The synopsis of the book is was what sold me. Now the story itself, was just okay. The swamp gave a great almost creepy background for the story which I loved. I enjoyed the back and forth with Beau and Willow. It was just a little unbelievable that their parents would let them go about the swamp knowing that there was a killer on the loose.
Overall the story was okay, just not something that I would reach for again.

I was really excited when I found this book on Netgalley. I may be aging and all, and have gotten into more NA and darker novels, but I still love and sometimes miss my YA novels. While I reread the ones I’ve always liked I’m finding I’m getting pickier and pickier with choosing new YA books/ series to get into. The cover of this first drew me right in. It’s striking and beautiful with the contrasting pale colours. Mystery and beauty comes to mind. The summary sold me. Something right up my alley to bring me back to my YA books

The book was okay but it could definitely have been better. First off, there was ZERO character development for ANY of the two characters especially Willow and Beau. Chapter one: here’s Willow being warned about Beau from her grandma. Chapter two: here’s Beau hitting on her as the new girl. The author tried too hard to get the romance rolling...meaning that was the only thing she did with this book. All the other characters we meet, just nothing special about them. No history.

Attached to that, Beau is made out to be the bad boy...emphasis on bad. As cliche as that is, I still fall for the trope so that’s fine. What isn’t fine is how they made him out to be a man*hore from the get-go. He himself admits to breaking girls hearts, taking them and only keeping them for a short time and as Willow is the pretty, new girl he wants the same opportunity. Instantly unlikable!! You can make a character a player but still have him likable. But as we were shown nothing about these characters there’s no way to know that. I see what the author was going for here; she wanted to create that bad boy we often find in NA books and how the girl is the one to settle him. And that’s fine, except none of those guys start out saying ‘I’m gonna break her heart’ For me, it just didn’t work.

In the middle of being interested in Beau, she accepts a date from another guy. Normally I’d say, good character. She’s trying to move past the guy that won’t be good for her. BUT SHE IS NOT. Brody here is just a filler character. Someone to add drama to the whole upcoming romance: the jealousy factor. Again could work, if maybe she had an inkling for this guy but she just accepted his offer after meeting him out of pure randomness. Worse off, she compares his kindness and “light” qualities to Beau’s “dark ones”.

The friends are pure supporting characters. There’s no depth. They just show up when the book needs to have Willow or Beau have a conversation with other people than each other. And showing up when needed...her parents were introduced out of nowhere. Just showed up one day and instantly her mother is a horrible character. Literally tells her daughter to date Beau even after Willow explains that she’s uncomfortable with the fact that he is moving on from Samantha so fast and effortless and she doesn’t want to be a Samantha #2. But good ol supporting mother here tells her to just have fun. She likes him so that’s all there is too it. Seriously?! Mother of the year over here.

Nearly mid way through the book and they still haven’t gotten together yet. This makes me very happy. What doesn’t make me happy is when Charlotte tells Beau to get over Willow or that she’ll help him with her because she sees that he’s “falling for her”. I’d like to know when he’s had a chance to fall for her. In one of their few short conversations or when he’s been watching her for her appearance? It’s a shame. Given everything so far in this novel I was hoping the actual romance between them would be slightly more progressive, since their thoughts are not.

I will say this though. Now finished the book I reflect back on the whole thing. The second half of the books is definitely better than the first half. At this point the characters are more familiar to the reader and we’re into the plot. It’s what kept me going through the book and I’m happy I finished it. Again, the second half was immensely more entertaining than the first half and I found myself *wanting* to read on and not just reading to finish the book.

Ultimately the plot is good. It’s just the characters that need work in my opinion. I thought about DNFing it early on when a lot of the book’s qualities were nagging at me but in the end I wanted to see where the story would go exactly. I’m not sorry I finished it. I wasn’t bored through it and I can’t say I liked this book, but I enjoyed it. I’m glad I finished it. Again, plot wise for a novel, it’s good. The writing flows and there’s no grammar issues or anything and that’s a big thing for me; knowing how to write properly. And the killer... I’ll be honest; I didn’t see it coming. I had other suspicions but it wasn’t any of them. I don’t usually do mysteries, thrillers or anything related but I enjoyed this one and am happy that I am surprised with the outcome. Having one of my guesses be correct would be because it’s too obvious and that’s not good for a novel of this nature.

If the characters had more development to them than this could easily be a really good book. Which is why I’m giving this 3 stars. I debated 2, but ultimately the story kept me entertained enough to not stop reading so it definitely deserves a 3 for that. I can see all the hard work the author put into it.

Will I reread this again? For sure not. Would I read something by the author again? Perhaps if I found something interesting by her. I’d give her writing another shot. Would I recommend it to someone? Personally, probably not.

I volunteered to review this ARC. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher.

Wicked Charm by Amber Hart is supposed to be a young adult romantic thriller which would lead a reader to believe it would be heavy on the thrills and light on the romance. However, this one really seemed to focus mostly on the romance and add a bit of thriller on the side.

The story starts with the main character Willow Bell moving to the Okefenokee Swamp with her grandmother when she spies the neighbor boy and of course becomes infatuated with the cute boy. So in warning yes, this was a bit of insta-love even if Willow holds back from his charm for the first five minutes.

In the second chapter we switch the point of view to Beau Cadwell, Willow’s new neighbor and the other half of the insta-love in the book. Beau has been the love ’em and leave them type until Willow walks into his life and intrigues him. But just as Beau and Willow are meeting and beginning their relationship a dead girl turns up in the swamp, the very same girl that Beau just broke up with to pursue Willow.

Now as I mentioned this story focused more on Willow and Beau’s relationship than it did the murder mystery involved but for me this didn’t bother me as much as it might some readers. I actually rather enjoyed the unique setting of the swamp land and mixing in a bit of thrills here and there I was able to overlook the instalove and enjoy the story as it was.

As the story switches back and forth between Beau and Willow we are able to know just what is going on with both of them in their relationship and in the investigating. Each throw out their own suspects and want to find out who the killer is so there was just enough of the mystery to keep my interest even though it wasn’t the hardest to solve or given a lot of attention to. In the end I still enjoyed this story and would read more from the author in the future.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Amber Hart's Wicked Charm is set to the background of the Okefenokee Swamp on the Georgia/Florida Border. With its Southern Gothic vibe, it is a wonderfully creepy setting and the perfect place to write a story about a cat and mouse game between Beau Cadwell, Willow Bell, and a mysterious killer. The shocking part is that the killer is leaving behind girls who have had some sort of connection with Beau. Is Beau the killer? Will Willow be the next victim?

17-year old Willow Bell just recently moved in with her grandmother Old Lady Bell. She has warned Willow to stay away from Beau and the Cadwell's if she knows what's best for her. Beau is the bad boy who not only breaks every girl's hearts, but he is the wicked charmed one as well. One could say that there is an immediate attraction between Willow and Beau. Willow doesn't believe that Beau is inscrutable.

She believes that he has his redeeming moments. For Willow, Beau is that one thing that is bad for you, but you have to have it no matter what it might cost you because the thrill of the game is so exhilarating. Willow is a strong willed heroine who doesn't take gruff from anyone, let alone the hot bad-boy all the girls crave who lives right across the path from her.

"I think when you find the boy who makes you feel like you're wearing your skin backward, who turns you inside out and heats your blood and sets you on fire with want, it doesn't much matter."

Across the path from Willow lives Beau Cadwell, his sister Charlotte, and their grandfather Parker. After Beau and Willow grow closer, girls bodies are suddenly discovered deep in the swamp. Each of them has had a connection to Beau. Each of them had their hearts broken by Beau. Beau's connections to all the girls who end up dead is why everyone believes that Beau is the Wicked Charmed one who breaks almost all the girls hearts he goes out with. But, is Beau really capable of killing anyone, or is someone out for revenge?

A curious part of this story are the heads of the Bell and Cadwell families. They've had a running disagreement for years. It reminded me sort of the Hatfield's and the McCoy's, but without all the shooting, moonshine, and killing between families. Wicked Charm is a story that has more than its fair share of angst, suspense, and oh yes, romance. Plus, plenty of gators!

TW: suicide, death of loved ones

3.5 stars!

you always did say that the brightest light casts the darkest shadow.

I really struggled to rate this one. I really did enjoy it and I think it covered a really important topic well but I didn't quite get what I thought I was going to get. There were a few things that just really bothered me and that kept me from completely loving it.

About 60 to 70% of this book was about the budding relationship between Willow and Beau. I mean, that's fine and all but I thought I signed up for a murder mystery. Sure, there was that aspect but the romance completely overshadowed it. The POVs were from Willow and Beau. They often talked about what they felt for each other. It was nice at first but it started to get a bit old after a while. I also noticed that they talked like they were a lot older than what they were. Willow and Beau are seniors in high school but they talked like they were mature adults. That just kind of threw me.

However, I did like that this book covered grief very well. Grief is a raw and almost always an ugly thing. Grief changes you, almost down to a cellular level. This book really covered the topic well with Beau and Charlotte, his sister. They both carried a lot of pain with them and you really felt it. It's refreshing to see a YA novel talk about grief and bring it up in a way that doesn't sugarcoat it.

Some other positives were some POC rep. Jorie was black as well as her mom. Beau and Charlotte were half Filipino. There was also rep for poor people, which is something I can relate too. Pax, Beau's friend, was poor with his mom having been laid off.

Overall, I liked this book; I just didn't expect the romance to take up so much space and time. Had the book been marketed a tad differently, my rating would have been higher. Regardless, I still liked this book and will recommend it for those that are looking for a romance book with grief as the forefront topic.

I'd rather have my heart infected with love than live a day without it.

Wicked Charm was a pretty fast paced mystery, but there was also a big focus on romance. It somewhat took up more of the book than the actual murders did. It's told in alternating chapters by the two main characters, Willow and Beau.

Willow has recently moved in with her grandma in the swamp in Georgia. Beau lives next door with his grandpa and sister, Charlotte. Willow is warned by her grandma to stay away from Beau because he's wicked. Her grandma isn't a big fan of her neighbors and we find out why later in the book.

I liked Willow, but it was annoying that she was so obsessed with Beau right away. I get the pull of someone you are attracted to, but it almost seemed unhealthy. But she was a pretty fiece girl who wasn't afraid of much.

Beau was not my favorite person, though he did get better as the book went on. He was just so cocky and lied a lot. He was a player, but he had a reason to not get attached to anyone.

Charlotte was mean and closed off, but for the same reasons as Beau. I ended up really liking her and would have loved more of her story.

Jorie becomes Willow's best friend and their relationship was nice to read about throughout the book.

My favorite character ended up being Willow's grandma. She was protective, honest, and she swore a lot. Totally my kind of adult. She loved her granddaughter and definitely looked out for her.

The swamp was the perfect location for this story. It created a creepy atmosphere even before the bodies started showing up. I loved how descriptive the author was for this part of the story.

Bodies of girls start showing up in the swamp and each girl dated Beau in the past. Willow must decide if she can trust him and figure out who the killer is.

Spun with the forbidden sweetness of iced tea and the darkness of country nights, WICKED CHARM unfolds at a Southern pace a tale of two souls grown deep in the Georgia swamp as history, circumstance, and gruesome murders draw them together like a moth to a flame. Both wicked and charming this story is one that will seep into your skin like a Southern summer and stick like beads of sweat rolling down your neck.

There is a depth to this book and a certain peaceful charm that had me mesmerized from the very first sentence.
-pooled ink Reviews

I really enjoyed reading this fast-paced suspenseful and mysterious young adult novel that takes places in the swamps of Georgia. Hart writes in such a mysterious way that you will be drawn in from the first page and second guessing who the killer is until the last page. This novel is full of love, family, suspense, a dark mystery, a charming but mysterious neighbor, friendship, and romance. The perfect read that is sure to keep you up at night. Overall, I highly recommend this intriguing young adult novel that is sure to make you sleep with the lights on!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Reading the synopsis first of this book, I knew that it would focus on romance with mystery featured throughout. After starting the book and getting further into the chapters, it was focused to much on the Insta-Romance and not enough of the supposed mystery and suspense. The author did an amazing job at describing the scenery of location that the book took place, a swamp in Georgia. The descriptive writing could not save the unbelievable story of a teenage girls parents letting her go off on her own with a murderer on the loose, let alone with the number one murder suspect. Another problem that should have been dealt with earlier in the story is how the 'bad boy next door' went around hurting every girl he laid eyes on. The repeating of he hurts them, but never going into detail on what he did to them was quite annoying. One could assume what he did to break all those girls hearts, but it would have been better for the author to spell it out the second time it was mentioned. This book lacked the suspense and mystery that it promised, but I would read another book of the authors works for her descriptive writing.

The setting was my favorite thing about this book. The low review was due to a few issues. First, there were young girls being murdered and left dead in the swamp so why did the grown-ups still let their kids go into the swamp? Or why did the kids still want to go into the swamp after multiple dead bodies showing up? Second, the murders were left in the background of the story. I think it would have been a better read if they focused more on the murders and added some depth to the story. The romance was good but not enough to carry the book. The effort was there but just not enough to make the story flow. I received an ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Amber Hart did an amazing job on this YA mystery romance. Her narration and description of the swampland will pull you directly into the setting and make you feel like you are truly there with Willow and Beau. While the book did seem to center a little more around the romance than it did the mystery aspect it was still a wonderful read. I was kept guessing about the identity of the murderer through the whole book, but Amber did a great job of leaving little clues here and there without giving it away to quickly. I look forward to more by this author.

Wicked charm is a suspense, mysterious novel set in Okefenokee, Georgia alongside a boggy swamp. It's a little spooky, it's quirky and unique.

Willow Bell and her parents are moving in with her grandmother. She lives in a desolate area near a swamp. Their only neighbours are the Cadwell family. A disturbingly beautiful family with a wicked charm. Beau is Willows age and known for breaking hearts. Girls fall for his good lucks, but unfortunately, he gets bored easily. Willow isn't immune to Beau's charms, however, she has read the warning label. The Cadwell family are bad news but also hard to resist.

Beau takes an interest in Willow straight away. He wants to get to know her which is unusual for him. This is the classic story of wanting what you can't have but there is depth to their relationship. They both want similar things and Willow takes the time to get to know Beau.

Beau has a girlfriend when Willow comes to town adding to his bad boy edge, however, this doesn't impress Willow. He does what he does best and breaks Samantha's heart. Unfortunately, his ex-girlfriends start to turn up dead near the swamp, who are the suspects;

-Beau for obvious reasons
-His sister Charlotte is also a mysterious cold-hearted tough cookie
-His grandad also has a bad reputation
-Then there are all his ex-girlfriends, their families and friends
-His own friends
-Willow

Everyone might want to say date Beau but everyone also kind of hates him. He's had it too good for too long and someone thinks it's time he pays.

When I started reading this it reminded me of Beautiful Creatures, however, this mystery was like nothing I've read before and I was hooked on every page. I love the swamp setting and the suspense. My only niggle was the fact this book kept mentioning Beau's wicked side and I didn't really feel like we saw it.

4.5 stars out of 5. I would totally love to see a sequel to this story- Charlotte instalment.

This book is written from both Willow and Beau's point of view. Perfect Teen read. The two main characters are perfect for each other.

*ARC received. My review is fair and honest.

Firstly, I would like to thank netgally for letting me read this book,even though I would of bought it myself after reading just a few pages. I’m truly amazed how the author managed to fit all the pieces together,with romance,murder even vendettas!

I don’t think this book could have been written any better,every sentence just seemed to click. I felt connected to the characters in a way I can’t begin to explain. It was impossible to put this book down, I couldn’t bear not knowing who was the murderer was. It was a total shock to find out who it was, it had crossed my mind once,but I had shook my head thinking that was impossible!

I was incredibly pleased with this book and will be looking for both new and old books from this fantastic author.

This book makes me wish there were half stars because for me it falls in the 3.5 star range.

It was a pretty entertaining read. It’s fast-paced, with some amazing descriptions. The author is definitely able to transport you to the location of the swamps and make you feel like you’re right there between the gators and the bugs.

The story itself leans to romance but has a good though slightly predictable element of suspense. It reminds me a lot of the Point Horror book series, only with more mature voice. I didn’t mind the predictability because of the author’s dedication to details, but I do wish there was a little bit more of a twist.

"Wicked Charm" is a YA instalove romance with a hint of murder-mystery. Willow has moved to the swamps where her grandmother lives with her parents. She is immediately interested in the cute boy next door, even though her grandmother warns her away from him due to her history with his grandfather. Beau is the hot guy next door, who frequently dates and dumps the girls in town. He has a solid reputation as a player/heartbreaker, and he's running out of girls to date- until Willow is new to town. Suddenly, he is interested in changing his ways to win the heart of Willow.

As a side story, there are also teenaged girls ending up dead in the swamp, and all clues point to Beau (their former boyfriend) as the killer, although he maintains his innocence. He has an equally cold twin sister, Charlotte, who would be a heartbreaker, except that all the guys are too afraid to ask her out. They live with their grandfather (their parents are dead) on the swamp. Aside from Willow and Beau's grandparents' houses, there are no other residents for miles. The story alternates between Willow and Beau's points-of-view.

I was hoping for more suspense and mystery with the killer, but instead, we have teenagers wandering around the swamp willy-nilly and occasionally trying to think about who the killer is (their parents/grandparents seem more concerned with whom they date than the dangers of wandering about with a killer loose). It never seemed very suspenseful (in my opinion- but I will admit that I may have a higher threshold), and the killer becomes pretty clear about 70% of the way through (and then there were some plot holes around it that I found difficult to believe). Another big question I had was how on earth they kept finding these bodies so quickly when only two families live near the swamp and- it's a swamp, so the water is not really clear. Maybe this was just me, but I was a little skeptical about how it all played out.

As for the main genre, the romance was a little too easy in my opinion- Beau is just suddenly ready to change his ways and they both are instantly in love with each other, pretty much right away. However, if you can get past the how, the romance itself is pretty well done with a few intense kisses here and there. This was definitely the main focus of the book with everyone warning Willow away and her going for it anyway. Overall, I didn't really feel too invested in the relationship.

I think this book would be better for younger YA readers who are looking for romance with a hint of mystery. The writing flows pretty well (although sometimes when the characters talk, they spell out everything they are thinking- which can be awkward in phrasing, but would be helpful for younger readers) and it definitely hits the romance elements! Please note that I received an ARC from the publisher through netgalley. All opinions are my own.

So Wicked Charm, by Amber Hart, is a romantic suspense thriller for teens.

Well, there’s a little more emphasis on the romance than on the mystery, but I did enjoy our murder mystery and the author did a pretty good job at keeping that aspect suspenseful.

The atmosphere of the book is sultry Southern Gothic. And it does get extremely steamy without getting into sex. Honestly, at times it was slightly uncomfortable since you’re reading about two 17-year-olds. In a couple of years these teens would probably end up being the hottest, sexiest people on the planet. They don’t get graphic ever, but the sexual tension between them is pretty fiery.

I did figure out our murderer, but it wasn’t immediate. The author gave some great clues as to their identity, but I didn’t really pick up on it until later. Maybe I was blinded by the steam?

Solid romantic suspense. I loved the swamp, the characters, and the Southern Gothic atmosphere. And had our characters been adults, I wouldn’t have been nearly so uncomfortable.

Noteworthy experiences while reading this book: I thought I was getting a really interesting mystery/thriller but ended up getting a romance with steam.

Check out author's other books? Nope
Recommend this book? Prob. not

Notes and Opinions: This one just didn't work out for me at all. The story was just to far fetched (parents allowing their teen daughter to go out with a murder suspect to the swamp where bodies were found!). I wouldnt let my kids go anywhere a body had been found let alone with someone on the suspect list! This one was just a jumble of this and that and really seemed like it didn't know what it wanted to be. For me, the story was all over the place and just not realistic.

Go Into This One Knowing: More romance than mystery

This book was reviewed by Lauren

First of all the cover for this book is absolutely gorgeous, and based on the synopsis of the story I was so excited to give it a read.
My biggest disappoint with the book itself is that while the summary depicts a YA murder mystery type novel, this was more like a straight up teen romance book with a little murder thrown in.
Putting that aside, I loved how much care the author took into crafting the swamp setting of the book, and giving us that feeling of really being in the swamp along side the characters. I also really enjoyed how connected the main characters were to the nature around them and it felt at times as if the swamp really was it's own character.
There was a lot of fun, cute moments between the 2 main characters but also a few moments very worthy of an eye roll or two. Over all I ended up loving both Willow and Beau but mostly wanted more back story on their grandparents. TBH I would read an entire novel about their story.
I would recommend this read for teens looking to get into their first kind of murder mystery novels but who have read YA books with all the usual romantic troupes. I think older or more seasoned readers can fly through this pretty quickly and while enjoyable won't be anything mind blowing.
Over all I really did enjoy this read but there was a lot of room for improvement, a big thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC for this read.

Willow Bell has recently moved from Florida and is staying with her grandmother deep in the Okefenokee Swamp so her parents can study birds. One day Willow sees Beau Cadwell the sexy neighbor boy next door, their eyes lock, and she is instantly drawn to this mysterious boy. Willow's grandmother and everyone at school warn her that Beau will not only break her heart but also steal her soul with this wicked ways. Willow thinks there might be a softer side to Beau that nobody else sees and she is certain she can get him to open up to her. As their relationship intensifies, girls that have previously "dated" Beau start turning up dead and he is the primary suspect. Willow must decide if she can trust Beau's charming ways or if he has other reasons for getting close to her.
Wicked Charm is a romantic YA novel set in the Deep South with a hint of mystery/thriller...but mostly romance. The novel explores love and loss and opening yourself to others in order to truly live. Willow and Beau are trying to navigate a new relationship but of course it’s difficult when there girls being murdered and one of you might be the killer. I did think that the murders would be a bigger part of the story line but I still really enjoyed this novel none the less. Although sex is implied the novel keeps it very clean making this one appropriate for even the younger YA genre. If a sultry southern romance with serial killers, gators, and snakes is your glass of sweet tea then this novel is the perfect read for you.