Cake Spell Disaster

Haven Witch #1

by Zoe Arden

Mistmoor Point has a new dirty word... poison!

Welcome to Mistmoor Point…
A small town on a small island where magic is standard practice and witches rule.

Felicity Redfern has a lot of jobs.
Baker, girlfriend, novice witch... and… worst of all, private investigator.

When the mayor's anniversary party goes wrong, disaster happened!
1. Half the town is sick.
2. The mayor's in a coma.
3. The most disastrous part… One person's dead.

And someone will take the blame.

Felicity’s mother and her supernatural bakery.

Is this a case of magic accidentally gone wrong, or is something more sinister at bay?
Felicity's counting on her boyfriend, master warlock and sheriff of Mistmoor Point, Lincoln Maxwell, to help her solve the crime.

But … Lincoln thinks he already knows who the culprit is—Felicity's mother!

With no one on her side, Felicity has no choice but to use her novice witchy powers to investigate on her own.
But the job proves too big for one witch alone… or one amateur witch to be exact!
When her own life gets threatened, there's only one friend Felicity can turn to for help…

Her mother's familiar, a fuzzy feline named Sunny.

But can they fix this mess before someone else gets killed?
What if Felicity's mother really is to blame?

GRAB YOUR COPY NOW …

Genres: Paranormal, Cozy Mystery, Mystery, Magic

144 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 20, 2017

About the author

It was from reading Agatha Christie’s mystery books that inspired Zoe to write cozy mystery novels. Zoe liked the fact that cozy mysteries are able to offer readers a form of escapism that typical detective stories can’t.

Like what Marilyn Stasio, who has been the Crime columnist forThe New York TimesBook Review since the late 1980s, recently wrote: “The abiding appeal of the cozy mystery owes a lot to our collective memory, true or false, of simpler, sweeter times.” It is Zoe’s desire that her writings will evoke that nostalgic memory in all of us; those memories of the good old days.

What sets Zoe apart in her writings is her fusing of Mystery with Paranormal elements, a combination which will bring about fantasies that are intriguing and engaging. Her stories contain unexpected twists and sometimes light-hearted moments that will make one smile at Zoe’s quirkiness, fun and wittiness in her writings.

Reviews

[Ann Croce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute, quick moving cozy mystery.

[Stephani Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's not much I love more than starting a new book and having it become "un-put-downable" within the first couple of pages! Zoe Arden has crafted a beguiling story with a delightful plot and interesting characters. The length and the pace were just perfect for me, and I read the entire book in one sitting on my day off work. I tend to give special attention to any book that features a black cat on its cover due to my precious little fur baby daughter, Arya Stark. I've found a favorite new author, and series!

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Welcome to Mistmoor Point. This is one of the small
towns located on the island of Heavenly Haven.
There is another section is called Sweetland Cove.
The mythology of the island comes from a 1200
year old love legend that produces the two factions
of the island due to broken marriage and hearts
with sides being taken.
Witches that practice magic live here with some
humans.
Amelia Redfern with her daughter Felicity run the
Cakes and Creation shop on Mistmoor Point. Both
are busy putting the finishing touches on their bake
goods for Mayor Singer and his wife's anniversary
party to be held at the Grey Goose. This restaurant
is owned by Amelia's son. Everything is proceeding
along fine until the Mayor falls over into the cake and
ends up in a coma. One man dies, other guest begin
to get sick then Amelia ends up in a coma.
What happened???
It seems there is poison in the bake goods!!!! All fingers
point to Amelia but Felicity knows better. Everyone
declines to believe Felicity that her mother is innocent
so she sets out to investigate on her own. Soon Felicity
receives a threatening letter and is in a car accident.
A witch that has no experience needs help. Amelia
turns to her mother's familiar, a fuzzy feline named Sunny.
Sunny takes off to see what he can discover about the
poisoning. What will he find? Will he and Felicity be able
to solve this situation before any one else gets killed?
Will they be able to find the answers to save Amelia?
Creative, vivid, interesting characters involved in a
unique plot. Suspense, mystery, danger make for a
fast paced fun read.
Humor and a touch of romance add to the stories
ingredients. Loved the talking cats!!!
This is the novella introduction to the Haven Witch
series.
I volunteered to read this eBook. Thanks to the author
for the opportunity. My opinion is my own.

[Andrea Stoeckel · Rating 4 out of 5]

(I volunteered to review this book)

"Life just isn't worth anything if you don't have cupcakes."

The folks of Mistmoor have been flocking to Cakes and Creations for years to sample Amelia's delectable selection of baked goods. Amelia Redfern ran the shop with assistance from her daughter Felicity. Her creations were as beautiful as they tasted, until, at the Mayor's anniversary, many of the people are poisoned, including the Mayor and Mrs. Redfern.

And Felicity and her mother's familiar,Sunny, begin to investigate after it looks like the sheriff, who is also Felicity's beau, falls into lockstep with all who believe that the scatterbrained baker simply added the wrong ingredient. And they leave no kibble unturned in the quest to prove everyone else wrong.

I love witch stories, and jumped at this one as " something completely different". The author,Zoe Arden, has introduced us to a nice little community, and a nice little story. However, as with most books of this type, it will probably need another book or two before everyone gets sorted out. It's a pretty good book and I'm looking forward to learning more about the residents of both Mistmoor and Sweetwater Cove. Recommended

[Tacy Denby]

Cake Spell Disaster A Yummy Book!

If you love magic, witches, frenemies and lots of yummy food then this book is for you. Amelia Redfern is hired to cater the biggest celebration in Mistmoor Point.Cakes and Creations will really get some attention after catering the Mayor's fortieth Anniversary party.Amelia enlist the help of her daughter Felicity with all of the scrumptious treats for the party.The cake itself is made up of forty layers each a different color and flavor to represent a memory in a year of their marriage.The cake stands twenty feet tall. It will be infused with special flavors and magic and will be breath taking. Sunny the cat sits in his favorite spot in the sun taking this all in.Only giving advice as needed. The party is held at The Golden Goose the local restaurant owned By Grayson Amelia's son. The party starts out well but ends in murder.Who did it and why. .... People are pointing the finger at Amelia but she is in the hospital in a coma so now it's up to Felicity and her boyfriend who just so happens to be the sheriff to find the killer. Want to know more read the book.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written. Character development was very good. The only reason I gave it a four is because witches aren't my thing.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Cake Spell Disaster” earns 5/5 Peppermint Pistachio Joy Cupcakes!

Amelia Redfern and her daughter Felicity had prepared the most delicious magical desserts for Mayor Singer and his wife’s anniversary: Oven-Hot cookies, peppermint pistachio joy cupcakes, and a forty-tier cake. It was a glorious gathering, except scowling off to the side was Edith Woodruff, Amelia’s former bakery partner and now bakery competitor, making nothing but criticisms. Amelia tried hard to ignore the comments and enjoy the cutting of her glorious cake. The happy couple cut little slices and shared a traditional moment. Then the mayor starts to turn redder and redder blowing up like a water balloon, steam coming out from his ears, and falling onto the cake. Other guests start to get sick, Amelia is missing, and one person is dead.

Felicity needs to find the killer to save her mother’s reputation and maybe her life. She has suspicions to follow up and starts with Sunny, her mother’s familiar, a white cat who can sneak around without calling attention to himself. Then, Lincoln Maxwell, youngest sheriff ever in Mistmoor Point, is on the case trying to keep Felicity safe…a little romance there. The three of them shed light on many interesting items…dark elements, secret romances, old grudges, and what’s up with Felicity’s brother Grayson?

This is a delightful novella that has left me wanting more. Zoe Arden wrote an entertaining mystery that treated magic in a delightfully delicious way…no hocus pocus. The mystery was clever offering a few possible culprits, but I went in an obvious direction with the clues…how could I not see that? I was very interested in the mythology of the island; a 1200 year old legend of love, heart ache, sides taken, and two factions developing one in Sweetland Cove and the other in MIstmoor Point. That’ll be very interesting. Zoe gives us a glimpse into a wonderful mother/daughter relationship, unique magical bakery, a romantic entanglement, a host of quirky familiars, and all sorts of possible mysteries.

In the ebook version, there is a bit of a taste of the upcoming “Sweetland Cove” series debut.

“Eli rushes in the house frantically packing. He has to leave the island quickly. He has done the unthinkable according to the Council, and no matter his motives, it still looks like revenge. He picks up Ava, and leaves. She’ll be safe now. She’ll never know….the story picks up twenty years later.”

[Marsha Keeper Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed at Haunted Bookshelf

Cake Spell Disaster captured my attention from the start and didn’t let go til the final page… which opened up the door into the next story. There is trouble brewing in Mistmoor Point with an already strong competition between former partners and friends, now this disaster at the Mayor’s anniversary party. Discovering exactly how the wrong ingredients got mixed into Felicity’s mother’s cake creations will take us all over Heavenly Haven island on a search for clues and the true culprit.

I completely enjoyed my time in this world. The mystery is engaging, the puzzles and clues intriguing, and the characters lively and sassy. When friends turn into enemies it’s very easy to toss around accusations. Now it’s up to Felicity to get to the truth because it seems like everyone in town is willing to believe that her mother accidentally tried to harm and kill her neighbors… and that simply wasn’t true. We’ll meat a cast of characters who will help or hinder Felicity’s investigation, most will also be part of the Sweetland Witch series that follows this title. I’m looking forward to spending more time in this world with these lively characters, and would definitely recommend Cake Spell Disaster to any Paranormal Cozy Mystery reader. You’ll discover in interesting story line, find characters you’ll want to know more about and solve an unique puzzle. Just about everything I enjoy about this genre.

I own a Kindle Edition of this title.

[Pamela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Welcome to Mistmoor Point on the island of Heavenly Haven. It's a place full of mostly witches and even a few humans too. Amelia Redfern & her daughter run a bakery Creams, Cakes and Creations. Her son Grayson has a restaurant, The Grey Goose.
The family caters anniversary party for the mayor and his wife. It's all going well until the mayor gets sick & falls into the cake. It turns out he was poisoned! Even Amelia gets sick. Since the tainted confections were made by Amelia, she becomes the prime suspect. When even Felicity's boyfriend Sheriff Lincoln Maxwell suspects Amelia, she decides she'll need to solve the mystery herself. With her mother's cat familiar Sunny for help, Felicity checks out her mother's ex-partner and current competition, Edith Woodruff and her daughter, Blossom.
Cake Spell Disaster is a fun & quick read filled with quirky characters and interesting settings. I liked the use of enchantments at the bakery. It was a solid mystery. I did guess who the culprit was but it didn't spoil it for me. I'm not sure on the familiars if I like the way they talk. Not that they do talk but it's the way they talk. It seems a little caveman-ish. I think this series has potential with a little more polish and depth to the characters.
I'm looking forward to the full length book that from the sneak peek, may center around other main characters although Felicity and Lincoln were mentioned. I'll just have to wait and see.

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

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cake Spell Disaster: A Haven Witch Book by Zoe Arden is a novella introduction to a community of witches, well, actually two communities, living on an island with only a few humans. There are two communities here, split 1200 years ago over a broken marriage. Tonight is the mayor's and his wife's anniversary party at The Golden Goose restaurant in Mistmoor Point, with dessert from Cakes and Creations, which had delivered, among other things, a 40-layer cake: one layer for each year of the honorees' marriage. Cakes and Creations is owned by Amelia Redfern, who is assisted by her daughter, Felicity, the narrator of the book and the Grey Goose is owned by her son, Grayson.

All goes well until the mayor gets a mouthful of the frosting and passes out. Then other guests start dropping and those still standing start grumbling that Amelia has poisoned them. One death, and Amelia and the mayor both in comas, Felicity starts investigating to save her mother and her mother's business. There are plenty of suspects: first and foremost is Edith, Amelia's former partner and now, nemesis.

The book has some engaging characters, which I hope the author will flesh out in her longer works. Some of the best are Amelia's familiar, Sunny, a tuna-loving, talking cat, and Lincoln, Felicity's boyfriend and community sheriff. This novella has all the qualities necessary for an engaging series: one with rounder characters, and a plot with more depth. I look forward to it.

I received this product in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

[Danielle Urban · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cake Spell Disaster by Zoe Arden is phenomenal. Imagine ring the best baker on your side of town and landing a huge bake job, only to fall sick as well as everyone else. One person dies...others severely ill. Felicity doesn't believe that her mother 'accidentally' added the wrong ingredients to her bake goods. Plus, Felicity's brother is acting strange and a threat is left in the form of a note on her car. The who done it vibeis set perfectly. Two cats are involved. One is a spy for the enemy and the other is a detective for his owners. However, it takes for a deep investigation and for Felicity to get hurt before the final clues are set. From there things get out of hand...literary. I enjoyed reading this paranormal novella. It was sweet, hilarious and dangerous. The mystery of the Cake Spell Disaster kept me intrigued from the beginning to end. I loved the characters. Both the good and bad characters were brilliant. Each added to the story. Overall, I highly recommend Zoe Arden's novella, Cake Spell Disaster, to readers everywhere.

[Bobbi · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can be said to describe Cake Spell Disaster except that it is a great book to read. It was such fun to read and kept my interest throughout. The characters were all very developed and the story itself was delightful. The Cakes and Creations bakery scenes shared such delicious treats it was hard not to want one. The actual mystery was full of suspects galore and it was fun to follow along as each piece of the puzzle fell into place. Looking forward to reading other books in this series to see if Lincoln and Felicity continue on their path to romance. Also to see what mischief Felicity will be getting into. I highly recommend this book to cozy mystery lovers.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Lisa Denn · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Cake, Spell, Disaster the author has established an entire fictional world where the reader can expect a limitless number of fun reads for cozy mystery fans.

In addition to providing the historical details important for understanding the characters and their relationships with each other in the fictional towns of Mistmoor Point and neighboring Sweetland Cove author Zoe Arden lets readers know she's got what it takes to entertain and challenge mystery fans!

Its not easy to create a fictional world, present engaging characters and dabble in crime solving in one book alone. Arden has accomplished such a feat in Cake, Spell, Disaster.

[Belinda Remmers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Felicity and her mom live on an island along with many other witches warlocks and humans. She helps in her moms bakery, where the sweets are prepared with a little magic included unknown to the humans. The disaster happens during the mayor and his wife's anniversary party. This story had all the elements I look for in a book, humor, banter, serious, scary and mysterious. Not finished yet but can't wait to see what happens. You won't want to miss this one. Give it a read you will love it. I can't put it down.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a decent story and a fairly nice mystery. The major problem I had with it was it needs a major overhaul in the editing dept. There are multiple instances where words are not completed, misspelled, or the wrong word was used altogether, which could just be another misspelling. This is just one example, "Every in the room turned to look at her, and she shrank back." That should have been "everyone in the room..." The other thing I was uncomfortable with was the familiars always speaking in the third person.

[Rhonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a delightful story of a witch and the town she lives in. The town witches try to keep their secret. There is competition for different public affairs and the accusations start flying. I enjoyed this light-hearted murder mystery. It seems strange to call a murder mystery light-hearted but it is. The characters are all developed with their own personality. I did receive this ebook free in exchange for an honest review. Thank you ZOE ARDEN.

[Becky marion · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun and Easy Read

I am very surprised by my enjoyment of this book. I am not much for witches and fantasy, and so was hesitant. However it was one of those ready to read and follow. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a light read with not a lot of rereading or hard thought. I could read by the lake, in the car, or line at the store.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this short story about an island which contains a population of about 80-90% witches and warlocks and 10-20% humans. There was an anniversary party that went awry, a poisoning and a daughters quest to prove her mothers innocence. This was creative, a little funny I would recommend Ms. Arden's books. I intend to get some of her other books.

[Mjuneb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poison Cake

The mayor's anniversary party is ruined when half the party fall ill. The main surprise is that the main suspect is in a coma. How did this happen and what was the poison? All the suspects keep being cleared by the police so the baker's daughter and assistant must keep digging to clear her mom's name. Even for a novella this is a good plot and keeps you guessing.

[Bev · Rating 5 out of 5]

While celebrating the Mayor and his wife's wedding anniversary, everything is going just great.Then the Mayor takes a bite of the cake and falls over. He isn't dead, but he isn't well either. Then other people start getting sick. Was it food poisoning? Everyone including the Sheriff is blaming Amelia. After all she catered the party. One person actually does die. Can Felicity and Sunny, Amelia's magical cat solve the mystery behind all of this? Read the story to find out. I received an ARC of this story. The review is totally voluntarily mine.

[Sondra · Rating 5 out of 5]

What fun to read about the other side of Heavenly Haven. It was fun to start building a relationship with the characters, whose counterparts from Sweetland Cove we already know. Intriguing story; I'm so glad I read it.

[nadina j whitsitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cake Mystery ..Cake Spell Disaster by Zoe Arden

Loved this novella which introduce her series of A Haven Witch Sweetland series. I'm now ready to dive into the next book which is over 300 pages..😁

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute, cozy, and very interesting story. The culprit is totally unexpected (at least by me), although I did figure it out before the end. I liked the cat familiars and think their interaction was quite entertaining. All in all a fast, fun read.

[Mari Hinton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great new series

If you enjoy cozy mysteries then this one is for you. Plus as an added bonus it is a new series to start following. I enjoyed all of the characters. I can't wait to see them develop through the other stories. Enjoyed the theme of the story with the mystery behind it. I did not see this coming as to who it was who the murderer was. A very good start to a series.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very entertaining! Great characters, fun easy read!

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun cozy mystery.

[Cecilia Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light, easy read

I enjoyed the book. The characters are believable and well constructed. I enjoyed the pace of the story and the interaction between them.

[Leila Pitchford · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun quick story with magic and mystery.

[Lorna Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short cozy mystery is a fun though deadly read, suited to fantasy lovers from the age of 12. It is quirky and fanciful complete with witches, talking cats, cakes, poison and mystery.

[Kimberly Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun little read

This was a bright refreshing read. I enjoyed the strong female leads and adore the talking cats! Would recommend reading this