Milestones, Magic and Murder

by Bella Colby

Losing your home and your husband on your 50th birthday is bad. Gaining a mysterious mansion, magical powers, and a dead body? Now that's murder.

Josie Appleton is reeling from one hex of a midlife crisis. Blindsided and broke, an unexpected inheritance from the grandmother she never met seems a lifeline. Until Josie discovers the sprawling manor comes with latent magical powers, a sassy talking cat, and… oh yeah… the greenhouse is home to a corpse.

Forced to dig deep to clear her name for a murder she didn't commit, Josie must juggle hot flushes, unruly spells, and a detective who's itching to slap on the cuffs. Caught between a village of eccentric locals, a spellbindingly handsome caretaker, and a killer desperate to avoid capture, she's in more trouble than a toad in a witch's potion party.

Can Josie conjure up her newfound magic and amateur sleuthing skills to unearth the truth before she becomes the next victim?

Milestones, Magic, and Murder is the enchanting first book in the Witchy at Fifty midlife paranormal cozy mystery series.
If you love witchy whodunits, small-town secrets, and feline familiars with serious cattitude, Milestones, Magic and Murder is your perfect brew.

Pick up a copy and start unravelling the mystery today.

Genres: Mystery

205 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 30, 2025

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading her Wedding Witch series (and a huge fan of cozy mysteries), I knew I had to read this new series. Like every previous book I have read by Bella Colby, it didn't disappoint at all.

The idea of having to wait until your fifty birthday to get your magic is so ridiculous that I know that would be exactly how it would happen for me. Or maybe even later in life, like on my ninety fifty birthday.

I can't wait for the next book!

Thanks so much to BookSirens for the free kindle book. My review is voluntarily given and my opinions are my own.

[Linda (ellsky) Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a completely adorable start to this new series! The first couple of chapters showed a thoroughly unenjoyable life that our protagonist gets to leave behind, and the new life she is going to start in Briarvale sounds enchanting. There's a satisfying mystery plot, a hint of romance, a fun familiar, and a wonderful cast of characters that you care about right away. I'm eagerly looking forward to the next book in this series. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Margery · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic gripping series starter. Josie is celebrating her 50th at a lunch with friends. When she gets home she sees a locksmith and a mover, changing locks and emptying her home. Her husband has declared bankruptcy and they are taking literally everything, bank, house and everything inside that house. Even her clothing and her car. As she walks away in a cloud of anger and confusion a strange man pulls up and hands her a package. It seems her grandmother, someone she never met, has left Josie her estate which became hers when she turned 50. Still baffled and confused, she travels from London to Briarville.The house is huge, well cared for. She runs across a cat, meets nosey neighbors and is bullied by a real estate investor who wants her house. Now one would think her life would settle out? NOPE! She finds a hunk of a man using her shower. Turns out he is the caretaker. Think now things will settle out? NOPE! The body of the real estate agent is found dead down by her greenhouse. She is nervous that one of them will be blamed, until she is told by that cat that she is a witch and he is her familiar. He insists they will dig into uncovering the murderer. A total page turner from page one!

[Alisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun series starter!

This isn't the first book I've read by this author, so I was pretty sure I'd really love it....and I was right!

Josie Appleton's life has just turned upside down on her 50th birthday. As she finds herself without a husband or a home, she finds out she's inherited a house from her grandmother, whom she's never met.

Not a completely original idea: she discovers she's a witch, and has a talking cat familiar, someone is found dead on her new property, and she's a suspect.

But the fact that it's been done before doesn't really matter, because it's a really well done book. with a good plot, wonderful characters, a lot of humor (always a plus for me!), and a possible romantic connection. There are a number of suspects, and a beautiful setting.

The humor comes from Josie in her telling the story, and from the talking cat (adorable!) who's helping her and giving her flack along the way ;).

The book was really easy to read, and a ton of fun!

Can't wait to see what comes next!!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Willow Poteet]

Imagine returning home from your fiftieth birthday party, only to find that your home, your car and all of your worldly goods are being repossessed, your husband has disappeared and you have nowhere to go.
Just as you're thinking this is the end, an attorney appears and it seems that you have inherited your grandmother's home in Cornwall, in the village of Briarvale.
Josie Appleton has found herself in this very position.
Briarwood Gables is a beautiful manor and with it comes a sassy talking cat and, as a surprise bonus- magical powers!
Add to this handsome caretaker and a body in the garden and you’ve got the makings of a great cozy mystery!
This is a great beginning to the “A Witch at Fifty” cozy mystery series! There are eccentric townsfolk with lots of secrets, a feisty familiar named Einstein who takes this witch business very seriously and a witch in training who is more powerful than anyone thought.
I’m anxiously awaiting the next book in this series and I highly recommend it!
I received this book as an Advanced Reader Copy and I am happy to leave this voluntary review!

[Melanie Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

From page 1 of this book, I could not stop laughing. From the ashes of a ruined half laugh rose a witch with a murder to solve. That statement is a lot of unpack and I don't want to spoil anything. The statement may sum up the plot of the story but you absolutely must read it to understand how Josie's life turned on a dime or perhaps a 50 cent piece since it changed at 50. From the moment her life implodes until she meets Einstein and learns a true sense of belonging, we get a mystery with too many suspect and plenty of witch training from a snarky cat. Einstein or Professor Fluffbutt will totally run away with your heart while the male lead will give you a swift kick in the hormones as he is introduced as hot abs in just a towel. I hope my review has given you just a taste of the antics in this story and made you want to read it. This book is a fabulous start to a new series and a perfect way to giggle our way through an afternoon.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not my usual genre—supernatural cozy mysteries aren’t typically on my radar—but wow, I’m so glad I gave this one a chance! I devoured it in two days and would’ve read it in one if life didn’t rudely get in the way.

This book was an absolute delight. From the charming chaos of midlife magic to the laugh-out-loud one-liners, it had me completely hooked. The characters are instantly likeable, the plot is cleverly woven, and the mystery kept me guessing till the end (which is saying something, because I usually figure it out by the halfway mark!).

And let’s be honest—the real star of the show? The cat. That sass. That cattitude. I could hear him in my head, strutting through scenes like he owned every page. Bella Colby nailed it.

A fun, witty, enchanting read with heart, humour, and a side of murder. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys a well-crafted whodunnit with a supernatural twist. I’m already counting down the days until the next book—bring on more magic, menopause, and mayhem!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Ingrid Gail · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is very well written, with a sense of humour and enough details to paint a picture, but not so much that you have no use for your imagination. Throw in a talking (in MC's head) cat and I'm sold!

The night Josie loses the life she knew, she is presented with a brand new one. How's that for kismet?

I loved the amount of detail in the story, you really get a feel for Josie and her circumstances and you go on the journey with her to a completely new life, without getting drowned in too many details or getting distracted from the actual mystery.

The book had me laughing and grinning along with the exploration of her new life, not in the least because of the snarky remarks from Einstein.

I had no idea of the real culprit of the story until Josie figured it out and the unfolding was exciting to read, it grasped me and tore me along, even though it was almost at the end of the book. Very well done!

This was the first book from this author for me, but I will be sure to look for other ones soon.

[Mj · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delightful series debut! Josie is celebrating her 50th birthday with friends who aren't really good friends. Her car almost runs out of gas on her drive home and when she does arrive home it is in bank possession, EVERYTHING is being removed, and her husband has fled to Paraguay. Just as she is trying to come to terms that she has gone from wealthy to homeless in a few hours on her birthday no less, a stranger arrives with a letter from her late grandmother telling her she has inherited her estate in Cornwall. And off she, and we readers, go.

Josie is a delightful character, and all of the characters are smart and well written, even the animals, although only the cat talks. Naturally she discovers she is a witch and the cat is her familiar but her story is told with such great good humor. Her little village is a place I will look forward to revisiting. I received an advance review copy for free from Book Sirens, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Meg Killion · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book and upon finishing, I’m here to leave my honest review. I love a cozy cat mystery. Throw in a little magic and I’m doubly sold. This book was short but from the very beginning it flowed along so nicely. There was enough detail to allow the imagination to create a picture of the characters and scenes, but not overly saturated to the point of pulling your attention away from the actual plot like I see in some books. The author did well in distinguishing and rounding out each character’s personality, created a believable, lifelike character. Because of this I didn’t know who the murderer was until the MC figured it out. I could tell that this author has a lot of experiences in creating a well developed plot and believable characters and scenarios. All in all, I greatly enjoyed this book and I’m looking forward to reading the next installment in this series.

[Jessica Forbes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Something about women who find their true selves in middle age appeals to me, probably because I'm turning 40 this year. I loved getting to read this series starter by Bella Colby. I will say that I do *not* want to go through what the protagonist, Josie Appleton, goes through, as her husband takes off after cleaning out their accounts, leaving her in debt with everything she owns being repossessed to pay his bills. Luckily, on her fiftieth birthday no less, she receives a letter saying that she's inherited her grandmother's home. Josie's a very determined character, as most people would likely just fall over and do nothing when something like that happens to them, but she digs her heels in and does her best to move forward, finding new ways to survive. Even when someone's murdered on her new lawn, she decides to solve the murder. I'm looking forward to book 2!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Cici JN · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book in a new series by an author I enjoy, so I was eager to read it. I wasn’t disappointed! Josie receives a “to be delivered as a 50th birthday gift” inheritance from a deceased, barely discussed grandmother just as her perfect life has suddenly shattered. With literally nothing left to lose, she impulsively takes a night train ride across the country to a house and town she has never seen. When a man she met and briefly argued with shortly after she arrived is found dead in her garden a few hours later, she is put in the middle of a police investigation, and the detective is treating her like the prime suspect. Without knowing possible friends from suspects, she has to learn quickly, and solve the murder while coping with her apparent witch heritage and powers. I look forward to seeing more of this promising series.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can't go wrong with this author! If you like paranormal cozy snarky mysteries, this is for you. If you have reached 50 and gone thru life-changing issues, you will love this book. I laughed out loud so many times my family thought I was watching a comedian on TV! I read it in one afternoon because I couldn't put it down. Great characters, especially the talking cat. In my opinion any animal in a story just makes it better. I can't wait for the next book. The only thing I wish I could change is to have it rated as 4 1/2 stars instead of just 4. I never give 5 because no one is perfect and there's always room to grow!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Penny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve read this author’s previous series, and I really liked it. I was anxious to start this author’s new series, and I loved this one even more. Poor Josie loses her husband, her house, and her money all in one fell swoop, but she gains her family house and magic to maybe be able to start over. I loved this universe with its quirky characters, fun shenanigans, and an interesting mystery. I am really looking forward to seeing how poor Josie picks up the pieces of her old life, starts her new life, and all the mysteries she’ll be solving in the future. Well-written, fun, engaging, and captivating. Highly recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

[Kendra M Layden · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. You're telling me this lady receives magic on her 50th birthday? so I still have a chance to not only go through a mid-life crisis but also gain some magic later on in life? Count me in! I love the characters, and I love the cozy mystery vibes. When I finished the book, I immediately looked to see if another one was coming soon. It was a very quick read and really interesting story. The characters were great, as well as the internal dialogue with the main character. I can't wait for the second one.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Jeanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Milestones, Magic and Murder is book #1 in the Witchy at Fifty Cozy Mystery series by Bella Colby.

I’m a fan of Bella Colby‘s writing so I was looking forward to this new series. It didn’t disappoint. Josie Appleton’s life was not going well until one day when she received a mysterious package. She received an inheritance from a grandmother she never met and it gives her the opportunity to start over. She has a new home, a cat (her familiar), learns she is a witch, and has the pesky problem of a body being found on her property. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to more.

I received a review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Laure · Rating 4 out of 5]

Josie Appleton celebrated her fiftieth with friend, and was looking forward to celebrating with her husband, only her husband has disappeared and left her broke with nothing to her name. When she receives a letter informing her that she has inherited her grandmother's estate she decides she has nothing to lose and decides to make the move. Now she has a home, unfortunately, the corpse in the greenhouse could be a problem.
I think these are absolutely wonderfully compelling characters. I loved Josie and Einstein! I think this is a must-read cozy mystery and look forward to more books in this series.

[Cat B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read a handful of books now by Bella Colby and have found them to be quite entertaining. As the first in a new series Milestones, Magic & Murder is a wonderful addition to the author's library. I found it to be well written, engaging and just a excellent read. Now I am curious as to what is coming next for Josie Appleton and what new talents she might find within herself. This should be a delightful new series and I am all in.
I received a copy of this book via BookSirens and I am voluntarily leaving my opinion of the tale.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic story!

Imagine celebrating the biggest day of your life, only to come home to the repo man, then also being gifted a house in the countryside by your grandma in the same hour. One thing turns into another, and there's magic and a murder involved. Josie Appleton is the main character, and I loved her story so much.

I love every Bella Colby book I've read, and this is no exception. You'll laugh and read this so fast because her writing style is so easy to read. This was so great!!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Sylvie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cozy paranormal story at its best

Set in the rural english village of Briarvale, Josie Appleton inherits a house from her witchy grandmother.  And there starts her new life with a murder right in her backyard!  I loved it!  I hope the next book will be as good as this one.  Can't wait to read it and follow Josie's magical journey!

I received an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Lizz Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

When one door closes, another opens for Josie on her 50th birthday. Her husband is on the lam and everything she owned has been repossessed except the clothes on her back. She discovers she has inherited an estate. No longer homeless, she moves in only to discover she has special powers and a familiar. Determined to solve a crime that has happened on her property and clear the name of the caretaker, Josie starts to acclimate to her new life. This is an entertaining start to a new series.

[Mrs K.Bryant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Milestones, Magic and Murder is a story about Josie who inherited a house and estate from her Grandmother Beatrix and a magical cat who can talk which Josie named as Einstein.  Josie was then told that she was a Witch and Einstein tries to teach and guide her. Something occurs near the Greenhouse and Josie looks into the puzzle. But will she manage to find all the piece? Excellent story and series.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Barbara Behning]

Josie’s 50th birthday was celebrated at a luncheon with friends. Upon arriving home she found people emptying her house, changing the locks and demanding her car keys. - Gary was not answering his phone. She received an envelope from a lawyer as she stood taking it all in. She stuffed it in her bag on her arm to review later. Walking to seek help her life changed beyond her imagination. An awesome read - do enjoy!

[Martine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Josie has to start all over after her 50th birthday became a disaster. I’ve read Bella Colby's previous series, and I really liked it. I was anxious to start the new series, and I loved this one. I really enjoyed reading it and even lost a few hours of sleep to finish the book. So yes, I recommend this book. I can hardly wait to find out what will happen next.
I received an advance review copy and I'm leaving a voluntary and honest review.

[G · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful start to the series. As if turning 50 is not already taxing enough, Josie is also losing her husband and her home.

I truly enjoyed the characters in this book and their banter, especially Josie and her cat. This book will make you laugh, and the storyline will keep you engaged. A fun book to relax with.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Jodi Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Josie Appleton is turning 50. What should be a celebration turns into the worst day of her life, or so she thinks. When rock bottom comes, there is a surprise. She has inherited her grandmothers house and the idea of changing her life is very appealing so she is off to her new life. What happens next is a funny, magical experience. This was such a fun read and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

[Janet E. Sipes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book !!!!!!!

I was getting so down about finding another good book to read. Then low and behold comes this book! I was so taken with it that I could not put it down.!!!! It is my new favorite book in the world!! It was perfect for me and had perfect timing when I needed it most!! I hope you write many more of these in a series!! Thank you so much and God bless you!! 😀

[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Poor Josie! But it seems to me that she has found a New life for herself. I really liked this book and i felt for the characters. I love the names of the animals and i adore Einstein. He is such a great (and cute) Catmentor.

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Losing your home and your husband on your 50th birthday is bad. Gaining a mysterious mansion, magical powers, and a dead body? Now that's murder.
This is a great story. Imagine a talking cat who is the narrator of this story. His name is Einstein's (Fluffbut) and he is amazing.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. This in no way affects my opinion of this book.

[Phthon · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a hoot! I definitely snort-laughed several times during this book! I loved Josie! She is such a fun character and Einstein is perfection. Josie definitely has a lot of work to fill her grandmother’s shoes but she is going to knock it out of the park. I can’t wait to spend more time in this quaint little town! I loved reading this story!