May Day Murder

Keli’s looking forward to Beltane, the time-honored Wiccan holiday that celebrates life with feasting, ceremonial dancing, and ancient Celtic rituals. But since recently leaving her law firm and opening her practice, Keli has more on her plate than simple abundance. Still, she always has time for a friend. Erik, a Druid from a neighboring town, has had a run of bad luck he blames on a curse cast by his ex-girlfriend Denise, a practicing witch whose expertise in the dark arts can’t save her from a deadly end.

When Keli finds herself a person of interest in the investigation, she begins to wonder if she herself might be cursed. With a little help from her friends, including her devoted boyfriend Wes, Keli aims to find out who poisoned Denise. What she uncovers is a witch’s brew of spells, hexes, and black magic that raises questions about her own Wiccan worldview. As the community gathers for the May Day festivities, it’s up to Keli to stop a killer from springing ahead to another murder.

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Series: A Wiccan Wheel Mystery – Book #5
Author: Jennifer David Hesse
Genre: Paranormal/Witch/Writer
Publisher: Kensington Books

Rating:

May Day Murder a cozy book by Jennifer David Hesse from Kensington Books comes a new addition to the “A Wiccan Wheel Mystery” series. Which also happens to be one of the best cozy series on the market today. Readers flock to the bookstore to get the latest addition. Fueled by the Wiccan movement across the globe, Ms. Hesse demonstrates her grasp of what people want. Not only in a cozy mystery but in their lives.

Keli Milanni is a superior character who has been created to be likable with human flaws. She is at times far too trusting of her fellow man. Fearful of what will happen when her friends and peers find out that she is a practicing Wiccan. She is private with her beliefs and her lifestyle. Keli tries desperately to keep her life out of the public eye yet keeps getting thrust into the limelight where time and time again, her spiritual side is being revealed to those around her. She is torn between what she knows is right and what she wants to do with little space between the two to distinguish between them.

Other characters such as Keli’s live-in boyfriend, Wes, and her friends such as Farrah are developing into wonderfully diverse characters that help with investigations and keep Keli on the straight path. They are learning to appreciate, as well as, respect her Wiccan beliefs and her life choices without sacrificing their own.

In May Day Murder, Keli has finally come to the point where she must make a decision to keep her career separate from her Wiccan beliefs or give up the hard work of keeping them separate and much of the real her hidden from those she sees and deals with daily. Her conflicting emotions get her caught up in another murder. Her decision is taken out of her hands when the killer zeroes in on her as she tries to help keep herself out of prison.

Discovering the murder of a stranger has the police looking at her as the top and possibly only suspect. All because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. In the end, she has to take stock of her desire to keep her Wiccan life private or unmask a killer before she becomes the next victim. The killer is caught but not without problems. The identity of the murder and the motive is a bit of a surprise and will leave readers happy and satisfied.

I highly recommend this cozy book and series. If readers enjoy great cozy series such as the “Abracadabra Mystery Series” https://www.thecozyreview.com/olde-white-magick/ by Sharon Pape https://sharonpape.com/or Carol J. Perry’s http://caroljperry.com/ “A Witch City Mystery” https://www.thecozyreview.com/caught-dead-handed/“A Wiccan Wheel Mystery series”. Highly entertaining and enjoyable!