New Release Spotlight for the Reimagining of Thornwood House

Image provided by Penguin Random House

I'm so happy today to spotlight this wonderful cozy fantasy that is out tomorrow, June 9th. I was able to read an ARC of this book and loved it! Here is a short introduction to what this book is about provided by the publisher:

THE REIMAGINING OF THORNWOOD HOUSE follows land witch Evelyn Sharpe as she begins her new job as the caretaker of a sentient, walking home in the village of Iskendra. When she and her adopted daughter Ruby arrive at the house, it is not in the mood to welcome new residents, and it’s up to Evie to turn the house into a home again. She soon discovers that something deeply damaged about the building is seeping into the forests surrounding Iskendra, and it seems the only way to heal Thornwood House is by unraveling the mystery of what happened to its former caretaker. Evie must rely on her magic and the help of the townspeople—including her charming next-door neighbor—to save Thornwood House and protect the roots she’s started to grow there.

As for my opinion, The Reimagining of Thornwood House has so many things that I love in a cozy fantasy. A magical village, diverse magical talents among the characters, found family, whimsy and lots of heart. I especially loved the Studio Ghibli vibes the character of the sentient house gave this story. But I was also invested in the stakes for Evie and Ruby as bonding with Thornwood house and being accepted by the villagers was needed for Ruby and Evie to have an opportunity to build a real life together. Their neighbor Gil was also a fun character and a sweet potential love interest for Evie. There is an intriguing mystery that involves the house and the Thornwood Forest surrounding it as well. All of these elements combined to keep me turning pages to read more. This is a book I would definitely read again and again. I can't wait for it to come out so I can add a print copy to my shelves.

And just to give you even more of a taste for the book, here is an excerpt of the beginning that was also provided by the publisher:

THE REIMAGINING OF THORNWOOD HOUSE by Jaleigh Johnson

Ace Hardcover | On sale June 9, 2026

Excerpt

Mr. Tansling shuffled some papers and glanced over at Evie with a smile that was probably intended to be kind, except it looked like he'd practiced the expression by studying a wax doll.

"I'm sure you and Miss Keeler are anxious to have this matter resolved," he said. "While it's true that you've assuaged some of my concerns regarding your fitness to adopt Miss Keeler, I'm afraid there are certain doubts that remain."

"Oh?" Evie felt a flush creep up her neck, but she forced herself to ignore his patronizing tone and spoke with all the politeness she could summon. "I wonder that there can be any doubts about my capabilities. Ruby came into my care when she was seven years old. She's eleven now, and has become a capable farseer witch under my tutelage-"

Mr. Tansling raised his hand to stop her, that facsimile of a smile still fixed in place. "Rest assured, all that has been taken into consideration." He cleared his throat. "Forgive me for stating the matter bluntly, but being her teacher is not the same as being her parent. Your inexperience in that area is one of my concerns, and, as Mr. Cinton pointed out, going behind the committee's back and applying for a position outside the ECRA's jurisdiction hardly does you credit. It points to a lack of maturity, which isn't surprising, given that you're only twenty-five years old."

"I didn't go behind anyone's back-" Evie cut herself off. Her voice had risen in frustration, causing Mr. Tansling's brow to arch.

And just like that, she was losing control of the conversation. Were they really going to deny her this, after everything she'd given the ECRA? She hadn't been considered too young to risk her life for the agency, and she'd done so countless times over the last seven years. She'd earned pebble-like scars along her collarbone from hurricane debris, walked through forest fire smoke as black as her hair, and broken more bones than she cared to count. Even if they never acknowledged it, she knew she was one of the best earthwalkers they had.

She'd never asked for a single thing from them in return, until now.

"In addition"-Mr. Cinton again waved the letter from the mayor of Iskendra-"it sounds as if this position as caretaker is a tenuous offer at best. Ms. Cartwright admits in her correspondence that the house has rejected all previous applicants." He sniffed. "What makes you believe you will succeed where others have failed?"

Evie met his gaze. In this, at least, she could summon confidence. "I may be inexperienced as a parent"-four years, I've cared for Ruby, raising her as my own-"but my record as a land witch and an earthwalker in the ECRA is exemplary, and I possess all the traits Ms. Cartwright spoke of as necessary to restore Thornwood house." She raised an eyebrow. "Am I wrong in that assessment?"

"You are not," Mrs. Shields acknowledged. "The committee has taken that into consideration as well, and we have decided to put forth this compromise." She glanced at the other members, who nodded for her to continue, though Cinton seemed as if he would have liked to keep on lecturing Evie. "We will grant you leave to pursue the position in Iskendra on a trial basis for the next four months. If you are accepted as caretaker, the leave will become permanent, and we will release you from your contract."

Evie held her breath. It sounded too good to be true. "And the adoption?" she pressed.

Mr. Cinton and Mr. Tansling shared a glance, but it was Cinton who spoke. "As advocate, Mr. Tansling will conduct a final interview with Miss Keeler before you leave. Provided the adoption is still what she wants, we will approve it, on the condition that you are accepted as caretaker of Thornwood house. However . . ."

Here it comes, Evie thought.

"If, for any reason, you are unable to secure the position of caretaker, you and Miss Keeler will return to the ECRA, where you will stay with the agency as an earthwalker, for the duration of your contract, without seeking employment elsewhere."

Evie remained silent, turning the offer over in her mind. This was a gray area, and everyone here knew it. Not that it came as a shock to her. Gray areas were where the ECRA lived and breathed.

Technically, they were within their rights to summon Evie back if she wasn't accepted as caretaker, but they didn't have the authority to prevent her from seeking employment with a different organization that worked toward the preservation of magical resources.

No, this was all about control. Now that she'd found a loophole in her contract, the ECRA wanted to close it. They didn't like surrendering power, and they didn't want to lose one of their best earthwalkers, not to mention a farseer like Ruby.

That wasn't the worst of it. If she and Ruby were forced to return, if Evie had to continue as an earthwalker, with all the dangers that job entailed, the committee would have the justification they needed to deny the adoption and separate them for good.

It was unimaginable. Evie knew if she let herself think about that outcome, it would destroy the facade of calm she'd built to face the committee.

Gray areas and a devil's bargain-she should have expected nothing less from the ECRA.

But if she agreed to their terms and successfully became the caretaker . . .

Evie didn't even have to consider it. If it meant that Ruby would be her daughter, forever and always, she'd promise the ECRA the moon, and then she'd find a way to get it for them.

In the end, what she was actually promising was going to be much easier-not to mention more pleasurable-to accomplish. She just had to become the caretaker to an aging sentient house, in a quiet little village, far from the ECRA's influence. Cinda Cartwright had declared that all it would take was time, patience, and magical resources.

Evie had those in abundance. Compared to what she had faced being an earthwalker, this job would be a dream.

"I'll do it," she vowed.

Excerpted from The Reimagining of Thornwood House by Jaleigh Johnson Copyright © 2026 by Jaleigh Johnson. Excerpted by permission of Ace. All rights reserved. 

About the Author

Jaleigh Johnson lives and writes in the wilds of the Midwest. Her middle grade debut novel, The Mark of the Dragonfly, is a New York Times bestseller. Her other books from Delacorte Press include The Secrets of Solace, The Quest to the Uncharted Lands, and The Door to the Lost. She has also written fiction for Dungeons & Dragons, Marvel, and Assassin's Creed. Johnson is an avid gamer and lifelong geek.

 

An Engrossing YA Suspense Thriller

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In Case I Go Missing is an engrossing YA suspense with flawed, relatable characters and a strong and compelling voice in its protagonist, Fenny. It was a fast-paced read that did not sacrifice narrative elements or characterization to keep me turning pages.

Set in a small town in South Dakota, it follows Fenny and Sam as they work to discover what happened to their ringleader best friend, Sarah, when she goes missing. Because Sarah was a determined vigilante for justice, she was not always well liked. After she disappears, the local police assume she ran away and that Fenny or Sam helped her. But neither of Sarah's best friends know anything about what happened to her. In the months before she disappeared, Sarah had grown increasingly unreliable and secretive. When Fenny finds a binder that she gave Sarah years ago as a prank gift that's entitled "In Case I Go Missing" and sees that it is now filled with puzzling clues, both Fenny and Sam realize that Sarah didn't run away. Instead, something more sinister is behind her status as a missing teen.

The setting and mystery were both very immersive. I felt that I was in this town working to find Sarah along with Fenny and Sam. As someone who lived in the neighboring state of Montana as a teen, I could easily envision this place and its vibe. The interactions between the people in this community, Fenny's feelings about her peers at her high school, and the family dynamics between her and her mom, and Sam and his family were realistic and very relatable. But the one thing I appreciated most was the way Swann hones in on the theme of friendship in this story. Sam, Fenny and Sarah have been inseparable since elementary school. The clues that Sarah leaves for them to help them figure out what became of her could only be followed by them. Sarah knew them. She trusts them to be able to understand what the notes in the binder mean in a way that only they can. That builds the story into something much more complex, heartbreaking and dark than an ordinary mystery. It also made it harder for me as a reader to immediately guess who the culprit was. There are plenty of people with secrets both in the past with Sam's family as founding members of the town, and in the present involving a cold-case disappearance that Sarah was trying to solve.

The way the threads are eventually woven together at the end to reveal what happened was truly satisfying. I didn't see the final twist coming at all. If you love mysteries set in remote, small western towns that incorporate themes of friendship, and the consequences of seeking out truth at any cost, then you should read this masterful debut. I look forward to reading more by R. N. Swann.

Next time, I'll be discussing a queer YA fantasy romance by Laura Livingstone, The Boy with the Heart of Sea Glass. It was a sweet and mysterious contemporary fantasy set on a remote Cornish island. It is in my opinion, a perfect read for Pride Month if you enjoy slow-burn romance with fantasy elements mixed in. Both the cover and blurb for this one were copied from bookshop.org. Also, click on the titles for any of the books in this review and you'll be taken to bookshop.org where you can order your own copies. 

"An impressive debut with moments of brilliance." -Richard Hall, author of I'm Fine

Eighteen-year-old Sam returns to the tiny Cornish island where he was born hoping to mend his broken heart and learn more about the father he never knew. Instead of finding answers, Sam's life becomes even more complicated when he begins to dream of the sea every night.

Falling for the first boy he meets also doesn't make Sam's life any easier. But Tryste is the perfect distraction. His thunderstorm eyes and their instant chemistry make Sam wish he still believed in happy endings. But Sam's wounds run deep, and he's worried about having his heart broken again.

As Sam's dreams intensify into eerie visions, he suspects there's so much more to his family, and his new boyfriend, than meets the eye. Embracing the truth will blur the line between reality and fairytale forever.

Will Sam choose to stay on dry land or follow his heart to the bottom of the ocean?

 

Refreshing and Inventive YA Urban Fantasy

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Goldenborn by Ama Ofosua Lieb is a rich and vibrant YA urban fantasy that is an interesting blend of the fantastic and sci-fi. It takes place in a near future world where magic and technology co-exist. The fantasy aspects offer readers a glimpse into Ghanian folklore and mythology. The immersive setting and compelling narrative centers on storytelling traditions and personal identity while exploring themes of culture and appropriation of cultural artifacts.

The story is set in a near future version of San Fransisco and centers most of the story around the San Fran district of AfricaTown. In this world, Ghanian magic, gods, and modern life have been woven together. The FMC, Akoma, works for a clandestine organization that has integrated itself into a special division of the SFPD as part of its cover. The real intent behind InterMag is to investigate magical or supernatural crimes. As such, we are introduced to a setting where magic is acknowledged while also being introduced to the state-of-the-art technology that Akoma has access to as an InterMag agent. Add to this the Ghanian gods, centering the most around trickster god Anansi, and other supernatural beings that are running amok in the city and you have a seamless weaving of magic and cutting-edge science wrapped up in one intriguing YA story. 

After her father suffers a magical attack, Akoma is recruited to InterMag and hopes their resources will help her get to the bottom of what happened. Now a year later, the soon to be eighteen-year-old is balancing her career with trying to be a normal teen, and trying to provide good care to her dad who is still in a coma after his attack. She is also, understandably, not a fan of magic. But this is part of what drives her as an investigator and how she ends up becoming entwined in a series of dangerous magical crimes, one involving thefts and the other involving a couple of perplexing, gruesome murders. Her journey into the dark, complex web of the magical world brings her face-to-face with some startling truths about herself and her family. Akoma's investigation also magnifies her struggles both internally and externally with grief, familial expectations, and with retaining her own personal agency over her own story and identity. 

As a character Akoma is an emotionally grounded one and the conflicts she faces, while being mostly fantastic in nature, still manage to feel realistic and relatable. Her development and growth as she comes into her own is one of the strongest aspects of this novel. While young, Akoma is also keenly observant and clever. The mysteries she sets out to solve are twisty and complex with many layers she has to wade through to get to the bottom of things. But the emphasis on helping her family at the same time and balancing her connections with her friends and a new possible love interest give her and her story additional depth and heart. 

The novel takes place over a very short time line. One leading up to Akoma's birthday, and we are introduced to a ticking clock around that event fairly early on, which keeps the pacing fast and the tension high. But I never felt overwhelmed or like Lieb neglected to give me enough information to follow along as events unfold. The romantic subplot of the story that is introduced was charming and sweet, but was incorporated in such a way that is doesn't overshadow the central plot of the novel. Instead, it is a fun addition to the action.

The world-building in Goldenborn is also topnotch. Elements of the culture and of this setting are introduced through food, clothing, music, community traditions and as well as through storytelling as we learn about alternate realms tied to Ghanian mythology. The exploration of questions surrounding identity, cultural appropriation, narrative and who controls it, and how this shapes our society deepens the fantasy framework of the book as well. Not to mention the gods, shapeshifters, and even vampires mixed with technology such as glasers, AI droids and self-driving ubers, make this a dynamic world to get lost in. 

Goldenborn is a rich and imaginative YA fantasy that combines thrilling adventure, with vivid storytelling and meaningful themes. It celebrates Ghanian mythology in a fun inventive way, features a well-developed, smart main character, and is set in a fully realized, immersive world. Overall, this novel was a refreshing take on the urban fantasy genre and I look forward to reading more in this world that Lieb has created. If you enjoy diverse storytelling mixed with resonant characters and inventive world-building then grab a copy of this book! It is a truly amazing debut novel. 

For June my next review will be the dark, fast-paced YA mystery suspense In Case I Go Missing. Then two weeks after that I'll be talking about the YA queer fantasy romance The Boy With the Heart of Sea Glass that has some lovely elements of Cornish folklore woven into the plot. The covers and blurbs for both books are copied from bookshop.org.

 

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder meets Fargo in this fast-paced YA mystery about a teen detective gone missing and her best friend who must finish her investigation.

Seventeen-year-old Fenny Allen has been Sarah Vincenty's sidekick for as long as she can remember. Over the years, Sarah has built a reputation in their small town as an amateur detective and a vigilante who has dispensed her own form of justice.

Now Sarah is missing. The police have written her off as yet another teen runaway, but Fenny is convinced there’s foul play. And when she discovers a binder Sarah left behind, entitled In Case I Go Missing, Fenny realizes that Sarah disappeared while investigating her biggest case yet. 

With Sarah gone, it's up to Fenny and her other best friend, Sam, to finish her investigation. As they piece together the clues, they find themselves up against a decades-old mystery that links to the town's dark history. But is this binder a guide to finding Sarah—or are Fenny and Sam already too late?

The more the pair uncover, the clearer it becomes that those involved will go to great lengths to keep their secrets. And when everyone has something to hide, there are more than a few reasons to want Fenny and Sam out of the picture. Permanently.

"An impressive debut with moments of brilliance." -Richard Hall, author of I'm Fine

Eighteen-year-old Sam returns to the tiny Cornish island where he was born hoping to mend his broken heart and learn more about the father he never knew. Instead of finding answers, Sam's life becomes even more complicated when he begins to dream of the sea every night.

Falling for the first boy he meets also doesn't make Sam's life any easier. But Tryste is the perfect distraction. His thunderstorm eyes and their instant chemistry make Sam wish he still believed in happy endings. But Sam's wounds run deep, and he's worried about having his heart broken again.

As Sam's dreams intensify into eerie visions, he suspects there's so much more to his family, and his new boyfriend, than meets the eye. Embracing the truth will blur the line between reality and fairytale forever.

Will Sam choose to stay on dry land or follow his heart to the bottom of the ocean?

Veronica Mars Tone YA Mystery

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The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson is an homage to Agatha Christie with the angsty teen tone of the TV series Veronica Mars (the first two seasons, which were in my opinion, the best). Like Agatha Christie we have a story set in a seemingly idyllic small town, but when a murder occurs it becomes apparent that beneath the surface there are plenty of people with things to hide. At the same time the Veronica Mars vibe is strong because much of the story revolves around two high-school-aged teen girls in a town that is divided up into the have and have nots in the community. We also open with one of the most popular girls in school being a pariah after her ex-boyfriend not only broke up with her but took up with her best friend. All the angst, privilege, sex, drugs, and backstabbing that are so prevalent in Veronica Mars is on full display at Castle Cove High. 

Another fun element to the story is that when all of the terrible went down with her boyfriend and best friend, Alice Olgivie former rich golden girl, pulled a disappearing act for several days in a similar manner to what Dame Agatha did when she found out her husband was cheating on her and wanted a divorce. This is in part why Alice is now on the outs with her former friend group. They didn't appreciate all the notoriety her running away got her or the fact that it made the police suspect her ex-boyfriend, Steve. It has also caused Alice to be placed under house arrest by her parents when she returns unharmed and this is the reason that when she returns to school she's assigned another student to help tutor her in her classes. 

Enter Iris, the other main point-of-view character in this mystery. Iris has secrets of her own and is more than happy to earn some extra money tutoring Alice so Iris can get her and her mom out of Castle Cove and settled someplace else, someplace safer. But things don't go as planned since after their first tutoring session Alice's ex-best friend Brooke disappears during a wild Halloween party and unlike Alice, doesn't resurface alive. From there Alice and Iris, who both saw Brooke the night she disappeared, begin digging into what happened when it seems the police are only too happy to blame Steve again rather than carryout a thorough investigation into the murder. 

I thought what followed was a well developed series of misadventures as the two girls become amateur sleuths with Agatha Christie as their guide. The cast of suspects is wide. Could it be one of Alice's former friend group? It was no secret that with money, good looks, and her pick of guys wanting to date her, one of them could have been jealous of Brooke. But were they jealous enough to kill? Then there's Brooke's step-dad who acted very odd the morning he realized Brooke had disappeared. Does he care about what happened as much as he claims, or does he stand to benefit from Brooke's demise? There is also Steve himself. Is he as innocent as he claims? The clues lead Alice and Iris down a twisty path that reveals some less than savory things about their community and the people they think they know. I enjoyed the red herrings and misdirection that are scattered throughout the plot. They definitely reflect those you'd read in a classic Agatha Christie novel. 

I also found Alice and Iris to be relatable and fully developed characters. Each is struggling with her own personal demons and just trying to survive high school. But their mutual sense of obligation to figure out what really happened to Brooke helps each of them tap into their better selves and let their walls down just enough to become sort of friends. The side characters are a little less developed in this book but I can see that changing in the sequel where they might be on the page more. But honestly, that is a small complaint for what is otherwise a fun and fast-paced mystery adventure. I will definitely be reading the next installment in this series soon. 

If you enjoy teen mysteries with brave and clever female characters that are similar in tone to Veronica Mars then you will enjoy The Agathas.

For my next review in a couple of weeks I will be discussing Goldenborn by Ama Ofosua Lieb. It is a near future urban fantasy that incorporates Ghanian folklore and mythology into its fantasy world. But it is also a fun and action-packed mystery as well. Both the cover and the blurb for the book below are copied from Bookshop.org.

A girl with a mission. A god with a deal. A story that could change everything.

When 17-year-old Akoma Addo stumbles into a world of ancient gods and modern magic, she’ll have to choose between saving her father… or staying true to everything she’s ever believed.

Akoma Addo has one rule: don’t get too close to the supernatural.

Ever since a blazing orb of light left her father in a coma, she’s buried herself in her secret job investigating magical crimes in San Francisco’s AfricaTown -- just enough to keep her grief at bay. But when a body turns up in a pool of molten gold and ash, Akoma’s pulled into something much bigger -- and far more dangerous. At the center of it all is Anansi, the trickster god of stories, who makes her an impossible offer: help him catch a killer and awaken the ancestral magic buried deep in her blood... and in return, he’ll give her a chance to bring her father back. To take the deal, Akoma will have to lie to everyone she loves and embrace the very power she’s spent years trying to deny. And as her connection grows with Xander, the new guy in town with secrets of his own, Akoma must decide who she can trust -- especially when she’s no longer sure she can even trust herself. 

Rooted in Ghanaian mythology and packed with mystery, danger, and slow-burning romance, Goldenborn is a gripping fantasy about legacy, lies, and what it really means to rewrite your story.

 

A Spy's Most Difficult Cover Yet...Single Mum

 

Cover copied from bookshop.org

I, Spy by L.M. Kemp is a fast-paced suspense thriller full of intrigue, rogue operatives, and preschool drama. And can I just say how awesome that title is for a book about a former spy who is brought back into the espionage game while simultaneously raising her four-year-old daughter. Talk about serving a dual purpose. 

This novel hooked me right away with action and danger almost from the first page. But beneath the high-stakes missions, spies and secrets runs an undercurrent of just trying to make it as the single parent of a very young child with all of the anxiety, love, tenderness, guilt and sometimes sheer boredom that engenders. Add to that fact the isolation Kendall has been living in with her daughter Rosie to keep them both safe from her past and you have a character dynamic there that is layered and complex. All parent-child relationships tend to be that way, but for Kendall things are ramped up even more because of who and what she was raised to be. Not only is Kendall a past spy, but she was raised to be one by her single mother who was also one. This background leaves her constantly questioning her own parenting skills since she doesn't feel she ever had a real role model to fall back on herself. Kemp makes this dilemma an interesting source of conflict for Kendall as she tries to be a different sort of mother to Rosie.

After the life that Kendall has been living for the past four years in hiding is discovered by unknown agents, she is forced to call in a favor from her former handler, Rico. In return for offering her a secure safe-house for her and Rosie to seek refuge in, Rico asks Kendall to undertake a mission for him. One that she will be perfect for, spying on one of the other parents at her daughter's new school. It seems like a relatively low-risk assignment. That is until Kendall realizes that Rico hasn't told her all the facts and that the tech firm the parent works at is developing spyware that could have darker and deadlier consequences than anyone could've fathomed. But despite feeling a bit rusty after four years of living as a civilian, Kendall is still sharp, highly-skilled and lethally dangerous, especially against anyone she thinks might harm her little girl. 

This book kept me turning pages with all of its twists and short action-packed chapters. It is definitely a 'just one more chapter' type of novel. The character development for Kendall, Rosie, and other side characters you meet along the way was also top notch. But what I'm most impressed with is the way the author was able to seamlessly weave together the spy world with the world of single parenthood. It was highly entertaining to see the way Kendall carries out surveillance and counter-surveillance at the same time she maintains her daughter's school day schedule, watching the clock for instance, while she's gathering intel to make sure she isn't late picking up Rosie. Using parent volunteer opportunities and social media stalking to infiltrate parent groups and develop contacts among the adults connected with the school while also helping build costumes for the school play. 

As a thriller this was a fun and gripping one while still being emotionally compelling. While it is full of the secrets and intrigue you would expect from a spy novel, it also explores the complexities of figuring out one's identity not only as a working adult, but also after one becomes a parent and responsible for someone else. I'm very pleased that this is the first in a series, as I will be waiting in avid anticipation for the next installment. I, Spy will be out this Tuesday May 5th if you'd like to pick up your own copy. 

For my next review in a couple of weeks, I'll be featuring a clever YA mystery that is Agatha Christie meets Veronica Mars entitled The Agathas. The blurb and book cover below are both copied from bookshop.org.

Who killed Brooke Donovan? It’s the biggest mystery of the summer, and everyone in Castle Cove thinks they know what happened. But they're wrong. Two unlikely friends come together to solve the case in this fast-paced, fun, modern Agatha Christie inspired thriller.

Last summer, Alice Ogilvie’s basketball-star boyfriend Steve dumped her. Then she disappeared for five days. She's not talking, so where she went and what happened to her is the biggest mystery in Castle Cove. Or it was, at least. But now, another one of Steve’s girlfriends has vanished: Brooke Donovan, Alice’s ex–best friend. And it doesn’t look like Brooke will be coming back. . .
 
Enter Iris Adams, Alice’s tutor. Iris has her own reasons for wanting to disappear, though unlike Alice, she doesn’t have the money or the means. That could be changed by the hefty reward Brooke’s grandmother is offering to anyone who can share information about her granddaughter’s whereabouts. The police are convinced Steve is the culprit, but Alice isn’t so sure, and with Iris on her side, she just might be able to prove her theory.
 
In order to get the reward and prove Steve’s innocence, they need to figure out who killed Brooke Donovan. And luckily Alice has exactly what they need—the complete works of Agatha Christie. If there’s anyone that can teach the girls how to solve a mystery it’s the master herself. But the town of Castle Cove holds many secrets, and Alice and Iris have no idea how much danger they're about to walk into.

A Witchy Cozy Mystery

 

Image copied from Goodreads

Welcome to the Charmed Inn secretly owned and run by a family of witches, some with unusual powers of deduction. By Hook or By Book by Misty Simon is the first in a mystery series that involves murder, eccentric writers, and a dash of magic and romance. It was a fun and thoroughly entertaining read!

Roxie Gleason has grown up in and around her family's inn her whole life in the small Central Pennsylvania town off the Susquehanna River. When her grandfather begins to struggle as manager of the inn, Roxy happily steps in to take the reins. The story opens during her first big event that she's hosting as the Charmed Inn's new manager. However, things take a turn for the murderous when Roxy finds one of her guests dead on the local ferry shortly after checking in. Afraid she or her best friend Dean might be implicated in his death, Roxy decides it's up to her to get to the bottom of what happened.

What follows is a mystery full of twists, turns and red herrings. There are also hints of magic. Roxy and her family are not ordinary innkeepers. Roxy's aunt is a tasseomancer, which I learned is someone who can lead seances. Her uncle is able to scry and foretell the future through that and through his dreams. But Roxy's gift is the most unusual as she is a bibliomancer, someone who can figure things out or find answers to questions through the pages of a book. Whenever she has a question about something, Roxy can search for the right book to help her find the answers within lines of its pages. It isn't a gift that she is particularly proud of as witchy abilities go as it can be hard sometimes to decipher what the lines in the books are telling her. This gets even more confusing though when Roxy's gift begins to change and the answers from the books are revealed in a slightly different way that is hard for her to conceal from normal people. 

I truly enjoyed getting to know Roxy and following the clues to what happened along with her. It seems her murdered guest was involved in more than she ever realized. It also seems that some of her guests that have been coming to the writing conference for years and seemed only mildly and harmlessly eccentric aren't all on the up-and-up as much as she'd always assumed. Add to that the fact that working in close proximity to her best friend Dean, who has some mysteries of his own he's been concealing, make it hard to pretend they're nothing more than friends, and poor Roxy is in for a much busier and more dangerous weekend than she bargained for. 

I look forward to reading more in this series and following along on more Roxy adventures as I found this a very good mystery in terms of the plot and its characters. There were just enough clues given throughout to keep me guessing almost to the end. If you enjoy mysteries set in cozy small town inns run by people who might have a dash of magic at their fingertips, then I think you'll enjoy Misty Simon's By Hook or By Book.

Rather than waiting a couple of weeks for my next blog book review, I'm moving up my timeline for May so that my posts don't coincide with Mother's Day and a trip I going on the end of the month. It will also help me to launch my next review right before I, Spy by L.M. Kemp launches May 5, 2026. Below is the cover and blurb both copied from bookshop.org. Enjoy!

Ex-spy Kendal was one of the best, but now she’s wearing the toughest disguise of her career: Mom.

Kendal Carter is out in the cold and she wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s been four years since her daughter Rosie was born and Kendal has kept her miles away from the danger of her former life as a spy. But when their hiding place is discovered, Kendal is forced to turn to old contacts for help. Her longtime friend and ex-handler Rico doesn’t miss his chance to pull his best spy back in. Whisking them to London, Rico offers them a luxury safe house in an area with good schools. How can Kendal resist?

But there’s a catch, of course. Rico wants Kendal to come back to work for his espionage agency Bon Temps. He’s offering an assignment with no apparent downside, investigating one of the dads at Rosie’s new school who works at one of London’s biggest, murkiest tech firms and suspected of being up to no good. It should be easy enough for someone with her experience, and luckily, mother is the perfect cover.

However, it doesn’t take long for Kendal to realize that Rico’s got an agenda of his own. The tech firm may be dealing in darker and more deadly secrets than they all realize, plus the world of coffee mornings and playdates comes with its own web of allegiances and betrayals. Kendal soon finds herself in way too deep . . .

A gripping blend of suspenseful spy thriller with heartfelt women’s fiction, I, Spy is the first in a propulsive debut series about the masks we all wear, whether as a spy or as a parent.