He is there only as an observer before having to go home. He has also been forbidden to have a relationship or interfere with the people around him. Come to find out, he isn’t straight or human and he is on a quest of his own. And of course, humans aren’t allowed to know about the paranormal world let alone date one.īut Ryder isn’t what he seems.

He has also been in love with his straight, human best friend Ryder. However, he is a prophetic painter, and although what he paints always comes true, he hasn’t painted anything that’s very important. He would rather be able to call down lightning and manifest wealth. He is a witch, but he feels that the power that he has received is pretty worthless. Sammy is a great character and has some very realistic insecurities. So many books are still going with the age old saying that it isn’t manly to cry and I love that Sammy and Ryder are secure enough in their masculinity to show how they are truly feeling at all times.

I have become a huge fan of Tara Lain, and the way she writes has a way of keeping me energized, focused, invested, and guessing on how the storyline is going to go and then being proved completely wrong as she throws in a twist that I didn’t see coming.īrush with Catastrophe had so much emotion and passion, and I love when the main characters are allowed to cry. So why is he backing Sammy?īrush with Catastrophe by Tara Lain is part of the Aloysius Tales series and it was absolutely amazing. But is that witch also a devil-a devil who can bring down Sammy’s whole community and everyone he loves? And why the hell does Ryder keep changing? Aloysius, the black cat familiar, always backs a winner. Then Sammy paints an angel who turns out to be a witch. One night he paints a gorgeous guy who turns out to be his secret crush, the human Ryder, but Ryder’s changed so much he’s almost unrecognizably beautiful. Sammy feels like a total loser with a worthless ability. Granted, the “prophetic” paintings he creates at night always come true, but they never predict anything important. Where other supernaturals can bring down lightning and manifest wealth, Sammy can paint. Sammy Raphael is a crappy witch, and on top of that, he can’t seem to get a boyfriend.

Brush with Catastrophe by Tara Lain