Customer Reviews

Bewitched (Love Spell)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Fantastic, fun? I was going to give this one star but bumped it to two because the author had some great ideas. They just didn't pan out.

Miss Amelia Bourne lost her parents to witchcraft when she was young. She went to live with her uncle and his family until she used witchcraft with her cousins. Note: the uncle sent her away to live with someone else but not her cousins who were also involved.

Fast forward: she is presented to society where she meets Sebastian "Fox" Stapleton and the two don't hit it off, to put it mildly. Meanwhile, her guardian Mr. Bentham, owes gambling debts and someone comes to collect after a ten-year absence. He agrees to give Amelia 'Amy' and Fox a potion in place of paying his debt. He knows something is wrong about this situation but does it anyway.

The potion causes Amy and Fox to fall in love. They soon become engaged and go to stay with his relatives for a visit. Mr. Bentham's daughter comes along and per her father's instructions places strange items at Fox's brother's estate. Black Magic ensues and bad things start to happen.

At this point everything becomes forced. I would like to continue to explain the plot but it will spoil the remaining story. For me, this is where it went downhill. Both Fox and Amy can remember how they felt but for some reason that doesn't matter to him. She feels differently. The last interaction between them was stupid and I thought it was put in the novel to add a little sizzle but it didn't do anything for me.

There are better gothic romances to read; save yourself the time and find something else. If you are looking for a scary gothic romance try Shirley's Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House. Just make sure you are not home alone. Boo!

This book was fabulous. It was slightly slow to start but when all the magical/paranormal aspects kept rolling in, well, I couldn't put it down. This book has a lot of angst. The hero and heroine dislike each other but are put under a love spell, once the heroine realizes this she becomes confused as to her feelings and heart-broken that the hero's love isn't real. Basically, there is a lot of self-sacrificing going around and it is good. I cried, I felt so bad for their torn feelings. It has an evil witch looking for revenge and some real fantastic fairy tale twists. Very emotionally satisfying.

Miss Amelia Bourne is a witch. Actually, she comes from a family of witches. Despite her unusual upbringing and talents, she is still a member of society and still required to find herself a husband. Herein lies the problem. Who'd want a wife who with a whispered word can turn a manor blue, heal major wounds, or make inanimate objects do her bidding? Amelia's uncle trusts that an old college friend, Mr. Bentham, and his family, can successfully find her a spouse.

Sebastian Stapleton originally wants nothing to do with Amelia. In fact, he loathes her, everything from her sharp tongue to her simple ways, to her inability to play a musical instrument or conform to society. And she, in turn, appears to share the same feelings. After a sip of poisoned punch, however, they fall madly in love. If only a happily-ever-after were immediately in store for them. Sebastian takes Amelia and her friend, Isabella Bentham, to his family's country estate, Rawdon Park, to introduce his betrothed to his brother and sister-in-law. Unfortunately, the elder brother, Lord Rawdon, has his own secrets, and they're about to come back to haunt him.

Can Amelia protect the Stapleton family from the impending evil? How many characters have either slept with or borrowed money from the mysterious Lady Margaret? Will Sebastian pull his head out of his ass and realize that alcohol and whoring is not the immediate answer to life's problems? Can Sebastian's butler speak for one moment without slurring his words like some lisping, foot-dragging Igor? Will Isabella Bentham have a single redemptive moment or will she always be portrayed as a simpering, shallow, money-grubbing creature? These questions' answers and more await you.

This is one of those books you read cover to cover in one sitting, trapped under its spell, only to emerge much later to rub a hand across your face and murmur "what happened?". Are their plot problems? Sure. Do the men, including the hero, act somewhat sissy and speak totally unlike men? Yes, sometimes. Is the heroine Polly-Anne-ish? Yes. The villains flat, without a redemptive trace, and pure evil? Yep. But, the most important question? Does it transport the reader to another time and place, capture his or her attention, with an urgency more pressing than sleep, supper, and viewing a new episode of Drop Dead Diva? Yes. And that's what matters.

Ms. Schwab has written a rare novel, replete with all the historical elements one loves and a heavy dose of familiar yet unique magic. Don't pull apart the spell-making. Don't study the herbs and question their uses. Ignore Stapleton's butler's lisps. Simply read Bewitched. And I promise you, you'll enjoy it. Then, before the spell is broken, resist the urge to flip through it again to clarify a plot point or re-read a passage. Instead, pass it along to friend and encourage them to do the same. Some books are only meant to be read once and shared. This is one of them. Enjoy it like you would a perishable flower.

Chris
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

While I finished the book, about a third of the way through I kept skipping ahead. That's a sure sign to me that the book is dragging a bit. However, it was strong enough to keep my interest and I kept going back to my spot and reading the book; I ended up reading the entire book all the way through. Other than that one part, it was an interesting book. If I had to classify the book, I would say it is a historical romance novel with a paranormal aspect.

After a magical mishap, Amy's magical powers are suppressed and she is shipped off to London to find a husband. Some people have complained about Amy being shipped off to her Uncle's friend's house. However, if you read historical romance novels, it is understandable that she is shipped off to town to meet men as marriage is the only option for most women. She meets Sebastian (also called Fox) at a dance and they take each other in instant dislike. Two or three meetings later, after they are given a love potion, they are madly, passionately in love. Bewitched and not able to think of anything but the other person.

Amy gets engaged to Sebastian and she and her cousin go to visit his family. This is where it starts to drag a bit. They are in love. They are passionate. They can not be without each other. However, the story seems stuck in this rut for a while. Eventually, something happens which causes Amy to realize that more might be happening than she thought. THAT is when the book starts to get interesting again. I won't put in any spoilers. However,I enjoyed most of the rest of the book. The resolution was a little strange, especially given the historical time period. And the book ended a bit too abruptly for me. I did believe that they were in love at the end. I think the love potion allowed each of them to see the other without the walls they had built up around themselves. Especially Fox - he was initially a cynical, sophisticated man who wouldn't have anything to do with country-bred Amy. However, with the love potion, Amy got to see him with his walls down and relaxed, fun and carefree. Thus, I didn't have a problem with the love potion and whether they were really in love at the end of the book. All in all, I enjoyed reading it.

In 1820 it was obviously a magical mistake as she loves her relative, but turning her uncle's house blue on top of changing the foundation into shaky giant chicken legs leads to Miss Amelia Bourne losing her powers and being exiled to London for the season. She meets several nice young men, but Amelia finds Sebastian "Fox" Stapleton too haughty of a rake. Both act polite towards one another, but each dislikes the other until they drink the spiked punch. Suddenly Fox and Amelia need one another with a deep passion.

They journey to his country estate, but Amy wonders why she went from total loathing to animalistic desire on one sip. She decides to check whether this is love or an illusion. As she investigates without her magic to help her, Amy relies on her knowledge and lore of the arts and her belief that Sebastian is honorable even if he thinks he is god's gift to women, which she agrees he has a solid argument. However, a devious person has use for Miss Amelia as an expendable pawn in a revenge scheme while not wanting her to know the truth.

This is a fun often amusing Regency romantic fantasy in which spells go wrong leading to romance and love. The story line is lighthearted yet allows the audience to believe in a paranormal early nineteenth century London in which at least in the Schwab universe, magic works though not always for the good. Fans will be BEWITCHED by this enchanting charmer.

Harriet Klausner