Butter Witch (Torrent Witches Cozy Mysteries Book 1)

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Inspired by friends who were taking part in the Medicine Spoon Memorial textile project to commemorate those women who were persecuted as witches, I applied and was sent a spoon to embroider and the name of a woman, Margaret Butter. Then you realise the story line has pulled you in, the characters have become real with you waiting for their next move! I’ll tell you what: I’ll send both of you fine journalists a press release and see how you report on it tomorrow. Add to that how she can see and communicate with ghosts, and Harlow is a woman who never seems to have a dull moment.

This was a series I was able to pick up in a box set, and I figured it would be a nice change of pace, having a mystery occur in a small town, rather than an end-of-the-world style event I am used to from Butcher. It was actually Snorri Sturluson no less, who documents Connor, King of Ireland, defeating the Orkney Vikings at Ulfreksfjord in 1018. Looking down, the mill owner could see the severed paw in the dirt at his feet, still spilling blood.When Harlow stumbles across the dead body of one of the contestants, drained of its blood by magical means, she takes it upon herself to try and figure out who the murderer is and why they took the blood. It spread across England and her colonies the fear of evil spirits and demons, and most especially witches. On the same night, her apartment building burns down (possibly because she set it on fire in her sleep) and Harlow is left with nothing but her old car, the clothes on her back, and her indestructible, back-from-the-dead talking cat, Adams. Shiny or matt mid-to dark-brown or black and gelatinous (but noticeably firmer than Yellow Brain Tremella mesenterica and most other jelly fungi) when wet, turning olive brown and shrivelling to a warty crust during very dry weather. The art of "dowsing", or carrying a sort of branch in the shape of a wishbone around until it points south, presumably at an underground source of water, is an example of helpful, "good witching.

Between dealing with sleazy real estate developers intent on getting their hands on Torrent Mansion, a teenage Slip Witch who just might be the Queen of Sarcasm, a talking magical cat who smells like lavender, and an AWOL potential future boyfriend, Harlow would love nothing more than a peaceful Summer. There aren’t that many mushrooms you can forage year-round, but orange witch’s butter will pop out of softwood logs any day of the year.Butter Witch, the first book in the Torrent Witches series, is a funny, supernatural murder mystery that centers of a family of witches in Harlot Bay, North Carolina. It also reminded me of books like Alice Hoffman's Practical Magic and The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman.

I’m not going to put up with bias,” he declared before marching away, his eyebrows twitching like crazy. The magic portion was lighthearted and doesn't go dark and twisty like some other mysteries I've read. Good stories, quirky characters, interesting settings, and a nice mix of humor, romance, plausible magic, and mystery.

It’s not hard to spot a common, bright orange mushroom and the little girl seemed to be drawn to it. Taxonomic history and synonym information on these pages is drawn from many sources but in particular from the British Mycological Society's GB Checklist of Fungi. This jelly fungus is of dubious edibility, and in any case it is too insubstantial to be worth collecting for food. A local wise woman, well versed in such arcane lore, and reputedly able to see with the "second sight," recommended the following "treatment" for this particular supernatural malady.

He also knows that sometimes our family can help when traditional methods of investigation have failed. Soon, his water was back to normal, and the old witch next door (both in the literal and figurative sense) found her villainous plans thwarted. Witches, you see, poisoned wells, or killed cattle; abducted infants, turned their fat into tallow, danced with the Devil at his ghastly revels on Walpurgisnacht. This simple sourdough spiral is lightly cheesy with a perfectly golden crust and tender, chewy texture.

Again, the reader or listener is expected to draw one, and only one, conclusion from the tale's twist ending.