by: Carmen Radtke
Series: Willowmere Mystery
Genre: Paranormal Cozy Mystery
Release Date: May 23, 2025
Midlife can be murder – or magic…
Almost fifty and freshly divorced, Bex Merriweather is going through The Change – battling hot flashes and night sweats. Little does she realize that when an elderly relative dies and leaves her a lending library in sleepy Willowmere, complete with cat, her whole life is going to change…
Turns out Aunt Violet left behind more than books and home-made herbal teas, like full-blown witch powers, and a small town where murder is very much on the menu. Even Cosmo the cat is no ordinary feline, but a sassy talking familiar. And when rumors about her aunt’s death begin to circulate, Bex has no choice but to embrace her witchy inheritance, and her inner detective.
Now the novice witch, armed only with her circle of lifelong friends and a snarky, judgemental cat mentor, must uncover the truth, before her newly acquired magical life goes up in smoke.
Perfect for fans of cozy mysteries, magical mayhem, and heroines who believe it’s never too late for a new chapter—or a little witchcraft!
I opened the carrier. Cosmo dashed past Aunt Violet’s bedroom and the kitchen, into the den with his precious windowsill. He jumped onto it, growling as loud as I’d ever heard him.
“What’s up?” I stroked his head.
“That’s a good question.” Louisa had joined me at the window. Together, we gazed at a couple of people in plastic Tyvek suits entering Jake’s house. The taller one carried a large black suitcase, and behind him followed a policeman.
“What did he die of?” I asked, with a sinking heart. I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear the answer.
“A heart attack, from what I heard. Natural causes. Except –”
“Then why send the police and crime scene investigators?” I shivered. “But why only now, several days later?”
She shook her head. “No idea. I only hope it’s nothing. Because otherwise …”
I finished the sentence for her. “They might be looking at murder.”
Under Louisa’s watch, I grabbed a wicker basket my aunt had stored magazines in, emptied it, and refilled it with Cosmo’s blanket, spare blanket, blanket in case the other two were in the wash, balls, sticks with and without feathers, and his set of brushes. Meanwhile, he prowled around the room.
To my relief, he returned to the carrier as soon as I was done. Lifting it and the basket turned out to be more of a workout than I’d anticipated. Or the stupid hormones went out of whack again. Whatever the reason, when I left the house in full view of the police car, I needed to mop sweat of my brow.
Louisa locked the door behind us. “Give me a call if you need anything,” she said. She peeked at Cosmo, who pressed his nose against the bubble. “He’s such a sweet boy.”
Apart from a loud hiss as we passed Jake’s house, the sweet boy stayed silent all the way back to our room at the Blue Moon.
I let him out while I filled his bowl with chicken. He’d only had a tiny breakfast in case he suffered from car sickness or nerves while we were at the law office.The basket was the next item on my list to unpack.
I shook out the blanket, the spare blanket and the other one, when I heard words behind me.“I was hoping it’d be you.”
I spun around, to stare directly at the cat who’d jumped onto the headboard of the bed. My head swiveled as I scanned the room. Where was the person I’d heard?
I was looking back at Cosmo when he opened his mouth. “Listen up, buttercup, we need to talk.”
I did the only sensible thing and fainted.
“What’s up?” I stroked his head.
“That’s a good question.” Louisa had joined me at the window. Together, we gazed at a couple of people in plastic Tyvek suits entering Jake’s house. The taller one carried a large black suitcase, and behind him followed a policeman.
“What did he die of?” I asked, with a sinking heart. I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear the answer.
“A heart attack, from what I heard. Natural causes. Except –”
“Then why send the police and crime scene investigators?” I shivered. “But why only now, several days later?”
She shook her head. “No idea. I only hope it’s nothing. Because otherwise …”
I finished the sentence for her. “They might be looking at murder.”
Under Louisa’s watch, I grabbed a wicker basket my aunt had stored magazines in, emptied it, and refilled it with Cosmo’s blanket, spare blanket, blanket in case the other two were in the wash, balls, sticks with and without feathers, and his set of brushes. Meanwhile, he prowled around the room.
To my relief, he returned to the carrier as soon as I was done. Lifting it and the basket turned out to be more of a workout than I’d anticipated. Or the stupid hormones went out of whack again. Whatever the reason, when I left the house in full view of the police car, I needed to mop sweat of my brow.
Louisa locked the door behind us. “Give me a call if you need anything,” she said. She peeked at Cosmo, who pressed his nose against the bubble. “He’s such a sweet boy.”
Apart from a loud hiss as we passed Jake’s house, the sweet boy stayed silent all the way back to our room at the Blue Moon.
I let him out while I filled his bowl with chicken. He’d only had a tiny breakfast in case he suffered from car sickness or nerves while we were at the law office.The basket was the next item on my list to unpack.
I shook out the blanket, the spare blanket and the other one, when I heard words behind me.“I was hoping it’d be you.”
I spun around, to stare directly at the cat who’d jumped onto the headboard of the bed. My head swiveled as I scanned the room. Where was the person I’d heard?
I was looking back at Cosmo when he opened his mouth. “Listen up, buttercup, we need to talk.”
I did the only sensible thing and fainted.
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The Willowmere Mystery Series:
Axes and Alchemy (Book 2) releases August 15, 2025
She has worked as a newspaper reporter on two continents and always dreamt of becoming a novelist and screenwriter.
When she found herself crouched under her dining table, typing away on a novel between two earthquakes in Christchurch, New Zealand, she realised she was hooked for life.
The shaken but stirring novel made it to the longlist of the Mslexia competition, and her next book and first mystery, The Case Of The Missing Bride, was a finalist in the Malice Domestic competition in a year without a winner. Since then she has penned several more cozy mysteries, including the Genie and Adriana Darling ghost mysteries and the Jack and Frances series set in the 1930s.
Carmen now lives in Italy with her human and her four-legged family. Although she possesses no witchy powers, she’s known to be easily held spellbound by animals.
Places to find Carmen Radtke:
You can follow the Funerals and Familiars Blog Tour here.
Cool cover
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