Iris Collins meets a coven in THE ONLY PURPLE HOUSE IN TOWN, the fourth book of the lively Fix-It Witches series. Iris, running a fledgling jewelry business from her room and is wondering how to repay the rent she owes when an inheritance falls into her lap. She now owns THE ONLY PURPLE HOUSE IN TOWN. Fixing up an old house with no actual funds will require resourcefulness and time, but she has both.
I’ve read a few urban fantasies, and while I don’t like horror, I found THE ONLY PURPLE HOUSE IN TOWN to be like a lighter version of the Sookie Stackhouse books. There’s no crime unless you count breaking a few town ordinances. The vampires don’t drink blood, the shifters are not wolves. Paranormal beings are ranted about in scare headlines, but at the grassroots level are well on their way to becoming normal. All this means that if you want to read a warm and interesting romance, don’t let the otherworldly happenings deter you.
Eli Reese has had a quiet crush on Iris, ever since she dealt with school bullies who were being mean to the geeky boy. But they haven’t seen each other in many years, and she’s forgotten him. Now, I did find it creepy that Eli has been checking up on Iris via social media. Still, if she didn’t want her page to be read, she wouldn’t put it online. But at least he could have asked to friend her page. He’s been doing well creating apps and is now in the same town as Iris – temporarily, while he fixes up and sells his grandmother’s property. Without meaning to, Eli ends up a boarder in Iris’s newly acquired house. He’s also got a secret – another one.
The diverse boarders include retiree Henry Dale, Mira, Sally, and youngster Rowan. Another book this reminds me of is the Becky Chambers science fiction novel, THE LONG WAY TO A SMALL, ANGRY PLANET where most of the tale consists of a diverse spaceship crew getting to know one another. That’s pretty much what happens here. There’s a stress point of a neighbour who finds fault with everything, but above that, Iris has constant friction with her parents and sisters, never feeling good enough and never exhibiting any latent talents like the rest of the family.
Ann Aguirre is writing paranormal romance that doesn't hold to expected genre tenets. If she wants vampires to suck energy, not blood, that’s her prerogative. The witches repair objects like wiring and appliances – sign me up. Inventive and caring, THE ONLY PURPLE HOUSE IN TOWN models the way housemates and neighbours should work together, the only question being if Eli and Iris can make a romance work, too.
From New York Times bestselling author Ann Aguirre comes the magical town of St. Claire, where anything is possible…
Iris Collins is the messy one in her family. The "chaos bunny." Her sisters are all wildly successful, while she can't balance her budget for a single month. It's no wonder she's in debt to her roommates. When she unexpectedly inherits a house from her great aunt, her plan to turn it into a B&B fails—as most of her plans do. She winds up renting rooms like a Victorian spinster, collecting other lost souls...and not all of them are "human."
Eli Reese grew up as the nerdy outcast in school, but he got rich designing apps. Now he's successful by any standards. But he's never had the same luck in finding a real community or people who understand him. Over the years, he's never forgotten his first crush, so when he spots her at a café, he takes it as a sign. Except then he gets sucked into the Iris-verse and somehow ends up renting one of her B&B rooms. As the days pass, Eli grows enchanted by the misfit boarders staying in the house…and even more so by Iris. Could Eli have finally found a person and a place to call "home"?
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