On Midsummer’s Eve, a town will vanish.A witch, a devil, a detective, and a talking cat are the only ones who can stop it from happening.That makes the sudden appearance of a mystery body even more inconvenient than usual.Who is the unidentified man in the river, and why does the invisible barrier around town seem to keep letting in the worst kind of people?…Like the three annoying ghost hunters … kind of people?
…Like the three annoying ghost hunters who roll into Wormwood with about as much supernatural ability between them as a cheese sandwich.
…And the definitely evil Amber Leroux who arrives intent on digging her claws into Detective Admiral.
Wormwood has always been weird, but things are about to get even more strange.
If you like talking cats, smart mysteries, and snarky humour, you’ll love this magical mystery series. Discover the magic today!
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This book is fantastic! It ties up all the questions and loose ends from other books in the series! There was plenty of action! When an unknown man is found dead in the forest! Hordes of tourists are flooding into town for the midsummer festival! Hazel and her aunts still have to figure out a way to stop the evil mayor! Even the corrupt counsel comes to town to start trouble. There was a lot going on but this was my favorite book in the series so far! I liked the fast paced plot and couldn’t put the book down! I highly recommend this book and this series!
The end is drawing near and Hazel has no ideas on how to stop the mayor and his plans to end Wormwood. Plus, there is a dead body floating in the river, a murderer on the loose and the invisible boundary around the town is making it near impossible to get in or out!
This series is fantastic. Hemlock is a trip and the way the aunts bicker is just funny! I can’t wait for the next one!
The deities really have made pickle relish of the situation in Wormwood. The prophecy must be fulfilled. But figuring out what that means is a difficult chore. Plenty of side adventures and misdirection eventually resulting in a hope for the future. The end was not quite as satisfying as I had hoped. Perhaps a sequel will result in better tidings.
I received a copy of this book as a gift. This is my honest review.
Will Wormwood survive her mayor?
I just love the characters and the town in this series. They feel like old friends. Poor Hazel just can’t catch a break. There is so much going on in this book from the psycho mayor, ghost hunters, the evil witches council, the barrier around Wormwood, and what has Hemlock been up to? I have my own black cat and let me tell you, they are just a different breed! Could I see a cat saying and doing what Hemlock does? Absolutely! All around another great read.
I received an ARC. This is my honest review.
Very chaotic, solving the murder just a sideline to the main action
September 5, 2019
Format: Kindle Edition
3-3.5 stars
This paranormal mystery was action-packed and had some quality snark from heroine Hazel Salem’s cat familiar Hemlock. His zingers are definitely the best moments in the story for me. I just found the story too frenetic and loaded with an overabundance of plot threads to thoroughly enjoy. The murder early in the action and the subsequent investigation got minimal play as problems in Wormwood and Hazel’s search for her father took over the plot. Poor Hazel could barely keep up as crisis followed crisis and monsters and megalomaniacs turned on the town’s inhabitants and the latest influx of gawking tourists looking for magic and mayhem. With a new, dubious femme fatale, masked thieves and ghost hunters added to the mix and the town in peril of total destruction, Hazel and poor old Wormwood just never seemed to get a break!
I would be disinclined to read this without having read the earlier books in the Wormwood series. Almost every key character has a storyline that continues from the earlier books and gets little to no explanation. The ending also keeps you guessing on several fronts until the next book.
I read a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.
Wormwood is under threat from their own mayor. If he has his way, the town won’t exist and he will leave and extend his powers throughout the world. If Hazel has her way, the town will continue. Hazel is part witch and part ?, maybe devil. She has a familiar black cat, a hellhound, and 2 aunts who are witches. Who will win? And who killed the man in the river?
This is the 5th book in this series and Hazel is growing in her powers. This can be read without reading the others in the series. There are a couple good surprises in the book. I enjoy the characters and the strange little town.
Love, love,love this series. Wonderful, quirky paranormal characters in a wacky town. Author Loren has the wonderful gift of writing unique stories with twists and turns leaving the reader wanting more. I was given a free ARC by the author. My review is freely and honestly given
With Minerva and Linda back in Wormwood, things are unlikely to be boring. Hazel is of course still dealing with a contentious coven. Linda has found a niche at the bakery Hazel promised Tristan that she would be sure to look after.
More questions surface about Hazel and her family tree. Talents, loyalties and betrayals are big issues.
Hemlock seems to continue to get himself in all sorts of trouble, old and new.
With a possible Armageddon on its way to Wormwood, magic is working in wildly erratic ways. Even approaching the town seems to be difficult due to a magical barrier.
A conniving blonde thief seems to be out to wreak havoc and mayhem in Wormwood. Is vengeance for a woman wronged her only goal?
DCI Sean seems a bit smitten on more than one front. Males of any species seem determined to be annoying, of course.
Hazel finds that between the masses of lies and lives and lives gone astray, Jesse appears again. He seems to be genuinely remorseful for so much, and occasionally helpful- as much as he ever is, silly demon.
When things reach critical mass, Hazel must learn to accept her own faults and limitations, be happy for unexpected assistance and unanticipated results- well mostly. Some consequences must just be accepted and moved past. Trust in herself may be her best bet – except for that tricky thing about magic working in unpredictable ways with dark dimension related leaks and challenges bringing that to new levels of weird .
Things are not rosy for Hazel and Wormwood.
They’re sure fun to read about though!
Great KU read!
I have read most of the books in this series on Kindle and Kindle Unlimited.
A no calorie treat with action, romance more messed up than even my so called love life, and magical adventures!
This series gets better with each book. Is this the eve of destruction for Wormwood? This great read had me on the edge of my seat well into the night! The writing is very skillful, with a tight plot and great 2 and 4-legged characters. Highly recommended! I received this book free and chose to make a voluntary, unbiased review.
This was a lovely, easy read, with lots of action, a good dose of humour, surprises galore, and characters that I’ve come to love.
Saying any more would spoil the plot, but I do think this is the best book in the series so far.
Wow, what is going to happen to Wormwood? This may take the term “dirty politician” to a whole new level. Hazel certainly has her hands full in trying to keep up with all the happenings going on. Hemlock just tickles me to no end. And now he has a son, Artemis, who may give him a run for his money. Sisters Minerva and Linda have a special bond that can also be quite entertaining. I can’t wait to find out what will happen next. I received an ARC of this book, but my opinion is my own.
Aconite and Accusations is an excellent book. Will this be the end of Wormwood? All indications are that Hazel and friends will be unable to stop this destruction. As if that is not enough to deal with Hazel finds another body! The mayor’s influence continues to grow and he seems to know about and be able to thwart any attempts to “dethrone” him. This book grabbed me by page two and would not let go until I finished it! With the usual characters, another cat, and some surprise appearances, this well written tale of magic and deceit should keep even the pickiest reader entertained.
Bad things are happening in the town of Wormwood and it could mean the end. Full of twists and turns, great characters (both old and new), and an intriguing storyline. It is best read in order since each story builds on the previous book. I highly recommend!
Aconite and Accusations, book 5 in the Witches of Wormwood series, is a treat to read. More involved and complex than the others, it ties many threads from the previous stories together and throws in a twist at the end I didn’t see coming!
With good characters, and a well-written storyline, this latest installment pulls you in from the first page so you don’t want to put it down until finished. The best book so far of a great cozy witchy series!
I received an ARC from the author and am voluntarily leaving an honest review. I love Ms. Lorens’s books so much, I also purchased a copy!
A skilled author who brings you the unexpected.
This must be my week to read cozies because this is the second one in two days and I must say I have loved both of them so much. Ms. Ruby has again given us an outstanding mystery. This book is more complex and complicated with all sorts of elements coming together. This series has been beyond entertaining it has been amazing at times so funny and a pure joy to read. I cannot wait to see what Ms. Loren is going to write next. Pick this one up gang! If you have not read the other books in the series I suggest you pick them up too they all are mysteries you will love to come back to over and over again. I did receive a free copy of this book and voluntarily chose to review it.
Is this finally the end for Wormwood? – after a series of ‘deals’ it looks as though the magical (in more than one way!) village of Wormwood is about to be destroyed. A rather disparate band is hoping to stop it.
I really enjoy this series, it is funny, exciting and has superb characters, and each book is better than the last, it is certainly one of the best series of this type around at the moment.
The author is growing in skill and confidence, and I enjoy all her work, in the various genres that she writes in, she weaves a complex, and original, plot into an enjoyable cosy mystery, without making it too twee, which a lot of this genre suffers from. You do have to pay attention to follow the various threads of the story, but this just makes it that more satisfying.
As with nearly all series, this book could, just, be read as a stand-alone, but it really comes in to its own when read in sequence with the other books in the series.
I received an advance copy of this book, but have voluntarily written this honest review.
I LOVED that! Loved it. Lots of twists and turns, revelations, new characters, and exciting magic. And that ending? Whooo boy! Hemlock is a HOOT! I hope there is more!
This book was like a complicated crochet pattern, I really had to pay attention to all the different threads to figure out what was happening and who was good or bad. It took me longer than normal to read but I consider it worthwhile since I enjoyed the process. The complexity of the story resolved somewhat by the end but then more characters and possible situations were thrown into the cauldron so to speak. If you have been following this series you won’t want to miss this one.
Is it Finally the End of Wormwood?
What a fantastic story! So many bits of the story are sewn up in this episode. There is not a touch of this tale that I do not love. I would not change a thing about this book. This story is a bit longer than most, all the better to tell the tale. To fully enjoy this series, it should be read in order. I think I will read the entire series all over again! I received this ARC book for free from the author and this is my honest review.