4.5 stars!
This is a super cute romantic comedy featuring a Clementine, the daughter of a musician trying to find her way in life after many upheavals and Theo, a successful musician. Theo is such a nice and charming main male character who puts the needs of everyone else first. I also loved, loved, loved the relationship of Clem and her sisters in this book! The musician vibes in this novel were not over the top and added a really nice layer to the storyline. I would have been satisfied for the book to end at Part 2 but the remaining story was icing on the cake.

I appreciate the simplistic cover design featuring the title and the tip of the guitar only with its strings forming a heart…it is refreshing to have a rom-com without people depicted on the cover.

Oh, I’m obsessed! I can assure you this beauty will be a favorite for many romance readers this year!

This book gave me alllllll the Ashley Poston vibes and I LOVED every second of it 🤭 Laura Wood has crafted together such an entertaining, lighthearted, and laugh-out-loud rockstar rom-com with an ADORABLE cast of characters. From Clemmie’s relationship with her sisters to her & Theo, everything about this book was perfect! Theo and Clemmie are absolutely everything that I want in a romance and more - I mean, cmon, their banter!? Yes please! And while Theo and Clemmie are the stars of this one, her sisters, Serena and Lil, really added to this book. I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed it nearly as much without them! I have my fingers crossed for future books following Serena and Lil 👀🤞

Overall, without any spoilers, this was SUCH and enjoyable read! I am so glad I was given the opportunity to read and review an early copy thanks to publisher and NetGalley!

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

★ 4.0 stars

Before I get into why this book felt like a mug of tea on a summer evening looking out over a little beachy paradise, let me share with you the revelation I had about 30% of the way through:

I think this may be inspired by One Direction/ Harry Styles fanfiction.

Now hear me out! Theo Elliot is a popular solo artist after leaving the equally popular band “The Daze,” and he’s beloved by an audience of mostly girls in their teens to twenties. Pair that with a force proximity trope that starts out as mildly “enemies to lovers” (more like begrudged FMC to enchanted FMC), and this is the perfect recipe for a Harry Styles fanfic (like the ones Elliot says he has written about him).

I don’t mean that in a negative way; I mean that in a “this is evoking strange feelings of 2014-17 nostalgia” kind of way and to me it just made this book so much more fun.

I found the characters to be charming, especially the wholesome sisterly bond between Clementine, Lil, and Serena. Their relationship was strong and realistic, and their witchy traditions were so fun. I thought at first this would be a LEGIT witch book, but I think I’m happy it’s not.

I loved Clementine from the start– unlike some other FMCs in romance novels, she was quirky without being annoyingly so, and watching her overcome her past troubles and traumas to accept love and the chance at happiness was just as rewarding as watching the romance come to a HEA conclusion.

However, I do think the pacing of this book is off. Everything after the six-week cabin arc felt random and messy, like a third-act breakup without a real breakup. Plus, the “climax” at Lil’s birthday festival felt too cliche, like something out of a cheesy romance film, which was unfortunate since leading up to it every romantic aspect has been sweet but not overly so.

Overall, this was a delightful romcom. I sort of hope we get books now from Lil and Serena’s POVs regarding their own romances, since I just loved reading about their interactions. Definitely recommend this one!

This book is definitely going to be one of the best Romance books of the year. Had heart and was so funny and sweet.

This is a story of a woman is the daughter of an aging rock star who finds herself working for the hottest musician on the planet and is shocked when sparks start to fly—especially since she swore she’d never, ever date a celebrity! Such a good read!! If you like rockstar tropes, this is a good one to add to the TBR list!

this one wasn’t exactly my cup of tea, but I enjoyed the storyline and it had me swooning, laughing, tearing up a bit, and wanting to be the FMC 😍

this was book was so cute and fun and i found my self constantly laughing. i absolutely loved clemmie and theo’s relationship, it was so pure and genuine and you could just feel their happiness and how much they loved each other. my fav part was the dynamic between clemmie, serena, and lil. i absolutely loved their sisterly camaraderie. they were all so different but all had so much love for the other and fit perfectly together. the music theo wrote definitely made my tear up and i was smitten with his oh my darling version of the song. such a great debut adult novel. thank you netgalley and atria for the e book in exchange for my honest review!

this started off REALLY strong and i was so excited to read it: british musician, former boy band member now making it big as a solo artist, tattoos -- i mean, remind you of anyone? how could i not be excited about this.

and then.. it just kind of fell flat. i felt like there weren't enough moving parts in terms of plot to keep me inverted. the writing was fine but i felt like it wasn't leading up to anything or giving me a reason to keep reading.

i do think this will work for a lot of people: the MMC is dreamy and if you like forced proximity this might be for you.

thank you to the publisher for the eARC!

This was cute, super tropey but that’s why we read romance! I enjoyed this and can see it being a popular beach read this summer.

Such a cute story! There was a little “aloof girl has no idea this boy who obviously loves her, likes her at” trope which I can’t stand BUT the story line really made up for those parts. Super cute, super sweet and at times laugh out loud funny.

UNDER YOUR SPELL was a whimsical debut set in the English countryside that follows three sisters and a “spell” they cast. Admittedly, I’m not a true rom-com reader and likely not the prime target audience for this book. I appreciate when the romance is a subplot or side story with a different prominent main theme. With the main characters being the daughter of a famous musician, and an international heartthrob musician, I was hoping the plot would have more musical elements. Instead, the main event seemed to be the hormones of young love and the harmony between the sheets. I did enjoy the setting as well as the way the characters developed over the course of the book. I wholeheartedly believe that fans of the genre will find a bit more enjoyment in this story than I did.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of my favorite romance books so far in 2024. I was so giddy reading the budding romance. This book made me laugh and pulled on my heart strings.

4.5 stars 🌟

A few things I loved:
• Theo. He’s a rockstar with a big heart. What’s not to love!
• Clemmie’s character development. There was so much I related to with her story.
• The witchy vibes with the 3 sisters and their relationship.
• The banter, the forced proximity, the slow burn. *chef’s kisses*

Thank you Atria for the arc! I enjoyed this story so much!

This was really slow in the middle. Loved the relationships between the sisters and the mothers and the magic of everything but did not feel the chemistry between the main love interests.

Under Your Spell had elements of it I really enjoyed but it dragged for me in the back half in a way that I can’t exactly put my finger on. I loved Clemmie’s relationship with her sisters. It’s a unique dynamic and worked well in the story. I even liked Theo a lot too. But I think the third act breakup played out in a way I didn’t find justified enough.

This book is an absolute delight! I devoured it like a kid in a candy store, and now I'm sitting here contemplating if it's too soon to declare it the reigning champion of my 2024 reading list. Every time I picked this book up, I felt myself relax, cozy up into my couch, and read slower (the true sign I am enjoying and REALLY savoring a book).

Clemmie and Theo had me captivated the entire book, and I've already mentally adopted them into my fictional friend circle. As for Clemmie's family moments, they're like the warm hug you never knew you needed. I laughed, I cried, and I fell deeper in love with the dynamic of Clemmie and her sisters with each page turn.

This is the first book I have read by Laura Wood, and I just have to ask, Laura Wood, where have you been all my reading life? I cannot recommend this book enough, and I have already added all of Laura Wood’s books to my TBR!

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. Come release day in June, I will be in line at my local bookstore to add a physical copy for my shelf so I can relive the magic over and over again.

I was so excited to read this one and it fell flat for me. I didn’t buy into their chemistry and it felt very rushed to me. I did push through and read the whole thing but I probably should’ve DNFd. Hopefully others like this more than I did!

OH MY GOD YOU CANNOT CONVINCE ME THIS ISN’T HARRY STYLES FAN FIC

anyway, I’m smitten and kicking my legs and squeeing with delight.

I was SO excited when I got the ARC approval email for this book. A few years ago, I had to select my first book for the book club I'm a part of. I was so nervous and wanted to pick something that would appeal to the entire group, but that was also YA- a genre we hadn't really read much of. Someone suggested A Sky Painted Gold by Laura Wood, and my book clubs love of Laura was sparked. We joke that we're her largest fan club, and we hope her love of Anne of Green Gables will bring her to our little island someday.

Sometimes the transition from YA to adult fiction can be tricky- I've disliked some of my very favourite YA authors adult fantasy or romance novels. This definitely isn't the case with Under Your Spell- it is SO good. This book had me kicking my feet, laughing out loud and I even shed a few tears. More than just a romance, the portrayal of Clemmie, Serena and Lil's relationship had me feeling big feelings. I pictured Theo as Harry Styles because he's my favorite but the great thing about how he's depicted in the book is you could easily picture your favorite male musician in place of him- I know in Laura's Instagram stories she said one of his songs sounded like Hozier's Talk and that gave me a great visual (audio?) of Theo's sound. This will be a great summer beach read and I can't wait to obnoxiously tell everyone to buy it!

It's rare that I will buy a book after reading a digital arc, but this is one I've already pre-ordered as I know I'll revisit it again (and hopefully select for our book club if the timing is right!). HUGE thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this ahead of all my book club pals so I can annoy them with how good it is before it comes out!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/199798015-under-your-spell

I loved the humor in this book. A lot of the time, I find the jokes in contemporary romance to be somewhere between “fine” and “cringey” but the banter and wit was so genuine here, and it really helped bring the characters to life. The pacing was good, if a little inconsistent at times, and the story flowed well. The use of text message and email formats was done particularly well, and there was a good balance of dialogue and description.

This book was everything I wanted in a RomCom. It was sweet, funny, and sexy, but unique enough to not feel like the same old story. I loved Clementine’s relationship with her sisters, and it was refreshing to see the characters genuinely trying to be better people even when they weren’t completely successful. Hurtful behaviors were never excused as “doing what they thought was best,” and the communication between the main couple was excellent.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC. This is my honest review.

5/5 Sometimes playing with magic brings great things.

4.5 stars rounded up. Oh my goodness, I loved this book. I didn't want it to be over! The characters, setting, plot - all perfection. Don't miss it! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.