Better Living Through Alchemy

By Critter’s definition, Kelly Mun is a weirdo genius who can smell ghosts and solve cases with tarot cards and Dada cut-ups. With the help of her cousin Critter, Kelly runs Non-Linear Investigations as a psychic detective with a nose for the job, one could say. Kelly’s talents are clairolfaction. She interprets the smells around her to aid in the investigations. Seattle is being inundated with a deadly new street drug with some unusual effects called Bardo, and Kelly is hired to sniff around and find out who is behind it.

Better Living Through Alchemy is an occult-noir detective novel by Evan J. Peterson. This bizarre mystery starts out strange and gets more fantastical as the story progresses. Peterson’s eccentric cast of characters fit into this offbeat plot driven novel perfectly. Peterson tends to lead the reader down so many rabbit holes that one can forget that this is a mystery. Even so, this tale does not lose its charm. This is a fast, fun read. Better Living Through Alchemy is a cozy mystery for those who cuddle up with voodoo dolls.