You Can Do Magic Summer of Hush World Bk 3- Carnival of Mysteries
Rockstar , Rockstar Romance, Magic, Gay Romance
From the author of Foreword Indies Finalist Summer of Hush and BookLife Prize Quarterfinalist Brains and Brawn comes a new installment in the series, a contemporary gay romance with a side of time travel and magic.
Musical prodigy Kallos Alexandrou has played his calliope for countless visitors at Errante Ame’s Carnival of Mysteries, but his one-year residency has come to an end. Scars from a terrible tragedy in his past are the only explanation he has for his loss of speech and memory, but it’s time to move on, so when a music festival sets up next to the carnival, Mr. Ame sends him off with identification, a bottomless billfold, and a set of new clothes. Outside the carnival’s perimeter, Kal finds himself in an unfamiliar world surrounded by strange instruments and vibrant people like nothing he’s ever seen.
Ryan Wells is the troubled and celebrated lead singer of the metal band Backdrop Silhouette. He’s brought more than his share of baggage on the last cross-country Warped Tour, including harsh restrictions placed on him by his parole officer and the band’s label, but it’s the treatment from his bandmates that have him feeling unsettled. After a tough morning, he spots a strange young man playing carnival music on a keyboard backstage, and the sound takes him back to a particularly vulnerable time in his youth. Intrigued, Ryan asks the young man’s name, but he flees only to appear later as a replacement stagehand for the tour.
An invitation from the band Hush to ride on their bus gives Ryan and Kal a welcome distraction. They find the camaraderie and support they’ve both been craving…as well as a little magic and a fresh new romance. But personal secrets and the music business make relationships difficult to maintain, and when the tour ends, Ryan and Kal will have to make a choice: move forward together on an uncertain path, or let fear keep them from trusting that sometimes you really can have everything you desire.
You Can Do Magic is part of the multi-author Carnival of Mysteries Series. Each book stands alone, but each one includes at least one visit to Errante Ame’s Carnival of Mysteries, a magical, multiverse traveling show full of unusual acts, games, and rides. The Carnival changes to suit the world it’s on, so each visit is unique and special. This book contains a Depression-era calliaphone, a Ouija board with a purpose, and tour bus hijinks that will warm your heart and make you gigglesnort. Reading Summer of Hush and Brains and Brawn before this book will give you the full Warped Tour experience, but You Can Do Magic can be read as a standalone as well as the other books in the shared universe. Recommended 18+
Review by Gloria Lakritz
Member of the Paranormal Romance Guild Review Team
Ok this is a first for me…..You Can Do Magic is part of the Carnival of Mysteries Anthology and it was written with the Summer of Hush Series which could be it’s Book #3 because it follows that series. So Ms. Merrill mentions you should read Hush 1 and 2 before reading You Can Do Magic which I did.
To open we meet Kallos Alexandrou has been with the Errante Ame’s Carnival of Mysteries for a year playing the Calliope for the guests. This day Mr. Ame’s comes to Kal telling him his time at the circus is over and he has to move on to his next adventure. Shocked Kal hears he has to find his purpose, and is given a picture ID, and address in the Midwest, and wallet filled with money, being told it will ever furnish money as it is needed. Arriving at the Circus with no memory Kal is very stressed.
Walking out of the Park, he comes to many trucks and RV’s waiting to unload for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Music Tour Warped. Knowing Instruments from the circu
s, he meets Ryan Wells, the lead singer of the Blackdrop Silhouette Band. Ryan was enthralled by the way Kal played music .
Ryan has had a troubled life too, spending time in jail for drunk driving and causing a death. He had to take time away from the group, coming back with his tail between his legs. Meeting Kal and finding him attractive brought him to help Kal get a job with the crew, setting up sets for the groups. It hurt me because Kal was so into himself at the Circus he never spoke and has a hard time relearning speech.
This is what Rochelle Merrill is great at. Two damaged men, and the right scenario make for a wonderful story, with both of them slowly coming to the realization they care for each other , which could heal them both…..
One Book aid Two Series…..and 5 Stars!!
LGBT/ROMANCE/ROCKSTAR
