Friday, June 6, 2014

Review & Giveaway: Carved in Cherry by Elizabeth Kirke


Carved in Cherry (A Curse Collectors Novel)
Carved in Cherry by Elizabeth Kirke
(Curse Collectors #1)
May 31, 2014
Anchor Group Publishing
205 pages
Genre: Paranormal Romance
(Contains: minor language, some sexual content)
Source: Personal purchase
Book Synopsis:
One thing set Lydia Shaw and her store apart from the other antique shops in town…  
Lydia’s collection was plagued by curses, and it was her duty to break them.
Rachel, Angie, and Jo knew nothing about their aunt’s secret life. In fact, they didn’t even know she owned an antique shop, until they inherited it. Unfortunately for them, Lydia passed down more than just her store. The sisters are the proud new owners of countless deadly curses, buried under centuries of dust. 
 
Lydia also left behind her apprentice, Peter. He does everything he can to protect the girls, as they explore their new store, unaware of the dangers it hides. In spite of his efforts, Rachel finds herself obsessed with opening a strange trunk, Angie has vivid dreams, haunted by a man who claims he needs her help, and Jo’s imagination starts to run wild.  
When one of them falls victim to a curse, it’s up to Peter and her sisters to save her. But, if Peter can’t teach them to wield a magic, that he barely understands himself, she’ll be the first one to die.
My Review:

Simply put, I loved Carved in Cherry! I already loved Kirke's More Than Magic series, and had high hopes that I would love this series as well. I'm thrilled she did not disappoint. But this is not just some copycat of her other series. The Curse Collectors series is completely unique, yet the writing is consistent with what I've come to expect with Kirke.

Here we follow along with sisters Rachel, Angie, and Jo as they embark upon dealing with the antique shop they've inherited from their aunt. But this is no ordinary antique shop. It's more than they bargained for and nothing there is simple. And it comes with its own resident cutie and a very perceptive cat. It's told in third person, and that worked perfectly with the story.

I must say that this was such a wonderfully suspenseful book. I didn't want to put it down. Every chapter felt like it had its own mystery. I'm not going to spoil things, so I won't give away specifics. But I was completely pulled into this story, and felt on pins and needles wondering about all the connections, fearing for unexpected consequences, hoping for new relationships, and worrying over how it would all come together. All of this was excellently written and I never felt a dull moment.

The characters themselves were fantastic. They each brought a unique perspective and perception to the story. It was great to see how these three sisters worked together, yet themselves were very different. Then there's Peter, who is really caught between a rock and a hard place, and I loved how strong yet vulnerable Kirke made him. There's also a bit of romance going on, but the way Kirke developed it... Wow! What a fascinating twist on progressing a relationship!

What more can I say? I loved Carved in Cherry. It is suspenseful, magical, and a little creepy. It also has the tenderness of family, the sweetness of new romance, and the excitement of mind-blowing discovery. Kirke not only writes well, but creates such amazing paranormal worlds with great attention to detail. This is a new favorite of mine, and I'm super excited about the rest of this series.
 
5 STARS

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2 comments:

  1. Sounds amazing. Its been a long while since I read a paranormal romance and I def. should read more of this genre. I love it when you can;t put a book down and just want to read the whole thing in one sitting. :) Great review.

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