Reviewed by annieb123 on
Magickal Mystery Lore is a new cozy mystery by Sharon Pape and the 4th Abracadabra mystery. Released 16th April 2019 by Kensington on their Lyrical Underground imprint, it's 246 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.
This is a completely escapist cozy mystery with some over the top paranormal plot devices. The returning main characters - the trio of magic shop owner and telekinetic powerhouse Kailyn, her slightly dithery-but-sweet Aunt Tilly, and Merlin (yes, that Merlin) are back solving another murder and taking on a shadow corporation in their spare time.
I will say that for the paranormal cozy mystery subgenre, this one is well written. It's silly and somewhat humorous. It is well plotted and the dialogue is well written. Despite being the 4th book in the series, it does work as a standalone, and all the necessary backstory is written in.
I enjoyed the book a lot, but must admit that my suspension of disbelief suffered more than a few dings every time Kailyn's mother and grandmother showed up (as clouds whose color changes reminded me of some sort of afterlife mood rings). Readers in search of pure escapist fantasy could find a nice read here. The physics involved (or counfounded) over the paranormal parts of the plot (Kailyn is a telekinetic who can teleport), will require some mental gymnastics to get around.
The language and plot are fairly clean (a few 'hells' and 'damns' but nothing worse), and there's only implied consensual (off scene) sex, nothing that would scandalize anyone's auntie.
Three and a half stars, rounded up because the author is quite adept and it's a fun read (and I love Merlin).
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Reading updates
- Started reading
- Finished reading
- 9 May, 2019: Reviewed