Tag: Hazel Beck

This Chick Read: Big Little Spells (Witchlore #2) by Hazel Beck

After helping her sister beat back evil in the first novel, Rebekah Wilde is drawn back to St. Cyprian to come before the Joywood (think witch tribunal) to go through the same trial she took that had her banished from her friends and family and told she couldn’t practice magic anymore. Now, back in her hometown, she’s been embraced by her friends, and has come face to face with the immortal who trained her as a teenager and whom is offering his help once again. Nicholas Frost is still as remote and arrogant as ever, but for Rebekah he is willing to take chances and beat the odds and win her heart.

Rebekah is a bit more of a rebel than her sister, so her perspective seemed more fiery and unapologetic, which I’ll admit, I like in a heroine. She definitely has a chip on her back, but she’s also hiding a secret that she knows will be revealed. This secret is the catalyst to why she has remained absent for the last decade, and facing her own demons is harder than facing the Joywood. I’ll admit that Nicholas, because of his stoic demeanor isn’t the kind of hero I typically root for because he was so hard to understand. However, I liked the combustible chemistry these two characters had in every scene, and that kept me turning the pages, curious as to how their relationship would develop.

I love good vs. evil stories and that’s what this series brings to the table. The Joywood have a hidden agenda that Rebekah and her friends will slowly unveil. In this novel we get glimpses of the why’s and wherefore’s without revealing every bit of that story line, leaving the reader curious about what the next book will reveal. I liked this book enough to want to read the next novel and see where the story leads me. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest.

Click this link to purchase this book!* Big Little Spells

Copyright 2023 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase a book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads2 Comments

This Chicks Audio Review: Small Town, Big Magic by Hazel Beck

After seeing Small Town, Big Magic on Amazon’s Best of 2022 list I thought I’d give the audiobook a try and you know what? I liked it!

Emerson Wilde is the youngest President of the Chamber of Commerce her small town of St. Cyprian’s has ever known. What she lacks in age she makes up for in big personality and her can-do attitude, helping local business owners and checking items off lists. When she is attacked one evening by creatures that shouldn’t be real, she discovers she has magic abilities and that memories of her previous magical life have been wiped away. With the help of her also magical group of friends and long-time love Jacob, they make a plan to fight the evil in their small town. Will they succeed? Well, you’re going to have to read this book to find out!

Small Town, Big Magic is one of several witchy novels I’ve read over the past year, some good, some bad. This definitely falls on the right side of that line. The narrator is Natalie Duke, whose voice I’ve enjoyed previously. She voices Emerson well giving her that plucky-determined heroine vibe that matches the way Hazel Beck has written this character. I also enjoyed her male voice-work for Jacob and Emerson’s cousin, Xavier. There’s nothing worse than a narrator that can’t make a realistic voice for a man. Drives me crazy! Thank goodness she has that talent, so the narration was seamless.

I always enjoy a good vs evil plot. Small Town, Big Magic has a clear winner for bad guy, and gives us an edgy side character in Nicholas, who will be our hero in a follow up novel, out later in 2023. If I had any constructive criticism to give I would say that Hazel Beck leaned a little hard on the plucky heroine persona for Emerson. She was strong, but had some narcissistic qualities that often overshadowed others opinions. It got a little annoying at times, but Jacob, her love interest, smoothed her out a bit he was so even-keeled.

I enjoyed this story much more than I thought I would. Although the story ran along traditional lines, it was fun, had some great characters, and was easy to read. The perfect long weekend read!

❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase!* Small Town, Big Magic

Copyright 2023 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link, I’ll receive a small stipend.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads