TEST
At first glance, The Magic Between Us looks like one of those books that could go one of two ways. It could end up being a cute, sweet story or saccharine enough to make a reader’s teeth hurt. Thankfully, readers will find a lot more of the former in this tale of star-crossed lovers caught between Regency England and the land of the Fae.
Cecelia Hewitt has grown up in the land of the fae expecting that she would marry Marcus Thorne, her childhood sweetheart. However, we soon learn that Marcus is only part-fae, and he has a mother and father in the human world. Even worse for Cecelia, Marcus is the oldest son of an aristocrat in that world and so he must take up the responsibilities of his position and produce an heir. A human heir. The book opens with Marcus bidding farewell to Cecelia in a scene that convinces readers of Cecelia’s heartbreak.
Six months later, Marcus and Cecelia meet once more in the human world. This time around, Cecelia has been sent on a mission and it is there that her path crosses with Marcus once more. Not surprisingly, she still feels very hurt over Marcus leaving as abruptly as he did. Not long after seeing Cecelia again for the first time, Marcus begins to realize just what he has given up. However, his sense of duty to his human family and his lingering love for Cecelia fight with each other in his mind and he just does not see how things can work out between the two of them.
Given the rules of the human world and the land of the fae, the tension between Marcus and Cecelia feels believable. I thought Cecelia was a little quick to forgive Marcus, but given that the author makes it clear she never stopped loving him, I could accept it. The fact that Marcus and Cecelia make an endearing couple probably went a long way toward that, as I enjoyed seeing the two of them together.
Of course, since Marcus and Cecelia start patching things up between them early on in the book, this means that we need to have some external conflict to stir things up. Some of it, such as the revelation of what has been happening in Cecelia’s family since Marcus left, works in terms of drawing the reader deeper into the story and making her care more about the characters. However, some of it, such as the hunt for the supposedly evil Mayden who has apparently caused problems for various characters throughout this series, ends up feeling contrived and a little silly.
In addition to the main relationship between Marcus and Cecelia, readers also get to spend plenty of time with Marcus’ family. The secondary characters there are pleasant, and they provide a good setting for the story. The author does a good job of making the family likable and good-hearted without making them overly cutesy.
Since this is a fantasy romance set in an alternate Regency England, readers obviously shouldn’t expect too much historical realism. However, if that does not bother you and you like a bit of fairytale with your romance, The Magic Between Us is a pleasant read even with some of the plot weaknesses. The characters are likeable, and their story left a smile on my face.
Grade: B-
Book Type: Paranormal Historical
Sensuality: Warm
Review Date: 06/01/14
Publication Date: 2014/01
I enjoy spending as much time as I can between the covers of a book, traveling through time and around the world. When I'm not having adventures with fictional characters, I'm an attorney in Virginia and I love just hanging out with my husband, little man, and the cat who rules our house.
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Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.