Look at that quirky cover!
It looked like a fun and easy read. But meh! The main character was going to marry a guy he meet 2 weeks prior?? I mean NOPE.

Cosmo wants to just be your average human in the worst way. Disappointing most of his friends and definitely all of his family, he tries his best not to use the magic he has available to him in an attempt to lead a more ordinary life. Cosmo’s impetus for turning his back on his abilities is the man he cannot fathom has fallen for him, but whom Cosmo loves so very much, Police Commissioner John Galbraith. Then Cosmo discovers that John may have been influenced in a most devious way and that the love he professes to have for Cosmo could be nothing more than an illusion. With that painful possibility threatening to derail their upcoming nuptials, a murder landing in John’s precinct that has his fiancé as the key suspect is the last thing either Cosmo or John need. But the reality is that Cosmo was in the wrong place at the wrong time and not only discovered the body, but may be the murderer’s next victim.

Stepping outside her usual genre here, author Josh Lanyon delves into the fantasy world of witches and warlocks, with a dash of mystery on the side. Mainly by Moonlight is the beginning of a new series and so go in expecting that there are some loose threads left dangling in this fast-moving novel. With some great side characters and some unfinished business that could still spell danger for Cosmo, this story leaves more questions than it does answers, but that’s just fine for the important ones, such as whether John’s feelings for Cosmo are really genuine, do get revealed in the end.

What worked so well in this story was the idea that Cosmo never really deviated from his decision not to take the easy road that his magical abilities would have afforded him. Instead, he was willing to push that life aside in order to be with John, which made an early revelation about their mutual attraction so devastating for Cosmo and the reader. The author kept everyone guessing right up to the end and that made for a pearl-clutching kind of drama that blended seamlessly with the mystery element of who exactly killed Cosmo’s archenemy and was after Cosmo as well. Establishing this new world where magic was such a part of the fabric of daily life, but where humans were unaware of it being used, was done very well. We were introduced to key players in this paranormal world and the hierarchy of the magic wielding beings who inhabited it while being entertained by a cast of characters both human and magical that kept me invested in the story that unfolded.

I would say that this author’s first foray into the fantasy/paranormal genre was a rousing success. I am hooked and can’t wait for the next installment in this new series.

I love Lanyon's books for the most part, and I expected this one to knock it out of the park for me, but I couldn't quite get into it. Maybe it was just me, though. I enjoyed it enough that I'm interested in the next one.

(actual rating: 1.5/5)

I dreaded writing this review because I can’t say anything nice about it.

And while more often than not those reviews are way easier to write for me (rambling about stuff I dislike is easier than gushing without spoilering) I wasn’t excited to review Mainly by Moonlight. At all. Reading it was simply exhausting, taking notes on it felt more trouble than it was worth, and I honestly try to remember why I didn’t dnf.

I mean, seriously, why? Was I really holding onto some hope of it getting better in the end? Or was is more like a trainwreck and I simply couldn’t look away?

I was annoyed at the inconsistency in naming a character Andi/Andy. Tenses kept switching too. Hopefully that was corrected before publishing it.

But okay, if I liked the rest, I could’ve dealt with that. Since I didn’t… the annoyance just kept on coming. Not just because of the instalove and GETTING FUCKING MARRIED AFTER KNOWING EACH OTHER FOR TWO FUCKING WEEKS AND BELIEVING IT TO BE TRUE LOVE?!

This pairing, I swear. I didn’t like them on their own, I hated them together. There was no spark whatsoever. Maybe a spark of annoyance. Mostly at myself because I was really excited about this story and the potential I saw in it.

“Even if I was practicing”, you’re using your magic every few pages, Cosmo!

I’m still said about the potential not being met and I won’t be reading the next part. I can reread other queer witchy books that I actually enjoy.

Even though he hasn't practiced his magic in a couple of years Cosmo Saville is a powerful witch. Duc of Westlands and second behind his mother in the succession line to the Abracadantes craft tradition, Cosmo's just not that into all the traditions. It's easier for him to blend into the non-magic world if he doesn't use his magic for everyday tasks, and he's mostly successful with the exception of portal traveling--that's just plain practical magic, so he can avoid traffic and what-not. Cosmo owns an antique shop in San Francisco and he discovers a grisly murder of a competitor in his field--who'd revealed he'd found an ancient grimoire. Cosmos barely escapes the scene, but is definitely under suspicion.

He inadvertantly encounters Police Commissioner John Galbraith as they duel for the top bid on an antique bed with craft markings. John, an avowed non-believer in all magical arts, wants it as a whimsical gift for his younger half-sister Jinx, who fashions herself a "witch," though Cosmo can detect no craft within her. John is rather rude to Cosmo, and his friend thinks it a lark to put a love enchantment on them. Soon, they run into one another more and more frequently, and each time the tension is more of the sexual than avaricious kind. It's not long before they both fall head over heels, and that's when Cosmo learn the truth about the love spell--only John's already proposed and the wedding is mere weeks away. Cosmo hasn't even told John about his abilities in witchcraft--how can he possibly explain about the love spell?

Also, it seems that John's intervention is the only thing keeping Cosmo from being arrested for murder--so, will he throw Cosmo to the wolves if he thinks Cosmo enchanted him? For all the complicated twists, there's a lightness, and a hope to the story. Both Cosmo and John never thought they would fall in love, and yet their hearts and minds are so in tune. Their sexual chemistry is another kind of magic, though, and it's bound these men tighter than their impending marriage vows.

This is by turns taut and whimsical. The mystery is meant to develop over at least three stories, so we get some immediate resolution to Cosmo's current problems but new issues are on the horizon to keep the major plot arcs in motion. John's mother, to whom he is very close, is a bigoted, magic-hating woman, and her antics upset Cosmo and his mother. Cosmo's mother is unhappy about this marriage, because it means Cosmo is further distancing himself from the "craft" realm. Keeping all the magic antics from John's consciousness is difficult, and upsetting to Cosmo, especially when there's a witch seeking revenge casting spells at Cosmo. I like the storyline, and the characters. It's fun start to a series, with mismatched lovers who may just turn out to be star-crossed.

An enjoyable Josh Lanyon romp. Cosmo and his French family of Craft members (i.e. witches, not Wiccans or Neo-Pagans, those are other people and occasionally show up in the book) add a French flair to the magic use in this book. John was more uptight than I usually like in an SO and his political ambitions would have made him the kind of guy I'd run a hundred miles to avoid. However, I could see him and Cosmo together. In fact, Cosmo would be good for him. It's sad that Cosmo has to keep so much from John, but I see signs of there being something else going on with our dear police commissioner!

As for the mystery plot, the murder was solved far too facilely <spoiler>and, pretty obviously, erroneously</spoiler> for my taste. I want to find out who really did him in!

I really enjoyed this. It is quintessential Lanyon but different in a number of ways. There are elements of darkness that wind their way through the story. There are looming questions about the couple and whether they should be together, all of this mixed together with magic and humour. All these elements generate an underlying tension which runs through the story. Then there is the murder which is complicated by the supernatural nature of the story. All of these come together in a way that can only be described as deliciously perfect.

I wasn't sure about John. I think there is more to him than meets the eye. I wasn't sure about John and Cosmo marrying each other within two weeks of meeting each other! There were times when he and Cosmo felt like a couple on '90 Day Fiancé' and there were other times when they were echoes of Jake and Adrian. Both Jake and John were ass*****s at times and or 'alpha holes' and there are moments when I didn't like John because he is controlling, but this dislike was offset by the humour that also weaves through the story.

Although the story is humorous there is also a frisson of darkness and because of this I was on tenterhooks all the way through. This made for an exquisite reading experience because who wants a book that sends them to sleep? The magic is the icing on the cake. I loved this. I am a great fan of urban fantasy and this manages to weave magic and supernatural aspects into the story without diminishing the mystery or the romance.

This is a perfect story. It is one of those stories that I will need to read all over again and then buy the audiobook and listen to it and then demand the manga! I also really enjoyed the length. The story is just perfect, not too long and not too short, just the right size for the right kind of story.

With this new trilogy Josh Lanyon has really perfected her craft and I can't wait to read the rest. More please!

Copy provided by Just Joshin Publications via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

I mostly enjoyed this. I liked the world Lanyon created, the characters, and the mystery plot. But I never felt the spark of the romance at all. I know the author tried to address how the two could meet, fall in love, buy a (and decorate) house, and plan a wedding (including planting a special made garden) in two weeks. But I couldn't buy it. And that wasn't the only thing. Several other things didn't hold together for me. There's a pretty big reveal at one point that I simply can't believe that Cosmo didn't see coming, for example. For all that, if I suspended my disbelief far enough I found it a cute little read.

How to put this... it's not that the book is badly written, but when I pick up a romance novel, I expect a happy ending, and when I pick up a mystery novel, I expect to have the culprit in custody by the final page. By proper genre constraints, this is only about half of a book, and it's annoying! I don't read a romance so that I can hit the "no more pages" notification with the hero still not having come clean to his husband that they hooked up because of a love spell! I'm fairly confident I can tell how all this is going to wrap up (putting my money on "the murderer is the cult leader lady" and "John is actually immune to magic and was never affected by the love spell to begin with") but I should not have to guess. I enjoyed the worldbuilding (and all the French), and while I'm side-eyeing the idea of marrying someone you've been dating for two weeks even *without* the love spell component, I did feel convinced by the chemistry between Cosmo and John. Not sure if I'll invest my time in reading the sequel.

Complimentary copy provided in exchange for an honest review.

This was adorable!! Not nearly as serious and dark as JLs other stories, and I had the best time reading. I need to do a re-read once the entire series is out. I was so nervous reading because I didn't know what would happen and I was kinda scared they wouldn't end up together at the end of book 1. This is a continuous series and I read the blurb for book 2 and yeesh, it sounds drama filled relationship wise.

The snark and banter between the MCs isn't as high as previous series, and their relationship was mostly strained and I wasn't sure why JL decided not to give us their relationship development on page in real time. It did bother me and at the same time it did add to the tension because we as the reader don't know what brought them together so it added to my suspense and nail biting.

I give this 3.5 to 3.75 stars. Re-reads will likely bump that up, especially once I get the audios, one day. 😁 And I bought the ebook anyway so whispersync!!

Different from Josh Lanyon’s usual. While not without its setbacks, it was still an entertaining ride!

Cosmo Saville hides his witch pedigree from his soon-to-be husband, police commissioner John Galbraith. It’s been fairly easy so far, but then they’ve only known each other for a whole two weeks.

However, when a murder and series of mishaps occur right before the wedding, Cosmo and John’s whirlwind fairytale comes crashing down.

I’ll acknowledge the elephant in the room right up front - the two week romance. With very dubious beginnings.

Yes, it was quite ridiculous. Even more so when the truth is revealed. It’s not even entirely clear whether John and Cosmo will be able to pull through until right near the end of the book.

Also, Cosmo’s a bit of a mess. Inconsistent, somewhat neurotic, and seemingly with his head in the clouds.

John, in comparison, is a no-nonsense, gruff, and fairly cantankerous man. But he has a soft side when it comes to Cosmo. He knows something’s off with Cosmo, but he’ll deal.

And yet despite the red flags, I was charmed. Because while ‘Mainly by Moonlight’ is insta-love on steroids, Cosmo and John were just fun.

Plus, the two seem well aware of the limitations - the ones not related to magic - of their relationship. So while they might be fools, they at least know what they’re getting into - for the most part.

A host of secondary characters and Cosmo’s magical background play a central role in the plot. There are magic-wielding French aristocrats, sacred lost objects, backstabbing and intrigue, and near-death experiences.

I was entertained! While the world-building definitely needs more fleshing out, book 1 does a good job at establishing the witchcraft world that Cosmo’s a part of.

There’s clearly more that still needs to be revealed about how all the different pieces fit together, and I’m looking forward to it.

Book 1 ends on uncertain ground. Cosmo and John still have a long road ahead of them, and the secrets of the world of witchcraft are brewing.

I’ve got more questions than answers, and I’m looking forward to the sequel!

DNF. I love Her books but this one I just couldn’t get into. I did not like the characters and just couldn’t connect with them.

Josh Lanyon… I’m a F-A-N! I’m just not sure I’m a fan of her paranormal books. I’m not saying they are bad… they’re just not what I’m looking for when I pick up a book by Ms. Lanyon.

I want a contemporary mystery. I want comedy. I want passion…

Mainly by Moonlight did have a couple, but I wasn’t sure I felt the chemistry. Maybe that was the plan. Maybe it was supposed to feel unsure, in which case great job! I just missed their need for each other, like other books by the same author.

Still, I will read the rest of the series. They are still by Josh Lanyon. And, I'm a fan.

I received a copy of Mainly by Moonlight from Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

And with this one I’m happy that the review shouldn’t be biased, because I have really mixed feelings. I *really* wanted to like this story, but after reading this I was astonished to find that the author has published 50+ books. This honestly felt like a first novel to me. I do understand that this was supposed to be lighter fare than many M/M Paranormal romances, but, honestly, the quality of the writing didn’t even match that standard, even with the “Bewitched” references. This barely made three stars for me – writing (overall): 2, characterization: 2.5, plot: 1, dialogue: 3, magic: 3; so 2.3 plus an additional point added after the average because while the bad was bad, the good was very good.

The good:
Pye. Paws down, one of the best characters in the book. Though I would have liked to have had a scene with him raiding John’s bar. If we’re going to have him going full-Behemoth from The Master and Margarita, I want Pyewacket to have a shot glass and a cigar.

Magic. Because magic is so open-ended in most fantasy systems, it needs a lot of world-building to sustain it. While most of Lanyon’s magic is run-of-the-mill, she has some exceptional moments – a forgetting spell on a building, kiddie-sized portals, and Pye (see above.) She is able to do this because she’s invested some effort in world-building. The magical K-12 is more like Catholic School for mages vs. Hogwort’s, the different systems / orders, and let’s not forget the piano…

John. While most of the characters in the book are static, and some of the bit-players are ludicrously one-dimensional, John was continually a surprise – I just wanted the plot to go further to support this.

Sex. While not as white-hot as other authors’ scenes, the sex actually played an excellent role in characterization. And I’m always appreciative of writers who know what their audiences want to read in this regard. The one M/M romance I’ve encountered that did “fade outs” drove me crazy, and it’s also perfectly acceptable to have more than one sex scene per novel, thank you.

The bad:
Plot. The short timeline (even with a love spell) is horrendous. Two weeks to fall in love, accomplish home-buying and multiple moves, AND what is apparently a really spectacular wedding? Sorry, I don’t buy it. Add in plot holes, deus ex-machina (yes, it’s possible to accomplish this even in a magical universe) in both the investigation and Ciara, and a lot of situations that seem like they’re going to branch out but never do (Cos doesn’t even come out of the broom-closet to John after their marriage?), and you’ve got me very disappointed. The only reason I’ll be reading the second one is because I *do* want to see what happens when John discovers the full truth. And, please, can we get a gay character for once who doesn’t keep making up stories in their heads about their S.O.’s reactions or motivations because they’re assuming the worst? So many of us do this in our own lives. We don’t need to have our main characters doing it, too.

The doggerel. Cosmo’s internal monologue and witty responses are the main reasons dialogue gets a three (with John’s sleepy responses to Cos’s spellcasting cementing it.) However, the doggerel that passes for spellcasting is really fucking annoying. I realize that this was probably another thing modeled from Bewitched, but it’s an example of something that works in t.v. / movies that doesn’t translate into another medium. I’d have much preferred most everything being in Latin or Gaelic instead.

The countless mentions of antiques (without much accompanying description for those of us not-antiquers.) For the most part, this was a violation of show-don’t-tell that came across as name-dropping. There weren’t a ton of physical details in the lists, and while I fully understood that Cos is running an antiques business, if you’re going to specifically write for antiquers, for the love of the Goddess, warn the rest of us!

French. The French have a reputation for expecting everyone to know their language and ignoring / not responding to foreigners attempting to speak it anything less than perfectly. Authors who perpetuate this in stories written in English, no matter how well the get their meaning across in the subsequent dialogue, are a pet peeve of mine. I get that Cosmo’s family is French, so some of the language usage and customs are great for the point of characterization, but stop beating those of us who don’t know it about the head and shoulders with our own ignorance.

This was a cute, quick read.
My main issue has to do with just part of the premise. A witch is murdered, and it feels like the mystery behind it is never really addressed? Also it is really hard to root for a relationship when you find out they're engaged after being together for only two weeks. Especially when the relationship does not feel sturdy at all, though that might change in later books. I skipped the more sexual scenes, so there are like 10 pages or so I have no real opinion on.

I noticed an error with character names, Andi gets called Andy a LOT. Like not just a few times, like the names are confused multiple times in one chapter. There is also a character that goes by they/them pronouns, which is fine except given the confusion with names I'm lost as to whether they actually use those pronouns or the author forgot to change it in editing when they had less of an idea about the character.

Cute fun read, I'll probably get around to reading the sequel at some point.

This wasn't what I was expecting. I wanted a M/M gay fantastical romance. What I got was a lackluster police thriller. Unfortunately police dramas usually don't work for me and this was really no exception. I had trouble keeping all the characters straight even though I was taking notes, and then I really wasn't invested in the story as a whole.

Is it a hasty marriage or is it true love?

I seriously enjoyed the author's foray into the paranormal. The great characters, murder mystery (where one groom is the main suspect), and magic made this a very enjoyable read. I'm already looking forward to reading more in this series.

First book I read by this author and won't surely be the last.
It's well written, engrossing and entertaining.
I liked the characters and the setting.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Mainly by Moonlight is the sweet story of Cosmo Saville, an antiques dealer with a bit of a secret, and Police Commissioner John Galbraith. Meeting and quickly falling in love before the story begins, we meet the couple shortly before their wedding. As the big day approaches, things start to get weird, and increasingly dangerous. Cosmo finds himself suspected of murder and John begins to doubt what he knows of his groom to be. Cute, full of action and mystery and just a bit zany, Mainly by Moonlight is a enjoyable quick read

A San Francisco Police Comissioner with a Scottish surname? CHECK. Coupled with a young sexy creature considerably younger than him? CHECK. Murder, mystery and mayhem ensue as they get involved in solving crimes? Yup, another CHECK. Oh, and the young fiance practices The Craft (Witch, that is) occasionally and has a family of quirky crafty characters. I quickly got a "McMillan & Wife / Bewitched" vibe from this tale, and had to laugh when reading Josh's authors note: "I wanted to write something perhaps a little light and more romantic than I typically do - a cozy, sexy mystery with, er, witches - sort of like "Bewitched" meets "McMillan and Wife" meets Josh Lanyon."

Kudos to Lanyon for the seamless world-building that quickly draws us into the realm of witchcraft, with Cosmo Saville being the heir to the esteemed Abracadantes line. After a positively whirlwind romance (fueled by a love spell, unknown to Cosmo), Cosmo finds himself 2 days away from his wedding, embroiled in a magic-related murder mystery and desperately hoping that his fiance John will come to love him on his own. John is way too lightly-fleshed out here, and I'm hoping we get more in-depth character development in the next book in the series as we only get Cosmo's POV throughout. There is an odd-sort of chemistry between the two but we know so little of their background together that it is hard to become invested at this point in their romance.

The book needs another round of editing as there are many mangled sentences, and I must admit that the whole murder/mystery part of this book leaves me a bit ... uninterested, but there was enough of a spark with this unlikely romance, and tantalizing hints that John Galbraith's Scottish heritage may hold some surprises, that I am willing to read the next book in the series "I Buried a Witch," very appropriately releasing on Halloween, 2019. 3.5 stars.