The Witches of Enchanted Bay

The Witches of Enchanted Bay #1

by Amelia Morgan

Welcome to Enchanted Bay, a picture-perfect small town on the coast of Northern California.
Meg Walton comes from a long line of witches. It's a secret her family has been keeping for generations. The Waltons have been living a quiet existence, running the local donut shop in town. All that changes when a murder occurs.
Enter Connor Smith, Meg's former crush, who left for San Francisco ten years before, and who has now returned to town as the new detective with the Enchanted Bay police department. If Meg's feelings were mixed enough over having Connor back in town, the detective wrongfully suspects one of Meg's good friends for murder.
To prove her friend's innocence, Meg has to find the real killer herself--with the help of a few good spells.

Genres: Mystery, Paranormal, Cozy Mystery, Witches, Fantasy, Audiobook, Fiction

126 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 22, 2015

Reviews

[Kay (Brigidsmomma) Compton · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was not so good. Rather boring and formulaic and written for someone on a middle school reading level. And the editing/grammar were also not up to par. I was bored and not that interested in reading further in the series, especially when book two looked to be a rehash of the same plot only with different characters. Why is this even on the market?

[Beth · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't finish this book. It was written in such a formulaic way that it was hard to read for a seasoned reader. I think she could have a good series on her hands, but needs additional help with writing and editing.

[Georgiann Hennelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meg Walton runs the family Donut shop in Enchanted Bay. She also comes from a long line of Witch's that is kept secret.Megs former crush Connor Smith moves back to town as a member of the local Police Force. She is confused how she feels about him. When a murder takes place and her friend is a suspect after a launch party for a fitness DVD turns nasty and the owner is found dead in the morning. There are plenty of suspects including the cheated on girlfriend, an ex mistress with a baby who claims he was the Father, a fired employee who was going to sue for sexual harrassament, a guy who says he stole his idea and a married women who was cheating on her Husband with him. Meg finds herself in the middle of the case trying to help her friend, and catch the real killer. A fun new mystery series. i look forward to reading the rest of the enchanted bay series.

[Betty · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book. Really. It had potential, but needed some strong editing. So much so that I couldn't read past the first couple of chapters.

First, I don't care how good your story is. If you insist on using an apostrophe for plurals, you've lost me. The constant use of a family name-apostrophe-s made me crazy. Likewise, authors should know their homonyms. 'Site' and 'sight' are two different words. And please, please, avoid cliches. 'Little did she know...'

I was intrigued by the beginnings of the story and with some good editing, I think this could be a much higher-rated book.

[La La]

This author is not for me. The writing was overly simplistic and cliché. I am not going to blame it on not liking cozies (just yet) because this is the first cozy I have ever read. I have also seen some not so stellar reviews for this cozy series, so I am going to go on to another series before I make a judgment on cozies as a whole.

[Bruce · Rating 2 out of 5]

The spelling and grammar are good, which is a relief for indie books. The sentence structure, plot, and complexity are great for fifth grade.

[Suzanne Galbraith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to like this book, but the MC is so unlikable! The whole chapter where she stalks the single mother and harasses her is despicable. Kayla is "cunning" because she figured out a way to escape Meg's harassment and unethical magic?

I find it hard to believe she would be so unsympathetic and harsh toward a single mother when her own mother suffered because she had a deadbeat dad.

What if she actually befriended Kayla and helped her, instead of confronting her with crap that really is none of her business?

This witch needs some severe karmic justice dealt to her. I kind of want to watch her suffer for being such a bitch to everyone. lol

The writing is cliched, but really if the story zooms along that is okay. I was trying to care about the characters and now I just dislike them.

I also can't stand how the police officer told her confidential stuff. It made me lose respect for him. There has to be another way for her to get her inside information.

I'm literally angry because now I can't stand the protagonist and wasted my time starting this book. Good thing I read fast.

I need someone to recommend some fun cozy mysteries.

DNF 49%

[Delta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the worst introduction to the series, but it's nothing special for the cozy mystery genre. I'm not totally sure why Meg runs a donut shop since she never seems to work in it. The witch status also seems pretty unnecessary as well. She does use it but so sparingly that I forgot it was even a character trait for most of the story.

Lainie Pahos does a great job narrating.

**I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.**

[Jo-Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meg's best friend is a possible suspect of the murder of her boyfriend but Meg knows she didn't do it and investigates to prove her innocence. Since she owns a donut shop, she isn't an experienced investigator but she wants to help her friend anyway. Meg comes from a family of witches so she knows she can use magic to find answers but nobody knows they are witches and she has to keep it a secret which is tricky especially since her boyfriend, Connor, is a cop.

I enjoyed this cozy mystery with it's well developed characters. Meg is a good friend that is willing to put herself at risk of being found out in order to help her friend. Connor is a good detective and boyfriend. He clearly thinks a lot of Meg and her donuts. Can't forget the cat. Yes, the cat. It's actually Meg's grandmother who's soul was transferred into a cat just before she died.

This is a fun story, even with the murder involved. I liked the writing that made this a quick but easy to follow read. The addition of Meg using her magic while investigating the murder was a nice twist. Doing this without Connor knowing she was investigating or using magic was comical.

Please note I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Witches of Enchanted Bay is a quick and easy but fun read by Amelia Morgan. It has fantasy, magic, mystery, murder, and a touch of romance. What else could you want? The plot is well thought out with lots of twists, turns, and a surprise ending. The characters are well developed. Just enough magic/fantasy to make it fun and not to much romance to make it mushy, just enough to keep you guessing. The murder of a big shot in town with the witch's friend as a suspect leads the witch to seek out the truth on her own. Sleuthing witch style. A good fun read. I received this book for a honest review and it in no way effected my rating or review content.

[Carole · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm sorry I don't like to give negative reviews, but compared to other mysteries I am reading this week, this story is unsophisticated, with cliched writing with overuse of hackneyed phrases and metaphors. Sophmoric detective work and romance unbelievable.

I found the heroine annoying, and at times TSTL in her arrogant, misguided investigation work and her unethical misuse of her magical gift would create some seriously negative karmic boomerangs!

DNF skimmed to finish. Rating: 1.5 stars Toasted Series from my Ebook Library.

[Adrienne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Forced and Trite

This novel had no flow. It felt forced and trite. The dialogue was not stimulating, the characters were flat, and, for me, it fell short on every level.

[Sheila Burke · Rating 2 out of 5]

I truly don’t like to give negative reviews, but I just can’t give this book what it doesn’t deserve.
First, let me say:

1 – I love cozy mysteries.
2 – I love witches.
3 – I even love red hair!
4 – I didn’t love this book.

I was so disappointed by this book. Predictable, boring, and remedial. The story is unsophisticated and completely unbelievable, even for the make-believe world of cozy mystery. Sophomoric at best. There were no really graphic sexy times, but the fact that the “victim” was such a gigolo (having affairs with multiple women) wouldn’t necessarily make this appropriate for the younger set. Sadly, I honestly can’t say this was worth the time to read.

[Shelley Puffer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very refreshing and clean cozy mystery series. I'm excited to see what happens between Meg & Connor.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm afraid this one fell flat IMHO. Felt like a creative writing assignment that was written on the train ride to class that morning...maybe for a high school or intro college class. Felt like Morgan was trying her darndest to use every cliche imaginable...maybe that was a the assignment. The plot was there, and if you can ignore the dialogue, it's not bad. There were times when it didn't feel like this was #1 in the series. I read the summary and expected pastries, but while Meg Walton, the lead here, runs a doughnut shop and is obsessed with food, there really wasn't much anything to do with the shop. Walton's boyfriend is a cop, so she tags along with him in his murder investigation just because the victim was her friend. A bit incredulous, especially when she starts questioning suspects (and using her magic to illegally move the case forward). I wasn't expecting this level of magic, either. She uses magic so she doesn't have to get out of bed to feed the cat once. Really?

Some typos, but nothing a quick read-through wouldn't catch. Not a writing style issue.

[Marissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

PDF Copy for Review

Meg Walton runs her family owned donut shop in Enchanted Bay. She is also comes from a long generation of witches that is kept secret to the general residents.

Meg’s former crush Connor Smith returns to town as a member of the local police force. Her feelings are a bit confused where he is concern especially when a murder takes place and one of her friend is a suspect.

A launch party for a fitness DVD turns nasty and the owner is found dead the next morning. Suspects include the cheated girlfriend, the ex mistress with a new baby who says he is the father, a fired employee who was going to sue for sexual charges, a guy who said he stole his idea, a married woman who was cheating on her husband with him are a few of the suspects.

With a little help of magic Meg finds herself in the middle of the case and realizing nothing is wrong with making doughnuts. This is a nice new cozy mystery series.

[Amy Hunter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nice premise, poor writing.

This is a perfect example of why writers need editors.

The idea for this story is good. A small town witch who owned a donut shop, loyal friend who gets involved in a murder investigation. her familiar, who happens to be her reincarnated grandmother. Had these character traits been explored and developed, this could have been a great cozy mystery. Instead, it feels much more like a high school student's attempt to get a half decent grade in a creative writing course. Grammatical mistakes were few and far between, but so was any plot point that showed ingenuity.

Bottom line? If you are looking for something that will absorb you, keep looking.

[Noel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick and easy Cozy Mystery read. I really liked Meg and her talking cat, Penelope. In order to save her best friend from being arrested for a murder she didn’t commit, Meg sparingly uses her hereditary witch powers to get answers from suspects during her sleuthing. Especially important as her mother doesn’t want word to get out that they are witches. Connor, her long lost love interest, who has come back home after being a cop in San Francisco for 10 years adds a little bit of romance to the story. Good book to recommend to adults as well as young adult readers who love cozy mysteries.

[Crystal · Rating 1 out of 5]

I would not say it was awful...it was just very lacking...weak plot, no character development, no suspense, not really any mystery even though it is supposed to be a mystery, no world building, no excitement....I could go on and on...And the language was so simple and dull that I felt as if I was reading a children's beginner Chapter book...I feel a bit bad giving one star to a book that someone probably worked hard on, but I truly feel like I just wasted an hour and a half of my life that I will never get back...

[Jenny Donovan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was sent a free copy for an honest review. This was a very enjoyable short mystery. Meg is a witch trying to hide her powers, while doing some amateur sleuthing to keep her best friend out of jail. Throughout it all, Meg's previous love interest returns to town. In the end they decide to rekindle their romance. This book gives you mystery, romance, a bit of the paranormal, as well as a dose of comedy for good measure.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this would be a good book for a teenage girl. It seems to written for a younger audience. There is nothing deep about the characters or the plot. Kissing seems to be as far as the relationship between Meg and her beau is going to go. The so-called spells are sort of childish also. It was a little too immature for my tastes. There were several awkward passages that could use some work, but overall the spelling and grammar were ok.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun brief cozy. The author gives you the important clue to solve it which I appreciate. I really hate when the solution comes out of the blue with no way for the reader to have solved the mystery. I feel like that is cheating on the author's part. I do wish there was more character development in this book.

[Susan Landowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witch Turned Sleuth

Can't wait for next book. Quick, funny, and intriguing read. A heredity witch whom owns a donut shop turns sleuthing and solves her first murder to prove her friend innocent with help of magic. On the side her old boyfriend, a detective, comes back to town and things heat up for them.

[Kay Tuck · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the first paragraph I was hooked. This was a quick read, I couldn't put it down. I really liked the characters and can't wait to read the next book in the series. If you like fun characters and enjoy a good mystery I highly recommend it. This author is one I will be keeping an eye out for more from her.

[Kandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this cozy mystery featuring a couple of witches. When a friend is accused of murder, she goes out of her way and uses just a little magic to find out who the real killer is. Very enjoyable!

[Mary Wild · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good first effort .

The book is a very light cozy mystery read. The characters are bit one-dimensional. It is well-written, and I look forward to more books from this author . Preferably with characters who are not too perfect .

[Ruth A Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute new series

Fun quick read with characteristic become invested in right away. I look forward to more stories about Meg, her Friends and family

[Judith Mosconi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Could not finish. The main character is too silly.

[Trick Wiley · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are 14 in this series but by the time you read them all it really won't seem as there's that many stories at all about Meg and friends and some enemies. Follow Meg as she just wants to run the donut shop but for some reason someone is either in trouble or heaven forbid has been murdered and she can't resist on finding out what has happened and help solve the murder. Meg has a way of seeing these mysteries in a different way than the police and helps to solve these crimes. Small town setting she lives in where everyone knows everyone so sometimes that's a good thing and then sometimes not! I so enjoy these cozy stories .. Come met the whacky towns people who are really more whackier than the others but the good ones all have hearts of gold..Not read one of her books that I have not enjoyed and I know you will.. so start reading book number one of this series and before you know it you have read them all. Every murder story tells a wild adventures and there are so many close calls of Megs life in so much danger you really wonder if she's gonna get herself out of the trouble she walked into willingly and then sometimes no! Transfer yourself to this little town,met the people,met the cat and stop by to met Meg and get yourself a donut but beware that she brings you along to help her with all her murder mysteries!!

[Kristen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ouch. This was rough. At least it was super quick. Kind of like pulling off a Band-Aid… Even for a cozy there were so many problems with this. The protagonist, it is her first murder mystery, and yet she talks about how (in one place) it would always be easier if she had a badge. Always? She’d interviewed two or three people in her first investigation so not sure how it’s “always easier”. She also magically conjured herself a police uniform – which would include a badge – right before she made that statement. She has an ex-boyfriend who’s a cop and yet she manages to investigate for a whole day without running into him? Not to mention, she did all the investigating and figured it out that easily? Plus, she solves it in one day? It was ridiculous. I guess I now know why they were free on audible. I’ll probably listen to the rest that came with the free box set just because it’s something to listen to while walking the dogs, however, for a “serial“ reader like me, the fact that if I were actually reading them on my Kindle instead, and I have decided that I wouldn’t finish them should tell you something. I will note I’ve seen some comments about listening to books being narrated by an AI – and because I’m not the hugest fan actually of audiobooks and some of the ones I’ve listened to so far have terrible acting. I didn’t mind this so much. Especially on twice the speed.