As a girl, I believed in fairies. Did you? Did you believe in ghosts and goblins? There was a house in a forest near me that my friends and I were certain was inhabited by a witch. She had at least thirteen cats, and, for sure, I thought her cats—as well as my own—had mental powers beyond the human realm.
Needless to say, as a child, I had an actively creative life. I loved making up stories. I didn’t need my parents or friends as an audience. I usually dug into my imagination to entertain myself. One of my favorite holidays of the year was Halloween, where I could dress up and “be” whatever magical creature I imagined. I was a genie. A mermaid. A witch. A fairy.
Did you read magical tales as a child? I’ll never forget when I read the Tales of Narnia. It was extraordinary. I easily saw myself walking through a wardrobe into a new land. I felt the same reading The Wizard of Oz with its flying monkeys, green witches, and an all-powerful man named Oz. When I read Peter Pan, I was certain I could fly.
So it only makes sense that one day I would gravitate to writing something magical. After making my first fairy garden, I knew I’d landed on the story I wanted to tell, featuring a magical fairy who would encounter a creative person, like me, but in this case, the person would be a woman who owned a fairy garden store. And this fairy would have magical powers, but not so many that she could snap her fingers and make humans confess or make murder a thing of the past. Oh, no, she had limitations, and it’s these limitations that make Fiona, the sleuth fairy, so interesting to me. Like a human, she needs to grow and learn to become her best self.
In the Fairy Garden Mysteries, when Courtney Kelly, a former landscaper, spreads her wings and launches Open Your Imagination, a fairy garden shop in Carmel-by-the-Sea, Fiona appears to her. Courtney, who lost the ability to see fairies at the age of ten after her mother passed away, is astonished to see her, of course, but she welcomes the new magical being into her life.
In A Hint Of Mischief, Courtney has thrown a few fairy garden parties—for kids. But if a local socialite is willing to dip into her trust fund for an old sorority sister’s fortieth birthday bash, Courtney will be there with bells on. To make the job even more appealing, a famous actress, Farrah Lawson, is flying in for the occasion, and there’s nothing like a celebrity cameo to raise a business’s profile. Now Courtney has less than two weeks to paint a mural, hang up tinkling windchimes, plan party games, and conjure up all the details. While she works her magic, the hostess and her girlfriends head off for an indulgent spa day—which leads to a fateful facial for Farrah, followed by her mysterious death. Could the kindhearted eyebrow waxer who Farrah berated in public really be the killer, as the police suspect? Courtney thinks otherwise, and with the help of her imaginative sleuth fairy, sets out to dig up the truth behind this puzzling murder.
If you believe in something other than what you can see, touch, or feel, or if you simply hope to believe and wish to do so through reading, there are several other mystery authors who incorporate magical, mystical, or paranormal elements into their stories. Here are some of my favorites.
Murder in Devil’s Cove by Melissa Bourbon
Melissa Bourbon writes the Book Magic Mystery series starring Pippin and her twin brother, Grey, who live on the Outer Banks island of Devil’s Cove. What makes Pippin unique is she is a bibliomancer, meaning she can “read” books. In this story, she needs to break the curse that has haunted her family for two thousand years. It’s original and deftly crafted with a magical blend of books and mystery.
Death Overdue by Allison Brook
Allison Brook is the author of the Haunted Library Mystery series. Allison, aka Marilyn Levinson, and I have been friends for years and are in a plot hatching group online, which has been instrumental to all of us to keep forging ahead with our careers. In the Haunted Library Mystery series, librarian Carrie Singleton becomes the head of programs and events at a local library that has its own librarian ghost, Evelyn—who often has conversations with Carrie. It is a spirited series—pun intended—and, yes, in addition to a wealth of books, there is an adorable cat.
A Spell for Trouble by Esme Addison
Esme Addison writes the Enchanted Bay Mystery series. I was fortunate enough to be interviewed by Esme last year online, and I’ve been touting her books ever since. In fact, in the fourth Fairy Garden Mystery that will come out in summer 2023, A Spell for Trouble is the book the book club will be reading! Before diving into this series, I had no idea what a
“water witch” was but because of Esme’s great research, I learned a lot about their history—as well as what an apothecary does. In A Spell for Trouble, Aleksandra Daniels visits her aunt and cousins, having only heard the rumors about them being magical healers descended from mermaids. When she gets enmired in their world, she finds herself as well as her passion.
It Takes a Witch by Heather Blake
Heather Blake pens the Wishcraft Mystery series—I love all of her series, as well as her standalone books. Don’t miss South of the Buttonwood Tree, which writes under the name Heather Webber. But back to all things magical: in the Wishcraft Mystery series, Darcy Merriweather and her sister come from a long line of witches who can grant witches, and they’ve come to the Enchanted Village in Salem, Massachusetts to join the family business. The series is full of charm, magic, and spellbinding mysteries, and I adore Darcy’s interactions with all the women witches in the series. Oh, to have her abilities! Heather and I go back years; we met at the Malice Domestic conference in Bethesda, Maryland and were instant friends. If you’re a mystery lover, I highly recommend Malice Domestic—it’s a wonderful conference where readers can meet their favorite authors!
Curiosity Thrilled the Cat by Sofie Kelly
I also got the chance to meet Sofie Kelly at Malice Domestic. She writes the Magical Cats Mysteries, an adorable series where librarian Kathleen Paulson finds, um, fantastical stray cats. Yes, they talk, and they are perhaps even magical. Otis has a catnip addiction, and Hercules shares Kathleen’s fondness for Barry Manilow. So much fun! If you love cat mysteries, check out Sofie’s other series, written as Sofie Ryan, the Second Chance Cat Mysteries.
The Accidental Alchemist by Gigi Pandian
The Accidental Alchemist Mystery series by Gigi Pandian stars Zoe Faust, an alchemist who moves to the Northwest and discoveries a stowaway in her luggage—Dorian, a live gargoyle who can cook French cuisine! Zoe was hoping to put her old life behind her, but how can she when her new friend is turning to stone, and only she can save him? I love Dorian—he’s such a cool familiar with a wittily snarky personality. The whole notion of the series is clever beyond words. And FYI, Gigi is a gargoyle expert! I had the chance to meet Gigi at Left Coast Crime conference, another mystery conference that is perfect for mystery fans.
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