Pumpkin Pies & Potions by Polly Holmes is a cozy mystery story. Evelyn Grayson has lost both parents and is now living with her Aunt Edie and Miss Saffron, Evelyn’s familiar, in a magical town. You see, Evelyn is a graduate witch. Camille Stenson makes it her business to be grumpy and she intends to interfere with the Saltwater Cove Halloween celebrations. Only one thing stops her from doing it – her own death. Murdered in her office, it appears that only one person could have done it – Harriet, Evelyn’s friend. That’s before attention shifts to Vivienne, Edie’s best friend who bakes all things pumpkin – and Camille appears to have been poisoned. Evelyn and Harriet step up to the plate to try to clear Vivienne’s name but they are facing some dark magic. It will take all Evelyn’s energy to find the real killer and solve the mystery before it is too late.

Pumpkin Pies & Potions by Polly Holmes is the first book in the Melting Pot Café series and is a great story to pass a few hours. It has plenty of humor, not to mention action all the way through, and an easy to follow plot. The characters are a quirky mix, very likable and easy to relate to – if you know any witches, that is – and with a wonderfully sassy talking cat. This is a light-hearted story, as you would expect from this genre, and is an easy read. It has a few twists and turns in it, some you won't expect, and the storyline will keep you guessing as to who the real villain is until right near the end. If you like a light tale that you can lose yourself in, a story to take you away from the realities of life right now, this story is for you.

A fitting cozy mystery for the Halloween season, Pumpkin Pies and Potions by Polly Holmes offers readers a great cast of characters, some with special witching talents. The book first introduces readers to The Melting Pot, a witch-themed café in Saltwater Cove; Aunt Edie, its proprietor; and Evelyn, her niece and witch-in-training. This is the first book in The Melting Pot Cozy Mystery series and gives readers characters and a setting that will welcome them back. The excitement of preparing for the upcoming Halloween festivities is interrupted by a murder at the local bank. By the end of the book, readers will have had their suspicions aroused, their theories proven wrong, and their guesses complicated by layers of new information and additional characters to consider.

Evelyn is a fun, smart, spunky witch, learning more each day from her Aunt Edie and The Melting Pot’s wonderful well-stocked pantry. Author Polly Holmes introduces readers to Evelyn’s ‘familiar,' her cat Saffron, her good friends, Harriet and Jordi, and her best friend Tyler, newly returned from abroad with an eyebrow-raising new physique. Pumpkin Pies and Potions moves along quickly, bringing new characters and possible motives into play, keeping readers entertained till the end. Readers will witness snooping at the crime scene, visions, shape-shifting, the Elder Flame witch coven, and a moonlight dark magic ritual. There’s even an element of attraction between some characters that adds a touch of spice to the delicious cozy mystery recipe. Pumpkin Pies and Potions is a tasty introduction to The Melting Pot Cozy Mystery series.