Thank you NetGalley, Laura Thalassa and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I absolutely love Laura Thalassa, her books are amazing!
Firstly I read bewitched which I loved! And Bespelled is the 2nd book in this series...after how much I adored the first book, Bespelled did not let me down-I COULD NOT PUT THIS BOOK DOWN!!! My favourite part of the first book continues in book 2-with the FMC's internal dialogue in both of the books in this series being hilarious and also the MMC is 🤩🔥 (and even moreso in Bespelled)!..This book is for fantasy romance lovers with steam 🌶🌶🫢! I cannot wait for the next one!!!!!

This is the second installment but not the last. Laura Thalassa truly blows you away with her story telling. She has truly got the ability to make us hate, then love, then hate Memnon all over again. Selena has been through so much yet still gets back up and does it all over again. Of course it ends on a cliffhanger but what a cliffhanger. I want to know ASAP where this is going. Which is why Laura is so amazing. The grip she has on us. We can’t get enough and beg for more.

Laura Thalassa doesn't disappoint.
This was a super good second book .
And I would recommend it to other readers

I don’t Fangirl very often, but I think I have to this time. I’m pretty sure I sprinted through this book. It is full of mystery and passion and a good amount of suspense. Please be aware of some possible triggers as there is some abuse, (not by a partner and not sexually) but it doesn’t last very long. With that being said. WOW. Just wow. I absolutely loved this. You finally meet the Dark High Priestess, and you get to find out who is murdering the witches. Selene aka Roxi turns into a real badass and comes into her own. And let’s not forget all the wonderful spicy bits. The buildup between Selene and Memnon is perfect and amazing.

I only have two complaints. I am not a fan of the last chapter aka. The cliff hanger. I mean I get it, you want the reader coming back. BUT, can we stop with the I love him I hate him. I trust him, I don’t trust him. I can see where this is most likely going but I really could have done without the last page. My second complaint and this is the biggie… When do I get to read the next book?

i was so excited for book 2 in this series and being able to read it ahead of time made me so giddy! this book was everything i wanted it to be and more. it had drama, it had so much groveling (that I lived for), it had answers, and oh boy did it have spice. i laughed, i cried, i gasped, and i fell more and more in love with Memnon and Selene.

my man Memnon is so damn swoon worthy it’s not even funny. the groveling he does had me all in my feels. you can definitely feel the love he has for his est amage, Selene. Selene herself is a power to be reckoned with. she is the epitome of “i don’t need no man” and she rocks it. i love that Memnon will burn her enemies down for her, but he also encourages her to do it herself because he knows she can.

one thing I really love about this series is that even though it’s fantasy, it’s also in the “real” world. don’t get me wrong i love escaping into fantasy lands but being able to see modern day things in a magical story is refreshing.

One of my favorite authors. She did not disappoint with this book. Everything I needed explained she did. I like the blurb in the beginning that explains what happened in book 1 and I wish every book had a little description in the beginning

Bespelled by L. Thalassa is the second book in the Bewitched Duet. This is not a stand alone, I strongly recommend to read the books in order. The previous book is Bewitched, the beginning of Selene and Memnon's epic story.
Review of book one: Bewitched by L. Thalassa, published by Sourcebooks Bloom Books, is the first installment in this new series.
Memnon is a trapped entity who's waiting for his wife to find him for eons. His beautiful wife Roxilana, who has no clue what she really is.
Spoiler:
Selene is a witch who wants to attend a coven university. But time and time again she was denied for reasons unknown to her.
She has a , lets call it a medical condition, means using magic leads to losing her memory, how fitting for the powers that want to keep her away from her mate.:
The story ends in a majorcliffie and continues in the next installment.
A fast paced, complex read that had me in suspense from start til the last page, 4,5 stars.
Back to book two.
The story picks up where the previous one was leftt off. Memnon is back and graduadely he discovers why his soulmate did what she did. And he can't believe what HE did. The powerful sorcerer has his work laid out for him to win her trust and love again. A spellbinding read, literally unputdownable, twistsy and suspenseful.

Amazing follow up, loved it, happy to be back to this world and this characters. Really enjoy Laura writing and this series , im seriously enjoying.

5/5 stars!

This is the second book in the Bewitched series, and it picks up right where we left off. Selene regains her memories and Memnon’s revenge comes to a screeching halt once he learns what actually happened in their past to lead to his entombment.

I really enjoyed Bewitched, but I felt like something was missing. Bespelled brought it!

First, let’s all take a moment to appreciate Memnon… Memnon is the ultimate morally grey MMC. He is loyal to no one except Selene, but he loves her so hard that his actions often cross into immoral territory; however, he never steps in unless she specifically asks for help, and he always believes in her even when she doesn’t believe in herself. Selene has a lot of character growth in this book due to her regained memories, and she becomes a total baddie. Memnon never fails to remind her that she was, and still is, a fierce Queen!

I appreciate how original this series is. I haven’t read anything quite like it. There are a few common themes (i.e., magical academy, fated mates, enemies to lovers, etc.), but the plot was extremely well thought out and I did not anticipate all the twists and turns. Some of Selene’s inner dialogue literally had me laughing out loud, and good lord… Memnon’s mouth!

Thank you to Laura Thalassa, Sourcebooks Bloom Books, and NetGalley for the eARC! My only disappointment is that we have to wait for the next installment!

#tropes

🖤 enemies to lovers
🖤 curses
🖤 touch her and 💀
🖤 bonds

I loved how I could seamlessly go from book 1 and into book 2. This book topped book 1 and I went through this so fast. Memnon and Selene are 🔥🔥 and their relationship and chemistry that continues to grow even through the continued story of theirs with this one. Absolutely a page turner and will have to wanting more by the ending. Hurry and grab this series! You won’t be disappointed.

Thank you @netgalley, @bloombooks and the author of this book for an opportunity to review this e-ARC.

4.5 ⭐️
3.5 🌶️
Memnon, you’re shady but I love you.
Selene, girl. Your man is an ancient king cut him some slack, okay? Cause every time you needed his help, he was there for you. Thats what counts!

The pacing was good, and I feel like a lot of the plot has come together and we got a lot of answers. I really loved the look we got into Selene and Memnon’s background and their history together. It was woven together perfectly. I feel like Selene made some questionable decisions and I really hope that ending doesn’t harbor a miscommunication trope.

Thank you to NetGalley for the E-ARC!

I have been eagerly waiting for this book. I needed to know how Selene was going to get out of jail and away from Memnon. The author certainly took us for a ride with this 2nd installment: Memnon begging for Selene's forgiveness, getting a job and not totally being an evil sorcerer. I'll take that as growth. I can't wait for the next book!

I created my account on NetGalley specifically to be able to request arc of Bespelled by Laura Thalassa. This book was one of my most anticipated releases of 2024 so I’m really grateful I was lucky enough for my request to be approved!

But as is often the case I’m yet again a bit disappointed by book I was so desperate to read right now.

I’m not the kind of person to make notes while reading but with Bespelled? I have few pages where I aggressively scribbled „Selene is an IDIOT”, „Selene is acting stupid”, „Selene acts like brainless bimbo”, „Selene is so gullible!” ect… So yeah… Me and Selene are not friends right now…

I do understand Memnon treated her BADLY in first book, but cut that man some slack! He had every reason to think she REALLY betrayed him. Now when he knows the truth – he GROVELS… And she still treated him as villain for most of the book.

When we got that scene of their last moments together in previous life I was heartbroken… (But it was obvious Eislyn will still be a problem in their current lifetime…)

I’m not going to lie, the criminal plot was actually boring for me. We didn’t get much backstory about Fortuna Family so even that plot is an integral part of this book, I wasn’t invested.

For me this book was about Selene acting stupid!... We got SOOOO MANY scenes with her being an idiot it’s not even funny… I was so ANGRY at her for 90% of this book (but I guess it could be interpreted as character well written – character that gives you some FEELS… but please – I really hope for some positive character development for Selene in next book, I don’t want to be THAT ANGRY again!)

But why was I so angry at her you may ask? Well, let me get you some examples… She knew she was wanted by some witch called Lia, there were killings and kidnappings across her coven university and she still lived there… she still went to celebrate Samhain! (almost all that scene was awful!).
There were more scenes like that – scenes where because of Selene stupid actions something went TERRIBLY WRONG… Because she lived by saying „caution be damned”, she almost lost Nero and Memnon was badly injured!

In my opinion that girl deserved every bad thing that happened to her and every second of pain she was in! She did that to herself! But did it teach her anything? The answer is NO.

Bespelled had some sweet moments between Selene and Memnon and Nero was being disarmingly cute but few good scenes isn’t enough for me to rate this book higher than 3/5 :(

I will read next one, but maybe I’ll try to lower my expectations and then I won’t be that disappointed.

Thank you NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books, for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved the first book in this series Bewitched so I was highly anticipating Bespelled! With the way book one ended, I wasn't sure how this would go because Memnon needed to do a lot to make up for his actions to Selene. I am happy to say that we got lots of groveling and lots of time building trust between Memnon and Selene and I loved every second of it. This book also expands a lot more on the mystery that was introduced in the first book. There were a lot of questions answered and things came to light but there is still so much more for us to learn in the next book. Besides the growth in the romance, my favorite thing about this book was seeing Selene grow into her strength and learn how to fight for herself and those she loves. Those moments were empowering to read. There was also so much action which was fun and the witchy vibes were perfect. We also see a lot more creatures like ghosts, faeries, and demons. The ending of this book left me on a twist that I am not sure how I feel about but I am once again highly anticipating the next book in this series!!
Thanks to Bloom Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for a review!

3 Stars - I had high hopes that I would enjoy this one more than the first, but unfortunately this fell just as flat for me. I’ve loved so much of Laura’s other work that I’m bummed this series isn’t hitting right for me. I cant tell if it’s the writing, pacing, or just the plot/situations feeling off. If you enjoyed the first book I have a feeling you’ll love this one as well! Memnon does do a good job of saying sorry though 😏


Thank you to NetGalley and Soucebooks Bloom Books for the earc.

We meet back up with Selene, in prison, after getting her memories back and binding herself to Menmon. The story then follows Selene in her quest to understand what is happening to her fellow witches, and what exactly is going on under the coven. To do this she of course needs help…

This was very fun and easy to read. I really enjoyed the “history” of Roxi both in its own chapter and little glimpses the rest of the book. Things I kept waiting for to happen did end up at the very end, so I know we’ll be getting a third installment (at least) in this series. I do have some other suspicions that I’ll be curious to see in book three (I’m I’m guessing correctly)

I love it when small recaps start at the beginning of a book with:

"In the Off Chance That Asshole Memnon Screws with My Memory Again"


Because you know the lead female is about to kick the butt of the male lead all while offering us a small recap of the first book. Also, bonus points for the sarcasm added to it. Seriously, our girl called him a "tit-sucking whoremonger." She was ready to throw hands at our male lead, but I am certain he would enjoy it wayyyy too much from her.

And speaking of our male lead, he deserved to grovel at her feet. He should be continuously groveling at her feet. I understand his position because he was made to believe the circumstances from his own experiences without knowing her side and now that he had it - he was remorseful for his treatment of her and I am glad to see that. Honestly, I prefer him as a morally dark grey color. While he may have been painted the villain in the first book, I don't see him as such anymore. I see more as this darker grey character neither hero nor villain but stuck in between because of his desire (and love?) of Selene.

I love how things are heating up, not only in the love department for Memnon and Selene but in general. We have a story filled with mystery and a past that doesn't seem to be just in the past but mixes into the present storyline. This series has become one of my favorites and I cannot wait to see what Ms. Thalassa brings to the next book.

"We are like the stars. Eternal."


Yes, yes you are, Memnon, both you and Selene. I cannot wait to see you both in the next book. it cannot come fast enough for me.

*Disclaimer: Thank you so much to Netgalley, Ms. Thalassa, and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for allowing me to read the ARC. The review was given has been on my own and I am not paid for it.

5 -⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Neither magic nor time can keep up apart...We are like the stars. Eternal."

Bespelled is the second instalment in the new adult paranormal romance series, Bewitched. Following immediately after the events of book 1, Selene is scrambling to find control after the pact she made with Memnon on the night of the Samhain ball and to escape to accusations levied against her. In a final call, she makes another play against the powerful and vengeful sorcerer that bore fruit...through a magic bond that gives her power only as long as she does not love him. Together these too long lost enemies/lovers will work together to uncover the secrets that haunt the academy and find out who has been killing supernaturals...while also playing a game of all is fair in love and war.

This book had all the delicious angst I needed after book one.

Selene is faced with new revelations in this book that shake her view of the world. I found I enjoyed how she still kept to her true self despite the changes she faces. I found her spunk and determination to keep searching had me rooting for her and I admired her stubbornness in the face of things. She knows she is falling but sticks to her guns because she knows the risks. I always felt like I understood where she was going and I truly felt for her struggle.

Memnon continues to have a way with words that just hits me. His devotion and love for Selene in powerful and as he gains truths we see it shake his world...but he by no means vulnerable. He is a product of the ancient times and it is evident in his actions. There are many secrets to him that we are uncovering but I do not doubt the love he feels and the lengths he will go to give Selene the life he once had with her.

Also, Nero is adorable and fierce and I love him.

In terms of spice this book was about a 3 spicy pepper out of 5 spicy pepper. While the character fight their attraction initially...well one of them does...once they start to have spice in continue throughout the end of the first half into the second half. Their foreplay leading up and I enjoyed how their spice grew as their connection did. Memnon may give up control at times but Selene is far from the dominant figure here.

"You are the air in my lungs and the blood in my veins, and all the power and glory in the world are useless without you-"

The story itself takes us through an investigation style idea with Selene searching for answers. There is plenty of high stakes (the heart palpitations!), some return to the academy, and werewolf drama that helps shakes things off. I recommend checking triggers as there are elements of torture and references to child loss. Despite the dark grit to the world, we do get these beautiful banter filled moments of Memnon and Selene that had me by the gut on top of exploration this darker aspect to this world. I felt the pace was well done and I devoured this in two sittings. The ending is a cliffhanger and will leave you raw but I am adamant every will be fine...right?!?!

Thank you Sourcebooks for the arc!

Bespelled completely surpassed all of my expectations. I can’t even put into words how magical this book was. Memnon grovels A LOT but still has the same temper and humor. Selene is all of the cunning independent witch she’s always been but with her memories back she is a force to be reckoned with. The fantasy and magical elements are upped in this as well as the stakes which will have you flipping the pages at rapid speed!! This did have a darker element compared to the first and i absolutely LOVED it. I can’t wait for the next in the series!!

“Cities can burn and centuries can pass and none of it means anything to me with you”

This book ATE and was so addicting to read! First off, I loved the brief recap in the beginning of the book, I felt like it helped me to remember the major points from book one. Book two is a ride! It starts off with Selene sitting in a cell, and she finally has back all those pesky little memories from her former life. But someone is still killing witches, and forming binding spells and Selene is determined to find out who is behind everything. Maybe with a little help from an ancient sorcerer who is intent on groveling till his last days. Their love is eternal, and it was amazing to see Selene's back story from her first life with him. It felt super intense reading it, but we finally got answers to many awaited questions! This book was intense and had me on the edge of my seat at times! There was one or two twists that I didn't see coming! But it was an amazing book and I cannot wait for book 3!