(THE UNFORTUNATE MISS FORTUNES) BY (ST. MARTIN'S PRESS)[QUALITY PAPER]JUN-2007 [Englisch] [Gebundene Ausgabe]

I have been putting off reading this story for a while now thinking it was an anthology. I ASSumed (you know what they say about assumptions) this based on the three authors listed on the title. I have to be in a special mood to dive into an anthology so yesterday in the anthology mood I opened the book and to my surprise discovered it's not an anthology. It's a novel written jointly by three authors. YAY! This is a magical tale about three witch sisters, each with their own talent, who have been on the run from their dangerous aunt Xan for more than a decade.

The oldest sister, Dee, has been the little mother since she was 16. She is the one who grabbed her sisters and ran after their parent's untimely death. She is the straight laced responsible sister with a hidden wild side. Her power is shape shifting.

The middle sister, Lizzie, hates conflict and accidentally produces bunnies when she is upset or nervous. She appears extremely vulnerable but ends up having a powerful side. Her power is transmutation.

The youngest sister, Mare, walks around claiming she is Queen of the Universe, when really she is probably the most vulnerable. She is equal parts Bravado and tender hearted. Her power is psychokinetic.

When the sisters discover that the aunt may have found out where they are, and sent them a few unexpected, but certainly welcome men, things in their small town of Salem's Fork will never be the same.

There are wonderful one-liners like the one I used for my review title. Humorous situations that had me laughing out loud throughout the book. There were a few heart breaking scenes that had me reaching for the Kleenex. A fair share of these pages were sizzling with the sexual chemistry and escapades of the sisters and their men.

I don't know which author wrote which part, but I enjoyed every character immensely. Each character brought a unique spin and zest to this story. The writing style and story flowed extremely well and I never found myself thinking about who was writing what... it just didn't matter, I just didn't care. This was a fun, exciting, magical tale and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I had a hard time putting it down and when it came to the end, I was a little bummed. Enjoy!

This is the story of the magical Fortune sisters, each with a gift. Dee, the eldest, is a shapeshifter. Lizzie, the middle sister, transmutes things, and Mare, the youngest, can move things with her mind. For the past 12 years, they have lived a nomadic life, fleeing when their powers drew attention, or when their aunt Xantippe found them. After Xan murdered their parents, Dee took her sisters and fled, hiding out in small towns. Now, their aunt has found them again, only she has also sent each sister the love of her life as part of her evil plans. For Dee, it's Danny James, in town to research the Fortune family for a book. Elric is a powerful wizard who is sent to Lizzie to stop her from destroying the fabric of the universe with her experiments. Xan sends Jude Green to Mare, only at the same time, Mare's old love Crash returns after having left town five years before. Mare should be falling for Jude, a vice president for her employer, Value Video!!, but he leaves her cold. Instead, it's Crash who stirs things up again, rekindling old memories while making her want him anew.

Unbeknownst to the Fortune sisters, Xan has a plan to strip them of their powers and take them for herself. They slowly uncover her plotting and scheming, only Dee and Lizzie are so crazy in love they don't care where their men came from. Mare can't quite get over the fact that Crash left her for five years, and his feelings for her may not be real; they may just be the result of Xan's love spell, which isn't enough for her. As the sisters fall deeply in love, they suddenly attain some control over the powers that had so long controlled them. It's a good thing, because they're going to need everything they've got to put a stop to Xan.

Unfortunately, Jennifer Crusie seems to be another victim of the current publishing craze of having a new book on the shelves every few months. She has the integrity not to let her writing suffer by choosing to collaborate and share the burden, spreading herself thin in a high quality way. The parts of this book that Crusie wrote are engaging, even featuring a few laugh-out-loud moments. Her co-authors, however much they may have attempted to mimic her writing style, do not have her chops. Those parts of the book are noticeably inferior, at times even boring. The book dragged in the middle and, because each author wrote from the perspective of a different sister, everything that happened occurred three times. First Dee met her match, then Lizzie, then Mare. Then Dee discovered burgeoning feelings for her man, then Lizzie, then Mare. This got repetitive when each phase of their new relationships was experienced three times in a row. Three first kisses, three detailed sex scenes, three confessions of their secret powers. They didn't even bother to mix up the order of events from sister to sister. The only departure from the formula was the fact that Mare had a preexisting relationship with Crash. Actually, everything about Mare was good because it was written by Jennifer Crusie. It was the rest of the book that wasn't up to par.

Collaborations are a fun idea, but they'd be more fun for readers if the authors involved were all of the same quality. Jennifer Crusie is a wonderful writer with excellent books to her credit, so I have to wonder why she keeps sharing her skills with others. I'm all for experiments and trying new things, and I admire her for helping her friends get some recognition by coauthoring this novel. Unfortunately, they just don't have her skills. I'll always look forward to a new Crusie novel, but I wish she'd go back to working alone.

I purchased this book because I'm a huge Crusie fan, and the website for the book won me over, reading how much the writer's had enjoyed their characters. As a Crusie fan, I was not disappointed. And I'll be checking out the backlists for Dreyer and Stuart because their storylines were written so well.

A collaborative effort, the effect is seamless. Three romances, packed into a weekend. I know, a weekend? But these writer's know what they're doing because it's believable and you root for the characters to defeat Xan (an entertaining--twisted, but entertaining--villain) and find their happy-ever-afters.

The pacing is flawless, and how could it not be? Three days to resolve a lifetime of conflict, and they make every scene count.

But after the last page, my favorite part of the book was how fun it was. Sure, the dialogue was hillarious, and the situations magic-gone-wrong causes are imaginative and engaging. But, it's a fun read. You'll enjoy this book.