Enchanted
Rachel Wells

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 293 KB (About 739 pages on my nook)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005H2TM0K
• Lending: Enabled

 4/5 Stars!

Mandy is just a girl that want to get through high school and head off into the world of bigger and better things.  Her parents decide to move closer to her grandmother in order to help the older woman out. The problem is, it's Mandy's senior year. Oh, and the town they are moving to is always cold and gray.  Mandy is anything but happy to be moving to this strange little sea side town that seems to have more mysteries and quirky people than she really feels comfortable around.
After moving into the little tourist town of York Beach, Maine, Mandy starts working with her mother in Nana's cute flower shop, Enchanted Dew Drops.  Nana seems to be hiding more than just a few family secrets behind the freshly cut daisies and roses.  Mandy is reluctant to know what those secrets are, but she will and her life will never be the same.
Mandy also meets some of her peers before her last year of school starts.  Ally is the larger than life personality that takes Mandy under her wings and shows her the rope of York.  She works with Mandy and seems to know all of the town gossip.  She introduces Mandy to Steve, a geeky romantic who is quite smitten with Mandy.  Lucas also enters the picture as the "what girl wouldn't want to be with him" type. He is also competing for Mandy's attention.
Rumors have always had their role to play in the town of York.  It seems that there was a rivalry between the town doctor and the speculated witch in town.  Turns out that most rumors have a base of the truth... and Mandy is related to half of the rumors.
I fell easily into this story.  It was an easy read that captured the awkwardness of a high school student and still added a level of fantasy.  I was happy with the way the romance was dealt with and Wells didn't turn to that as a way to build up the story.
Mandy seemed real to me. She didn't seem overly smart or confident so that was important.  She seemed like a regular high school senior with silly ideas and not a full grasp on the world yet.  I really liked that about this character.  She didn't seem forced, just a teenage girl.
Why this isn't getting a five star review:
I felt that the lead up to the final few chapters were a bit sluggish.  I wished it would have dealt more with the problems and not the road getting there.  I love the idea of this story, so I hope I get to read more in the future, but if you've read past reviews you will know I have a problem with editing.  I'm not going to be too picky, but there are a couple of times where things were overlooked and stood out like a sore thumb.
Being an indie book and only 99 cents on amazon this is a great story to enjoy over a lazy weekend.  I think that the issues I did have (editing!) is something that will get better with time and experience.
I also think that as the author gets more experience, her stories are going to be fantastic.  Everything is already there and I'm just going to wait to see if it explodes like I hope it will.  I can't wait!