THE WITCHES OF NEW YORK is a refreshingly enchanting novel by Ami McKay, who authored THE VIRGIN CURE and THE BIRTH HOUSE. Set in the late 1800s in New York City, the characters, events and history --- which includes the emergence of the Great Obelisk, Cleopatra's Needle, in Central Park --- are woven together to create a dynamic portrait of a world that is exciting, dangerous and surprisingly new.

The young and charming Beatrice Dunn has cast her very first spell. While living with her aunt in Stony Point, New York, she is invited to interview for an apprentice position at a tea shop that offers many more delights than drinks and pastries. Beatrice has always stood out, and no one is surprised when she leaves upstate for the big city, with just a few items of clothing and an apple to stave off hunger. Her determination is so strong that, upon finding out that her train has been delayed, she jumps on a freight and wishes for the best.

"THE WITCHES OF NEW YORK builds a world and characters complex and dynamic enough that you're already waiting for the sequel, especially with the cliffhanger. A spell has surely been cast upon me."

It is upon her arrival in New York City that she encounters the Egyptian obelisk. Someone lets her have a peek, with this scene further introducing her to the magic that will set the stage for the rest of the novel. While on her way to interview for the position at Tea and Sympathy, Beatrice trips, hurting her head and blacking out. But this is no fall brought upon by innocent clumsiness; it is something far more sinister. In THE WITCHES OF NEW YORK, it appears that dark forces are always trying to intervene when something good is about to happen.

Adelaide Thom is the proprietor of Tea and Sympathy, as well as a powerful witch. She’s quite the celebrity, with only one eye intact after being the victim of a venomous act. She draws to her quite the clientele of wealthy women looking to get their fortunes told, some requesting services on a daily basis. Her compassionate assistant, Eleanor St. Clair, has been staying up at night, unable to shake the memory of a consuming, and forbidden, affair with a married woman who has money but is afraid to go after what she wants in her heart. Furthermore, Adelaide, Eleanor and Beatrice have a history with their parents, the similarities connecting them --- all are dead, except for Adelaide’s mother, who haunts the tea shop, protecting her daughter in the afterlife when what she did was far from protect her during her actual life. Beatrice is the only person who can see, and speak, to Adelaide's mother. This comes as a surprise to even the witches.

After being ill-treated as a child, Adelaide is closed off to love. She focuses intensely on her business as a mystic and fortune teller. Yet after meeting the psychologist Dr. Quinn Brody, who is interested in learning more about mediums, a spark of passion ignites within her. Adelaide is determined to introduce her new apprentice, Beatrice, to the world of celebrity mediumship, or whatever one would call it in that day. Beatrice, who is known around the tea shop for communicating with spirits, is about to try her hand at the “Spiritoscope,” a telegraph that allows one to commune with those on the other side. As this is happening, a well-known priest who is out to destroy evil doesn’t realize that he himself is evil as he captures, tortures and leaves innocent witches to die in a chamber beneath his home --- and a larger force is controlling him, one that is out to get Beatrice.

A story sprinkled with magic, friendship and themes of unity, as well as staying true to oneself and choosing passion over celebrity, the companionship of those who are true rather than the adoration of fans who may or may not be after your demise, THE WITCHES OF NEW YORK builds a world and characters complex and dynamic enough that you're already waiting for the sequel, especially with the cliffhanger. A spell has surely been cast upon me.