Like a Charm - by Candace Havens

I decided it was time for some brain candy reading and while I rarely go for standard chick lit or romance novels, I do like something with a little supernatural to it. Little did I know, when I found this one in the clearance bin that I may have found a new favorite author. The supernatural books are everywhere, vampires, zombies, witches, etc. However, rarely do you find one that is fun to read while at the same time actually written well and that pays homage to so many literary greats.

Kira Smythe left her home town, of Sweet, Texas, the second she got a chance. She never felt like she fit in there. It is a town protected by a coven of witches and it seems like everyone there is "special" in some way, not Kira. Kira loved books and research and grew up to become a high-powered corporate lawyer at a big firm in Atlanta. That is until one day when she found herself on a roof, after a friend had jumped and Kira couldn't remember what had happened. Sick from the shock and from being over-worked she went back home to rest, and discovered many things had changed.

When she first starts to hear voices, she thinks it's all part of her illness, and/or that she's going crazy. Then things get even crazier when her mentor and the town librarian dies just before Thanksgiving and Kira discovers that she's been left the library (the building, and all the books). Now she has to choose whether she wants to stay in Sweet and take over the library or return to her high-powered life. Of course, this library is more than just an average library, it's full of spirits and before long Kira isn't just hearing them, she's seeing them too.

This book ends too soon, and I really hope to see more stories about Kira. I know there are more stories of Sweet, featuring other characters that were also in this book. But, this idea, to me, is unique. It pays homage to Jasper Fforde and his Tuesday Next series a bit (Kira even mentions him as one of her favorite authors - mine too!). I could definitely see a lot of directions Kira's story could go as her powers develop and she gains access to the Library of Universal Knowledge.