Spells, Strings, and Forgotten Things by Breanne Randall (Sisters of Shadow and Light #1)
Rating: 4/5
Spice: 1/5
Plot: 4/5
Primary Genre: Romantasy/Fantasy Romance
Blurb: A young witch cursed with sacrificing memories to cast spells must decide how much she’s willing to lose to save her town in this thrilling tale of magic, love, and self-discovery—from the New York Times bestselling author of The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic. In the small town of Gold Springs, Calliope Petridi and her two sisters carefully guard the secret of their magic and the price they must pay to practice memories. The more powerful the magic, the greater the memory required. Luckily, all Calliope wants to do is forget. Forget the mother who left them without a trace. Forget the cracks in her relationships with her judgmental oldest sister, Thalia, and her distant middle sister, Eurydice. Forget about the very cost of her magic. And most of all, forget the way the love of her life shattered her heart two years ago. But when an ancient evil awakens in their town, the fragile thread that holds the sisters together breaks. As their magic slowly begins to fade, Calliope accidentally binds herself to an annoyingly handsome leader of a rival coven infamous for their ruthless pursuit of power. Battling a sizzling chemistry to a man she can't trust, Calliope needs to confront her sisters and the painful memories of her past, dark family secrets, and ancient magic in order to keep the town and all she loves safe. But will she have anything left of herself?
The Good:
* I’m thrilled about the the fact that Breanne put recipes in her book again. They’re included at the end of the book (at least they are in the ARC copy that I received.) I don’t know why but I am a sucker for a book with recipes in it.
* This book leans a lot more into the fantasy genre than her first novel and I loved it. There’s a lot more action/excitement happening, the storyline keeps you on your toes with twists and turns when you least expect it. The Lucian and Calliope love story is the perfect enemies to lovers mixture, sometimes there’s just too much hate there for it to be believable but this was done very well.
* This book brings a bit of a Charmed meets Practical Magic vibe. I’m not saying it’s exactly like either one, just that it has elements of both. The three sisters quarreling on Charmed, check. Every generation seems to have three “sister witches”. The sisters own a shop in their small town called Tea and Tomes. Those things are a bit of a Practical Magic movie element.
The Meh:
* This didn’t completely end in a cliffhanger but there are still some major plotlines that are unresolved and your girl is impatient. This is #1 in a series so there is more to come and hopefully it’s quick!
Bottom Line:
This book is great for anyone who loves witches, light romantasy, paranormal romance, or magic. Heavy on the magic, medium on the enemies to lovers romance and medium on the fantasy action. If you’re not into smutty romantasy this will be a great book for you. This is open door but the door is like, cracked open. The intimate moments aren’t pages long and there are only two. In my opinion, Breanne is two for two. I’ve read both of her both of her books and I think that they’re both great. I can’t wait to see what she does next.
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