The Kitchen Witch

Author: Annette Blair
Published: October 5, 2004 (Berkley)
Category: Contemporary Romance
Quote of Choice: "Being nice to that woman is like feeding a baby shark so it can grow big enough to eat you."

I picked this book because I thought it was about a witch. I was disappointed though, as Melody Seabright is no witch. She just pretends to be one on her cooking show.

Anyways, a new neighbor moves into the apartment above Melody's. He's really hot and has a very young son from a previous relationship. Apparently, there have been rumors that Melody is a witch and Logan Kilgarven wants to avoid her because he doesn't want to get involved with those people. I started to dislike him, wondering if he was going to burn Melody at the stake. After all, the book takes place in Salem. Soon after moving in, Logan gets called into an emergency at the TV station (he's a producer), and doesn't have a babysitter for his son. Desperate, he asks Melody to watch the kid in exchange for a job at the TV station.

Somehow, she connives him into getting her an interview for a cooking show. Of course, she can't cook, but she wears revealing outfits and has a penchant for always wearing stilettos. Melody is hired and capitalizes on her rumored witchiness by making her show about her as a "Kitchen Witch." I shuddered when they chose "Do You Believe in Magic" for the theme song. I thought it'd be cooler if they'd gone with the "Bewitched" theme song.

Logan and Melody are super attracted to each other, but they are trying to deny it. He thinks that Melody is too flaky and sexy to be a good mother figure. Melody thinks that Logan is too much of a suit. Logan even dates Tiffany, the station owner's daughter. He thinks that this woman is better suited to be a mother because she's got a degree in early childhood education. However, Melody and Logan's friends see through the Tiffany's scheme. Her degree is just bait for a man, thinking that she'll be a great mom. I thought that Logan was a moron for being so incredibly blind to Tiffany's childish behavior in comparison to Melody's concern and caring for his son.

Dang, with the way I complain about the characters, it's not surprising that I didn't really care if they wound up together. At least there was snappy dialogue, but not enough to make me keep this book on my shelf.