Charms and Chocolate Chips by Bailey Cates

Magical Bakery, #3

Source: Purchased rating

Between brewing magically spiced treats at Honeybee Bakery and volunteering with a local conservation group, Katie Lightfoot barely has time to see her firefighter boyfriend, Declan McCarthy, much less delve further into her destiny as a witch. But avoiding her fate won't be as easy as whipping up a new recipe-especially when Katie finds herself once again mixed up in murder.When a fellow volunteer for the conservation group is found dead, Katie's mystical senses tell her that there's more to the death than meets the eye. Her suspicions are confirmed when members of her coven are targeted next. Katie will have to embrace her powers quickly... or she may find herself chewed up and spit out by some serious black magic.

Katie Lightfoot (yes, I kind of hate her name too) thankfully wasn't too dampered by the previous diagnosis of what a unique witch she was at the end of the second book. While she's settling in with her powers in general, she makes sure to still keep her nose in crimes that keep popping up in her small town. This time it involves a weird tree, conservation morals, and another mini showdown between the female and male witches/warlocks/shamans/whatever.

Unfortunately the love triangle is still drawn, and sadly the edges of the triangle are still too clearly felt and seen. There's glimpses of hope around the corner sometimes that it may end and she'll end up with one guy for good, but you never know. It kind of looks like she makes her decision finally, but of course it's the wrong guy no reader wants her to end up with anyway, so does that really help things? NO.

Besides the return of the fun coven who complement each other because they dare to be different from each other, Katie's mother visits and it turns out fun. She was made to sound like a harpy in previous phone calls from the other books, but in person? A sweet old lady shooting out overprotective mothering and wise womanly vibes.

I'd love to visit a bakery like the one in these books. It comes across so cozy and makes me crave herb-filled scones, jam filled croissants, and a whole bunch of other things my waist doesn't need. The trick of putting herbs and spices designated for certain magical intentions in the food brings its own charm. The mystery is the front focus of the book, but the setting of the bakery helps make the cozy vibe feel sensational, and the side stories of her relationships with others in the small town makes it more interesting.