It’s bad enough that Mia Malone has had to put her catering company on the backburner in order to accept a job as the catering director at the Lodge, the biggest ski resort in Magic Springs, Idaho. Her new boss Frank Hines is a nightmare, and the stress of working with him while still keeping her beloved business afloat is proving to be perhaps a little more burdensome than she’d anticipated.

So when a basketful of adorable kittens is left on her doorstep, she isn’t quite sure what to do. As a kitchen witch, she already has two familiars: a doll named Gloria and a cat named Mr Darcy. Adding three kittens to the mix is a lot, especially with Mr Darcy’s disgruntlement at having all these young ones underfoot. Things get even weirder when Mia’s boyfriend Trent Majors finds a puppy on his doorstep. It’s not just any puppy either, but a hellhound sent by the Goddess to help keep him protected.

The question, of course, is protected from what. It certainly doesn’t seem like Trent is in any immediate danger. In fact, the only person who could probably use protecting is Christina Adams, Mia’s roommate, whose ex-boyfriend Todd Thompson is in town and giving her the hard sell on getting married. Christina is happily involved with Levi, Trent’s younger brother, and has no interest in rekindling things with Todd. Levi, however, isn’t taking Todd’s reappearance very well, which is causing friction with Christina.

Things come to a head when Christina finds Todd brutally stabbed to death right before they’re supposed to have dinner together as friends. Mia knows that Levi couldn’t possibly have done this, but without any other suspects, the local police chief has no choice but to treat Levi as the primary person of interest in the case. Will Mia be able to figure out who the real killer is, and bring some level of calm to her far too chaotic life?

This was another cute installment of the paranormal culinary cozy Kitchen Witch mystery series. While not the best jumping on point for new readers, it deftly advances the many interesting aspects of Mia’s life, including the ongoing dilemma of what to do with the ghosts in her library.

There were two recipes included here, and I decided to try out this one:

QUOTE
Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki Sauce

Cook two chicken breasts on the grill, then shred the meat into a large bowl after they cool. (You could cook extra breasts the night before to save time for this recipe.) Add to the bowl the following ingredients:

3 tbsp sunflower oil
3 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp honey

Toss until the chicken is thoroughly coated. Spread on a baking tray and broil for 5 minutes. Mix in ¼ cup of chicken stock and put back in oven for another 5 minutes.

Then put on a warmed pita or flatbread with chopped cucumber, cherry tomatoes, and red onion slices. Top with tzatziki sauce.
END QUOTE

The other recipe in this book is for the tzatziki sauce itself, but I decided to cut that corner and just buy some from the store. I’m sure it’s delicious though, especially if these gyros are anything to go by! They’re the perfect blend of savory, tangy and sweet, especially with crisp fresh vegetables complementing the chicken, flatbread and sauce. I actually didn’t have any red wine vinegar in my pantry (despite assuming that I had!) so mixed apple cider vinegar with balsamic to substitute. It came out deliciously, not that I expected anything different given Lynn Cahoon’s excellent track record.

Since I don’t have a grill, I decided to sautee the chicken breasts. That was honestly the most tedious step in this otherwise quite fast and easy recipe. I should have cut the breasts into strips before sauteeing, as that would have gone a lot faster while sacrificing none of the taste. As it is, I wound up having to cut up the chicken part way through sauteeing to make sure each breast was cooked through. It was well worth the effort overall though.

Next week, we whip up an exotic soup while investigating the unfortunate death of our heroine’s business rival. Do join me!

This is the fifth book in this entertaining, fun series. In my opinion, this is one of those series where it’s best to start out from the beginning to really feel connected and understand the background of the characters and the underlying story arc for Mia’s catering business. The murder mystery didn’t necessarily offer a lot of suspects, but with Levi and Christina on that list, the real murderer needed to be found to keep the innocent from being arrested. I did enjoy this installment in the series, but I was a bit disappointed with the final reveal. Having more detail surrounding the motivation for the murder would have left fewer unanswered questions and provided more closure.

Princess Fuzzypants here: Mia is stretched enough with trying to juggle her catering business and her job at the Lodge. When three kittens are dropped off at her door, her boyfriend receives an unexpected delivery too and then there are the blasts from the past that descend upon her too, she is beyond harried. Grans, who has moved in with Mia and Christina, also wants to continue her witch education. The last thing she needs is another murder in her midst.

Christina’s former boyfriend shows up unexpectedly with a ring and in an attempt to let him down gently, she agrees to meet him for dinner. What she finds is his corpse and a lot of trouble for both her and her current boyfriend. The arrival of Mia’s former fiancée who is also looking to reconnect is last straw. Between trying to be diplomatic to two privileged and demanding mothers and trying to solve a murder, it is no wonder her patience is frayed. Mia is going to need all the self control she can muster.

This has been a fun series with lots of kitties and magic. I enjoyed this one too. Four purrs and two paws up.

Mia is doing everything she can to save her catering business, Mia's Morsels. She took on an outside job as the catering director at a ski lodge to bring in more income. While she's working there, Mia's Morsels is being run by her boyfriend Trent’s mother with the help of Mia's roommate, Christina.

One day Christina's ex turns up at the kitchen claiming to be her fiancé. No doubt this is another of her mothers schemes to get Christina into another wealthy family and away from Mia.

In the meantime Mia finds homeless kittens on her porch and Trent welcomes the arrival of a cute little Maltese who seems to be his familiar. If that isn't enough, there's a murder to be solved.

This is a great series. Never a dull moment

#FiveFurryFamiliars

All of the books in the Kitchen Witch series are charming, as is this latest one. While Mia Malone has been forced to take an outside catering managerial position for financial reasons, Trent's mom, Abigail, stepped in to manage the day-to-day activities for Mia's morsels. Things start to go awry when an old beau of Christina's, Mia's best friend and employee, turns up with an expensive engagement ring and marital expectations. Between a murder, a puppy and a box of kittens, Mia certainly has her hands full. An enjoyable and fun read.

Loved this new addition to the series! This series keeps me coming back for more and keeps layering on the mystery. I need to know more about what Mia is going to do about the school and the ghosts! I can't wait for the next book to come out later this year, because I need answers!

Books like this are the reason I read cozy mysteries. I love Mia, the kitchen witch, and her assistant Christina (the sister of her ex, interestingly enough). Of course there are the people who help create the mystery, and they're not nice, but there are fun adventures, magic, cooking, and homeless kittens. Christina is more of a focus in this one, and I already feel protective of her. This isn't my first experience with this series, and I'm sure it won't be my last. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this latest installment.

Mia is as busy as ever, she is still working at the lodge while her boyfriends mom runs Mia's Morsels for her along with her roommate Christina. Things get even more hectic when a box of kittens show up on her doorstep, Trent ends up with a familiar, and Christina has an ex show up unexpectedly. Christina is happy in her relationship and doesn't k ow what brought her ex around. When she finds the body of a woman while visiting him to set things straight she is shocked. Mia jumps in to investigate so she can keep Christina off the police's radar. Follow along to see if Mia figures out who the killer is while dealing with all the u expected things popping up.

Thank you to Netgally, the publishers, and Lynn Cahoon

When I requested this book I was unaware that it was apart of a series, one that requires you to read the previous books for this one to make sense. I am unable to read all the previous books along with this one before the publish date. Therefore, I will rate this a fair 3/5 stars and will adjust the rating and review when I am able to read all the books in the series along with this one.

I enjoyed the story and look forward to more. The mystery kept me guessing. I like the characters as well.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dollycas's Thoughts

Mia has her hands full in Five Furry Familiars. Making the tough decision to turn over the day-to-day operation of Mia's Morsels, her cooking school and catering business to her boyfriend Trent's mom Abigail wasn't easy. Taking the job at the lodge as the catering director when the lodge stopped hiring her to cater their events has enabled her to receive a steady paycheck as she strived for ideas to make Mia's Morsels more profitable. Her best friend and roommate, Christina is working with Abigail but with her mother making constant and crazy demands she isn't always able to focus on her job. That gets even worse when her ex comes to town to win her back and ask her to marry him again. Her current boyfriend Levi is not happy. When the guy is murdered at his rental both Christine and Levi are on the suspect list.

While this is all going on someone leaves a box holding three kittens at Mia's front door and Trent gets a little Maltese as his new familiar. Dorian/Mr. Darcy doesn't care for any of them and Mia is unsure about all the pets but then another dead body is found so she needs to concentrate on catching a killer.

____

I always have a big smile on my face when I start and when I finish a Kitchen Witch Mystery.

Magic, witches, warlocks, and familiars are an open secret in Magic Springs, Idaho. The old school that houses Mia's Morsels is a very interesting place where wards need to be maintained to keep everyone safe but they are also keeping some ghosts captive that may want to leave. They seem to be congregated in the old library. Ms. Cahoon's descriptive style puts her readers right on the scene whether the characters are communicating with the ghosts, making meals to be delivered daily all over town, attending events at the lodge, or hanging out in Mia's apartment.

All the characters continue to develop as the series continues and become more engaging and fun. Christine and Mia's ex, Isaac's mother, Mrs. Adams, tries to run her children's lives and she thinks she can run Mia's too. There is always a bit of chaos and drama whenever she is around. Grans also brings humor to situations as well. I love that she moves right in with Mia and Christine whenever exciting things start to happen. She also is right at hand to continue to educate Mia about her powers. Even with their exes in town Mia and Trent's relationship along with Christine and Levi's are going strong. Levi has a moment or two of doubt but they don't last long. With her husband out of town, Abigail is thrilled to take on more responsibility at Mia's Morsels but it is hard on Mia to be away so much. We saw a new side in this story of police chief Mark Baldwin, as an expectant father, who is going to receive an interesting piece of news shortly before his child is born. I appreciate the tight bond that has developed with the core characters and I love the addition of more furry familiars.

The mystery was a twisty one. I followed the clues throughout the story along with the characters. My focus was on a particular individual but coming up short on the motive. When the clues all fell into place for Mia she did the right thing in turning her information to Mark. I was just a little disappointed that like in Four Charming Spells the arrest took place outside of the story and things were quickly back to abnormally normal in Magic Springs without an exciting showdown.

Five Furry Familiars is a charming lighthearted paranormal cozy mystery with magical characters and an intriguing mystery. I am excited to see what Ms. Cahoon has planned for Mia and her friends next. Six Stunning Sirens will be released on September 24, 2024.

This has become one of my favorite series' and it was lovely to visit with Mia and company once again. You get magic, MANY furry friends, two annoying exes, a magical baby with a non-magic, non-believing father, some seriously confusing relationships [everyone seems to go through some sort of conflict in this one] and one fairly grisly murder and quite the romp to find the truth. While I had the killer figured out fairly quickly, I didn't know the why and that is always a bonus [IMO].
Really looking forward to book 6 in this series!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Lynn Cahoon, and Kensington Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The latest Kitchen Witch book by Lynn Cahoon, Five Furry Familiars, will keep you smiling and laughing while you try to figure out the latest mystery. Yet again, poor Christina, Mia's employee and friend, is caught up in a murder investigation when her ex-boyfriend comes to town and gets murdered. Amidst all of the investigation, three small cats land on Mia's Morsels' doorstep. And, Trent is given a familiar that turns out to be a hellhound. Join the adventure as they all seek to clear Christina's name and keep the business going!
Thanks #NetGalley. I really enjoyed it.

Five Furry Familiars by Lynn Cahoon is another of her adorable Kitchen Witch mysteries. In this one a man shows up with a ring expecting Christina to marry him. She said no and knew immediately that her her mother was behind this. The next thing Mia knew, there was an added event in just a couple of days and Mother Adams, Christina’s mother, was at the head of it. She arrived on Friday to discover that Mother Adams had purchased her a dress and expected her to be part of the group, rather than an employee. Why? Isaac, Mia’s ex-fiance and Christina’s brother, was there to convince Mia to reestablish their engagement. It seemed she was a better bet than the new one. The answer was no and eventually Isaac got it. Then, Todd Thompson, Christina’s erstwhile fiance, turned up murdered and her current boyfriend, Levi, was a suspect, as was she. What a mess.

This is a wonderful series, full of interesting people, all on the edge of magic, some more than others. Throw a little magic into an investigation and things get more complicated immediately. Mia’s grandmother was always available to assist and the local police, not realizing that magic ran in his family was a joy to watch as his daughter was born and he started taking magic classes with Mia. Things always get complicated in these stories, due at least in part to the fact that everyone is related to someone else, so the investigations are always inbred. It is a delightful series with a catering service inhabiting a haunted school house, and the ghosts making themselves part of it all. There is, of course, Mia’s familiar, Mr. Darcy, who was inhabited by Grandma’s dead boyfriend, always complicating things further. Thanks Lynn Cahoon! Such fun!

I was invited to read Five Furry Familiars by Kensington Books. All thoughts an opinions are mine. #Netgalley #KensingtonBooks #LynnCahoon #FiveFurryFamiliars

Mia is the owner of Mia's Morsels and is overworked between working for the local ski lodge in their catering department and keeping her cooking school afloat. Good thing that her boyfriend Trent’s mom, Abigail, is willing to step in and help with the cooking and meal deliveries. Christina, Mia’s friend, assistant, and roommate, is surprised when an ex-boyfriend shows up with an engagement ring and an assumption of a forthcoming marriage.

When the ex-boyfriend ends up murdered, Christina and her boyfriend Levi are the prime suspects. Mia starts poking around to discover the killer in order to get them off Mark Baldwin’s suspect list. I felt the killer was easy to spot, but the reason was quite a surprise and not what I expected at all.

Another complication to Mia’s life was the arrival of three kittens that were dropped off at her house. I don’t know how she didn’t keep the one kitten. Also, Trent ended up being gifted a Maltese puppy by the goddess, which ends up being a hellhound. This can only mean trouble is on the horizon and I’m really looking forward to more stories in this series.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books or the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It is fun and entertaining. I love this series. The characters are interesting, quirky and relatable. I love the animal characters. The mystery has many twists and surprises to keep you guessing. This is a fantastic cozy mystery.

Five Furry Familiars
(Kitchen Witch 5)
Lynn Cahoon

Mia Malone is back!
She’s the new catering manager for the Lodge. We have previously met her butt hole of a boss Frank. She’s only working with him because the Lodge would no longer be referring business to her catering company Mia’s Morsels, and after losing a few delivery clients she needed the additional money.

In this episode we have Christina’s ex-boyfriend showing up and causing trouble. Mia lives and caters out of a previously abandoned school. The school taught magic and has a troubled past that Mia is still learning about. Upon returning from her date with Trent, they spy a package on the back porch. This turns out to be a bright spot during an otherwise tumultuous time.

Y’all we have a dead ex, an adorable puppy, and Kittens! Now if we can just get rid of the tricky killer, the petting palooza could commence.

Main Characters
Mia is the owner of Mia’s Morsels, she employs Christina and Abigail to run the business. She is the new director of catering for the Lodge.
Christina is her ex-fiancee’s sister and her assistant at Mia’s.
Abigail is the mother of Trent and Levi. She’s stepping in for Mia while she works at Lodge.
Trent runs the family grocery store Major’s. He is Mia’s boyfriend.
Levi is an emt and Trent's younger brother. He is also Christina’s boyfriend.
Grans is Mia’s grandmother.
Todd is Christina’s ex-boyfriend.

Mia Malone doesn’t get old for me, I enjoy the Kitchen Witch series with each and every re-read! I loved everything about this new book! 5*****
Six Stunning Sirens (Kitchen Witch 6) will be released on 09/24/24.

Book five of Lynn Cahoon’s Kitchen Witch Mysteries finds Mia working at the ski lodge while her boyfriend’s mother manages Mia’s Morsels. Mia’s roommate and co-worker, Christina, is dealing with a needy mother who also happened to tell Christina’s ex where she was. Now he’s arrived in Magic Springs with a marriage proposal on his lips.

There’s also the arrival of homeless kittens and a Goddess delivered Maltese familiar for Trent. Unfortunately for Mia, that’s just the beginning to the chaos.

I love the Magic Springs crew. I still found Grams to be standoffish still with Mia. She just didn’t seem as warm and fuzzy as she did in the first part of the series. Mia also seems to be regressing as well. Trent, Christina, and Levi all have character progression, and their personalities are fun to read.

Now, look. I would be the person who would keep each one of those babies, or even just the ones interested in me. I have a hard time saying no to any furry animal. I wish this had been more about the familiars though, and less about the humans. I would really like the next book to focus on Mia, her magic, and the school ghosts. I just feel like her magic, and the magicalness of Magic Springs, is an afterthought.

Overall, I rate this novel 4 out of 5 stars.

This is the 5th in the Kitchen Witch Mysteries. I received it as an ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, the author Lynn Cahoon and the publisher.

It's the first one I have read in this series and I enjoyed it. It's about Mia Malone who runs Mia's Morsels and her roommate Christina. Mia has one familiar already and suddenly 3 more familiar kittens show up on her doorstep and then her boyfriend Trent also ends up with a Maltese hellhound, making 5.

As if that wasn't enough craziness, Mia is trying to work on her business as well as a catering director job at a ski resort, take magic lessons from her grandmother and solve a murder where her roommate is one of the suspects. It's a wild ride in the town of Magic Springs and all you can do is hang on and enjoy it.

This was another awesome adventure with Mia and her crew that’d really test Christina and Levi’s relationship as well as bring a new little life into the world. The houseful of cats along with a puppy someone gave Trent was pretty funny. Poor Mr. Darcy was probably not sure what to think about the invasion lol.

I knew who I wanted to be guilty but eventually I started putting some clues together and figured out one aspect of it. I liked the nice, offscreen arrest so at least there wasn’t a tense showdown although at a couple places I couldn’t read quick enough to make sure someone wasn’t in danger. Can’t wait for the next book!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book, and my opinions are my own.