A Dream of Blood and Magic by Olivia Boothe is a captivating blend of gothic urban fantasy and romance.

The story excels in creating a rich, immersive world filled with elemental magic, supernatural creatures, and high-stakes action.

Boothe’s writing is engaging, with multiple points of view that keep the narrative fresh and exciting. The book’s pacing is well-balanced, blending action, mystery, and romance seamlessly. Fans of slow-burn romance and dark fantasy will find much to love in this story.

it’s been a minute since I read a vampire romance & I devoured this one. It’s a fantastic first book in a brand new series. I loved the cool gothic vibes and the plot consumed me. Incredibly difficult to put down! Obsessed with the magic system and loved that it’s multi-pov. Set in NYC, this urban fantasy is for fans of The Vampire Diaries and Crescent City. Can’t wait for book 2!

"My self-control is on a precipice, my honor ready to burn to cinders... all because of you."

Hypnotic and mystical, 'A Dream of Blood and Magic' stands out as a gothic urban fantasy with a rich noir atmosphere.

Introducing a vividly dark, skillfully crafted world steeped in magic, where the protagonist finds herself deciphering lucid dreams and communing with elemental spirits as she navigates a volatile supernatural path.

The writing style is particularly engaging, balancing immersive descriptions with story progression and natural, fluid dialogue. Occasional spice is executed with finesse, enhancing the romantic tension. Paranormal dark-fantasy aspects are elegantly integrated throughout, with exhilarating action scenes and moments of mild horror.

A significant strength of this novel lies in the intricate characters and their respective relationships. The dynamic between the heroine and her spirit guardians injects a unique and hopeful dimension into the story. The deliciously forbidden, slow burn romance is equally satisfying, unfolding with nuanced suspense.

The emotional core of the novel centers on Avery's tumultuous quest for self-discovery as she navigates a warring world. Surreal and intriguing dream sequences deepen the mystery, drawing readers further into her story.

Overall, 'A Dream of Blood and Magic' is a captivating and enjoyable book, offering a distinctive blend of gothic romance, strong character building, and an enchanting atmosphere. While the ending feels somewhat abrupt, the plot consistently provokes curiosity. A compelling read for those seeking a fresh and engaging urban fantasy experience, this novel leaves readers eagerly anticipating the next installment in the series.

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

Title: A Dream of Blood and Magic

Author: Olivia Boothe

Rating: 4/5

Initial Thoughts:

At first, the progression of the story in "A Dream of Blood and Magic" was slow, but as I approached the halfway point, the momentum picked up significantly. It became engrossing and I found it difficult to set the book aside. Anticipation for the sequel has already taken hold, as I am thoroughly captivated and crave resolutions to the mounting questions within the narrative.

Synopsis:

The narrative concludes with several lingering inquiries, heightening the eagerness for the forthcoming book. The characters within the story have drawn me in, each with their own complexities and mysteries, leaving me torn between affection and aversion for some. The intricacies of the magical elements and the captivating nature of the familiars have provided an engaging backdrop, offering insight into their diverse personalities.

Received this copy from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this story quite a lot and truly enjoyed the writing as well. I cannot tell you how many times I've rolled my eyes at the romance and romantasy books I've read over the years with the trite story lines, plots and phrases. I found this to be refreshingly not so! Ms Boothe has a knack for choosing her words wisely and not falling into the pit of mediocrity (a big plus in my opinion). While there is the often used 'immediate attraction of opposites' aspect of this story, the authors ability to convey its subtle, and not so subtle nuances effectively was....again....refreshing. And, I happen to like the struggle of resisting/fighting attraction in stories as it provides great tension, but not at the expense of explaining WHY it is so. Ms Boothe does explain why and that it is tied to the lore of the story. Now I am upset at having to wait for the next book.

I have read the author's debut romance duet and loved it. And so far, I am liking this one as well. Book 2 promises to be very spicy and if this book is the precursor of what is to come? I'm all in. Bring it on, sister!

Loved this book and writing. Very organized with a well thought out plot. Love this fantasy thriller with POVS. The way the story is presented you definitely get attached to the characters easily. Loved how I know what was going on, didn't have to play a guessing game or use assumption.

Underworld meets Kingdom of the Wicked in this forbidden love, rivals to lovers, high stakes, slow-burn gothic contemporary fantasy romance. A SINISTER DARKNESS BREWS, SOWING THE SEEDS OF WAR. AND AT THE CENTER OF IT ALL IS A YOUNG WITCH WILLING TO RISK IT ALL TO SAVE THOSE SHE LOVES.
This book was for sure a book that gave me vibes of a lot of other books. Such as:
•Forbidden Romance
•Chosen One
•Reincarnation
•Basic World Building and Character Development
We meet Avery. A woman who finds out her whole life has been a lie and that she is at the center of a war between a centuries long war between witches and vampires.
The multiple point of views of this story outside of Avery for sure gives this story a more well rounded story.
Avery as a central character for sure has her good and bad sides.
On the good side, she has this rare and ancient powers that makes her interesting on her journey to understanding them.
The bad side, she is a pretty character development that is pretty much paint by the numbers. And her journey outside her powers can be sometimes cringy. In the sense that it drags and becomes repetitive to the point where you wanna skip forward to get to the meat of the story.
Her romance kind of confuses me CuaSe you think it’s one guy and two min later it could be someone else. And both guys are also not as engagement and interesting as wish they were.
The storyline is pretty standard with her journey of harnessing her powers and the war that she can’t help but be involved in.
Overall this book is about a 3 star read for me.
Basic, nothing extraordinary and all around forgettable story that I won’t be interested in continuing since this book is seen as the launch of a series.
But like I tell everyone, don’t let my review dissuade you from reading this book. Just cause it didn’t click with me, doesn’t mean it won’t click with you.


Thanks to the folks at NetGalley for a copy of this book. My review is a honest reflection of my feelings towards this book.

This book was pretty good, I would definitely recommend

~This was given by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

This book is a solid 3 and I feel the future books have potential to be even stronger. The world building is definitely creative and I did get into it. Unfortunately it took about 30% of the book in to understand (sort of) the politics of the universe. It could have been written a bit more clearly, it almost seemed like I skipped a prequel book or a novella, because nothing was really explained in the beginning.

Once I did get into it, I was really curious about what would happen next and understanding everyone’s POV. Even though there is three POV I didn’t feel overwhelmed by it. The MFC does read more like she is 15 than 25 which was a bit bothersome, I hope she is more adult in the next book, especially since the cast is mostly immortal and ancient.

I loved this book and couldn’t put it down!!

I started read late on a Friday and stayed up reading to see what was going to happen.

So many questions I NEED answered going into the next book. I’m unsure who is going to be are mmc and what is the deal with her mother!!! Hoping that she releases a publish date for the next one soon!!

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Spice: 🌶️

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

I had a good time with this one! I expected it to be a romantasy, but really it was an urban fantasy with a romantic subplot. The author did say the next book will have more romance and spice.

Avery is Spirit marked which means she is a very powerful witch and a dreamwalker (can travel through time and space in her dreams). She’s always had these “dreams” of two vampire brothers who were in love with a witch (also spirit marked) and she was burned at the stake.

In a crazy turn of events she finds out she is a witch at 21 years old and those two vampire brothers and a powerful witch coven are trying to find her for different reasons. While everyone is searching for her she is coming to terms with herself being a witch and trying to control her magic.

Overall thoughts:
This was a fun read, and actually had a decent amount of world-building. The action scenes were also well written! There wasn’t much romance in it until the last 20% of the book. This book really seemed to set up for the next book, and I can’t wait to see what happens! There were some slow parts that I think could have been removed, and the amount of times “sugary core” was used put me off. But I will definitely be reading the next one because I NEED to know what happens.

Kingdom of the Wicked, this was not. I was so eager to dive into this world, but the writing style quickly dampened my enthusiasm. It felt like a relentless info-dump, heavy and suffocating. The male characters presented as one-dimensional jerks, and I couldn't find a reason to root for anyone. After several attempts to push through, I reluctantly threw in the towel at 35%. A disappointing read.

Let me start by saying the “I See You” trope always is a winner for me. This book had good characters, an interesting plot and the banter and tension was good. I like how I expected the typical vampire book but was pleasantly surprised by it. Love the development of this story and excited to read what comes next.

She was... more than a witch I wanted to drain of her blood. She was a woman I wanted to claim.
That fire she'd sparked in me flared inside my chest and my protective instincts began to surface, to win over my need for the kill. I didn't want to hurt her. I couldn't hurt her.”

"These moody vampires are going to be the death of me,"

Vampires, witches, hidden powers, dream walkers

Avery life takes a dramatic turn when a mysterious crow crashes through her apartment window awakening a magic within her.
She tries to control her powerful magic and she forms an alliance with Kane a Vampire who protects humanity from the Spirited Mark a Witch whose magic could destroy the world.
She's is a normal girl who discovers that she’s the key to a prophecy that could end up destroying or saving her world l. I enjoyed this book. I just liked how the author described the familiars and how they have different personalities, which make them really adorable.

-Chosen One
- Forbidden Love
- Rivals to Lovers
-Forced Proximity
-Bonded
-Slow Burn
-familiars

5/5 ⭐️ (already shared on Goodreads)
This was the vampire and witch book I didn’t know I needed! Avery is thrust into a world she never knew existed as power within awakens and a family secret comes to light. Vampires and witches have a bad history but must communicate over a common interest, Avery. She is the first of her kind in 500 years and some want to use her as a tool, some want to protect her and the intentions of others may not be entirely clear…yet. This book also has an interesting elemental magic system that is not fully explored in this series starter!

I will say there is a lot of world building through 3 character POVs so the beginning was harder for me to get hooked. With that said I feel as though the 3 POVs are important to get the most out of the world/character building. Once I was in the second half of the book I did not want to stop reading! The tension between FMC Avery and 3 male characters! 🤭 I know a lot of people are begging for a why choose in the next book but I personally just want whatever was originally planned.

I tend to be a fan of very spicy books and while I would say this was on the more tame side I am very excited to see what is in store in the next book! Girl the shower scene!🔥 Spice Rating: 1.5🌶️

Tropes Include: rivals to reluctant allies, forced proximity, ancient prophecy, bratty FMC & broody MMC, found family, slowburn

Trigger Warnings (also listed in the book): Blood and Gore, Death and Violence, Explicit Language, Some Sexually Explicit Content, Stalking, Abductions, Mention of girls trafficked for blood, Mention of emotional childhood trauma and mental illness

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for providing me an Ebook for this review. (I’d love to do the next one whenever it’s available) 🫶🏼

This took me a little bit to get into but I think that's because I'm not a huge fan of urban fantasy. Once I got into it though it was great! The world-building was really well done, the supernatural elements woven into our world was natural. Avery is a relatable protagonist, she's strong but struggles with her new powers and all that's thrust on her.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this arc!

This book took a while to get into which I didn’t really enjoy and felt as though it took a long time to get into the bulk of the story.

As it did progress I enjoyed it more and felt myself connect to the character more

What I loved most about A Dream of Blood and Magic is that the MC is very independent and self-made. There was a part of the story that made me tear up because I felt a personal connection to the MC. Some of her backstory was similar to mine and I found I was comparing myself to her. There are friendships that are very heartfelt and relatable. The only reason I gave it 4 stars is because the backstory and world-building in the beginning, didn't catch my interest right away. However, towards the middle and end of the book, I found it was helpful in understanding the plot. I would definitely recommend this book to other readers who love slow-burn, banter, friendships, steamy romance books! It was an exciting read and I can't wait for the next book! Thank you for the opportunity to read!

Olivia Boothe, you have officially made it to my must read the next book list!!

This book is a perfect one for those that are fantasy romance readers. It has a great amount of fantasy and a little romance towards the end, but Boothe has promised us a smutty second book. So my smut girlies be on the look out for that gem!

A Dream of Blood and Magic, follows 21 year old Avery Jaxon whose dark dreams and sudden onslaught of magic drags her into a world she was not prepared for. From witches to vampires and magic guardians, this book covers it all and man does that MMC make you swoon.

Only things I didn’t like about this book was how it had to end and the second book isn’t out yet!

Spice: .5/5
Trigger Warnings:
Some sexually explicit scenes
Drugs
Blood
Killing
Subtle mentioning of underground trafficking

My favorite part of this book? The familiars. I just liked how the author described them and how they have different personalities, which make them really adorable.

This book was great for me, for many reasons. First of all, the main character is not your perfect, strong and self assured type, instead she's curious, cares a lot about her friends, but most importantly, even though the world thinks she is kinda crazy, she does her best to cope with her problems and live a normal life. Second of all, the flashbacks were not confusing and it was easy to differentiate them from the present. Another aspect I really liked was that there was not a lot of spice, because sometimes the story is forced just so it appeals more to a specific audience. I feel like it had just the right amount for the first book. I also liked the multiple POVs.

There are many things I can say, but let me tell you, if you want a book with vampires, witches, prophecies, familiars and a main character that's trying to discover who she actually is and how she fits in the bigger picture, I totally recommend this one.