A sapphic, friends to enemies to lovers, vampire and witch romance, Rapunzel retelling. Literally everything I've ever wanted all in one book, and let me tell you, it did not disappoint.

I absolutely fell in love with every aspect of this book- characters, world, magic system, plot. All of it. I loved jumping back and forth between the two main characters, Ava and Kaye. I am a big fan of multi-pov books, and this one did it so well that I simply can't complain. I loved seeing the real honest emotions coming from both of the girls, I really felt for each of them and I was rooting for them the whole time.

I'm rating this four stars because the only flaw I could find was that sometimes the writing would be repetitive or confusing. Some setting details would be repeated or a character would appear or move suddenly in a way that I couldn't quite understand. However, the book more than makes up for it.

This book is an epic sapphic fantasy, and I can't wait to add it to my collection.

I received this arc from NetGalley and Wednesday Books in exchange for an honest review.

This book was pretty much everything I was looking for. Fairy tale retelling? Check. Enemies to lovers? Check. Supernatural? Check. Slow burn and action packed story keeps you hooked from page 1

first off, this cover?!?!?!? STUNNING. it literally is the reason i picked this up, and now after reading, i can appreciate it even more because of the significance of certain elements, iykyk. i had such a fun time reading this. i loved both mcs very much and the magic they could both do was pretty cool! the action was well written and fun. the tension between the mcs >>>> i could just FEEL it through my kindle screen istg. i will say that i wasn't a real fan of the ending because it felt a little incomplete and wrapped up too fast BUT if there is going to be more books, then i think that the story ended at a great spot to be picked back up at in the next one.

i will say that other reviewers have mentioned that they felt the author did more telling than showing, but i personally didn't feel like that because usually i get pulled out of a story when this happens continually. also, some have pointed out that the worldbuilding wasn't as developed and there being plot holes. i do agree with that to an extent. i feel like the author definitely could have expanded more on the world and cleared up some plot holes, but it didn't ruin the experience for me.

⚠️tw/cw: death, blood, death of parent, murder, emotional abuse, physical abuse, child abuse, vomit, animal death, child death, gaslighting, confinement, torture

I really tried to get into this but there was something about the story that wasn't pulling me in. I found the book cover to be extremely alluring but I couldn't find that allure within the book. I wasn't able to finish but I am thankful that I was given a chance to read this book.

This story was a great addition to thr YA Vampire space. It was atmospheric and had great characterization.

The setup is typical of the witch/vampire categories but the characters make it fresh and exciting. The world building set up the conflict well and let it drive through the angst and betrayal of a star crossed lovers romance.

Highly recommend to fans of vampire academy or Evelyn's Skye's three dark crowns series.

🌕🌕🌕🌗 /5

Ava is a Root which recently turned vampire. She spends her days trapped and isolated in her bedroom tower at the mercy of her mother.
Kaye is a Flame witch taught to hunt vampires. As an outsider in the Council she must prove herself worthy. She and Ava were best friends until recent events pulled them apart. When Ava discovers a nefarious plan led by her mother Ava escapes into the forest looking to find the vampire queen to warn her. She has no idea who or what awaits her. Can she and Kaye rebuild their broken friendship, refuse to be defined by what they are rather than who they are?

What I liked:
- A fairytale dreamworld built on a unique plot.
- The protagonist’s bravery determination and compassionate nature.
- LGBTQ+ main characters who are not ashamed or apologetic about their desires.

What I would have improved:
- The insertion of a map outlining the locations and territories.
- A more profound connection between Ava and Kaye.
- Less reminiscing about the past.

Overall it was a unique tale and I recommend it to anyone interested in a spin on Rapunzel. It is more geared toward a younger audience and you are a fan of books with alternating POV’s. The sexual content is not explicit.


Thank you NetGalley, Wednesday Books and Francesca Flores for the eARC.

A LGBTQ+ Rapunzel retelling that I didn't know I needed. The world and writing are lush with a complex magic system. All fantasy and retelling fans must read.

Rating: 3 / 5

Thank you to NetGalley and Francesca Flores for an eARC in exchange, for an honest review.

What a gorgeous cover! I was super excited to get into this book because I really love the premise, and of course, that beautiful cover. It was an easy read overall I just wish there was more to the story, it felt lacking in a few departments.

First of all – the cover of this book is absolutely STUNNING. This story is told from two POV’s – Kaye who is our flame witch / vampire hunter and Ava who is our root witch / vampire. The story is a Sapphic Rapunzel retelling and our main characters both hold magic and showcase a friend to enemies to lovers’ relationship.

To be frank, I was VERY excited about this book, but I set it down so many times throughout my reading as it couldn’t hold my attention and I had to push myself to finish. The writing felt repetitive throughout the entire book and the story felt told to the reader instead of immersive. Kaye and Ava definitely had a strong relationship with history, but if they didn’t kiss in this book, I would have believed that they were strictly best friends as their thoughts and feelings didn’t feel romantic at all and they spoke mostly of their past friendship. The plot felt incomplete as well and I feel so many more conversations could have been detailed to explain the story.

While the story is supposed to be Young Adult, it felt much younger as I was reading it. To be honest, if the book had been showcased as Middle Grade, I probably would have adjusted my review as I feel it fits well in that category but doesn’t hold up to a YA Fantasy.

I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press and Wednesday Books for providing me with an E-Arc of this book to review.

The Witch and the Vampire is a YA fantasy novel following childhood friends turned enemies, Ava and Kaye. Kaye is a Flame witch, trained to kill vampires with no mercy. And she has her sights set on finding the vampire that killed her mother, even if she thinks it’s her former best friend. Ava is a Root witch who was turned into a vampire by her mother who needs to siphon Ava’s magic to keep up the illusion that she is still human. Her mother keeps her locked up for her “protection.” Ava dreams of escaping her tower and joining the vampire queen in the forest where she hopes to find peace and freedom. One night, an attack allows Ava the chance to escape but Kaye is hot on her trail. Kaye makes a deal with Ava that they travel together for safety while plotting to turn her over when they reach their destination. Along the way, Kaye sees hints of her old friend and feelings from the past resurface but neither knows if they can trust the other.
This was a really good book! It had an excellent premise. I felt like the world was fleshed out a good bit in the beginning and set up the novel very well while being very engaging. I liked both of our main characters and could understand their motivations. I liked the push and pull between them- their history and their differences played out really well together. There was a good amount of action in this book which I really enjoyed. It kept the plot moving at a good pace. A few little things hindered my enjoyment of the book a bit and kept this from being a five star for me. One was that a lot of transitions weren’t well done. A lot of the dialogue would start on one topic and then a character would bring up the thing that needed to be talked about but there was no lead-in. And if it happened once, I would have brushed past it but a lot of the dialogue didn’t quite flow from one topic to another. The other thing was the overuse of narration to describe the character’s feelings rather than showing them.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it and this author is definitely one I will read from again!

I didn't really know what I was getting into with this book as the Rapunzel angle wasn't all that telling. But Hot Dog! was it a fantastic fanatsy adventure. If you ever longed for a Disney movie to go sapphic here is your chance. Ava and Kaye's respect journey's filld that sweetspot for me. I was captivated by the author's storytelling and you will be too.

Thank you NetGalley, Wednesday Books, and St. Martin’s Press for providing an eARC for a sincere review.

A very enjoyable YA fantasy with a subtle rapunzel twist and a gentle sapphic romance. It left room for a sequel without feeling like the ending was incomplete, which I appreciate. I was feeling in a post-spooky-season slump and this was like a cozy cup of rose tea, flowery and uplifting. Love and good prevails, just like it should in the world, but it kindly acknowledges the moral grey that comes with existence.

Great for fans of Of Fire and Stars or K.M. Shea’s fairytale retellings, I look forward to reading what’s next from Francesca Flores!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

This was an enjoyable sapphic retelling. I thought the plot and atmosphere were well done. The writing was also enjoyable besides there being a lot of repeated information being told to us. The side characters also fell a little flat for my liking, but overall enjoyable.

3.5 stars

from the moment i saw that this was a queer rapunzel retelling, i was immediately hooked. i just wish this feeling kept as i continued reading the book.

the witch and the vampire follows ava and kaye, previous friends turned enemies when ava is turned into a vampire. set out with the intention to kill her, the book follows these two, as they overcome their differences and rekindle a flame between them that never quite went out.

despite that description, i really wanted to like this book more. i think the characters were missing a level of characterization, and pacing issues took away from the overall flow of the book. the romance was definitely my favorite part, but ultimately found myself wanting more. 3/5 stars!

thank you to both netgalley and st. martin's press for an e-arc of this book. all thoughts and opinions are my own.

2.5 Stars

This book could have been so much better than it was. Like what was that ending? Way to easily resolved. I felt sympathy for Ava but she is so naïve. Kaye jumps to conclusions and makes quick judgements so fast. The very beginning was good and showed promise. After, a bit slow, middle was getting a little better but that ending was too easy and rushed. The whole plot and worries around the Bone Wall were essentially pointless. The pacing was very slow at times and didn’t want me to pick up this book. The world building was fine but I would have love to see a little more about the witches, hunters and the Empire. I want to ship Ava and Kaye but most of the book they betray each other and have serious trust issues, not a great basis for a lasting relationship.

Overall, some aspects of the world building were interesting. Some moments heart racing but overall, disappointing. I really wanted to fall in love with this book but just had too many issues with it.

*Received via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

(2.5/5 stars)
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me this arc. Now for the review!

I have to admit, I was initially hopeful with this book, the idea of a sapphic/queer retelling of Rapunzel really interested me. Unfortunately though, it's not very Rapunzel at all. The main (?) character, Ava (the vampire) is mentioned to have incredibly long hair, but it's not particularly plot relevant and ends up getting cut off pretty soon in. The escape part may seem reminiscent of Tangled where Eugene and Rapunzel leave the tower and go explore, but not really? I personally don't see it as a Rapunzel retelling in any way and could've been fine without that comparison. It is, however, a sapphic slow burn type of story, so there was that at least.

Now, the book itself is... alright, I guess. The two characters that you read the story from- Ava and Kaye- seem kind of flat to me and it's hard to be interested in what's going on. It's also told from a first-person perspective which can be difficult to do well, so the characters being flat and sort of uninteresting kind of make that first-person writing worse. None of the characters, main or supporting, were really that interesting, there was no one I particularly liked or hated, they all just sort of existed. The plot is.. there. A lot of events or details are written and explained rather than shown, which did make it sort of boring to read at times, but it didn't really ruin the book either. With that though, the plot is just sorta there, I wasn't engaged in it at all. There were also moments that were incredibly predictable, such as what happened to Kaye's mom (I think I guessed that within the first mention of her mother being murdered and that was mentioned at the start of the book so....). I think, had the writing been a little different, it would have been a fine book.

Overall, it's not a horrible book, but the 'promise' of a queer/sapphic retelling of Rapunzel being unfulfilled (it is a sapphic romance! just not really Rapunzel) and the plot and characters being flat, it definitely wasn't the best thing I've read. I would not personally recommend this book, but I wouldn't discourage anyone from reading it either!

Anything with Vampires I am going to read and enjoy! I loved this story and the characters. I will be reading more from this author.

3.5 stars, rounded to 4

FIRST - THE COVER. I adore this cover. It’s what initially drew me to the book.

I enjoyed this novel. A queer retelling of Rapunzel has tons of potential, and I definitely enjoyed seeing those parallels.

This was a rather quick, and enjoyable read. The story kept me engaged the entire time and i our MCs were likable for the most part. Other than that, it fell flat for me.

I felt the characters didn’t go through much character development and they were pretty surface level for me. The side characters were almost pointless. They had 0 personalities and were just either evil or good.

I also felt the plot was very predictable.

Which I felt there was aspects that didn’t sit well with me, overall the read was enjoyable and quick.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC for an honest review.

Like other reviews have mentioned, I also did not realize this was meant to be a Rapunzel retelling. I understand how it references to it now, but I would not have guessed.

Yes, I finished the whole book and I did enjoy parts of it. I mostly stayed for the action. However, I agree that the characters weren’t fleshed out enough. I wanted to like the main character and support her journey (Because Zenos and her mother were truly the worst) but I also didn’t see how she ended up being such an integral person in the plot. I didn’t read anything that would lead me to believe, “oh what a powerful character.” So I expected growth along the way but I didn’t get any of that. I feel like it was just bestowed upon her because she was the lead. Kaye could get it though. Had it been the other way around, that would make sense.

I did enjoy the friends to enemies romance and I was happy that it wasn’t primarily all about it. I will also admit that I found myself curious to see where the story goes. Will Ava have her growth and step up to lead? So although not a perfect rating, I would still read more on this and recommend.

Thank you Net Galley and St. Martin’s Publishing Group for another opportunity to discover new books/authors.

"The Witch and the Vampire" is a YA fantasy described as a queer retelling of Rapunzel. This... surprised me! Queer yes, Rapunzel, no, that went right over my head when I was reading this. After the fact, there were a few things that were similar to Rapunzel, but overall, the comparison is a bit of a reach, so don't reach for this if you're dying for a specific retelling.

While Ava and Kaye are set up for a great enemies to lovers arc, the characters are all just so flat that it's difficult to care about them (or anyone). It's very difficult to tell their POVs apart; they read very similarly, and frankly there wasn't much romance at all. Which is fine, if the main plot had been stronger, but alas - it wasn't. Overall, this was just not well-written - too much telling, too many extraneous details, and shallow characterization.