Sprinkles and Sea Serpents

They say you can't go home again . . . oh, if only that were true.

Thanks to a series of unfortunate events-and one backstabbing frenemy-home is exactly where I'm headed. Back to Winterspell Lake, the small community in Eastern Washington where magic runs rampant and humans are outlawed.

Faster than you can say hocus pocus I'm unpacking my bags and settling into the guest room of my parents' house, trying to ignore the creeping sensation that I'll never break free again.

The one thing Winterspell has going for it is the sweets shop in the center of town, a bakery filled with magical creations designed to enchant the tastebuds and charm even the pickiest of connoisseurs. Luckily for me, I get the friends and family discount since my parents own the famous Sugar Shack. If I want room and board I have to frost cupcakes and sling macaroons with the rest of the fam.

Unfortunately, things in Winterspell aren't all sugar cookies and rainbows. According to the local news, a dangerous sea serpent has claimed the lives of three missing girls. The journalist in me has to have a look for myself, and what I find is something far more deadly.

Something that makes me wish I'd stayed in the bakery.