This second book holds the same amount of charm as the first. It's fun, silly and sweet! Zara is a quirky main character and it's never boring with her at the helm! So it all begins in the quaint town of Wisteria, the place that's brimming with supernatural folks.
One day while at an ice cream shop with the other ladies in the Riddle family, Zara yoinks a library book off of a table that was left there by a girl she dubs 'Hipster Chick.' While perusing the newly minted nonfiction rock star biography book, Zara notices something odd. The pages are going blank.
Right before her very eyes, the words are vanishing as if the ink is being drawn out of them. Unfortunately she's can't further inspect the odd novel because the Hipster Chick comes back and grabs the book so she can take it back to the library. Earlier Zara overheard Hipster Chick complain that the 'words are gone!' So it's not all in her heard. Her imagination isn't running wild. Those letter really are disappearing!
And what she initially thought was just an odd singular occurrence, seems to be spreading because when Zara gets to work she is notified of a strange problem. More books are turning up with missing print in them. What the heck is going on? Is it vandals who get a kick out of bugging bookworms, or is it something more?
Deep in her gut, Zara knows something else is going on. She felt it the moment she held that book in the ice cream parlor. Something or someone is erasing stories, and hopefully that is where it ends. But she doesn't think so. Danger is afoot! And it really is. Bad stuff is going down in Wisteria!
For the most part, Zara and her daughter Zoey are bumbling about having a good ol' time as the plot pieces come together. Unsurprisingly Zara gets possessed by another ghost whom she calls Mr. Finance Wizard. It's after that point when the plot thickens because surely this possession cannot be a coincidence. He's trying to tell her something about what's happening to the books and the town. But what the heck could it be?
That is the meat and potatoes of the tale. It's not a very difficult story to follow but it's still very enjoyable! The romance aspect of the book is pretty much nonexistent. Chet is still aloof and cold-ish, but the way this novel ends and the foreshadowing it gives makes me think things will get resolved in the third installment.
Angela Pepper adds a lot of little hints and snippets to her stories, or whispers if you will, that make everything richer and more interesting. So even though this book is a light adventurous romp, it has complexity to it. This author is quite good at slipping in information that makes the reader question things. And there's a lot of things to question!
There are SO many mysteries going on in the small secretive town of Wisteria. I can't wait to read about them! We do get to learn a bit more about Corvin and why he is such a weird little brat kid. Also, we learn that Chet dated a cute blonde some time ago. Is that perhaps why he's so standoffish with Zara? Is he still mooning over the other chick? I wanna know! As a side note, I'm really curious about that hairdresser, Morganna Faire. She's something special. I just know it!
Anyways, premonitions come true and by a weirdly placed showdown, Zara and Chet save the day. The ending was quite the surprise. It totally caught me of guard! I love it when that happens. Waffles are made and smiles are shared as life returns to 'normal.' Until the last couple pages. I always knew there was something special about Frank. He's my favorite!
Things leave off on a strange note, but it's a fun note none the less. I wonder where it'll lead to! I'm invested in the story now so I'll definitely be reading the next book as I have really enjoyed this series so far. It's delightful! 10/10 Flamingos!