A Potion for Your Thoughts

1. Is A Potion for Your Thoughts a standalone or part of a series?

It is Book 5 of the (Un)Lucky Valley series, a novella featuring Lily Goode’s sister Jesse Goode and Malachi “Mal” Rhodes from MacIver Law in Lucky Valley, Colorado. The novella reads as a satisfying standalone, though readers will recognize Aunt Polly, the Goode siblings, the Garden Gnome Bed and Breakfast, and the supernatural quirks of Lucky Valley from earlier (Un)Lucky Valley books.

2. Does A Potion for Your Thoughts end on a cliffhanger?

No. The mystery is resolved by the final page, and Jesse and Mal get a complete happily ever after. Larger threads about the Goode family and the secrets of Lucky Valley continue across the (Un)Lucky Valley series.

3. What’s the heat level?

Sweet and clean. Closed door. There are no on-page sexy times, making this a cozy mystery novella comfortable for readers of all comfort levels.

4. Who is this book for?

Cozy paranormal mystery readers who love witch protagonists, found-family magic, multi-generational supernatural casts, small-town settings, and shorter novella-length reads with romance and amateur-sleuth investigation. Perfect for fans of Heather Webber’s magical-mystery novels and Mary Janice Davidson’s Undead series.

5. What is the (Un)Lucky Valley series about?

(Un)Lucky Valley is Michelle M. Pillow’s cozy paranormal mystery series, the witty, magical, slightly chaotic adventures of Aunt Polly and her family of supernatural misfits. Expect murder mysteries, ghosts, demons, garden gnomes that may or may not move at night, witches in denial, and small-town secrets that refuse to stay buried. Each book delivers a self-contained whodunit alongside a romance arc and a steady undercurrent of family found-family humor.

6. How does A Potion for Your Thoughts connect to the Happily Everlasting series?

The Happily Everlasting series is a collaborative paranormal cozy mystery world set in the fictional town of Everlasting, Maine, written by New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors Jana DeLeon, Mandy M. Roth, Michelle M. Pillow, and Kristen Painter. A Potion for Your Thoughts is a novella in Michelle’s (Un)Lucky Valley spin-off series, set in the broader Happily Everlasting World but in Lucky Valley, Colorado. New readers can enjoy this book without having read the prequels.

7. When was A Potion for Your Thoughts first published?

The novella was originally released in March 2023 as part of the Witching the Night Away limited-time multi-author anthology. That anthology is no longer in print. The standalone (Un)Lucky Valley novella edition (eBook and print) released August 22, 2023, from The Raven Books LLC.

8. What are the Core Happily Everlasting Series Books?

The primary series consists of seven main titles:

• Dead Man Talking by Jana DeLeon
• Once Hunted, Twice Shy by Mandy M. Roth
• Fooled Around and Spelled in Love by Michelle M. Pillow
• Witchful Thinking by Kristen Painter
• Total Eclipse of the Hunt by Mandy M. Roth
• Curses and Cupcakes by Michelle M. Pillow
• An Everlasting Christmas by Mandy M. Roth

You do not have to read everything to follow (Un)Lucky Valley. The series has expanded into the Happily Everlasting World, which includes spin-off series by the original authors: Bewitchingly Ever After by Mandy M. Roth features titles like Don’t Stop Bewitching and Everybody Wants to Rune the World. (Un)Lucky Valley by Michelle M. Pillow features titles such as Better Haunts and Garden Gnomes and Any Witch Way But Goode.

9. What is the recommended reading order for Michelle’s books if I just want to read hers in order?

The (Un)Lucky Valley series is by Michelle M. Pillow. Reading Order:

Happily Everlasting series / (Un)Lucky Valley series:

1. Fooled Around and Spelled in Love
2. Curses and Cupcakes

(Un)Lucky Valley series:

3. Better Haunts and Garden Gnomes
4. Any Witch Way But Goode
5. A Potion for Your Thoughts

Cozy Mystery Reading Order:

Happily Everlasting series:

1. Fooled Around and Spelled in Love

2. Curses and Cupcakes

(Un)Lucky Valley series:

3. Better Haunts and Garden Gnomes

4. Any Witch Way But Goode

5. A Potion for Your Thoughts

Reader notes: 

The Happily Everlasting series was a group book project with authors Jana DeLeon, Mandy M. Roth, Michelle M. Pillow, and Kirsten Painter. Each book was a standalone and do not have to be read in order. 

The (Un)Lucky Valley series is by Michelle M. Pillow. Did her character Aunt Polly tickle your funny bone in Fooled Around and Spelled in Love, and Curses and Cupcakes? If so, just wait until you read the next crazy adventure Aunt Polly has up her sleeve.

CW: These cozy mysteries are considered clean romance, as in there are no sexy times happening on the page. There is mild violence and themes, deaths, and neglectful parents, things like that. These cozy mysteries are going to be the sweetest of Michelle’s books. You want something sexier and more graphic, try her other series. 

Book Heat Levels: Sweet / Clean (No sexy times), Closed Door