Kat Dancing

The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes by Anne Stuart, Jennifer Crusie, and Eileen Dreyer

The three Miss Fortunes have problems.

First problem: their history. TV personalities courtesy their parents, who were eventually exposed as fraudulent psychics and ruined, their now-adult daughters aren't interested in fame -- but it keeps catching up to them anyway.

Second problem: their magic. Because while the elder Fortunes may have been foolish, they weren't frauds, and the sisters have their gifts in uncontrollable spades. Dee, eldest and responsible, changes shape during times of emotional stress (leading to stashes of clothes all over town and a string of traumatized ex-boyfriends). Lizzie, dreamy and bookish, wants to turn straw into gold, but mostly manages to turn the silverware into bunny rabbits. And the youngest, most reckless sister, Mare? Mare throws things. Mare's going to be Queen of the Universe, as soon as she finishes conquering the local Value Video!!.

Third problem: their Aunt Xan. She's got more magic than any of them. She killed their parents. And now she wants something from them.

But Xan isn't an entirely bad aunt. She's willing to trade. So she casts a spell that brings each of the girls their True Love, their soulmate, the one man they can love and be happy with for the rest of their lives. All they have to do to get their men... is give up their magic.

I was a little nervous about this one. I got it for free, with the caveat I had to review it. I didn't have to like it, but I hate reviewing books I don't like. Fortunately (hah!) it was a non-problem. I wouldn't describe this as paranormal romance so much as a kick-ass modern-day fairy tale. Despite the authors being romance writers, not fantasy, the story manages to blend the normal and the magical far better than most urban fantasy -- the sisters' talents and the attendant problems hit that elusive sweet spot, real enough to believe and magical enough that you want to believe. Romance-wise, I found one of the boys a bit over-done, but the sweet spot is still there -- that marvelous line between touching and funny that Crusie has always walked so well. She brought talented company with her this time; I'm gonna be checking out all these ladies' works before too much longer.

But seriously -- read The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes. It's got three sisters. It's got a wicked witch. It's got sexy motorcycle-riding modern princes, clueless evil minions, and a surprising number of frogs. What more can you ask from a fairy tale?