Release Day Review – Sugar Spells (Spellwork Syndicate, Book 2) by Lola Dodge (4/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Length: 265 pages
Publisher: Ink Monster, LLC
Release Date: October 30, 2018
ASIN: B078CJB22D
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Spellwork Syndicate series
Source: eGalley from NetGalley.com
Rating: 4/5 stars
“After her run-in with a jealous warlock, apprentice baker Anise Wise can’t wait to get back into the kitchen where she belongs. But thanks to her brush with death, the land of the living isn’t all cupcakes and marshmallows.
Anise’s magical mojo is way out of whack and her changed powers are stirring up trouble. The town’s abuzz with news that Anise can bake deathly spells, and unsavory characters start lining up for a taste. They’ll stop at nothing to use Anise and her witchcraft to further their own plots.
She plans to hole up researching solutions until the attention dies down, but then she discovers the horrifying terms of her bodyguard’s contract. Wynn has saved her life so many times, she can’t leave him trapped. Doing the right thing will mean risking death or worse—losing her dream job.”
This is the second book in the Spellwork Syndicate series. I got this through netgalley to review and really enjoyed it a lot. It’s just a cute and fun read with a lot of magic and some interesting magical creatures. I like the characters, the story, and the fact that the whole book is kind of happy and fun feeling; even when it gets a bit dark.
Anise is having trouble with her magic and seems to be channeling death magic along with her normal fire magic; it’s messing everything up! Anise seeks a way to get rid of her death magic while trying to pry some truth about Wynn’s past out of him. When Wynn finally tells her how he became a Shield, her and Wynn devise a plan to help break Wynn’s contract and get rid of Anise’s death magic all at once…what could possibly go wrong?
While these books aren’t works of high literature or incredibly complex they are very fun and light reads. I love all the baking magic in here. I also really enjoy the characters and the situations they are put into. Nothing is this book is super dark and the characters are never in really dire situations; this is just a fun read about magic, friends, and growing up.
Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this fun and magical read. The biggest issue with this book is how hungry it makes me! While this is a simpler story, I really enjoy the positive feel and how fun this series has been. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series and would recommend to those who enjoy lighter reads about YA witches and magic.
This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– New Release Reading Challenge
– Goodreads Reading Challenge
