Lily Ivory's visit to a local Gem Faire is disrupted by fire, murder and a runaway Vietnamese pot-bellied pig. Before the brouhaha settles Lily will be entangled in an investigation where her estranged father may be the prime suspect. In a maelstrom of fire dancing, ancient methods of torture and the distinct presence of demonic doings, Lily must find her way to the truth, and discover the whereabouts of a powerful artifact before a shift of power to the dark side changes the world forever.

TARNISHED AND TORN is perhaps my favorite entry in Juliet Blackwell's Witchcraft Mystery series. As we are led through the twists and knots of a very well-plotted whodunit, parts of Lily's past are revealed as well as details regarding her father's connections to people she knows now and the choices he made that led to their estrangement. The revelation of the murderer came as a complete surprise to me, despite, in retrospect, the clues that had been provided.

The people in Lily's circle we have come to know and love are also well-represented and integral to the story line; Bronwyn, Oscar and especially Maya. The setting in San Francisco is so well-drawn it might as well be a character in and of itself. TARNISHED AND TORN is fifth in the series. I highly recommend reading them in order, although Blackwell does a fine job of unobtrusively providing enough information each book can be enjoyed on its own.

Book Summary

As the owner of a popular vintage clothing store, Lily Ivory can enjoy a day of antique jewelry shopping and still call it work. But as one of San Francisco’s resident witches, searching for hidden treasures can sometimes lead to dangerous discoveries…

When Lily arrives at an antique jewelry fair, her bargain sensors go off left and right—but she also picks up a faint vibration of magic. Could the hard-bargaining merchant Griselda be a fellow practitioner? It certainly seems that way when a sudden fire sends panic through the crowd, and Lily discovers Griselda murdered in a way that nods to an old-fashioned witch hunt…

A crime that hits close to home turns into an unwelcome flash from the past when the police bring in their lead suspect—Lily’s estranged father. Though he may not deserve her help, Lily is determined to clear her father’s name and solve a murder that’s anything but crystal clear.