An intriguing open to a new cozy series featuring fraternal twins Sage and Tabby and their special ability to communicate. They own a candle and book shop in Savanah and all is going well until Blithe, who has complained about their products, is murdered and their assistant Gerard is the prime suspect. It's all a set up for a fairly trope-y cozy made unique by the twin aspect. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. This struggles a bit to lay out the characters and the interaction between Sage and Tabby but I'm looking forward to another in the series to expand on what Jones has started.

Thanks NetGalley!

Requested for the cat on the cover and had expectations that wasn’t met..
The character Sage ruined this book for me, also it had many plot holes and abrupt changes of heart.
Sage is very selfish and annoying, she was suffocating and made this cozy mystery impossible to read. The genre itself makes this fun to read but I couldn’t enjoy it.
Sorry not for me but a beautiful cover.

This is a cute cozy mystery for anyone who loves witchy urban fantasy. There were so many twists and turns that this one really kept their cards close to their chest right till the end. The motivations for both the sleuth and murderer were authentic and believable, which is something I really look for in a cozy mystery!

While I loved the protagonist, Tabby, and her budding relationship with Quig, her sister Sage was incredibly annoying. At times, I found it hard to reconcile the fact that she was supposed to be sensitive to the energies of others, yet seemed to be so selfish and put out so much toxic energy herself. Honestly, it gave me flashbacks to a toxic friendship I had in my younger years, which made me struggle to relate to her character. Fortunately, she wasn't very prominent in the book and started to mellow slightly towards the end.

This is a Netgalley review.

Tabby is the point-of-view main character I took a few chapters to warm up to. Quig (Dr. Quigsly), a long time acquintance, is her potential romantic interest but she prefers to keep their relationship secret. Sage, the twin sister, was a hard character for me to relate to. Actually I didn't like her for most of the book but she did grow by the finish. I enjoyed the visit from their Auntie O who helped them investigate and hope she is a recurring character in some form.

The magic element is quite unique and took a little bit for me to get into how it works. The mystery had enough questions to keep me reading and the climax had some tense moments although was over quickly. These thirty-year-old women have off-page intimate relationships with the men in their lives. This is still a cozy with no details on the page, but in case that makes a difference, be aware.

For those wanting older than a twenty-something main character, this might be an answer. I think this new series has potential and I'm looking forward to the next book to see how the twins and storylines develop.

Rating: Excellent - Loved it! Buy it now and put this author on your watch list

Tabby and Sage own a candle shop and have the ability to channel their energy. It’s a kind of magic. Tabby doesn’t use her ability - in fact she has put a mental block on it - because the last time she used it she nearly killed a person. This we are told many, many times. Pretty much every time the energy channeling ability comes up.

Blithe McAdam comes in to complain about a bad batch of aromatherapy candles she has bought. Sage reimburses her and gives her a complementary hand lotion. Case closed you’d think. Alas, Blithe is found dead the next day and the police come asking questions because Blithe had complained.

Now the police must be grasping at straws. A person as disagreeable as Blithe has likely made many enemies. If you interview one shopkeeper, surely, you must interview them all.

Sage and Tabby (but mostly Sage) decide that they must investigate Blithe’s death, lest it is pinned on them.

I was confused for most of the story. In one chapter Tabby and Sage engage in Twin speak, which seems some sort of telepathy. In the next they have to whisper so they won’t be overheard. What happened to the Twin speak? Same when MahMah starts explaining the family secrets of the McAdam family. Or when the evil nemesis of the story makes an appearance.

Reading this story took too much energy from me.

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. When one of their customers is found murdered, their relationship is put to the test.

Tabby and Sage are purported to have paranormal capacities to control energy i.e., “energetic” capacities, which are never clearly explained in this book. I assumed this was because they had been explored in detail in earlier stories of the series. I was surprised to find Snuffed Out is the first in a new series because it seems such a muddled world the characters inhabit.

As I read, Tabby seemed the main character while Sage was the nasty (and shallowly developed) one. Perhaps they were meant to balance each other?

I found this a confusing story to read. Perhaps the series will improve as subsequent books are published.
Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Ummm....this book feels like a bunch of pretty good disconnected scenes that got strung together. 15% in and I already have a bunch of "uh, what?" moments. The cops focus in on the heroes, for pretty much no reason. Uh, what? (I mean seriously, anyone who has ever worked with the public knows that some customers just yell threats. If store owners went around killing their worst customers, the world's overpopulation problems would be solved.) The protagonists powers are very, um, sketchily described but they have the power they just conveniently need for the plot. Uh, what? Someone disappears and they suddenly jump to the idea that they've been taken by the cops. Uh, what? Also, the sisters are supposed to be close, but one of them is basically not a nice person. I have to admit I gave up and DNF'ed this book as I couldn't take it anymore. I feel like this could have been so good if just someone had sat down and written the scene transitions.

Tabby and Sage Winslow run a book and candle shop together in Savannah Georgia. The sisters are twins and also share some paranormal abilities. They took over the shop from their aunt and late mother, whom they also received their special abilities.

An irate customer leaves their shop and ends up dead and their shop manager is fingered as the prime suspect thanks to some video uploaded online from bystanders. Since the police seem to think they have their guy, it's up to the Winslow sisters to find the real killer.

We meet the sister's boyfriends, a local attorney and the Medical Examiner as well as their aunt returns from Florida in time to get in on the sleuthing.

This is a good introduction to this series and am looking forward to seeing the characters fleshed out a little more in following installments. I really liked Tabby and I got to like Sage better by the end as the energy they share was explained a little more.

It was a captivating and intriguing puzzle with a tangled twist pulsating with excitement. Tabby and Sage had a hard time staying under the radar, but the mysterious death of an annoying client placed them further in the spotlight as suspects. They were in a quandary, having no idea who the killer was, and time was running out on them as the police sought to railroad their employee into jail. The twins had a puzzling task on their hands, finding the killer before they lost everything. It was all hands on deck with the sudden arrival of their aunt from Florida. Now, it was time to get down to some serious butt-kicking.

Snuffed Out by Valona Jones is the first in a new series featuring fraternal twin sisters Tabby and Sage, who own a candle shop. When one of their employees is accused of the murder of a local, they have no choice but to hunt for a killer in order to save their shop.

The mystery was well formulated and the energy manipulation interesting. My favorite character was Auntie O. I really wanted to like this book but never quite achieved that level of engagement. It would have been easier if the sisters had a stronger bond and relationship. Neither was particularly likable and Sage was especially off putting. (I reviewed an advance reader copy and all opinions are my own.) I hope that the next in this series will address these deficits.

Tabby Winslow runs a Book and Candle shop in Savannah, Georgia with her twin sister Sage. A mean customer comes in and berates their employee Gerard. She's yelling and causing a scene. Tabby tries to mitigate the scene when Gerard calls her a b*tch and tells her to leave. Later on the customer is found dead and Gerard is the prime suspect. Tabby & Sage must work together to find the real killer.

I really enjoyed this book and the magical element. Being able to access energy and drain energy is a fun idea. I can't wait to read more from this series and get some more backstory

The concept sounded strong. Twin sisters owning a candle shop, having some magical powers and doing a little sleuthing on the side. Sadly, the execution felt a bit off for me. I needed something more for the story to reel me in.

I had a hard tine reading Snuffed Out. I usually love books about witches and magic but, something is off about this book. I felt like everyone, especially Sage is jumping to conclusions and ready to pounce at everyone. There is no unity between the sisters, its very strained feeling unlike most cozies where you feel warmth for the characters. It's a very cold feeling I get while reading this book.

Also constantly talking about energies was off putting. Especially in the beginning of the book. It was a constant subject and their was no real purpose to it. We know they are witches we don't have to be reminded in every sentence about their energies.

Their is alot of tention and prejudice especially a from Sage. Shes uses her powers to constantly meddle with people and then feels attacked that people look at her badly because people don't like having their thought invaded. She's very prejudice against non witches but then doesn't like when people don't like witches. But how can people like you if you send out negative energy all the time and have walls up. Her behavior effects how her sister looks at things as well and I feel that she can never come up with out her own opinions they are all influenced by Sage. She is constantly inviting her Tabbys mind and trying to control her even tells her how to feel.

Tabby is saposed yo be the main character but Sage takes over so much you'd thing she was the main character. I was not a fan of this book and have no interest in continuing this series.

This was a good start to a new cozy mystery series. Twins own a book/candle shop and come to their store manager's defense when he's accused of murdering a customer. The setting is great and I'll definitely return to the series to see how it progresses.

A cute start to a new cozy mystery series. Fraternal twins Tabby and Sage own a candle/book shop. A nasty customer is murdered after a heated argument with store manager Gerard and the twins are determined to prove his innocence. In addition to the murder, the twins are dealing with how to use their vaguely-defined paranormal abilities. I missed the reference to their psychic powers in the blurb, and am not sure how I felt about its inclusion in the story.

The cozy story about two twin sisters Tabby and Sage, who have a candle shop. Isn't it perfect for October? Both of them have powers but only Sage uses them. Tabby doesn't want to use them because of her past. I love settings! Savannah, GA! My home state! Tabby begins to investigate the murder. I like a good detective story, even if it's a children's detective story. And it was quite interesting for me to watch the plot develop. However, while reading, I was surprised that this is only the first book in this series because I had a lot of questions that I would like to know the answers to but there were none. Nonetheless, this is a very good start of a cozy series of books. I think in the next books there will be much more about the history of their store and there will be less and less questions.
This book was charming and the cover was very cute!

Such a fun read! Great characters- I especially loved the bond between the two sisters and how their special abilities affect those around them. I enjoyed the plot which keeps you guessing until the end. I'm looking forward to reading more of this series as it comes out.

I would like to thank the author, publisher and NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

twins, family-business, family, support-system, suspicion, suspense, friendship, amateur-sleuth, murder-investigation, murder, small-business, small-town, new-series, extra-sensory-abilities, cozy-mystery****

Picking the murder victim was a no brainer, but solving whodunit was intriguing. Publisher's blurb is a good start.
It is a good story with many fascinating, if exasperating, characters and excellent world building. A nice easy read. I almost gave it a 3*, but it's only first in series and will only keep getting better as the series goes on, so I want to encourage.
I requested and received an EARC from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

In this story fraternal twins Tabby and Sage Winslow own The Book and Candle Shop in Savannah Ga. Sage is hot headed and impulsive while Tabby is calm and collected which makes them good partners. When a customer is found murdered from a blow to the head the partnership is put to the test.Blithe McAdam is the victim who was seen having a heated argument with shop clerk Gerard which makes him a suspect. The twins are convinced of his innocence and start digging into Blithe’s past. The neighbor who found her won’t talk the medical examiner Quig won’t give any details about the autopsy and nasty rumors begin surfacing about the drowning of Blithe’s father years earlier evidence that could seal Gerard’s fate. The twins dig desperately for the truth but find themselves in the grip of unseen and deadly energy that seeped into their midst and in the sight of the killer. This was a very enjoyable story I would recommend to all readers.

Tabby and Sage may be twins, but their personalities are diametrically opposed. Sage is wild and impulsive while Tabby is laid back and relaxed. The combination works well in running their Savannah shop, Book and Candle, not as well when trying to identify the culprit that caved in the head of customer, Blithe McAdam. Unfortunately, Blithe was seen having a very public argument with Book and Candle’s salesperson, Gerard. The sisters are sure he’s innocent, but they aren’t having much luck in proving it; it seems as if plenty of people are more than willing to let Gerard go down for the murder. The Savannah setting shines in this charming cozy