Fast-paced and fun fantasy romance! Saoirse, a Lightlace witch born without magic, and Vane, a Darkwing shifter with shadow magic, team up to try to save the kingdoms.

I was first drawn in by the beautiful cover with the shadow shifter. It created the perfect mental image to capture our main male character, Vane, and his shadow magic. I appreciated that this was a quick and interesting read. The characters were intriguing and the pace of the story didn't lag.

Given the face-paced nature, I do think there could have been more details given about the world and magic system. The ending was hard to care about since it involved characters and a kingdom we really hadn't learned all that much about. Despite that, I really had a good time reading this. It was a good palate cleanser to more heavy world building books.

Content Warnings: Non-suicidal self-harm behavior, emotional and physical abuse, sexual assault
This book tackles some pretty heavy topics related to the female main character, Saoirse, and her significant history of trauma. The story showcases her resilience but I felt like her character development was lacking. Having someone who believes in her is good first start but I think she still has a lot of work to do in processing the trauma, recognizing her stuck points, and moving forward from it on her own (i.e. NOT depending on Vane to build her up). I would love to see some of that in the next book.

✨The Useless Witch✨

What a fun story this was! Short and feisty, heartbreaking and angsty, supportive and empowering. We get all of those in Savannah’s first release of her Darkwing Duet.

Following the 2 third person POVs of Vane and Saoirse, we enter a kingdom of light/sun that is on the edge of a blight and much darker secrets. Saoirse is a forgotten princess, abandoned, abused, and disowned by her parents for being powerless. Her only reprieves are her sister, Xan, and her bakery. But when a devastating male from a kingdom thought to be nonexistent saves her, Saoirse finds herself no longer in hiding from her family, but having to face them daily in hopes to save not only her kingdom but Vane’s.

This story was strong in poor coping mechanisms from a young woman who never had anyone to help her but herself. Please read the trigger warnings, because this hits HARD but it is also so empowering and emotional and the ending had me cheering for our heroine.

Tropes you may find in TUW are mental health rep, slow burn, low spice, amazing sister bond, hidden identities, plot twists, forbidden love, witches, shadow daddy dragon shifter, takes care of her, who did this to you, burn the world for her, and a cliffhanger leading us into new territory!

Thank you so much, Savannah and netgalley, for allowing me the honor of reading this gifted arc! I am super stoked for book two!!!

Saoirse & Vane
Shadow dragon Daddy
Forbidden Romance
Who did this to you?
Book 1 in the Darkwing duet

Omg I love this book!

I was sucked in from the start and could not put it down!

Even though this book is fairly short, there is SO MUCH happening in it!! It's so good!!

I cannot wait for the next book!

The Useless Witch follows Saoirse, an ex-princess who now lives and works as a baker after it is discovered she has no magic. She is comfortable in her life, happy to stay away from her abusive parents, the King and Queen of Lanthus. Until she meets the dark and mysterious Vane and gets magnetically drawn into his schemes.

As a fellow girl with uncontrollable anxiety, it was refreshing to follow Saoirse's journey.

I can't say I loved this book, I feel like the editing could have used a lot of work. I came across a number of spelling mistakes and words being used incorrectly. One such example was the use of the word "donned" about 55% through the book. I also noticed that the city name, Lanthus, was misspelled as "Lantus" at least three times. I found mistakes like this immersion breaking.

The romantasy market is saturated, and books wanting to succeed in this genre need to stand out. I don't feel like this book stood out for me. Saoirse was a great character, but the rest of the cast were shallow. Characters were too amenable to Vane's plans, no one questioned his motivations at all and it just felt convenient.

I feel like character development and complexity was sacrificed to keep the book short. I would have been happy to read more if the characters were given the opportunity to question and think critically about their situations a bit more. The main letdown of this book for me was the editing though. I love a good romantasy and this ticks all the right boxes. Not mind-blowing or genre-defining, but fun and interesting. I would happily follow Saoirse's story further, and would love to see other characters given the same level of complexity that Saoirse possessed.

Thank you very much for the opportunity to read and review! Best of luck to the author in writing the sequel!

What started as another kingdom with magic quickly turned into a burning romance with the darkness of shadows. This book had it all: FANTASTIC character development, strong and thoughtful storylines of growing from abuse, cool magic, enemies to lovers. I NEED the next book released immediately!

Every character was deeply thought out and their backgrounds progressed the climax of the plot. There is honestly nothing negative to say about this book (minor grammatical errors that I’m sure will obviously get fixed).

The Useless Witch centres around Saoirse, a witch Princess who didn’t get her magic when the time came. As a result, she’s cast out by her family and forbidden to return to the castle, something that she’s more than happy to adhere to in order to avoid her abusive father and cold, uncaring mother.

There is, however, one person that Saoirse does miss…her sister, Xan.

Working in a bakery in the city, Saoirse gets on with her very normal life. That is until Vane, a dark and mysterious stranger appears in her shop one day.

To get straight to the point, I enjoyed it but I didn’t love it.

I really liked the artwork on the cover, I thought it suited the book and hooked me in as a reader. I didn’t, however, love the title. But that’s just my opinion.

Everything is there to make this book amazing. The storyline is solid and the characters have enough about them to get you on board, but for me there was just something missing. I was waiting for the book to get going, for the depth of character and story to come, and it just didn’t. Everything seemed to be surface level and skimmed over quite quickly, I didn’t feel like I really got into it at any point.

The story finished with a cliffhanger and from the info given, I can see that there’s a second part to come. Although I’d likely read it to find out what happens next, I can’t say that I’ll be waiting on tenterhooks until it’s out.

All in all, a nice read but didn’t excite me.

I really appreciate the opportunity to read and review, thank you.

Sadly this is another drop in the YA/NA romantasy ocean, and it doesn't stand out.
If you're happy reading another book with the exact same tropes and a plot that I can practically predict from the first chapter, then you'll love it. It's not terribly written, it's just that there are so many of these books in the market right now so they have to really sparkle. This does not.
Secondly, as someone that used to self harm, the most useless thing someone (especially a love interest) can say is 'never do that again'. Stopped reading at this point. Whilst the motivations for our heroine self harming are realistic, the tell-not-show aspect of the past abuse and the way in which the love interest handles it make me shake my head and lose all desire to continue.
I would say this author might be interesting in a few books time, but right now, it's a miss from me.

Useless Witch – A Magical, Fun Ride!

If you’re looking for a light, magical read, Useless Witch is exactly what you need! The story is filled with interesting characters, an intriguing world, and a touch of magic. It’s an easy read that keeps you turning the pages, especially as you get closer to that ending—trust me, it’ll leave you wanting more!

The characters are quirky, relatable and lovable, and the world they live in is full of magical twists and turns. It’s one of those stories that doesn’t take itself too seriously, which makes it such a fun escape. Plus, there’s a good mix of action, humour, and a dash of romance.

Tropes:
✨ Found Family
✨ Who Did This
✨ Touch Her and You Die
✨ Instant Love

If you're into books with magical worlds, fun character dynamics, and a story that’s easy to sink into, Useless Witch is perfect for you!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. (via Netgalley)

4.5 stars. I enjoyed this enough to read in one sitting lol. The pacing was good and I enjoyed the characters. Definitely on the darker side at times. The spice is mild but I liked the relationship between Saoirse and Vane. I'm curious to see where the next one goes!

Loved this from start to finish. I adore the main characters, as well as some of the (still important) side characters. I don't feel like anything was missing from this book, but I'm yearning for more just because of how much I enjoyed it. There's forbidden romance, shadow shifters, who did this to you? an FMC without any magic, and just a splash of spice that will leave you wanting more. Trigger warning for self harm and parental abuse. I can't wait for the next book!

The story was well written and was interesting from the first few chapters. I can’t wait for the conclusion of the story! Yes, there is trauma. There’s also shadow daddy energy, “ touch her and d!e” vibes and forbidden love. It was not super spicy, but there was a storyline to build.

I enjoyed reading about how the FMC discovers herself and how she overcome some of her childhood trauma in this.
I really loved how quick and easy this was and how we also got so much information, and that this didn’t feel rushed!

I cannot wait for the second book!!!!

The Useless Witch is the first book in the Darkwing Duet by Indie author Savannah Lee - and wow, I devoured this page-turner!

Set in a world of witches the FMA Saoirse is the eldest daughter of the King of the Sol Kingdom - but she has no magic. Meanwhile the MMA Vale is a Darkwing (more like a hot shadow daddy) on a mysterious mission in Lanthus, the capitol of the Sol Kingdom.

* Witches
* Shadow shifters
* Enemies to lovers
* Forbidden romance
* One bed
* Angst
* “Who did this to you?”
* A dash of 🌶️


I won’t spoil too much, but Saoirse’s journey is one of survival. She has endured so much abuse, leaving her with many insecurities, trauma and anxiety. I appreciate how the book didn’t shy away from exploring those darker, raw emotions. As someone who has dealt with anxiety for many years myself, her inner dialogue was deeply relatable. It was refreshing to read about a heroine who isn’t perfect, who doesn’t have any powers, who isn’t the “chosen” one like in so many romantasies.

“Control was something I needed, something I craved, and I had none of it.”

Vane on the other hand was not your typical shadow daddy either. He isn’t rude or dislikable at all and actually really sweet and not afraid to show his emotions. He supports Saoirse in her darkest moments but isn’t afraid to give her some tough love when needed.

"You can’t lose yourself if you don’t even know who you are in the first place."

The book also has many great side characters, particularly Saoirse’s bond with her sister, Xan. She matured so much in the book.
And Maeve, the bakery owner, who helped Saoirse find a new life outside the castle, teaching her ways to cope with her anxiety—serving as the mother figure Saoirse truly deserves. The cozy bakery setting was a charming touch and added some lightness to the story.

If I had one critique, it’s that the pacing felt a bit rushed. Everything unfolds within a few weeks or months, which could’ve been stretched out to give more time to certain plot points. But it was great how the book got straight to the point - no unnecessary dragging! It’s packed with yearning, tension, a great plot twist, and a cliffhanger that left me craving for book 2!

Be sure to check the trigger warnings before picking this up, as there are some graphic scenes that could be upsetting and/or triggering to some. 



Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing an ARC of this book! All opinions are my own.

I received this book as an ARC.

I really enjoyed this story! I found the characters to be interesting and fun to read.

Some of the instances seemed a little predictable and cliche, but it was an overall fun book to read.

I look forward to book 2 after the cliffhanger!

This book is good for people who enjoy romantasy and main characters with tragic pasts. There isn’t much to the story but the chemistry between the romantic leads is really good. Some spice but not a lot.

This was a strong start to the Darkwing Duet series, it had what I was looking for from a opening chapter. The characters had that element that I wanted and thought it worked in this world. Savannah Lee writes a great magical world with characters that make you care. I thought the fantasy romance element worked in this story and had that dark topic that can be too much. Savannah Lee left me wanting more in this world and to read more.