Jeanne Reviews: One Poison Pie by Lynn Calhoon

Mia Malone is back in her grandmother’s home town of Magic Springs Idaho after breaking up with her long time boyfriend, Isaac.  She’s purchased an old school house to use as a home, catering kitchen and cooking school in order to get her life back on track.  Isaac’s sister, Christiana, is also living with Mia after some unspecified trouble in her past.

Oh, yeah, and Mia’s a kitchen witch.

And her cat is possessed by the spirit of her grandmother’s late boyfriend, who was also a witch.

Mia is gearing up for her first real job in Magic, catering a birthday party for Adele, her grandmother’s inexplicable best friend.  Inexplicable because the woman is haughty, hypercritical, and a general pain to all who know her, so when she turns up dead no one is too upset.  Well, except for Mia, who seems to be suspect #1 as far as the police are concerned.

As a first in series, the book is sort of obligated to introduce the cast of characters, including Trent Majors the hot grocery store owner who gets Mia’s heart racing despite her fear of another relationship so soon.  He is apparently immediately smitten and can’t do enough for Mia.

I did say this is a first in series, but apparently there is a previous, e-book only novella which details how Mia’s cat came to be possessed. No details are really given in the story—not even if the cat is in control or the spirit, which made me question some incidents because the cat’s actions can be an important story point.

The writing is lively enough, and romance fans will definitely find it a treat.  Mia has done some growing up and has valuable insights on her past relationship which will serve her well going forward which—despite Trent’s amazing hunkiness, sensitivity, and all around perfection—she is trying to avoid. She is likeable and kind.

The flip side for me is that this magical world isn’t really well defined.  The rules seem to be whatever is needed at the moment. The book ends up a sort of mish-mash romance, mystery, magic, ghosts, cooking, and small business book all rolled up into one.  It’s as if the book is trying to be all things to all readers.  I was also put off by the number of people who are just mean or shallow.  Most never develop as characters.  They’re one dimensional, and their function is to plague our heroine.

The cardinal sin, though, was the solution to the crime seemed to come out of left field but then I prefer “fair play” mysteries.

That’s not to say that this won’t develop into a good series.  For me, it needs to define itself first and decide what sort of series it wants to be.

 

The print books in order:

One Poison Pie

Two Wicked Desserts

Three Tainted Teas (April 2022)

There are also three e book novellas, Chili Cauldron Curse (prequel); Murder 101; and Have a Holly Haunted Christmas