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A review by lunarchfey
Spellbound by Allie Therin
4.0
4.5/5 stars
Set in prohibition-era New York, Rory Brodigan has the magical gift to "read" the past of items that he touches. He keeps to himself and hides his abilities until the tall, dark and rich Arthur Kenzie steps into his life. The two get involved in a plot to save the city from other magic-users trying to seek out and abuse the powers of magical relics... which of course involves getting very involved with each other.
Spellbound is a book that had me grinning to myself and quoting passages out loud to my wife on both first and second read. If you're in the mood for a "just get together already!" read with charming main characters set against a magical and lively backdrop, I found Spellbound to be quite satisfying. I particularly enjoyed Rory's abilities and how much they factored into the plot and the relationship and am curious about how sequel books will dive deeper into the world and its magical abilities.
There were some aspects that didn't quite hit the right chords for me—it felt like there were not very many barriers to the characters getting together, or at least, the ones that were existed were resolved very quickly.
Overall, though, even if I couldn't give it a full five stars, it was enjoyable enough that I'm happy I picked it up and am looking forward to whatever Allie Therin writes next!
Set in prohibition-era New York, Rory Brodigan has the magical gift to "read" the past of items that he touches. He keeps to himself and hides his abilities until the tall, dark and rich Arthur Kenzie steps into his life. The two get involved in a plot to save the city from other magic-users trying to seek out and abuse the powers of magical relics... which of course involves getting very involved with each other.
Spellbound is a book that had me grinning to myself and quoting passages out loud to my wife on both first and second read. If you're in the mood for a "just get together already!" read with charming main characters set against a magical and lively backdrop, I found Spellbound to be quite satisfying. I particularly enjoyed Rory's abilities and how much they factored into the plot and the relationship and am curious about how sequel books will dive deeper into the world and its magical abilities.
There were some aspects that didn't quite hit the right chords for me—it felt like there were not very many barriers to the characters getting together, or at least, the ones that were existed were resolved very quickly.
Spoiler
Twice, there were almost-going-to-kiss moments that got interrupted by a loud noise or someone walking in, which really took me out of the (otherwise quite smooth) pacing of the story (I'm tolerant of that as a plot device maybe once). The novel also rides the line between 'mature' and 'FTB' with things get a little heated before the scene changes; I felt that since the attraction and magnetism between Arthur and Rory was the strongest thing about the story, it felt a little bit like a let-down to shy back from the resolution of those sparks.Overall, though, even if I couldn't give it a full five stars, it was enjoyable enough that I'm happy I picked it up and am looking forward to whatever Allie Therin writes next!