6⭐️2🌶 I've gotten exceedingly behind in my blog posting. I had to rapid fire read several of these books to make the publication deadline so everything else went by the wayside. Smoke, Mirrors and Misdemeanors was exceptional though and a cozy joy to read. The MMC, Ark, is a total green flag. Reserved, quiet, private but fiercely loyal to the scant few people he's let into his inner circle over the years. He falls first for the FMC and falls hard. Cassia is a Kitchen Witch, which in this realm puts her pretty low on the totem pole. She's also the mixed daughter of two orphans, so she doesn't have a family name with clout either to help her out. She's the caretaker of an orphanage. One that cares for mixed blood children. It is the orphanage her parents called home and where they met. Cassia is a baker and owns The Witching Flour. The profits from the bakery are what keeps the orphanage afloat. A d...