Both of the main characters were incredible. Willow was raised outside the coven in secret and has this unwavering strength hardened by her circumstances.
She is everything I want in a FMC. Alaric Grayson Thorne. First of all, can we take a moment for that He is broody, vicious, powerful, and
possessive. All of the traits I drool over in an alphahole. As the headmaster of the school he is tasked with bringing Willow in when the coven discovers she exists. Gray is a Vessel, and like vampires, they feed on a witch's blood. There is a deep history there.
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What had once been allies serving the same higher power had become tentative enemies trapped together-an animosity that grew over generations.
The tension between them was very much I-hate-you-so-much-I-want-to-rip-your-clothes-off. When the clothes finally did come off, the spice was blazing. The banter had me pivoting between laughter and fanning myself. These two! Sudden swoon warning.

I adored this book! The magic system was so interesting and the characters were well developed. I was absolutely shocked by the ending and I cannot wait to jump into book 2!

The Coven was an exciting take on Dark Academia. The pacing was top tier. The eerie, spooky vibes of the campus, town, and surrounding areas hit the spot. AND THE TENSION between the two main characters was almost more than I could bear. We love an anti-hero, villainous MMC, past lives, secrets, and mystery. I can't wait for book two because questions are still lingering, but also the ending was extremely satisfying. 10/10. Read Immediately!

WHAT. A. VIBE.

Literally so perfectly spicy and such fantastic, dark, spooky season vibes. I loved this book and ate it up in a day. It's short and fun and definitely sets the mood for Halloween. Gray is a dreeeeeamy morally grey (read:morally awful to literally everyone but her and even to her at times) and I adore him for it.

4.5 Stars.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

So I liked the book but it felt a little like it came from wattpad. It felt a little juvenile and there were a few things that definitely could have been fleshed out more. Now maybe those things are addressed in the second book though. I will say though that I did not see that plot twist coming.


Thank you to NetGalley and Bramble for the ARC!

Glad it has a TW page, because I would take it serious if you’re a reader hesitant about those things. This book is filled with all of the cliche romantasy tropes, but not quite enough depth for each character that I was hoping for. The ending is great and definitely makes me want to read the second one asap!

4 ⭐

What to expect:
• Paranormal fantasy with witches, demons and vampires
• Dark academia vibes, perfect for autumn
• Enemies to and lovers
• Fast paced and angsty
• Forbidden romance and dark secrets

This book was a wild ride! It was absolutely addictive and fast paced — I really recommend it for fans of the Zodiac Academy series — it was also messy, angsty and sometimes a bit confusing. And it's a perfect dark and spooky autumnal read with a isolated witchy university setting.

I adored the elemental magic system, it was complex, unique and so well done! Although there was a lot of worldbuilding to be thrown into, I didn't find the magic confusing, it was one of my favorite parts.

Willow (the FMC) is fierce, powerful and stubborn — I loved her! And I also loved seeing a curvy FMC, particularly in a fantasy book. I found her refreshingly realistic as she was super confident most of the time but struggled with her purpose and indecision at others.

The romance was a true enemies to lovers and the chemistry between Willow and Gray (the MMC) was magnetic! But it was definitely more lust than love and (minor spoilers for the crazy ending coming up — but it might be important if you’re reading this for the romantic element) this first book (view spoiler) I still think this works well as it’s a complete duology and a short, very fast paced book. I’d be annoyed if I had to wait to see what happens, but I don’t!

This book wasn't perfect but the atmosphere and beautiful writing made it one I couldn't put down. I'm already dying to jump into the next book in this series!

Thank you to Tor Publishing Group, Bramble and NetGalley and for this ARC

After reading a loving another series by Woods, I was ecstatic to see this book available through Netgalley. Unfortunately, this book fell flat for me. I do love a good revenge story, and bonus points for an enemies to lovers story. I didn't feel a strong connection with Willow, but it was enough that I kept going. Thorne was my issue. He had all the right stuff to be an awesome shadow daddy, but he just felt flat for me. I think if I could have liked him better, I would have really enjoyed this read. The magic was interesting if not fully original. Other than my mediocre feelings for the characters, I think one of the things that took away from my enjoyment was the connection between witches and Lucifer. I don't know exactly what about the combination made me feel like that detracted from the story. We have so much history combining the two that it made the world building feel shallow perhaps. Regardless, this read delivers for readers who need plot with their spice. I would recommend if someone who is looking for a quick, spicy read.

This spooky and spicy book was the perfect kick off to my fall/halloween reads for this season! Highly recommended across BookTok, this book pushes the edge of morally bankrupt characters, brimming with dark romance and magic. Be sure to check your content warnings before reading, but if you are comfortable with them, I highly recommend you dive into this fun duology!

I found the first part of this story quite confusing, but it started to make sense as we learned more of the backstory.

With that said, by the end of this book, I was sitting on the edge of my chair waiting to find out what was going to happen, did not fully expect that ending and I cannot wait to read The Cursed to find out what the ramifications of the ending are!

“For those who love them villainous.”
Book Dedication by Harper L Woods
Aside from the fact that I love anything Harper L Woods writes, this dedication hooked me from the beginning! Willow is resilient and strong willed. She was raised to do one thing, take down the Coven. But when she gets to Hollow’s Grove University she finds things aren’t always as they seem. I love a good academia romance, especially set in a collegiate setting where everyone is *ahem* of age. Enter Alaric Grayson Thorne, a man full of much mystery and puts the sweltering heat into the term slow-burn.

“You think I would allow anyone but me to touch you?”
The Coven is a bit spicy without being off the charts. Quite tame for some of the other books I’ve read by Harper L Woods. However the heat is still prevalent. Add in the paranormal of witches and vampires and you have yourself a gothic romance full of mystery and intrigue. I highly recommend diving into this story without knowing too much about it, so I will leave you with this:
I wanted to tear his throat out. I wanted to tear his clothes off. The fact that I wasn’t even sure which one I wanted more terrified me.

I wanted this to be so much better than it was. I think there is a lot of potential here. The magic system sounded really interesting and who doesn't love a dark academia setting? However, any depth, worldbuilding, or character development was completely abadoned in favor of the romance. At that felt lack-luster and completely unbelievable. This would have really paid off as a slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers kind of thing. And the plot twist at the end? Fantastic. But honestly I just didn't really care that much by the time I got to the end because I didn't believe in the characters, their motivations, or their relationship in the slightest.

I liked the premise of this until I started reading it. The dynamic between Gray and Willow was hard to get past. Ultimately, not my favorite, but I will say that Woods really threw me for a loop at the end. Halfway in, I said there was no way I wanted to read book 2. By the end, I was teetering on maybe.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of this title!

3.5 - i loved the character development that progressed through the book but I found the age gap to be off-putting at times and made me not want to keep reading.

I think the nicest thing I can say about this book is that I laughed really hard at the last line. Pretty sure I wasn’t supposed to laugh but my god what a stupid last line. The second nice thing I can say is that I didn’t finish this book out of spite. I was mildly amused by how bad it was and the premise was really cool, just executed so very badly. I wish this had had more editing done and been built into the solid book it could have been before being published traditionally. The sex wasn't even good enough for me to understand why this book is popular. But I'm sure there will be someone I recommend it to someday who will love it. It was not for me.

*** Thank you Netgalley for an Arc of the book**

The Coven is book one in the Coven of Bones series and ends on a cliffhanger. This is a gothic, dark-academia, paranormal romance and includes elements that may be triggering to some listeners.

Willow has known for many years about who she is. her father has trained her for her destiny! so save her brother she agrees to attend the Hollows Groves University. all is not as it seems the headmaster grey is a vessel! Can willow survive long enough to find the bones of her ancestors and fulfill her destiny!

I was really excited for this witchy school book but unfortunately it fell flat for me i felt like not a lot really went on in the book a few smutty sceanes nothing i haven't read before. the usual cleashays. so many trigger warnings that i felt weren't needed. didn't keep me interested enough to want to read the next book.

What’s there not to like. Dark academia with beautiful people. I loved fmc she was so perfect from the start. The pages went fast and even though gave nothing different from this genre it def keeps you entertained.

found this to be a bit too trope-y and even with the TW at the start, a bit too dark for my tastes. the relationship isn’t anything to root for, it’s toxic and messy, and the insta lust aspect was cringeworthy. i also found the story had many inconsistencies throughout.

When I stumbled upon The Coven, I wasn't sure if l'd like this book. Don't get me wrong, l love books with witches and vampires, but I'm not all about the spicy romance type books. Anyway I decided to give it a try, and I am so glad I did. I was hooked from the beginning.

The book follows Willow Madizza, a powerful witch, who is on a mission to find the bones of her aunt and complete her father’s mission of revenge. She gets invited to Hollow’s Grove University so that she can learn to use her magic away from prying human eyes. The only problem she faces is the scrutiny from headmaster, Alaric Grayson Thorne. The unwanted attention only makes her mission harder.

Thorne is a Vessel, a being in a body created by the witches long ago. Essentially he’s a vampire, but in this world the Vessels need witch blood to stay alive. Because of this, the Vessels are subservient to the witches and rely on them to survive.

Willow is a breath of fresh air to Hollow’s Grove. She’s here on a mission, and her attitude towards The Covenant, two ancient witches that are actually animated skeletons, and the rest of the college is fantastic. She is such a badass character and she does what she wants. The tension between her and Thorne grows and becomes a great enemies to lovers trope in the book.

I absolutely loved this book! This first book in the duology is not very spicy, but there is some included. After the shocking ending, I am ready for book two. I would definitely recommend this to any fans of books with witches and vampires. It also has a nice dark academia setting as well