Reviews with content warning for Rape - Magic, Lies, and Deadly Pies

Don't let the cover fool you - this book was a little darker than I thought it would be for a cozy mystery, so fair warning. Daisy Ellery comes from a line of women who are born with a gift. Her gift puts a touch of magic in her pies. Her pies can help students concentrate during finals, calm children down, give strength to those attending survivor meetings, and murder men who deserve it. It's like that scene in True Lies: "Have you ever killed anyone?" "Yeah, but they were all bad." She has clear lines that she won't cross, like not killing women, but those lines are tested when she starts to get letters and text messages that threaten to expose her and her Pies Before Guys service. On top of that, there's her next stall neighbor at the market who's trying to get his orchard up and running and a pie competition. This was well-written and imaginative and there are pie recipes at the end. (Is this a thing with culinary cozies because I love it!) I'm not sure where the next book can go, but I'm looking forward to it.

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emmylamptey's review

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adventurous dark funny inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Daisy Ellery and her homemade pie business are more than meets the eye. From a glance, Daisy looks like a sweet, 1950s style housewife who bakes pies for a local diner, farmers markets, support group meetings, and college campuses. Her pies are sweet, delicious and customers swear they feel happier, stronger, or more focused. These customers are right.

Daisy comes from a long line of Ellery women who are all witches. These women’s magic is channeled through traditionally feminine skills like sewing, hair styling, and in Daisy’s case, baking pies. Daisy bakes magic into all her pies to help her customers improve their lives.

However, Daisy also possesses a power her ancestors did not: she is able to kill bad men without a trace with her magical pies (or so she believes). Daisy is a vigilante and passionate about social justice; creating pies to help local women who have been wronged by violent partners, abusers, and rapists. When someone finds out what Daisy is doing and contracts her to bake pies as blackmail, she is put into a compromising position.

While this mystery is not cozy in the traditional sense, the small town, farmers markets, and pie baking certainly are all very cozy plot devices. The book’s themes are likely darker than anticipated due to the nature of the crimes the men have committed and also that the protagonist is a murderer herself.

The writing was quirky and fun and I loved the diversity and inclusion present in the book. The authors politics are quite apparent in the book, which could be a turn off for some but not for me. This book is totally “Witches vs. The Patriarchy” baked up into a pie.

Thank you to Net Galley and Crooked Lane Books for providing me with an Advanced Reading Copy ebook in exchange for an honest review.

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stacyroth's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

*Trigger warnings: rape, domestic violence, addiction, cussing

Daisy Ellery is capable of a specific type of magic: she can bake abilities/wishes into her pies: whether it’s happiness for the people eating it or avenging women done wrong by men. Someone knows her secret, though, and has sent her a note to blackmail her. Daisy hopes to win the upcoming statewide pie contest, but to do so, she will need to figure out who her blackmailer is and keep them from ruining her business and her life.

I love stories with magical realism, and this was an interesting premise. Daisy is bisexual, and it made me happy to see the rep in a book that wasn’t specifically about her sexual orientation. Tanya Eby did a fantastic job narrating the audiobook. I look forward to seeing where Popp takes the series next!

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.

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