I feel so bad but I had to dnf this 😭. I got 40% in and I just couldn't get invested. I quickly skimmed to the end and this was just a miss for me.

Thank you so much to Angry Robot and NetGalley for an ARC of Evocation in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 5/5
Spice: 5/5

This book was absolutely delicious! I was so engrossed in the story that I couldn't bear to put it down. The way the plot unfolded was so captivating that it left me thinking about it even after I had finished reading it. The book was hauntingly beautiful, and the relationships between all three of the main characters were so well-written that I thoroughly enjoyed reading about them. I found myself rooting for my favorite couple and was delighted to see the way their stories unfolded. The book was full of so many fun quotes and lines that I couldn't help but highlight one line on each page. I'm sure that I will be thinking about them for a long time to come. Overall, I am eagerly waiting for more books from the author, S.T. Gibson, as this book was an absolute masterpiece!

DNF. I'm trying to get into this book, but the first few chapters are not at all hooking me in. Sad, because I really love S.T. Gibson's other works. I might need to try this book again at some other time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Angry Robot for the ARC of this book!

I've been hooked on S.T. Gibson since I read A Dowry of Blood, so needless tow say I was thrilled that Angry Robot chose me for an advanced copy. This book features the beginnings of a polyamorous relationship between Rhys, his wife Moira, and his ex David. Rhys and David had a falling out but it proved to be harder than they thought to avoid each other when they belong to the same society. Everything changes when David seems to have been possessed by something that he didn't invite in. He's getting sicker and in desperation contacts Rhys for his help. Now the trio have to figure out how to save David from the devil and how they fit into each other's lives. I'm glad this is the first book because I feel like we have only scratched the surface of this world, the magic, and their relationship. Fans of Ninth House and dark academia will enjoy this.

Thank you NetGalley, Angry Robot, and ST Gibson.

Evocation was an amazing story. It kept my attention throughout the entire story and I could not put it down. Without Moria, David and Rhys would have never got anywhere. I found all the different magic very interesting and loved how they all had their own specialty.

As a big lover of the authors other work, I went into this book expecting it to be a 5 star read and I think that was big part of why the first 150-200 pages flew in for me. But sadly I found myself starting to lose interest in the second half.

The beauty of the writing and the dynamic between the characters held the story together for me. The plot on the other hand didn't do much for me, and I would have loved to explore a bit deeper into the magic side of things.

Overall, I will be picking up the next book in the series simply because I'm a big fan of the author and I'm hopeful that this story can be improved upon.

A netgallery ARC in exchange for an honest review.


A secret magic society, magic curses and a hint of polyamory.

T/W child abuse, alcoholism, polyamory and infedelity


I feel this book only picked up from around the 50% mark, before that I struggle to get into it/enjoy it which is a shame whereas after that point I quite enjoyed it and devoured that section very quickly.

I love how S J Gibson writes and her previous books but this just didn't hit the spot for me as the others did. The language and writing style was still in this book which I thoroughly enjoyed.

I felt certain aspects were skimmed over as if we were supposed to know them already, like chaos magic.

I feel like we should get a prequal of this book about David and Rhys but reading online it'll be a sequel.

I wished it delved deeper into polyamory a bit more, it really just skirted it instead.

A little more plot/world building than character driven and this would have felt a better book.

This definitely isn't a negative review, it's a unique story line and has so much potential, I'd like to see where the next book takes us.




Reviews on Goodreads, storygraph and Waterstones

I thoroughly enjoyed this paranormal romance set in Boston featuring the occult and trying to exorcise a demon from one of the main characters, what more could you want!

This features a polyamory romance with an MMF ‘hinge’ or ‘V’ dynamic where Rhys has a wife Moira but then gets back to together with his ex boyfriend David (the one with the century old curse). I do wish there was a teeny bit more on page romance but hopefully we can get this in further books.

Rhys got on my nerves a bit a times but i ended up liking him by the time the book finished.

4.5 stars.

I thoroughly enjoyed this paranormal romance set in Boston featuring the occult and trying to exorcise a demon from one of the main characters, what more could you want!

This features a polyamory romance with an MMF ‘hinge’ or ‘V’ dynamic where Rhys has a wife Moira but then gets back to together with his ex boyfriend David (the one with the century old curse). I do wish there was a teeny bit more on page romance but hopefully we can get this in further books.

Rhys got on my nerves a bit a times but i ended up liking him by the time the book finished.

4.5 stars.

i haven't been this excited for a fantasy novel in a bit, maybe because i'm primarily a literary fiction reader, but evocation hit the mark and left me wanting more. that's because david, rhys, and moira are so fun to follow as gibson redefines what a traditional monogamous relationship looks like with trust that the love is there. there's an urgent but kind sense that each character is allowed to learn more about themselves by going after something they want, which is so refreshing. if anything i just wanted to see more of rhys' relationship with moira as well as how the new england academic setting exacerbates david's struggles with alcohol. however, i am so excited to read the next installment of this series for years to come.

this was such a fascinating read! the character dynamics, the plot, the astrology, all of the magic, everything was just so, so interesting.

ST GIBSON HAS ZERO SKIPS!


I am so in love with her writing. I love the way she tackles abuse. I love her characters. The magic she creates.


I will forever recommend her books.

This is the paranormal poly story the world didn't know it needed. It follows David, a skilled occultist who is pretty sure he's being unwillingly possessed. His only hope of finding a solution is to ask Rhys and his newish wife Moira for help. Unfortunately, Rhys is David's estranged ex, and the dynamics are...difficult.

Underneath all of the paranormal excitement, Evocation is about boundaries: how to set them, how to sustain them, how to grow with them. It is the antithesis of the miscommunication trope, which was a breath of fresh air. I enjoyed portrayal of a couple traversing the rocky terrain of transitioning a monogamous relationship into an open one. It felt real and unglorified, raw and full of dichotomy. I also loved seeing a lead couple not only supporting one another, but also holding each other accountable through some big life changes.

The fantasy/paranormal elements were also really well-done, and I loved how Gibson pulled from multiple mystical/spiritual fields and practices to make the magic system. You've got the gambit from Catholicism to Santeria, tarot and summoning to Christian prayer.

Evocation is a great read for anyone who enjoys magical mystery, second chance romance, healthy relationships, real world problems in a paranormal world, topped off with great writing.

Ahhhhh this review is tricky for me. When I started Evocation I was ENRAPTURED like truly just swept up in the magic and the angst and the gothic-ness of it all. But by the end I feel like I was left feeling a bit let down? Which pains me to say as much, truly!!! I expected this to be a 5 star read going into it, and I think I’m teetering between a 3 - 3.5 Stars :/

David is the most powerful psychic medium on the East Coast, and has been practicing magic within the occult since he was a young child. He comes from a long line of powerful magic wielders, and has a lofty inheritance to match. Rhys practices in the occult as well, tenaciously absorbed in books and research at all times to make up for his hardly existent natural magic ability. His wife, Moira, is a naturally gifted witch, from a long line of magical women, using her abilities to provide tarot readings for clients. How do all of these characters relate to each other? David and Rhys used to date, and had a deep and toxic love, but now they hate each other, and Rhys is married to Moira.

Rhys and David both belong to the same secret occult society, and therefore are forced to be pleasant with each other at meetings, but otherwise have not had outside contact in six months. Until David becomes ill, after a wayward something-or-other latches onto him during a routine summoning of the dead that he was performing for a client. Feeling this uninvited entity inside him, David’s health continues to decline, until he is forced to ask Rhys for help, knowing that he is the only one capable enough to even potentially help him.

David, Rhys and Moira are thrust together to try and solve this mystery, whether they can stand each other or not. But time is running out, as they recall an old tale passed down through David’s family, in which his ancestors had struck a deal with the devil; power and the ability to use magic, in exchange for the soul of the family’s youngest son. With no solutions presenting themselves, this tale may hold more truth than they originally suspected. Through their time spent together trying to figure this mystery out, David, Rhys and Moira will also need to figure out what exactly they mean to each other.

SPOILERS AHEAD:

[Okay, now that the very vague overview is out of the way, let’s get to the nitty gritty, because I want to be specific about this one.

I think I may have suffered here from having too high of expectations. I think this book did what it set out to do: there was a gothic mystery, with explorations of polyamory, and lots of angst. BUT I don’t think it did it in a way that left me starstruck.

I almost felt like the chemistry fell a little flat to me?? And I felt a bit like the characters weren’t showed to have evolved as much as I know the author had wanted them to come across as such. I know that makes no sense, but to put it plainly, the character growth is implied and somewhat shown, but I just don’t feel like it came across as authentic. Even bordering on almost a little scripted and repetitive at times. It’s hard, I can’t quite put my finger on it, but something was missing, something that would make me walk away swooning and thinking “oh my god I’m OBSESSED WITH THEM!!!!” as I so often do with romances lol.

I do also feel like the end was a little anti-climatic for me. There was so much time spent developing this mystery in the beginning half of the book, and then it all sort of just fell flat at the end??? Genuinely just feeling so confused, it started out SO strong, and the second half just kind of lost me :/

I definitely don’t think this was a bad book whatsoever, and I think so many people will enjoy it!! I just think it was missing something for me. I saw another review that said this was not super strong on the plot details, and more into the relationship building, and I think that’s accurate, but I will add that I don’t feel like the relationship exploration/growth/portrayal was successful for me, so that, paired with feeling like the plot didn’t go deep enough, led me to just be like, mehhhh by the end. (hide spoiler)]

Thank you VERY much to Angry Robot Books for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this arc in exchange of this review.

I don’t think this book was for me, but I can see why others did enjoy it. Personally, I did not feel attached to any of the character and that the world building/magic was lacking. It was by no means a bad book, but I expected a bit more after enjoying “A Dowry of Blood” by the same author.

It was an unexpected modern occult book, but I greatly enjoyed it. In some regards it could have gone deeper, and left me a bit unsatisfied - it felt like some parts were a bit rushed. The relationship was beautiful and I'm looking forward to spending more time with the characters. The writing was very atmospheric and sometimes surprisingly funny.
But in the end, I felt like something was missing - maybe a feeling of urgency throughout the novel. I never got the feeling that our MMC was in any danger until the end. And I didn't understand what they did in their occult club.

I'm looking very much forward to the next book. thank you for the ARC.

When last year I read S.T. Gibson A Dowry of Blood I was swept away by its unusual story and equally unusual narrative style, so that when Evocation was announced I was more than eager to sample this author’s new work.

David is the latest in a long line of famed magic wielders; as such he’s part of the “aristocracy” in the Boston magical scene: rich, handsome and successful in both his occult and mundane activities, he has everything one might desire - that is, until one day he realizes he’s the one who will have to pay the price for a demonic deal underwritten by one of his ancestors. Frantic to escape the fate that’s in store for him according to the terms of the deal, he has no other choice but to seek the help of another conjurer, his ex boyfriend Rhys, provided of course that they are able to mend the rift that brought to their violent breakup, and that David can overcome the strong objections of Moira, Rhys’ wife and a powerful medium, who can barely tolerate him.

As the three of them meet over the course of several days, trying to get to the source of what ails David, who suffers both physically and mentally from the demon’s onslaught, David’s jaunty façade begins to crumble, revealing many of his insecurities and past wounds, and the feelings between him and Rhys start to surface again, while Moira discovers that she can appreciate David’s company and starts building a strong bond of friendship with him. Their complex interactions also dovetail with some important changes in the Boston magical scene, while the pressure from the demon becomes almost unbearable and David’s life hangs in the balance….

I must confess that I had quite different expectations for this story: first and foremost, the synopsis hinted at a harrowing battle against powerful demonic forces, and at a deeper look into the influence of magic on our modern society, which this book presents as something quite natural. Unfortunately these elements are kept to the sidelines and the major focus of the novel is on the personal exchanges between David, Rhys and Moira and their slow journey toward a polyamorous relationship: granted, this latter element proved to be interesting, thanks to the exploration of the various dynamics of such a complex liaison and to the painful history of two of the concerned parties, but from my point of view it ended up taking the lion’s share of the narrative space, shunting the encroaching demonic danger to a corner, so that its weight on the characters and its resolution felt more like an afterthought than an integral part of the story.

And then there is the tone of the narrative itself, which is quite different from the opulent, almost lyrical writing I enjoyed in A Dowry of Blood: the story’s setting of course required a more modern form of expression, but I could not avoid constantly comparing its… mundane feel with the rich, beautiful writing that so captivated me in S.T. Gibson’s previous novel, so that I have to sadly admit that the overall feeling I was left with at the end of the book was that of wistful disappointment.

My hope, since this is the first in a series, is that the next books might recapture that special quality and offer a closer look into the layers of magic present in this vision of our modern world…

This book HOOKED me in the beginning and unfortunately it slowly lost me. This would’ve been great if it was 250-300 pages but the plot was drawn out with to many words and not enough action.

I liked the characters and relationships initially but they also bothered me the more I got into the book. I don’t mind flawed and dramatic characters (they are actually my favorite) but David and Rhys were to unlikeable for me. I don’t like how Rhys was pining after David the entire time he was married while simultaneously lying to Moira about it until he cheats on her with David. And Moira was just cool with it bc “she knew” ? She had a whole conversation with someone saying how much that would hurt her and he wouldn’t do that. I felt bad for her!

Overall this was ok I just was expecting so much more!

A well written romantasy with relatable characters and intriguing plot. Gibson does excellent work engaging her readers.

Yes. Yes to everything about this book.
The characters, the writing, the plot. I was emerged in it all. It started pretty slow for my liking but I am definitely happy I kept going and didn't DNF. It was well worth the read.