Dear ,

Happy New Year!!!

I hope everyone is well where you are. We're going through an ice storm a few days after a blizzard, so I'm going to keep this message short. I absolutely love winter, even when it rages. The mysteries of the earth can be witnessed in real time.

I've been very lucky this season to date. *knock on wood*

Thank you so much for your well wishes for Pumpkin. He's finding his place in our home. We've set him up with his very own chair behind my desk, so he can look out the window. He's also fond of going out on the front porch and looking through the mail slot. 😀 For the most part, he is a very good boy.

A Sip of Thyme

We've been hit with allergies this year like you wouldn't believe. My husband and daughter wind up with the worst stuffy noses. Of course, no one wants to take allergy medicine every day, so we went looking for a safer alternative... and found one, surprisingly, mixed in with our basic herbs and spices.

Please note, thyme acts similar to estrogen in the body, so please skip this remedy if you have any conditions that might be complicated by estrogen use, such as certain cancers, endometriosis or uterine fibroids. All herbal teas can pose issues, so if you're sensitive or have known health problems, check with your doctor before drinking.

Thyme Tea

• One teaspoon dried thyme
• One piping hot cup of water
• Lemon

Steep thyme for 10 minutes. Add a dash of lemon juice. Enjoy up to three times per day.

Looking for a good book to kick off a new year? Keep reading!

Cat Scratch Murder

by Karen McSpade

Magic in this witch’s family has a name: Trouble

Meet Sidney Grace. Quirky journalist, Hesitant witch, Professional butterfingers.

Her grandmother believes Sidney’s talent for communicating with the dead makes her the most powerful witch in the family, but Sidney just wants to make it through the day without getting fired.

A young writer living in Boston, Sidney is far from the small wacky town of Crystal Beach, Florida, where her spell-happy grandmother retired. She is perfectly happy with her career, her four cats, and the fact that she hasn’t been on a date in… well, years. All is well until her estranged mother informs Sidney that her grandmother has been arrested for murdering a resident at her retirement community.

Sidney road-trips to Florida to discover that her grandmother has no alibi, her grandfather isn’t as dead as she thought he was, and one of her cats can speak. To make matters worse, the handsome Officer Reece is tough on criminals and even tougher on witches. Who cooked up the deadly scone? And why are residents at Shifting Sands suddenly disappearing?

Now, Sidney must embrace her own magical talents to prove her grandmother’s innocence and stop the killer bent on destroying anyone who gets in the way.

Isn't that a mesmerizing cover? I love it, and I hope you do, too!

Until next time,

Katie O'Keene ☆

If you haven't already checked out my books, you're invited to take a 👀.

Designer to the Dead (Paranormal Cozy Mystery series)

Apparition in the Kitchen

Phantom in the Family Room

Creeper in the Sleeper

Little Bold Ladies (Paranormal Women's Fiction)

Fantastical at Fifty (preorder)