Review: A Magical Tale of Matchmaking and Fate
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 2, 2012
Read from February 24 to 29, 2012There is much going on in this story, but it's not difficult to follow.It's set in Charleston and revolves around Amy, a guest English professor at the local college; Lily, the local florist (and half wood elf); and Dare, wood elf and security detail for the Matchmaker (who is also Amy's Aunt.) Lily was born with a mark that her family always called a Matchmaker's mark, but has not yet found that special someone. Amy is a human just beginning to scratch the surface of her Aunt's letters and legacy, on the cusp of finding out just how magical the world is. Dare has disappointed his elf family by choosing to be part of security to the Matchmaker instead of settling down and carrying on the family line.Fate has her own ideas, and intertwines their lives in unexpected ways...It was an entertaining story, I didn't have any trouble wanting to read it. The description of Charleston was lovely, I felt like I was right there walking down the streets with the characters. It really built the story in a lovely way, little bits here, little bits there... things that you thought were just 'background color' fall together into the overall story. I really liked it overall... But I didn't love it. By the end, especially the last chapter or so, I was frustrated with one of the main characters. Getting her to admit that she was in love and just be happy was like pulling teeth. It's like I had to fight tooth and claw to get that Happily Ever After. I still enjoyed it, but it's not going to be in future reading rotation with my favorites. I'm not sure if this is planned as a series, but there were also parts of the story line that felt still unfinished. This could be laying groundwork for future, even spin-off type stories following different characters.Overall, it is definitely worth picking up and reading (for only $0.99 - it's a no-brainer)but not yet reached a re-read status for me. If there is another book in the series I would still really want to read it, I did enjoy the descriptive storytelling and the world that was created.  I could see this turning into the first book of a great PNR series... but often 'first' books don't always have the "umph" created later in a series.