When I started this new-to-me author, I wasn't sure what to expect. It's a mix of witchery, mystery, cookery, and romance. The heavy emphasis is on magic (witch circles, warlocks, warding, etc. etc.), and very little on romantic entanglements. I didn't expect the story to focus quite so much on the magic, and for me that was the least enjoyable part. The descriptions of the baking confections were absolutely mouth-watering, however, and the characters were individual and fun. Not sure whether I'd read the sequel, but I was definitely entertained.

*ARC via netgalley*

Anise escapes to Taos where she can finally live out her dream after an incident in New York. She is a witch living in a world that is terrified of witches and so she did what she could to blend in until everything blew up in front of her and she had to leave town. Things fall into place once she becomes an apprentice to her great aunt’s magical bakery in Arizona, but reality is too good to be true and soon Anise discovers that her years of baking is horrendous according to her aunt, she must learn how to bake from scratch by attending college, her fellow coworker who hates her guts happens to be her baking professor, she somehow has to have a bodyguard follow her around 24/7, and apparently her life as at risk every time she leaves the house.

This novel was magical from the world building to the characters and plot, but unfortunately this isn’t a standalone, so many questions are unanswered by the final page. I had many theories about Wynn’s role as bodyguard and why he seemed to sport a permanent cloud of rain over his head, but we didn’t learn much about his character. I picked out the warlock from the beginning so that wasn’t a shock. And I found it annoying and childish when Anise would go on and on over Seth’s appearance. It got to the point where she was comparing him to chocolate mousse and other baked goods. She sometimes made stupid decisions and let her “chocolate mousse” of a crush cloud her judgement to the point where she became careless, but at least she acquired her senses back after a bit.

I received an ARC of Deadly Sweet from NetGalley.

A pleasant, though slightly predictable, tale of a young, inexperienced magical baker trying to find her place in a new town where she can finally use her gifts freely.

The book itself is a bit more magical-realism rather than full-on magical hijinks, and also focuses far more an baking than magic. So if you are a foodie or you enjoy foodporn this is might be for you. Though if you are hungry, this may not be the best thing to read because you will just be envious of the delicious baked goods that are described but that you cannot have.

In terms of writing, the book was simple and rather straightforward. I found the first half to be a bit slow in terms of plot development, but it did pick up around the 50% mark. The surprise reveal was not much of a surprise for me. Because I placed my bets on who the villain was going to be pretty early on.

Overall, I liked the book. But I did not find it was anything particularly new.

Deadly Sweet is an awesome combination between witchy stuff and delectable delights. I could almost taste the confections by reading the descriptions. Do I really have to wait a year for the next book?

Deadly Sweet by Lola Dodge is an upcoming Young Adult novel all about Magic and Baking. Anise Wise is a baker, and her famous Aunt Agatha hires her as an apprentice in her Magical bake shop. Anise moves in with her Aunt and is quickly overwhelmed. She isn't anywhere near where she thought she was talent wise. She definitely isn't up to Agatha's standards. But when she realizes that her life is in danger, for unknown reasons, she obviously finds it difficult to mange, school, baking, and boys, all under the watchful eye of her bodyguard, Wynn.

I liked the world building in this book, and the aesthetic. Oh, and the Magic. Always the magic. But, I wasn't a fan of the characters. Anise never listens and never follows orders. Wynn is unnecessarily grumpy all the time (and we never figure out why.) There is a lot that we never figure out actually. Why did Anise's mom get banned from the magical town? Why is Wynn so grumpy? What exactly does his contract say? And a few more that I really can't ask with out spoiling some major plot for everyone. Also, most of the book is made up of action scenes, all ending with Anise blacking out. It happens so many times and was seriously over used.

The story is set up to lead into the next book, but since things with Anise's attacker were pretty much wrapped up in this one, I'm guessing she'll get herself into some more trouble throughout the rest of the series.

Bottom line. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it. 3 stars.

This is a really fun book with lots of series potential.

*3.5 stars*

A quick read with an interesting premise, “Deadly Sweet” delivers a fresh take on witch mythology where potions and magic go hand in hand with baking the perfect cherry pie.

Anise is a character who is out of her element when it comes to most things, except for those that are in the kitchen. When her magic gets her in trouble and she is forced to leave her home where being a witch is legal yet heavily feared for a town surrounded by families of strong magical heritage she slowly learns to harness her magic and excel in her one true passion with the help of her great Aunt and two new friends who have their own talents.

This book sets up an interesting take on a supernatural creature we’ve seen before in literature, film and television by giving it an angle where magic has concentrations outside of the usual spellbooks and nature tie ins and instead offers up the idea of recipes in place for potions and a way of learning this skill outside of your typical Hogwarts-esque magic school.

My only critique is that our main character had a bit of Rupert Giles syndrome where she had at least 5 moments of complete blackouts I don’t know if that was a way to create drama or to hurry the plot along with a narrative break but after about the second time she went down I started to roll my eyes.

Overall it’s a fine book for someone looking to stay in that genre but wants something new and outside the norm, it will be interesting to see how the sequel deals with the fall out of some of the choices in the first and how that affects everything going forward for Anise, when everyone knows you have to bake with a clear heart and good intentions or else it won’t come out as you expect.

**thank you to netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**

A competently written new adult urban fantasy, blending the light and fluffy style that usually gets a cartoonish cover and the thriller style which tends to have inadequately clothed tattooed women on it (regardless of the actual content of the book). The two don't always blend well; a sequence about snacks and sleepovers with college friends will be followed abruptly by an almost-successful attempt on the heroine's life. But the author does do a decent job of making the lighter parts important enough to the character that their mundane nature doesn't become too dull, and the thriller parts are varied and engaging.

In the thriller sections, the author walks a fine line between having the protagonist not be an idiot (she's aware of the potential consequences of her actions, knows her limitations, and recognises that she should leave the heavy lifting to her elders) and having the protagonist not be the one who resolves the problem. This does require a certain minimum amount of ill-advised decisionmaking and begging successfully for inclusion in operations she shouldn't really get included in, but it's handled well enough, and enough in character, that my suspension of disbelief didn't get overstrained. That's a balance not all authors in this genre achieve.

The main character, Anise, is well-motivated, and the stakes are compelling: she's a kitchen witch who's grown up outside the areas where witches are accepted, because her mother was banished for never-fully-disclosed reasons, and she wants to train as a baker and fulfil the potential of her heritage. But a dangerous warlock is active in the area, and seems to be targeting her specifically. She has limited resources, which she spends in desperate defence after desperate defence, and it costs her realistically.

I made a bet with myself very early on about the likely outcome with both Seth, the hunky fellow student, and Wynn, the bodyguard. I was dead on with Seth, but the Wynn arc is yet to fully work itself out (I'm still sure I'm right, though). There are no real surprises in terms of genre tropes being taken in new directions, but within its genre this is a well-executed and entertaining example.

Deadly Sweet is book 1 in The Spellwork Syndicate series. I've loved all the books I've tried from Lola Dodge so grabbing this one was a no brainer. This book seriously made me crave all the baked goods, so don't read this while hungry. I loved the magic aspects and cannot wait to see what the next book brings us!


Anise Wise is your every day college aged girl that happens to be a witch. Her and her mom are constantly on the move because she winds up using her magic and getting caught. It's no fun having an angry mob if you're caught so they haven't really settled down. After a stressful situation it happens again and Anise goes to live with her great aunt and starts working as her apprentice at her bakery. This is a perfect fit for Anise since that's her dream job and she's great at baking and enchanting those delicious baked goods. There's something sinister bubble over though, the last apprentice mysteriously disappeared and strange occurrences are starting to happen around our lovely witch. All signs are pointing to someone targeting Anise and she has to figure out who's behind it before it's too late.


Deadly Sweet is a great start to a new series. I really got sucked into the world and was on the edge of my seat when Anise was being targeted. I had a suspicion on the whodunit and was right, it was such an entertaining read. If you're a fan of New Adult books with paranormal mixed in I think you'll love this book!

Deadly Sweet imagines a world in which witches are present, and have their own community but are also shunned by the population as a whole. Anise is an aspiring baker who wants to go to baking school, get more experience and have her own bakery with holistic treats. Unfortunately, being a witch also throws a wrench in her plans as witches are being discriminated against in the world, sometimes even as extreme as physical harm. So, when she accidentally gets outed, she goes for the first opportunity that comes up - to become an apprentice to her estranged great-aunt, who owns a huge bakery in a witch-friendly town. Unfortunately for her, she doesn't know of the danger she is stepping into, and the threat her position puts her in.

The story is cute and entertaining - it has Hex Hall vibes, definitely, and a little bit of The Devil Wears Prada situation going on. Anise goes from a witch-hating world to a town where they are revered, where there is a syndicate that cares for its younger witches, and she is almost royalty (as her great aunt's only legit heir to the bakery), with a surly bodyguard and everything. She enrolls at the college nearby, and her classes are fun, until the assassination attempts start. Girl only wanted to bake and now she has to go under house arrest because people can't let her live, gawd! Turns out the witch world is much more dangerous, with a hierarchy and a Syndicate, and belonging to a prestigious family she has a bulls-eye on her forehead. She is determined to stick it out, but she is also worried about her life, you know, and she comes off as extremely pragmatic.

In the town, Anise makes friends with other young witches like her, who become her good friends. (Of course, they are also members of other families of the syndicate). She is however, unaware, of how the hierarchy plays into her position there, and she has yet to challenge her privilege, like the fact that her bodyguard is a warrior as an indentured servant. (Things have been hinted at that makes it seem it is much worse, so I'm looking forward to how it plays out in the sequel) That could also be the reason for his surliness towards her. On the whole, though, it has a more paranormal mystery vibe than hitting any political issues. It is simply a story of a young witch who just wants to become an accomplished witchy baker, and simultaneously also avoiding any murder attempts. The villain of the story, though, turned out to be less dangerous than I hoped.

Overall, an entertaining paranormal fantasy novel that was entertaining and a quick read. Looking forward to the sequel, Sugar Spells, to release ASAP!

This book was filled with awesomeness – yummy baking, action galore, and a journey of self-discovery for the very awesome Anise.

Anise is a girl who has been barely scraping by. Her life living with her mother is good, but they are both struggling to make ends meet. To make matters worse, they live in a world where being discovered as a witch instantly marks you as “evil.” Sure, there are some bad witches out there, but most aren’t what they’re portrayed to be by the media. Throw all that in with Anise trying to get ahead in the baking industry while battling her teenage hormones and you’ve got a pressure cooker ready to explode (or oven? Is that more relevant here?).

One event ends up outing Anise and sending her running to her only other relative for help. Lucky for her, her great aunt Agatha happens to be a super powerful witch and massively successful baker. While this seems like a great place to make a new start, there are additional dangers lurking for poor Anise. With great power (or baking prowess) comes great… list of people gunning for her. Turns out, by becoming Agatha’s apprentice, she’s inherited the last apprentice’s enemies.

So while Anise is trying to figure out how to please the more experienced bakers in the store, she’s also trying to make friends, avoid getting killed, and figure out why her assigned bodyguard is so surly. This book definitely leaned more heavily towards a paranormal mystery than romance, which is a bit of a departure for me. That being said, I still really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to see where Anise heads next. I also want way more answers about… everything! I’ll definitely keep my eyes open for the next installment.

So, I knew there would be food talk by the cover and summary, but I had no idea how much. It was driving me banannas! Now if you like all things food with magic, you are probably going to love this book. The writing was great, and the magic was super interesting but just too much food stuff for me!