I thought Snuffed Out by Valona Jones was ok. It was an ok start to a cozy mystery series with an interesting premise. The biggest issue for me was that, while Tabby is a character that's easy to root for, her twin sister Sage is very much not. She's an incredibly unlikeable character. Another issue I had was the story seemed to drag in some places, but then jumped ahead in other places. The way Tabby and Quig went from being just friends, to the reader finding out they're secretly friends with benefits, to then being in a full-fledged romantic relationship happened way too fast. The murder mystery was good, though it was easy to guess who the killer was and why. I'll read the next book in the series to see if the writing improves.

Gave this book a try but overall didn’t enjoy it. Wasn’t able to get into the story as much as I wanted to.

Snuffed Out is the first book in a new cozy mystery series, Magic Candle Shop Mysteries. Sage and Tabby Winslow are twins who co-own The Book and Candle Shop. They are exact opposites, which tends to happen with siblings, twins or not. When a difficult customer is found dead after an altercation with one of their employees, he becomes suspect number one. Tabby and Sage start digging into the case because they know their employee didn't commit the crime.

I had a hard time connecting with Sage at first because of her quick fuse, but she eventually grew on me. Tabby was easier to get to know and understand, although, she is bit more timid. As the story progressed and the characters were developed, I found I enjoyed both Tabby and Sage, along with the rest of the characters.

The story was enjoyable, and both the cover and the blurb brought me onboard. The story, fun characters, and mystery kept me engaged. The murder mystery was twisted, well-thought out, and complex.

This book was ok but it was a little repetitive and I really did not like Sage but the story was good.
I might read the next book .

When a good friend is wrongly accused of murder, the Winslow sisters desperately search for the real killer.

Tabby Winslow and her twin sister, Sage, work hard to keep their family business, The Book and Candle Shop, afloat. While Tabby created the signature candles they sold, Sage did all the purchasing and bookkeeping. With their one employee, super salesman Gerard Smith, they were just managing. But when a disagreeable customer Gerard had a confrontation with only days earlier is found murdered, the police take an unhealthy interest in him as their prime suspect.

Snuffed Out is a fun and unique new cozy mystery by Valona Jones and kicks off her new series, the Magic Candle Shop Mysteries. The magical element is provided by the two sisters, who are “energetics” and have the ability to absorb and manipulate energy. One twin, Sage, is comfortable and confident in her skills. However, due to a traumatic event in her past, Tabby is not. She blocks her abilities and refuses to tap into her special gift, and this causes some tension between the two sisters.

The story is told from Tabby’s point of view. Her hesitancy to accept her energetic talents stems from an incident several years earlier, which almost resulted in her killing someone with her power. That incident is never fully explained; only bits and pieces are revealed as the current story unfolds. In fact, there are a couple of backstories hinted at but left unexplained, which had me feeling so strongly that I had missed a previous book that I quit reading to research whether that was true or not. Perhaps, these stories will come to light in future books.

Sage Winslow is a complicated character with hidden secrets or worries left untold at the end of the book. Early on, she’s very moody: one minute, a loving sister, and the next, an almost evil thing. She and their store clerk, Gerard, have a romantic history that continues to cause her some heartache.

The murder investigation was compelling, with many friends and acquaintances of the Winslow sisters involved. There is even a missing chihuahua to consider. I enjoyed the candle shop business, the descriptions of candlemaking, and the various other items the girls stocked in the store. The story also focuses on the subplots of the sisters’ budding romances, both with young men they have known since childhood. There are adult situations with discussions about their hookups, but it was still sweet watching Tabby navigate the change in her relationship with Quig from childhood friend to grown-up man and friend with benefits.

Central to this story is the lovely and historic Savannah setting. The Book and Candle Shop is in the heart of downtown’s historic district, a great draw for tourists. I like the mention of the various other businesses with their living spaces above that are neighbors to the Winslow’s shop.

With its unlikable murder victim and tense push-pull sibling relationship, I recommend SNUFFED OUT to cozy mystery readers who like candle or bookshop-related settings or stories set in the southern US, specifically Savannah, Georgia.

Snuffed Out is about twin "energetics" (basically witches, although they'd be offended if you said so) running a candle shop in Savannah, Georgia. Our main character is Tabby, who almost killed someone with her powers once and now refuses to use them. FYI the man in question was going to assault her, but that's only provided as a reason for why she lost control of her powers and not an actual traumatic event with lingering emotional scars. But I digress. There is plenty of space for ranting below. Her twin is Sage, who can't help but use her abilities for everything. This is a cozy mystery, and our victim is a customer of the candle shop who was videoed making a scene at the shop over an ineffective aromatherapy candle. Even though they handled it professionally and without rising to the bait, this is the basis for the police's interest in the twins and their employee. Really. After being hassled by the police over it, the two dedicate themselves to finding the real killer.

So here's the thing. There were so many moments that made me mad while reading this. I took a slew of notes, and staring at them now, there's not a reasonable way to pare it down and organize it. So instead, treat yourself to this list of my complaints, in order of when they arose.

1. My first little clue that this book might not suit me is the use of a racial slur referencing the Romani people not once but twice.
2. Next up, Tabby notes that the detectives are like "salt and spicy pepper," and the spicy part of the equation is a woman named Sharmila. The racial undertones there are weird and unwelcome.
3. There's a clunky attempt to address policing and racism when the twins' employee, Gerard, who I think is Black and definitely isn't white (the author sort of dances around it), is pulled in as a suspect. And though the book decries the assumption that a Black man is good at sports (fair), it leans into other racial stereotypes by giving him a dad who didn't stick around and a grandmother who raised him. I have more to say on Gerard's depiction as a bi man to come *sigh.* Anyway, it's not a cohesive theme of the book to question why the police especially distrusted a Black man or to worry about what future injustices he might experience compared to one of the white characters. Later, Tabby notes that she wants the "bad element" taken off the streets by the police. So her distrust seems to be situational rather than systematic, i.e. when it becomes a problem for her personally.
4. I really oughtn't cast stones over this, but Tabby seems to have the thinnest skin alive. Her deeply scarring experience of so-called bullying as a kid was being called "dummy," and this supposedly happened in public school?? Bro, get your head out of the sand on the kinds of things kids say to each other because it's rough. Your life was not hard, Tabby.
5. Now let's get into it about Tabby's love interest. Quig's the friend who's been boldly pining after her (and he's not the only one-- more on that to come) while being a guy's guy who dates socialites. He believes that no man is inherently clean and tidy. A woman has to make it so, be it a mom or a girlfriend. So he's a real winner. On a superficial level, he drives a Hummer, which gives me the ick.
6. About our other pining lad... It's a classic love triangle that exists because the protagonist is just so sparkly special that everyone's trying to get with her. Gerard's jealous to see her getting closer to Quig and comments that she'll look like a goddess "for Quig" because her dress is so beautiful for an event. Instead of correcting him that she'll look beautiful for herself or just in general, Tabby instead goes the self-deprecating route. You can smell the toxic masculinity for MILES. And it's extra annoying because it's not really a triangle. Tabby's crystal clear with Gerard that she's not interested, but he keeps pushing his luck to let her know that he's in love with her.
7. The romantic relationships aren't the only problematic ones in Tabby's life. Sage is constantly pushing boundaries, making demands, and acting on her bitterness-- apparently the major driving force in her life. This especially comes up with Gerard, Sage's ex who she torments by siphoning off his energy for revenge. The kicker? She wiped his memory of their time together because she's so mad he cheated on her. And since his grandmother has Alzheimer's, he's especially freaked out by the gap in his timeline. Sage takes it too far (if you don't already think she has) and almost kills Gerard from taking too much of his life force or whatever. The sisters finally have it out over this mistreatment, but their aunt says Tabby has to forgive Sage because family's the most important blah blah blah, so Tabby just... gets over it? Like what the fuck. During their argument, it comes out that Sage's extra mad that Gerard cheated on her because he's bi?? She's butthurt because she didn't know, and apparently that's worse than past boyfriends who cheated on her with women. This lovely mix of biphobia from the character and bi stereotyping from the author KILLS ME. Like, what? He's bi, so that means he just wants to sleep with everyone? Even Tabby? Ugh.
8. This one's a quicker one: Tabby has an awkward attempt to interact with a gender-nonconforming person and figure out how to refer to them. It's not the most heinous thing in the book (see: numbers 1-7 for a refresher), but it's not good either. She just decides on a set of pronouns based on physical presentation and powers onward.
9. I'm not mad Tabby's got a strong moral compass (especially compared to Sage), but her white savior complex is another matter. When questioning a Latino man, she claims to empathize with his experience with racist police. But like... she can't? Because she's white? And her experience with the police was smoothed over because her friend with benefits is old money and hooked her up with the best lawyer money can buy? I also didn't appreciate the author writing the Latino character's dialogue in broken English. Ultimately, he's down on his luck, and Tabby offers him some advice because *white savior complex.* Get the woman her angel wings or whatever.
10. The twins talk at a woman in a domestic abuse situation and tell her to think of her baby if she won't think of herself. And like, they don't listen to what she has to say. They just steamroll her even though they've never been in her shoes. Plus, there isn't a good relationship between them, so I'm not sure how they thought that interaction would go.
11. Finally, there's this antiquated family "need" for a new generation of women to take over the business that's just plain creepy. Both Sage and their aunt put pressure on Tabby to escalate things with her not-boyfriend so she can continue the family line like ~what~ century is this exactly??

Well, if it weren't obvious, I don't recommend this book. Do yourself a favor and find your cozy mystery and/or witchy vibes somewhere else.

I really struggled to finish this novel. I understand that it is the first book in a new series, however it felt like a big info dump at the beginning that was written without really any tie in to what was going on, so the first 30% of it felt vert disjointed and clunky. I understand we have to learn about the magical (energy?) systems and such, but it felt like the author was trying to throw a lot of info at us that would be needed later on without really making it part of the character - I am especially considering things like the main character just randomly announcing that she can use invisibility. There had to be a better way to tie that in.

I also didn't really find the characters all that likeable and would struggle continuing to read about them in a series.

This was so cozy and fun but I wasn't a big fan of the plot. The atmosphere was really adorable though.

30-year-old fraternal twins Tabby and Sage Winslow own The Book and Candle Shop in Savannah. Sage is hot-headed and impulsive while Tabby is calm and collected, making them the perfect partnership. When one of their customers is found murdered, from a blow to the head, that partnership is put to the test.
Being a lover of cozy mysteries, I wanted to find a great new series with some paranormal attributes. But I'm sorry to say, this isn't it. First, the characters. Although I liked the main character a lot, I didn't like her sister. She seemed a little mean. Whenever I read a piece of fiction, I suspend my belief somewhat. This novel stretched that to the limit. The characters relied too much on their paranormal gifts instead of using common sense and their intelligence. It's hard for me to believe that these characters can make themselves invisible on a whim. When I question whether I even want to continue reading a story, I know that it's time to stop. To me, life is too short to read something that doesn't appeal to me. I would like to thank NetGalley and Crooked Lane books for the opportunity to read this advanced reader's copy. This review is my unbiased opinion.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
Another fun cozy mystery. Loved all the characters. Will recommend!
Can't wait to read the next book in the series

I could not finish this book but what I read, it was good.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from Crooked Lane Books through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Great first in series. I love the setting. The twins are great and I enjoy the supporting characters too. Good mystery. I also enjoy the magical elements and that they aren't too witchy. Looking forward to more in the series

Snuffed Out is the first book in the new Magic Candle Shop Mystery series. It’s a cute, sweet, cozy mystery based on the lives of Sage and Tabby, magical fraternal twins. Very easy to read and fun of fun twists, definitely pick this one up if you like paranormal suspense books!

I loved the story and the characters. I did feel like some of the decisions were a little choppy and irrational, but I am hoping it will flow a little better in book 2. I did receive an unedited copy from NetGalley.

I wasn't able to read this book in time before losing access to it and it somehow never transferred to my kindle. As I have an ARC for the second book in the series I will make sure I read it still. Rating 3.5 stars (rounding up to 4) based on a sample I read.

I really loved this book in a new to my series and author. I can't wait to read the next one. The characters and location really add to the plot. This book keeps you guessing until the end

DNF at 7%

I usually try to get to at least 10% before bailing, but I just couldn’t quite do it. Especially with the way the plot had started. Some weaknesses I struggled with:

• Everything is overexplained. Readers can infer things! Please trust them not to be total idiots. Detailing out every single thing just makes the book drag.

• Tied into the last point, it was very repetitive. Metaphors were used multiple times in a row - once is enough!

• I know Blithe is Evil Bad Lady, but the Romani slur was not necessary

• With the obvious caveat that I didn’t get far enough to see a character arc: wow Sage is kind of a terrible person with the way she manipulates and uses people. I can’t believe everyone - especially Tabby who seems to idolize her! - is okay with her literally wiping someones memories.

• The OCD neatness thing was also not necessary, I thought we were past that

• So much telling, so little showing. I guess this too ties into my first point.

• Final nail in the coffin: the detectives showed up and they are very weird. Why are they grilling Tabby about Blithe’s family and friends?? Why does she know so much???

Anyway. The cover was very cute and I’d been hoping for a cozy mystery but I am not vibing with it.

Tabby and Sage Winslow are twins. They inherited the Book and Candle Shop from their mother and aunt. The Book and Candle Shop is located in historic Savanah. The shop’s location is perfect because the natural energy of the site helps to nourish their family’s secret power to manipulate energy. They live in an apartment above the shop.

Tabby and Sage are energetics. An energetic uses their energy field to manipulate energy around them. The aura of their positive energy can deflect negative energy. Sage is confident and uses her energy field often. Tabby is more cautious because of a dreadful accident that occurred when she used her energy years ago.

The story is told from Tabby’s point of view. The twins must figure out who killed Blithe. Blithe was an unpleasant customer who frequented their shop often with negative energy. Since Tabby, Sage, and Gerard, an employee, are all suspects they must find the real killer.

This is book one in the Magic Candle Shop Mystery. The story starts off slowly. It is difficult to relate to Tabby and Sage. There was not much depth to the characters. It was hard to care about the outcome. The murder mystery drags and is convoluted. The location and concept of the Book and Candle Shop was intriguing. I will probably read book two and see if the characters and story get better. I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving a review. Reviews also left with Kobo, Barnes & Noble, and iBooks.

This book just was not for me. It was too "out there" or something. I cannot quite put my finger on it.

⭐ -- I love the cover on this one.

The cover on this one was most excellent, and I am a little annoyed it was wasted on this book! As for the book itself. Well, my mother always taught me if you haven't anything nice to say then don't say anything at all. So I am not going to take that advice. 😂 Nothing in this book worked. It felt like we were dropped into an ongoing series. The magic/energy element was convoluted and hard to understand, and the characters themselves were not close to being likable (especially Sage). A solid idea that was badly executed.

**ARC Via NetGalley**