Chloe Hobbs is half sorceress and half human. She is still busy learning just what powers she has and what to do with them. She owns a very successful knitting shop called Sticks & Stones and yes, this was a huge attraction for me when reading this book. I love books having anything to do with knitting. There’s a little bit of everything in this book – the paranormal, romance, and even some knitting tips and patterns in the back.
Chloe is totally in love with Luke and he with her. Luke is the completely human temporary police chief in Sugar Maple. Luckily Luke is the type of guy who hasn’t had much of a problem adapting to being surrounded by vampires, werewolves and witches, to name a few. He also seems to take being shrunk into a miniature Ken doll quite well too when Chloe gets a little crazy.
Chloe is hoping to make Luke a permanent fixture in Sugar Maple and is attempting to convince the town folk of that. All of a sudden the earth is shaking and it’s a reminder to Chloe that Isadora, the Fae leader she banished a while back is demanding attention. Meanwhile, there’s been an accident and Luke rushes out to check it out. Turns out it’s his ex-wife claiming that their dead daughter Steffie has contacted her and is trying to contact him as well. Chloe is stunned – daughter, what daughter? Luke never mentioned having a daughter and Chloe is more than a little upset.
Steffie’s spirit is being held hostage by Isadora and she isn’t letting her go until Chloe removes the banishment spells. This may seem pretty straight forward but by doing this Chloe could end up losing Sugar Maple and she definitely doesn’t want to do that. However she also can’t stand the thought of a child being held forever in such an awful place. In this way she sympathizes with Luke’s ex-wife Karen. Surprisingly, Chloe ends up liking Karen and vice versa. They find they have a lot in common with each other especially knitting.
The story takes us through some twists and turns and kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next. There were many laugh out loud moments for me in this book and I really loved the characters with Chloe definitely being my favorite. I have reserved Casting Spells at the library and intend to read it soon to get the first part of this story but I do have to say that the ending of Laced with Magic really threw me for a loop. I was not expecting the very huge twist at the end of the book and it definitely left things wide open for another book in this series. I simply can’t wait to read it and find out what happens next.
Finally, after poking around the back of the book with the knitting tips, etc.; I couldn’t resist and had to try out one of the patterns. It’s a really easy one and fun to do. I made it on bigger needles with soft baby wool so it’s very cuddly and lacy like. To finish off today I’m leaving you with a picture of it, not a great picture, but you can kind of see how it turned out. I’m going to use it as a shawl I think – a nice big, cuddly one…
I read Laced with Magic for Barbara Bretton’s blog tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion so many thanks to Dorothy for the opportunity to participate. You can visit Barbara Bretton’s website here. You can purchase Laced with Magic here in the US and here in Canada.
I really wish I could knit. I am very impressed.
Your shawl is gorgeous!
Laced with Magic sure did end with a twist. I didn't see that coming at all. Book 3 should be interesting, that's for sure. Glad you enjoyed it so much.
Nice job on the shawl…I didn't know you were a knitter! I, unfortunately, do not have that skill. I just read a book (to be reviewed next week) called Family Tree by Barbara Delinsky. The story has got all kinds of things going on in it, but the protagonist's grandmother owns a knitting shop, and when she falls ill, she takes over. While the plot has nothing to do with knitting whatsoever, I was amazed at how much knitting "stuff" was in there!
wowwwwww! That shawl is Gorgeous! Love it.. Good work Dar! The book sounds good too!!!
Love the shawl. It's beautiful. And the book sounds really interesting. I've only read a couple of books with knitting as a theme, and I've enjoyed them.
–Anna
Diary of an Eccentric
I have been knitting a scarf for a year now, my fingers always hurt. Wish I could do it more often 🙂
Great review
Now this would make a cool "Bewitched" type TV series though I guess Luke isn't much like Darren, he would have freaked over being shrunk to the size of a Ken doll!
I think it's awesome that you knit. i always wanted to learn but never did. I also never read any book that mentions knitting but this one seems really worth a try. It has a witch, it's funny, has a mystery, well, what else can one ask for?!
Oh nice job on the shawl!
You had to review THAT book???
I have been trying to get "Casting Spells" from the library for weeks now! I am so angry that I can't get it. 5 libraries have it and they are not letting it out to other libraries. Usually this only happens to "new" books but that one is a 2008, hardly new! I even hand wrote a request in addition to requesting it online. Still no book! UGH! I don't know what to do!
Gee, thanks Dar for letting me use your blog for my venting, but after you were the one who mentioned Barbara Bretton!
Dar~a great review. I love cozy mysteries like this. Perfect for this time of year. Gorgeous shawl, I'm really impressed!
The book sounds like a lot of fun. I love your shawl! How long did it take to knit it?
Do you need to read Barbara's first book before this one? I'm a little nervous about reading a knitting book, but heard these were exceptional.
Beautiful shawl 🙂
Are you on Ravelry?
This sounds like a fun read, and since I haven't read many books in this genre, I might take a closer look at this one. Great review by the way, you seemed to be really excited about this book.
Nice job on the shawl! What a great accomplishment.
The shawl is so pretty! The book sounds perfect for the RIP IV challenge. Glad u enjoyed it.
Very nice review and that shawl is gorgeous! I knitted once but that was many, many years ago. 🙂
I love the cover of this book. It does sound like a fun book and I am glad you enjoyed it, Dar!
I love the shawl. I wish I could knit.
I enjoyed this book a lot too, although I did read Casting Spells first. It's nice to know that this one stands on its own.
It's good that you were able to follow the plot of LACED WITH MAGIC without having read the first book. Sounds like a good book for fall, with the supernatural element.
Very impressed that you were able to knit up this lacy shawl so quickly, Dar; it looks so soft!
I am going to have to start reading some books with cats on the cover – ha!
I have seen several positive reviews of this book. It is making me think I must read it!
Love the sound of this book. Your shawl looks lovely…wish I could knit!!
Love the shawl and the book sounds so good too. Excellent work on the knitting. So very lovely.
The shawl is absolutely beautiful, Dar! I've never tried knitting but I enjoy admiring others' work.
I've been missing you and thinking about you. Hope all is well, sweetie.