I was extremely disappointed in this book. I absolutely love the author's "Books by the Bay" series, but this book just left me completely flat. In fact, I didn't even read the whole thing because I realized in the middle of the book that not only didn't I care about the main character, but I didn't even care whodunit!

The main character seemed totally one-dimensional. Cliched and boring. Not to mention a bit dim-witted if she'd grown up in this household and never knew that her mother or aunts had any sort of powers.

I'm so disappointed. I was hoping I'd enjoy it as much as I enjoy the other series. ( )

A real fun read, full of heavenly food, murder, mystery, magic and fun characters. A real cosy mystery. ( )

Ella Mae LeFaye has returned to her hometown of Havenwood, Georgia after discovering her husband was cheating on her with the goal of opening her own pie shop. Supporting her in her efforts is her mother, three aunts, and their long-time maid. However, when the fiance of Ella Mae's long-time nemesis is found murdered and the murder weapon is her rolling pin, Ella Mae's return home is more difficult than she anticipated.

Reading this book I was highly aware that if I'd been in the wrong mood, I would have abandoned it. However, it happened to catch me in all the optimism of a new year and I made it through the whole book but finished it with no intention of returning to this cozy mystery series. The content is pretty run of the mill for the genre although the prose runs a little heavy on the overly descriptive language. The antagonist is an over the top villain who doesn't feel like a real person. The book has a dash of magical realism throughout (Ella Mae's pies can make people feel the emotions she had when making the pie) that tips over into full out fantasy by the end of the novel. The mystery is decent but not particularly suspenseful. Overall, I don't regret the read but I'll likely forget it quickly and be entirely fine with it. Ultimately the best thing about the book is the title. ( )

Cute magical realism. A mashup of the classic pie baking, cozy mystery and the cozy witch comes into her powers for the first time after returning home. ( )

This book was SO BAD. And I don't even expect a lot from cozy mysteries like this, but it still was so bad. It was trying very hard to be Practical Magic, the awesome Alice Hoffman book, but it just ended up being ridiculously overwritten and fussy. ( )