Playing With Magic by Gretchen Rue

Thank you @sierradeanauthor and @headofzeus for giving me an opportunity to read this book.

It is my honest opinion, pictures were found on Pintrest - wanted to show you how I saw this cosy mystery with a dash of romance.

My rating: 4⭐️

Read if you like:
🐈Cosy mysteries,
🐈Witchy vibes,
🐈Bookshops in books,
🐈A dash of romance,
🐈Orange cats.

It is a third book in the series but it can be read as a standalone. However, I recommend the whole series with whole my heart. This season is great to read them all. It was so good to come back to Raven Creek and read about Phoebe and her friends. The story is a wonderful balance of witchy charm, cosy mystery and a bit of romance. So grab a cuppa if your favourite tea, cosy, fluffy blanket and read adventures of Phoebe and Bob the cat.

3.5⭐ rounded to 4⭐

Bookstore owner Phoebe Winchester is putting on her first major author event when a body is discovered and the plot goes off the rails in this cozy mystery. It’s not long before another victim is pecked off and someone close to Phoebe is the suspect. She’ll have to work quickly to uncover the killer and figure out who’s up to fowl play in the third charming book in this warm and witchy series.

I really enjoyed this book, however I feel like at times there was way too much going on. It became convoluted and there were some plot holes that should have been developed more than what they were. A lot of the things that were brought in felt quite rushed, like there wasn't enough time to go through everything in the detail that it needed to make it make sense. I got the impression that some things were forgotten about, which the author realised and then decided to bring the things back up when they had not been mentioned for a while. Despite this, I do really like Gretchen's writing style, I feel like it's so easy to sink your teeth into her writing. The writing felt quite cosy but more in the sense that because it was predictable what was going to happen, nothing caught me off guard as all my guesses were correct. I love how there was recipes included in the back of the book, to give an insight into what Phoebe was making for her bookstore.

Although, I do appreciate that we got to see more of Phoebe's magic, I do think that it took weird turn which normally I wouldn't have an issue with but it took away from the main plot of the book. I really love the characters, it is interesting to be back with them and in Raven Creek, a place where I absolutely love to visit. It sounds like the most amazing cosiest, small town vibes which I love. I do wish there was more character development from some of the other characters - I love to know more about Daphne, Imogen, Rich and Honey just to name a few! Whilst I do love the main character Phoebe and do think that she is a strong one but sometimes, she annoys me in a way that a sibling annoys you.

I honestly am not sure I would call this book a romance in any sense because whilst there are hints of a romance, it is so slow burn and hardly anything has happened three books in. I'm starting to feel a bit over it and I just want them to be together already. I do think it would be interesting to see the romance actually turn into something as I do love both of the characters but I need Gretchen to pick up the pace a little as it's developing way too slow for me.

Thank you to Aria and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book early, in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️ CWs: murder, cursing; mentions anxiety attacks, spiders, comments about weight, alcohol use ⚠️

We return to the kooky, cosy setting of Raven’s Creek where there is to be a big book launch of a bird watching specialist and there’s excitement in the air. I fell in straight away to the ‘right there’ feeling, the setting almost tangible, with the added layer of so much foodiness!

There is of course a range of characters, the detective, the busybody, the motherly helpful witches, and of course a host of possibilities as to whodunnit!!

Very enjoyable, I’ll admit the first two books held my attention a little, eensy weensy bit more, but I still really enjoyed this. Thanks so much to the publisher for the advance review copy.

Rating: 4.5/5

This is such a feel good series which I throughly enjoy! They're light-hearted, fun and full of magic and mystery! I loved that in this one we got to see more of Phoebe's powers and seeing her struggle with controlling it. I really liked the explanation of her powers and seeing her learn what triggers her to lose control and how to cope with it all.

I liked how involved in the investigation she was allowed to be in this one and seeing her work alongside Rich. I've really enjoyed the slow burn of their relationship and honestly need more of the two. I'm really hoping there is another book in this series and I need it asap! I need to see what mysteries Pheobe finds herself in next!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Perfect!! I love this series so much!
The colourful colours in the UK editions are perfect and I adore them as well!
Phoebe’s back to getting herself involved in murder mysteries she shouldn’t be anywhere near in this book! We also get some more of Phoebe exploring her powers which was nice to see.

This book was not quite what I was expecting but not in a bad way at all.

This is a cozy, small-town, murder mystery book. There is a sprinkle of romance but it is an incredibly slow burn.

There were so many things I loved about this book, for example, the way cats are spoken about… it made me unreasonably happy! It was so relatable as a cat owner.

I also love that the author showed how Phoebe struggled with controlling her magic, but also showed how she tried to gain control over it.

Thank you NetGalley for granting me access to this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is the third book in the Phoebe Winchester series and as how the other two, this one was lovely.
It just gives the perfect autumn season vibes: cosy, magic, mystery and witchy and a hint of murder.
Also please read the first two books or else you wouldn't understand the characters enough ro enjoy this book.

Thank you, Head of Zeus and NetGalley, for this ARC.

I've read all 3 books via NetGalley, and I've really enjoyed each one.

Phoebe is again caught up in another murder case, and with her powers on the fritz, she has a lot to sort out.

After organising a top bird expert to come to an author event following the release of his new book, she feels like she can finally put her bookshop an town on the map, but when he ends up murdered, Phoebe feels that pull to help solve the case with her almost boyfriend PI Rich.

I describe this series as murder she wrote meets, midsummer murders with a cosy witchy twist.

Gretchen Rue writes a number of series but Phobe Winchester is my favourite as I loved the characters, the world building, and Bob the ginger cat.
This is a good one, there's plenty of twists and I appreciated how the characters' arc and how they evolved.
There's a lot going on, the author deals with the murder of the author but also with the tentative of changing the spirit of the place developing a tourist resort.
An excellent and highly entertaining story.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This book is another perfect cozy mystery from Gretchen Rue.

In Playing with Magic, we're back with Phoebe as she gets caught up in another murder in Raven Creek and uses her newly discovered witchy abilities to help figure out the mystery.

This is such a wonderful series and I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to curl up this autumn and get lost in a fictional world.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read Playing with Magic.

I absolutely loved the last book I read of Rue’s (Something Wicked) and I adored this one. It has definitely got me in the mood for autumn and all that it brings. This book was so easy to read, and was perfect to curl up under a blanket and enjoy the book. I loved the characters and the small town setting, I could imagine being there visiting the shops. The murder twists were so entertaining.

Book No. 3 in this cosy, witchy murder mystery series!

I once again loved the small town vibes, the way trouble (and murder) seems to find Phoebe, and the full cast of loveable but slighlty odd characters. Phoebe comes in to her own in this book, settling into her new life and relationships.

My only quibble (and if you're not really into the romance side of things it won't matter) was the slowness of the burn, and the neglible words given to the huge developments (in my mind) between our favourite PI, Rick and Phoebe. It felt like we'd been drip fed through two books only for the big moments to happen off page.

However, this was still a lovely read, and a great book for the transition into autumn mode.

Pull up a chair and have a cuppa at the Earl's Study whilst we attempt to unravel the latest mystery facing Phoebe and Co.

A bookish event with a famous birder should be a feather in Phoebe's cap but after the event Sebastian is found murdered! There seems to be some confusion over who the intended victim was and there also seems to be a skeevy lawyer attempting to buy up the town. But are the two things related?

I'm super invested in the gentle romance between Phoebe and Rich. They've both been burned in the love department and they're a bit wary of crashing their renewed friendship but I'm rooting for them. There also may be love in the air for the lovely, gentle giant Leo.

There is much more exploration of Phoebe's new found magical talents this time around and we also learn that magic is possibly the worst kept secret in town! There are a few red herrings, misdirects and twists and I felt completely satisfied when the baddie got their comeuppance. I won't give too much away but I really did not see that last twist coming!

I'm not really a cat fan but I did love seeing Bob return with some new friends too!

I really enjoyed this enchanting novel. There was a great mix of themes including romance, mystery, and comedy. The perfect story to read curled by a fire!

Phoebe is a tea and bookstore owner in the small town of Raven creek.
She is also an amateur witch.

The story begins with her hosting her first book signing event and the author being found dead the next day. This journey follows Phoebe inadvertently trying to solve the murder in town even when she’s been told to keep her nose out of it by officer Martin!

This cosy mystery is one you can’t put down once you start!
I was hooked from the very first page! The characters were all so easy to love and of course Bob the cat (can’t forget about Bob).

This is a fabulous well written cosy mystery that keeps you wanting to know what happened!

If you like books, tea and cats, as well as bookstores and murder mysteries then this one is for you!!

Thankyou @netgalley @crookedlanebooks and @sierradeanauthor for letting me read and review this book!

⭐️ 4.5/5 ⭐️

Such a fun, cosy read. I loved the vibes of this one. Admittedly, I hadn't read the previous books in the series, but like other cosy mysteries I didn't feel like I was missing out on too much. Whilst I found the plot a little predictable, it really didn't bother me at all, in fact, I kind of liked it, it just increased the cosiness of the novel.

Would definitely recommend this one!

Incredibly engaging story -it really captivated me from the start. Unfortunately I didn’t read the previous books in the series. There were moments I felt like I missed something. I believe my experience would’ve been a bit better had I done that. But I still adore Phoebe as a character! The writing flowed really well. It was cosy. And I loved the mystery aspect. I’m looking forward to the authors other works. Thank you NetGalley, Author and Publisher for giving me this opportunity to read this arc!

I loved this witchy mystery and I felt gripped by this book as soon as I started. I knew I had to keep reading and I didn't want to put it down until I knew the truth.

This book is part of a series! It can be read as a stand alone but I think I would have enjoyed it more if I read the previous ones.

This was still a really fun, cute book though!

I loved the continuation of Phoebe story, I’m hoping that there’s going to be a few more books. This is such a cosy, witchy read. It is the third book in the series and I highly recommend everyone to go read the first two books before reading this one!

I loved how in this book we’re actually focusing more on Phoebe magic. It showed Phoebe slowing becoming aware of how to control her magic and how to use it. I do hope that in the next books she’s fully aware and it’s practicing more magic.

The slowburn it’s everything I didn’t know I needed. I love how Phoebe and Rich are taking everything slow.