What a fascinating book. I was impressed by the storyline and the characters were all well written and complex. Where there are complex storylines combined with intriguing characters the reader experience is magnified tremendously. To have a book that is well written as well as entertaining is a delight. Reading is about escaping your world and entering another one. Here I forgot about my own life and was immersed in the world created by the author. I would recommend this book.

DNF at 47%.

I really liked the second book in this series and so when I saw this book available for review I jumped at the chance, unfortunately the heroine, Chandler, never really grabbed my attention and her love interest, the human journalist Lionel Parker (who of course turns out to be a special snowflake after all) just came across as a bit wet.

Chandler had a one-night stand with one of the scions of the High Council's son which resulted in her son Peregrine, her son's father refused to speak to Chandler when she tried to tell him she was pregnant and almost immediately made a dynastic marriage. Peregrine is showing signs of having a dangerous magical talent, the ability to see through faerie glamour, something he inherited from his father and a 'gift' that has led to many witches being killed by the fae.

Chandler's former fellow coven witch placed a curse on Lionel which allows him to see fae, or so they think but when the coven try to lift the spell they discover a shocking secret about Lionel's past.

Oh, and there's also a plot involving Peregrine's half-brother Aidan who is in a coma and the coven believe that they can restore him to health. Even writing all of this I want to know how it all pans out - but I don't want to read any more of this book, I just don't feel engaged by Chandler and Lionel at all. So at 47% I feel I've given it a good shot and I'm giving up.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Title: Entangled Secrets
Author: Pat Esden
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 3 out of 5

The Northern Circle coven’s future is in question once again. But this time, hearts and souls are on the line, making the stakes higher, the magic more crucial, and the battle more fateful than ever before . . .

Pregnant and alone at twenty-one, Chandler Parrish sought refuge within the Northern Circle coven’s secluded complex. Never revealing the identity of her child’s father, Chandler has raised her now eight-year-old son, Peregrine, in peace, and used her talent as an artist and welder to become a renowned metal sculptor. But her world is shaken to the core when Peregrine shows signs of natural faerie sight—a rare and dangerous gift to see through faerie glamour and disguises that could only have come from his father’s genes. Worse yet, the boy has seen a monstrous faerie creature trailing Lionel Parker, a magic-obsessed journalist determined to expose the witching world.

But the very man who threatens the witches’ anonymity may also be key to healing Chandler’s long broken heart. As dangerous desires and shocking secrets entangle, new faerie threats and demonic foes close in on the coven and High Council. Loyalties will be tested. Fierce magics will be called upon. And Chandler will have to face her past to save all she holds dear: her coven, her child—and perhaps even her own soul.

This is the first book of the Northern Circle Coven series I’ve read…and probably the last. I loved the parts talking about the metal sculpting, because I find that fascinating, but the rest of this was just “meh” for me. I’m not a fan of insta-love, and that’s exactly what this felt like to me. This is probably a case of the book just not being a good fit for me, not an actual problem with the book, but I didn’t really care for this. I’ve gotten away from reading paranormal romances like this, so I probably should have skipped this for that reason alone.

Pat Esden lives in Northern Vermont. Entangled Secrets is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Kensington Books in exchange for an honest review.)

It's the first book I read in this series and won't surely be the last as I liked the characters and the world building.
Even if it's the 3rd in this series it can be read as a stand alone.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

This is a new to me author. And I'm starting at the 3rd book in this series instead of the 1st. However, it was easy to jump into this world. Rich world building makes this an excellent entry. I really enjoyed this book and will go back and read the 1st two books in this series.

It is relatively rare to find mothers looking out for their children within urban fantasy, so I was immediately attracted by this dynamic and was delighted to be able to get hold of this one. Which was when I discovered it was the third book in the series… However, while I’m sure that if I’d gone back to the beginning and read these books in the correct order, I would have benefitted from a deeper, richer knowledge of the characters and the ongoing dynamic, Esden has made it possible to crash into this series without readers unduly struggling.

I quickly bonded with gutsy Chandler, who makes things out of metal and is fiercely protective of her young son. There is a strong backstory which has the Northern Circle coven still reeling from the aftereffects and adds to the tension when apparently another threat turns up, perhaps related to the previous trouble.

Overall, this was an entertaining and smooth read with plenty going on, a nice magical system and sympathetic characters. The romantic thread had a bit of heat, but it wasn’t too steamy – while the climactic denouement worked well. I enjoyed the resolution and recommend this urban fantasy adventure to those who enjoy stories involving witchcraft. Though I’d advise you begin with the first book, His Dark Magic. While I obtained an arc of Entangled Secrets from the publishers via Netgalley, the opinions I have expressed are unbiased and my own.
8/10

Ms. Esden is a new to me writer. The back blurb looked very exciting which led me to request this book for which I'm grateful. Of course I did not realize that I was starting at Book 3 in the series which is a bit disconcerting but for the most part I did not miss having started in the middle of the story.
Chandler Parrish is a fabulous protagonist and her cast of supporting characters are superb. I absolutely adored her relationship and dialog with her son Peregrine who is emerging as a strong witch with talents she wished he did not have but will do all she can to nurture and protect. Lionel is a reporter who has drawn public attention to their coven which needs to be neutralized but when Chandler and Lionel meet and he leaves her a sand sculpture starts a melting in Chandler that is slowly nourished and coaxed to flame as the story is told.
There's enough evil and surprises with a lot of adventure and curved balls to keep a reader busy and connected in the unfolding story. This is my first book by the author and definitely not my last. I look forward to seeing and hearing more about the Northern Circle Witches and other supernatural beings.

So so....

There is a great cast of characters in this story. I didn’t realize this was the third in a series and felt like I was missing a lot of the background.

I voluntarily read an advanced copy.

Thank you to Lyrical Press (Kensington Books) and NetGalley for the e-ARC to read and review!

I liked this book more than I thought I would and was pleasantly surprised while reading. I hadn't read the previous two books but I was able to understand the world, the witches, the magic, and all else the author imagined with no problem.

What drew me to requesting this title was that it involved witches in a primary role, something I've been looking for in books for a while. But I also loved all the other magical beings involved too, like the fae.

I liked Chandler's character. She is a strong mama dragon who will protect her baby boy, Peregrine (who is just the cutest!), at all costs. It's so cool how she creates artistic pieces with metal and magic. Her romance with Lionel is very slow and sweet and satisfying. They mesh well together and have a lot in common, like artsy stuff.

The first half of the book was a bit slow but good as they all tried to figure out the best course of action for their coven's well-being and more. The second half was part heist-like events part action and chaos. It was super tensed but I loved every bit of it. Very enthralling.

I did not expect all of those plot twists oh my goodness! Wow! And it all came full ci

I had not read the previous books in this series and yet was able to enjoy this book which seems to be a sort of final one in the present series. Will definitely look up this author to check her other books and will add her name to my go to authors.

I have been rabidly curious about the tattooed welder & artist we met in the first book of this series (and whose metal flying monkey creations were turned against her!) And because I'm a nosy busybuddy, I also wanted to know why she was a single parent, and who the father of her son, Peregrine, was.

We got all the answers in this book, as well as a look into Chandler's backstory as an adopted child, her wild younger years, and her affinity with fire & her patron spirit the Fire Salamander. As politics and magic come to a head in the community of witches and their High Council in New England, with possible demon and fae involvement, we get to see both couples from the the first two books as well as Chandler and a new love interest go into action to both help a young sick child as well as come into their own powers as a coven.

Esden loves to create situations for her characters where their worst fear comes to pass: and in this one she puts Chandler through a mother's wringer of pain. Peregrine may be the key to helping save another child's life, but allowing him to take part in a super secret ritual may put him in the worst kind of danger. She is forced to confront long-held secrets and her own fear of losing her child.

And as always in an Esden book, there's a creative, playful and loving relationship between the two love interests. There was a lot packed into the book, but I felt the male lead didn't quite get enough camera time leading up to quite a steamy scene with him and Chandler. It left me not as invested as I usually am. But I love the choices Chandler made to risk herself with a relationship even while dire events in the witching world meant she might have her love torn away.

Also per the usual in this series, there's a lot of focus on the everyday rituals, the ingredients, the timing, the flavors and smells, and the phrases invoked. It gives the action a homey, sense-of-place firmly rooted in the Vermont locale with a touch of spirits, fae intrigue, and Merlin lore.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3287820299