Nola Leary would have been content to stay in Kilcairy, Ireland, healing villagers at her family’s clinic with a mix of magic and modern medicine. But a series of ill-timed omens and a deathbed promise to her grandmother have sent her on a quest to Half-Moon Hollow, Kentucky, to secure her family’s magical potency for the next generation. Her supernatural task? To unearth four artifacts hidden by her grandfather before a rival magical family beats her to it.

Complication One: Her grandfather was Mr. Wainwright and the artifacts are lost somewhere in what is now Jane Jameson's book shop.

Complication Two: her new neighbor, Jed Trudeau, who keeps turning up half naked at the strangest times, a distraction Nola doesn't need. And teaming up with a real-life Adonis is as dangerous as it sounds, especially when he’s got the face of an angel and the abs of a washboard—can Nola complete her mission before falling completely under his spell? I love an Irish witch. ( )

A Witch's Handbook of Kisses and Curses is book two in the Half-Moon Hollow series by Molly Harper.

It’s been sometime since I’ve read the Jane Jameson series. The Half-Moon Hollow is a spin-off. Many of the characters from the Jane Jameson series make appearances and in this one we have a new character from across the pond, Nola! She’s been sent by her family to find 4 sacred objets needed to keep a curse in place.

The characters are unique and charismatic. We are brought into the supernatural area of magic. It’s a different focus from what the books have been, vampires, and we are also introduced to another supernatural being too. Nola makes friends with a small group of the Half-Moon Hollow gang. She settles in, starts her search, and gets herself a little work. I don’t want to spoil things, so I won’t mention all the fun things that happen in the search or the family ties. I got a little kick out of who Nola ends up being related too.

The romance for me was blasé. It didn’t dislike it, but I didn’t fully feel it. I enjoyed the mystery, fun banter between characters, and the family surprise.

For me A Witch's Handbook of Kisses and Curses was a fine read.

Rated: 3 Stars

( )

Quite funny but not as good as I expected. Still, a pretty good read! ( )

Not bad although I'm embarrassed to have this cover on my shelf! ( )

Although I love almost everything I've read by Molly Harper, I'm rating this one four stars instead of five mainly because of the way the narrator chose to voice the main character, Nola. I understand that she supposedly has a mix of Boston and Irish accents, but I found it distracting to listen to Amanda Ronconi (the voice of Jane Jameson as well as Iris Scanlon) attempt to blend these two disparate accents. As well suited as Ronconi is to narrating Harper's books, I think they should've chosen a different narrator for this one.

I also have slightly mixed feelings about the portrayal of Jane through Nola's eyes, although I did find it interesting to see how the author imagined others would perceive Jane. ( )