What a fun, spicy fall read! The chemistry in this book is top notch. I’m jealous of the friendships represented and I wish I owned my own coffee shop in London. This is the perfect October read! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook, all opinions expressed are my own.

What a spicy little spooky read this was! I enjoyed all the characters in this book. I found it extremely readable and a fun book to read during the fall season. I was very surprised by how spicy the book was as well- go in knowing there's several open door scenes. I really enjoyed learning more about Dina, especially related to her Moroccan heritage and loved her mom and dad's love story. Dina and Scott's relationship was without a doubt instant love which is something that I don't always like but it worked with this one. This was definitely a fun addition to my fall reading plate, and I am excited at the potential for a sequel to this book involving some of the side characters. 3.5/5 Stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballentine for an advanced readers copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

Loved this book!

Dina is a kitchen witch. She owns a cafe' where she makes amazing teas and baked goods infused with her magic. This results in repeat business. When Dina was still in culinary school, she thought she was in love with someone. But when her lover started pulling away, Dina cast a binding spell to make her come back to her. But the spell ended in disaster and in turn, Dina was hexed. The hex would harm whomever she fell in love with romantically. So when things would start to get serious, Dina would immediately end the relationship.

When Scott walks into her store for some tea, he's enamored with the owner. Having just healed from a hurtful breakup two years ago, he was a bit hesitant about asking for her number. But that weekend, she's the maid of honor at the same wedding he's the best man at, and they can't fight their sizzling chemistry anymore.

But when Scott starts having little accidents randomly, Dina knows that the hex is at work again. She has no choice but to break both of their hearts by ending their relationship. Only one witch can help Dina break the hex; her mother.

But will it work?

*I received a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC for my honest review

I really loved this book. It was so cute and fun and I loved both the main character and her love interest and their friend group! This is great for the fall season and I really recommend it!! It is heavy in the spice for those not a fan of that as it’s more spice than I normally read but still enjoyed!

I read this arc and immediately went to purchase a copy.

I've been in the mood for cozy Halloween romances and this story did not disappoint. I'm not usually a fan of insta-love stories but with the magical elements infused throughout this one, I got swept up in the story so easily. I found Scott and Dina's attraction to have been written so well and I thought the author did a good job of playing on the anxiety of what would happen as a result of the hex and I liked how that ending up playing out.

This book followed the recipe for a solid romance with: lovable (even if sometimes a bit meddlesome) characters, personal growth by way of the main characters' developing love story and a memorable setting.

This was definitely an enjoyable debut and I look forward to future Nadia El-Fassi works.

Much appreciation to Ballantine for the complimentary copy!

This was honestly really cute! Loved the Kitchen Witch content, it was a fun magical element that I’ve never read before and I did enjoy the romance, but the spicy scenes were a bit cringe with the overuse of “seam” and “folds” because those give me the ick. Would have given this a bit higher rating if not for that aspect.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Love a baking book and then it’s cute spooky spiritual magic stuff? Love that. It was a cute read and would for sure recommend to a friend for an easy read

I loved the magical realism of this book. There weren’t any bad characters, I enjoyed them all! This was the most perfect book to read during the Halloween holiday, super cozy. It was just a bit too spicy for me, at some parts I felt it was a little too much and took away from the book. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

Best Hex Ever has lots of fun elements. The vibe is autumnal and cozy. There are lots of yummy sounding baked goods, plenty of spellwork, lovely descriptions of the English countryside, and a grumpy cat familiar named Heebie.

Dina, the FMC, is a kitchen witch who owns a bakery in London and weaves gentle spells into her pastries to promote confidence and warm feelings in everyone who eats them. However, in her love life she's had horrible luck, due, she believes to a hex laid on her by her first love that dooms anyone she falls in love with to suffer injuries and possibly even death. When she meets Scott, a new curator at the British Museum, and fate keeps pushing them together, she tries to deny her feelings but can't. Ultimately, though, unless she can break the hex, the relationship (and Scott) will be doomed.

All of the building blocks for a cozy witchy romance are present in this book. Dina and Scott's relationships with their families and friends were also well portrayed. The problem for me was that the romance didn't come together as well as the other elements did. There was too much reliance on insta-lust/love and too much spice coupled with too little romance. My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

This was such a cute romance! Loved their chemistry and it seemed clumsiness but it was the hex. I need to find a bakery with a kitchen witch I would love to eat food that was imbued with positive energy or healing magic.
Loved their meet cutes and how they kept running into each other. Also the hex turned out to be not entirely what she thought it was though it was harming those she fell for.

Dina is a kitchen witch, making her magical pastries in her own bakery. When Scott walks in one day, there is an instant attraction between the two. Dina notices the attraction but has promised herself that she would never be in a relationship after she had been hexed, causing a string of bad luck for any of her partners. When the two meet again at Dina's best friend's wedding, they can no longer deny the attraction the two have, but can the two work together against the hex determined to tear them apart?

Best Hex Ever was the perfect story for the start of Fall. I am not usually a fan of the instalove trope, but this book was so much fun, and I loved the chemistry between Dina and Scott. I was surprised by how much spice was in this book but was completely for it. Best Hex Ever opened up the possibility of a second book in this series and would be an instant add to my TBR.

Best Hex Ever is out now.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for the opportunity to review Best Hex Ever. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I wanted to love this one and there are parts that I do, but overall it’s a miss for me. I loved Dina’s baking and how her magic was infused in it. I also liked how her culture and magic was presented in the book. I appreciated the take on Scott’s job as a curator and what responsibility that is. For me, insta-lust does not work. I like spice but I need emotions and build up prior to physical relationships, and that’s where this one lost me. I know it’s popular and being talked about and I wish it nothing but lots of success.

I really enjoyed reading about Dina's witchcraft. Who doesn't love a magical kitchen? I also liked Dina and Scott's connection. It happened fast, but I felt like it was believable given the magic in the story. I was willing to accept that their connection was another result of the magic and a little cat matchmaking.

I was surprised how much Dina's sexual orientation was a part of the plot. Dina identified as bi and her unwillingness to share that information with her family caused a lot of problems for their relationship. I struggled a bit with her unwillingness to put her relationship with Scott above her fear though I did like how the issue was resolved.

I think if you like a magical romcom and don't mind some instalove this is a great choice. The magic was fun and I liked how Dina's magic could be a blessing and a literal curse.

LOVED LOVED LOVED!

Such a fun cute read that kept me kicking my feet up in happiness. And the perfect amount of smut for a cozy witchy read. I felt like I was a part of the friend group and was there with everyone. I also wish that magical forest was real and I could go there. I would love to just sit on the forest floor and soak it all up.

Go read this book now!

Thank you to netgalley for the ARC!

So delightfully cozy and charming. I thoroughly enjoyed snuggling up with this book and a tea. Magic, romance, fun characters, and cozy joy all around. Highly recommend!

This fun, entertaining and spicy story is full of adventures, love and magic. The banter is great and well written. Dina is a kitchen witch casting spells on baked goods, coffee and teas to make customers feel good about their days. Scott is a museum curator who happens into her cafe one day. There is instant attraction between the two but both are too shy to say anything about it. But, they keep accidentally meeting up with each other until they realize they have mutual friends and are to be participating in a special event together. The fun and excitement continues from there and the heart of the story begins. <br /><br />I thoroughly enjoyed this book 📕 and gave it a 4.5 ⭐️ rating, with a spicy rating of 3.5. The narration was spot on and well preformed by both narrators. I highly recommend this well written novel, I recommend reading it during spooky season for a fun and interesting read.

a baking witch who is cursed so that everyone she loves (romantically) gets hurt meets a British museum curator who just returned to England after running away after finding out his girlfriend cheated on him. When they meet, they both feel something and cannot stop thinking about one another. They meet again on a train while traveling to their respective friends’ weddings…. It turns out it’s the same wedding. now they are forced to be close to one another, all the time. they’re even staying in the same small cottage at the wedding destination. Can they break the curse? will he get hurt before the curse can be broken? will they end up together? also, will the wedding go off without a hitch?

I would suggest this book for people who are into books with a moderate amount of spice and looking for a fall book to read that fits within this category. I, personally, am not a huge fan of spice in books and if there is spice, I prefer it to be once the characters actually know each other quite well. I found here that there was a physical attraction first, which then turned into an emotional one. That's not to say anything is bad, it's just not my personal preference.

a very witchy yet spicy urban fantasy romance

rating: 3.5

what i liked: all the kitchen magic was sooo creative and fun, major cozy vibes for sure. i also really liked how dina's moroccan background and magic was present in spellwork. her relationship w her mom was sweet too, esp w her struggle with whether to come out or not (yay bi rep!). even her friends and her mom sharing magical moments was super cute.

what didn't work for me: the romance was super instalusty, which i wasn't expecting. they would go 0 to 100 in their heads about wanting to bang lol sometimes it was a bit much for me. also if my friends roomed me with a random guy i never met for a weekend i would not be chill about it lol.
i would've liked more build up in that respect and a little more exploration with scott; it was cool to hear about his work as a museum curator, but he felt a bit two dimensional when it came to the relationship dynamics with dina.

overall a sweet lighthearted romantasy with lots of magic.

an honest arc review ♡

Tropes:
Slow Burn
Witchy
Strangers to Lovers
Golden Retriever MMC
Black Cat FMC

I really enjoyed the first half of the book. It was very cute, and felt a lot like fall. I definitely wasn’t expecting it to turn so spicy. I wasn’t mad about it, just totally didn’t expect that. I kind of felt like the spicy scenes were a little bit much but I also think that’s because I wasn’t expecting it.

It felt a little bit like a cross between a hallmark love story and Harry Potter. This was the first Romantasy book that I’ve read and I enjoyed it.

I felt like the ending was a little flat for me, there was a lot of back and forth between should I tell my mom about the hex or should I not?

Overall it was a good autumn read. Thank you NetGalley and Nadia for letting me read an advanced copy of the book. I’m so greatful !

This was a adorable cozy paranormal romance debut with fun characters and a sweet romance.
Our main character is a witch who runs a cafe where she can infuse her food with magic for her customers. She is suffering from a romance curse that dooms any man she becomes involved with. When she has a "meet cute" with a potential suitor over a paranormal Halloween theme wedding weekend she is determined to break the curse and save her love life. Can she discover how to break the curse before he is in danger? They are perfect for each other except for the curse.

The characters are richly defined. the paranormal aspects fun and the romance done perfectly. A enjoyable read I recommend.