This is such a solid group of three books that I would highly recommend, so that’s really exciting. You can already pick up Hot Hex Boyfriend by Carly Bloom and The Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole, but The Mirror by Nora Roberts doesn’t come out for another month. That said, if you haven’t already picked up Inheritance by Nora Roberts, you can go ahead and get caught up. As per usual, shout out to Netgalley for these e-ARCs, though I also got the audio ARC of Hot Hex Boyfriend and had already consumed The Spark of the Everflame via Kindle Unlimited. But now, without further ado, let’s talk about the books!
Hot Hex Boyfriend by Carly Bloom
Plot: Delia’s family is convinced they’re a family of witches, though Delia doesn’t really buy into it. Never mind that Delia is the one who can “break the curse” they’re under. Delia’s more concerned with getting her interior decorating business up and running and her new neighbor, Max, is kind of intriguing. Meanwhile, Max is a witch and knows that Delia’s family are witches, they’re just cursed. His job is to make sure they don’t break that curse. He just wasn’t expecting to also find himself very intrigued by Delia.
What I Enjoyed: This was definitely one of the more fun contemporary/paranormal witchy romances that I’ve read in a while. First of all, the plot actually made sense. Secondly, I understood the world. Both key ingredients to a successfully executed witchy romance like this. Honestly, all in all, I had a really good time with this one. I liked Max and Delia’s slow evolution into oops, we fell in love. Especially since Max is convinced that emotions are bad because he’s a Logos witch. How silly. Also, the cat/imp character, Nicki, was just so fun. I loved him. Overall, I really enjoyed this one, it just isn’t quite a five star read.
Who I Would Recommend This To: If you keep picking up witchy romances in the hopes that you’ll eventually find one you like, definitely try this one!! If you like a cozy good time, but with some stakes, pick this one up. Definitely make sure you’re in the mood for some silly goofy antics though because the secondary characters in this book are a little eccentric.
Specific Audiobook Thoughts: I was fortunate and received an audio copy for review and I did listen to this one. I think the audiobook narrators definitely contributed to my ability to roll with the silly goofy antics and I enjoyed the narration. This is a dual narration, so Max and Delia each have their own narrator for their chapters. It is not duet narration, but neither of them had annoying voice imitations for the other main character, thankfully.
Spark of the Everflame
by Penn Cole
Plot: Spark of the Everflame essentially follows Diem, whose mother has gone missing. Diem is a healer, though I wouldn’t say that she’s satisfied with her life as a healer. Now that her mother is missing, she’s really trying to be there even more for her younger brother, but also to take over her mother’s duties at the castle, healing the king. There she keeps butting heads with the Prince expected to take the throne when the king eventually passes away, Luther. But she also has her childhood friend/boyfriend, Henri. There is honestly so much going on in this plot. The first book doesn’t really have a ton of romance, unless you actually like Henri, (I did not when I read the first book and I liked him even less by the end of the second…) but the set up for the rest of the series is so, so intriguing.
What I Loved: My intrigue about this book and where the series is going was so high when I finished book one. To the point that I immediately downloaded book two from kindle unlimited. I’m not trying not to read book three until there’s more information about the release of book four, but that is proving to be a challenge because I just want to stay in this world. Anyway, specifically about the first book, I feel like Cole did a great job creating the world and a cast of characters that feel real. She has so many people on both sides of things and I was impressed by how fully realized they felt (mostly). There really weren’t one-dimensional villains, which I appreciated.
Who I Would Recommend To: If you’re a fantasy first girlie, pick this one up. Now, the romance does absolutely expand in book two, but the plot remains the more important and prevalent aspect of this book.
The Mirror by Nora Roberts
Plot: The Mirror picks up where Inheritance left off, with Sonya and Owen through said mirror. And that’s all I’m going to say about the plot because I don’t want to spoil y’all for anything since this is the second book in the series!
What I Loved: I’m really obsessed with Nora’s paranormals. I love the way she crafts characters. This is, however, a book you need to pick up when you’re definitely ready for the way Nora Roberts does slow and soft interspersed with intense paranormal moments. There’s a party being planned in this book and there is so much party planning, while you’re also dealing with Dobbs stuff (ghost). What’s killing me about this is that I want to be able to binge the entire trilogy, but as I’m reading them technically before they even come out, that’s not really possible. But honestly, such a good time!
Who I Would Recommend The Mirror To: Well, first of all, people who’ve already read and enjoyed Inheritance, obviously. But more seriously, someone who wants a cozy spooky read. Basically, if you like getting to really see someone’s day to day life and you want a realistic feeling slow-building romance, I would definitely recommend this trilogy. I’m honestly so excited to reread this one via audio when it comes out!
Closing Thoughts
I hope these reviews have helped you consider what book or books you may enjoy and perhaps more importantly, to help you know what to not spend your time on. Books are great, but not every book is for every reader and I want to do a better job helping people figure out if a particular book is for them or not. Let me know if there’s anything you think I should start including in my reviews! And, if you have read any of these, let me know your thoughts!
xx
firewhiskeyreader 