𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘:
𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞
𝐁𝐲 𝐊𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐛𝐛

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ /5

I’ve unintentionally been reading a lot of alternate timeline books lately, but I’m not mad about it. It feels very appropriate for this time of year.

After going through a breakup, Gemma makes a wish/casts a spell that has her waking up in an apartment that isn’t hers, with her best friend, Dax, not knowing who she is. Luckily for Gemma, she has her loyal sister Kirsten and her kooky Aunt Livi to help figure things out.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the twists the relationship between Gemma and Dax took, the career elements for Gemma, Dax and Kirsten, and Aunt Livi consistently calling Gemma “Poodle.” There were moments of comedy, swoon-worthy Dax, Curling, sisters supporting each-other, and of course, Donuts. Definitely add this to your new year TBR.

After a heartbreaking breakup, Gemma casts a spell to reverse her past decision to date the guy. To her shock, the spell works and she wakes up in a world where it never happened. But in this new world, she'd also never met her best friend Dax.

This was a spicy, funny, and sweet romance. I especially liked Gemma's inner turmoil about what to do, and the bonding with her sister over donuts. I think all of us would like to change parts of our past, and it was fun to think about that as well! This certainly kept me reading to see what would happen.

This book was a quick and cute read. Nothing profound but a fun "what if"/ alternate reality story with likeable characters and good chemistry in the friend-to-lover trope. Some silly magical elements but handled in a cheeky, over-the-top way with the help of her kooky aunt and funny sister. Ultimately it was engaging and feel-good. I would recommend this book. It would be a fun Book Club read around Halloween too!

This book was just alright for me. So many things went wrong that I was getting worried about how it would end. There were a lot of plot holes that left me ??? The lessons Gemma learned throughout were enjoyable. I left this book feeling meh.

Nice friends to lovers book with a time travel element. We kind of jump straight into the heart of the story without much build up but it worked. I enjoyed reading it!

this is a cute story! i enjoyed the writing style, and the plot was interesting and unique. personally, i found myself not enjoying the parallel universe storyline as much as i would’ve hoped, but that’s a personal preference and not the author’s fault. i did find myself wondering at the end of the story—what happens to the characters in the alternate reality? do they not get their happy ending? i just kept thinking about them after the story ended 😭. overall, this was a good read but not a favorite. 3.5 stars.

This was a great read! What if one wish changed everything? Loved the characters and the plot in this book

THIS SPELLS LOVE is a fun, romantic read about finding the life you want and loving the life you have.

Gemma is going through a breakup and, with help from her quirky aunt and sister, casts a spell to erase her relationship from her past - what she doesn't realize is that she'll erase herself from her best friend Dax's memory, too. This story was delightful - a fun friends to lovers, second chance kind of story with just the right amount of humor and great connection between the main characters. Gemma was fun and I couldn't help but root for her - and Dax was a wonderful hero! I'd definitely recommend this one to fans of romance, time travel-esque stories and those looking for a fun escape.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House, Dial Press Trade Paperback for the ARC which I received in exchange for my honest review.

Ok, can I just say, I need this spell in my life?! Such a fun and silly read. It had me waiting chapter after chapter to see if Gemma will realize what she wanted all a long.....

While this concept is quite the popular one right now, I can't get enough of it, so I say keep them coming! I like the way Robb allowed Gemma to freak out a valid amount but also try and go with the life she wakes up in. Gemma doesn't just immediately accept her new fate and try to immerse herself, she show character growth while also portraying pretty real character flaws. She was likable, Dax was likable and while you desperately want it to work out for them, I'm happy it wasn't tied up with a little ribbon. If you can argue this type of book can even be believable, I'd say this one did that well.

This was such a cute and sweet story. I loved the plot and characters. The fun eccentric aunt, the best friend turned lover. The quirky main character. It all just worked and fit perfectly. The ending was great and the pace of the book was amazing. There were no lulls which made this bingeable. I loved how everything wrapped up in the end.

Do you love romance (and friendship) with a small touch of magic? Well, then this one is for you.

I thought this was a super cute read and thought the pacing was great. I really enjoyed the characters and Gemma's plotting to make Dax remember everything he loves about her. I am definitely interested in reading anything else Kate Robb has up her sleeve.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Random House for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5

Friends-to-Lovers meets parallel universe - what would happen if we made a different choice in life?

This was a really fun read! To start, I read 44% of the e-ARC in the early summer of 2023. I put the book down and didn't pick it back up again until January 2024. With that being said, I picked up right where I left off and didn't skip a bit - I felt as though the characters were strong enough to hold their own in my memory, as well as the unique plot line of parallel universe. The final 56% was fast and quick & I thought it wrapped up nicely.

I love the sisterly bond element of the story & I love a kookie-witchy aunt with a bookclub.

I have so many questions about the ending's timeline & overall parallel universe concept entirely. Does Gemma just disappear from other timelines? What happens to Dax & the family members & the store in the other timeline when she jumps? What timeline is she at the end!?

Highly recommend for a quick, light read.
2🌶️

Easily one of my favorites of 2023! Kate Robb’s storytelling pulled me in instantly and left me feeling like I didn’t want to let go! Not only will This Spells Love be an absolute delight the whole way through, you will easily fall in LOVE with the two main characters, Gemma and Dax. And her talent for writing spicy scenes is one I will hold all others up against.

I found the FMC Gemma to be so lovable and adored how she unabashedly sought after her own pleasure and desires. We would all benefit from more examples of women being adorable hornballs in the media! And frankly, I don’t blame here! Her bestie Dax is a total dream of a guy and I would also be stumbling over myself to get my hands on him. I really just loved this book. It was the perfect mix of light fun and deep personal evolution. I can’t wait to read more from Kate Robb!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

After a bad break-up, Gemma Wilde wishes she'd never met her former boyfriend, Stuart. One night during a visit to her eccentric Aunt Livvi's bookstore, they "cast a spell" for this purpose. The next morning, Gemma awakens in an alternative reality. Her life has taken a different path--one that doesn't include Stuart, but also initially doesn't include her best friend, Dax. Gemma starts to wonder, did her relationship with Stuart lead to other good things in her life, and can she get them back? While pretty predictable, This Spells Love is a light, spicy, fun read. Readers of adult contemporary romance, particularly those who like a little of the supernatural sprinkled in, will enjoy this title.

I went into this one not knowing what to really expect, but rather only what I could garner from the title. (I'm a sucker for a good romcom.) It was an adorable story, in which our FMC, Gemma, has just broken up with her boyfriend of four years, and is devastated. She doesn't know what to do to emotionally recover, and seeks advice and solace from her Aunt, older sister, and our MMC, her best friend, Dax. Performing what seemed like a harmless spell from one of her Aunt's old books, she wakes up the next morning and is no longer in her bed. She's still her, and her family still remembers her, but she's entered almost like an alternate reality in which she would have never met or dated her ex, thus changing the lives of everyone else around her. She's left after a month with a tough choice. To return to her former life by performing the spell again, or to stay in her new reality where she's experienced things she could only have dreamed of. If you love a little bit of magic, a decent amount of open door spice, and just an overall good romcom, this is worth a read.f

This Spells Love honestly was the cutest book I have read this year. I always love what if/alternative universe/serendipity stories and this was just the perfect one. Gemma is a fun main character despite some of the mistakes she makes throughout, it's nice to see how things truly end up for her and Dax. I'm a sucker for a Friend's to Lover's trope and enjoyed the way this one built to it. There are few moments that had me kicking my feet out of cuteness. This was a great debut novel and looking forward to the next book from this author.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Random House for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for honest feedback.

This cute story gave me Groundhog Day/Thirteen Going on 30 vibes. A good friends-to-lovers romance that was fun to read!

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a sucker for a romance that has the smallest hint of magic -- like Ashley Poston's recent books -- so I *loved* this. Gemma's a fun character to spend time with, and Dax is a charming MMC. It's also the sort of book that makes you reflect on your own life -- what might happen if one of our unfulfilled dreams came true, or if the one who got away never actually got away.

Thank you, Net Galley & Random House Publishing Group for giving me access to this title in exchange for an honest review!! This book was delightfully captivating and I could not put it down.

Fresh out of heartbreak, Gemma Wilde is trying to pick up the pieces of her life and realizes the wrong turns she's made in the process. With a little magic and a whisper into thin air, she is put into an alternate universe to explore more of life's possibilities before her. She quickly realizes where she went wrong and what she cannot live without. The banter between Characters and the character development throughout the book makes you fall in love with each and every one of them! I'd love a sequel because I was sad to leave these characters behind.

I found myself saving excerpts from this book because the writing grabbed me by the heart!

"He's staring at me with his big green saucer eyes and this crinkle in his forehead that only appears when he's concerned about something. Like when he finds a baby bird flung from its best or read about natural disasters in the news. That look, that crinkle, is aimed right at me. I'm the broken baby bird."

"It's like trying to put together one big jigsaw puzzle with the picture facing down."

"I can't deny that this is the happiest I've been in years. These last few weeks have been a weird kind of blessing. A chance to see all of the wrong turns I've made over the last four years and all of the things that could have been if only I'd trusted in my own abilities instead of taking the safe route."


10/10 this book will be one that I think of time and time again as a story I very much enjoyed. And I love that we got to witness the chemistry and moment the characters fell in love time and time again.