Thank you to Colored Pages Book Tours for letting me be a part of this tour!

This is my second F.T. Lukens book, and it's safe to say I will read everything she publishes. I know of two other novels and the goal is to read them both this year. I had a feeling they will be a new favourite author when I got the chance to read Spellbound for a blog tour, and I was right.

I had a great time reading about Ellery's beliefs; about Knox and the nature of his existence. Another thing I enjoyed reading was Charley and her determination to make sure Ellery knows that they are loved and important.

These two characters, Ellery and Knox, are easy to love regardless of their flaws, which makes their growing connection (including Knox's with Ellery's cousin) so wonderful to witness. I swear YA romances, when done properly, hits different.

Give this book a go if you're in the mood for some grumpy / sunshine, found family, and queer representation.

Would I recommend this book? Absolutely, yes.

Ellery grew up on their parents’ farm, but after five years of unrelenting winter, their parents were struggling financially, so Ellery moved to the city to work. They now live with their cousin, Charley, and her girlfriend, Zada, and work as a dishwasher at a local diner, sending money back home. Ellery is frustrated that their parents still believe in the supernatural, still pray to the gods and goddesses for an end to this strange period of winter, instead of finding practical solutions to their problems. Ellery is sure that if there actually are supernatural beings looking out for them, they wouldn’t let people starve and lose their homes by locking their local region in endless winter.

Knox is a familiar who works for the queen of the Otherworld, a space between the living world and the life beyond. Knox gets called in when people negotiate deals for their souls and need the assistance of his magic. Knox’s has been on his latest assignment for five years and, in all that time, he has not heard from his queen and she has not responded to any of his many letters. He can’t understand why she is ignoring him, or ignoring the people of the region by not changing the seasons. When his assignment ends, Knox is due to be brought back to the Otherworld, but he is not ready and still confused about what is going on with his queen, and so he runs instead.

Knox finds himself heading right for Ellery’s diner, and Ellery comes to Knox’s rescue before he can be taken back home. With Knox having nowhere safe to go, Ellery, Charley, and Zada invite him to stay with them while he gets sorted out. However, Knox knows he will not be safe from the shades who seek to bring him back to the Otherworld unless he has another bargain with a human to tether him to this world. And as Knox and Ellery get to know one another and grow closer, Knox begins to hope that Ellery might be able to help. But as Knox learns more about what is causing the mysterious winter, he also realizes that his dream of staying in the human world might be impossible. Knox and Ellery have fallen for each other, but finding a way they can have a future together is going to take bravery and sacrifice from both of them.

Otherworldly is a clever and sweet young adult fantasy from author F.T. Lukens. The story opens as we see a human making a bargain for her soul at the crossroads between realms, and Knox being assigned to help as her familiar. It brings us right into the action and gives a sense of the world building from the start. The set up with the mysterious five-year winter adds a really interesting dynamic, causing this conflict for Ellery between their parents’ belief in the supernatural and Ellery’s own doubts. They are frustrated with their parents’ blind faith and the fact they are wasting money on offerings to the gods and wishful thinking, rather than finding more practical ways to deal with the situation. And then, of course, Ellery meets Knox and learns that the supernatural is real and suddenly must realign their thinking. It is a nice set up and I enjoyed some of the paranormal elements as the group encounters not only Knox, but a siren, shades, various minor gods and goddesses, and other supernatural beings.

I did find the first portion of the story a little on the slow end, however. A lot of the time is Knox and Ellery getting to know one another and sort of day-to-day activities. Some of it is because Knox is eager for everyday experiences, but this is a long book and things dragged a little bit for me in the first half. After that, the action picks up as we learn more about the cause of the endless winter and Ellery and Knox both must face some significant trials. The story definitely has some nice exciting moments throughout (including some situations that may be intense for the youngest readers) and I found it a fun adventure.

I enjoyed the developing relationship between Knox and Ellery. There is a grumpy/sunshine vibe between them, plus a fun dynamic in that Knox is not human and is just getting a chance to explore the human world free of the bonds he normally has as a familiar. The romantic side is kept to the sweet (versus sexy) side of things and the book is pretty G-rated, with a few passionate kisses, but no more. The pair are cute as they are both crushing on each other, and there are heroic moments for both Knox and Ellery as they make sacrifices for the other. I also really enjoyed the dynamic with Charley and Zada, who are sort of the big sisters to Knox and Ellery. It is such a lovely relationship among the four of them and the older girls are a big source of love and support for the two teens.

Overall, I found this one an engaging YA fantasy. I really enjoy Lukens writing and think this is another great story.

I truly love magical worlds. This was a cozy read. If you’re looking for that cozy/YA story, this is the one. I love that the main character is nonbinary. The familial and platonic love bonds in this story are quite healing. The character growth was so pleasing to read. A very cute book; memorable “awee” moments. I really enjoyed the ebb and flow of this story - (action packed scenes, and then light moments in between).

Thank you McElderry for the early review copy, my opinions are my own. This book is absolutely gorgeous, so I had to have a physical copy for my trophy shelf.

Ellery doesn't believe in the supernatural, they very much hate the idea of the supernatural, but it's hard to not believe when you've been stuck in a 5 year long winter. They are in the city trying to make money to save the family farm, living with their cousin and her girlfriend. Then the supernatural finds them and they can no longer deny that the supernatural is real, especially since Knox is not of this world.

FT Lukens did a fantastic job with the non-binary Ellery, and the very unique Knox, developing their friendship and interactions. I loved how the story progresses, the twists, turns, teen age tropes (manifested due to a love of tv and movies), the lessons that are learned, and the bargains that are struck at the crossroads. This books dedication caught my attention "For those ready to heal and those still in pain, may you find comfort and love." This book dives into acceptance, and also standing up for one's beliefs (whether they lie in the supernatural or just in the belief of feelings.)

"A crossroads was not meant to be a final destination but a place between one point and the next. A liminal space where the barrier between worlds was thinnest. A perfect location from which to beseech the gods." A place to make a bargain, just be wary what you are bargaining for and with whom you make the bargain.

4.5 out of 5 stars.

Thrust into a world of the supernatural, we are introduced to Knox who can’t seem to get the one human they’d like to get help from believe he’s a familiar. Ellery, said disbelieving human, eventually cracks down under the pressure when attacked by three crazy weirdos called the Shades who walk around in dark cloaks and finish each other’s sentences. Between the humor, witty banter, unforgettable cast including a nonbinary lead, and the Other World drenched in magic and goddesses, this novel is so much fun! It’s difficult to put down once you begin because you are dropped in an unimaginable situation of a five year winter causing Ellery’s current city of residence to slowly become a ghost town. And the only way to break the constant chill of ice costs more than anyone would bargain for. Absolutely stunning, it is a must read for 2024.

What a sweet cozy fantasy! This has a cute, low spice romance, found family and acceptance, plus some magic and other realms. Because the main focus of this is the characters, the pacing is a little slower but not boring. I would totally be up for more books set in this universe, maybe exploring other characters and seeing what else the magic can do.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Margaret K. McElderry Books and NetGalley for the copy.

This was a sweet, light read. The characters were cute together and their found family was even cuter. Watching the love they all had for each other was my favorite part of this book.

I did find the sentence structure simplistic and redundant, so that made it harder for me to immerse myself in the story. I'm also not a fan of the miscommunication trope, especially when it feels contrived, and it happened three times.

The characters sometimes made choices that didn't make sense, like taking a time out from being chased by dangerous beings to go have a cry about something.

So overall this was cute, but not to the level I was hoping.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for the ARC.

This book was very original compared to many others that I have read, and I genuinely enjoyed it! I do not typically read teenage/YA books, but this was one that I would definitely recommend to my friends and followers.
The story was go-go-go until the end which I appreciated, and it really helped hold my attention.
The queer representation was extremely natural, and this is an area that I find other books really struggle with. It was not really mentioned explicitly, and it was just kind of "there" while not fading into the background.
This was my first F.T. Lukens book and I will definitely be checking more out!

I don't typically read YA. However, Otherworldly is a beautiful story and I loved every second of it. I loved all the characters and their various personalities (I feel so much kinship with Charley it's not funny). The sweet kind-of-slow-burn of the romance was great, the soft innocence of new love. And the story itself was intriguing and gave plenty of unexpected turns. This is not one to miss!

Chaotic Crossroads

3/5 gnomes

I liked this book but didn't love it. The cover is beautiful and draws you in.

There are besides the first chapter, two points of view in the book Ellery and Knox. I definitely liked Knox's point of view more.

The crossroads magic is intriguing and the mystery of what's going on is interesting.

I almost DNF (did not finish) this book more than once. The writing feels kind of scattered at times but the action scenes were really well done.

This is the kind of book where even more points of view might have been beneficial or more entertaining.

I did adore the found family they had going on. It was great how they all supported each other through all this weirdness

Overall a magic book with a lot of potential.

IN A WORLD (okay, just a town/area) that has been in the depths of winter for five whole years now, Ellery Evans has moved from their family's farm to The City to try and make some money to keep said farm afloat due to aforementioned winter. One day they run into Weird Hot Guy Knox, a gossiped about presence in their diner-of-work and thusly sets forth a tale of crossroads bargains, shady shades, and all sorts of things that lurk just outside of human comprehension, both good (or at least normal) and bad. And while the two try to protect Knox from having to be dragged back through the crossroads, maybe there's some love-falling while we're at it.

I'm not sure if I wasn't super in the mood when I read this but I thought it was fine! Nothing particularly grabbed me, or maybe more accurately the things that did grab me were kind of settled pretty easily (in a way that would involved talking about spoilers). Some parts felt longer than the book actually was, but I enjoyed this grumpy/shiny sort of pair and I like characters like Knox who are cheerful and learning and having a nice time being cute! Also, Charley and her girlfriend Zada were great, they really helped these foolish teens ...be less foolish? I don't know; they were great! I think any issues I really had really had to do with my own expectations of an outcome when something would happen that didn't, so that's definitely on me. But it's cute, the cover is GORGEOUS, and I think FT Lukens fans will really like this one so I'm gonna round up to 4 stars.

Another thing was everyone automatically gendering Ellery as 'they' which sort of stressed me out at first (being a non-binary person who reads femme even when I had my hair shorter and tried to present more androgynously) but I learned to accept it as "yes this urban fantasy everyone just knows best for some reason and that's good and fine."

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing | Margaret K. McElderry Books for the eARC in exchange for review!

I had a really difficult time with this one. I wasn’t able to connect with any of the characters and I tried. I stopped reading for a bit, read other things, started again, and it just fell very flat for me. I wanted to love this so much. It felt very incomplete and not entirely thought out?

F.T. Lukens keeps making absolute BANGERS, and I am here for them!

OTHERWORDLY was an absolute delight to read. I am so glad that Lukens has found this niche of queer supernatural romance between unlikely characters with a dash of found family. Add on top of that the fact that this book is (I'm pretty sure) an Orpheus and Eurydice retelling, and I am SO THERE.

I loved this book. The world was very interesting, I love the incorporation of supernatural beings in everyday life and settings. Essentially 'hiding' them in plain sight is something that I love to read about and let my mind wander. None of this is even touching the characters however, I loved the two leads. Ellery and Knox were so incredibly adorable separate that I almost couldn't stand them together. Knox is a familiar who gains power from being attached to a deal, which is all well and good until he runs away after his last deal ends. Desperate for a chance at a human life, he decides to convince Ellery to enter a deal. Ellery is a farm boy who has moved to the city in order to make money to send back to his family's dying farm. He also definitely does NOT have a crush on the Weird Hot Guy who comes into the Diner occasionally (Knox). The two form an interesting bond and soon perhaps a romance starts to bloom. And yes, I did cry while reading this book.

I devoured this book in a day, I could not put it down. Knox is a little ball of sunshine to Ellery's grey cloud and it is the cutest thing ever. They were both well-written, and even in the parts when Ellery was being stubborn I still understood his reasons. I also completely loved Knox being so knowledgeable about magic and supernatural beings, but being completely hopeless when it comes to 'normal' human things.

If you are looking for a fun romp through a Queer romance with heartwarming and heartbreaking elements, this is the book for you.

Thank you Netgalley and Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing for the eARC!

This story was so cute! It had found family, star-crossed lovers, and a sweet romance. The characters were definitely the highlight for me - each one had their own unique personality and spark, even the secondary characters. Zada and Charley were particularly memorable because they help emphasize and reiterate themes of self-discovery, emotional authenticity, and acceptance of love and differing perspectives.

While I really enjoyed the overall concept of gods, goddesses, the “other world” and supernatural beings hiding in plain sight, I felt that the fantasy elements overall could have been further explored and developed. The stakes didn't feel high or complex enough for me to fully invest in the story or a lot of the characters' decisions, which led to a slightly underwhelming climax. As someone who loves and reads predominantly YA books, I found the overall complexity and pacing to be a bit juvenile at times because of that.

Regardless, I really think that young adult readers will enjoy this book and find a lot of comfort in it. If I had read it in high school, I would have absolutely loved it. Overall, as my first F.T. Lukens book, it was a fun and cozy read, and I would definitely pick up another one of their books in the future!

Thank you NetGalley & publisher for providing me an advanced copy!

This book should be the surprise winner of the season! It is absolutely charming. Expert world-crafting, flawed but loveable characters, and a storyline that feels familiar and alien. Delightfully and openly queer, with some of the best characters I've read this year. (I adore Ellery.) And the found family I've been missing since One Last Stop! There's also a chilly twist you (might not) see coming!

"A crossroads was not meant to be a final destination."

"A crossroads... At least Ellery had a destination in mind. 'Okay,' they said. 'One step at a time. Just keep going.'"

3.5 - a cozy, wintery romance. If I'm being honest, I was on the brink of dnf'ing this for a while, but by the end I figured it out: I was looking for the wrong things in this book. F. T. Lukens' typical strengths are lackluster here - but this book is also significantly stronger in areas where their previous novels were very weak.

The F. T. Lukens formula is lovable characters plus a top tier, giggle-inducing romance in a thin world with very little plot to speak of; Otherworldly is almost exactly the opposite of that. I struggled to get invested in this book because Knox and Ellery weren't just underdeveloped as characters, they were in fact copied and pasted directly from Spellbound. I'm serious. I understand and expect some degree of similarity from time to time in an author's body of work, but these are the exact same two people, with the same personalities, strengths, and weaknesses, falling in love for the same reasons and hitting the same emotional beats. Not only that, the romance arc honestly felt more abrupt and less fleshed out. I was expecting that to be the part that hooked me, and I found it underwhelming compared to my hopes and expectations for it.

The saving grace is that this book is actually paced and plotted more tightly than either of the other two I've read by this author. I certainly won't claim this is a particularly ground-breaking or intricate plot, but it was fun, cohesive, and made sense the entire time - and as much as I dearly love Spellbound, I cannot claim the same thing for it. The worldbuilding was also genuinely intriguing, pulling in a lot of enjoyable fantasy elements in creative ways that won me over.

By the end of this book, I thoroughly enjoyed the treacherous, magical journey and the realm of gods and goddesses while accepting that I just did not care about the romance at all.

Thank you NetGalley and publishers for a copy of this wonderful story!
Um, YES.
Pretty original storyline. Loveable characters. Off the charts CHEMISTRY. Queer. Found family. The coziness. Magic. What else could you want?
I love them all so much.
Zara and Charley’s cute nicknames for each other, oh my gosh. I need someone in my life.
Will definitely read more of Luken’s work in the future.

-non-binary
-queer
-found family
-magic
-gods and goddesses

This book hooked me in from the first chapter. I loved the character development and how the story progressed.

a special thank you to netgalley and publisher for the arc!

this book was WONDERFUL. i had such a fun time reading it. it’s charming and it has this cozy feels that is just *chef’s kiss.* quite literally in love with the atmosphere of this book. not to mention, the diversity (!!!!) and queer representations included, along with the exploration of pretty complicated topics (such as belief, difficult relationship with parents, financial problems, etc).

i love love the main four characters, i’ve become very fond of them as i went through their shenanigans throughout the book. ellery and knox of course, but charley and zada!!!!!!!!!!! you two will be missed.

i love seeing their dynamic with each other— how they went about their days and how they developed as a pretty major change happened in their life (ekhem sudden supernatural being’s existence under their roof!). it was so natural and heartwarming at times, but also *wildly* entertaining and hilarious because most of their interactions read like a sitcom and i had a BLAST. (especially charley, i’m very very fond of her <3)

ellery and knox were so!!!!!! their bickering at the beginning, them slowly warming up to each other, how soft they were after, and the angst and guilt and uncertainty that came in between was so so SO GOOD. this has dual povs (which already is a bonus point honestly ) and i enjoy both so much. i love love being able to see both perspectives of the relationship and get to know more of them beyond their designated role in said romantic relationship— (which is also why every romance book with dual povs done right is always always superior 😁)— and FT lukens just did it RIGHT.

ellery had their own struggles and backstory, and so did knox, and i’m so happy we got to see each of them explored and how these two ended up recovering and finding the best solution to their respective problems, both with help of their new otherwordly acquaintance and by their own will. i love love both of their character arcs, most especially with ellery.

now! the romance! ellery and knox’s story pulled at the heartstrings! it was all in good fun and cutesy cute, but then someone suddenly said things like “how love remembers” and i had this sudden urge to scream, cry, and throw up. knowing how one of them was feeling while the other was close to them or when something bad happened to the other, and how it was just either longing and affection and adoration and this feeling of safety and contentment intensified, or purely angst and pain and worry and *screams* IT WAS SO GOOD. i love them so much.

sorry this has turned more into a rambling rather than a *checks notes* proper good actually intelligible review, BUT with all that said, i DEFINITELY do recommend you to check this out! there’s definitely lots of things that i missed, but if you love a good, diverse, cozy ya romance with a touch of supernatural, then i think it totally deserves the try!

4.25 (★ ★ ★ ★ .25) stars! 3.1.24

“This story… has ‘star-crossed lovers’ written all over it.”

Otherworldly is FT Luken's latest dual POV fantasy romance release with a non believer in a town forgotten by the local goddess and a Familiar on the run that they save. Ellery moved to the big city to work after their family couldn't afford to feed them at the family farm after an eternal winter hit their town. They spend their days working at a diner with their cousin Charley, and then living with said cousin and her girlfriend Zada.

Safe to say, it's a pretty boring life for Ellery - the only highlight is keeping an eye out for "hot weird guy", a customer in the diner. Ellery would never talk to him though - until their paths cross when Ellery saves Knox when he's getting attacked in the alley. Knox, being a familiar on the run without a bond to the human world knows he needs to find a new one soon.

Rather than returning to the Other World, he wants to experience the human world and a chance comes in the form of Ellery - if only he could get the other to believe in the supernatural once more. They enter a bargain, information on the local goddess in return for "living the human experience". With Knox's position safe for now, these two embark on the small joys of being human from hockey games to frat parties and sleepovers.

But all bargains must end - and while these two run the risk of falling in love, Knox is bound to forget his memories when it's over. The clock is running out on both them and this town if they can't fix the eternal winter.

This book was just such a comforting read with low stakes and a fun setting. I loved the side characters too - Charley and Zada are the epitome of "In LOVE" and they are warm in taking in someone that needs help. Over and over we're shown the truth of platonic love in their hearts and how much Ellery cares for them back.

My only issue with this book was the romance itself - I just couldn't get over the uncomfortable feeling with the pairing. Knox's memories get wiped each time he enters the realm, but he's technically thousands of years old. Ellery is by all accounts human and a child. Even if Knox was new to the world it just seemed icky to read. I liked how it worked out in the ending but the middle had me touch and go for a minute.

This book has ALLL of my favorite things - found family, queernormative world, grumpy x cinnamon roll, a checklist (I'm type A!) and hockey games! I really loved how there was no discussion on Ellery's gender, it was accepted that they used They/Them pronouns and people rolled with it. Overall, I'm a fan of anything Luken's writes and this one hit the right notes for me.

rep// MLM, WLW, Bi rep, non Binary MC

cw// death, murder, stalking, blood, violence, abandonment issues

Thank you to the publisher for sending me this ARC!