Hazards to Hexes
(2026)(The fourth book in the Mystic Haven Tea Shop Mystery series)
A novel by TJ Costello and Kat McGee
Fiona Shaw doesn't do cute. She doesn't do whimsical. And she absolutely does not do poppet dolls turning her town into a collection of confused mannequins.
Three months of running the Mystic Haven Tea Shop, and Fiona finally has the operation humming like a well-tuned engine. Then someone decides to throw a wrench into her perfectly organized world, and that wrench is apparently a bunch of creepy dolls with a serious attitude problem.
Suddenly, the council is making decisions by unanimous jazz hands, the diner owner is serving meals based on what "feels right in her heart," and the sheriff has started arresting people for "aggressive vibes." Fiona watches her newfound magical community dissolve into a haze of forced positivity and weaponized nonsense.
Each victim receives a custom poppet, complete with personal items that prove someone’s been stalking half the town. But when the local antique dealer is found dead, clutching a doll that looks suspiciously like himself, the hexing spree officially becomes a murder investigation. The killer isn’t just controlling people anymore; they’re eliminating anyone who gets too close to the truth.
When Fiona finds her own poppet tucked behind the espresso machine, dressed in a tiny business suit and holding a mini eviction notice, she stops investigating and starts planning a hostile takeover. Someone thinks they can hex their way to a clean getaway, but they have underestimated the woman who made a career out of managing other people's disasters.
With the handsome local handyman providing magical backup and the tea shop's feline familiar contributing his usual mix of wisdom and judgment, she is ready to show this puppet master what happens when you mess with Mystic Haven’s most reluctant and recent witch.
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Three months of running the Mystic Haven Tea Shop, and Fiona finally has the operation humming like a well-tuned engine. Then someone decides to throw a wrench into her perfectly organized world, and that wrench is apparently a bunch of creepy dolls with a serious attitude problem.
Suddenly, the council is making decisions by unanimous jazz hands, the diner owner is serving meals based on what "feels right in her heart," and the sheriff has started arresting people for "aggressive vibes." Fiona watches her newfound magical community dissolve into a haze of forced positivity and weaponized nonsense.
Each victim receives a custom poppet, complete with personal items that prove someone’s been stalking half the town. But when the local antique dealer is found dead, clutching a doll that looks suspiciously like himself, the hexing spree officially becomes a murder investigation. The killer isn’t just controlling people anymore; they’re eliminating anyone who gets too close to the truth.
When Fiona finds her own poppet tucked behind the espresso machine, dressed in a tiny business suit and holding a mini eviction notice, she stops investigating and starts planning a hostile takeover. Someone thinks they can hex their way to a clean getaway, but they have underestimated the woman who made a career out of managing other people's disasters.
With the handsome local handyman providing magical backup and the tea shop's feline familiar contributing his usual mix of wisdom and judgment, she is ready to show this puppet master what happens when you mess with Mystic Haven’s most reluctant and recent witch.
Genre: Cozy Mystery