Witch — (2009-2011) Young adult. Publisher: Tamsin Greene comes from a long line of witches, and she was supposed to be one of the most Talented among them. But Tamsin's magic never showed up. Now seventeen, Tamsin attends boarding school in Manhattan, far from her family. But when a handsome young professor mistakes her for her very Talented sister, Tamsin agrees to find a lost family heirloom for him. The search — and the stranger — will prove to be more sinister than they first appeared, ultimately sending Tamsin on a treasure hunt through time that will unlock the secret of her true identity, unearth the sins of her family, and unleash a power so vengeful that it could destroy them all. This is a spellbinding display of storytelling that will exhilarate, enthrall, and thoroughly enchant.
 
 Once a Witch
Tamsin comes from a family of witches. At her birth, her grandmother prophesied that she would become one of the most powerful of all — but Tamsin’s powers have never manifested, making her odd one out in the clan. If this were Harry Potter, she’d be a Squib.
Unsurprisingly, Tamsin is insecure about her magical deficiency. When a stranger comes to the family’s shop, looking for someone to help him find a lost item, Tamsin’s insecurity leads her to make a fateful mistake. Now she’s the only one who can put things right. The good news is, she may not be as powerless as she thought…
A lot of YA paranormal novels get bogged down in angst and mundane scenes, but Once a Witch is not one of them. The plot hits the ground running, moves quickly, and builds up suspense as it goes. One of my favorite details is the way Carolyn MacCullough uses the word “hellcrater” to ratchet up the tension. Tamsin has her phone set up so that it displays “HELLCRATER” when she gets a call from home, and at first this is a cute joke. By the time the climax arrives, every call from home bears frightening news, and seeing “HELLCRATER” on the page sends your heart into your throat.
There’s a romantic subplot, and it’s a refreshing one. This is not the kind of romance where the girl and boy gaze at each other once and it’s instant true love. They knew each other long ago, meet again, and then build up a relationship through talk and shared experiences.
Once a Witch has a time-travel twist, and I’m not sure it quite works; I think there’s a closed-loop paradox in it. Also, the plot occasionally moves a little too fast, whooshing through scenes I’d love to have seen in more detail, particularly the Samhain scene at the end. It’s especially a bummer because MacCullough writes ritual so beautifully.
These few quibbles aside, Once a Witch is an enjoyable novel that’s both suspenseful and charming, and avoids a lot of the tropes that have become annoying in YA. Book two, Always a Witch, is calling my name. —Kelly Lasiter
 Always a Witch
Alone among her relatives, Tamsin Greene grew up believing the family’s Talents had skipped her over, and learned to get by without magic. But in Once a Witch, Tamsin learned that she was far from powerless. Rather, she was one of the strongest of the Greene witches. Always a Witch concludes her story.
Tamsin is still getting used to having magic, and her sister Rowena is annoying her with her bridezilla antics. These concerns take a backseat when the family learns that the sinister Alistair Knight has altered the past and restored his ancestors to power. Tamsin travels back to the Victorian era to set things right, excluding her boyfriend Gabriel from her plans because she believes he’ll die if he comes along. Once there, Tamsin is hired by the decadent, sadistic Knights as a lady’s maid, a position that gives her an inside view of their schemes but also puts her in great danger.
The time-travel element here is stronger, in two senses of the word, than in the previous book. There’s more of it (Tamsin spends the vast majority of the book in 1887), and it works better. And the Knight house, though populated by creepy people, is a fun setting filled with secret passages — and maybe a few new allies as well.
Tamsin works out what needs to be done to stop the Knights once and for all. She learns the nature of the terrible choice that was prophesied in Once a Witch. This did lead to a slight “how did that happen?” moment, since according to the spell’s logic, I think it should have affected more people than it did. Yet the scene is an effective dramatic moment, heroic and bittersweet. Afterward, we learn the real reason the family kept Tamsin’s Talents a secret.
Though I was occasionally confused by the way some of the magic worked, I would gladly recommend Once a Witch and Always a Witch to young adult readers. This is an enchanting, quick-moving, spooky duology with a likable heroine. —Kelly Lasiter
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Carolyn MacCullough was born and raised in Connecticut and found her way to Scotland, Sicily, Iceland, and even the wilds of New Jersey before settling down in New York City where she writes and teaches creative writing. Besides the fantasies below, she has written the young adult novels Falling Through Darkness, one of the New York Public Library Best Books for the Teen Age, Stealing Henry, and Drawing the Ocean. She also teaches at the New School. She holds a BA from Grinnell College and an MFA in Creative Writing from the New School. Learn more at Carolyn MacCullough's website.
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