There's nothing wrong with this book, I just couldn't get into it.

The story starts with Slate, a young thief, receiving a letter letting him know that he's part of a traditional family from a French village obsessed with witchcraft. He visits the place he was born and ends up stealing a ring from a corpse at the cemetery, and it gets stuck on his finger. The ring has a bloodstone that holds black magic, and Slate needs Cadence, another main character, to help him retrieve the elements that will unlink him from the stone.

I didn't get attached to the characters but I can't pinpoint why exactly. The writing was good, but the adventure aspect of it didn't succeed in grabbing my attention.

I got "Of wicked blood" from netgalley for an honest review.

The book is interesting, and started good. But the story got boring for me. The romance between two characters went too easy, I like it more difficult like more enemies to lover.

In general the story is okay entertaining, and some will love this story but it wasn't for me. I just found it a bit too weak, and couldn't keep my interest.

This is an amazing first novel in what I hope will continue into an amazing series.

Full of dark academia, folklore, magic and suspense, this tells the tale of a group thrown together and tasked with working as a team to complete a ritual that has a history of killing and crippling those who had tried in the past. The story is told in dual perspective, which just adds to the ability to connect with the two main characters. There is a super slow burn romance involved too, which is full of angst and longing; as well as highlighting the unique coming of age of a young woman under the strict scrutiny of her father. The ending of this one just left me wanting more.

This is a definite must-read for fans of urban fantasy and dark academia. I will definitely be adding this one to my shelves!

Thank you to NetGalley and Twig Publishing for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest review.

3.5*** I was given an advanced reader copy by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a good read and would be a particular thrill for a teenage and young adult audience.

The book is set in a picture perfect, quaint, Harry Potter-esque town. It is described really well and the concept that there used to be magic there is again very believable. The four elements/magic idea is good and the challenges the characters go through are also well thought out.

The main characters Slate and Cadence are likeable. Slate in particular has real character development and an interesting back story that is touched on throughout the book. Cadence is a little bit immature as a character, going from loving someone, getting fed some information so hating them, then deciding she loves them again when they kiss etc. It's that teenage romance novel type character/situation which does at times have you saying "what are you doing Cadence you idiot" at the book.

The father-daughter relationship is quite creepy in my opinion and I do think that the father character could be more developed e.g threading in some of his shiftiness earlier throughout the book. It would have been really interesting to find out more about him as he seemed like a character who had evil intentions at heart.

The ending was nice but was a bit flat. It seemed like it was really building up and then suddenly.... *SPOILER ALERT*

...... it's a happy ending and the curse has been broken somehow. What about the dodgy father? There is no way any rational human being wouldn't share that information. What about the dodgy mayor and blackmailing plot?

All in all, an enjoyable read that at times I couldn't put down.

This was a fun one. Life threatening magic, small town mystery, secret societies, and witty characters combine to form an unexpectedly addictive story. So much so that I actually finished this novel in one sitting. Truly, a book I could not put down.
I loved the plot and concept. It was unique, and dealt with a kind of magic that I had never really seen before. However, the real appeal to this novel is the characters.
I pretty much adored every character in Of Wicked Blood, even the ones you’re supposed to hate. There were a couple side characters that felt one dimensional, but that was perhaps because they did not appear often enough for me to really get a sense of them. My favourite is Slate, and I loved his back and forth with Cadence. It was a little “love at first sight” in terms of how quickly they developed feelings for one another, which is not to my taste, but otherwise it was very entertaining.
Other than that, my only major problem with the book came at the end. In the last 25% of the story there is a short scene that involves a confrontation between Slate and another character regarding an overarching mystery that did not find a conclusion in this novel. This book is the first in a series, so continuous narrative threads are to be expected. The issue is that this scene is not complete. There is a teaser dialogue line that casts suspicion on an already suspicious character, and then the rest of the conversation occurs off page. Since this scene doesn’t really add anything to the events of this novel, or the progression of said overarching mystery, all it becomes is a lame and unnecessary lead-in to the sequel book. It wasn’t enough to spoil Of Wicked Blood, but it did leave a sour aftertaste to an otherwise wonderful read.

Thank you to Twig Publishing and Netgalley for providing me with ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Full five stars and then some!!!
If anyone was watching me while reading this book, im sure would've taking me for a nutjob😄😄😄
So many times i laughed out loud on the splendid humor that was absolutely my type plus the absurd,comical, but at the same time dangerous situations that Slate put himself, made me completely forgot my surroundings.
I loved the world building ,wich was told in the perfect way - not like the most that you feel like ticking marks of a list that has to be done, but instead,  got sucked right in and you realize how rich it is and how much you learned about it when you caught yourself like living in it and swinging your emotions every step of the way!
Every character had depth and history that couldn't leave you impartial.
I have to admit i was having extra fun with Slate's character, given that his humor,the swearing and his cynicism was so like me that cracked me up every single time😄
For a strange reason i got the Lucifer Tv show vibe and could purely see in my head Slate saying with his charm "But detective" 😄😄😄
And can relate the other characters too
Cadence as Chloe
Adrien as detective Duche
Bastian as Amenadiel
and Alma as sweet Ella😄😄😄
The Quatrefoil crew was absolutely spot on and the combination of all the characters gave an amazing and so colorful adventure that make you laugh and cry in a matter of few pages.
So happy i got the opportunity to read this and it takes a top plase in my favorites!
After the final i have a lot of questions, that i cant wait to tackle and see what mess they got themselves into in the next book!

Oh i almost forgot - i absolutely LOVED the surprise in the final and the screensots of the back and forth conversations between the autors ,it was just hilarious and touching that they let us peek in behind the curtain of their work.

Quick, yet intense read, I love the duality of the characters. Coming from different life/ backgrounds make this book interesting and dramatic. I hope you love it as much as myself and those I've made to read it.

I received a copy through NetGalley for review.

So initially this started out well.
Boy who spends his life in the foster system, digs himself out using unconventional means, gets letter informing him his family, invited attendance to school the family helped found and subsequent inheritance. I like Slate as a character.

Slate goes to Brume, a tiny town where the College is located- supposedly was once the center for magic in the world. Full of fantasy history linking back to King Arthur and Merlin. He quickly finds himself cursed, and on a time table to reassemble the things that will bring magic back. Everyone must complete their task or risk dying in the process in only two weeks time.

I liked the premise, it started out good, but I found the romance between the two MC's not really believable. I had a hard time getting though this. It was not a satisfying read for me. Maybe it was the short timeline.
And I really like stuff that centers around arthurian legends.

𝕆𝕗 𝕎𝕚𝕔𝕜𝕖𝕕 𝔹𝕝𝕠𝕠𝕕 had a solid, interesting, slow-burn plot that was, at times, too detailed with fictional names and locations.

This book was SO interesting. The mythology/history of Merlin and the attached fictional town were so unique. The cursed artifacts and lore were magical. It was very exciting and kept my attention. BUT at times it was almost toooo much going on (but at a slow pace) and it was hard to keep track of names and places. It's a conundrum because I really liked this book but was almost...bored...reading it?

And the romance was kind of a love triangle ( which I HATE) but not really a love triangle. It was slooooow burn. It started out as a hate, to loathe, to starting to understand, to feelings. We still have a ways to go in the relationship development.

I bet this will be a 5 star series when all the books are out. It's hard to rate a book when you KNOW it's about the whole series, not the individual stories. So for now, 4 stars with the expectation that it will be a 5 star series.

🌸 ARC provided to me in exchange for an honest review. 🌸

I received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review.

First, yes this is the first in a series, so you have been warned....because you are likely to feel super upset like I was at the end because I DO NOT WANT TO WAIT! Give me more!!!!!! RIGHT NOW!

I really enjoyed this novel with the chapters going back and forth between our resident bad boy point of view, Slate, and are resident diligent good girl, Candace. This was a fantastic novel of rediscovering the possibility of magic in a tiny French town, however, not really being fully aware of the consequences...you know, until we have already jumped into it! This was a fun and thrilling novel to read as our group fight through the possibility of bringing magic back to our world.

And I hate it because I want the next one RIGHT NOW! Bravo ladies, I have never read any novels by either of the authors and now I am definitely going to try to dive into some of their others. As I wait impatiently for this NEXT one!!!!

Monsters, magic and cursed objects in a modern day France, set in a quaint town filled with legends that "looks like something out of a Grimm's fairy tale". What's not to absolutely want to read about?

Discovering a connection he has, Slate Ardoin goes to Brume where he swipes a cursed ring that won't come off, won't let him leave town and may kill him. The only way to get it off is to find 4 cursed objects and restore the contained magic.

So many characters that you will adore, it didn't take long for the protagonists to leap off the page and into my heart. Slate is a cynical, stubborn to a fault, entertainingly snarky thief with so much hurt under the surface, and he absolutely makes me smile. Cadence is the 'stronger than she looks' vulnerable type, an unexpectedly ferocious kind of brave, choosing the pain dealt to her by life to be a reason for kindness. With an educated sort of intelligence in antithesis with Slate's street smarts. The mostly sexy tension between the protagonists is all the money.

Vibrant descriptions that build the world quite delightfully and spark your imagination as to the inner workings of the characters and the course of the story. Descriptions so powerful they are embedded in your thoughts, making you feel so much. The authors' attention to the most interesting of details is admirable. The POVs are expertly interwoven, never hindering the flow of the narrative, but still having a distinct voice for its character. The intricate mythology is well thought out, artfully explained & quite intriguing.

Can a book have a cheery disposition? This one did. Not that it didn't have its drama. Its deeply emotional or heart-pounding or action filled or cool magicky parts. And let us not forget some of the characters' remarks or thoughts that make you laugh out loud. The authors obviously have a wicked (pun intended) sense of humor.

Unpredictable to the very end, this book was amazing fun and I loved it. Cannot wait till the next one.

Aaah I loved this book so much ! Fantasies, especially chronicles can be a little challenging from me, and I had forgotten a little it was on my Netgalley TBR. Still, I was in a binge reading phase last month and ended up picking it up, if only to be rid of it.

How could I have been so wrong about this ? I loved EVERYTHING about it. Well almost.

We get introduced to a magic system that really takes you in, based around a mysterious cursed that has befallen the town. I loved how a team had to be assembled, each associated to one particular aspect of magic, in order to bring it back. I loved the characters. I loved Brume and its whole vibe. If you didn't understand : I loved a lot about this book.

The plot is entertaining : after Slate, a mysterious boy who was summoned in the quaint town of Brume, robs the wrong grave, he becomes involved in a magic curse. Either he teams up with descendants of the city council who share magical genes, and manages to bring back all the artifacts necessary to have magic back in Brume in the alloted time, or he dies.

A race against time and personal demons start, which can only end one way or another.

The plot requires a team of characters. I love to have that in a book. A strongly written group of characters who need to bond and help each other out to achieve a difficult task is one of my favorite tropes. Here, the authors managed to bring the team to life with great details and beautiful relationships, and that's a huge part of how much I will enjoy a book.

The writing style was a litte bit heavy from time to time, especially with all the french words dispersed here and there in the text. I'm not a big fan of having foreign words in a book, but as a French person, it made me feel strange to read a book in english with french in it. It felt somewhat artificial. Some sentences were also weirdly written, overly long or featuring odd phrases. Still, that was not enough to phase me and keep me from absolutely loving the book !

I'm glad I read a fantasy that had such a well-written plot, and such lovable characters. I can recommend it with my eyes closed, to anyone who enjoys magic and fantasy in general !

Wildenstein did not disappoint. This book, it blew me away! The world building, the energy, the intensity. I had to take a break eventually, but didn't want to leave the words because I absolutely HAD to know what came next. Great job!

Thank you to NetGalley and Twig Publishing for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Of Wicked Blood offers an urban fantasy which is perfect for fans of the genre though it can be tropey and predictable. The pacing is off at first and It takes a few chapters for the action to truly set in. The sarcasm and 'banter' between the main characters seem forced and the chemistry is definitely more of a tell rather than a show.

The authors have created an intinguing world and Brume, as a setting, is enjoyable and a great depiction of small town fantasy. This, coupled with the fun adventures throughout the book, should have provided a five star fantasy, yet it is largely let down by the characters (although some minor characters do show promise for book2) and the pacing. As a result, Of Wicked Blood is a forgettable piece which offers nothing new to the genre.

I really enjoyed reading this book. There was something nostalgic for me about reading about a protagonist with a secret magical heritage who ends up on a dangerous magical quest, and this seemed to be a more adult version of some of my childhood favorites. I found the plot interesting and intriguing, and there were plenty of moments of action, mystery solving, romance, and family drama. This book had the right stakes and the right amount of surprising reveals to keep me interested. I also loved the voice of each character, particularly our protagonists Slade and Cadence, whose POV we alternate between. I liked the fit of Slade's slightly jaded, very sarcastic manner with Cadence's sweet but fierce and intelligent demeanor. I liked the romance elements of the story as well as the general plot (and the many secret revelations). I will say, while not done in a too over the top way, Cadence is basically described as one of those female protagonists who is sweet and innocent but also really sexy that many guys seem attracted to, and that's not my favorite thing. It tends to make the person seem more like a doll than a real-person, but Cadence's personality definitely made up for it. Overall I really liked the book and I already can't wait for the next one!

I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was an interesting read. It took a little for me to get into the characters, but the plot kept me interested until they grew a little more. The challenges were interesting, and I like where the series looks like it’s going. I want to know what Cadence’s father is really up to, but that will have to wait until at least book 2. If you like urban fantasy, you‘ll want to give this a shot.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It was one of those books that once I started, I couldn't put down. I did not know that both of the author's have written several other books, so I will be adding some of those books to my TBR list!

Things I liked about the book:
- The premise. While I've read several books where a group of people have to come together to realize a goal that will save society or solve something in some capacity (The Gilded Wolves, Timebound, The Hadley Academy, Invictus, Seven Deadly Sins), the premise of this book was still very different. When Slate sets off a curse that can destroy him and erase magic from the city of Brume forever, he and three other diwallers must work together to complete the quatrefoil by each facing a task designed by their own element (water, fire, air, earth) and unite the four leaves.
- The pace. The book hooks you right from the beginning and you are always wondering what will come next.
- The plot. I really liked that the plot didn't just go from achieving one leaf to the next. There are other events that occur throughout the story that are by products of achieving a part of the quatrefoil. I thought that this added to the plot and made it more intriguing.
- The mystery. While the story doesn't end on a cliff hanger (yay!), it does leave several mysteries unsolved, such as what Rainier is hiding, a mystery regarding the quatrefoil and the bloodstone ring, and a few others :)
- The romance. I'm always a sucker for a good romance. While the romance did happen quickly (within less than fifteen days), it didn't feel insta-lovey. It felt genuine. Both characters had to work through their feelings.
- Bastian and Alma. I love that the author's included two side characters that still played important roles in the story.

Things I didn't like:

- The plot. As much as I loved the plot and still give the story five stars, I was a little disappointed in Adrien and Cadence's tasks to achieve their leaves. Slate and Gaelle had to face things that were personal to their own past/present, whereas Adrien and Cadence's tasks didn't feel as complex or provide any insight into the character.
- The pace. Because the book hooks you from the beginning and the first 3/4 of the book are too good to put down, you're already far enough into the story that you have to finish and find out how it ends. I felt like if the last two tasks (Adrien and Cadence's) had been as compelling as Slate and Gaelle's, I wouldn't feel like the pace and curiosity kind of dip a little.

Despite a few things I didn't like - overall this book was amazing. I still highly recommend the book and cannot wait for the next one to come out!

Thank you to NetGalley and Twig Publishing for this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

One word comes to mind when I think about this book: delightful. This was a quick fantasy read filled with magic, small town lore, ghosts, curses, and a ton more. Olivia and Katie are absolutely fantastic storytellers. The way these authors write is so smooth, sarcastic, witty, smart, sharp and there’s SO much humor in the dialogue. I seriously feel like Olivia, Katie, and I are old friends, and they were casually telling me this incredible story over a couple bottles of wine. Their characters are so complex and loveable, even the “bad boy”, Slate, who’s had to use deception and street smarts to provide for him and his brother.

While at times cringey, the romance in this story is one of the reasons I stayed intrigued. That being said, the action and fighting supernatural creatures was by far my favorite part. I did not care for the romantic scenes interspersed with the dramatic action scenes, I felt like the order of events was a little bizarre given what was at stake.

All that to say, I am unbelievably excited for the next book in this series. Aside from what I mentioned above, I gave this read 4 stars because it was too long in my opinion. Some events felt too tangential and I did not really understand the importance of them to the overall story.

Even if you're not a huge fan of fantasy, I recommend this book based on the writing alone. Just delightful.

Slate didn't mean to steal the Bloodstone from the De Morel's crypt. Well, ok, he did, but that was before he knew that it was cursed and will only come off of his finger if he and a group of three others manage to successfully defeat four curses. Each of the four have to defeat a specific curse, and if any of them fail, Slate dies a horrible, painful death. When they defeat the curses, they'll bring magic back into the world. Cadence was raised on stories of magic, in a small town that is rumored to have been the birthplace of French witchcraft and magic. But, she never really believed the stories. After all, if magic was real, her Maman wouldn't have died and her Papa wouldn't be spending his life in a wheelchair, right? Then, Slate Ardoin waltzed right into her life, wearing a ring he stole from her mother's grave. And, all of a sudden, she has to help him defeat a curse and bring magic back into the world.
Olivia Wildenstein has absolutely knocked one out of the park with Of Wicked Blood. The story flows smoothly all the way from beginning to end. There are so many secrets to uncover and deceptions to untangle. Miscommunications abound as the four try to defeat curses that are tailor made to each one of them. At any step, any one of them can be killed or worse. And they have to find the key to their own curses while keeping the innocent town's people from being hurt in the process. Olivia has a knack for writing fully dimensional, vibrant characters and she's done it again in this book. Every single characters stands out, even the peripheral people.

I'd like to thank Olivia Wildenstein for giving me a digital copy of this amazing novel in exchange for an honest review. I understand that this does not obligate me to leave a positive review and every opinion expressed is fully my own. I enjoyed every moment of this novel and I can't wait until book two comes out.

I started this book late at night and had to force myself to put it down at 60%. I kept thinging about it until I was able to pick it back up. Then at about 80% I had to check goodreads to make sure that there was going to be another book in this series. I loved this story! Our main characters are Slate and Candice, both of whom I loved. Slate is a morally grey dude, he does whatever he needs, to survive and thrive in a world that has treated him horribly. Candice is a nerdy girl obsessed with the history of her home which has always thought to be a magical place.
Slate and Candice along with two others have to defeat this curse before a certain time or he dies. They each have to pass their own tests, and each test gets more and more dangerous and the stakes get higher as they get closer to defeating the curse and Slate and Candice grow closer. I felt like I was there along with the characters as they were on this journey. I had no idea what was coming next, and needed to find out how it ended.
It was definitely action packed with only a little bit of well deserved down time for the characters to try and plan out what they needed to do next .. I really liked all the characters except Candices dad... I just know hes up to something...
I really loved everything about this book, and will be reading the next book in the series..