Rating: 3.5 / 5
I received THE CHARMED LIST by Julie Abe f in my YA Once Upon a Book Club box. I didn’t know anything about this one, but I needed a light read between heavier fantasies and it fit the bill perfectly!
THE CHARMED LIST begins in the magical world of Palo Alto, CA. Under the surface of the town that those of us who are not magic-aware see, the shops of this tight knit community serve up a little magic with their wares. Ellie has just finished her junior year and is looking forward to her road trip to a magic convention with her magic-unaware BFF Lia. She is excited for summer and has created a check list of things she wants to push herself to do before the summer is up, not all of which are going to plan.
When one of her to do list items goes very wrong the road trip with Lia is called off and Ellie finds herself heading south with her neighbor and least favorite guy Jack. They were once the closest of friends, but Jack turned on her and she’s hated him ever since. Still, Jack’s father has him making some deliveries to magical stops along the route to Southern California to the same convention Ellie needs to get to so the pair must find a way to work together.
This was a fun twist on a fairly predictable YA contemporary romance setup. I really enjoyed the magical system that the author built. This is a magic where it really can’t entirely save the world, but it can bless the customers with strength and confidence or add a bit of healing or fantastic elements to the day. There were a few elements that I thought could have been fleshed out a bit more, but overall it was a fun read that I finished in one afternoon!
DG Reads 