Pawsitively Swindled by Melissa Erin Jackson

About Pawsitively Swindled:

Pawsitively Swindled is a book by Melissa Erin Jackson. It was published in 2020 by Ringtail Press. Pawsitively Swindled is the fourth book in the Witch of Edgehill series. It follows Amber Blackwood and the very few people who know exactly what she is. In this installment, Amber just recently found her parent’s grimoires that have a very powerful time spell within their pages.

The Penhallow’s have been trying to track her down because they want that spell. You see the Penhallow’s are cursed and they have been for a long time. They have no opportunity to really redeem themselves because the curse affects their ability to function very well. On top of this, her cousin Edgar has been trying to help her magic get stronger by playing Magic Cache. One day as they are playing this her powers take her to the neighboring town. This place is considered one of the safest places in Oregon, so it’s a bit strange that there has been a murder committed by no other than the person she became friends with. Can Amber help this man clear his name? While she’s trying to help him is there anything else lurking in the shadows waiting for her to put her guard down?

What I thought about Pawsitively Swindled:

Typically I don’t read cozy mysteries or I guess I should say that I’ve never really tried reading cozy mysteries up until this series. I’ve actually been a pretty big fan of Mellissa’s since I first read her debut novel which has become a big favorite of mine! This series hasn’t been any different. For one I really like her writing style. Her books grab your attention from the start and never really eases up. On top of that, her characters are actually pretty relatable and make me wish I could find some friends like the characters in the book.

The Plot

It honestly helps that I always really enjoy books that deal with witches and this series puts a different perspective on it for me. When reading books about witches I kind of half expect them to already know what they are doing-especially if they grow up knowing what they are. So The Witch of Edgehill series brings a new perspective to a witch series where the main character has known she was a witch all of her life but didn’t exactly know how to use her power properly at times. The fact that Amber isn’t exactly perfect brings life to her character and makes her seem more human.

I know I’ve said it before in my other posts with this series is that I really enjoy the town that Melissa has created. Typically I don’t like small towns because everyone knows your business but it would be cool to live in an area that has a certain theme to it. Plus, I love that all of the locals really like supporting local establishments even though they want business too. I don’t think many communities are like that and are pretty much all about themselves.

I’m really glad about the way things ended in this book. Just the fact that some problems that were happening in some of the other books were corrected and made better by the ending of this book made the storyline so much better. I’m really excited to read the next book in the installment!

The Characters

Honestly, I think Edgar has become one of my favorite characters of the series. He’s reclusive and doesn’t exactly like very many people, and he’s goofy in his own way. I think his bluntness is pretty awesome too. There’s this one part in the book that really made me laugh out loud because Amber accidentally scared him. Just the fact that he screamed in that situation made me really laugh! I think I’m a little biased because I really like all of Amber’s family and how they relentlessly tease her about her love life. The perfect book always has a good family dynamic and it’s not really a fun book if the family is so serious all of the time!

Other books by Mellissa Erin Jackson:

The Forgotten Child

Pawsitively Poisonous

Pawsitively Cursed

Pawsitively Secretive