Overall an enjoyable read. The blurb sounded interesting and I guess I was expecting too much out of the story. Otherwise, this was a fun read with interesting characters. Would recommend if you love the Grumpy/Sunshine trope, mystery, historical fantasy, magic.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

2.5 Stars

There were parts of this book that I certainly enjoyed, like the MLM romance and the structure of the Witch society, but the flaws tended to overshadow the things I enjoyed.

I love a good MLM romance but something about Vincent and Rafe just never clicked for me. My biggest disconnect with with Rafe's (rare) kind words versus his actions - he spends the vast majority of the book being incredibly harsh and unkind to Vincent, if not abusive. We don't get a serious interrogation of that, just Vincent constantly making excuses in his own head for Rafe's behavior. Even if Vincent's understanding of why Rafe behaves that way is true, it's still a poor foundation for the relationship if the other person doesn't also interrogate their own behavior and make amends. A scene where they openly discuss Rafe's behavior and his past, ending in a genuine apology and change in behavior, would have resolved this.

Additionally, Rutgers betrayal held no emotional weight because the reader never spent any time with him. We start the book with his disappearance, so we never become invested in he and Vincent's friendship.

This also needed another round of proofing. There were several moments where events conflicted (Vincent holds the amulet and then opens the box and grabs it a page later) as well as various copy editing issues (name misspellings, etc).

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Magic - of the light and of the heart - where you least expect it. A search for your place, for your self, for what is important - and that darned relic! And why is everything about it different than than is written? Finding the relic is the least of the problems - an engaging search and adventure with a bit of magic and self-discovery thrown in.

Martin will return on Samhain when the veil between the worlds is the thinnest. He's promised to reclaim the Ferox Cor, but doing so risks unleashing a great evil on the world. Rafe has sworn to destroy that powerful object, but if he succeeds, Vincent's future is at risk. There's a way forward, but to find it, Vincent must look to his heart.

This took a little longer for me to get into, I struggled to get invested but when I did, I really enjoyed this. The story is definitely more focused on the characters and their dynamics than it is on the plot but the plot itself is decent and the magical setup is interesting.

Overall, this was a good read and I enjoyed it.

This was definitely a story with a focus on the characters and romance rather than the story. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, it just kept me from being full absorbed in the story because I kept waiting for more to happen. Despite this, the characters and their relationship was still so enjoyable. It was fun and tender and made me smile.

Lighthouses always seem so magical to me, little towers against a vast and endless sea, lights in the dark representing hope. So when I read the blurb for this book I thought wow a foggy spooky lighthouse story with a queer romance and magic? That’s all of my favorites in one!!
This was a lovely adventure. The main character, Vincent, is a little scamp, and it’s fun following him on this adventure. The chemistry between Rafe and Vincent was lovely, and I love the disability representation.
The plot felt a bit underdeveloped at times, and there were a lot of things I had multiple questions about. But the characters, romance, and magical atmosphere were very fun.

Mystery weaves through the narrative, adding an extra layer of intrigue to the plot. The enigmatic pasts of the characters and the secrets of Tillamook Rock itself create a sense of unease and anticipation. As the story unfolds, readers will find themselves eagerly turning the pages to uncover the truth.

At a secluded lighthouse, a stolen artifact is hidden. Vincent Fairchild is sent to find the stolen Ferox Cor and return it to the Witches' Council. That is, if he can find it and stop it from being used to unleash evil upon the world.

The Lighthouse Keeper is a magic adventure with a romance thrown in. I enjoyed the magic elements of the story but felt the romance was forced to start. Vincent was a loveable main character, his fancy boy personality was enjoyable. I do feel like it could have been maybe a bit longer. The saving the world ending felt rushed and sudden.

This was really good, sweet quick read. I liked the fact that they didn't just fall in to bed & enjoyed the almost moments. The magic was good. Rafe, who is blind, can see the sprite realm. Vincent can change things from one thing into another. The book doesn't end on a cliffhanger, but it leaves it open for the potential of another book.

“The Lighthouse Keeper” is the first book of a duology by Liv Rancourt, a M/M romance that mixes magic and paranormal, with a sprinkle of historical fiction.

In a world where magical and non-magical people live together in relative peace, our main character, Vincent Fairchild is a witch with little power but an important family name, that liaises between the San Francisco local government and the Witch Council. As he can temporarily change things’ appearance, he is accused of having changed several non-magical men into dogs, a severe crime punishable with the removal of the accused’s powers. To avoid punishment, he is tasked to find the Ferox Cor, a powerful magical artifact, said to have been stolen 20 years before by Martin Gallagher, a weatherwitch, later assigned to a lighthouse near Seattle, who has recently passed away. With Margaret Barnes, the weatherwitch set to replace Martin, Vincent travels to the lighthouse, quite far from the city, where they meet the grieving widow, Della and her son, Rafe. However, as several details regarding the mission don’t add up, for example the fact that the son is not a child but a grown man, Vincent tries to make sense of it all, including his sudden attraction to Rafe.

Let’s start with the characters, which could have been developed better as the potential was there. In fact, not even Vincent is three-dimensional, which is weird since he is the main character as well as the first POV (“hello darkness, my old friend” insert gif). From the beginning, we are informed of the fact that his parents cut him off once his powers manifested because “nice people have no time for anything that couldn’t be bought and sold”, although Vincent’s powers would have been a great asset for any businessman worth his salt; moreover, Vincent mentioned that his grandmother left him money, but we don’t know why she accepted him while the rest of the family shunned him, nor we know anything else about his family apart from the fact the Fairchilds are very influential in the San Francisco high society.
Moving to Rafe, he’s quite hard to figure out, always angry and presumptuous, ready to pick a fight with anyone, especially Vincent, whom he considers inferior due to his lesser powers. And, even though he is someone with more power than anyone else, his spells are repeatedly thwarted and what they were meant to stop inevitably happens. I understand that, as a blind man, he’s probably used to take care of himself and to people pitying him, so that’s why he comes across as a hard man, but some things he said to Vincent and Margaret, without even knowing them, were plain rude, belligerent and for no good reason.
The other characters are just that, characters: Della is the mother of the Antihero Rafe, Margaret is the sidekick/big-sister-figure to the Hero Vincent, Oliver Stevenson is the Villain whose actions make very little sense, the Seattle Witch Council are his minions. Last but not least, Martin Gallagher, the reason behind the whole story, was a Villain who stole the artifact to become more powerful but later decided to protect everyone and keep it safe; or was he a Hero all along and stole it to keep it safe? Who knows? We don’t have enough information to decide one way or the other. And while the “mystery” of what happened to Rutger was so obvious that I saw it coming from the start, although the reasons behind his actions are never fully explained, that ending came out of nowhere and still puzzles me.

The mythology has potential as the magical system has some valid concepts and the setting is quite interesting, with very vivid descriptions, especially of the forests surrounding the lighthouse. However, it’s all rather sketched out with too many critical pieces of information being mentioned once and then never fully explained, even though they hold much importance, for example the Ferox Cor itself.

I can’t say how sorry I am to write this sort of reviews because this book has so many aspects that I usually enjoy, but this time I really didn’t like how they all fit together.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is an intriguing story that is full of mystery and suspense. The characters are fascinating and sympathetic. It's a nail biter that will keep you on the edge of your seat. I loved it.

We start off in San Francisco where our MC, Vincent, a witch with limited powers, wakes up from a raucous weekend. A liaison for the SF Witches Council and the city, he uses his charming personality and talents for persuasion to build and maintain relationships. He is sent to nearby Washington state on assignment to find an object that’s been missing for many years and if not found, can have devastating consequences on the world. This is where we meet our other MC, Rafe. Wary of outsiders, he is loath to accept Vincent and his partner’s help to maintain the Lighthouse, and thus begins the journey of learning when to admit that one needs help and how to accept it.

The premise of the book was great but it was a slow start. I enjoyed the characters but didn’t grow attached to them in any way. Parts of the story could have been tied together more cohesively but at the end you are rooting for Vincent and Rafe.

3 stars for me

Why would you want to read this?
- Grumpy/Sunshine
- Atmospheric (Nice and rainy)
- You have a love for Seattle
- Wizards
- Found family elements
- A lil bit of spice

We follow our leading man Vincent Fairchild, known for his good looks and family name, he knows he's pretty and uses it to his advantage. There's only one little problem... In a drunken bender, he turned a mortal man into a dog and is now being pushed out the door by the council to find the Ferox Cor so his misdeeds can be sorted out in his absence.

While I did enjoy elements of this book there were others I had issues with

I really enjoyed:
- The atmosphere and setting our story was based in!
- I really enjoyed seeing some interesting history tidbits about Seattle in here like the tunnels underneath the city!
- I had a particular fondness of Margaret as a character and her abilities as a weatherwitch
- I really enjoyed seeing Rafe's softer side peek out as he and Vincent grew closer

I enjoyed it but..
- I loved all of our character's abilities and was interested in the classification system that was being revealed but it was never really explained in depth
- There were mentions of a goddess and that being where the power for wizards derived from, once again it was never really explored
- After being claimed by the Ferox Cor Vincent begins hearing voices (I'm sure this will be explained more in the next book) and it ends up kind of dying off near the end of the book.

I did not love:
- So I initially was missing connections to find Rafe and Vincent a couple worth caring about- That did change as I got to see them together a little bit more.
- I still don't fully understand why Vincent would have been trusted for such an important mission especially when he himself claims to have little power (I know this kinda changes but not until the end)
- There were rules in play with the magic and they weren't really explained very clearly
- Mostly in the beginning of the book but: There was a fair of mount of tell not show in the writing

I truly wish I could love this completely, but there were a few parts that wouldn't let me truly love it. For one, the plot of the voices in Vincent's head during some parts were never really explored. They were just forgotten. The back and forth between the island and the mainland seemed so easy in the last half when it was a TREK the first half.

But the heat between Rafe and Vincent was amazing and very well done. Their relationship was instalove without being INSTALOVE, if that makes sense. I would love to read more about them!

If I were reviewing The Lighthouse Keeper on the basis of atmosphere alone, I would give it an A+. Rain, thunderstorms, the claustrophobic rooms of the Lighthouse Keeper’s home. There is enough darkness, or light casting shadows in the corners to supply an undercurrent of danger for at least 5 novels. In fact, even though I read this in 80 degree weather, I found myself wanting to light a fire to warm myself, just as the main characters do. Unfortunately, it takes more than atmosphere to make a book work.

The Lighthouse Keeper is a first-person fantasy romance set in what seems to be 19th century San Francisco and Seattle. There is not a lot of world building, which allows Rancourt to cut to the chase, but we understand that there are both witches and “mundane” in the world, and some places, like San Francisco have Guilds that allow the witches to interface with the mundane political and civic world. Vincent, our narrator, is an attractive, charming witch with minor magic who works in San Francisco to smooth things over with the mundane city staff. At the beginning of the novel, he is sent to an island off Seattle to “help” a mother and son living there. They are taking care of the lighthouse there upon the death of the husband, but neither is a weatherwitch. Oh, and by the way, there is an amulet there that controls a demon with unspeakable powers, and could he bring that back to the San Francisco witches’ guild? Vincent travels to the island, with a weatherwitch named Margaret. For some reason, he and Margaret, doomed to dislike each other, become like brother and sister before the trip to Seattle ends. When they get to the island, that everyone seems to be afraid of, they meet Della the wife of the late Lighthouse Keeper, and her son, Rafe, who is not a young boy like Vincent was told in San Francisco, but a large, powerful witch with eyes that are blinded to all but the spiritual realm.

Vincent, amidst all the tight-lippiness of Della and Rafe, and in the face of Rafe’s stone-cold sternness, gets the hots for Rafe. We understand at this point in the book that everything is much more dangerous and there is much more at stake than Vincent ever thought. And yet still, he’s got half his mind on Rafe. I think if we understood the attraction more, this could work. As it was, I couldn’t find myself caring whether the MCs got together.

While there was a lot going on this book, once things picked up, the characters seem to not feel the urgency. They’re on a tight deadline, but they fritter so much time away. And Della and Rafe waste a lot it by giving Vincent and Margaret information drop by drop. Despite the high stakes, the ending was kind of anti-climactic. I would definitely read more by the author, but this book did not work for me.

Grade: C+

While I appreciate the opportunity to read this book, unfortunately this one is a DNF for me as I could not get into the story.

First I'd like to say thank you to Netgalley and Liv Rancourt for the ARC of this book. This in no way alters my thoughts or options in this review.

I truly loved this book! I did however find at times the story was underdeveloped and lacking in some details. I would have liked to know more about the characters and their backstories. As well as learning more about their magic. That being said I did love the characters based on what we learned about them.

Overall this book was wonderful. I do hope we get to see a sequel in the future!

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC. This is my honest review.

The Lighthouse Keeper was a surprising five stars for me. I don't normally read Gothic horror, but I adore the genre in cinema format, so I thought I'd give this one a try. Also, ocean waves, lighthouses, fog, and demons are some of my favorite things to build up the atmosphere. It definitely gave me Crimson Peak and The Lighthouse vibes, with some interesting extra bit of variation in magic users.

I would consider it a novella length, though I'm not sure what the author is calling it. I really didn't mind the length at all. This was a quick but very satisfying read with twists and turns, a little bit of spice, and a historical fantasy storyline that mentioned the "forbidden" queerness but didn't make the book's focus. Maybe queernormative - adjacent, as I forgot it was an issue until briefly mentioned.

I really enjoyed the relationship building and the changes between characters as they grew throughout the story. For something as short as it is, and a story that took place over a week(?)'s time, I thought the pacing was really well done. Vincent and Margaret start off rocky but form a sibling-like attachment that I love to see in queer literature. (Found family is my favorite trope. We just attract each other like magnets, it's inevitable.) Vincent and Rafe have a much more tumultuous start, but it is very believable. Rafe is a secluded young man living on a deeply creepy island with a disability and strange powers. He is going to be distrusting. However, he is absolutely the brooding, misunderstood, deeply fascinating character that I love to read about. I immediately cared about him and could see why Vincent did as well.

The "miscommunication" trope was a little heavy in the first half of the book. However, it was also very believable. None of these characters had known each other very long (Save for Rafe and his mother, Della), and it makes sense that secrets would be kept.

I really loved this book, and although Rafe's "disability" is more magical than reality, I thought it was a really great touch to include that representation here. No one tried to "fix" him either, which is so important, proper disability rep. Fairly excited for the sequel (crosses fingers for 2024). Thoroughly enjoyed, five stars.