My Midlife Magic Daze

by Jennifer L. Hart

How does a woman know who to trust when she can’t remember who she is?

My name is Emma. That was the name I was given on the first day I remember. The forty years before that remain secret. My only clue to life before the Pages & Potions bookshop is the scar from a botched C-section. It is probably better that my past remains a mystery.

Still, I crave answers. Who hurt me? Are people searching for me? What happened to the baby I was carrying? And why can I see the ghost of the customer who died last week?

My Midlife Magic Daze is the first book in the Pages & Potions paranormal women’s fiction series. If you enjoy spellbinding tales of love, mystery, and books featuring characters over forty, you don’t want to miss USA Today bestselling author Jennifer L. Hart’s unforgettable tale. Buy My Midlife Magic Daze and discover your inner strength now!

Genres: Romance

266 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 10, 2025

About the author

Sign up for my author newsletter and never miss a new release at authorjenniferlhart.com

USA Today bestselling author Jennifer L. Hart writes about characters that cuss, get naked, and often make poor but hilarious life choices. A native New Yorker, Jenn now lives in the mountains of North Carolina with her imaginary friends. Her works to date include the Cougars and Cauldrons series, the Silver Sisters series and the upcoming Legcay Witches of Shadow Cove.

Reviews

[Cath · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five years ago, a forty something aged woman walked into the Pages & Potions bookshop and café, looking for help. She had no idea what had been done to her and even who she was. She remembered nothing at all about her past. The two sisters who owned the shop, Hatty and Rue Bramblewick, quickly discover that the woman they end up naming Emma, has been the victim of a botched c-section and should really have been dead. How she got to the small and isolated village of Mist Glen is a complete mystery. They call in a friend to help with her injuries and to get her some antibiotics and deal with what was left behind and causing her to be so ill. Emma didn’t want any police called and is left wondering who she is and if there is a child out there that belongs to her! The sisters have looked after her and pretended she is a distant cousin and they show her how to help in the bookshop and café, giving her a room and board once she was well enough and she hasn’t really wanted to leave. She has no id and needs to be careful to some extent, because someone clearly wanted her dead and might recognise her!

One factor that keeps her there is the fact she can see ghosts and the sisters accept that part of her. She has tried to help the ghosts and the people they are haunting, in the past, but most of the time this has ended badly, and she has been called all sorts. Hatty told her to keep this ability a secret, as part of her hiding in plain sight new identity. The house they live in is one of the oldest in the village and is called Glimmer Ridge, with many of the bark shingles from an old extinct chestnut tree being used since it was first built. Whenever she touches any of the wood in the house, she feels comforted and often hears a man’s voice, which she doesn’t know if it’s real or not. The news of a local man, Jody Haversham, going missing, makes her think of her own situation, until his ghost turns up and asks for her help in finding his body. Hatty and Rue have tried to get her to take more part in a life outside of the shop and push her to date and get out more. Emma keeps Jody’s appearance secret from the sisters and goes out to where Jody was renting a room from a widow, only to find the deputy, Art Harding, had already been out there and packed up all of Jody’s belongings, so she could rent it to someone else! On her walk back the deputy offers her a lift and he persuades her into a date the next night. He is one of only a few single men in the village under seventy. She hopes she might be able to ask him some more questions about Jody and if she finds out anything from Jody, she can get Art to look there for his body, so he can pass on. Jody can’t remember anything about his death, but remembers arguing with his sister about his podcast, The Witching Hour, and that soon brings out a few more possible suspects for her to question.

Emma is also hoping for answers to her own past and her wishes to know about her child, if she did indeed have one. Hatty and Rue finally feel she is ready to know more about their own secrets, and take her to their Lair, where they keep their magical items and supplies. She has known they are witches, as they travel to another town to meet with their coven, whilst she stays in their car. This opening soon brings more to Emma, with her own protection sigil and more understanding of magic. They also tell her that her life is linked with Sissy, a new teacher in the village, after they did a spell on her hair to make sure she wasn’t there to hurt Emma. The runes carved into Jody’s body are not ones they recognise, and they ask their coven to meet, along with one who is usually not welcome, as he is an expert on death runes. Emma’s investigation has pulled the two sisters in as well, and Ema is repeated pulled into the police station and questioned about Jody’s murder and then a few others that occur shortly after she has seen them! The meeting with the coven does not go well, as Emma is attacked by a woman she has never seen, but who is with the man, Wayne they had come to see. It turns out this couple expected her to be dead and the man is closely tied to her actual death or near death, five years ago! They have the help of two witches not welcome by the coven, the older Draven being someone Hatty was with, in the past, and the younger one, his grandson of the same name, flirting with Emma! The younger Draven protects her after she was attacked, until he was escorted out by the high priestess, and the other two left the meeting, but not before Emma eavesdropped on them using an invisibility potion. The two Dravens and the sisters believe Emma was on the right track in investigating the podcast link re Jody’s death and his former partner Wayne, as well as the fact he is tied to her own near death.

Matters soon get more intense as yet another dead body gets Emma arrested again, until Hatty and Rue hire a magical lawyer for her and get her released. Unfortunately, the killer seems to have taken someone close to her, in an effort to get her alone, but young Draven insists on going with her. A shocking revelation and confession by the killer and his reasons for doing it all! A podcaster with knowledge of a death summoner using their powers to call death demons to assassinate people. A death demon who just couldn’t do their last job after seeing what another had done to his target and nearly dying for his choice. A killer with a twisted mind using magical runes wrongly, to place blame elsewhere and everything revolving around Emma. There is a shocking revelation at the end, leading to what will come in the next book now that her identity has been put in the police database, and an answer to one of Emma’s main questions about her past! Such a cruel act and the reasons behind it are still to be revealed, so I can’t wait to read it! I received an ARC copy of this book from BookSprout, and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.

[Gloria · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Midlife Magic Daze
Pages & Potions, Book 1

By: Jennifer L. Hart
Narrated by: Meghan Kelly

Only one word PERFECT!

Overall: 5 of 5 stars Performance: 5 of 5 stars Story: 5 of 5 stars
Reviewed: 02-17-25

Emma … her past a mystery, her scars pointing to tragedy, loss and undoubtedly … betrayal. She’s found safety, acceptance, understanding and friendship with Rue and Hattie Bramblewick, proprietresses of the Pages & Potions Bookshop in Mist Glenn. That is until the ghost of Jody Haversham, local podcaster and bookshop patron, begs her to find out who … did … him … in! Holy WOW, this series starter, this story: “My Midlife Magic Daze” has it ALL! The plot is filled with “twisty turney” mystery, yet so clearly and cleverly drawn that following is not only throughly enjoyable, but effortless! I was completely immersed, drawn so deeply into the world created by our author that I had no desire to leave! Her characters, so uniquely different, so well crafted, and spanning the full spectrum of “likability” , making it easy to form opinions on them! With some those opinions stuck, and like all great stories, with some those opinions wavered as their true selves were revealed during the course of the story! Of course, I can’t give details, that would spoil some stunning surprises, one or three of which left me positively slack jawed! Fear not, EVERYTHING makes perfect sense, the writing is just so good, so clever, that I didn’t see THEM coming, which in a perfect mystery is as it should be … and this story was just that … PERFECT! Another perfect aspect … the narration. It does not get any better than THIS performance! Every single character … uniquely voiced … every vocal selection perfectly fitting the characters personality! Emotionally on point and perfect throughout! The passion … perfect! Subtle when called for, strident when called for, perfectly setting the mood! You can feel the pain, the relief, the fear, the passion and the rage! Everything the characters are feeling, you can FEEL! It all comes through … keeping the listener in the moment, at one with the characters, at one with the story exactly as the author intended and it is MAGIC! The perfect collaboration of writing and performance … Five stunning stars of perfection! I loved this story and I can’t wait for more in this series!

[Maralina DG · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magic, Mystery and Magnificence

Such a great start to a wonderful, possibly new, series. The story immediately starts with our primary character, now named Emma. "Now" because she awoke in pain with no memory and stumbles upon this shop run by the Bramblewick sisters. They obviously wish to get this person in need some medical care however, she requests assistance without calling in the extra help. Upon helping her, they go through some various names and decide on Emma.

Before you know it, time has passed and Emma has become part of the family and helping to run the shop. The mild introduction to magic begins here and provides the reader a glimpse into what skills may be found, not only with Emma, also the sisters. Emma is able to see the dearly departed of which the sisters have asked Emma not to reveal. Emma is made aware of the passing of a well-liked individual and one evening, runs into this individual now an apparition. The apparition requests Emma's assistance in solving his current state of which Emma takes a bit to agree. Emma is also dealing with the desire to answer her own questions such as what happened to her, where did she come from and did she have a child, and really, what IS her name?

Needless to say, the story takes on the questions, the mystery and everything that comes along with solving such important arcs. Looking forward to what comes next!

[Dawn Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know what to expect given this is my first book by this author. I was pleasantly surprised. The world building and character development aligned perfectly to what I like to see in paranormal novels.

There is a big mystery around Emma that I can't wait to see how things work out. I enjoyed the love interest between Emma and Azriel. Their interaction is sweet and something I hope to see more of.

Emma could have easily been portrayed as someone afraid of her own shadow. Instead the author chose to make her a person who is not afraid to live her life even though she has to be cautious because of possible danger. She's not one of those silly FMCs with no sense of self preservation. Sure she makes a couple of questionable decisions but she doesn't purposely put herself in harms way at every turn and knows when to seek help. This is so refreshing.

The overall story is a touch darker than I expected but that made it more interesting. There are a few surprises and twists which were great.

After listening to this I will take a stroll through more of the author's work.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jeanie Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Jennifer L. Hart does it again. My Midlife Magic Daze is an amazing book that blends mystery and magic into an awesome beginning of a new series. I can't wait for the rest of the books in Pages & Potions. Always and excellent author, Ms. Hart has hit her prime spot with middle aged and less than perfect heroines that many of us have long been waiting for. Five years ago, when the woman now known as Emma knocked on a door to plead for help, she could not have chosen a more perfect place. Rue and Hattie immediately understand her need for secrecy and welcome her with loving arms. One of Emma's secrets is that she has no idea who she is, but she knows that she is in danger and that a baby has been taken from her, and she can see ghosts. The sisters have a few secrets of their own that are well beyond what Emma could have imagined.
Outstanding characters and unexpected turns kept me enthralled from beginning to end.

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh wow...I absolutely loved this introduction to the Pages and Potions series. In it Jennifer L. Hart has created another believable world with thoughtful and well developed characters. As always her gift for storytelling pulls the reader in and doesn't let go until after the story has been told. This time the tale is the mystery of Emma and her found family, Hattie and Rue...along with a very handsome sucubus demon and raven shapeshifter. As Emma finally gets some answers to her "missing" years more questions still remain to be answered and I can't wait for the next book to have more of the pieces fall into place. My Midlife Magic Daze was narrated by Meghan Kelly and I thought she did a wonderful job. I very much look forward to listening to more of her work. I definitely recommend MMMD. It is now my favorite book by Jennifer L. Hart.

[Dami · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been reading stories written by Jennifer for about 5 years now and I have found that the more Jennifer writes, the better her stories get. I love the characters and the story line of this winner! The main characters are very well designed; they are well rounded and feel like they could be someone you'd meet at your neighborhood coffee shop or local park, someone you'd like to talk to for a while. She crafted a jewel with unexpected twists and turns, keeping me on my toes and waiting to see where the story ends. This is a series that I'm excited to read, if the first book is anything to go by. You won't be sorry you read this book!

I did listen to the audio version of the book and received it in return for an unbiased review.

[Suzanne Giorgione · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great start to another series by Jennifer L. Hart. We enter another wonderfully created new story world where Emma stumbles into the Pages & Potions bookshop with no memory of who she is or what has happened to her. She is in desperate need of medical help and doesn't want he Bramblewick sisters who own the shop to call an ambulance. They have someone who can come and help her thankfully. They save her life, give her a home, job and family. We end up meeting a deliciously handsome succubus demon and raven shapeshifter, more interesting characters, a murder occurs, their are ghosts and so much more. And, as the story progresses, some of Emma’s past is revealed and I can't wait until I listen to the next story in the series!

[Lyn Brownlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it!
What a great start to a series.
This story started off with a tragedy unfolding and unbeknownst to those present it was never solved, leaving Emma forever wondering what happened to her that terrible night.
A great storyline with wonderful characters and some strange ones too.
You are kept guessing throughout and wondering who is the evil villain killing people.
Some of Emma’s past was revealed and more is to come in the next story which I’m eagerly looking forward to.
A different style of storytelling from Jennifer that I absolutely loved.

[KDRBCK · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Midlife Magic Daze by J.L. Hart is the first book in the new Pages & Potions Series. A wonderful introduction to storyline and characters in this series.
Emma knows she's a bookstore owner and not much else. Her memories are a bit hazy.
She carries the scar of a c-section and naturally she has questions, a lot of questions.
An highly entertaing read that gives all the feels. A book that has everything I love in a good read, intrigue, a fantastic storyline and wonderful characters, 5 stars.

[Lina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really intrigued by the backstory of the main character. I liked the magic world build and the paranormal aspect. This is the first part in the series and I look forward to getting to know more about Emma. I didn’t really get the romance part of the story, I wish there had been more depth to it. But since there was a cliffhanger there might be a chance to get better understanding.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

An exceptional start to what promises to be a five-star series! Excellent storytelling gives life to a plot which is nice and twisty and characters who are well-developed and believable. Highly recommended! I’m eagerly awaiting the next book. I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next in the series. I received a complimentary copy of this book and chose to write a voluntary, unbiased review.

[Karen Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow - great start to a new series. This book starts with a dramatic scene which remains a mystery to some extent through out the entire book. But it hooks you so you want to learn more about the characters. Then, what on the surface seems like a “traditional paranormal whodunit” morphs into a complex story. It’s a bit different than previous books by this author but I definitely recommend.

[E · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

I wish I could give this story more than five stars, it is fantastic. A great start to a new series. The author draws you in immediately, introduces you to some awesome and strange characters. This book will keep you guessing and you will not believe who is behind it all. The ending will leave you interested to see what happens next.

[Lavender Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another astonishing story from Jennifer L. Hart. This first in series is mysterious and suspenseful and took me by surprise in the best possible way. I love the characters, the worldbuilding is great, and the epilogue is fantastic. Meghan Kelly totally nailed the narration.

A review copy of this book was sent to me by the author. All of the above opinions are my own.

[Jill Bechdel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good start

I grabbed this book to start a new series. It was a good start for the first book. I plan on reading the next one soon

[Christi Snow · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rating.

[Shelbe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this! I stayed hooked on the story all the way through, can't wait to read what's next. 4 stars because I need more answers!

[Julie Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh wow, right from the start this story draws you in with its mystery and doesn't let up. I have read a number of books by this author but think this is the first book where the mystery takes centre stage, although there are a number of sex scenes. There is a lot going on in the story, with a murder that needs solving (which does get solved), the witch craft and of course the love interest but the larger story of what happened to the main character continues on to the next book. Normally I get annoyed with books that end on a cliff hanger or has a story line that means you need to get the next book but this book didn't feel like an ending and is in fact is just the beginning of an even bigger adventure. I really liked the characters especially the elderly sister that take in the main character. Although I am not sure about the love interest and had to do some googling to find out what he was, but I am sure the more we learn about him the more he will grow on me, he certainly seems to care for the main character. The author always seems to write about a damaged main character that you can't help but root for and Emma is no different and her story is very compelling. This is a great start to a new series, a series that I can't wait for.

When a stranger turns up on there bookshop doorway covered in blood and no memory, the Bramblewick sisters take her in no questions asked. They offer her shelter, protection and a family but Emma craves answers about her past, so when a ghost turns up asking her to help find his body she knows what it feels like to be lost and vowels to help. But doing so puts her life in danger and reveals some secrets about her new family that might just have been better left buried, especially when the bodies start to pile up. Will knowing the truth keep her alive or get her killed?

I liked the narrator. She used her own magic to provide the characters with some interesting voices, even going so far to give a few accents. I hope she sticks with the series.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.