annoying. I don't feel she has any purpose. She's only working with the police to impress her ex-boyfriend who she thinks she wants to get back together with. She can't make up her mind, not about him or anything. I would have liked to see more reason for it and more anxiety from her. We get a vague reason later on, but if this her lifelong personality, it doesn't make sense something that happened to her later in life made her want to run from commitment. She's thirty-two and is very much like a college student with no direction. I also don't know how it is legal or moral for the police to use a civilian to go undercover in a life threatening situation. If she had a background as a cop or even a private detective, I might have been able to get over the hump, but she has zero experience.

It's a fun read if you can ignore those things, and a good setup for the series.

You can find Joynell Schultz on her site and buy the book here.