Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Phantasma by Kaylie Smith is the grown up, darker love child of Caraval and Kingdom of the Wicked and I am here for it! It is truly a spellbinding tale that mixes mystery with magic
The plot will keep readers at the edge of their seat. I really enjoyed the twists and turns. Smith’s worldbuilding is interesting as it makes the familiar unfamiliar, and her prose paints a world that is as beautiful as it is dangerous.
While some readers might write Phantasma off as purely spice, It deals with themes of courage, sisterhood, and self-discovery that make this book so much more than just a romantasy. The protagonist suffers from OCD (although they don’t have the words to describe it as such) and it is handled with sensitivity and depth.
Smith has created a masterpiece that will linger on my mind long after I have finished it.

Just wow! I listened to the audiobook and the narrator deserves ten stars. She really captured the characters and atmosphere.

Think Caraval but much much darker. There are multiple levels within the games. Each game is created by a devil based on a sin. The other way to leave the level is by passing the round and leaving through a door, forfeiting the game or death. The rounds are something out of the Saw movies. Contestants live in a house between rounds.

The chemistry between Ophelia and Blackwell was 🔥🔥🔥🔥 there was the right balance between their chemistry and the actual games.

My only negative was the ending felt too rushed. I would have liked it a bit longer with more closure. It's the sort of ending that could mean it's an only book but it could also be open to a sequel.

I think this book is going to be big within the fantasy book community. Or I hope it is! It deserves all the love!

I received this arc via Netgalley for an honest review.

I was pleasantly surprised with this book as it seamlessly combines two genres that are my least read (fantasy and paranormal) for a captivating read. The plot centered around Ophelia, having just lost her only parent and struggling financially, competes in a reality tv-ish survival game competition that is set in a fantasy world with demons and ghosts. She receives unexpected assistance from Blackwell, a ghost, and must not fall in love with him. There were unexpected steamy scenes between the main characters, great descriptions of the paranormal beings and magic, and a great underlying message of what one does to keep their family intact. Plus, the cover is absolutely stunning…that alone draws one in.

To win a magical wish and save her missing sister, Ophelia must survive Phantasma's nine perilous challenges in a maze-like haunted mansion and outlast the ruthless rivals aiming to be the sole victor. But in Phantasma, the final rule is: Don’t fall in love. As Ophelia battles monsters and her own fears, she encounters Blackwell, a charismatic and alluring stranger who offers his help in exchange for ten years of her life. Torn between mistrust and an undeniable attraction, Ophelia risks not only her life but also her heart.

Fantasy books with trials/competitions are like heaven to me, and this one was really well done. I liked how the trials were themed around the nine circles of Hell. Each trial is original and not just a rehash of challenges from other books, and they were well-paced with the other plot points. There was always something interesting happening - whether it was the Blackwell mystery, the mystery of Ophelia's sister and mother, a trial, or the romance propelling the story forward. I only got an inkling about the ending at around 70/75%, and even then it was just one plot point that I thought I'd figured out. I loved how original and unpredictable it was, which really sucked me into the story and allowed me to enjoy the ride without knowing exactly where it was going.

I loved the instant tension and chemistry between Ophelia and Blackwell, and I was completely invested in their relationship. The back-and-forth between them made sense within the story and wasn't frustrating like it can be when it's just done for drama without adding anything else. Even their setbacks were appropriate given the plot points and made sense for the characters.

The tension of the romance and the gothic/horror elements was perfect, further heightened by the audiobook format and the amazing narrator. She did a great job differentiating the characters and portraying Ophelia's reactions to the trials and her relationship with Blackwell.

I've given quite a few 3-star ratings this past year to YA gothics/dark fantasies because they never really hit hard enough for me. This book has all but confirmed it for me - I need my gothic/dark romantasies to be adult because they aren't afraid to properly dive into mental anguish, gore, or horror! It's not even about the spice (which was excellent, by the way!); it's just that when they have an adult audience in mind, they can lean more into the gothic elements so that they're not just surface-level topics.

I absolutely loved this book, and the audiobook format was perfect for it. It's a dark fantasy book with trials, mystery, and romance, and I definitely recommend it!

Disclaimer: I received an ARC from NetGalley, but this is my voluntary and honest review.

This was by far one of the best books I've read this year! I don't even know where to begin. Imagine if Throne of the Fallen and One Dark Window had a baby. It would be this book.

We have a necromancer named Ophelia who has crippling anxiety and a voice inside her head that won't leave her alone and a phantom named Blackwell who has no memories as to who he is and why he's trapped inside a hell house called Phantasma which is run by devils. In Phantasma, all your worse fears become real, and in order to get out, you either win, forfeit, or die. Oh, and don't fall in love within Phantasma's walls, or you'll be forever cursed.
When Ophelia discovers that her sister has entered Phantasma, she has no other choice but to go after her. There, she runs into the sexiest phantom she's ever seen and makes a deal with him. He helps her get to her sister, and in return, she helps him break free from Phantasma. But the only problem is they are falling for each other, hard.

I would also like to point out that the author did a great job portraying what it is like to live with OCD and the things you do to get rid of those intrusive thoughts.

This book is filled with a great plot, some really great spicy scenes 🥵🌶
I will definitely be adding this to my re-read pile!

Ophelia’s sister has entered Phantasma, so she must follow to save her. Inside the haunted mansion she will undertake trials and try to win and claim a single wish. Demons will tempt and torture her. She desperately needs help to survive and Blackwell offers her a bargain she has no option but to accept.

Very enjoyable, fast paced novel. Well written and well narrated (I listened to the audiobook). Great characters will take us through the horrors Ophelia must face as well as her romantic encounters. Can she win her prize, her sister? Read to find out.

Well that was friggin awesome. Phantasma is a gothic romantasy, with trials, paranormal activity and an amazing ending. It is a standalone, so it's the perfect fit between your series hopping.

Your FMC is on a mission and nothing can stop her. She's strong but not arrogant, caring but not soft. The MC is the exact morally grey figure desired in Romantasy, I don't wanna say to much about him and ruin anything.

Tropes:
⚔️Trials
😵Touch Her and Unalive
😏Forced Proximity
🩸Gothic Horror
🔥Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ - oh she's spicy yall.
🎧Audiobook: about 13 hours on 1x.
••Narrator: Laura Horowitz - Literally amazing. I actually follow her on TickTock but I didn't realize she was the narrator. She's gives Megara vibes and did a fabulous job on this. 5/5 Stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Let's start with a massive trigger warning: If you have experience with intrusive thoughts, their depiction here is absolutely terrifying. Avoid this book if you think this may be an issue for you.


A note about the audiobook: The narrator, Laura Horowitz, is fantastic, and the voice she uses for the intrusive thoughts is much, much creepier than just reading it on the page, which is already horrifying as it is. 


Onto Phantasma, the New Orleans, 1920s Hunger Games version of Caraval. Reeling from the unexpected death of her mother, new-to-her-magic Necromancer, Ophelia, joins a deadly game through the nine circles of hell to win a prize of the winner's choosing. The Caraval vibes are strong in that there's a very clear Trust No One and Nothing instruction, yet Ophelia does trust despite her constant protests that she really doesn't. I wonder if anyone ever taught Ophelia about Guy Lies because she doesn't seem very adept at sorting through them or she would have been less surprised by a lot of things. 

I really enjoyed this book overall. It was a fun read, and I appreciate that it is a standalone Romantasy. No cliffhangers here! 

Romantasy can tend to be more about the spice than the plot, but this is not the case here. Plot and characterization was excellent. Dark atmosphere was on point. The romance was swoon-worthy. 

Thanks to NetGalley, Second Sky, and Bookouture Audio for this ARC!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ All day.

This book was so fun! The New Orleans setting was perfect for the gothic vibes this book had going on. The characters were interesting and witty, from the humans to the supernatural residents of the house - the banter was great fun! I loved the chemistry between the FMC and MMC and rooted for them all the way through. The extra-dimensional, travelling house the competition takes place in was interesting; Smith’s descriptions were so well-written that I felt like I could picture the house around me. If you enjoy a book wherein the house is its own character, you’ll like this book. I loved the game the book revolves around - based upon the nine circles of hell, each game is high-stakes and bloody good fun (I described this to a bookish friend as a ghosty Hunger Games, although perhaps Squid Games is more apt).

This spooky, gothic, paranormal romantasy would be a fantastic October read ahead of Halloween. I couldn’t put it down, and will be recommending this to all of my romantasy-loving friends. Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture Audio for the advance copy of this book in audio format, I’m so glad I got to check this one out!

3.5⭐️Thank you Netgalley and Kaylie Smith for this ALC in exchange for a review.

I was intrigued by this as it said it was for fans of Caraval... I saw the themes but no one really died in Caraval 😱

🥀3rd person pov (from Ophelia's POV, with one from Blackwell)
🥀necromancer / phantom romance
🥀SPICE
🥀OCD rep
🥀plot twists
🥀a little horror

Some of the action and riddles in the middle of the story kind of lost me, there was a lot of gore in this.

But the premise of this is enough to keep you hooked.

The narrator did a great job ! I will admit, not a fan of 3rd person writing, I find it hard to get into the character's mindset, especially when there are multiple side characters. Maybe try adding a male narrator for the male characters?

The ending was a little predictable, I won't lie. And I did feel she used Blackwell, but I could see that she really cared and loved him, and he for her. I need a story on her parents now.

I honestly thought this was going end on a cliffhanger. Maybe we get a little novella on what they're life is like.

✨️"If there were ever a divine entity I'd worship," he murmured, "it'd be you." "My body, your altar," she offered.✨️

❌️WHAT I DISLIKED ❌️

Only bit I HATED!! Was the scene that Ophelia had with St Claire... not a fan of cheating

Well. One of my best reading friends ever told me I needed to read this. So as you do when someone thinks you'll love a book like they did and you twin in most everything else, you immediately request.

I dived right in once and approved and couldn't finish it fast enough. I started unraveling some of the details throughout, figuring stuff being said or hinted at. But still. Those last chapters were crushing my heart and soul. There's not a whole lot to say that won't be a spoiler.

But why is the trend to make devils so sexy and adoring? I guess I'll be ready for my spot in hell.

I was blessed with both the audio-arc and the e-arc which was amazing because I did not want to put this book down from the moment I started listening. I stayed up late into the night several nights in a row both desperate to see what happened next while also wanting to hold onto the story as long as possible. I can confidently say this is my favorite read of the year thus far and can’t wait to see where Kaylie Smith goes next in the adult romance realm. This narrator was an excellent choice for the voice of Ophelia and I absolutely loved her ability to differentiate between characters of varying genders and identities. It’s sometimes rare to come across such incredible audiobook talent and only added to my love of this story.

This story is a mixture of The Haunted Mansion/Hunger Games/Caraval (Book Series).
Plot: A girl in New Orleans inherits her mothers powers. Then she must enter a tournament to save her sister and family estate. When she enters the devil's tournament she must discover her powers, fears, and desires to win the competition. The contestants must compete in a tournament in a haunted mansion with multiple levels that are based on the circles of hell and their worst fears.

It's a very very slow book, but spicy book. The writing style is extremely fluffy. There are details and side stories that go every way that gives off the perception that it's messy writing. If the story had been cleaned up a bit then I would have given the story 5 stars.

Spice 3.5/5

Thank you Bookouture Audio and Netgalley for providing me an advanced copy/audiobook of Phantasma. The narrator performed the characters really well and it had a similar premise with Caraval. This book is perfect for fans who loves games set in a gothic house surrounded with supernatural elements like demons, ghosts, and necromancers. I found it really fun and entertaining, the characters, the story that dates centuries back that explains Blackwell's character really well at the end, i felt like it was rushed but it tied his backstory.

The main character, Ophelia, had great rep of OCD, and her determination to keep searching for answers since she discovered the Phantasma had history tied to her family.

The games, however, had potential where they're based on the seven deadly sins. It felt dragging listening to their scenes.

I also loved the relationship between Ophelia and Blackwell, they had great chemistry especially when Ophelia knew the little things about Blackwell and the way Blackwell had gave her so much reassurances when the games made her paranoid, when she had intrusive thoughts, giving consent. They won't go anywhere without the each other following, uses and had reliances for each other as long as Blackwell breaks free from his tragic curse and wants to help Ophelia to find her sister and help her win the games. They wanted the best for each other, both being sacrificial and had me at the edge of my seat during the ending.

Overall, I liked the book and the paranormal romance, the sibling relationships, the gothic premise.

I would like to start by stating that before beginning this masterpiece I suggest reading the trigger warnings because it is not for the faint of heart.

With that being said Phantasma is completely captivating and will be a binge-worthy book for a lot of readers. It is like Caraval (on wickedly dark steroids.) Until you explore all of Phantasma's sinful depths, you will be hooked by this wickedly dark masterpiece. The relationship between Ophelia and Blackwell will tear your heart in two as you venture through the trials of Phantasma and seek the truth.

One thing that I love in a book is the banter between characters and Ophelia and Blackwell have the best banter I’ve seen in a book in a while. The trials in Phantasma are a well thought out idea, having 9 trials connected to the 9 levels of hell brings the book to the next level of dark romantasy.

The book was well-paced, there weren’t a lot of drawn-out scenes or chapters. Everything that was there was essential to the plot and progression of the story. This is a read that drew out a wide range of emotions for myself and I hope it does to future readers as well. (Just make sure to check the trigger warnings beforehand.) There are a plethora of twists and turns that our MFC has to face and it is written so smoothly you will want to continue reading more!

While I received both an ARC and an ALC I was able to do a tandem read/listen and I recommend listening to this book because the narration by Laura Horowitz will lull you into the world of Phantasma so fully, I finished this ALC in a day.

Thank you to both NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for providing the ALC.

4.5 ⭐️

“There are only two rules to the game. Stay alive. And don’t fall in love.”

Please add this to your spooky season TBR asap!! This book is dark. It’s kind of gory. It’s creepy. It’s sexy. It is delightful! Set in a magical New Orleans where devils, demons, specters, and much more are as real as you and me. Our FMC, Ophelia, is a necromancer who wishes to follow her mother’s lead and take up the family business of raising the dead. When her sister seems to make a rash decision to enter a competition within a devils’ funhouse for much needed money, Ophelia follows her to Phantasma. I love, love, love atmospheric books. This delivers that in spades. I enjoyed the devils and their concepts of the different levels of hell. Ophelia is an interesting character. She has OCD (not diagnosed; clearly depicted) and fights to tell the difference between reality and compulsions. The MMC we meet later is worthy of any and all daydreams a reader can think of. Their banter together is fantastic, and the tension is thiccckkkk - just the way I like it. I loved it all so much!

The vibes it gave me:
Thirteen Ghosts (movie) = levels of the game/hell
The demon/devil dude from The Secret Life of Addie LaRue (book) = this MMC vibes
Hause on Haunted Hill (movie) = Platasma and its haunts

This audiobook is narrated by Laura Horowitz. This lady knows what she’s doing. It was an amazing performance/listen. Highly encourage any reading of this book, but you cannot go wrong with this audiobook.

This devilish delight has some content warnings. Please check those out.

Thank you NetGalley, Kaylie Smith, Bookouture Audio, and Second Sky Books for a chance to be captivated by this eARC and audiobook ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookoture Audio for the ARC

What a book! Damn, this was good. It was dark and delicious and gripping. I really enjoyed reading it. I got kind of a Caraval vibe in the way I was so emerged in the world and the things that happened. Action and fast-paced. I got a real book hangover after this.

A dark, sexy gothic that kept me on the edge of my seat with the layers of its competitions based on the deadly sins, mystery, and danger. This one is for the girlies who wish for an adult Danny Phantom love interest. Sexy ghosts are so back! I also particularly loved the OCD rep. Loved Kaylie's adult debut!

I loved this book it was what I thought carnival should have been. Definitely 5 stars , can wait to tell my friends about this one

OMG, this book was absolutely phenomenal!! It's definitely worth all the 5 stars. I haven't devoured a book so fast in such a long time.

There was so much tension in this book and the stakes were high as Ophelia was trying to win phantasma to find her sister. Each trial and the hauntings were so eerie and spooky.
On top of that, her ocd and compulsions had me feeling stressed and panicked during the times Ophelia was feeling the same. Her triggers and thoughts during these times were so accurate, and it was refreshing to see someone portray an accurate representation of having a mental illness.

That being said, Ophelia was an incredible and strong fmc. I enjoyed her character very much.
And then the mmc Blackwell... Oh my goodness! He had me giggling and blushing and kicking my feet literally. The romance, tension, and spice between Ophelia and Blackwell were written soooo well. I think he may be one of my favorite book boyfriends now.

I listened to this as an audiobook, and the narrator did an incredible job. I was so fully immersed in the story and the characters that I finished this pretty much a whole day. I definitely highly recommend it!!