The Unwritten Rules of Magic, Harper Ross (Review by Rachel Taran)

Rating: 4.0/5 Stars

What would you do if you had a magic typewriter that could grant you any wish you want? What if there was a price to pay for the wishes coming true? These are the questions our main character Emerson must consider as her life appears to be falling apart.

We begin the story with Emerson cleaning out her father’s possessions. Her father (who was a famous author) has just passed away from Alzheimer’s. In addition to grieving her father, Emerson has a lot on her mind- her aging mother has been an alcoholic for as long as she can remember, her teenage daughter is shutting her out more and seems to be keeping a big secret from her, and her own career as a ghost writer is caving in on her. While cleaning out her father’s office, she finds his old typewriter locked away in a cabinet. She remembers him calling it his “lucky charm” and wonders why it’s locked up. She breaks the cabinet open, grabs the typewriter, and takes it home with her.

This is when things get weird. She types some innocent wishes on the typewriter that night and is alarmed at what happens in the coming days. As she makes the connection of the true power of the typewriter, she begins to question her own upbringing and how much of her life (and her father’s success) was real or manipulated by the magical typewriter. Throughout her investigation, she learns some hard truths and grapples with the morality of using the typewriter on other people for your own personal gain.

I really liked the questions this book brought up and it even made me wonder what I would do if given the magical typewriter. At first thought it seems like it could be the answer to all your problems, but when considering the consequences, it’s not as great as it might sound. While some of the story wrapped up too easily and I was left with bigger questions I wanted answered, overall this was a fun read!