Tag: Tracy Madison

Guest Review: A Taste of Magic by Tracy Madison

Posted May 7, 2009 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 1 Comment

Guest Review: A Taste of Magic by Tracy MadisonReviewer: Tracy
A Taste of Magic by Tracy Madison
Publisher: Love Spell
Publication Date: March 1, 2009
Format: Print ARC
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Paranormal Romance
Add It: Goodreads
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three-half-stars

 

Elizabeth Stevens is one bite away from happiness.

Today is Elizabeth Stevens’s birthday, and not only is it the one-year anniversary of her husband leaving her, it’s also the day her bakery is required to make a cake—for her ex’s next wedding. If there’s a bitter taste in her mouth, no one can blame her.

But today, Liz is about to receive a gift. Her Grandma Verda isn’t just wacky; she’s a little witchy. An ancient gypsy magic has been passed through her family bloodline for generations, and it’s Liz’s turn to be empowered. Henceforth, everything she bakes will have a dash of delight and a pinch of wishes-can-come-true. From her hunky policeman neighbor, to her gorgeous personal trainer, to her bum of an ex-husband, everyone Liz knows is going to taste her power. Revenge is sweet…and it’s only the first dish to be served.

Liz and one of her best friends, Jon, own a bakery together. A Taste of Magic is the name of the bakery and as the blurb said not only is it her birthday but she has to make a cake for her ex-husband’s wedding. He left her a year ago after having an affair leaving Liz devastated.

Unbeknownst to Liz her grandmother had just left her with a special gift. The gift of magic. Apparently this magic had been passed on from generation to generation and it was now Liz’s turn. It also manifests itself in different ways so when Liz was baking the cake for her ex she was wishing desperately that he couldn’t get it up for the wedding night and his entire honeymoon. A buzz goes through her body and light flashes into the bowl. Liz thinks the mixer’s gone wonky but when she later hears that her ex was indeed unable to perform she had to stop and think about what exactly happened.

Since Liz is a baker by trade that’s how her magic manifests itself. While she’s baking, and if she truly wishes for something, and asks for it in “the right way”, the magic goes into the baked good. The problem is, Liz starts attempting to “fix” everyone’s problems and that’s where the chaos begins. Liz soon discovers that she can’t fix everyone’s issues with life or their relationships – or their relationships with her.

When I was asked to review this book I really did have my doubts about whether I would like it or not. Not that the book didn’t sound cute, but lately I’ve not been attracted to witches or witch magic. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I think the fact that the magic was coming through in Liz’s baked goods really was an inventive twist. I thought the story had a cute little relationship inside for Liz but it really was a story about Liz coming to terms with her life, her failed marriage, her family and her friends and though doing that was not easy, it was done well. The fact that all of that could be accomplished with humor was an extra bonus, in my opinion.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5

three-half-stars

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What I’ve Been Reading This Week

Posted May 4, 2009 by Tracy in Features | 22 Comments

Greetings and Salutations! How the heck are ya? Doing well I hope. Did you have a good week? Did you have a good weekend? I certainly hope so.

Good week here at the Tracy Household. My youngest took a trial class of Taekwondo (which she’s been bugging me to do forevah!) and she did really well. She definitely wants to start doing that weekly which is very cool. She’s a strong little girl and loves that yell they do when they’re kicking and such..Hu! Hu! or something to that effect. I have to tell you that that night, after her class she was dead asleep and she started yelling in her sleep…Hu! Hu! Omg I thought my hubby and I were going to die we were laughing so hard! Up until then I’d only seen her do dance moves in her sleep so there ya go.

Yesterday there was an impromptu So Cal Blogger meet up. Wendy emailed and let us know about a book signing near her home with Suzanne Enoch. Lori, Renee, Wendy and I were all able to attend and do a little book shopping as well (of course) and then go out for a tasty treat. Ok, my 6 year old and I had dessert – they ate real meals! lol Here we are at the restaurant.

So today was my 44th birthday. Holy shit and wtf is that? lol I could swear I was about 32. Really. When did that happen? Not sure…but it did. It was a good day despite the age. Just hung out at home with the fam watching movies, reading, playing outdoors and going to dinner. Good day. Oh, and it’s also Nath’s b-day today so if you happen to hop by her blog be sure to wish her a happy, happy. (oh and the celebrity? Christopher Cross among others! lol)

Let’s see – there’s still 2 days to get your nominations in for the first Book Sluts ‘r’ us Blogger Award. We know you want it for yourself – really, it’s ok, we know. Go here to see the details.

Also if you missed my last post about sending Hope Tarr’s book around you can go here for info. Hope was nice enough to pop by this morning and give us info on her upcoming books. Very nice.

For those interested I posted my entire April Read List on the far right sidebar for your viewing pleasure. 🙂

I’ll be posting a guest review on Katiebabs’ blog whilst she’s away so you can check that out on Wednesday of this week if you’d like.

So on to what I read this week:

My first read of the week was Pack Challenge by Shelly Laurenston. A fabulous book that I read for Nath’s Re-Read Challenge. Review here.

Next was Paradise Valley by Robyn Carr – book 7 in the Virgin Rivers series. I have to say that there were serious issues being dealt with in this book but for some reason it just didn’t do it for me. There was the relationship between Cameron and Abbey and frankly I just wanted to smack her for most of the book and believe – even at the end of the book – that Cam is just too good for her. Then there was Liz and Rick’s relationship…while dealing with a very tough issue I think it was their ages that turned me off. I couldn’t get past the fact that Liz was 18. She dealt with things very maturely but still. I’m sure it’s just me but that’s how it was. Then Walt and Muriel’s relationship was another aspect of the story and I thought this was probably the sweetest of the book – they’re very cute together. While I didn’t love the book I still love Carr’s writing so I ended up giving this one a 3.5 out of 5.


Next was a novella I read for The Book Binge called Complications by Cat Grant. I’ll let you know when the review is posted.

My Tracy’s TBR Challenge Read for the week was Twist by Colby Hodge (aka Cindy Holby btw). This is a book from the Dorchester Shomi line and it was a surprisingly good read. It was a time travel/paranormal and when the heroine goes forward in time by 100 years the world has changed drastically. There’s been a pandemic that’s descimated 1/2 of the population and those survivors are divided into humans and individuals the humans call Ticks that are alien vampire beings. Without a full review I can’t get too into it but between saving the world and the romance going on between the Abbey and Shane I couldn’t put it down. 4.25 out 5 (The funny thing is…if I remember correctly I won this on The Book Binge last August but had won a different book. When I opened the package I saw this one, I shrugged and put it on the shelf. Now I’m kicking myself cuz it would have been worth it to read it right away!)


My last read for the week was another book for The Book Binge called A Taste of Magic by Tracy Madison. Again, I’ll notify you when the review is posted.

So have you read any of these books?
What did you think of them?

Have a great week and Happy Reading!

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