Skip to content
  • Home
  • Review Policy
  • Linktree
  • Contact
  • Menu Item
  • Menu Item
  • Menu Item
  • Menu Item
  • Menu Item

Westveil Publishing

Jenna Rideout | Illustrator, Book Reviewer, Author

  • Home
  • About
    • Meet Jenna
    • Review Policy
    • Linktree
    • Spam Concerns
  • Blog
    • Book Reviews
    • Author Interviews & Guest Posts
    • Book Promos
    • Book Talk, Tags & YouTube
  • Contact
  • Toggle search form
  • Relatively Normal Secrets by C. W. Allen – 4 Star Review Book Reviews
  • 5 Star Review: Rise of the Red Sun by J. Edwards Holt Book Reviews
  • Briarheart by Mercedes Lackey – 4.5 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • She’s The One Who Cares Too Much – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • All Bags Go to Cleveland – 5 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • Barrenworld: Den of Elyptus by J. Edwards Holt – 4 Star Review Book Reviews
  • The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas – 5 Star Review Book Reviews
  • Dreams of Fire by Nathaniel Wayne – 4 Star Review Book Reviews

Lia and Beckett’s Abracadabra by Amy Noelle Parks – 4 Star Review

Posted on July 5, 2022 By Jenna Rideout No Comments on Lia and Beckett’s Abracadabra by Amy Noelle Parks – 4 Star Review

A star-crossed YA rom-com that has the charm of Maureen Johnson’s 13 Little Blue Envelopes and the magic of Now You See Me

I was granted complimentary eARC access to Lia and Beckett’s Abracadabra by Amy Noelle Parks by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the opportunity! My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.

Please note that this post contains affiliate links, which means there is no additional cost to you if you shop using my links, but I will earn a small percentage in commission. A program-specific disclaimer is at the bottom of this post.

About the Book

Lia and Beckett’s Abracadabra
by Amy Noelle Parks

Published 5 July 2022
Amulet Books

Genre: YA Fantasy Rom-Com
Page Count: 304
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!

Seventeen-year-old Lia Sawyer is thrilled to get a mysterious invitation from her grandmother to compete in a stage magic contest––even though her parents object. But she’s going to be judged by a bunch of old-school magicians who think that because she’s a girl, her only magical talents lie in wearing sparkly dresses, providing distractions, and getting sawed, crushed, or stretched. And Lia can’t ask her grandmother for help because she’s disappeared, leaving behind only her best magic tricks, a few obscure clues, and an order to stay away from Blackwell boys, the latest generation of a rival magic family. Lia totally plans to follow her grandmother’s rule––until the cute boy she meets on the beach turns out to be Beckett Blackwell, son of the biggest old guard magical family there is. Witty and romantic, Lia and Beckett’s Abracadabra is a YA rom-com with a magical twist! 

Amazon US | Amazon CA | Amazon UK

My Review

My Rating: 4 Stars
Consider liking my review on Goodreads

A blend of fantasy and romantic comedy for a young and young-at-heart audience, Lia and Beckett’s Abracadabra is a will-they, won’t-they story about rival teen magicians choosing between a family feud and the undeniable attraction between them. It’s a little bit Romeo & Juliet (with less impulsive poison and dagger usage,) a little bit The Night Circus, a little bit The Magicians, and a little something all its own.

I can see this book appealing equally to readers who are all about romance and readers who are all about character-driven fantasy. I’m one of those readers who avoid most romance-first type stories unless it’s a paranormal rom-com and this book kept me turning pages late into the night with glee!

Main character Lia really won me over from the very first page, and I love to see a determined character like this who’s open to having her mind changed but also absolutely not simply accepting traditions because they’re what has always been done. Beckett, her rival and love interest, was a little harder for me to connect with, and I think readers will find him to be more of a divisive character. People are either going to love him from the get-go or be warry of him throughout the entire book, but I can’t quite put a finger on why.

Readers who criticize YA romance for being too fresh and loose with the instalove trope will be relieved to hear that this book avoids that pitfall. The slow dance between Lia and Beckett is exactly that, slow and drawn out, with ample opportunity to second guess whether or not you think they’ll end up together, and whether or not you think they should (which were two different feelings for me at points!)

The author does lean hard into the identity the Wisconsin setting lends to all of the characters, so if you love Americana or grew up in a midwest-type culture, you’re going to feel quite at home reading this book. If you don’t or didn’t, you’ll have to decide whether or not you can look past it, because it is a little in-your-face at times.

In terms of the stage magic, the magic-related plot threads, and the settings for all of the magical performances, this book really scratched an itch I’ve been feeling for quite a while. I know the premise is quite different from Grossman’s The Magicians, Lia and Beckett aren’t whisked off to a secret, competitive school for magicians, but the competition and air of secrecy elements are there in a way that made me think this is the sort of story I was looking for when I first picked up The Magicians 12 years ago. I suppose that means if you’re a fan of the Grossman books or TV series, or if you wanted to be but found yourself disappointed like I did, this might finally be the book you were looking for.


Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Email
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • Pinterest
  • WhatsApp
  • Mastodon

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Book Reviews, Featured Tags:4 star review, amulet books, Amy Noelle Parks, Book Review, fantasy, fantasy romance, four star review, Lia and Becketts Abracadabra, netgalley, romantic comedy, romantic fantasy, romcom, ya, ya fantasy, ya romance, young adult

Post navigation

Previous Post: Spells and Slip-ups by Annie Anderson [Blitz with Excerpt]
Next Post: The Sisterhood of Secrets by Winnifred Tataw [Blitz with Excerpt]

Related Posts

  • Blazewrath Games by Amparo Ortiz – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True – 5 Star Audiobook Review Book Reviews
  • It’s OK to Have Feelings – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • The Skylight Fallout by J. Wint – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • She’s the One Who Won’t Behave – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • Felix Ever After – 5 Star Review Book Reviews

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

We migrated web hosts and we're still working on restoring images. Thank you for your patience!

Badges

Professional Reader
Reviews Published
80%
50 Book Reviews
NetGalley Beta Tester
Frequently Auto-Approved
Intellifluence Trusted Blogger
  • Author Interviews & Guest Posts
  • Blog
  • Book Promos
  • Book Reviews
  • Book Talk, Tags & YouTube
  • Featured
  • June 2025
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
  • A Cat for Troy [Book our with Excerpt] Book Promos
  • Black In White by JC Andrijeski Book Promos
  • Just a Fika by Beck Erixson Book Promos
  • Dying for Monet by Claudia Riess Book Promos
  • Mermaid of Paris by Jincey Lumpkin [Blitz with Excerpt] Book Promos
  • The Glint of the Luopan by Sally Feng [Tour with Excerpt] Book Promos
  • The Altered Helix Series Book Promos
  • Fireborn by Jessa Graythorne [Blitz with Excerpt] Book Promos

Original content © 2021-2024 Westveil Publishing | Submitted content rights remain with the rights holders.

%d