3.5 stars rounded down

This witchy romance was jam packed with tropes, though some of them were not my favorites, making it an overall difficult read for me.

Emma Bluewater and Bastian Truenote have been betrothed since childhood, as one does in the upper classes of witch society, but before they could marry Bastian ran away, leaving Emma humiliated. Running from her cold, calculating mother, Emma starts a new life in Chicago with her found family of friends, and is happily living a mundane existence until Bastian reappears, claiming to want her back. Their magical marriage contract was riddled with hidden curses and clauses, one of which is causing his mother to get sicker and sicker until the contract is fulfilled. They decide to go through with the marriage as a sham, but all the secrets of their past threaten the union once again. This was a little heavy for a witchy romance, with deeper family themes and trauma, and it was sometimes hard to follow all the layers of this witch society. The miscommunication and virgin FMC tropes are always a little 😬 for me, plus throwing in the found family, childhood friends to enemies to lovers, second chance romance and marriage of convenience tropes just felt like a bit too much for one story. This might be a case for me where I would like consequent stories in the series better now that all the characters have been introduced and the world has been built, and there was certainly plenty of friends and relatives to continue with.

There was something about this book that just wasn't for me, even though witchy vibes are totally my thing. Maybe it was the sense of humor? The jokes just didn't really land for me.

This book did take awhile to get through. I wasn’t sure if there’s too details or something but this book i did enjoyed but also there were parts of it i felt it dragged a bit. This second chance romance was unique in a way that i haven’t read before which does involve magic and drama mixed in together. Had there been more world building, i would’ve enjoyed it a bit more. Overall, i liked it but i felt my expectations were a bit high for this.

Thank you to netgalley for the e arc of this book*

This was adorable and steamy! I also love that it was a supernatural romance and the family dynamics were so intriguing. I also think that the opposite attracts dynamic was well done and it was believable.

Emmaline Bluewater had never felt like she'd fit in to witch society, but had done her best to be enough for Bastian Truenote, the man she'd hoped to marry. But when he breaks her heart and disappears without a word, Emma makes a life for herself in the mundane human world running her bar, Toil and Trouble. When Bastian returns after seven years and wants to pick up where they left off, Emma is sure of one thing: she will not place her heart in his hands again.
This magical contract romance is great for fans of love, magic, and stories from high society.

Thank you to HARLEQUIN - Romance (U.S. & Canada) and NetGalley for the eARC.

Recently, I have been on a roll with three-star ARC reviews, and I'm afraid this one is no different.

My BIGGEST pet peeve (and lazy writing, honestly) is the miscommunication trope, and this book had it in SPADES. If I had the actual book in my hands while reading, it would have been thrown against a wall and stomped on.

The portrayal of the main characters was also not my favorite—plain, pushover Emmaline vs. gorgeous, prick-ish Bastian.

Overall, another book that didn't hit the mark for me.

This was an enjoyable read that fell short of reaching its magic. Full of commitment issues, awkward banter, and a storyline that felt both rushed and far too slow, this novel fell flat on many accounts. That being said, it would be great for those who enjoy cozy fantasy and are looking for a quick read with fun magic and second-chance romance.

The Witch is Back is utterly delightful. There was so much tension. Highly recommended as a cozy fantasy.

THE WITCH IS BACK initially grabbed my attention with the adorable cover, and description, and I was so excited to read it. It was an entertaining read for me, with plenty of steam, and was a great start to my witchy romance reading.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher

I thought that this book was fun and I'm so glad that I stuck through to the end to read this book. I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about Emma and Bastian, because it seemed like the reveal took way too long on why Bastian had left. I am really glad for their happy ending and I can't wait to read more by Sophie H. Morgan.

Thank you to Harlequin for giving me a copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book was honestly so mediocre from beginning to end. There was nothing particularly bad about it, but nothing stood out or was particularly extraordinary. I debated dumping it a few times and wish I had so that I could've read something else.

Adorable and steamy story of second chances! I enjoyed this read and would definitely recommend if you love steamy supernatural romances.

I love a good cozy witchy romcom and this is the perfect perfect PERFECT one to get you out of a slump and back into those good fall reads!

This book and the "second chance" aspect revolves around a miscommunication conflict that is never really cleared up very well. I found that to be frustrating. I enjoyed the fairytale elements of this and I with the relationship issues were fleshed out much more to really make this story great.

Thank you, Netgalley, the author, and Harlequin for the gifted book! ❤️ #gifted. My review is comprised of my honest thoughts.

Read this book if you like: Childhood sweethearts, second chances, fake dating, introvert extrovert, steamy 🔥

Yes! I love a good witchy read, and this was great. I do wish there was less miscommunication. It lasted too long. JUST TALK. Other than that, this was very cute, cozy, and so fun. I highly recommend it!

After Bastain left her seven years ago, Emma retreated to Chicago to live a human life running her bar. When he comes back into her life, Emma finds herself agreeing to fake their way through the marriage contract they signed when they were young.

To be completely honest, I was on a “witchy romance” kick when I read this, and I can’t completely remember how I felt about it. I think it was solid - I didn’t love it, and I didn’t hate it. Basically, it’s a three star book.

2.5 stars

This book was just meh. Not bad, but not something I would drop everything to read. Long page count considering nothing really happens.

I’m not a huge fan of second chance romance. Overall this was a big miscommunication trope book.

You know I was gonna put 18+ because I think there’s descriptive spicy scenes, but I can’t remember them. I literally finished this yesterday as I write this. Oops. Oh but I do know that the MMC talked this big game and turns out he only kinda sorta was with 1 person like 6 years previous and she’s a virgin.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin for this digital ARC.

I’m loving witchy romances lately and this one was filled with second chance romance and fake dating/marriage.

There is a lot of growth in these characters, which made it so incredibly special. I was rooting for Emma every step of the way.

More please!!!

I thought this book was so sweet! I was very drawn in as their stories unfolded. I think this book is a great example of enemies to lovers, and showed a lot of growth for a 2nd chance romance. I find books tend to fall flat on that, which makes it my least favorite trope.

I also absolutely melted when he adopted his familiar

Emmaline Bluewater was born into witch society, but she never felt like she fit in. Especially since the man she was supposed to marry left without a word. She now lives in Chicago where she owns a bar called Toil and Trouble with her two friends. Everything is going smoothly until Bastian Truenote, the man who left all those years ago, shows up again and says he needs her. In order to convince Emma that he had his reasons for leaving and that they need to honor the magical contract from the past. The one which results in them having a marriage of convenience.