Customer Reviews

Like a Charm

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

A light fun read.
It really felt like an intro to a series with the library being a Portal and all. I would like to see what comes next in this series.
The heroine, Kira, is a high-powered contract attorney who has a mental and physical breakdown when a friend steps off the top of one of Atlanta's high-rises. Her mom, a hippie born too late for the movement, collects her and takes her home to west Texas to recuperate.

I love this book, once i started reading it I couldn't put it down..
I really hope the story continues in the next book soon.
This is a great book...

Several months ago I crafted a lengthy review for this book. However for some odd reason it didn't go through and it was lost. So here it is again though this time much shorter.

What I noticed most and found tiresome was the issue of the author telling instead of showing. She told us character traits instead of fleshing them out, and in this novel a prime example would be Bronwyn. Kira didn't know her very well at all and yet somehow she could identify and rely on the character's quirks (my memory eludes me but I'm sure it was her being strong headed or brave). Bronwyn was mentioned less than a handful of times and had maybe one significant role in those brief moments. I hardly call this adequate time for Kira to be all kinds of perceptive and savvy about the woman she just met.

Another thing that really bothered me was the fact that Kira hot-footed it out of Sweet because she didn't "fit" in. Over and over the author tells us she didn't quite belong, she was an outcast, her adolescence was a lonely one and so forth and yet when she returns there are a very high number of people welcoming her back and reminiscing fondly of their time with Kira as a child. Very inconsistent and it sort of invalidated Kira to me as a reader, she became a sham. In fact most of her interactions with the towns folk were a transparent convenience for the less than solid plot.

Candace Haven is actually a great story teller. I'm fond of her other series (somewhat companionable to this book). I would recommend those books rather than this one, they are at least coherent. It was an unpleasant experience to slog through this book.

The majority for the one star rating is because I was so frustrated by the lack of continuity and it took much longer to read than it ought to have. I've never been quite as put off by a book as this one, when half way through, when you've invested all this time in the people and place is starts to fall apart.

But that's enough negative.

Some redeeming things:
Caleb is an absolute doll. I really liked reading about him and Kira can actually be quite entertaining with all her lists and such.
The town of Sweet is just that, Sweet. It was probably the most developed thing in this novel just not adequately displayed this time around.
Should there be a sequel I would read it, though hopefully it would be more coherent.

I was all set to love this book. Having read the previous three and enjoyed them, I picked up this one not realizing that it focused on one of the supporting characters from the other books.

That wasn't a problem as I thought the supporting characters from the Brownwyn books were pretty strong in their own right. My problem with this book is the lack of continuity with the previous. I can overlook a couple of things, e.g. ages, eye color, etc. However, the entire time line of the book contradicts what was described in the previous. How Kira met Caleb, how the relationship develops, how her psychic powers develop, how she uses them, etc., EVERYTHING contradicts what was said previously, which is pretty jarring. I found myself trying to make everything fit and reconcile it with what I know already happened rather than focusing on the story. I understand not wanting to involve Brownwyn too much but this lack of coherence seriously makes me think twice about reading anything else Candace Havens writes. Its as if the spin off(s) were not well thought out and demonstrates a lack of respect for a reader's intelligence.

i have read all of candace havens work and have enjoyed everyone of them. i am glad to see her create another new character, one i hope we will be seeing in future books. it was also cool the way she brought into the book her other characters. please keep writing ms haven, can't wait for the next one.

I really liked this book, but wasn't aware that it is part of a series. I really thought this worked as a stand alone, and it made me want to read the other books. Kira's life is really funny and sad at the same time. As a reader, you feel for everything she has gone through (even though it all happens before the book begins) I think the author did a great job of balancing the realistic and fantastic elements of the story. When the ghosts appear, it just fits into Kira's life. I can't wait to read the Bronwyn series (which are being released in MMP) and the upcoming release, The Demon King and I.

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Great book. I really liked the whole story line. I hope Candace Havens writes more books with these characters. The dead people are a hoot.

Another great one by Candace. This book tells the story of Kyra, Bronwyn the Witch's best friend, and how she came into her "interesting" powers. I enjoyed that I didn't feel like I was reading just another Bronwyn book. Kyra has her own personality and way of telling the story, which just goes to show Candace is a true writing talent. Quick and enjoyable read.

I enjoyed this book very much! I hope that the author will write more books about the magickal library, and the
same heroine.

This is the third (fourth?) book that I have paid full price for that has come from Amazon with a black mark across the bottom--which would make it a bargin book that I could get for about $3.00 at a bargin book warehouse. I want the readers of this series to be aware of this when they order this book and pay full price. Otherwise, I have enjoyed the series.