Enchanted, Inc.

A Novel

De: Shanna Swendson

Narrado por: Eva Wilhelm

Katie Chandler had always heard that New York is a weird and wonderful place, but this small-town Texas gal had no idea how weird until she moved there. Everywhere she goes, she sees something worth gawking at and Katie is afraid she's a little too normal to make a splash in the big city. Working for an ogre of a boss doesn't help. Then, seemingly out of the blue, Katie gets a job offer from Magic, Spells, and Illusions, Inc., a company that tricks of the trade to the magic community. For MSI, Katie's ordinariness is an asset. Lacking any bit of magic, she can easily spot a fake spell, catch hidden clauses in competitor's contracts, and detect magically disguised intruders. Suddenly, average Katie is very special indeed. She quickly learns that office politics are even more complicated when your new boss is a real ogre, and you have a crush on the sexy, shy, ultra powerful head of the R&D department, who is so busy fighting an evil competitor threatening to sell black magic on the street that he seems barely to notice Katie. Now it's up to Katie to pull off the impossible: save the world and - hopefully - live happily ever after.

©2005 Shanna Swendson (P)2014 Audible Inc.

Refreshing !!

Would you consider the audio edition of Enchanted, Inc. to be better than the print version?

Eva Wihelm does a wonderful job of bringing Katie, Owen and everyone to life. I hesitated on this series because Texan draws tend to be over done and annoying but Miss Wilhelm does it perfectly when needed.

Any additional comments?

I called these books refreshing because there are too many Sci-Fi books that are tossing in random sex scenes to sell but it just distracts from the story. Shanna Swendson has given us an exciting adventure with the magical aspects we all love and a touch of romance that doesn't get carried away. I went through all the books in this series in a matter of days because I could not put them down.

Interesting.

Would you consider the audio edition of Enchanted, Inc. to be better than the print version?

I think so. I liked how she did the male character's voices. They had depth of character, just from the voices, and it really added to the story.

What did you like best about this story?

It was funny.

What three words best describe Eva Wilhelm’s performance?

Interesting. Different. Depth.
The narrator did ok. The main character's accent really started to get to me at the end. It is supposed to be Texan but comes off as a New Yorker pretending to be southern and really bothered me. She constantly sounded shocked, hard of hearing, and (I hate this word) crazy bossy. However, I liked how she did the male character's voices. They had depth of character, just from the voices and I really liked that.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I laughed a few times, but I didn't have an extremem reaction to it.

Any additional comments?

Interesting. Loved the premise. The beginning was interesting and really pulled me in. I was waiting for the tension to build to a big climax, but it never did. There was a climax of the story, a magical one, but it felt late and the tension wasn't built towards it. It just...happened. The story is very business based. It is like a legal drama with magic, fairies, and elves. In all honesty, I am really hoping this book is just setting up the rest of the series for a thrilling ride of magic and romance. Other than that, I am totally swooning over Owen Palmer.

Very "Enchanting"

I really enjoyed this book, and will be moving on to book 2. It was entertaining.

Fun entertainment

How delightful to find a fun story that is well written to boot. Not only that, but there was no cream filling of gaudy sex to stretch the page numbers nor did I feel a need to moan over plot stupidity. Just bought book #2, that should speak for itself.

Enchanting

Cute as heck story! Nice break from reality!! I enjoyed the story! Would tell my friends about it! Fun listen

Very Good

I enjoyed the book very much, but the polt was a little simple. Still i would get the next book just to see how it goes.

Meh

The good parts - it’s an interesting concept, a bit different than your average magic series. The protagonist does not have magical powers, but rather a sensory that makes her immune to magic. The premise allows for some interesting world building. However, the plot is so thin, and the the conflict so shallow and easily resolved, that’s it’s barely interesting enough to continue. The main problem i have with this story is that the protagonist is not likable, and a total diva. All her interactions with her friends circle around her and her needs; she cares nothing for them and their lives. At her first job, she makes a huge point in embarrassing her boss and making herself out to be the hero by quitting. In her second job, she starts day one assuming that everyone in her department is a lazy idiot, and that they hate her because she is smarter and takes more initiative. She undermines her boss, steps on the necks of her coworkers, condescends to everyone. She doesn’t even attempt to get to know them because, that’s not what she does. Then, we are supposed to assume she gets an immediate promotion because she is a brilliant marketer, even though she’s only a secretary with no marketing experience. The whole diva thing just doesn’t work for me; i am more with her co-workers, who want to strangle her. So, hard pass on this one, and I won’t continue the series.

BUY IT!

Both story and narrator are great. I can't wait to download book two. Enjoyed the humor.

Definitely worth it!

This is a perfect intertwining of magical fantasy and practical reality. The characters are realistic, the plot pulls you in, and the main character is your older sister.

Series review through Book 4, Don't Hex with Texas

This is a series review through Book 4.

If you are looking for a series of paranormal women's fiction, this could be a good series for you. The series has magic people living alongside "normals" in New York City, and the narrator (Eva Wilhelm) really brings the protagonist alive.

The Good:
There is a lot to recommend these books. The stories are fun, fast listens, and the paranormal fiction component tends to the "little silly" side of the genre. There is nothing here that is likely to scare someone who might find some other entries in this category to be too dark. These are fun, light stories with enough of a through-line from book-to-book to keep you going in the series. Each book ends with a preview of the next book, so be aware that each story is approximately 30 minutes shorter than the length of the recording.

The Meh:
These books are largely set in NYC, although Book 4 is set in a small town in Texas. Neither setting is particularly well fleshed out, so the books lack a sense of place. If that doesn't bother you, then no worries. Additionally, the protagonist and her sort-of boyfriend feel very young, especially when any (ANY) kind of mention of their attraction comes up. It's one thing to have a book in the "no sex, maybe one short kiss" part of the paranormal genre. It's another issue entirely to have a character who is supposed to be a fully-functioning, 30-something human (or late 20's at the youngest) who blushes and stammers at the very thought of holding hands or hearing that someone might "like" them. I got the impression that these books were written by an older, settled person who was trying to remember what it was like when they were younger. I don't actually think that's the case, but that was the impression the books left me with. I found all that hard to take, personally, but if you are reviewing books for a young adult to read and you want to avoid all sex, you have found the right series (assuming you can stomach how women are portrayed, see below).

The Bad:
It's not bad, exactly, but it's worth a mention that the original publication date on these stories is from the very early 2000's. That means the technology and some other details feel out of date (Palm Pilots, pantyhose, and "printing" resumes, eg). If that irritates you as a listener, then be warned.

To me, the only real "bad" thing about these books is the sad way it develops the protagonist, who is female. Our protagonist is hired in as this super rare "immune," and they offer only a little more than she was making at her dead-end, entry-level job. They proceed to give her a TON of responsibility and she almost immediately goes to work directly for the chief executive of the company, and they never increase her pay. And worse, although she clearly struggles financially, she never even attempts to negotiate for a higher salary at any point. In addition, she is surrounded by people who feel it's okay to tell her that she hasn't "gotten a man" yet because of how she dresses and her lack of makeup. It feels like she is stuck in the movie 9 to 5 from 1980!

Overall:
Overall, I liked these books. They are light and fun. I'd class them as "summer reads" and would work for younger readers, especially if they are savvy enough to understand that real people in the real world need to stand up for themselves better.