Okay, month 3 of the challenge and it's book 3 - Dime Store Magic with two of my favourite characters - Paige and Lucas! The link to the challenge is in my sidebar.
Blurb from Kelley's site
http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/dime-store-magic/
Dime Store Magic
Leader of the American Coven, guardian to the preteen daughter of a black
witch … it’s not the lifestyle twenty-three year-old Paige Winterbourne imagined
for herself, and it’s wreaking hell on her social life.
But she’s up to the challenge. When half-demon Leah O’Donnell returns to
fight for custody of Savannah, Paige is ready.
She’s not as prepared for the team of supernaturals Leah brings with her,
including a powerful sorcerer who claims to be Savannah’s father. Cut off from
her friends, accused of witchcraft, Satanism, necromancy, murder…Paige quickly
realizes that keeping Savannah could mean losing everything else. Has she
finally found a battle she isn’t willing to fight?
My Review
I love this book in the series. I am a big Paige and Lucas fan, they're one of my favourite couples. This is Paige's first narration and the first time in the series that Elena does not narrate as she had the first two books. What I love is that Elena is not pushed out by Paige, she still has a cameo as she calls Paige upon hearing what's happening in the news to console Paige and offer aid, she's also called by Paige briefly to get some quick information for Paige.
This is Paige's story though so apart from two brief Cameo's and a couple of mentions she doesn't feature in this story.
We are introduced to new elements in this book as we learn more about the Coven from Paige (have to say I do not approve of the Coven due to their treatment of Paige and Savannah) and about Cabal's which are sorcerer institutions, kind off like a supernatural mafia.
In the book we see Savannah's father coming out of the woodwork and looking to take Savannah from Paige through any method possible. The animosity between witches and sorcerer's is explored a little and seen in how the Nast sorcerer's treat Paige and talk about the Coven. Lucas Cortez is an exception as he supports Paige's desire to rediscover true witch magic and even the playing field between witches and sorcerers. He actually respects witches which makes him even more of a freak and embarrassment in the eyes of his fellow sorcerer's. Espeacially as he's rejecting his position as named heir to the Cortez cabal.
I love how Lucas and Paige's relationship develop's. He does not take no for an answer and stubbornly keeps returning to take on Paige's case regardless of how many times she slams the door in his face and rejects him! I loved how he kept coming back and introducing himself as Paige's lawyer much to her chargrin! he did win her and Savannah over though.
I really wanted to slap the Coven in the book though, they really let Paige and Savannah down. They didn't help them as they should have done. They were all about themselves and keeping away from confrontation when they should have been standing up for and supporting Paige and Savannah. At least she had Lucas in her corner and despite knowing him for only a matter of day's, he was the one she was able to rely on that ran to her aid when she needed him. The Coven just abandoned her when she needed them most.
This book was superbly written and had me in stitches at times (I'm thinking of the wiccans in Paige's backyard, you'll understand if/when you read the scene, as well as Savannah getting her period and a lot of her comments to Paige and Lucas). I love Kelley's humor in her writing and how she captures her characters. Paige has really grown since her introduction in Stolen and continues to grow. She's learning that things she thought were black and white aren't quite as black and white as she thought, sorcerer's magic for example.
Some views she's held are challenged, some in a positive way and some, like the Coven, in a negative way. The next book in the series is to be narrated by Paige as well, continuing her story further and through her Savannah and Lucas' stories as by the end of this book those three have become a family due to everything that's happened and how it's brought them closer.
