Title: Just a Little Magic
Series: N/A
Author: Lisa Gray
Genre: Paranormal
Length: Novella (79 pages)
Publisher: JMS Books (October 26th, 2014)
Heat Level: Low
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥3.5Hearts
Blurb: Wiccan Owen Rhys inherits a house outside a small town, where he hopes the solitude will help with his music. But a zealously religious neighbor is convinced he’s a devil worshiper, and her gossip causes the townspeople to view Owen with suspicion. A series of pranks ensues, including dead animals left on his porch, threatening the feral cats living on Owen’s property.
Though a bit out of practice, Owen casts a spell to summon a protector — someone to convince the town the gossip is false and prevents the pranks from escalating. He confidently waits for his champion to arrive.
Marc Elias is the town’s animal control officer and veterinarian. He considers himself a rational man who trusts in science and most certainly does not believe in magic. So when he receives a complaint that Owen is bewitching and torturing cats, he dismisses it as her imagination but goes to investigate.
Owen is certain Marc is the protector summoned by the spell. But Marc sees Owen’s altar and hears desperate howling, and he has to put aside any attraction he may feel towards the young Wiccan to do his job. Will a little magic be all it takes for both men to get what they want?
ISBN: 978-1-61152-669-1
Product Link: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/483226
Reviewer: Prime
Review: First and foremost, this is a good read, especially if you have a bit of time to kill and you’re not sure what you want to read. It’s hard to say the genre of this one, even though paranormal is used. But the message of the book basically explains my issue with labelling this one paranormal. Basically, we have Owen who is a Wiccan and seems to observe his religion closely. He recently moved into the home he inherited from his father. He has an awful neighbour who won’t neuter her cats, resulting in many litters of kittens that he has to deal with. The other character is local vet and part-time animal control officer, Marc.
So the message is that real magic is subtle and not obvious – it appears more as a series of coincidences than appearing out of thin air. That’s a message I like, and the one real mystery that comes down to the question is it magic or not is the pivotal point in this story and although it appeared to come out of nowhere, once you finish the story you know that the story was meant to come to this point.
Owen is a great character and I like him a lot. He is a kind heart and damn smart. As for Marc, I think it was the constrains of the length, but I was a bit annoyed at how he would jump to conclusions and hurt Owen, then Owen would be just way too nice to him afterward.
It’s hard to explain why, but I just feel that this book probably is constrained by its length or even just the short time frame within the story. Regardless, it’s still enjoyable and there is part of me left wondering what else could happen to Owen and Marc.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *