Sweet, Texas – Present Day

Kira Smythe is on the fast track in her career as an attorney, until it all falls apart. After Kira witnesses a co-worker commit suicide, she collapses. Kira wakes up in the hospital with her mother and her assistant at her side. It seems Kira’s method of all work and no play has caught up with her and she’s on an enforced vacation until she gets well. Kira’s mother takes her home to Sweet, the place Kira left ten years ago and hasn’t missed. Being back in the town where she never fit is bad enough, but now she’s hearing voices as well. But not everything in Sweet is weird (okay almost everything) and Kira meets a man who sets her pulse racing. Caleb isn’t like any man she’s ever met before. Also on the plus side is Kira’s visit with her favorite person, Mrs. Canard, the librarian. Kira has many fond memories of time spent in the library when she was a kid.

However, when Mrs. Canard suddenly dies, Kira’s life changes again. Kira inherits the library -- and everything that entails. Now, she is not only hearing voices -- she is seeing ghosts. Kira had not planned to move back to Sweet, but if she leaves, the library will be sold -- only Kira can become the new librarian and custodian of the ghosts. This was so NOT in her five year plan. Plus there is Caleb. If Kira leaves and returns to Atlanta, will a long distance relationship work?

LIKE A CHARM is a delightful addition to Candace Havens’s Charmed series. While the previous books in the series have been about Bronwyn, the high-witch, and her adventures as a bodyguard for the politically powerful, this story is about Kira Smythe, the ghost-seeing librarian, and how she went from high-powered attorney to librarian of the dead. Told from Kira’s point of view, the town of Sweet and the characters therein are seen from a perspective quite different from when seen from Bronwyn’s point of view. When I first began, LIKE A CHARM, I was a bit dismayed that it wasn’t another Bronwyn story; however, within just a few pages I was immersed in Kira’s story and completely captivated. Kira is an engaging character and her reaction to finding herself back in Sweet after never planning to live there again is entertaining. Secondary characters add humor to the story, and Kira and Caleb’s relationship is charming and sensual. Those who’ve read the previous books in the series will be delighted to re-visit old friends and see them in a whole new light. Bronwyn does make an appearance in the story, and the scene will be familiar, though totally new as the reader sees Bronwyn and Kira’s first meeting from Kira’s point of view.

Entertaining, wickedly funny and completely charming, LIKE A CHARM is sure to delight readers, and I highly recommend it.

Terrie Figueroa