What do you think?
Rate this book
A Little Light Magic
From USA Today Bestselling Author Joy Nash
When a girl with no family meets a guy with too much...
For Tori Morgan, family's a blessing the universe hasn't sent her way. Her parents are long gone, and her chance of having a baby is slipping away. For Nick Santangelo, family's more like a curse. His nonna is a closet kleptomaniac, his mom's a menopausal time bomb, and his motherless daughter is headed for serious boy trouble.
But summer on the Jersey shore can be an enchanted season, when love can bring together the most unlikely prospects. A hard-headed contractor and a lonely reader of Tarot cards? All it takes is... A Little Light Magic
323 pages, Paperback
First published May 5, 2009
55 people are currently reading
333 people want to read
About the author
Joy Nash
64Ìýbooks120ÌýfollowersJoy Nash is a USA Today Bestselling Author and RITA Award Finalist applauded by Booklist for her "tart wit, superbly crafted characters, and sexy, magic-steeped plots." Joy, best known for the Druids of Avalon and Immortals series, writes romantic fiction in historical, contemporary, and alternate-reality settings. Her newest series is the apocalyptic fantasy The Nephilim: Demons Among Us.
Joy once read a book about a girl living on the moon and thought it was real, until her big sister messed everything up with the truth. Ever since, Joy's been of the opinion that fiction is way more interesting than reality. She credits her love of tortured heroes to the Brontë sisters, her fascination with magical adventure to J.R.R. Tolkien, and her weakness for snarky humor to Douglas Adams.
Join Joy's mailing list at for info about new releases. Connect with Joy at .
May the stories never end!
Joy once read a book about a girl living on the moon and thought it was real, until her big sister messed everything up with the truth. Ever since, Joy's been of the opinion that fiction is way more interesting than reality. She credits her love of tortured heroes to the Brontë sisters, her fascination with magical adventure to J.R.R. Tolkien, and her weakness for snarky humor to Douglas Adams.
Join Joy's mailing list at for info about new releases. Connect with Joy at .
May the stories never end!
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
February 25, 2016
A Little Light Read.
Tori Morgan is all alone in the world and more than anything she wants a family but not only has her family been taken from her but she's thirty and the time to have her own is slipping away.
Nick Santangelo is the opposite he's surrounded by family he has three younger brothers a mother who lives with him and a grandmother who may as well since she's there so much and a seventeen year old daughter Leigh.
His mother disappears every Thursday supposedly going to church, his grandmother is a kleptomaniac and his daughter is dating Jason and Nick is terrified she's going to end up pregnant.
Nicks dreams of college were shelved when he got his high school girlfriend pregnant and he's worked hard to pull his family through and now it seems that all he does is work work work.
So as you can see Tori and Nick are complete opposites in so many ways but there's an undeniable attraction between them which neither has felt for such a long time, if ever. Tori desperately needs a contractor and Nick is here as a favour to his office manager but he's no intention of doing the job.
....."you're my last hope. My only hope! You can't even imagine how many contractors I've called. Not one will even give me an estimate before August. But when I looked into my crystal, I saw the work completed before the solstice."
Nick couldn't believe his ears. "You've got a crystal ball that tracks construction projects? You know, I could use one of those at the office."
"No," she said seriously. "It's not a ball. I can never get a good reading on a curved surface. I use a prism."
Nick shook his head. Time to go. Because, clearly, this woman had already left the building....
This would make a nice little holiday read. Nicks family is full of interesting characters especially Nonna and most of the time it works although Tori did annoy me I must admit I understand she wants a baby but she's no insurance, hates hospitals with a passion yet there's a strong chance she'll end up in one if she actually has a baby, she's just opening a shop but hasn't put any thought into how her business will survive if she or the baby is ill. I know her character is flaky but there's a difference between flaky and downright stupid and at times she's touching stupid.
This is light and easy no real drama nice to read but not a book I'd ever return to.
I feel I should also mention it's a much hotter read than I expected, don't get me wrong there isn't tons of sex but there's more than I thought since there's no warning.
January 25, 2011
Okay, so I'm giving this book two stars but it's not as bad as all that. More like 2.5 stars. However, I feel obligated to even out the glowing reviews/ratings a bit.
I can't understand why, in this day-and-age, we still swallow this sort of backwards romance. This couple has a clearly unhealthy relationship that ends with the hero making the realization that what he thought he wanted (to stay single and have no more children ever) was all wrong because he found LOOOOOOVE. I say MALARKY.
This type of book is the reason that young ladies are still going around with stars in their eyes thinkin' that they can change their man with good lovin.' Blech.
Opposites attract? Sure. Do they have long-lasting relationships? RARE. Freakin.' ARELY.
I can't understand why, in this day-and-age, we still swallow this sort of backwards romance. This couple has a clearly unhealthy relationship that ends with the hero making the realization that what he thought he wanted (to stay single and have no more children ever) was all wrong because he found LOOOOOOVE. I say MALARKY.
This type of book is the reason that young ladies are still going around with stars in their eyes thinkin' that they can change their man with good lovin.' Blech.
Opposites attract? Sure. Do they have long-lasting relationships? RARE. Freakin.' ARELY.
August 4, 2009
"A Little Light Magic" is a fun contemporary romance by Joy Nash. It's abut a guy and a girl who are so very different on the surface, but so very right for each other in the end. It's about conquering your fears and the love of family. It's a story that will leave you with a smile and a happy sigh.
Tori has been alone for most of her life and has always wished for a big family. She believes in wishes and charms and spells and now that she's inherited her Aunt's house on the Jersey shore, she's decided to open up her own shop selling crystals, tarot cards, runes, etc. With the summer solstice opening date looming, Tori remembers the old crone's spells and uses one and...voila, one hunky contractor!
Nick's the uber-responsible one of his large, extended family. When his girlfriend got pregnant, he ditched his scholarship, got married, and went to work. When his Dad died, he worked 24/7 until he pulled the company out of the red. Somewhere in those times, he lost his childhood, his wife, and his sense of humor! Now it's just Nick...and his Mom...and his Grandma...and his daughter...and his brothers! The LAST thing Nick wants is to take on the responsibility of a relationship...especially with a tarot-reading, crystal-selling, baby-wanting woman...no matter how hot she is!
While I didn't love everything about the story, I did enjoy the plot about a woman longing for family and a man who's pretty much sick of it! There's a good bit of humor in Joy Nash's story, but there's also a bit of realistic tragedy. A woman who's losing her ability to bear a child, a man trying to raise a teen, an adult brother looking for stardom--each character is a portrait of a real person trying to find happiness in today's world. And the great thing about romance is that in the book, they CAN all find happiness and we feel vindicated and happy for them. And maybe we also learn to appreciate what we have.
A good plot, strong characters, some very sexy love scenes, and a bit of magic. All these things made "A Little Light Magic" a little, light read that I very much enjoyed.
Tori has been alone for most of her life and has always wished for a big family. She believes in wishes and charms and spells and now that she's inherited her Aunt's house on the Jersey shore, she's decided to open up her own shop selling crystals, tarot cards, runes, etc. With the summer solstice opening date looming, Tori remembers the old crone's spells and uses one and...voila, one hunky contractor!
Nick's the uber-responsible one of his large, extended family. When his girlfriend got pregnant, he ditched his scholarship, got married, and went to work. When his Dad died, he worked 24/7 until he pulled the company out of the red. Somewhere in those times, he lost his childhood, his wife, and his sense of humor! Now it's just Nick...and his Mom...and his Grandma...and his daughter...and his brothers! The LAST thing Nick wants is to take on the responsibility of a relationship...especially with a tarot-reading, crystal-selling, baby-wanting woman...no matter how hot she is!
While I didn't love everything about the story, I did enjoy the plot about a woman longing for family and a man who's pretty much sick of it! There's a good bit of humor in Joy Nash's story, but there's also a bit of realistic tragedy. A woman who's losing her ability to bear a child, a man trying to raise a teen, an adult brother looking for stardom--each character is a portrait of a real person trying to find happiness in today's world. And the great thing about romance is that in the book, they CAN all find happiness and we feel vindicated and happy for them. And maybe we also learn to appreciate what we have.
A good plot, strong characters, some very sexy love scenes, and a bit of magic. All these things made "A Little Light Magic" a little, light read that I very much enjoyed.
May 30, 2009
As a writer, I usually read to analyze how other authors handle “writerly� issues—POV shifts, info dumps, character arc, etc. So cracking the spine of a book is part of what I do to hone my craft.
But there are a few authors whose prose sucks me so completely into their fictive dream, they make me forget that I’m a writer too. One member of that elite group is Joy Nash.
I’ve sighed with contentment over her DRUIDS OF AVALON series and listened to my heart pound in my ears while reading her IMMORTALS stories. So I wondered how she’d do with A LITTLE LIGHT MAGIC, a tale set on the prosaic Jersey shore. As usual, Joy works her magic and I am completely drawn into her characters� lives.
Her heroine Tori is the delightfully quirky owner of a New Age shop in possession of some magic “hoodoo� candles. Her hero Nick is the hunky contractor who agrees to take on her little “repair� project in order to get her shop open in time for the solstice. She’s high on the metaphysical world and his feet are set firmly on the ground.
They’re perfect for each other.
Joy Nash peoples her novel with achingly real secondary characters with their own very real issues—Nick’s teenage daughter struggling with whether or not to put out for her popular boyfriend, his shoplifting grandmother, his menopausal mother who lies about her secret weekly trysts, Tori’s lesbian couple friends and their new baby. Joy has a knack for creating characters who breathe on their own.
I loved it!
So, run out today and give your summer the kick off it deserves with Joy Nash’s A LITTLE LIGHT MAGIC. You will thank me.
For more of my recommendations, please visit and click on Em's Picks. Right now you can still catch my interview with USA Today Bestseller Jennifer Ashley about her latest novel THE MADNESS OF LORD IAN MACKENZIE, a historical hero with Asperger's Syndrome!
Enjoy!
But there are a few authors whose prose sucks me so completely into their fictive dream, they make me forget that I’m a writer too. One member of that elite group is Joy Nash.
I’ve sighed with contentment over her DRUIDS OF AVALON series and listened to my heart pound in my ears while reading her IMMORTALS stories. So I wondered how she’d do with A LITTLE LIGHT MAGIC, a tale set on the prosaic Jersey shore. As usual, Joy works her magic and I am completely drawn into her characters� lives.
Her heroine Tori is the delightfully quirky owner of a New Age shop in possession of some magic “hoodoo� candles. Her hero Nick is the hunky contractor who agrees to take on her little “repair� project in order to get her shop open in time for the solstice. She’s high on the metaphysical world and his feet are set firmly on the ground.
They’re perfect for each other.
Joy Nash peoples her novel with achingly real secondary characters with their own very real issues—Nick’s teenage daughter struggling with whether or not to put out for her popular boyfriend, his shoplifting grandmother, his menopausal mother who lies about her secret weekly trysts, Tori’s lesbian couple friends and their new baby. Joy has a knack for creating characters who breathe on their own.
I loved it!
So, run out today and give your summer the kick off it deserves with Joy Nash’s A LITTLE LIGHT MAGIC. You will thank me.
For more of my recommendations, please visit and click on Em's Picks. Right now you can still catch my interview with USA Today Bestseller Jennifer Ashley about her latest novel THE MADNESS OF LORD IAN MACKENZIE, a historical hero with Asperger's Syndrome!
Enjoy!
April 30, 2010
Yet another in my Rita Finalist reads. This one is in the Single Title Contemporary Romance category.
And again, it's a good read. It was formatted a little strangely as an e-book, but not bad. Just a lot of funky font sizes.
Hero is a contractor who's agreed to stop by and talk to someone who needs some remodeling/fixing up done. He doesn't do little jobs like this any more, but when he meets the heroine--who wants to fix up her great-aunt's tiny Atlantic City house as a store, with living quarters in back--he's not so sure he wants to turn her down. Except she's a kook. She's going to sell woo-woo New Age stuff, and tell fortunes.
When he leaves, the heroine gets out one of her stash of candle magic kits she got from a hoodoo woman in Louisiana, and lights it, wishing for what she wants. Family, not the store. And for some unfathomable reason, the hero turns around and comes back.
There's a lot of angst here, a lot of fun family characters--the hero has a rocky relationship with his late-teen daughter, and his youngest brother, and frankly, behaves like a jerk to the heroine all too often. Made me wonder why she put up with him, from time to time. But Nash motivates his behavior pretty well, and does have him grovel pretty decently when he needs to. He does know when he acts like a jerk, and tries to fix it pretty quick, but I did want to smack him upside the head a few times. Still, it was a good read. I enjoyed it, and I can see why it is a Rita finalist.
And again, it's a good read. It was formatted a little strangely as an e-book, but not bad. Just a lot of funky font sizes.
Hero is a contractor who's agreed to stop by and talk to someone who needs some remodeling/fixing up done. He doesn't do little jobs like this any more, but when he meets the heroine--who wants to fix up her great-aunt's tiny Atlantic City house as a store, with living quarters in back--he's not so sure he wants to turn her down. Except she's a kook. She's going to sell woo-woo New Age stuff, and tell fortunes.
When he leaves, the heroine gets out one of her stash of candle magic kits she got from a hoodoo woman in Louisiana, and lights it, wishing for what she wants. Family, not the store. And for some unfathomable reason, the hero turns around and comes back.
There's a lot of angst here, a lot of fun family characters--the hero has a rocky relationship with his late-teen daughter, and his youngest brother, and frankly, behaves like a jerk to the heroine all too often. Made me wonder why she put up with him, from time to time. But Nash motivates his behavior pretty well, and does have him grovel pretty decently when he needs to. He does know when he acts like a jerk, and tries to fix it pretty quick, but I did want to smack him upside the head a few times. Still, it was a good read. I enjoyed it, and I can see why it is a Rita finalist.
March 8, 2014
It seems I´m in the minority here with my rating of this book! Actually at first I really wanted to give it only one star! Why? Because I disliked the heroine so much, really, her baby obsession was more than annoying. As would any problem be solved by getting a baby! Her health problem, the reason why she so badly wanted to get pregnant was so far-fetched I almost couldn´t believe it. She couldn´t go to a hospital for medical treatment because her mother died in one! I couldn´t stop rolling my eyes. And it didn´t matter that she had no money and the chosen daddy-to-be had NO interest in becoming a father because he already had a daughter and wasn´t prepared for a long time relationship, no Tori wanted a baby. Period.
No, this book was a bore and the heroine was in dire need of a psychotherapist in my opinion. And the title of the book was a bit misleading (okay, I admit I was hoping for a bit more paranormal action) but there was only one scene or two of candle magic thrown in for good measure, totally unimportant for the storyline.
I didn´t really enjoy reading this book and it will not stay on my keeper shelf, that´s for sure...
No, this book was a bore and the heroine was in dire need of a psychotherapist in my opinion. And the title of the book was a bit misleading (okay, I admit I was hoping for a bit more paranormal action) but there was only one scene or two of candle magic thrown in for good measure, totally unimportant for the storyline.
I didn´t really enjoy reading this book and it will not stay on my keeper shelf, that´s for sure...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 19, 2017
A Little Light Magic by Joy Nash takes place at the Jersey shore and that made it interesting to me right from the start. I am familiar with the locations talked about and I find that kind of connection fun in a book. Tori and Nick meet when she tries to hire him to bring the house she inherited up to code. Tori believes in magic and wants to open a magic � as in fortune-telling, palmistry, spells, and charms � shop. Nick is a builder and is thoroughly down to earth and doesn’t believe in anything Tori has to sell.
The story follows their on again � off again romance and connects it to Nick’s family and the issues he is having keeping them all in line. Nick and Tori both have tragic but very different histories and this is an opposites attract type romance story. A steamy romance and a touch of magic along with a well-developed sense of place!
The story follows their on again � off again romance and connects it to Nick’s family and the issues he is having keeping them all in line. Nick and Tori both have tragic but very different histories and this is an opposites attract type romance story. A steamy romance and a touch of magic along with a well-developed sense of place!
April 15, 2018
This is the first time I have read a book by Joy Nash and I am looking forward to reading more by her. Usually when I read a book that is set at the Jersey Shore, I'm skeptical that they will get the location correct, Joy Nash nailed it which made it that much more enjoyable because I wasn't picking apart the location. I connected with the characters, I could relate to Tori's desire to have a baby having suffered from endometriosis myself, yet having a teenage girl I could also relate to Nick's unreasonableness in regards to protecting his daughter. All in all it was a highly enjoyable book, one I would pick up and read again and that is why it received 5 stars.
I do not know why it said I read it twice, I have only read it once and I cannot figure out how to edit that part.
I do not know why it said I read it twice, I have only read it once and I cannot figure out how to edit that part.
June 25, 2020
This was a fun beach read! I pulled it off the bookshelf at our rental house in the OBX this week. It’s not the type of book I usually read but I really enjoyed it! It was quick and fun and the characters were really likable. I’m using this book to fulfill the Popsugar Summer Reading Challenge prompt: “a book that takes place in a beach town� since it takes place in Margate, NJ.
July 29, 2018
Magic maybe!
Enjoyable read, once you get past the sex! Sorry. Read it because it's set in So Jersey. Family stuff works. Leading characters interesting. Fast reading!
Enjoyable read, once you get past the sex! Sorry. Read it because it's set in So Jersey. Family stuff works. Leading characters interesting. Fast reading!
July 30, 2011
What a wonderful book this is! I enjoyed every last word of it. It’s that perfect book to sit on the beach, on the patio, under a huge shade tree and just lose yourself in. New love, young love, family, fear for that family, fun, danger and so much more is jam packed between the covers of this book.
Tori has just inherited a small beach house from her Aunt Millie, the last of her family. She’s now alone in the world and is trying to make a go of one of her dreams. But work needs to be done on the house before she can open Destiny’s Gate to sell her crystals and tarot card readings, among other things. Finding a contractor to get her up to code is a little more difficult than she thought it would be. When her last hope walks out the door because her job is too small, Tori breaks out her last resort - one of a number of spell packs given to her by a New Orleans witch.
Not needing a headache like the kooky woman he just met, Nick doesn’t have time for her fixer-upper with all his huge and problem-ridden jobs this summer. But something makes him change his mind, and before he knows it, he’s back at Tori’s door letting her know he can work on her place nights and weekends himself. Why not, she’s easy on the eyes and it’s been a while since he’s had female companionship, so this just might work out for all involved.
And while there is all kinds of fun as Nick and Tori get to know one another while fixing up her store, so much more is going on in their lives that is both funny as can be but also heartbreaking and nearly tragic. Tori is still recuperating from a miscarriage and now longs to have a child in her life. Her ex-boyfriend wanted nothing to do with a child, so Tori wanted no more to do with him. Learning she has a condition that can be helped only by either surgery or becoming pregnant, she thinks about a fertility clinic. Until things heat up between her and Nick, that is.
But Nick is divorced and has a 17-year-old daughter, who is now giving him fits when it comes to the teenage lifeguard she thinks she’s in love with. He doesn’t want pregnancy to ruin her life like it did his, and then his wife up and left him after Leigh was born. On top that his mother is not herself lately, mysteriously disappearing every Thursday night; his grandmother can’t keep her klepto hands to herself; his youngest brother is always out goofing around at his Hollywood auditions when he should be doing his part in the family construction business. Who needs a wife and child just to make life that much more complicated?
I so love these two characters. They are attracted to each other despite their differences. Tori is a carefree spirit who has the beliefs to go along with her lighthearted attitude. Nick is a by-the-rules guy, responsible to a fault, all due to having to take over when his father died fifteen years ago; he had two brothers and a mother to take care of. But they have fun when they’re together, and you feel the loss when they decide things won’t work for them. The secondary characters are just as terrific. Nick’s family is just priceless and Tori’s lesbian friends do their best to support her in her dilemma.
Though a good portion of the book is light and fun, there are scary times and vulnerable times peppered throughout. It’s a great balance to give a reader one perfect read.
See my complete review at
Tori has just inherited a small beach house from her Aunt Millie, the last of her family. She’s now alone in the world and is trying to make a go of one of her dreams. But work needs to be done on the house before she can open Destiny’s Gate to sell her crystals and tarot card readings, among other things. Finding a contractor to get her up to code is a little more difficult than she thought it would be. When her last hope walks out the door because her job is too small, Tori breaks out her last resort - one of a number of spell packs given to her by a New Orleans witch.
Not needing a headache like the kooky woman he just met, Nick doesn’t have time for her fixer-upper with all his huge and problem-ridden jobs this summer. But something makes him change his mind, and before he knows it, he’s back at Tori’s door letting her know he can work on her place nights and weekends himself. Why not, she’s easy on the eyes and it’s been a while since he’s had female companionship, so this just might work out for all involved.
And while there is all kinds of fun as Nick and Tori get to know one another while fixing up her store, so much more is going on in their lives that is both funny as can be but also heartbreaking and nearly tragic. Tori is still recuperating from a miscarriage and now longs to have a child in her life. Her ex-boyfriend wanted nothing to do with a child, so Tori wanted no more to do with him. Learning she has a condition that can be helped only by either surgery or becoming pregnant, she thinks about a fertility clinic. Until things heat up between her and Nick, that is.
But Nick is divorced and has a 17-year-old daughter, who is now giving him fits when it comes to the teenage lifeguard she thinks she’s in love with. He doesn’t want pregnancy to ruin her life like it did his, and then his wife up and left him after Leigh was born. On top that his mother is not herself lately, mysteriously disappearing every Thursday night; his grandmother can’t keep her klepto hands to herself; his youngest brother is always out goofing around at his Hollywood auditions when he should be doing his part in the family construction business. Who needs a wife and child just to make life that much more complicated?
I so love these two characters. They are attracted to each other despite their differences. Tori is a carefree spirit who has the beliefs to go along with her lighthearted attitude. Nick is a by-the-rules guy, responsible to a fault, all due to having to take over when his father died fifteen years ago; he had two brothers and a mother to take care of. But they have fun when they’re together, and you feel the loss when they decide things won’t work for them. The secondary characters are just as terrific. Nick’s family is just priceless and Tori’s lesbian friends do their best to support her in her dilemma.
Though a good portion of the book is light and fun, there are scary times and vulnerable times peppered throughout. It’s a great balance to give a reader one perfect read.
See my complete review at
October 27, 2013
This book gets 3.5 stars from me but I'm rounding up because I truly did enjoy it. The story follows Tori Morgan, a young woman who has just moved back to the Jersey shore. Tori grew up in a broken home with her mother battling drug addiction problems and dragging them in and out of various boyfriends homes. Eventually Tori's mom dies of a drug overdose when she is around 10 years old and she moves in with her aunt at the Jersey shore. Two years later her aunt has a stroke and she is forced into the foster system until she eventually ages out. Years later Tori inherits her aunts home in the Jersey shore and moves back to open a new age shop as well as live in the space. The home she inherits is in really bad shape and doesn't pass inspection to live in or open a shop in. She hires Nick to do the repair work at her property and predictably they are attracted to each other. Nick is from a large italian family, a single father to a 17 year old girl, and his mother and grandmother live with him. Tori wants a baby throughout the novel as she is told by a doctor that she might become infertile due to a medical condition. Her desire for a child brings conflict to her relationship with Nick as he feels that he will never want another child and is having so much trouble with his current teenager. Tori falls in love with Nick and his family and his desire to never have another wife or child really drive a nail in their relationship. Eventually the characters reach their HEA and the book ends up with Tori finding her family and Nick learning to open up.
Overall it was a sweet book where the characters truly moved the plot along. I cared for the characters which is important to me for a good book. I felt that Tori's character was originally portrayed as too wacko with a burning passion for palm reading, tarot cards and psychic visions. As the book moves along this immediate impression doesn't become a major part of her character and I feel that her personality with new age ideas is lost by the end of the book. In a way it was good to not have her such a fanatic about it but I felt that she became just another female character in a romance book that didn't have as much identifying personality as she could have. Nick's relationship with his family is interesting to watch unfold and I truly enjoyed learning about it. I even enjoyed being in Nick's teenage daughter's perspective and the minor side plot she plays with her boyfriend. Overall I enjoyed the book and would recommend it.
Overall it was a sweet book where the characters truly moved the plot along. I cared for the characters which is important to me for a good book. I felt that Tori's character was originally portrayed as too wacko with a burning passion for palm reading, tarot cards and psychic visions. As the book moves along this immediate impression doesn't become a major part of her character and I feel that her personality with new age ideas is lost by the end of the book. In a way it was good to not have her such a fanatic about it but I felt that she became just another female character in a romance book that didn't have as much identifying personality as she could have. Nick's relationship with his family is interesting to watch unfold and I truly enjoyed learning about it. I even enjoyed being in Nick's teenage daughter's perspective and the minor side plot she plays with her boyfriend. Overall I enjoyed the book and would recommend it.
June 17, 2009
From the Back Cover:
First let me say � I started this one while laying out and this is the perfect beach/sun read. Light and fun is the best way to describe it. I love the total opposites attract and you don’t get much more opposite than what you see with Nick, the straight-laced, by-the-book man in life and business. Tori believes in ghosts and spirits. tarot readings and candle magic spells. Tori has never really had a family and that is what she desires most in life.
I loved the interaction between Nick and Tori. I also loved watching them grow as characters. The additional characters of Nick’s family really added something, especially his daughter Leigh and his younger brother Johnny. Nonna. the kleptomaniac grandmother is an interesting addition to.
This is a fun and quick to read story. It is my first by Ms. Nash and it will not be the last. I hope she does more with this family as I would love to hear stories about Nick’s brothers.
So if you want a good summer romance, this is for you especially if you like the opposites attract plot. I always love the play between the hero/heroine in these type of books and it’s definitely not lacking here. The attraction between them is also very strong and I loved the tension that was throughout the book.
When a girl with no family meets a guy with too much �
For Tori Morgan, family’s a blessing the universe hasn’t sent her way. Her parents are long gone, her chance of having a baby is slipping away, and the only thing she can call her own is a neglected house. What she wants more than anything is a place where she belongs. . . and a big noisy clan to share her life.
For Nick Santangelo, family’s more like a curse. His Nonna is a closet kleptomaniac, his mom’s a menopausal time bomb and his motherless daughter is headed for serious boy trouble. The last thing Nick needs is another female making demands on his time.
But summer on the Jersey shore can be an enchanted season, when life’s hurts are soothed by the ebb and flow of the tides and love can bring together the most unlikely prospects. A hard-headed contractor and a lonely reader of tarot cards and crystal prisms? All it takes is. . . A Little Light Magic.
First let me say � I started this one while laying out and this is the perfect beach/sun read. Light and fun is the best way to describe it. I love the total opposites attract and you don’t get much more opposite than what you see with Nick, the straight-laced, by-the-book man in life and business. Tori believes in ghosts and spirits. tarot readings and candle magic spells. Tori has never really had a family and that is what she desires most in life.
I loved the interaction between Nick and Tori. I also loved watching them grow as characters. The additional characters of Nick’s family really added something, especially his daughter Leigh and his younger brother Johnny. Nonna. the kleptomaniac grandmother is an interesting addition to.
This is a fun and quick to read story. It is my first by Ms. Nash and it will not be the last. I hope she does more with this family as I would love to hear stories about Nick’s brothers.
So if you want a good summer romance, this is for you especially if you like the opposites attract plot. I always love the play between the hero/heroine in these type of books and it’s definitely not lacking here. The attraction between them is also very strong and I loved the tension that was throughout the book.
May 11, 2016
A Little Light Magic is by Joy Nash. It is indeed the perfect summer read. It is quick and light and fun.
Tori Morgan was opening her shop in her Aunt Millie’s property on the beach near the 128 year old Lucy The Elephant on Absecon Island, New Jersey. She was going to sell all types of spiritual materials and some beautiful shirts she had found. It was to be an eclectic store named Destiny’s Gate. The shop was to be in the front and her home in the back. That is, if she could find someone to bring it up to code so the inspector would allow her to open. So far, none of the contractors she had talked to would even try to have it open by the summer solstice. Hopefully, the one coming this evening would work out. He was recommended by her Aunt Millie’s friend Doris.
Nick Santangelo was the owner and president of Santangelo Building. He was super busy and was run ragged racing from one place to another putting out little fires and trying to light fires under his subcontractors. Now he was having to take time away from his paperwork to talk to someone his secretary Doris wanted him to meet and to help. As he drove up to the little building, he knew right away that he wouldn’t have the time nor the crew to help this person out. Why an elderly lady like his grandmother was would want to enter the world of selling anyway. Stuck behind the elephant like the store was, she would not get that much traffic. Still, he had to at least face his prospective employer. To his surprise, she was a young pixy like beautiful lady and he was immediately drawn to her.
Can a serious, upright ,duty-driven workaholic like Nick have a relationship with a whacky, fun, little pixie like Tori?
Tori Morgan was opening her shop in her Aunt Millie’s property on the beach near the 128 year old Lucy The Elephant on Absecon Island, New Jersey. She was going to sell all types of spiritual materials and some beautiful shirts she had found. It was to be an eclectic store named Destiny’s Gate. The shop was to be in the front and her home in the back. That is, if she could find someone to bring it up to code so the inspector would allow her to open. So far, none of the contractors she had talked to would even try to have it open by the summer solstice. Hopefully, the one coming this evening would work out. He was recommended by her Aunt Millie’s friend Doris.
Nick Santangelo was the owner and president of Santangelo Building. He was super busy and was run ragged racing from one place to another putting out little fires and trying to light fires under his subcontractors. Now he was having to take time away from his paperwork to talk to someone his secretary Doris wanted him to meet and to help. As he drove up to the little building, he knew right away that he wouldn’t have the time nor the crew to help this person out. Why an elderly lady like his grandmother was would want to enter the world of selling anyway. Stuck behind the elephant like the store was, she would not get that much traffic. Still, he had to at least face his prospective employer. To his surprise, she was a young pixy like beautiful lady and he was immediately drawn to her.
Can a serious, upright ,duty-driven workaholic like Nick have a relationship with a whacky, fun, little pixie like Tori?
June 6, 2009
Victoria "Tori" Morgan wants to open her new age shop Destiny's Gate in the home she inherited but first she needs to fix it up.
Nick Santangelo is a contractor. He also has a seventeen year old daughter named Leigh. When his secretary Doris begs him to help out Tori, Nick agrees to at least go out and check out the place. When he arrives and sees how bad a shape the place is in, he tells Tori that she would be better off dumping the place. One thing that Nick is unprepared for is Tori's beauty. He tells Tori that his crew is too busy to take on any more work and leaves. About a year ago, Tori was given a bundle of magical candles but a witch. Tori figures it couldn't hurt to light one as she is desperate to help. She lights a white candle. Before she knows it, Nick comes walking back through the door and informs Tori that he will take on the job himself. He will come in the evenings.
Tori has been having some really bad pains. She goes to the doctor and is told that she has three options: She can either have surgery, take hormone pills or have a baby. Tori ops for choice number three but there is just one problem...Tori is single. Will Nick be the man for Tori?
My favorite person in this book is Luke's grandmother, Noona. Her favorite pastime is shoplifting expensive merchandise. Tori is like a wild child. SHe moves to the ruthum of her own music, whereas Nick is a rule follower. I like that Tori was able to get Nick to loosen up. Though I do feel a little bad for Nick having to put up with three women all the time...his mother, his daughter and his grandmother. For a light summer read, I recommend this book.
Nick Santangelo is a contractor. He also has a seventeen year old daughter named Leigh. When his secretary Doris begs him to help out Tori, Nick agrees to at least go out and check out the place. When he arrives and sees how bad a shape the place is in, he tells Tori that she would be better off dumping the place. One thing that Nick is unprepared for is Tori's beauty. He tells Tori that his crew is too busy to take on any more work and leaves. About a year ago, Tori was given a bundle of magical candles but a witch. Tori figures it couldn't hurt to light one as she is desperate to help. She lights a white candle. Before she knows it, Nick comes walking back through the door and informs Tori that he will take on the job himself. He will come in the evenings.
Tori has been having some really bad pains. She goes to the doctor and is told that she has three options: She can either have surgery, take hormone pills or have a baby. Tori ops for choice number three but there is just one problem...Tori is single. Will Nick be the man for Tori?
My favorite person in this book is Luke's grandmother, Noona. Her favorite pastime is shoplifting expensive merchandise. Tori is like a wild child. SHe moves to the ruthum of her own music, whereas Nick is a rule follower. I like that Tori was able to get Nick to loosen up. Though I do feel a little bad for Nick having to put up with three women all the time...his mother, his daughter and his grandmother. For a light summer read, I recommend this book.
June 19, 2016
This is a really cute and sweet romance between a new age woman (who wants a baby in the worst way) and a down to earth construction worker (who has an 18th year old daughter and doesn't want more children or to be married again). Tori has no family and Nick has a large Italian family. Many ups and downs between these two, both resisting the pull of love while fighting to be together. This is NOT a bodice ripper (as they say) but a sweet ride to a happily ever after.
It reminded me of 's writing. Specifically the Marconi Sisters trilogy which were wonderfully romantic. , , .
It reminded me of 's writing. Specifically the Marconi Sisters trilogy which were wonderfully romantic. , , .
Read
September 28, 2009OK - I probably should have read the book description a bit more carefully. I initially thought this book was about a single woman, opening a new age shop who hires an alpha guy to fix up the store, the fireworks between them, taking place along the Jersey shore, the fun of the new age shop and the sexy guy really enticed me to read this. However, I didn't not care for the 'I desperately want to have a baby' storyline and unfortunately, that is mostly what I read in the beginning of this book. Never mind the woman doesn't have enough money to fix up the house, how did she think she had enough to raise a child? Would she bring the baby with her to work every day or bring it to daycare - again a money issue? And what about the visit to a sperm bank? Doesn't that cost alot of money?
These problems were just too big for me to want to continue reading.
I've enjoyed historicals by Joy Nash so figured I'd enjoy this as well. But I didn't.
These problems were just too big for me to want to continue reading.
I've enjoyed historicals by Joy Nash so figured I'd enjoy this as well. But I didn't.
August 14, 2016
So much of this book felt like it was speaking directly to me, I was a teen Mom, and my daughter is now (just past) the age I was when she was born. Nick's struggle to accept that Leigh was becoming an adult herself, and had to be walked through tough decisions, not protected from them, is precisely the sort of struggle my hubby and I have been dealing with. Tori's desire for a baby was heart-wrenching, though not one that I personally understood, though I do grasp in some smaller way her desire for a family, having been raised so far away from my extended family, and wishing for grandparents, and aunts and uncles, and cousins with whom I could enjoy time.
Over all, a lovely story.
Over all, a lovely story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 6, 2009
This book had me from the first sentence of Chapter 1!! I believe that there was a spell put on this book to hook you into in (just kidding). If life hadn't intervened I would have completed the book not long after I began reading. Right from the moment when Nick steps out of his truck and walks up and assesses the building, you get caught up into it. All the characters are well written, especially Nonna. If I had 4 thumbs, that's how many thumbs up I would give it (do big toes count?!) Well done, and I can't wait to read more of her books!!
November 4, 2012
A soft porn romance novel. The reason I picked it up was the setting of the story. Margate Fl. An area of New Jersey outside of Atlantic City that I am familiar with. Basically a single dad who lives with his daugher, mother and grandmother is over frequently along with alot of brothers. In short , a large family. He meets Tori who was a foster child and has no family. Tori wants a baby while Nick has his daughter and is done expanding his family. But the chemistry between the two. We know what happens.
September 6, 2014
This is one of my beach novels, that is, the sort of books I only read while on vacation. The romances are multi-generational: one plot is the single father's and the other is his teenaged daughter's sub plot. The use of four generations of family members in the story made it even more interesting: Family is the over-arching theme. It's pretty well written, has a little bit of magic, and too much sex.
September 2, 2016
Summer on the Jersey shore makes the perfect setting for Tori Morgan and Nick Santangelo to meet and fall in love. There are lots of complications - Tori wants to have a baby, Nick's seventeen year old daughter Leigh is giving him sleepless nights worrying about her. Tori wants to have a family. Nick has more family drama than he needs. A little magic helps them realize how much they care about one another so they can work out their problems and begin a lifetime together.
February 27, 2016
I've never read this author before. It was a sweet story and had me tearing up a time or two. I liked the characters a lot. What I didn't like was the sex scenes. I'm not a prude at all, but it was a sweet romance, not erotica. I don't mind some sex scenes but it kept taking me out of the story.
October 9, 2010
The perfect book to end my summer! I LOVED this story! A man and woman finding each other is great but throw in his klepto granny, mother and daughter (who he had when a teen) as well as her new crystals and tarot card store on the Jersey shore and....
May 13, 2011
A few forced plot lines but overall a satisfying read. Tori is delightfully new age but surprisingly level-headed. Nick is the down to earth dependable type but with a tender heart. Secondary characters were also interesting.
July 6, 2011
This cute romance is set in Atlantic City NJ and for me was nostalgic as I'm originally a 'Jersey' girl. The storyline was good but not quite up to par with some of the other romances I'm reading. The magic was kept to a minimum and interaction of the characters was well done.
February 27, 2016
Good plot, good story
This was a very good story with a good plot & likable characters. Lots of ups & downs and overcoming baggage from past relationships. The only down side was it was a bit drawn out, but not so bad that I would decrease the rating.
This was a very good story with a good plot & likable characters. Lots of ups & downs and overcoming baggage from past relationships. The only down side was it was a bit drawn out, but not so bad that I would decrease the rating.
March 27, 2016
Truly, a little magic made this story a fun read
Loved it. Just enough drama to keep me interested and humor to elicit some chuckles. Real life and misunderstandings endear the reader to the characters.
Loved it. Just enough drama to keep me interested and humor to elicit some chuckles. Real life and misunderstandings endear the reader to the characters.
August 25, 2009
I enjoyed this book. The story kept me interested until the end and the writing was outstanding.
September 3, 2009
A light, fluffy romance I found on my mother-in-law's bookshelf. Easy to read, good story line (as such things go), and belief in the magic is optional. A fine "beach book."
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.