Love Sugar Magic: A Mixture of Mischief by Anna Meriano. Walden Pond Press, 2020. Release date 2/4/20

“There’s power in something passed down through the generations.”

It’s spring break in Rose Hill, Texas, but Leo Logroño has a lot of work to do if she’s going to become a full-fledged bruja like the rest of her family.

She still hasn’t discovered the true nature of her magical abilities, and that isn’t the only bit of trouble in her life: Her family’s baking heirlooms have begun to go missing, and a new bakery called Honeybees has opened across town, threatening to run Amor y Azúcar right out of business.

What’s more, everyone around her seems to have secrets, and none of them want to tell Leo what’s going on.

But the biggest secret of all comes when Leo is paid a very surprising visit—by her long-lost Abuelo Logroño. Abuelo promises answers to her most pressing questions and tells Leo he can teach her about her power, about what it takes to survive in a world where threats lurk in the shadows. But can she trust him?

REVIEW

Even though Leo is finally really learning magic, she still feels that she’s not learning it quickly enough, and she still really, really wants to know what her unique birth order power will be.  Her mother and sisters telling her to be patient only makes things worse.

If you read the description above, you may have suspicions about Abuelo Logroño, and you would be right to do so.  When things suddenly start get worse for Leo’s family – right after Abuelo Logroño’s visit, Leo is suspicious, too.  And nothing is more frustrating for a smart kid than being told not to worry, the adults have everything under control – when they clearly don’t.  But between Leo, her sisters, and her friends Caroline and Brent, surely they can figure it out.  It’s not quite clear whether her cousin JP, who’s visiting for spring break and the first male relative of this generation in the book, can be trusted or needs to be kept in the dark.

This is still a delightful blend of magic, every day, and delicious baked goods (even some gluten free this time!) as Leo struggles to master both her magic and her social skills.  I really appreciated the contrast between the magic that Leo has been learning from her mother and her aunt – magic of mostly ordinary ingredients mixed with love and intention and amplified by the family heirlooms – and the magic that her abuelo wants to teach her, which he tells her properly only belongs to men (too bad none of his male descendants had the power!) and which relies on the name, black-and-white thinking and force.  It’s still clear from the characters here that the choice to work for love and community is open to everyone regardless of gender, in spite of Abuelo  Logroño’s choices. But most of all, I enjoyed spending time with Leo and her family and friends, watching her come into her own.  And though I’m very sad that this is the last book in the trilogy, I look forward to more from Anna Meriano – maybe a YA series starring Leo’s oldest sister at college?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Anna Meriano is the author of the books in the Love Sugar Magic series, A Dash of Trouble, A Sprinkle of Spirits and A Mixture of Mischief. She grew up in Houston, Texas, and earned her MFA in creative writing with an emphasis in writing for children from the New School in New York. She has taught creative writing and high school English, and she works as a writing tutor. Anna likes reading, knitting, playing full-contact quid- ditch, and singing along to songs in English, Spanish, and ASL. Her favorite baked goods are the kind that open hearts. You can visit her online at www.annameriano.com.

MORE TOUR!!

• January 27 A Library Mama
• January 28 YAYOMG
• January 29  Open Book Reviews
• January 30 Teachers Who Read
• January 30  Charlotte’s Library
• January 31 Nerdy Book Club
• February 3 Storymamas
• February 4 Latinos in Kidlit
• February 7 Always in the Middle

GIVEAWAY

Walden Pond Press is kindly offering a giveaway of this book for my American readers.  Please leave a comment with a way for me to get in touch with you by February 2 for a chance to win this book! (If you’re not in the US and want to chat about the book, that would be great, too!)