Review: Once a Witch by: Carolyn MacCullough

Where I got it: ARC from thepicnic-basket.com for review
Rating: 4 stars (This was an enjoyable read)
Cover Rating: 4 stars (I like it, it would make me pick it up of the shelf.)
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Publication Date: September 14, 2009
Publisher: Clarion Books (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's Book Group)

Tasmin thought she would be special, that's what her grandmother had predicted when she was born. Her grandmother said she would be a beacon to them all. But by Tasmin's 8th birthday she and everyone else realized that she wasn't special. Tasmin doesn't partake in all the festivities that her family cherishes, she holds a grudge because she's not like them, and she doesn't have a Talent. So Tasmin goes to New York City for high school and only comes back for breaks or when she really has to. While at home she works at her grandmother's book store for her. One day a man named Alistair Callum, a professor at NYU, comes in and mistakes her for her sister Rowena and he commissions her to find something for him, a clock. She agrees because she wants to show her family that she can be good even if she doesn't have a talent. With the help of her long lost friend Gabriel she's able to find the clock h asks for. It turns out it wasn't really the clock he wanted, but the power inside. Can Tasmin and Gabriel make things right and stop Alistair from destroying there family? Is there a secret that Tasmin's family has been keeping for her that she must know in order to stop all this madness?

I enjoyed this story of the girl who didn't fit in with her family. The slight magic in a world of the real was very nice, however, not very well done. It didn't seem realistic that Tasmin was this real ordinary person, and then this other girl who grew up in a house of witches. She just didn't seem to crossover between the two very well. Also not to spoil it, but I feel that she might have cared a little more about her "normal" friend, Agatha, a little more at the end. Agatha is completely forgotten, which seemed weird. Although I suppose with the ending that we have this could be the start of a series, in which case the begging of the second book we could worry about good ole' Aggie. This book was a very enjoyable read however and I would definitely read books following this one. The magic and humor and kinda sorta romance were in good proportion, and there was plenty of mystery to go around. I wish it was a little more suspenseful, but even the way it is I did want to keep reading. So if you're looking for a book without a lot of romance, no vampires or werewolves or other non-human beings than this is right up your alley. It’s really worth the read.