Lee Barrett has landed her dream job at Salem’s WICH-TV. As the new field reporter, she’ll be covering events live as they happen. On her holiday checklist is an interview with the chairman of a popular walking tour through Salem’s historic district. Unfortunately, it may be his ghost walking on this snowy Noel season after Lee finds him murdered in his office, his bloody Santa hat askew.

With her police detective boyfriend working the case and a plethora of suspects—including some bell-ringing Santa’s. Lee chases down leads aided by her wise cat O’Ryan and some unsettling psychic visions of her own. When a revealing clue leads to another dead body, not even a blizzard can stop Lee from inching closer to the truth, and a scoop that could spell her own demise this Christmas.

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Series: A Witch City Mystery - Book 7
Author: Carol J. Perry
Genre: Cozy/Witch Mystery
Publisher: Kensington Books

Carol Perry is a talented writer who obviously enjoys her characters and seeks to flesh them out as much as possible. The writing is smooth and balanced with just enough adventure, action and emotion to make the reader care about the characters and thrill at turning the page.

Bells, Spells, and Murders is the 7th book in the “Witch City Mystery” series. It is a pleasurable read, easy to follow and filled with all the things and characters that make this a great series. There was a little less of River North, and other ongoing characters than most readers would expect but the story overall was enjoyable as always.

Lee Barrett is a very likable character with issues that plague most people in the world today. Her excitement over her new job is contagious. Yet her compassion for the victim is palpable even though she never met him. Trying to figure out a murder while maintaining her boss’s expectation of her work is a balancing act that Lee pulls off with no problem. However, add in the fact that she and her boyfriend, Pete, have recently moved in together, and it is taking a bit more work than she had thought it would to adjust, makes for a very absorbing story. Aunt Ibby never plays a big enough role in this series, or at least not as much as most readers would like. Unfortunately, this does not change in the new addition to the series.

When the killer is finally unmasked in this story, it doesn’t come as that big of a surprise to those who know this author's style and the way she structures her stories. This does not detract from the delight of the book, and in fact, helps enhance the reader's interest.

Bells, Spells, and Murders is a pleasant read that will take the reader away on a trip to Salam, and into a world, most people never get to experience. I highly recommend this book and the series to anyone that wishes to sit down with a book that doesn’t leave them scratching their head or having unanswered questions.

ARC provided by Netgalley

This series just keeps getting better! I’m not a huge paranormal cozy fan, but the stories are so well written that I am hooked. The Christmas setting makes it cozy and you can’t help but love Lee, her aunt, boyfriend and best friend and her cat! The series is set in Salem and you can’t guess the ending. Cozy lovers should definitely check this book out even if paranormal cozies aren’t your thing. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.

I love that holiday feeling, even in the sweltering heat of August. I was thrilled to get an ARC of Carol J. Perry's upcoming Witch City Mystery Bells, Spells and Murders. I have been a huge fan of this series for years and found this cozy mystery to be perfectly delightful. It was however a little light on the paranormal this time, but still an excellent read! I love the main character. Lee is a very relatable and personable. She is creative, talented and curious. I love her aunt, boyfriend and best friend in this series and of course her lovely cat as well! This story takes place in December and even though for me it is the end of August, the story did leave me with that warm and cozy holiday feeling. Complex and cozy, complicate and celebratory, Bells, Spells and Murders is a very good read.

The latest entry in one of my favourite cozy series knocks it out of the park! Perry crafts a charming yet menacing tale that invokes the spirit of Christie and Hitchcock. A perfect read for a snowy day when you’re safe and warm.

I have really enjoyed reading this series from the beginning.
This book was a little different from the rest as Lee became a field reporter on live TV , she is trying to solve the murder also trying to get a scoop at the same time so how much can she reveal to the tv and how much should she keep to herself and her boyfriend detective Pete and trying to keep a balance of the truth.
Saying all that about Lee I love all the characters in this series and the paranormal elements.
I never guessed who the killer was it came as a complete surprise.
I would recommend this book and series.
I will look forward to the next book . Many thanks to nettgalley and publishers Kensington books for given me a chance to read and review this book..

This series is one of my favourties, and this latest offering did not disappoint!
The whodunit kept my interest and guessing right until the end.
I love the characters, and the premise of this series.
I strongly recommend you read this series in order and I cannot wait to read the next one.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

I want to start off by saying I really love the Witch City mystery series. It's actually one of my favorite mystery series and I always look forward to a new one. That being said, I can't really say I loved Bells, Spells, and Murders. The plot wasn't that great and there were a lot of timeline inconsistencies throughout the book that confused me. For instance, on one page it was mentioned that the lighted boat parade was the following day, then not that long after, and during the same conversation between Lee and Pete, the parade was referred to being later that same evening. I wish I could say that was the only timeline inconsistency. It happened several times. And there were name changes and random words inserted in sentences, as well as misspellings. I can usually ignore all of these things if they happen sparingly throughout a book. However, the mistakes were so often in this book that it actually detracted from my ability to enjoy reading it. I can only hope that I was sent an uncorrected e-galley of the book and that all of these issues will be fixed before final publication. Because, honestly, the sheer number of mistakes in the book should get the author's editor fired if they make it to publication. Beyond the abundant mistakes throughout the book, I wasn't really enthralled by the plot. The murder happened almost immediately when the book began. That's usually not a good sign, especially in a long book. Most of the book was Lee being a reporter and about the various assignments she reported on. Boring. Her visions weren't really as much of a plot point as they've been in the past, and neither was her friend, River North. Instead we had to endure Lee's other WICH-TV colleagues, including the flat character of Francine. In the past, I've always had a difficult time putting a Witch City mystery book down. This time I had a difficult time finishing the book. It was quite boring and lacked much of what made all the other books in the series great: Lee having a life outside of work, Lee's interaction with her friend, River North, more focus put on Lee's visions and River helping her with tarot readings, etc. I couldn't even make myself care about who killed Mr. Eldridge because he was dead before we even got to meet him. I was just completely disappointed in this book. I will read the next one in the series because, like I said, I've loved all the other books in the series. I just hope the next one is way better and the author goes back to how the series used to be. I don't want another book that revolves solely around Lee's job as a reporter.

Note: I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of this book in exchange for my fair and honest review.

This an average cozy mystery. A reader doesn't need to start the series from the beginning to enjoy this but it does add some depth. I like the setting of Salem, Mass. very much. I especially enjoy the fact that the author was raised there and can offer a realistic perspective of the setting. Overall, I do feel there are other witch themed cozy series out there that are more to my taste. I lean towards the paranormal more than contemporary. This is a good fluffy read and it seems to be the best in the series so far although I haven't had a chance to read them all. Carol J. Perry has a strong fan base for a reason and I see this series continuing on for a long time and for the main character Lee Barrett to get even more interesting as her career path moves up and up.

Yikes! My very first cozy mystery from this author and I was skeered. I feel like it seems that authors are taking advantage of reviews because a lot of their work is getting better instead of worse. While there were some verbiage I did not understand, I guess I figured it out ok. Other than that, this author certainly knows how to scare the pants off of you. As I was was reading along, I found myself wishing I could spend Christmas with her characters. If you like scary books then you really will like this one.

Thank you to netgalley as well as the author/publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.


5+ stars ⭐️ out of 5

I received this book, via Netgalley, in return for an honest review. Great cosy mystery book! Not the first in the series, but you don't need to read the others to enjoy this book. Lee is a new reporter at WICH-TV, in Salem. She lives in a great old house with her aunt, having returned home after an on-air journalism trashing of her former boss (ugh!). Now that she's in town, it's the holidays and she ends up in the thick of things to solve the murder of a local philanthropist, whom she'd scheduled to interview. Add in pets, snowstorms, and good friends to help suss out motives and means, these combine for an excellent cosy mystery. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more by this author.

There is an engaging conversational style about these books that draws me in from page one. I have enjoyed all the Witch City Mysteries so far and Bells, Spells and Murders is every bit as bewitching (pun intended!) as the first in the series! It is Christmas time and Lee has landed her first job as a field reporter. She arrives early for an interview with Mr. Eldridge, Chair of the local holiday walking tour and financial supporter of a number of charities in Salem, Mass. The interview never transpires, however, because instead of finding the benefactor filled with Christmas spirit, she finds Mr. Eldridge lifeless at his desk. It soon appears to be foul play when secrets are discovered and Lee’s “visions” kick in. This is a wonderful “whodunnit” with a splash of paranormal thrown in. The author knows how to pen characters that come to life, plot captivating stories and paint vividly realistic scenes. Five stars.

I haven't actually read any of the other books in this series but I felt right at home and managed to find my way amongst the various previous plot lines.

Lee is settling into her new job at WICH-TV. She is finally going to get hard hitting stories in amongst the fluff. First up is a piece on the immense charity works undertaken by the elderly Mr Eldridge. But less is dropped into hot water big time when she finds him dead!

Her boyfriend may be the lead detective on the case but he is professional to the core and treats her like any other witness, which Lee both commends and condemns, especially when she can't get her unique input to her viewers.

Salem itself is a great background character in the book. Aunt Ibby is a hoot and Pete, well he's all smouldering charm. I likes this book a lot and the weaving lot laid lots of red herrings!

This cozy paranormal series, just makes me so happy. While it's the 7th book in this series, it can easily be read as a standalone (though as always, it's helpful to read the others just for background purposes)

In this installment, intrepid reporter Lee, has started her field reporter position with WICH-TV when she discovers the dead body very of her first on air interview. Realizing things aren't as they seem, her and her Aunt Ibby start digging in to try to uncover who would do this to a man that has done so much for their community.

I keep expecting to get bored with the storylines or to lose interest in the characters, but with each book, I enjoy them more and more. Well worth picking up!

Thank you Netgalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2484487093

I’ve been a fan of this series since the first book. I love Lee and Pete, and their relationship. And,of course, the whodunit mystery is perfect, as always. Highly recommended!

Love this series so much and it has some of my favorite characters. Takes me back to my Salem visits every time. A little odd to be reading in 80 degree weather, but it's a well written and developed story, very enjoyable and as always looking forward to the next one.

My review has been posted to Goodreads.

Review has also been tweeted as usual.

Thank you! :c)

This series has had its ups and downs, but this installment had me at the edge of my seat and I couldn't put it down! The characters still seem to be finding their way, but in a creative, very engaging way. The mystery was well written and the killer a definite surprise! I cannot wait to see what else the author has in store.

I love this series. Lee is a fabulous character. She's smart, thoughtful, and independent. Her boyfriend cop Pete, is a good one too. Lee is also taking a course in Criminology. Very cool. They work well together and there's no real angst between them when Lee and her visions can help with an investigation.
All the characters are wonderful from Lee's Aunt Ibby to O'Ryan the cat!

Lee Barrett plays an excellent role in Bells, Spells, and Murder by Carol J. Perry.
I've read all the books in this series and this one has to be my favorite.
As a child who visited Salem many times, this series appeals to me for many reasons. The author weaves a well told take of mystery, keeping the reader engaged from beginning to end.
The cover art is exceptional and I couldn't resist taking peeks of the cover while I was reading.
It's Christmas in Salem and Lee is working hard at her new role at WICH-TV. As an investigative reporter, she has the chance to meet Mr. Eldridge, who supports numerous charities in Salem.
Unfortunately, right before Lee is to interview him, she finds him dead in his chair, and from there things just get worse.
Someone has too many secrets, and Lee, along with her Aunt Ibby and hunk detective Pete, is determined to find the answers.
The author described Salem in such a way that I could see the beautiful holiday lights and the swirling snow as I was reading the story.
The characters are so realistic, it's not hard to imagine yourself having a cup of tea and one of Aunt Ibby's delicious meals, while catching up on the latest news.
This is quite an interesting series and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes cozy mysteries.

I volunteered to read and review an ARC of this book provided by the publisher and NetGalley .

An enjoyable addition to the series. This book has holiday cheer, plenty of mysteries, delightful situations and a great view of the city of Salem. Very enjoyable. #Bells,Spells,AndMurders #NetGalley