An Amateur Witch's Guide to Murder by K. Valentin
Mateo Borrero has 99 problems—and all of them hinge on his missing bruja mother and the demon she trapped inside his body.
Mateo's mother forbade him from ever using magic, but now that she’s gone, magic’s his only marketable skill, and he’d really like an exorcism—which costs money he doesn’t have. What’s the harm in making a quick buck by calling himself an Occult Specialist and chanting a few half-remembered spells in his crappy Spanish?
Enter Topher, a naive nepo baby with a curse that keeps killing people around him. Most importantly, he’s rich and too clueless to clock that Mateo—and his (absolutely-not-the-assistant) astral projecting best friend Ophelia—have never actually had a client before. Lifting Topher’s bad luck curse should be simple, but as luck would have it, nothing is simple, and Topher–who Mateo sort of, kind of likes–might be at the center of a deadly magical conspiracy.
To make matters worse, the more magic Mateo does, the stronger the demon inside him grows and the more he wants to eat people.
But would caving to the urges of an ancient evil really be that bad if it helps him get a payday?
An Amateur Witch's Guide to Murder is a little difficult to summarize: it's a fun blend of a lot of different genres that makes it feel utterly unique and a lot of fun!
I loved the three main characters in this book. Mateo, Topher, and Ophelia each have their own paranormal issues, and the three form such a delightful trio. Mateo has been possessed by a demon since he was a child, Ophelia can astroproject, and Topher has recently been cursed so that those around him often die.
Mateo and Ophelia have been best friends since childhood, and they are incredibly close. Their friendship is the heart of the book. Mateo and Topher meet at Mateo's retail job. Topher is an awkward ball of anxiety, but he eventually works up the courage to ask Mateo for his help. Mateo and Ophelia agree to help Topher with his curse, mostly for the money at first. Soon, the trio ends up tangled up in a massive magical murder mystery that changes things for all of them.
The mystery is fast-paced and twisty, with chapters often leaving off on cliffhangers. It keeps the pacing really exciting, and there are some genuinely shocking moments and reveals.
Parts of this were surprisingly dark and violent. Mateo's demon delivers genuinely creepy, gory moments. There's also some really great humor that helps balance the horror, but this book may not be for the squeamish.
The publisher's comps for this book are a little odd, in my opinion. They recommended it for fans of T. J. Klune and Tamsyn Muir, and described it as "Legends and Lattes meets A Grim Reaper’s Guide to Catching a Killer." I don't think any of those are especially accurate. I'd recommend it more to fans of cozy horror books like Someone You Can Build a Nest In by John Wiswell and Direct Descendant by Tanya Huff.
The characters and the relationships are what really sold me on this story. I truly loved all three of them. Mateo and Ophelia are one of the best friendship stories I've read in a book recently. The romance, though not a big focus of the book, is also strangely sweet. The mystery is fun with some really unexpected moments. This was one of the biggest surprises of the year for me; I expected to like it, but I was caught off guard by just how much I truly enjoyed it!
My Rating: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 (4.5/5 stars)
Pages: 331 (Kindle Edition)
Tropes/Tags: Paranormal, Queer, Witches, Demons, Mystery, Cozy Horror, Romance
Contains Depictions Of: Vomit, Gore, Descriptions of Cannibalism, Injuries/Blood, Body Horror, Deaths
Links: Storygraph | GoodReads | Pagebound | KValentin.com
An Amateur Witch's Guide to Murder was released on October 14, 2025, and is available for purchase!
I received an advanced copy of this book for free, thanks to Netgalley and Alcove Press. The above are my honest feelings about the book provided. I don’t have any affiliate links in this post, and I do not make any money from my reviews. I review books simply because I love to read.
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