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Synchronized Sorcery by Juliet Blackwell

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



I finished reading Synchronized Sorcery last night. It's the 11th book in Juliet Blackwell's "Witchcraft Mystery" series. The narrative is in the first-person pov of the main character, witch Lily Ivory.

Upon returning home from her European honeymoon, Lily is immediately thrust back into the headache that the magical community in San Francisco can be. With Aidan Rhodes still recovering from injuries he received during the battle at Alcatraz, it's up to Lily to step in and take the reins of the magical community. When she first visits Aidan's office, she finds a dead man at the desk. Lily later learns that Marcellus Tinley was a minor magical practitioner, and that he had ties to Treasure Island--site of the pre-World War II world's fair. When Lily comes into possession of a vintage mermaid costume from that same world's fair, she pays a visit to Treasure Island. There, Lily learns that past events from the fair are influencing current events, both magical and mundane. After another person is murdered, Lily fears the killer may be hiding in plain sight, and that there is more to put right than mere murder.

This was one of the more interesting books I've read in the series. There was no evil entity that needed to be magicked into submission, but that didn't mean Lily was never in danger. It was good to reconnect with familiar characters, including a cameo from Mel Turner of the author's "Haunted Home Renovation" series. We also got to meet new characters, most notably Lily's hitherto unknown half-brother. And, speaking of familiars, I am going to put it out there again: I do not like Lily's gobgoyle familiar, Oscar. He behaves like a spoiled child, he's jealous and petty when it comes to Lily's husband, Sailor, and he's still far too connected to Aidan. Oscar keeps information from Lily, to her detriment, although he will step up when she truly needs him. Don't care, don't like him. I never have.

Favorite lines:
♦ "In the meantime you get to fulfill your egomaniacal ambition to be the Grand Poobah of Bay Area witches."
♦ "There's no label, but it's the right era for Elsa Schiaparelli. And it's her pink."
I love Schiaparelli! I have several of her hats, although none in her trademark 'shocking pink'. Woe.
♦ "After all, you can never find a spangled pantsuit when you need one."
♦ "There's a book on candle magic for beginner's, but it doesn't look like he knew what he was doing. The jasper is set too near the dragon's blood resin, for instance. That'll never work." // "Oh yeah, you never want to have the jasper too near the dragon's blood."
♦ "A fear of zombies was involved."
♦ "The only thing I don't like about making my living dealing with the public is dealing with the public."
♦ "Lucky for you, I'm now fully caffeinated and ready to make all kinds of bad decisions."
♦ How could anyone who has ever had a pet not believe they had a soul?
♦ "Don't start fights if you don't want your ass kicked."

An entertaining and thought-provoking read. Five stars!

A Magical Match by Juliet Blackwell

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Guh, took me forever, but I finished reading A Magical Match this evening. I blame vacation and the mad scramble ahead of vacation to get ready for it. The book is part of Juliet Blackwell's "Witchcraft Mystery" series, featuring witch and vintage clothing shop owner, Lily Ivory.

Lily is busy planning for her upcoming handfasting ceremony with Sailor, and she's also hosting a Magical Match Tea at Aunt Cora's Closet to raise money for a women's shelter. A man from her distant past arrives out of the blue, demanding that Lily return an object he claims she stole from him. Sailor threatens him, and when Tristan Dupree is later murdered by a man matching Sailor's description, Sailor is arrested. Now, Lily has to add solving the murder to her to-do list, because she knows there is no way that Sailor would have killed Tristan in cold blood. Complicating matters, Lily's grandmother and her coven are on their way from Texas to attend the handfasting, powerful witch Aidan Rhodes is trying to convince Lily to throw Sailor over and concentrate on her witchcraft, her magic seems to be off, and there is still the looming threat of Renee, the cupcake lady, to contend with.

All in a day's work for a witch!

Vacation aside, it took me longer to read this book because I just was not getting into it during the first half. Once I got over the hump, so to speak, I embraced it more eagerly. Needless to say, not my favorite in this series. Things were simply too confusing.

Favorite line: As I walked in, the day's tension and worries lifted from my shoulders. I was home.

Hm, going to give this one a three:

***

On Wednesday night, I completed A Toxic Trousseau by Juliet Blackwell. The book is part of her "Witchcraft Mystery" series.

When Lily's familiar, Oscar, bumps into a woman in Aunt Cora's Closet, Lily is hit with a lawsuit. Hoping for a peaceful resolution, she goes to visit the woman in her vintage clothing shop, only to find Autumn Jennings deathly ill. Lily summons help, but Autumn later dies. When cause of death is determined to be poisoning, Lily finds herself among a short list of suspects. Eager to clear her name, she takes it upon herself to start asking questions of Autumn's neighbors and associates. The situation becomes murkier as Lily learns Autumn had no family, precious few friends, and that she'd recently acquired a supposedly cursed trousseau. Along the way, Lily encounters a strange dog walker, a sinister cupcake baker, and a dour homicide detective. At least she has her own friends to help, as well as her boyfriend, Sailor.

Good story, good pacing, and wonderful characterizations. Lots of little subplots were woven together, making the entire book more interesting as a whole. The only drawback in my opinion, was Oscar. He comes across as more of a petulant brat than a stable familiar for Lily.

Favorite lines:
♦ It really dilled my pickle...
♦ "Okay, any actual advice for my meeting the mayor, beyond wardrobe?" // "Don't mention eels." // "Eels." // "Or seesaws." // "Why on earth would I mention eels or seesaws?" // "Exactly."
♦ "I mean, I know I was the one who first suggested it, but I guess I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around the idea that the big showdown we're all so afraid of is with the cupcake lady."

Enjoyable, as with the others in this series. Five stars:

*****

Thanks to a four-day weekend, I've just knocked back my third book in as many days. Yes!

I read A Vision in Velvet, which is part of Juliet Blackwell's "Witchcraft Mystery" series.

Lily buys a trunk of vintage clothing from an antiques dealer, purely because one item in the collection called to her. When the dealer is shot to death soon after, Lily begins to suspect his murder had something to do with the trunk and its contents. She also discovers that each time she dons the velvet cloak that had intrigued her, she experiences visions of a centuries-old witch execution.

Revisiting the scene of the crime, the base of an old oak tree, Lily is dismayed when her familiar, Oscar, disappears in the tree. Determined now to save him, she goes on a quest to gather the information she needs to rescue Oscar. If she solves a murder and rattles some cages along the way, so be it.

This book was delightful, not only in the fast pace, but also in how Lily is humbled when her friends band together to help her, not only in finding Oscar, but also in her spell-casting. I also enjoyed the growing relationship between Lily and Sailor. I was able to figure some things out, and I even sussed out the murderer, although it wasn't until late in the book.

Favorite line: It wasn't going to do anyone any good if I carried on like a sinner in a cyclone.

Five out of five for this one!

♦♦♦♦♦

I stayed up a bit too late last night to finish reading In a Witch's Wardrobe, which is part of Juliet Blackwell's "Witchcraft Mystery" series.

In this installment, Lily encounters a dazed young woman at an elaborate ball, only to be nearby when the woman slumps into a coma. Lily suspects a hex, and she begins looking into the matter. Her line of questioning leads her to learn that another young woman, a witch, has recently died, and Lily senses a pattern. With male witch Aiden avoiding her, Lily turns to her acquaintance Sailor for help. To complicate matters, there is a group in the Bay Area calling itself Defenders of Morality, and they hate all things witchy.

This was one of my favorite stories in this verse. I relished the growing connection between Lily and Sailor, and I enjoyed meeting some potential new friends with her. The mystery had me guessing right up to the end.

Five diamonds!

♦♦♦♦♦

I finished reading A Cast-Off Coven by Juliet Blackwell last night. It's the second book in her "Witchcraft Mysteries", featuring protagonist Lily Ivory.

Lily is quickly making a home for herself in San Francisco. Her vintage clothing shop is doing well, and she's making friends and dancing around her attraction to Max Carmichael. When Lily's assistant asks her to check out some mysterious noises at the School of Fine Arts in exchange for some vintage clothing discovered there, Lily jumps at the chance. What she assumes is a simple haunting, however, turns out to be much more.

Lily must use her powers as a witch, as well as getting help from other witches in the city, in order to solve a murder and bind a demon.

The story was fast-paced and interesting, and I enjoyed the introduction of some new characters, as well as the blossoming romance between Lily and Max.

Four stars:

★★★★