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Mag and Clara Balefire Mysteries #1
Murder Above the Fold
When sister witches Mag and Clara Balefire stumble over the dead body of a local woman, they refuse to let the ruling of accidental death stand—not when they’re positive it was murder.
Digging deeper, secrets begin to surface and the sisters suspect some of the townsfolk aren’t as innocent as they appear. When they discover the killer might be someone close to the victim, they don’t know who to trust.
As if that’s not enough, the local coven expects them to bring their cantankerous, ancient leader to heel, and she’s having none of it.
Between solving two murders and keeping a mischievous, elderly witch with power to spare from wreaking havoc, moving to a small town isn’t quite what the Balefire sisters bargained for.
If you like a good paranormal mystery with a heaping dollop of sarcasm and wit, you'll love this humorous magical story full of chaos and intrigue.
Murder Above the Fold is the first book in the Elder Witch paranormal cozy mystery series.
Digging deeper, secrets begin to surface and the sisters suspect some of the townsfolk aren’t as innocent as they appear. When they discover the killer might be someone close to the victim, they don’t know who to trust.
As if that’s not enough, the local coven expects them to bring their cantankerous, ancient leader to heel, and she’s having none of it.
Between solving two murders and keeping a mischievous, elderly witch with power to spare from wreaking havoc, moving to a small town isn’t quite what the Balefire sisters bargained for.
If you like a good paranormal mystery with a heaping dollop of sarcasm and wit, you'll love this humorous magical story full of chaos and intrigue.
Murder Above the Fold is the first book in the Elder Witch paranormal cozy mystery series.
176 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 27, 2018
1483 people are currently reading
1077 people want to read
About the author
ReGina Welling
80 books370 followersReGina Welling prefers not to talk about herself in the third person so...
I live in Maine with my husband, a silly flufferpup named Dash, and a crazy cat named Cricket. I write full time and also create mixed media artwork when I get the chance.
When I was three, my mom brought home a new book and when she went to read it to me, I read it to her instead. That was when she realized I'd learned to read. Since then I couldn't even estimate the number of books I've read. It's a lot!
**October featured author in the Cozy Mystery Book Club.
Get "Murder Above the Fold" for FREE, plus join our "All Things Balefire" virtual scavenger hunt for your chance to win ebooks, signed paperbacks, & a Kindle Fire tablet! Just visit www.reginawelling.com and sign up for my newsletter!
I live in Maine with my husband, a silly flufferpup named Dash, and a crazy cat named Cricket. I write full time and also create mixed media artwork when I get the chance.
When I was three, my mom brought home a new book and when she went to read it to me, I read it to her instead. That was when she realized I'd learned to read. Since then I couldn't even estimate the number of books I've read. It's a lot!
**October featured author in the Cozy Mystery Book Club.
Get "Murder Above the Fold" for FREE, plus join our "All Things Balefire" virtual scavenger hunt for your chance to win ebooks, signed paperbacks, & a Kindle Fire tablet! Just visit www.reginawelling.com and sign up for my newsletter!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews
February 23, 2019
Two witches, two murders and a fun cast of characters. There are back stories for these two witches but we only get parts of them and I found that frustrating. The mysteries, the characters and the relationships were delightful. Well-written and edited.
October 26, 2020
It was just ok. I liked the sisters and the enchanted town. But it was kind of flat. It didn’t grab me. But it was enjoyable.
August 17, 2020
I like the dynamic between the two witch sisters and how they present themselves to their town as mother and daughter. A nice story even though I had the murderer figured out before the sisters did. I would read another book in this series.
November 3, 2019
I liked the premise and the main characters but the book was a bit wordy and there were a lot of characters to keep straight. I like to picture the characters in my mind as I read but couldn't really do this with these ones.
This was a free book from kobo
This was a free book from kobo
March 9, 2018
This is an easy reading little cozy which I am sure you will enjoy. Lately it seems I have been reading cozy's with Witches--and enjoying every second of them!
You are going to love the two sisters who generally disagree on most things. My favorite was the 1000 year old coven leader who was bound and determined to cause trouble. Meg and Clara were brought into town to try and control her--------
Of course they do get distracted by a dead body----and while trying to figure out who did it (law enforcement deemed it an accident)--they also happen upon the answer to a long ago "accidental death"
Murder Above the Fold
You are going to love the two sisters who generally disagree on most things. My favorite was the 1000 year old coven leader who was bound and determined to cause trouble. Meg and Clara were brought into town to try and control her--------
Of course they do get distracted by a dead body----and while trying to figure out who did it (law enforcement deemed it an accident)--they also happen upon the answer to a long ago "accidental death"
Murder Above the Fold
March 14, 2018
Since I don't normally write reviews unless I have something specific to say, here's the break down of how I rate my books...
1 star... This book was bad, so bad I may have given up and skipped to the end. I will avoid this author like the plague in the future.
2 stars... This book was not very good, and I won't be reading any more from the author.
3 stars... This book was ok, but I won't go out of my way to read more, But if I find another book by the author for under a dollar I'd pick it up.
4 stars... I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be on the look out to pick up more from the series/author.
5 stars... I loved this book! It has earned a permanent home in my collection and I'll be picking up the rest of the series and other books from the author ASAP.
September 30, 2021
Dragging for a cause
The murderer was quite obvious from the beginning and the authors decided to use every word in the English language to describe things that were unnecessary. It took forever to move the plot forward and gave snippets of backstory that really did not help move the story along. A victims father was talked about for 2 sentences but in the end they never said how he felt about the conclusion of the murder. Yet it is described in every chapter how one witch appears older due to a battle in her past. It may lay the groundwork for other books but did nothing to move the story forward. It took me longer to read this book and I wanted to love it, but had to skip PARAGRAPHS of minor details just to stay engaged.
The murderer was quite obvious from the beginning and the authors decided to use every word in the English language to describe things that were unnecessary. It took forever to move the plot forward and gave snippets of backstory that really did not help move the story along. A victims father was talked about for 2 sentences but in the end they never said how he felt about the conclusion of the murder. Yet it is described in every chapter how one witch appears older due to a battle in her past. It may lay the groundwork for other books but did nothing to move the story forward. It took me longer to read this book and I wanted to love it, but had to skip PARAGRAPHS of minor details just to stay engaged.
April 12, 2021
I was going to give this a weak 3 stars. I did read to the end, and there are pleasant enough aspects to this book.
But I kept falling asleep reading it.
The killer was obvious from the beginning, the basic reason (but not the details) also clear from the beginning. The magic was poorly explained, and they could do anything they want practically, if it fit the story, but they didn’t think to do what they can do at other times. The two main characters were bland, and somewhat interchangeable. I generally like stories of this type, but I just finished reading some Sanderson and Butcher, so my standards are temporarily higher than usual.
But I kept falling asleep reading it.
The killer was obvious from the beginning, the basic reason (but not the details) also clear from the beginning. The magic was poorly explained, and they could do anything they want practically, if it fit the story, but they didn’t think to do what they can do at other times. The two main characters were bland, and somewhat interchangeable. I generally like stories of this type, but I just finished reading some Sanderson and Butcher, so my standards are temporarily higher than usual.
November 12, 2019
Not sure
Not sure exactly what the problem was, but I have never taken so long to read a book! It wasn't fast moving enough to keep me interested for long sittings, but the storyline was interesting enough for me not to give up on it. Guess you should try it, if you enjoy the paranormal and witch stories.
Not sure exactly what the problem was, but I have never taken so long to read a book! It wasn't fast moving enough to keep me interested for long sittings, but the storyline was interesting enough for me not to give up on it. Guess you should try it, if you enjoy the paranormal and witch stories.
February 5, 2022
Ugh.
This was the first of a series, and I couldn't get past the first couple chapters. It reads as if it is a continuation of a series, with backstory details, and it's just. so. boring.
This was the first of a series, and I couldn't get past the first couple chapters. It reads as if it is a continuation of a series, with backstory details, and it's just. so. boring.
July 18, 2022
Ok but something was missing. It fell a little flat.
November 20, 2025
BOOK REPORT
First of all, the name of the shop should’ve been Bygones & Balms instead of Balms and Bygones. It just flows better, and the ampersand would be more in keeping with a book about witchery.
Second, I can handle a generic postcard-pretty town named Harmony, but “Big Spurwick River” had me rolling my eyes when I was only 1 percent into this particular paranormal cozy.
Third? Third??? THIRD??!!!
Oh my heavens at all the words in this book. SO many words. Words upon words upon words. Unnecessary. Floridly purple. Sickly sweet in many cases, bordering on flat-out wrong in others. And I won’t even get into the long-drawn-out-ed-ness of the main characters’ backstories……
Sigh. This is probably what it would look like if I attempted to write a fiction book and didn’t have people in my life who would stop me before I even attempted to self-publish it, much less tried to get an established agent interested in it.
Are there no more developmental and/or copy editors left out there? Hello? Hello???
Well. I’m sure there are plenty of people who enjoyed this, and will enjoy the subsequent books in the series. I’m just not amongst them.
First of all, the name of the shop should’ve been Bygones & Balms instead of Balms and Bygones. It just flows better, and the ampersand would be more in keeping with a book about witchery.
Second, I can handle a generic postcard-pretty town named Harmony, but “Big Spurwick River” had me rolling my eyes when I was only 1 percent into this particular paranormal cozy.
Third? Third??? THIRD??!!!
Oh my heavens at all the words in this book. SO many words. Words upon words upon words. Unnecessary. Floridly purple. Sickly sweet in many cases, bordering on flat-out wrong in others. And I won’t even get into the long-drawn-out-ed-ness of the main characters’ backstories……
Sigh. This is probably what it would look like if I attempted to write a fiction book and didn’t have people in my life who would stop me before I even attempted to self-publish it, much less tried to get an established agent interested in it.
Are there no more developmental and/or copy editors left out there? Hello? Hello???
Well. I’m sure there are plenty of people who enjoyed this, and will enjoy the subsequent books in the series. I’m just not amongst them.
July 26, 2022
entertaining paranormal cozy mystery series
This is an entertaining paranormal cozy mystery series. A funcast of characters and an entertaining storyline. The Bellfire which is a couple of sisters have been hired to move to a new town to keep track of the retired high priestess which it was almost 1000 years old. She’s a bit baddie and determined to expose magic in her town at least that’s what her successor tells them. Her successor a pretentious young witch who seems more like she wants to be one of the real housewives of somewhere and does not want any of the witches in her coven do use magic in public is a bit too snooty for her britches. The bell fire witches when they’re small antique/Health goods shop and keep an ion Agatha or Agee as she calls her self. They must also find out who committed the crime that occurs in this particular novel. It is an entertaining story and a fun read. Lots of quirky and fun characters and a nice mystery who done it.
This is an entertaining paranormal cozy mystery series. A funcast of characters and an entertaining storyline. The Bellfire which is a couple of sisters have been hired to move to a new town to keep track of the retired high priestess which it was almost 1000 years old. She’s a bit baddie and determined to expose magic in her town at least that’s what her successor tells them. Her successor a pretentious young witch who seems more like she wants to be one of the real housewives of somewhere and does not want any of the witches in her coven do use magic in public is a bit too snooty for her britches. The bell fire witches when they’re small antique/Health goods shop and keep an ion Agatha or Agee as she calls her self. They must also find out who committed the crime that occurs in this particular novel. It is an entertaining story and a fun read. Lots of quirky and fun characters and a nice mystery who done it.
July 13, 2018
Murder in a small town
I enjoy cozy mysteries and this is right up there. Even though Margaret and Clara Balefire are know as mother and daughter, they are in reality sisters. They were invited to join the witches coven in Harmony mostly to keep a handle on Hagatha, a very powerful witch that has decided that the mortal world should know about the world of magic. Clara and Mag have opened Balms and Bygones, a shop that sells antiques and skin care and meet with the editor of the local paper to do a story on the shop. Marsha ends up dead having fallen from a bridge. Was it an accident or was it murder? I received an advanced copy of this book and decided to give an honest review.
I enjoy cozy mysteries and this is right up there. Even though Margaret and Clara Balefire are know as mother and daughter, they are in reality sisters. They were invited to join the witches coven in Harmony mostly to keep a handle on Hagatha, a very powerful witch that has decided that the mortal world should know about the world of magic. Clara and Mag have opened Balms and Bygones, a shop that sells antiques and skin care and meet with the editor of the local paper to do a story on the shop. Marsha ends up dead having fallen from a bridge. Was it an accident or was it murder? I received an advanced copy of this book and decided to give an honest review.
February 10, 2019
Entertaining
I received this book free from one of the book sites. I do not remember which one! This is my honest and voluntary review.
Having read some of the other book series about Lexi Balefire, I wanted to check out this book. One of the characters is Lexi's grandmother! I found the mystery well plotted. I figured out quickly the "who" in the mystery, but was wondering how the heck the confession was to be extracted. Well when reading a book that has witches as characters, I should have known magic would be in the air!
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys cozy, witchy mysteries. It's funny, magical. and mysterious. I look forward to reading more background about Mags & Clara Belfire. Oh, I love their shop idea!
I received this book free from one of the book sites. I do not remember which one! This is my honest and voluntary review.
Having read some of the other book series about Lexi Balefire, I wanted to check out this book. One of the characters is Lexi's grandmother! I found the mystery well plotted. I figured out quickly the "who" in the mystery, but was wondering how the heck the confession was to be extracted. Well when reading a book that has witches as characters, I should have known magic would be in the air!
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys cozy, witchy mysteries. It's funny, magical. and mysterious. I look forward to reading more background about Mags & Clara Belfire. Oh, I love their shop idea!
July 22, 2021
The story of two sisters brought to a small town to try and keep an older witch in check. The older witch was accused of wanting to show magic exists to the world, starting with their town. Unfortunately, shortly after arriving the editor of the newspaper was murdered. The sisters found her.
Silly and funny interaction between the sisters, as most siblings act, added a light heartedness to the story. Mag’s thoughts and commentary, spoken under her breath, was hilarious. I laughed quite often. The sisters were very good at solving crimes and mysteries, mostly because of their backgrounds. With the help of the crazy older witch, some very dark secrets were brought to light. Wonderful first series book. Looking forward to more.
Silly and funny interaction between the sisters, as most siblings act, added a light heartedness to the story. Mag’s thoughts and commentary, spoken under her breath, was hilarious. I laughed quite often. The sisters were very good at solving crimes and mysteries, mostly because of their backgrounds. With the help of the crazy older witch, some very dark secrets were brought to light. Wonderful first series book. Looking forward to more.
February 22, 2024
A thoroughly enjoyable series starter. Sisters Clara and Margaret are two hundred and fifty years old witches living in a small town where magic in public is forbidden. Clara and Margaret are very different people. Margaret went off on her own and something terrible happened and aged her before her time. It also made her into somewhat of a curmudgeon. The sniping between the sisters is constant but the flavor of it changes throughout. Sometimes snippy and sometimes loving. I particularly enjoyed their banter because even through the sniping, you could feel the love between them.
The mystery was intriguing though early clues told me the murderer. I did enjoy the hunt for the killer and really liked the scene of the reveal.
I will definitely be reading more in this series.
The mystery was intriguing though early clues told me the murderer. I did enjoy the hunt for the killer and really liked the scene of the reveal.
I will definitely be reading more in this series.
September 16, 2020
A fun paranormal crime duo!
Mag and Clara Balefire moved to Harmony to join a new coven. Their antiquities and personal care shop, Balms and Bygones, is a hit with the locals but some magic meddling from the local witch-non-gratis creates complications. Then there is that woman’s body they found below the bridge. The police investigators say it was an accident but their witchy senses tell them it was a murder and they are determined to seek justice for the victim.
This was a fun read and an enjoyable cozy mystery. I liked the interactions between Mag and Clara. Hagatha’s antics were hilarious and Penelope and her cohorts promise future confrontations and drama.
Mag and Clara Balefire moved to Harmony to join a new coven. Their antiquities and personal care shop, Balms and Bygones, is a hit with the locals but some magic meddling from the local witch-non-gratis creates complications. Then there is that woman’s body they found below the bridge. The police investigators say it was an accident but their witchy senses tell them it was a murder and they are determined to seek justice for the victim.
This was a fun read and an enjoyable cozy mystery. I liked the interactions between Mag and Clara. Hagatha’s antics were hilarious and Penelope and her cohorts promise future confrontations and drama.
February 17, 2019
Murder above the Fold
Mag and Clara are sister witches posing as mother and daughter and the owner of a personal care and antiques shop in Harmony. After finding the owner of the Harmony Holler newspaper dead in the bushes by the creek, they vow to find and expose the killer. In their investigation, they find that there was an old “accident” that seemed linked to the new murder.
This story was very entertaining. It is part of a series and I believe one that is worth following.
Mag and Clara are sister witches posing as mother and daughter and the owner of a personal care and antiques shop in Harmony. After finding the owner of the Harmony Holler newspaper dead in the bushes by the creek, they vow to find and expose the killer. In their investigation, they find that there was an old “accident” that seemed linked to the new murder.
This story was very entertaining. It is part of a series and I believe one that is worth following.
May 24, 2022
I picked this up after starting a book for a book club, that was not working for me & it ended up being a nice palate cleanse. The snarky humor is always up my alley & was giggling on page 1. Since it's a series I presume we'll get more of the backstory on the sisters as we go along, so I'm not "mad" about not getting it here. As with all cosy mysteries, you are always introduced to the killer somewhere along the way, but I don't generally try to figure out "who done it" and am just along for the ride. I am interested in reading the next book.
October 24, 2019
A cute paranormal cozy mystery with humor. Mag and Clara are as different as can be. Each one brings a different attitude and skillset to solving a murder. They work very well together. Hagatha is a real hoot! I hope she features in the rest of the series. I had the murderer figured out right away but that didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story. This was my first book by either author but I look forward to reading more of their work.
January 22, 2020
Odd little paranormal cosy mystery
Well, Mag and Clara Balefire aren’t your usual protagonists. They are strong and independent women who circumvented a police investigation because they thought they would do a better job. Add this detective work to trying to figure out what old Haggie is up to, and thwarting Penelope and her hangers on whenever possible, Mag and Clara have certainly got their hands full.
Well, Mag and Clara Balefire aren’t your usual protagonists. They are strong and independent women who circumvented a police investigation because they thought they would do a better job. Add this detective work to trying to figure out what old Haggie is up to, and thwarting Penelope and her hangers on whenever possible, Mag and Clara have certainly got their hands full.
July 10, 2024
Actually 4.5 stars
A good mystery and very funny! I appreciated the storyline and the characters had some depth. The only thing that was off, for me, was I almost felt as if I had walked into the story midway. The characters obviously had a life before this book and while it is expected I often felt I had missed something. It's okay, I'm sure as the series progresses more of the Balefire sisters' past will come to light.
A good mystery and very funny! I appreciated the storyline and the characters had some depth. The only thing that was off, for me, was I almost felt as if I had walked into the story midway. The characters obviously had a life before this book and while it is expected I often felt I had missed something. It's okay, I'm sure as the series progresses more of the Balefire sisters' past will come to light.
May 8, 2018
Coven rules.
The Balefire sisters have come to town to try to keep the oldest witch in line and living by the rules. They love a good mystery, and I would've given the book more stars, but if you payed attention you knew who the killer was right away, yet it took several chapters to get to him.
The Balefire sisters have come to town to try to keep the oldest witch in line and living by the rules. They love a good mystery, and I would've given the book more stars, but if you payed attention you knew who the killer was right away, yet it took several chapters to get to him.
July 9, 2018
Such a cute story
I have always been fond of witches and the magic. This was such a cute sorry about two sisters in a small little town and keeping soothe older witch out of trouble but they find themselves smack in the middle of it. It was a very quick and easy read. I can't wait to see the trouble they get into next and learn more about them and their past. Definite recommend.
I have always been fond of witches and the magic. This was such a cute sorry about two sisters in a small little town and keeping soothe older witch out of trouble but they find themselves smack in the middle of it. It was a very quick and easy read. I can't wait to see the trouble they get into next and learn more about them and their past. Definite recommend.
February 12, 2019
This is a delightful, well written
The characters are developing well. The quirkiness of Hagatha added to the fun as the Balesfire sisters make the connection between a decade old fall and one much more recent. Were they the accidents they appeared, or something much uglier ?ere they the accidents they appeared, or something much uglier
The characters are developing well. The quirkiness of Hagatha added to the fun as the Balesfire sisters make the connection between a decade old fall and one much more recent. Were they the accidents they appeared, or something much uglier ?ere they the accidents they appeared, or something much uglier
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December 2, 2019Abandoned at 15%. I normally give a book a bit more than the initial set up, but that was the problem here, there didn't seem to be a set up. Too many characters, didn't know what was happening, wasn't sure what the stakes were. Looked sorta cute (magical cozy mystery) and it was free on a Bookbub promo, so nothing lost. Just nothing gained either.
February 10, 2022
It would be fun to learn more about the backstories of Mag and Clara - mentioned but not really explained. One was transformed to stone for 25 years while the other had life force stolen. They look more like mother and daughter than sisters.
A woman is murdered and the pair start investigating. Looking for the truth
A woman is murdered and the pair start investigating. Looking for the truth
February 23, 2022
What's it mean to be a Witch? To do no harm. A great story. Something to look at and see what living the kind of life to the fullest can mean. I enjoyed the story very much. There was some fun and laughter there too. I like Mag's attitude. Some times Clair seems clueless. Not in any way bad. She just does not know what her sister will do, or take something differently than most.
October 15, 2022
I felt like I had missed a bunch of backstory from the very beginning and it didn't get any better, not a good thing for the first in a series. I also found the characters one dimensional and un-relatable. After a few chapters, I gave up. I have too much on my TBR pile to finish a book I'm not enjoying.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews