UNDER YOUR SPELL is one of the best romantic comedies I have read this year. From the banter to the plot to the characters, everything, to me, was sheer perfection. I loved this book so much that I am now going to go back and read it a second time because I want to be back in the world the author created. Honestly, I think this book is amazing and you should read it.

This book was incredible for so many reasons. The plot, while it seems a bit convoluted, WORKS, and I have to say that is because of the author. Her ability to incorporate the plot intermixed with the tension she creates, the classic romantic comedy angst, plus the fully fleshed out slow burn romance deserves a slow clap. And not only that, she also creates amazing banter between characters, character growth, and fully fleshed out side characters. It is truly a feat and incredible to behold. From the first moment I started reading, I knew that this book was something special. Every aspect of this book is done well.

To me, this book is a favorite of mine for the whole year and I’m probably going to buy a physical copy so that I have that one too. It’s filled with a slow burn romance, fully realized characters, and an engaging plot. This one is worth the read and is one you should read immediately!

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Under Your Spell is an utterly delightful and charming story. I was completely invested right from the start. Clemmie is the second child of rockstar fame Ripp Harris, who had her, and her sisters, with three different women within a few months. As unusual as it was, I loved how the author wrote the family relationships, and the different dynamics between the sisters (they call themselves the "Weird Sisters").
Clemmie stays away from the music world as much as possible, until she finds out that her one-night stand is none other than rockstar Theo Elliot, also the guy she reluctantly agrees to babysit for six weeks.
Although Clemmie tries to maintain a distance from Theo, as does Theo, there is an undeniable attraction between them, and they slowly grow from the awkward we-won't-make-this-a-thing to friendship, and to something more. I absolutely loved Clemmie and Theo. Theo was green flag all the way.
Added to all of that, something that always works for me is a secondary cast that adds meaning to the story. I loved every one of them - the parents, the siblings, and the exacting and meticulous David (Theo's assistant).
Laura Wood spins a beautiful tale with an underlying wittiness that made me chuckle at the most unexpected moments.
Under Your Spell is a wonderfully wholesome story, and I enjoyed every bit of it!
Thank you to Atria Books for the ARC via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

I absolutely adored "Under Your Spell" by Laura Wood! It's such a swoon-worthy story and the perfect summer romance. From the moment I started reading, I was hooked.

The story follows Clemmie, daughter of a rock star. She is coming off a breakup and her and her sisters meet up at their family home to cast a spell to change their luck.

After the spell is cast Clemmie meets Theo at a funeral and has a one night stand. What Clemmie doesn’t know is Theo is a rock star, just like her Dad and crappy Ex boyfriend.

The tension between Theo and Clemmie is just magical. Their chemistry is off the charts, and their story feels so real and heartfelt. It had me smiling, sighing, and totally invested in their journey together. I was rooting for them the whole time!

Usually, I’m not a fan of books with a huge cast of characters, but Laura Wood nailed it. Every character has their own mini side story, and I loved exploring each one. They’re all so well-developed and interesting, adding so much depth to the book.

I could almost feel the warmth of the sun and the gentle breeze while reading. It’s the kind of book that lets you escape into its world completely. I definitely recommend you add this book to your summer TBR!

Very cute and very well done. Really hits that sweet spot of "I can't believe this book hasn't been written yet" while also feeling comfortably familiar.

The title AND cover are somehow both blah. (I hate to say it, but it really needed cartoon people instead of this guitar??) Ignore this and read it anyway.

What a delightful romcom! One of my favorite tropes is the famous person + normal person romance, which this book offers a unique spin on - the "normal person" in this story is the daughter of a famous person and has made the decision to stay out of the limelight. So, what happens when she falls for someone who will place her squarely in the limelight?

The story centers around Clemmie (short for Clementine), who has just had a particularly brutal breakup with a very mediocre guy. After an evening wallowing with her two sisters (who share the same rockstar dad, but different moms - this little family of women is so wonderful!), the three decide to take matters into their own hands and cast a spell to set things right, just like they did as girls. There isn't magic in this book, more like manifesting (though it certainly *could be* magic) - just pointing this out for those who love or hate magical elements (they really aren't there). But the spell casting is a turning point for the sisters, and we get to follow along with Clemmie as their wishes slowly come true.

The love interest is Theo, who is pretty perfect, which I found just lovely, though some may roll their eyes. I felt like Clemmie needed perfect TBH. But don't take this to mean that everything goes how I thought it would - there are lots of surpises and great choices the author made. This was such a fun read, and I would recommend it to just about anyone. It's closed door, though it's pretty steamy even so.

Clemmie has a few rules in life. Always trust her sisters is one of them. Another is never date a rockstar. But when she gets a job offer that she can't resist, she has to put aside the later.

I loved this book so much! One of my top reads of the year! Here's what I loved.

Clemmie. She was everything I want in a FMC. She's funny and devoted to her family. She's also strong and resilient. I wanted to be her friend!

Theo. My gosh. This man was amazing. He's sexy and talented. Overall, he's perfect for Clemmie. Their back and forth works so well.

The setting and the side characters. Most of the book takes place in the family cottage on the beach. It gives the book a great atmosphere. Along with that, all of the side characters were amazing. The relationship that Clemmie has with her two sisters and all of their mothers just made me happy.

All in all, this was a hilarious and little bit spicy romcom.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the gifted copy!

I love a good fake dating story! This was such a quick read for me! I enjoy the music background scene and over all it was funny, cute, romantic!! Something about an off limits bad boy rock star gets me every time!

I don't usually reach for a rockstar romance but I picked this one because I really enjoy a romcom with a supernatural element. While the supernatural element was very small here I still really enjoyed this book!

Clemmie was very hesitant to be in a relationship and I loved how Theo respected that and didn't push her. He was her friend and supported her. He also made her feel special. I appreciated that Clemmie was willing to face her fears to be with Theo even though it was very difficult for her. Their relationship was surprisingly sweet for a rockstar romance.

I also really appreciated Clemmie's relationships with her sisters and that we got to see a bit of her sister's stories too (we don't get their POVs but they have small arcs). I also thought reading about her upbringing was fun!

I struggled a bit with the amount of angst in this book. I tend to prefer lower angst books and this one was medium to high angst. I especially don't like angst that I feel is unnecessary which was a bit the case here. However, I think that's more of a preference than a critique of the story.

I think fans of he falls first and a sweet romance with a bit of angst will like this one! I wouldn't pick it up looking for a paranormal romance though. It's more about self discovery and facing fears.

Clemmie has just had a terrible breakup and with the support of her sisters and their "spell" she is trying to move on with her life. When she meets a mysterious Edward at a funeral, she decides he may be the guy she wants to try to move forward with (for one night). When Clemmie meets rock star Theo (formerly of a boy band and now a solo artist) she can't believe the twists her life is taking. The relationship between Clemmie and Theo was so fun to read. I loved the premise and the way things were developed between them BUT the star of this book was the relationship between the three sisters, all daughters of an aging rockstar. The support and love they had was so fun to read about, too. I couldn't put this down and reading it made me happy. I smiled and I laughed and I cheered on Clemmie and Theo. Thank you so much netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is absolutely MAGIC! Cue stars in my eyes and dancing around to happy music, even as I read this book from 11:30-3:00AM! Clemmie is an amazing FMC and her story is told so well. I felt like I knew her and her sisters and I felt their close-knit bond. Their story as a family is so unique and creative but has genuine heart and real depth to it. Theo is a perfect addition to the story from the very first time the back of his neck is described. The tension and chemistry that builds between Theo and Clemmie throughout the entire story is just beyond words (in the best way possible). The supporting cast was so well done and the sister magic was so real. Even though there is a third act break (?), I loved this story and already want to read it again. Even as I finished it, I wanted more from this family and I could see this being such a perfect movie. I’ll be over here plotting the cast until I see a real one announced! 5⭐️, 1.75🌶

I am so excited to review this ARC!! ✨
If you're looking for a musician celebrity friends to lovers romance with some witchy magic🪄, this book is for you. From the first chapter I was HOOKED! It was emotional, sexy, funny and everything in between!The chemistry between Theo and Clemmie was *chefs kiss*. I loved the sisters, how absolutely supportive they were through everything Clemmie has been through. The development of every character in this book was amazing. I really felt like I knew them personally! The humor in this book was top tier, there were multiple moments I actually laughed out loud! All in all it was a fun, easy read.🥰
Huge thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for allowing me to read ahead of time so that I can pester all my friends how heartwarming and funny this book is and that they need to get it ASAP!

What a fun read! I loved the forced proximity and rockstar vibes, and related with Clemmie so much in so many different ways! I thoroughly enjoyed this read, and will definitely be looking for more books from Laura Wood in the future!

4.5 stars. This was such a lovely book. There were different kinds of love explored here, romantic and familial, and the highs and lows of both of those. There were also themes of self-discovery and growth, career struggles and burnout, and navigating complex family dynamics.

The book opens with Clemmie having a no-good, very-bad day after a string of events have led her to a place where she’s single, jobless, and about to lose her home. In an effort to cheer her up, her sisters show up to bring back a play spell of wishes that they came up with in their teen years. By ‘magic’ or coincidence, in roundabout ways and completely against what Clemmie believes she wants, those wishes start to come true.

First, I loved Clemmie’s relationship with her sisters, Lil and Serena. The whole family situation between them and their mothers was so unique. It felt like the epitome of turning lemons into lemonade that ended up being the perfect recipe. I found the whole thing beautiful. My heart hurt for Clemmie and the way her past had played out. It was completely understandable that she had trust issues with men and also with her own instincts. The positive impact therapy had on her life was well represented and provided some lightness in humorous moments with therapist and, by extension, Theo.

Theo, Theo, Theo. It was an adventure from concealed-identity-one-night-stand to friends to lovers, but one thing was clear even without any Theo POVs—he was down bad for Clemmie from day one (even if it wasn’t clear to her). The poor, out of touch with reality rock star does not know how to handle himself. There were great sick/caretaking scenes that helped break the ice, and from that point on it was such a sweet development of their friendship with simmering emotions beneath the surface.

The pacing ebbed and flowed between spending multiple chapters on one day and then skipping ahead weeks split over four parts of the book. For the most part this worked well to advance the story while still allowing for the character development. Parts three and four felt like a lot happened in a short time, but it was still overall satisfying. I never felt like I was taken out of the story, and I enjoyed it from beginning to end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was absolutely thrilled when I received the ARC approval email for this book. A few years ago, I had the daunting task of selecting my first book for the book club I belong to. I was nervous and wanted to choose something that would appeal to the entire group, but also introduce us to YA—a genre we hadn't explored much. Someone recommended "A Sky Painted Gold" by Laura Wood, and our book club's love for Laura began. We even joke that we're her biggest fan club and hope her love for "Anne of Green Gables" will bring her to our little island someday.

Transitioning from YA to adult fiction can be challenging—I've been disappointed by adult fantasy or romance novels from some of my favorite YA authors. However, this was definitely not the case with "Under Your Spell"—it is fantastic. This book had me kicking my feet, laughing out loud, and even shedding a few tears. Beyond the romance, the portrayal of Clemmie, Serena, and Lil's relationship evoked deep emotions. I imagined Theo as Harry Styles because he's my favorite, but the wonderful thing about his depiction in the book is that you can easily envision your favorite male musician in his place. Laura mentioned on Instagram that one of his songs reminded her of Hozier's "Talk," which gave me a great sense of Theo's sound.

This will be a perfect summer beach read, and I can't wait to enthusiastically recommend it to everyone. It's rare for me to purchase a book after reading a digital ARC, but I've already pre-ordered this one because I know I'll revisit it (and hopefully select it for our book club if the timing is right!). A huge thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the chance to read this ahead of my book club friends so I can rave about how amazing it is before it officially releases!

Roses: This book was really enjoyable. I instantly thought of Harry Styles reading this for our main character of Theo Elliot. He was a really great boyfriend. He had all of the personality traits that you would want to read, I loved that he was very open about his emotions and how he felt about Clementine. Clementine was a really fun and relatable character. You felt how she felt and I found it was really well done. She didn’t come across as someone who was allowing her choices to be driven strictly by her experiences and because of this, you could really see her growth throughout the story. It was really great seeing her and her sisters become the cornerstone of the story. It was just a really awesome bonus relationship that we got as readers to enjoy. The overall premise of the story with not knowing who he was, and having the one night stand, and then being forced to be together for a set amount of time was just a really perfect segue into developing these feelings for each other. I really like that mental health was talked about in the story and was dealt with pretty openly and written really well. I think that it helps to understand her hesitancy with jumping into romantic feelings for Theo right away. It’s really a unique perspective of how she came to have, her troubles and it really does make you understand how that can happen really easily put into the public eye at a really young age.

Thorns: I enjoyed the spice in the story however, I was kind of hoping there was going to be more to the spicy scenes. I mean it gave enough to put this in the adult section of a bookstore and category, but I just wanted more. Because they’re chemistry was so good when you read their conversations and their banter that when it got to these scenes you wanted it to just be as good and I feel like we were met 3/4 of the way and not completely. I also wish there was a better resolution with her mom. It felt like the explanation we got was sort of thrown in there to wrap up a loose end. Towards the end of the story, the parts were Theo took on the woe is me persona because he’s famous and it ruins everything was annoying. Ultimately I feel like it was unnecessary because in the real world if this was a real relationship like it would’ve been talked about already, and I think this ties into what I feel I was really missing throughout the last part of the story. Like they really didn’t have that whole conversation of what their relationship is and what comes with it. I mean there was even a part where she was like you made this choice for me and didn’t talk with me but then kind of just laughed it off. I think trying to make them both seem really cool and more go with the flow type of people, It took away a really important sense of agency when creating their relationship. Especially that it was used as a point of conflict for them as a couple.

3.5 💫

Super cute, laugh-out-loud rom-com. A little on the cheesy side, but it was easy to read and made me smile. Although I adored Theo, my favorite part of the book was the sisterhood and friendship between Clemmie, Serena, and Lil 🫶🏼🥹 I loved the family dynamic between them and all of their moms.

If you need a feel-good read this summer, definitely pick this one up! It comes out next month. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC!

PERFECTION!!! Thank you NetGalley, Laura Wood and Atria Books for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

MAGICAL!!! What a beautifully written, deeply emotional, extremely hilarious and utterly heartwarming rom-com that kept me grinning, cackling, swooning and shedding a few tears along the way. Under Your Spell is a charming tale featuring the daughter of an aging rock star who lands a job working for the hottest musician on the planet. Despite her firm resolution to NEVER EVER date a celebrity, she finds herself unexpectedly drawn to him, and soon sparks begin to fly. Overflowing with banter, tension, humor, chemistry, it also adds a subtle fade to black scenes. This story is about so much more than a romantic love story! Its about family, career, sisterly love, friendships, forgiveness, hope, personal growth, self-discovery, and finding joy while living in the moment without having to have your life completely figured out. This is my first read by Laura Wood and I can safely say I am under her spell! I absolutely LOVED this book so much and is easily one of my favorite romance books for 2024!! 💜💜💜💜💜

Tropes/Themes:
🎸Celebrity/Rockstar Romance
🎸Friends to Lovers
🎸Slow Burn Romance
🎸Forced Proximity
🎸He Falls First
🎸Cinnamon Roll MMC
🎸Sisterly Bond
🎸Romantic Gesture
🎸HEA

Synopsis:
Clementine "Clemmie" wants three things and Theo isn't one of them. After being dumped by her cheating ex, fired from her dream job, and on the verge of losing everything, Clementine Monroe is not having a good day. When her sisters get her drunk and suggest reviving a childhood ritual called the Breakup Spell, she figures there's no harm in trying. But soon, Clemmie accidentally ruins a funeral, has her first one-night stand, and ends up with a job she defintely doesn't want-spending six weeks alone withthe gorgeous and very off-limits rock star, Theo Eliott, the most famous man on the planet. Her life's a disaster. As their summer together turns into its own kind of magic, will Clemmie be cursed to repeat the mistakes of her past, or will her future see all her wishes come true?

Overall, it is a delightful rom-com with the perfect amount of emotional depth, humor, and romance. If you enjoy reading books by Emily Henry, Christina Lauren or Abby Jimenez then this is a book for you! I wholeheartedly recommend and it deserves all the stars!!! 🌟 🌟🌟🌟🌟

After losing her dream job, her boring boyfriend, Clemmie is definitely at a low point in her life. Fortunately, she can trust her sisters to have her back. This time it is in the form of a drunken revival of their childhood Breakup Spell. Her sisters start showing signs the manifesting “spell” is working, but the only magic that manifests for Clemmie is an uncomfortable 6-week living situation with a spoiled rock-star. At least the rent is free, and the pay is good.

I love a good sister story and a sister wanna-be-witch story is even better. This was a little slow to start, but so much fun once Clemmie and Theo moved in together. I loved the sister(s) and mother(s) characters. Theo was a hot sweetheart. Pop this one in your bag as you head to the pool or beach this summer. 4⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for this complimentary ARC. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I wasn't sure starting this book about the blend of magic and sisters and romance. Usually these things would be an instant win for me, but something didn't land in the first chapters. UNTIL IT DID. After a one night stand, Clemmie and Theo are forced into a working retreat in a remote family home alone. Misunderstanding, proximity and lots of conversations help them to realize their true feelings and when they do it is so good.

I only texted my friend about the third act break up once but once it got sorted and we realized what their intentions actually were, it was lovely. Its a great romance for those who love celebrities, close knit family and smooshy heroes.

“I’ve never made plans with anyone before, but you make me want to buy a five-year-diary just so I can write your name on every page.”

Synopsis:
Things aren’t going well for Clementine. After a breakup with the most boring man on this planet, Clementine and her two sisters get together and recreate a spell they made as children to curse him/wish for three things. She’s desperate for a job and ends up taking a six-week babysitting gig for a rockstar … who happens to be a man she had a one-night-stand with.

My thoughts:
This book felt like it was 4628 pages long, when in actuality it was 350 pages. It took forever for me to get into and was quite repetitive at times.

BUT

About halfway through it picked up once the romance plotline started. Theo was the sweetest little rockstar. (Imagine a sexy pirate). And Clementine was full of emotional word vomit. But they worked together. And the ending was so, so cute.

What You’ll Find:
🧙‍♀️ Cursing your Ex
🌟 Celeb romance
🏖️ Beach house
👏Forced Proximity
🐢 Slow burn