My first reaction is in regards to the cover, it is adorable!! This was such a cozy, fun, fall book. It was a great blend of magic, fantasy, and romance. I loved the descriptive writing, I felt as if I knew the setting as I was reading. Thank you for the opportunity to read this!

I am obsessed with the village of Foxford and the people that live there. It’s interesting how all the different types of people live together in the one community, but the most interesting are Lucy and Benedict.
From the moment you meet them you think you know their relationship dynamic but only after an incident at the manor it must change. From that moment I was hooked and didn’t want to put the book down and I’m so glad I didn’t.
I can’t wait to visit the village again.

If you're on the hunt for a cozy, witchy read with an autumnal vibe, Potions and Proposals by Kate Callaghan is delightful!. This book offers a perfect blend of romance, humor, and a touch of magic.

The story revolves around Lucy and Benedict, two childhood rivals whose playful pranks and witty banter drive much of this story. Their journey from rivals to lovers is both fun and heartwarming. Benedict is obsessed with Lucy!! The banter and pranks between the two characters keep the narrative light and entertaining, while their growing trust for each other made the story heartwarming.

The enchanting town of Foxford is alive with witchy vibes, potions, and elemental magic. The world-building was good, painting a good picture of the magic system and Foxford's unique atmosphere without overwhelming the reader. I also really enjoyed getting to know the side characters and am really interested in reading Faye and Peter's story next!

The writing is generally enjoyable, but at times, it felt a bit too wordy. There were moments where I wished the author had been more concise, as the pacing occasionally slowed down. However, this minor issue didn’t take away from my overall experience.

All in all, Potions and Proposals is a fun, cute read filled with magic, romance, and charm. If you're looking for something cozy and mystical, this is the perfect book.

I would like to thank NetGalley, BooksGoSocial and the author for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for an honest review. <3

⭐3.75

Plot:
Whimsical and comforting, 'Potions and Proposals' offers a paranormal rivals-to-lovers romance set in the mystical town of Foxford. While the world-building remains minimal, this cosy, autumnal fantasy - with its playful gothic charm and enchanting magical backdrop - serves as an ideal escapist read during the spooky season.

Writing Style:
The prose is contemporary and accessible, ensuring the narrative remains light and engaging. The pacing is well-calibrated, maintaining a steady, gentle momentum throughout.

Characters:
The quirky cast of upbeat supernatural beings enriches the community spirit surrounding the protagonists. Although the development and interactions between Lucinda and Benedict are somewhat surface-level, their undeniable charisma ensures they are compelling romantic leads.

Impact:
Humorous and entertaining, this book is not particularly rich in emotional complexity but delivers a sweet, heartwarming, and thoroughly enjoyable experience.

Overall:
'Potions and Proposals' is a delightfully uplifting addition to the cosy fantasy genre. Its seamless blend of magic and romance makes it an ideal choice for readers seeking an easy-going, mystical novel - particularly on the lead up to Halloween.

Genre:
-Supernatural romance
-Cosy Fantasy

Tropes:
-Rivals-to-lovers
-Reluctant allies
-Witches
-Arranged marriage
-Magical mishap
-Small town romance
-Elemental Magic
-Halloween

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is such a cute fall read! I absolutely adore the town of Foxford and I’m excited to get into more characters and their stories! I wish we got a little more of Benedict and Lucy pranking each other. But overall this was a fun read. It was light, funny, entertaining, and gave me Halloweentown vibes!

One of my favorite books is "The Hating Game" and "Proposals and Potions" fills that void for me. It wasn't a bad thing but it also wasn't anything to really write home about. I adored Benedict and believed his emotions were sincere. This is the second Kate Callaghan book I've read and will probably look for more.

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the review copy. All the above opinions are my own.

Lucy and Benedict have always butted heads, to the point that their pranks are legendary in their small town. So when Lucinda's mother announces that she's stepping down as head of the coven, a lot of the other members are concerned over Lucy's ability to lead. The solution that's proposed--that Lucy and Benedict bind themselves (like a magical marriage) and rule jointly--doesn't appear to either of them. But they reluctantly agree, and have to learn how to work together for the sake of their futures--and the town's.

Potions and Proposals is very sweet! I really liked all of the characters, and the town felt comforting and familiar in a really nice way--it felt like a lot of the towns from the movies and tv shows I've loved over the years. There were times the prose lost me just a little bit but overall I definitely enjoyed it, and am definitely hoping for a sequel!

I enjoyed Potions and Proposals so much! It was such a fun read to kick of Spooky Season. I was absorbed into the town and people of Foxford. I love the community, the vampire day manager of the hotel, the werewolf librarian with the fierce nails, and of course our main characters: Lucinda and Benedict. The history of their feud and pranks have become town legend. The chemistry is amazing and the tension between these two is a very tight, thin line that’s about to snap. The whole town is a mesmerizing, supernatural place and I am looking forward to reading more about the people in this magical place. And hopefully more Lucinda and Benedict.

✨Tropes & Themes ✨
All Hallow’s Eve
Arranged Marriage
Magical Small Town
Enemies To Lovers
Elemental Magic
Reluctant Allies
Open Door Spice
Witchy Coven

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Lovely witchy, cozy fantasy read perfect for fall time!! Really enjoyed this one and the writing style was fun.

Give me a witchy romance any day!!

Lucinda is in line to be the High Priestess of The Town of Foxford, but her nemesis’ mom nominates him as well for the position on the very night Lucinda’s mother announces her retirement. Benedict and Lucinda have always been at odds with each other throughout school and now into their twenties. In order to avoid a vote that would see her losing the job that is rightfully hers, Lucinda agrees to be bound to Benedict in this life and the next in 30 days. Hoping to find a way out before then, she agrees to the binding. As she gets to know Benedict more, she realizes there might be a spark of love between them.

Potions and Proposals is an entertaining enemies to lovers rom com. With a fabulous casts of quirky, lovable characters, unending shenanigans and plenty of spicy moments, I continued reading when I probably should have been doing something else. I chuckled, cried and gasped quite a bit while reading, so I think you will, too!

The book features a charming romance between Lucinda Hawthorn and Benedict Matherson, transitioning from pranksters to lovers in a cute magical setting that’s ideal for fall reading. The whimsical use of the enemies-to-lovers trope is engaging, although the "enemies" aspect feels underdeveloped.

While the magical world is intriguing the initial portrayal of the characters feels juvenile. Their antics were a bit childish for my preference as their behavior did not feel like something mature adults would do. Because this came off a bit YA, this tone may affect readers' engagement.

Despite these issues, the book remains well-written and endearing, particularly if you’re drawn to its whimsical elements. I think this was an overall cute "cozy" rom-com perfect for the fall season.

(3.5 stars)

Aawwww this book was so so cute. I loved this enemies to lovers vibe, i absolutely love their realization of it actually having been love all this time. I really enjoyed their struggles to put things right again. I also really liked the worldbuilding and i liked how this was sort of a magical world within the world that we actually know. Makes you fantasize that there really is more in thid world.

Thank you to netgalley and the author for sending me the book in exchange for an honest review

If you want a low stakes urban fantasy about two childhood rivals discovering that they may have more in common than they think, this is the book for you. While overall this was an enjoyable read, it just wasn't for more me-maybe it was the time I read it or the style of stories I was reading at the same time but I just wanted *more*. The characters were fun the small town vibe was nice but it all felt flat, a lot of things happened but it also felt like nothing happened and all the issues/obstacles were resolved with little to no difficulty. I would recommend if you want a mostly closed-door romance with light fantasy and pretty good banter. Good read, just not my favorite but it may be what others are looking for.

I’m in a witchy, fall mood with by book choices lately and this hit for me. The MCs were interesting, and I loved their pranks. So much of the story felt relatable without me having anything in common with the MCs. Watching them come together was so stinking sweet. I like the small town vibes combined with the town being a safe haven for magical beings. I’m looking forward to more from this series – at least I think it’s a series. I need more intel on what Emerson is up to!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kate Callaghan, and BooksGoSocial for this eARC.

3⭐⭐⭐

This was a cute cozy fantasy. I was really loving it in the beginning but the later half of the book really struggled with pacing. I enjoyed the romance but the plot got dragged out too much.

The element swap was a cool twist to their rivalry but them trying to figure out how to reverse it with a spell took way too long. When it finally ended, it felt like such a pointless endeavor. All that stress Lucy and Benedict felt was kinda unnecessary. The binding would have brought them together regardless and I think Lucy should've first gone to those who were responsible for the mixup rather than hide it and run around town trying to fix it herself. Anyway, by the time the two finally fixed things, I was already bored. I just wanted to get to the ending and be done.

The romance was definitely the part I loved most about this book, but I didn't really like how it does the thing where the male lead is obsessed with the fmc, but that same level of obsession isn't reciprocated to the same degree by the fmc. I've read and loved books like this, but it just doesn't work for me anymore. I need both characters to be head over heels for each other. And eventually we do get there, but I still wanted more. I was much more connected to Benedict's character than Lucy's. I mean, the man spent years buying all of her favorite books AND reading them before they ever got together. I was bound to love him.

I will say that the part where they slowly come to question that they might be soulmates was my favorite part. The flashbacks of the past and their conversations about old memories and misunderstanding was a good way to deepen their connection organically. As much as I love the fated mates trope, I'm glad this didn't fall into the insta-love trap. I wouldn't call this a slow burn, but I was satisfied with the development of their romance. On another note, I kind of wish the pranking continued. I like when the rivalry is still there even after they get together, but I will settle for the hand-holding and the overall ending of the book.

There were moments with Wilhemina and Grams that were really sweet and emotional, mainly towards the end, and others that I was frustrated by.

I didn't care for the love triangle between Benedict, Emerson, and Lucy. Despite it adding angst to the main romance, it felt a bit unnecessary. But Emerson's budding romance with Rosie was so much better to see! I wasn't expecting to get invested in them, but the author did a good job of introducing their romance and their potential conflicts.

Aside from the pacing issues, this was a perfectly fine read. Not a stand-out book, but enjoyable enough. If I'm still interested by the time the next book comes out then I might give it a try.

[Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc.]

I just could not get into this one. I'm not sure why because I really love this witchy type of book and I know there are heaps of people that would really like this book. So, I'm still going to recommend this book. The premise was fun and it's a great time of the year to be reading this book. So give it a go and let me know what you think!

- Rivals to lovers
- Magical mischief
- Grumpy and sunshine
- Cute pet names
- Arranged marriage
- Forced proximity.

Big thanks to NetGalley, Books Go Social and Kate Callaghan for this early release copy. This is my honest review

Just a little too predictable and cheesy in parts. Didn't feel the plot was developed to it's full potential and felt the characters fell for each other way too fast

4.25⭐
Perfectly charming and whimsical use of the enemies to lovers trope. For their whole lives Lucinda Hawthorn, the presumptive new High Priestess, and Benedict Matherson have waged a war of pranks, except the latest round of tricks caused the coven to question her ability to lead. The magical world created screams for more books to learn it's intricacies and the characters full of complexities waiting to be discovered.

Meddling mamas, waring elements & witches in this cute enemies to lovers rom-com. Benedict and Lucinda have spent their lives pranking each other and their coven has had it. Forced into being magically bound is the only solution, much to their dismay. What could possibly go wrong? fixing a magical mix-up and falling in love weren’t quite on the list.

Rating: 4.5/5
Spice Level: 2/5

I have been in a bit of a reading slump recently and this book had me giggling and kicking my feet so much I read it in 24 hours! If you loved enemies to lovers but where they actually know how not to take things too far, this book is for you. Lucy is the golden girl of her mystical town and Benedict is her rough around the edges nemesis with a not so great family past. They have spent most of their lives at battle with one another trying to get the other in as much trouble as possible. Yet Lucy is the first to defend Benedict against people's prejudice against his family and Benedict worries about her safety.

This story starts when their pranks finally go too far and the town presents them with an ultimatum. Either they "marry" (get magically bound to one another for this life and all others) or one of them will be voted out of town. Both desperate to not go, they agree to bind at All Hallow's Eve. Now with a month left before, they are trying to find any way out.

This book is so cute! It's a quick read that's little on the magic side but has a fun romance and wonderful familial relations.