I received an eARC of this book via Netgalley from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

I COULD NOT sit By a Charm & a Curse by Jaime Questell down! I loved the setting and the mystery surround the curse. I ached for Emma and fell in love with Ben. If you enjoy YA urban fantasy, carnivals, and curses, I highly recommend it!

When the book opens, Emma is struggling. She’s been sent away by her mother to live with her father and brothers in rural Oklahoma. That in itself isn’t so bad. It’s the being away from her mother for over a year that Emma struggles with. Emma comes full circle in this book, seeing the error in her thinking almost immediately. She misses her family, and yet she’s can’t return. It’s heartbreaking!

Ben is ready to run at the open. He’s spent most of his life with the carnival, and he’s ready to leave and find a place to call home. He’s tired of the traveling, nomadic life. BUT his mom is there, and they are there because she wants to keep him safe. The charm tied to the carnival protects them from accidents, makes their shows magical, and even stops their aging. Despite all of this, Ben wants a normal life until the new Girl in the Box arrives.

So the premise of the book is in the title. There is a curse on the person in the box and that curse is directly related to the charm protecting everyone in the carnival. The story opens with Sidney, the Boy in the Box. I picture something like those old fortune teller boxes that you drop a coin in and the mannequin gives them a card of their future. This is exactly what it is except Sidney is alive. Then he tricks Emma into the Box and she takes his place, forced to travel with the carnival, unable to go home and unable to apologize to the family she is leaving behind.

I think this is where the book lost me a bit. I loved Emma and Ben. I even liked their budding relationship. But the curse and charm, those confused me, which is why the book gets four instead of five stars. It’s well thought-out and is explained some, but I still had a hard time understanding how the curse is passed on and why no one has thought to break it before now. Granted that is also explained.

Overall I really enjoyed By a Charm & a Curse, even if some of it was predictable. I found myself engrossed in Emma and Ben’s story, their relationship and how they overcome the odds. I loved Duncan and Whiskey and the other side characters, and I hurt for Sidney and Audrey. I highly recommend this book for anyone that enjoys the whimsy of carnival life, the charms of first love, and a seemingly unbreakable curse.

Note: This book contains strong language, underage drinking, and some violence. While it is written for YA, I would recommend it for 16+ or the mature teen.