I was really excited for this book as the premise sounded really good and up my street.
However, I found it to be very slow in pace, and therefore a bit dull at times.
I wasn't intrigued or excited to keep going with this book - there wasn't anything that kept my interest to keep on going with this book.
Not for me.

Cute story and cute dialogue, even occasionally pretty snappy, but it just doesn't feel like the thing came together for her.

Hex Appeal - Kate Johnson

Loved the idea of this seasonal read, and I must admit the cover drew me in. I loved the magical feels throughout the story (especially the house) and found it very humorous in places, but I didn't love it as much as I wanted to. I felt a bit of a disconnect with the characters, and I'm not totally sure why, I really wanted to like them more and root for them. I also would have liked to know more about the smaller characters in the book. Thank you for letting me give this a go with the e-ARC!

I was so hopeful that this book would be a perfect fall read but unfortunately, it really missed the mark for me. I haven’t had to force myself to keep reading a book in a long time and this one was quite a slog. The plot felt cluttered. The writing didn’t capture my attention. I found myself skimming - a lot. The time travel section of the story was the most interesting and I wish the whole book had more focus on that, less detail about pretty much everything else. I’ve never felt so bogged down by detail and yet still utterly confused as a reader.

Thank you to #netgalley for the advanced copy. I wish I could say I’d recommend it but this one really wasn’t for me.

When Josh inherits an estate in England, he is shocked to find out that one of his tenants hasn't paid the rent since the 1700s, and when he looks for the house, it doesn't seem to exist. No one in the small town of Good Winter seems to know where it is. No one except for Essie Winterscale and the other witches that live with her in the ever-changing magical house. But even as Essie tries to keep Josh from looking too closely at their magical home, a long-buried secret seems to put him under her spell. This book was not what I expected, but it was a fun read! It had the sweet and magical romance plotline but also a mystery story that causes them to travel through time and hide from witch hunters. The first half of the story was a little slow, and I wasn't sure where the plotline was going, but the second half really picks up and creates the fun romance I was looking for! It was a lighthearted and magical read!

I feel like there were a lot of parts to this that I liked. But then there was just something about it that drove me nuts. Lots of twists and turns that I didn’t see coming.
The bad guy was “beat” and I still had 30% left. what the heck more do I need to read?
How many times does Essie have to say she’s a witch before Josh gets it?
Things would be explained to the reader and then again to the characters- this happened multiple times. I didn’t like that this was in third person. I felt like I never really bonded with ANY of the characters.
I love that this had a Quantum Leap reference. Handful of other pop culture references.
Some steamy action. Nothing descriptive, but you get what is being put down.
Time travel was cool.
No magic system in place, there didn’t seem to be any restrictions on magic.
By the end I didn’t completely hate the book. Cool idea, but I had to push myself to finish this. I never really got hooked into the story. Action parts were fun, but felt like the rest of the story dragged.

Non binary/gender fluid rep.
Always check content warnings.

Special thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for this digital ARC.

A magical romcom. Josh has inherited a house in England. He moves there hoping to find some purpose. Essie is a witch in one of the property’s that belongs to the manor. Soon a romance blossoms between the two.

I just didn’t feel the chemistry here. Their first interaction wasn’t a great meet-cute and for me, it didn’t get better. Magical romcoms/romances seem to be in right now, so maybe I just have more to compare to.

3.5 stars rounded up for NetGalley

This book was a fun and quirky read to kick off the spooky season! It truly did feel like Hocus Pocus and Encanto had a book baby, in the best way possible. Based on the book description, I was ready for a flirty romance between a witch and a mortal. What I was not expecting was the amount of witch vibes this book serves! Most of the witch-themed romances I have read have been more along the lines of "oh I'm a witch, here's some small town magic". Hex Appeal took it to a whole new level! There was history, different types of magic, time travel, references to the Salem Witch Trials, and more.

What I loved:
- The characters - they were so fun and there's a million of them!
- The house - was essentially it's own character as it was filled with personality and ever-changing.

What I didn't love so much:
- This felt like inception where it was a plot, inside a plot, inside a plot. To the point where I'm not sure what the plot truly was.
- The transition from ice to fire was a bit abrupt. It felt like once we got there it was too full throttle for the amount of build up there was.

Overall, I enjoyed this book! If you're looking for a quick read to get you ready for Halloween, give this one a go!

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Review will also be posted to our blog, social media, and Amazon closer to pub day.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

I was immediately drawn to the title and cover of this book, which gave me the ex hex vibes. This was a great romance/fall/witchy novel. I thought it was slow to start but got interesting and more “action packed” around 50% of the way through. Great release in time for the Halloween season!

(3.25/5) This was a good spooky read to kick off the autumn/Halloween season! I thought the pacing was decent and liked the characters and dual POV, though I wish it had been told in first person instead of third because I would have liked to get to know the main characters a bit more. There were a couple of plot holes (e.g., the book mentions Josh visiting the house multiple times while we only read about one) but that didn’t ruin anything in the reading. Read if you like: The Ex Hex, Hocus Pocus, etc. 🎃

I want a house like the one where Essie live. And want to live in a village like the one described in the book.
I had fun and throughly enjoyed this paranormal rom-com featuring a great cast of characters, lovely MCs, and a lot of laugh out loud moments.
It's funny, it's compelling, and it's a well written book.
I would be happy to read other books featuring these characters, this one is strongly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

DNF. I tried to get into this book but I couldn't get past the first few chapters. Nothing seemed to make any sort of sense and certain things were left mysterious for no clear reason. I ended up skimming through the rest of the book because it just wasn't very interesting.

Pros:
I like the cover art.
The concept was interesting.

Cons:
I'm done with the trope in paranormal romance where the female witch thinks she isn't powerful then inevitably ends up being really powerful.
It was very confusing to understand whether all the people Essie was living with were actually alive or if some were ghosts.
It wasn't clear why Essie was okay with Josh seeing that there is some magic in their home. Even with whatever spell made him forget, it seemed like it was more careless on her part.

Overall, this book wasn't really to my taste. I tried to get into it and was excited for a paranormal romance for the season. The first few chapters were just so confusing conceptually and it wasn't hooking me into wanting to continue reading the book. I gave three stars since this book was a DNF for me and I don't think it's fair to give a lower rating.

I was given an Arc copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was so cute!! It is the perfect fall witchy romance!

In this book we see Josh move from states to England as he inherits property! After moving here he meets Essie, a witch, and her family.

In this book they have to overcome quite a bit just to be together.

Loved this book and will definitely buy a physical copy for my shelf!

Overall, it was a delightfully witchy story. It starts off great, pulling you into the quirky events of Good Winter from the get-go. At times it was absolutely entertaining and serves us whimsical cosy autumnal vibes.

The characters, their powers, and the small town were well developed, but somehow I felt like too many things happened way too early in the book. From halfway point on, the plot didn't really progress well anymore and the initial tension faded away far too early. At about 75%, I felt like the book was getting longer and longer with each page, which makes it all the more painful for me to say that it took me way longer to read the last 20% of the book than it did to read the first 80%.

I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I thought this was a fun fall read, full of witchy vibes and romance with some magic and mayhem mixed in. When American Josh inherits a old house in England he meets Essie his witchy tenet and things unfold from there. There were so many fun and funky details in the house and characters and even a little time travel sprinkled in, overall it made for an enjoyable read if you’re looking for a witchy romance.

Essie Winterscale is the witch who summons in winter with her ability to chill everything (even body parts right off…). Josh is new to town, and has inherited most all the properties, which includes the house Essies coven lives in. Problem is that Essie and her coven haven’t paid rent in almost 300 years, and Josh is hurting for money. As he sets off to find the house he soon realizes that he can’t seem to find it, but he is sure he has. There is a hex on the house that prohibits people from remembering being there, and it seems to have rubbed off on Essie, which is rather unfortunate as she and Josh have a mutual attraction. As the two become closer, things go sideways and Essie learns she doesn’t summon in winter, she wards off the demon that has been chasing witches for centuries, oh and the demon just so happens to be a distant relative of Josh’s. The two pair up on a comical adventure to save the witches and end up falling for each other along the way.

This was a fun, quick, witty romcom and it delivered all the vibes you’d want for spooky season. If you loved Erin Sterling’s The Ex Hex or Hocus Pocus you will love this book. I gave this book 3.5 stars out of 5 and will round up for rating purposes.

As always I’d like to extend my thanks to @netgalley and the publisher, Harper Collins UK - @onemorechapterhc, for an advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book comes out just in time to make your spooky season reading list, October 1st!.

Growing up in the Netherlands means that Halloween is a relatively new season. So, I won't tell here that I'm counting down until spooky season. However, I do love all the spooky romantic stories being released last year and this year! I mean, I love romance, but I always need my romances to be just that little bit more. And when adding witches, you're exactly adding that little bit more. When I saw this book on Netgalley I just had to request it and I'm so happy One More Chapter gave me a copy!

This book was incredibly entertaining from start to finish. I can't imagine anyone could get truly bored while reading this book. That's firstly because of the setting and especially the magical house. There's so much going on in the house. It feels like every time the characters enter the house and show us around everything has changed. Basically, even though the story mostly takes place in the same house, it still feels like a different, new and exciting setting every time.

I was also very positively surprised by the plot! Yes, this book contains a nice and cute romance, but the romance is not the main plot. The main plot is magical and I really admire how the author manages to connect everything. At times, because there's so much going on and the witchcraft is a little out of controle, the plot feels a little chaotic. However, apart from the fact that chaotic fits the characters and setting, everything does happen with a reason and it all makes sense in the end!

Lastly, I really loved the characters. I have to admit that I personally do think they could have gotten a little more depth, even in a story like this. But even though they seemed a little generic at times, they had enough background and most of all enough really cute interactions to start caring about them and to start rooting for them. More than once I was giggling out loud because of their conversations and I do think they make a really cute couple!

I hope the author returns to this world and writes more like this!

Essie lives in a house in the village of Good Winter, with a bunch a witches with various personalities. Enters Josh, the new landlord, who just discovered his tenants haven't paid the rent in over 300 years... and he is somehow drawn under Essie's spell.
I wanted to love this, so much, but it didn't grab me. I couldn't relate to the characters, there was not enough romance, and no chemistry between the two main characters. The story seemed disjointed at times between the scenes, and I felt like pieces were missing. It contained too many things, too many characters, so I skimmed most of it. However, I did find it contained a lot of humor. I probably would've appreciated it more if I went into it not expecting a rom-com, because that is not what this is. The writing was good, it just wasn't for me.
I received an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I will be a very lonesome voice in the crowd and really its a classic "its not you, its me story".

I fell in love with the cover of this book and I fell even more in love with the synopsis of this book.
But then I quickly fell out of love when I started reading. And I am so disappointed, especially because everybody seems to love this book and I just couldn't connect with it.

I think the main reason why I disliked the story so much was the female lead Essie. She is a grown woman living in a house full of witches but acts like a 13 year old teenage girl. I cant do silly, weak female leads. I love my woman strong, independent, witty and a little sarcastic.

And then there is the plot. This book tries to add so much of different plotlines, but none of them are executed well. And that is such a shame.

I think the book would have really benefited from just being a witty, witchy romance instead of packing it to the brim with other stuff to.

Such a shame, but like I said its just me...

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Fun hook but lots of overlapping stories, as other reviews mention. Would be fun to see this put as a series rather than a book. Liked the ideas but too many ideas is a negative thing, especially with confusing POV.