I love Carol J. Perry’s Witch City cozy mysteries. I will admit I guessed the killer in the first third of the book, but there are a few cozy series I read for the characters and setting rather than the mystery itself. So, it didn’t really matter to me that the solution was obvious.

Lee Barrett Mondello is the program director, and sometimes a field reporter for WICH-TV in Salem, Massachusetts. She’s also a newlywed, married to Detective Sergeant Pete Mondello, a newlywed trying to juggle her work responsibilities with her new married life. Her latest assignment makes that a little difficult. Paragon Productions is filming “Night Magic” in Salem, a movie involving witches. Everyone in town is excited. Even Lee’s best friend, River North, has a role as the star’s body double and sometimes stand-in.

It’s Darla Diamond, the star of “Night Magic” who is murdered, though. Although Pete doesn’t usually talk about current cases, it’s soon obvious the actress was poisoned. After she died, her co-star, Lamont Faraday, was found asleep in Darla’s trailer. Rumor has it the two hated each other.

But, there are other rumors in town. The hairdressers and bartenders of Salem know all the gossip. Word is that Paragon Productions is way over budget, and they’ve had all kinds of accidents on the set, both in California and in Salem. Is someone determined to shut down the filming of “Night Magic” and, in doing so, ruin Paragon Productions?

Lee’s various assignments send her to the movie set, to an animal refuge for show animals, and to other sites related to the film company. But, she only feels endangered one night at home, when she imagines a figure outside, and the neighbor’s cat is injured. She was warned, though. When River read her tarot cards, she told Lee to be more objective in her decisions. This time, Lee’s feelings might stop her from seeing the obvious.

As I said, I saw the obvious, and there were clues throughout the book as to the killer. It didn’t spoil the book for me. I like Lee, her husband, her Aunt Ibby, a retired research librarian, and, of course, the cat, O’Ryan. The staff at the TV station might be competitive, but they’re also supportive. The Witch City mysteries put community into the cozy mystery series.

Carol J. Perry’s website is https://www.caroljperry.com/.

Death Scene by Carol J. Perry. Kensington Cozies, 2024. ISBN 9781496743664 (paperback), 304p.

FTC Full Disclosure – I received a galley through NetGalley to review for a journal.