Kitchen Witch Books In Order

Publication Order of The Kitchen Witch Books

Kitchen Witch is a series of novels written by popular American cozy mystery author Morgana Best. The first novel in Kitchen Witch series of novels was “Miss Spelled”, the typo like sounding novel that despite its weird name went on to become a bestseller. After the much-vaunted success of the first novel, Morgana went on to publish several more titles in the series, including two omnibus books covering books one to six. The lead character in the series of novels is Amelia Spelled and the antagonist Alder Vervain. In addition to the Amelia, quirky characters, and her enigmatic antagonist, the house is a very interesting character in the series as it develops and grows influencing the actions of the transient characters throughout the series. The mystery in all the cozy novels are all centered on the murder of a non-paranormal person. At the beginning of the novel series, the lead character Amelia in an attempt to solve her first case joins a group of witches that are as diverse as they come in both temperament and motivation. Spelled is a murder magnet who never knew she was a witch until the murder of a friend in the very first novel prompted her to join a coven. The Kitchen Witch series of novels are fascinating cozies that are a combination of the hilarious and paranormal aspects making for some of the most fun reads.

Amelia Spelled the lead character in the series is shocked to learn that she was born a witch – a kitchen witch. While this is a cozy mystery, Amelia’s witch powers are not the Hollywood type minor witching but rather the traditional type. She can mix potions, do candle spells, and do folk magic. However, even as she is a kitchen witch, Amelia is one of the worst cooks frequently setting all her cooking on fire. Her fellow quirky witches do explain to her that she is a terrible cook because she is destined to be one of the greatest kitchen witches ever. When we first meet Miss Spelled, she is not having the best of times as she just has her eviction notice, has lost her job, and been dumped by her boyfriend all on the same day. Just as she thinks she has lost everything she finds a letter among her things informing her that she is the only heiress to a fortune. As expected, she is over the moon and so starts a great witching apprenticeship and journey towards revealing her identity. Her inheritance includes a cake store, an old Victorian home full of secrets and two cats. Right from the very beginning cooking is not Miss Spelled’s strength, and she makes many mistakes that could portend disastrous consequences throughout the novel series. She will also discover a lot of secrets about herself, her powers, and those of her witching sisters that soon get her way in over her head as she is forced to solve the mystery of several murders.

The mayhem, murder, and magic of the Kitchen Witch series unfolds in a breezy light way making for an engaging read. For any fan of the cozy with a paranormal twist, the novel series is definitely a must-read. While the narratives and plot lines in each novel can be read and enjoyed as stand alones, the series is best read in order to get the most fun out of it. The crux of the novels is that Amelia Spelled is a fledgling Kitchen Witch who cannot spell her potions correctly, and often ends up making the wrong potions resulting in disastrous consequences. For instance, pressured by her witch sister to cast a spell, she misspells a word and the spell wafts out of the door and into the city, which results in a distressing murder that Amelia blames herself for. Regardless of Spelled ineptness in the Kitchen Witching business, the novels for the most part take a light and even hilarious tone as they caricature her adventures. Over the course of the novel, the author introduces Alder Vervain an enigmatic and elusive character who trails Amelia. The mystery of his identity is released slowly over the novels though it is never exactly clear what his motivations are. With quirky characters, humor and magical elements such as burning smudges, crystals and spells, the Kitchen Witch series makes for a delightful cozy mystery with a lot of hilarious fun.

“Miss Spelled” is the delightful first novel of The Kitchen Witch series of novels that introduces the lead character Amelia Spelled. Amelia has just had a terrible week after being dumped by her boyfriend for giving him a severe case of food poisoning. She has just been fired from her workplace, a telecommunications center that has found it cheaper to outsource all their jobs offshore. She has also been evicted from her house from damaging it with smoke from her disastrous attempts at baking. Her luck changes when she soon finds out that she is the only heir to her aunt’s estate that comprises an old but beautiful Victorian mansion, two mysterious cats, and a cake store. But she has just gotten herself in even more trouble as she does not know one thing about cooking or the cake making business. Moreover, the house she inherits is full of ancient secrets and to add to the confusing emotions, she learns that her aunt was a witch. Things come to a head when a man is murdered in the cake store and Amelia may have to cook up a spell to solve the crime, even as she is a rank amateur.

“Dizzy Spells”, the second novel in the Kitchen Witch series is a humorous and fun cozy mystery. Miss Spelled has gotten better at writing her spells though she remains a terrible baker. If she is to save her crumbling business, she will have to make enough dough. However, the business is put in the back burner when Dianne her new friend is the target of a police investigation after a dead body is discovered dumped on her front lawn. As she goes on a quest to clear her friend’s name, she soon learns that not everyone in her life is who they say they are. She finally goes on that date with Craig though her magical house is not pleased with it and makes its opinion known. As for the police, they believe that what they have on the case makes it an open and shut, even as they keep Amelia in the dark as to what they have. Will she discover why Alder Vervain has been watching her, and will she resolve the murder mystery to find herself a victim?