Katie Chandler is taking a hiatus from all things magical.
After the powerful wizard and all-around great guy she
liked in New York chose to save her life instead of
defeating the bad guy, she knew she was becoming an
obstacle instead of an asset to her bosses at Magic, Spells
and Illusions, Inc. Katie has only been back at her
parent's house, working in the family feed store, for a few
months when an amateur wizard appears in town.
To make matters worse, Katie discovers that someone is
advertising in magazines using an enchanted ad to find
people with magical abilities and train them. When the
amateur magician wearing a hooded cloak starts using
beginner's magic to pickpocket people and steal jewelry
through store windows, Katie can't ignore the issue any
longer. As folks from her old job, including her favorite
gargoyle Sam, come down to Texas to investigate, the number
of magical people in town seems to increase exponentially.
Katie knows something big is going on when Owen Palmer, her
favorite fellow back in the big city, shows up to help.
Suddenly Katie's life in New York as a magical immune is
much too close to her life in Texas trying to live with her
eccentric family and trouble-making brothers. While Katie
and Owen try to control the magic that's affecting the
small town, they also must confront the emotions that are
just as strong between them as when Katie first left New
York. If all goes according to plan, these magical
outsiders will soon be aware of the new state motto -- DON'T
HEX WITH TEXAS.
Shanna Swendson has done it again! By taking her
established characters to a new locale, she gives them new
adventures, but also reveals new depths to Katie's back-
story, including many secrets she didn't know about her own
family. If you haven't read the first three fairy tales for
modern times, ENCHANTED, INC., ONCE UPON STILETTOS and
DAMSEL UNDER STRESS, you are missing out on some of the
best, lighthearted, magical and fun romances. I love to
recommend this series to other readers as "Harry Potter
chick-lit," and the magic, adventure and romance continue
into this fourth installment. These stories are good, clean
fun appropriate for teen readers looking to branch out, as
well as enjoyable for any romance reader looking for
magical escape. Enjoy!
Katie Chandler has fled fast-paced Manhattan and returned
home to a simpler life, working at her family’s feed-and-
seed store in Cobb, Texas. Leaving the sexy wizard Owen
Palmer to battle his demons in the magical realm may have
been a selfless gesture—after all, Katie seemed to attract
evil, which only made Owen's job a lot harder—but now it
seems like trouble has followed her home. And despite the
fact that Merlin, Katie’s old boss at Magic, Spells, and
Illusions, Inc., has assured her that Cobb is free of
enchantment, magically speaking, Katie begins to notice
curious phenomena.
Soon Cobb is being plagued by a series of unexplainable
petty crimes and other devilish mischief, and after her
experiences in Manhattan, Katie knows "unauthorized magic"
when she sees it. As this new dark magic strikes deep in
the heart of Texas, Owen appears (literally) to
investigate. Now Katie’s friends and family must show the
bad guys why it’s bad luck to hex with Texas, while Katie
and Owen combine their strengths like never before to
uncover a sinister plot before evil takes root in the lone
star state.