Cardamom & Curses: A Queer Supernatural Mystery (The Pinehaven Chronicles, Book 1)

By H.J. Stellason

In a town where magic is real and secrets run three centuries deep, one anxious human with no magic might be the only one who can stop the Heartbreak Curse before it kills again.

Casey Winters came to Pinehaven for a fresh start. No plan. No magic. Just an old car, a stress-baking habit, and a desperate hope to finally belong somewhere.

What they found was a hidden New England town that isn't on any map-a haven for vampires, werewolves, witches, and supernatural beings living in fragile peace.

For six months, Casey has been the most ordinary person in an extraordinary place. They run a bookshop, collect vintage teacups, bake cardamom croissants at 3 a.m. when anxiety strikes, and try not to notice they're still on the outside looking in.

Then people start dying.

Drained of life. Aged beyond recognition. Their protective charms shattered like they were never there.

The town fractures along old wounds. The werewolf pack leader points to the vampire estate on the hill-a recluse who's carried three hundred years of grief and rage. The vampire swears he's innocent. And Casey, the human outsider with an unsettling ability to sense emotional residue, gets pulled into an investigation that unearths an ancient betrayal, a tragic love story, and a curse that feeds on pain no one will speak of.

Because the real killer isn't a person.

It's the Traitors' Curse-dark magic fueled by heartbreak, broken trust, and centuries of unresolved grief.

To stop it, Casey will have to do the impossible: uncover the truth about the night that destroyed everything three hundred years ago, bridge the gap between two immortals who've spent centuries as enemies, and prove that sometimes the person with the least power is exactly who a broken community needs.

Even if it means Casey might not survive the truth they uncover.

Perfect for readers who love:
- Cozy mysteries with paranormal twists
- LGBTQ+ protagonists finding their place
- Small-town magic and found family
- Gothic romance meets comfort read
- Slow-burn emotional depth
- Baking, books, and vintage teacups
- Mysteries that heal as much as they hurt

Cardamom & Curses is the first book in The Pinehaven Chronicles-a cozy queer paranormal mystery series featuring a non-binary protagonist, a town full of secrets, and magic that feels like coming home... until it doesn't.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0GL93RK7V
• ISBN13: 9798246517055
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 222 Pages
• Weight: 0.67 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"