With her vintage clothing store taking off, Lily Ivory is finding that life in San Francisco suits her just fine. But her ability to sense vibrations from the past, so useful in locating secondhand gems, has landed her in the middle of a new mystery...
Lily gets called away from Aunt Cora's Closet when the police need a witch's take on a strange case. Malachi Zazi was stabbed to death in his apartment, under a ladder, surrounded by the number thirteen, a broken mirror, and a black cat—superstitions that the victim, as head of a rationalist society, was devoted to discrediting.
When the police identify a suspect from the Serpentarian Society, Lily is shocked to learn it's someone she knows. But with bad luck plaguing all its members, she begins to wonder if there's more at work than mere coincidence. And while there aren't many clues from the crime scene, Lily finds evidence of dark witchcraft and a hex on her friend's doorstep. With her friend's safety at stake, Lily is determined to use magic to find the murderer before everyone's luck runs out...
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When witch and vintage clothes shop proprietress Lily Ivory is called to the scene of a murder by San Francisco Police Department inspector Carlos Romero, she doesn't quite know what to think; it's not every day the SFPD consults with someone like her regarding a crime. But when Lily sees Malachi Zazi’s corpse laid out atop a banquet table, symbols of bad luck strewn about, she understands why Romero decided to look to her for help.
It seems Zazi was the founder of the Serpentarian Society – an elite group of thirteen who gathers at midnight on the thirteenth of every month and dines surrounded by symbols of bad luck in attempt to disprove their power. When Lily starts to interview the members of the Society, however, she realizes that, while none of the remaining thirteen has died, Zazi’s not the only one to have met with a bit of misfortune. Lily’s sure dark witchcraft is responsible, but who is the magic’s source, and why is the Serpentarian Society a target? Can she catch Zazi’s killer before the dark forces are turned on her and those she holds dear?
Hexes and Hemlines is the third in Juliet Blackwell’s Witchcraft Mystery series. It’s Charlaine Harris meets Jim Butcher meets Barbara Bretton, and it’s one heck of an entertaining read. The book starts with a bang, with Blackwell dropping both Lily and the reader straight into the middle of Zazi’s murder investigation, and just picks up speed from there. The premise is fun and unique; I don’t know if the idea of the Serpentarian Society is based in fact, but if it’s not, Blackwell has created an extraordinarily interesting idea. Blackwell’s writing style is sharp, witty, and engaging, her descriptions are vivid and artful, and the magic and whimsy with which she seasons her tale make for a nice change of pace from your typical run-of-the-mill, straight-up murder mystery.
Lily is definitely a heroine who can carry a series. Powerful, compassionate, and not just a little damaged by her past, readers can’t help but empathize with her and root for her to prevail. The book’s supporting characters are entertaining, as well, from shady yet handsome Aiden, to sweet and naive Bronwyn, to Lily’s shape-shifting familiar, Oscar – a creature resembling a goblin crossed with a gargoyle who assumes the form of a pot-bellied pig when in polite company. And I can’t wait to read more about potential-love-interest Sailor. The chemistry between he and Lily is fabulous – far more interesting than that between her and her maybe-ex Max – and his dark background and mysterious ties to Aiden will no doubt be fodder for many books to come.
Unfortunately, while 90% of the book comes across as carefully plotted and thoughtfully written, the ending is a tad abrupt for my taste, and the solution to the mystery seems a bit arbitrary. That said, while it doesn’t finish as strongly as it starts, Hexes and Hemlines is a great book overall; I’d absolutely recommend it to readers looking for a fun summer read, and I fully intend to seek out the rest of the books in the series.
~ Kat |
