 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.A coven of deathwalking witches who have to set themselves on fire in order to patrol the Veil; a terrifying Warden who uses his army of soulless, half-masked soldiers to control it all; a heroine who sets herself on fire so she can save her sister… Tonight, I Burn by Katharine J. Adams is such an inventive story with so many striking elements that viscerally hold you in check. Penny, the protagonist, is a deathwalking witch who finds herself going farther against the Warden than she ever suspected she would in order to protect her sister & the other people she loves. As she plans in secret & then with the help of others, she also develops feelings for two different people, a man & a woman, & she opens up some of the closed-box tension surrounding her own family. This book is very much leading up to another which is good because it feels like some things are left unfinished. I would have liked more with Penny’s romantic relationships, which do get steamy but which also feel separate in a way I didn’t totally appreciate. But witch fans, rejoice, here’s another witchy offering for us to celebrate the glorious season of fall. 4⭐️. Out 11/07.Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.
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 Hi and welcome to my blog tour stop for Tori Anne Martin's This Spells Disaster! A big thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.Summary.Morgan Greenwood may be an incredible potion maker, but she’s convinced she was hexed at birth. A self-proclaimed “messy witch,” it comes as no surprise when she finds herself drunkenly offering to fake date the woman of her dreams for the biennial New England Witches’ festival. Enter Rory Sandler, a spellcasting champion and brilliant elemental witch, who just so happens to accept the offer for reasons unbeknownst to Morgan. All those good luck spells must have worked after all! But as Morgan and Rory prepare to fool everyone at the festival, their relationship starts to feel very real—that is until Morgan realizes she might have screwed up the common relaxation potion she made for Rory and given her a love potion instead, breaking one of the most sacred Witch Council Laws. To fulfill her promise to Rory, Morgan must somehow keep playing pretend while under the watchful eyes of Rory’s family and legion of fans. But to break the love potion, she’ll also have to prove how incompatible she and Rory really are. For a screwup like herself, ruining their relationship should be easy—except every day, Morgan is becoming more bewitched by Rory herself.  [ID: Jess’s white hand holds the ebook in front of a garden of zinnias. Trees & a yard are on the right side of the image.] My review.An unrequited crush, a coven, a newt festival, a fake dating situation, a love potion… Wait. Recently I posted about tropes I’m weird about & one of them is love potion—a plot point in This Spells Disaster. With that being said author Tori Anne Martin addresses the lack of consent with those in the author’s note & one FMC’s awareness of it prevents her from moving physically forward with the other lead so it worked a-okay for me. This sapphic witchy romance is ca—ute! (Is that how you spell it if you say it like that?) The book is set in a cozy town in Maine (never been but it makes such a great romance backdrop!), there’s queer rep, that aforementioned consideration of consent & love potions, a fun newt festival (can I go?). Morgan is a potions-witch at her family shop; Rory is a very well-known witch who abruptly left the spotlight to become a bartender at Morgan’s small town. When Rory’s parents try to pressure Rory to return to the spotlight, she & Morgan begin a fake dating situation that gets complicated by their real feelings & also the love potion Morgan accidentally made that she thinks Rory has ingested. On one hand I grew a bit frustrated with how lead Morgan was trying to “How to lose a guy in 10 days” Rory because of the accidental love potion she made & gave to Rory, but on the other the conflict kind of made sense given how everything was set up for & about the characters earlier in the book. Witchy reads are the bomb.com & this is a fun one. 4⭐️. Out now! Please read a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs. How do you feel about a love potion read? Let me know what you think about this one and thanks for stopping by!   Hi and welcome to my blog tour stop for Raquel Vasquez Gilliland's Witch of Wild Things! A big thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.Summary.Sage Flores has been running from her family—and their “gifts”—ever since her younger sister Sky died. Eight years later, Sage reluctantly returns to her hometown. Like slipping into an old, comforting sweater, Sage takes back her job at Cranberry Rose Company and uses her ability to communicate with plants to discover unusual heritage specimens in the surrounding lands. What should be a simple task is complicated by her partner in botany sleuthing: Tennessee Reyes. He broke her heart in high school, and she never fully recovered. Working together is reminding her of all their past tender, genuine moments—and new feelings for this mature sexy man are starting to take root in her heart. With rare plants to find, a dead sister who keeps bringing her coffee, and another sister whose anger fills the sky with lightning, Sage doesn’t have time for romance. But being with Tenn is like standing in the middle of a field on the cusp of a summer thunderstorm—supercharged and inevitable.  [ID: Jess’s white hand holds the ebook in front of a mural of 3 flowers on a slate colored brick wall: a yellow sunflower, a yellow coneflower, & what might be a pink peony.]My review.Witch of Wild Things is one of those gorgeous witch stories. In it, family, home, friendship, love, *& the natural world* are celebrated & important to MC Sage’s well-being & happiness. They’re not things she’s been actively pursuing in the past though—she’s been running from most of them actually, ever since her sister died, leaving her & her remaining sister estranged & Sage with no desire to stay at home. When she’s forced to return, she has to eventually deal with all of it, including her past feelings for a teenage crush who left her broken-hearted. Witch of Wild Things is a lovely story of so many things: finding & choosing your person, being a good friend, taking responsibility, taking care of & respecting the environment & the natural world. I have a new affinity for mushrooms after reading this one. The writing is lyrical in moments but there’s also a striking romance arc including a moment where the MMC takes up for her with a pissy park ranger. Tennessee Reyes is a great balance of hot, understanding, & sensitive & I approve. This is one of those well-rounded witchy reads that will satisfy on the physical & emotional fronts. While a couple things with the plot left me with a bit of the “huh” feeling, overall this is such a sweet & wonderful & whimsical & earthy read that satisfied. 4⭐️. Out 09/12.CWs: Previous loss of sister. Parental abandonment. Loss of mom. A secondary character is outed as victim of abuse. Sage is fired after ending a physical relationship with her boss. Are you in the mood for a witchy read yet? Let me know what you think about this one and thanks for stopping by!  Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC and the publisher for the complimentary hard copy. All opinions provided are my own.A retelling of Beowulf, Shield Maiden by Sharon Emmerichs tells the story of what woke up the dragon. Fryda, a lord’s daughter, is the very resilient heroine of this fantasy. She survives *a lot* physically, so much so that I got some Daughter of the Forest vibes. Throughout Shield Maiden there’s also a sweet friends to lovers romance arc that’s set against a background of a power struggle, revenge, & parental coldness. Be advised that there are references to slavery & indentured servitude in Geatland—in fact, the love interest is called a slave & treated as if he is one by most of the people in positions of power for most of the book. The creativity of this story & the standout heroine make Shield Maiden a striking story. 4⭐️. Out now.CWs: Death; violence; dragon attacks & death. Betrayal. Sexual harassment. Whipping as punishment. Slavery & indentured servitude.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.Adrienne Young has such a way with words & THE UNMAKING OF JUNE FARROW really sucked me in one night when I flailed around looking for something to read. (The title alone gives me raptures.) This evocative & wistful book has a time slippage premise where the female Farrows have the ability to respond to two different times at once—it’s something that June finds herself struggling with at the beginning of the book as she hears music no one else can hear, sees a strange man lurking & then suddenly disappearing, etc. Then one day she chooses to walk through a door & she finds herself in the past with a ticked off man who says he is/was her husband who was summarily abandoned by her when she presumably went through the door again. So June must confront this man who she doesn’t really remember meeting, during a time she hasn’t been in yet, & meanwhile she has another life in the current time with people she loves. I’m guessing you can see the possible emotional implications of all of this. Despite the fact that I occasionally got confused by some of the time details, this is a moving story that made me wrestle with some of the emotional fallout of the characters’ choices & what it means to go through the door. There’s often a sadness that comes with time slippage / time travel books, I think, something lost for something gained, & this book definitely incorporates that into the story. Ultimately TUOJF is an emotion-driven story that asks the question what if you don’t go through a door: what if that is the risky thing to do. It’s not my personal fave Adrienne Young story but it is compelling & written in a lovely way—she is such a stylist—& I think it will grab many hearts. 4⭐️. Out 10/17.Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC and the publisher for the complimentary hard copy. All opinions provided are my own. Aparna Verma’s The Phoenix King is a monster of a fantasy with lots of twists & turns, a couple of “oh sh** moments,” & an ending that left me with a couple of questions. An heir to a kingdom, a former assassin trying to secure freedom, a ruthless king who will do anything, go to any lengths, no matter how violent, to take the future he thinks is right… This fantasy has a lot going on, not to mention secrets, betrayal, gods, conquered countries, & a smidge of a love triangle. In its best moments, this book captivated me & I waited with bated breath to see what other danger / horror would attend the characters in this world. But there are also moments when the book drags a bit for me, & by the end I had the feeling that the book is somewhat too long—never a great feeling to have. The scope of this one feels too large. This is definitely a big book in all the ways & it takes the reader for a real ride. I think book 2 could be a turning point for the series, seeing if it focuses in more & picks up & tightens the threads started in book 1. 4⭐️. Out 08/29.Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWS but know that this book includes gory depictions of violence & murder, including burning people alive.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC and the publisher for the complimentary hard copy. All opinions provided are my own.Sarah MacLean gave me what I wanted with Detective Inspector Tommy Peck: thick thighs, a nice beard, a strong sense of honor, & a stern & stoic way of presenting himself. Then comes Lady Imogen Loveless like a wreckinggggg ball. She leads him on a merry chase, all while she & the Belles are investigating the series of explosions that have been set at places of refuge / help in the East End. All the while she is captivating Tommy though he is very aware of the class difference between them. The “cat & cat” dynamic between Imogen & Tommy is too good. He sees her as an equal & as someone who is endlessly resourceful & who can find answers. His confidence in her is hot. As is his possessiveness about who can see Imogen in moments of dishevelment following smooching & more. “He doesn’t get to see this.” Freaking swoon. Imogen—like the other Hell’s Belles we’ve met—is a total bada** & I wish I had her bag filled with tricks. Their story has weight & twists & the Belles manipulating events in an attempt to help others. But I think my expectations were a bit off the mark for this one. Based off of impressions from earlier books I thought this one might be more fun, more madcap, & while I enjoyed seeing what lies beneath Imogen’s chaos I also kinda wanted more chaos. More explosions set by Imogen. More like Bringing Up Baby but with explosives ;) . Still, Knockout is hot & sensual & romantic & I really adore the gravity of SM’s writing. It’s provocative but there’s also a seriousness in tone & scope that compels. I don’t know if that makes sense? Either way, this reviewer is looking forward to the next book because this one left off on a real moment. 4⭐️. Out 08/22.CWs: Explosions targeting places of refuge; misogynist remarks; cruel remarks; attempted murder; references to murder; violence.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.This was a first for me: reading an already married couple as the stars of a supernatural-investigating fantasy & did I like it! Author Josiah Bancroft offers a rich imagination in The Hexologists, writing an unpredictable tale flush with mystery & mayhem. Our protagonists Warren & Iz have a fascinating, loving dynamic, each bringing things to the table that make the other feel secure despite how formidable/unflappable they might appear to others at first glance. The book opens with a member of the king’s staff approaching Iz & Warren with the mystery of the king-who-has-apparently-gone-mad. Iz & Warren are Hexologists, which is a form of magic—& they decide to take the case even though it’s not their usual cup of tea. Mysteries abound in this book & though it becomes a bit convoluted, it was fun & engaging & I enjoyed following their investigation with its many twists & turns (& its moments of humor) a great deal. The ending started dragging for me somewhat but this is an entertaining book written by someone who clearly delights in the genre & I really enjoyed it. 4⭐️. Out 09/26.CWs: please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.I’ve long waited for Matthias & Pet’s book & Codename Charming has some great moments that pulled at the ole heartstrings. Starting with the fact that Matthias is a security guard for royals & becomes VERY protective of Pet, their royal assistant, & including the fact that to everyone else, their romance is beauty & the beast but to Pet, he is beauty & strength & dependability. & it didn’t quite pull at my heartstrings that Matthias has chest hair but I liked it, okay? Codename Charming also has a fake dating, opposites attract (but really they have compatible backgrounds) premise, a slooooow burn, some humor, & a story of two people creating this world where they can feel comfortable, together. Add to that an investigation into Pet’s father’s family & a meddling set of Royals & you have a cheery romance that is—as the title says—charming. 4⭐️. Out 08/15.CWs include: an emotionally abusive father; knife attack flashback; attempted knife attack in current book. Death of friend & feelings of responsibility. An unknown father that Pet discovers in book.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.You, Again by Kate Goldbeck is quite the emotional ride. If you’re an angst-lover, jump in, the water’s very warm. If you’re like me, you might read this one with that Chrissy Teigen cry-grimace-smile on your face because objectively you can acknowledge it’s a great book but subjectively you need the pain to be over & the HEA to hit you with sweet relief . Compared to When Harry Met Sally, this book features leads who keep bumping into each other over a series of years, at first fighting & disliking each other & gradually moving into friendship. This is where the book really got to me, in seeing the characters change & in seeing that the characters *have changed* since we saw them last. The leads’ first clunky forays past animosity are wonderfully revealing & sweet. Of course the leads don’t stay in the friendship zone—& I didn’t want them to!—but both have a lot of baggage to work through before the reconciliation. It’s the way the baggage is worked through that caused me secondhand distress as a reader: see paragraphs above about angst. But the story is compelling & the characters feel real & the ending is lovely & unique & something I won’t likely forget . I think a lot of people will love this one, & a lot of people will be moved by this one. It definitely makes an impact. 4⭐️. Out 09/12.Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.
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