Just so boring. I cared very little about the characters and couldn’t get into the story at all! DNF-d at 17%

My new bookish obsession. 😍

This fantasy story gives off a mix of different vibes: cottage core, witchy, dark and slavic (creature and characters are heavily influenced and inspired by slavic folklore).

Gisela is a demon, a spirit that haunts a village and likes to flirt and challenge Kazic, the only exorcist of that place. He'a talented, grumpy and works very hard to keep the village safe from demons and evil creatures. When he finally catches Gisela and she's about to vanish with an exorcism, Aleksey (Kazik's old acquaintance and crush) lets her free. Aleksey is pretty famous in the village: his family owns one of the magical bathhouses that brings tourists and wealth.

I'm not gonna spoil the rest of the story, but I'll say this: there are tons of mysteries, plot twists, characters that you'll love (I think the most adorable one are the other river spirits) and a poly slow burn love triangle with cuteness and angst involved.

This book's mood Is ethereal, magic, LGBTQIA+ friendly and with a lot of funny and goofy scenes... But there are also depiction of death, violence and homicide. This brings a hint of dark in the story.

Personally, I loved every single character in this book: good, evil, animals, demons, spirits and so on. Even the ones that had very little scenes and screen time. I also loved the worldbuilding.

If the epilogue was a little bit different, this book could have been a standalone. But since I loved it so much, I'm more than happy to know there will be sequels! 😍

As if I would rate an Alicia Jasinska book anything less than five stars! Honestly, I've fallen in love with her writing since The Dark Tide and I love seeing each book get better and better -- from the worldbuilding to the plot to the romance! And that cover! This wins my very unofficial award for "Best Cover of The Year."

Okay, now the actual review. Just had to gush a little bit.

Gisela is a rusalka (water nymph) who dreams of returning to life as a human girl, but the only way to do that is to kiss someone. Easy enough, right? Well, when your skin's faintly greenish, your eyes glow red, and your touch is deathly cold, all that tends to get you is a visit from the local exorcist. Kazik, a broody exorcist with some magical performance issues, has had his sights set on Gisela for a while. Her particular brand of chaos gets under his skin in a way few other creatures in their placid spa village can. But when Kazik's latest exorcism attempt goes awry, Gisela makes him a deal: if he can help her get a kiss from her crush, she won't tell the spirits he's losing his magic. The only problem? Gisela's crush Aleksy is a boy Kazik's head over heels for...

The setup here is perfection. I adored the town of Lesna Woda and the use of Polish mythology -- it was so fun! As other reviewers pointed out, there's a sort of fairytale timelessness to This Fatal Kiss: characters speak like contemporary teens, but the most technology they have is radios and trains. This, combined with the writing, made for a deliciously dreamlike read, and the worldbuilding here is fantastic.

I loved the chemistry and humor between our main trio as well, and I love that they're all bi! The polycule felt perfect for a YA book -- way more sweet than spicy (the most we get is the titular kiss, which I was more than fine with -- we need more sweet YA romances, imo). For me, the obvious favorite pairing is Gisela and Kazik. Their banter sparkles, with Gisela's flirty and playful personality playing so well against Kazik's moody moments. At times, I did feel Aleksy didn't get as much development as the other two, but there's a twist midway involving him and another character which convinced me we got JUST enough Aleksy at JUST the right times (I won't spoil it, but I genuinely did not see it coming).

Everything about this book, even when it touches on darker themes, is cozy perfection -- and I am literally cozy fiction's biggest hater. I get it now, people, I get it. Because I want to step inside the pages and live in the world Alicia crafted, where she doesn't shy away from grief and biphobia and religious guilt but she makes me really feel like my main trio will be okay.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Peachtree Teen, and Alicia Jasinska for gifting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review! I was screaming when I found out there's gonna be a book 2!

Thank you to NetGalley and Alicia Jasinska for the opportunity to read This Fatal Kiss! When I initially requested This Fatal Kiss, I was immediately excited because, first, look at that gorgeous cover, and the premise was equally up my alley: folklore-rich and queer-focused fantasy. The book delivered on the premise, but what caught me the most were the complex, goal-motivated characters, Gisela, Kazik, and Aleksey, and the haunting, intriguing worldbuilding and environment that unfolded. I really loved how the characters grew towards one another, and watching their hesitations, misconceptions, and secrets haunt them throughout the plot. The multiple POVs really served this well. In terms of the worldbuilding, I loved that spirit-world characters such as the Water Goblin, the rusalki, and the Domovoy, were also able to be fleshed out—lending well to the fantastical nature of the story. All in all, a solid fantasy read, and I am really hoping we get a follow-up to follow the threads left open with Aleksey.

This book was wickedly fun! I just love a naturally funny, flirty main character. Writing style is easy and digestible.

The writing progressed a lot as the story went on. I wish we had more depth with the background stories and that the ending wasn't as rushed. The action scenes were well done! I was out of breath and reading so fast. I am excited to read the next installment.

omg, i loved this! First off, the vibes were just incredible. Super atmospheric and immersive. I was also just obsessed with everything ; the characters, the relationship, the writing. YES 🙌🏻. This book was such fantastic read, i’ll be thinking about it for a while. Excited to get myself a physical copy to add to the collection. 🥰

This story was so beautiful and so whimsical. It felt like I was in a studio Ghibli movie. I found Gislea to be such a wonderful main character, she was so funny and witty. Her relationship with Kazik and their interactions had me giggling in amusement. Such a beautifully written story that deserves all the hype!

This Fatal Kiss ticked a lot of boxes for me. Slavic folklore. Grumpy sunshine. Polyamory. And, for the most part, those things were also done well. I just don’t know if I’m really the target audience for this book.
The characters were loveable, especially our mains, and the folkloric elements were well done, if at times a tad sparse. I even enjoyed the vaguely modern setting, which I hadn’t expected but actually found a bit refreshing. Something about it though just didn’t keep me hooked and it might really just be that it’s a bit too YA for me. While I enjoyed the characters I wasn’t able to get invested in the romance aspect and eventually DNF’d at the 40% mark.
I don’t think this is a bad book though and if you find the plot sounds intriguing I definitely would still recommend picking it up.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

thanks to netgalley for providing me an e-arc of this book in exchange for a review!

this cover is phenomenal, and i feel really captures the vibe of this book. the eastern european mythology and worldbuilding was interesting, and i honestly haven't read anything like it before. the tension between gisela and kazik is so fun, as they banter with each other, become friends, and both pursue the same guy.

this feels like it ends in a cliffhanger? i'm not aware of this being the first in a series, but i am locked in to whatever might come next.

“This Fatal Kiss” by Alicia Jasinska is a sweet romance based on a Slavic fairytale. The three main characters, Gisela, Kazik, and Aleksey, are well developed and likable (even at their worst) whose deep connection and attraction to each other felt genuine and meaningful.

I loved the world building and the extensive background the myth and lore. I felt it added to the story and (along with the not perfectly wrapped ending) left the story open for more (hopefully!)!z

As someone who isn’t a fan of the romance genre, this was one that I found enjoyable and looked forward to watching the connection develop and grow. I wanted to sit in and be a part of their witty and engaging banter and be a first hand witness to their growing love.

Overall, it’s a sweet story with an awesome premise and one I highly recommend.

Folklore, myth and magic and a polyamorous relationship! Count me in.

This gorgeous slavic inspired folklore book left me feeling warm and cozy throughout. The characters relationships seemed so well done, and they had great report with each other, and played off each other so well. It was a joy to read.

Then the plot itself has elements of fantasy and whimsy and magic, and mystery to keep the actual story moving forward which was excellent. There are definitely some darker moments, and some heavier sections that deal with the criticisms often encountered in the LGBTQ/polyamorous space, but the overall coziness was still there.

Bonus points for the amazing food descriptions, I couldn't read this without a snack nearby.

Gisela, a water nymph, enters a rocky alliance with the local exorcist boy, Kazik : she'll leave, if he helps her get a kiss from a mortal to become human. Little did they know they would fall for the same boy, and also each other.

The poly romance was amazing here, I can never get enough of them. I was scared that Aleksey would not really be that interesting compared to Gisela and Kazik, so I was surprised when we started to learn more about what he's really like. I do think it could have used a couple more chapters from Aleksey's perspective to balance out everything. But anyway, I was reaaaally rooting for the romance.

Also really really liked Gisela and Kazik and their banter. Gisela looks like she's just a very outgoing, flirtatious girl, but she's really desperated to become human again. I was also invested in the mystery surrounding her death (though it is a bit convenient that she's the only rusalka that doesn't remember her death). As for Kazik, he's a boy hellbent on exorcising all the spirits, so it was nice to see come into his own and slowly realise that maybe not all spirits are evil after all huh ?

Love any book that includes folklore, in this case slavic folklore. I feel like it immediately gives a certain vibe to a story, and a more fleshed out world.

I was kinda disappointed by the very abrupt ending, but that's only because i didn't realise that this is the first book in a series (i think ?). So take that into account before starting this book.

“You’re the most infuriating spirit I’ve ever met, and I never want you to stop haunting me.”
🌿
This was such a fun read! The never-ending banter was delightfully entertaining, and the Slavic folklore was such an integral part of this book! I loved the descriptions and mentions of different spirits and wish there had been more interactions with other spirits!
🌿
I loved getting all three main character POV’s, and was pleasantly surprised that even though I knew what each character was holding back from the others I still didn’t know how it would all fall into place. Despite the ending wrapping up most loose ends, it left me dying for more of Gisela, Kazik and Aleksey’s story!
🌿
Thanks Peachtree for the ARC copy! 💕

I’m going to read it at a different time, found it difficult to click with the story, even with all my focus on it. The premise made me excited to read it. I’ll return to this on and give it a proper review very soon.

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot: 👍👍👍👍
Characters: 👦👦👦👦
Page turner: 📖📖📖📖
Suspense: 😱😱😱
Plot twist: 💡💡💡

First of all, I want to thank Alicia Jasinska, the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC, and this is my honest review.
I love it!!!
I liked the setting, based on Polish folklore, the characters, and how the relationship between Kazik, Gisela and Aleksey evolves.
It’s a timeless fairytale, and even if it is for a young audience, there are also some more adult oriented themes.
Is it an enemies to lovers? You have to read it to figure it out! What I mean is that everything is more complicated if you are in a polyamorous relationship, so you have to be careful and understand who is the enemy and who is the lover…
Highly recommended!

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this book, sadly it just wasn’t for me. I am definitely not the target audience here, I was immediately enthralled by the cover (I know don’t judge a book by its cover and all but I mean look at this cover!) and although I appreciate the conversation around queer relationships and polyamory and the whimsical fantasy was there I just couldn’t get past the very YA cheesy romance and the writing felt very flat, I didn’t care for any of the characters sadly and the ending was disappointing to say the least. However I do think it’s a pretty good YA book, 16yr old me would have loved it, so although I struggled to get through it I would still recommend it as a fun YA read!

✨Tropes✨
🌊 Slavic Folklore Inspired
🌊 LGBTQIA+ Inclusive
🌊 Polyamorous
🌊 Found Family
🌊 Enemies to Lovers
🌊 Mental Health Rep
🌊 Excellent Banter
🌊 Hidden Identity
🌊 Grumpy x Sunshine

✨Summary✨
Gisela is a water nymph whose main focus is on becoming human and alive once more. Water nymphs are mainly young girls and women who drowned to death in a body of water. Gisela lives in her river along with several other water nymphs. She goes to the nearby village often to seduce anyone who is willing to kiss her. Unfortunately, there is a young man, Kazik, who has magical and exorcism abilities and who will gladly send her to her true death before she is able to succeed in her goal.
Even more unfortunate; Kazik captures Gisela, in a frog form, in his house and leaves her to dry out. Just when Gisela thinks all is lost, a handsome young man enters the cottage and frees her. Since she is in her frog form and close to true death, Gisela doesn’t have to chance to work her charms on him, let alone make an introduction.
Gisela finds Kazik again and makes a deal with him to not only make an introduction, but to help her seduce the young man into kissing her. In return, she promises to leave him and the entire village alone. Kazik hesitantly agrees to this deal. Until he realizes who the handsome young man Gisela is talking about: Aleksey. Kazik and Aleksey have a slightly complicated romantic history together.
In this world full of various spirits, all is not as it seems. Will Gisela accomplish her goal, or will there be others forces to stop her?

✨Critiques✨
If I had to make one complaint, it would be about some of the more modern words used at times. While this novel never gives away what time period this story is set in, I did feel like some of the phrases were a bit too modern for the overall feel of the book.

✨Elements I Loved✨
I loved that this book was based on Slavic folklore. I love learning about other countries’ folklore and mythology.
I LOVED the banter in this book! Gisela especially has the best lines. I laughed out loud a few times through out the story.
The polyamorous romance in this book is very sweet and well done.

👩🏻My Recommendation👩🏻
If you are looking for a unique story filled with true enemies to lovers, found family, and some of the best banter, this book is for you. It’s also a really nice introduction to polyamory stories. The polyamorous part of the romance, in my opinion, was done very well. If this is your first time coming across a romance between three people or even if you’ve come across it before and it was too much, give this book a chance.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing the ARC and the opportunity to review this book.

When I saw that this book has a touch of spirited away, me being a fan of Studio Ghibli this book was exciting for me. Fantastical, mysterious and queer polyamorous atmospheres we get to have in this book. The romance is written so well and the tension is palpable with all the grumpiness surrounding it that it made my cheeks hurt so badly.
The Food descriptions are done so well that it felt like cosy winters and witchy vibes all over here.
I love all the folklore vibes with some dark elements

She's a water nymph who dreams about becoming mortal again, he's the local exorcist constantly getting in her way, but together they'll have to help her seduce a mortal boy to turn her back into a human... yet they are all falling for one another while hiding dark secrets. Gisela was turned into a water nymph after she mysteriously died, with no memory of how she died, all she yearns for is to become a mortal again and go home to her younger brother... but in order for a water nymph to turn back into a human she'll need the willing kiss of a mortal. Cue local brooding spirit hunting exorcist, Kazik, who is as meddling as he is cute. Kazik has thwarted all of Gisela's attempts to seduce a mortal but when she makes a bargain with him he can't resist: if he helps matchmake her with a mortal and turn her back into a human she'll stop meddling with his affairs and leave him alone. Yet the guy that Gisela has her eyes on is none other than the town's most handsome and charming man... who is hiding much darker secrets than Gisela or Kazik could ever imagine. Oddly enough, all three individuals find themselves fall for each other, but can Gisela get her wish and when the secrets begin to reveal themselves will these three be able to be together? This is definitely the first book in a series and what a delightful start it was! I loved the lore and magic in this world, and Gisela was such a cute water nymph. Kazik and Aleksey were also very complimentary to the poly relationship. Kazik was the right amounts of serious but grumpy introvert while Aleksey was flirty and mysterious. I can't wait for the next book to see what happens, especially with how this one ends!! This is a wonderful queer fantasy read and the relationship between the three characters is just beginning and I can't wait to see how the drama unfolds in the next book!!

*spoiler: Aleksey is actually a demon possessing a body and he was sent with his younger demon sister Roza to watch Kazik, but he falls for both Kazik and Gisela. Kazik's family is the reason Aleksey is stuck and he harmed Aleksey's family, leading to Aleksey wanting revenge. Roza also attacked Gisela and Aleksey was there the night Gisela died as a human and became a nymph. Gisela's sisters trapped Roza and the book ends with Aleksey searching for Roza and contemplating what he will do with Kazik as he is in love with both Kazik and Gisela. Kazik admits his feelings for Gisela and gives her a kiss, turning her human, but Gisela also remembers how she died and she wants to confront Aleksey (despite also wanting to be in the poly relationship with both of them). Kazik is the only one who does not know that Aleksey is a demon or how he is involved with Gisela's death. *

Release Date: September 24,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Holiday House / Peachtree / Pixel+Ink | Peachtree Teen for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

ty netgalley & peachtree for the arc ♡

this has good bones to it and overall i really did enjoy reading this but i think it could have benefited from another edit. i personally didn’t really connect with any of the characters, especially with aleksey. i do think gisela was funny and her unusual friendship with kazik made for a unique take on the grumpy / sunshine trope. tbh i think could have done away without needing to know about aleksey but since he’s already written in, i wish there was a little bit more substance with his POV. the ending makes it seem as if there will be a sequel so hopefully everything i had trouble with in the first book will be fine tuned in the next.