The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic

In this quiet, witchy drama, debut author Randall explores the courage it takes to deal with grief and dare to love. Each member of the Revelare family is blessed with magic, but their gifts come with a curse. In heroine Sadie’s case, the curse states that after four heartbreaks, she’ll lose her magic entirely. She’s already had two broken hearts, so she keeps herself closed off and her life carefully structured, infusing her magic into her baked goods and the remedies passed down by her folksy grandmother, Gigi. But then her first love, Jake McNealy, returns to town after 10 years away, and Gigi reveals she’s dying of cancer. Toss in some devastating revelations about Sadie’s family history, and her comfortable life spirals out of control, as she resists the urge to fall for Jake again, desperately seeks a way to heal Gigi, and tries to protect her heart. Despite the ominous deadline looming over Sadie, the emphasis is on internal, emotional complexity, rather than external threats. The accompanying romance plays as a necessary part of her maturation and growth, allowing her to blossom. It’s an intimate portrait of an understandably guarded heroine learning to let down her walls. Agent: Natalie Lakosil, Irene Goodman Literary. (Sept.)