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Witch cozy mysteries (also called paranormal cozies) take everything readers love about a classic cozy — a small town, an amateur sleuth, a shop full of regulars — and add a little magic. Spells, familiars, a talking cat or a friendly ghost, but still no gore. They are perfect for October, and honestly for any time of year.
Here are 10 witch cozy mystery series worth starting, with the first book of each.
10 Witch Cozy Mystery Series
1. Witch City Mysteries
Carol J. Perry · Start with: Caught Dead Handed
Lee Barrett moves home to Salem, Massachusetts, takes a job as a late-night TV psychic, and discovers she may have real visions. Salem at Halloween is the ultimate witchy setting.
2. Witchcraft Mysteries
Juliet Blackwell · Start with: Secondhand Spirits
Natural-born witch Lily Ivory runs a vintage clothing shop in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury. Great if you like a heroine with real power and a quirky sidekick.
3. Magical Bakery Mysteries
Bailey Cates · Start with: Brownies and Broomsticks
Katie Lightfoot moves to Savannah to help run a bakery and learns she comes from a line of hedge witches. Charms baked into scones, Southern charm everywhere.
4. Kitchen Witch Mysteries
Lynn Cahoon · Start with: One Poison Pie
Mia Malone discovers her magic after moving into her grandmother’s home in a small, magic-friendly Idaho community. A good pick if you like food-focused cozies.
5. Witch Way Librarian Mysteries
Angela M. Sanders · Start with: Bait and Witch
Librarian Josie Way arrives in tiny Wilfred, Oregon, and finds out she has a magical bloodline. A must for readers who love library cozies.
6. Abracadabra Mysteries
Sharon Pape · Start with: Magick & Mayhem
Kailyn Wilde inherits a magic shop — and a murder investigation involving her best friend — with help from her cat and her centuries-old great-uncle Merlin.
7. Wiccan Wheel Mysteries
Jennifer David Hesse · Start with: Midsummer Night’s Mischief
Attorney Keli Milanni quietly practices Wicca and uses the turning of the seasons (and a little intuition) to solve crimes. Grounded and gentle.
8. Ophelia & Abby Mysteries
Shirley Damsgaard · Start with: Witch Way to Murder
A small-town librarian and her psychic grandmother make a warm, funny sleuthing duo. A classic of the subgenre.
9. Bewitching Mysteries
Madelyn Alt · Start with: The Trouble with Magic
Maggie O’Neill takes a job at an antique shop run by a witch and starts to discover her own talents. Cozy, spooky and a little romantic.
10. Wonky Inn
Jeannie Wycherley · Start with: The Wonkiest Witch
Reluctant witch Alf inherits a crumbling inn in an English village, complete with resident ghosts. Great British humor for fans of Agatha Raisin.
How Are Witch Cozies Different From Regular Cozies?
The mystery still comes first. Magic usually helps the sleuth notice things or get into trouble, but the case is solved with clues and nosy questions, not a spell that reveals the killer. If you already enjoy cozies with cats, many witch cozies feature a very clever familiar.
Where Should I Start?
For the full Halloween mood, start with Caught Dead Handed (Salem). For bakery lovers, try Brownies and Broomsticks. For book lovers, Bait and Witch.
FAQ
Are witch cozy mysteries scary?
No. They use magic and a little spookiness for atmosphere, but they stay light and violence happens off the page.
Do I need to read them in order?
Each book has a complete mystery, but the heroine’s magic and relationships grow over the series, so starting with book one is best.
Looking for more October reads? See our Halloween cozy mysteries and best cozy mysteries with cats.
Sources and how we pick
The picks on this list are ours; nobody pays for a place on it. For series numbering and publication dates our source of record is the publisher’s or the author’s own page, not a reader-edited database. The series on this list have publisher or author pages of their own — the Magical Cats Mysteries and the Agatha Raisin Mysteries, for instance. If anything here is out of date, tell us in the comments and we will fix it.
Keep reading: Magical Cats Mysteries · every cozy series in order (full index)
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