An enjoyable paranormal sapphic romance!

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for this review.

I liked this story between Daisy and Sloan very much. I didn't read the first book in the series before this and that didn't hinder the ability to catch up on anything you may have missed in that first book.

Daisy and Sloan have a rough history. Daisy was tormented for who her family was growing up on and Sloan was part of that. Now they have been tasked to work together on an event for the town to bring people together.

I quite enjoyed the forced proximity of them spending so much time at the hotel together - being forced to get close to each other and work out their problems.

I wish I could say I enjoyed the one bed trope but if you're going to have one bed... ahem. USE the bed, if you know what I mean.

This book was spicy and there were a lot of deeper moments of them trying to figure out a life away from their family's toxic influence.

I wish more time and care was taken on that and the these characters similarities, and not so much on the numerous miscommunications they had in the book.

Overall though it was a good book and I enjoyed it!

This was a charming and quirky witchy read filled with delightful characters and a magical world that we could only wish in being a part of. The cosy vibes were incredible and the romance was great to follow, our sapphic couple had fantastic chemistry.

After a disappointing reunion with hr POS parents, Daisy Hale hopes a job offer from the council will be good news. It's not, she has to work with her former bully, Sloan Wilks.

Sloan wants to put her family's checkered past behind her, but Daisy is completely unwilling to cooperate due to Sloan's girl posse bullying Daisy.

There's some formatting weirdness, I assume will be fixed when it goes to print.

Sloan and Daisy's mutual friends Petra and Lachlan are trying to make them be friends, including pulling a 'Only one bed' gambit on them. Which honestly would have annoyed the heck out of me, personally...

The first make out session feels kind of sudden and abrupt, despite Daisy admitting Sloan is attractive. However the romance otherwise mostly works, and the writing is solid.

The book is a sequel to the author's first book, but reads OK as a stand alone.

I'm running out to buy book 1 in this series. Isla Winter created such wonderful characters and a world of magic that makes me wish I had powers. Highly enjoyed.

Thank you to Wordy Whims Press and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.

This is a cute, cozy, witchy, sapphic romance. Perfect book for those who may not know what to read, but wanting something a little different this fall season!

Thank you Netgalley, author, and publisher for the eARC.

2,5 ★

Trigger warnings: swearing, explicit sex scenes, loss of family (not through death), bullying (occurred in the past), grief
Tropes: enemies to lovers, misunderstanding, forced proximity, opposite attracts
Representation: lesbian romance, bisexuality, body positivity, main characters over 30


The city council has commissioned Daisy Hale and Sloan Wilks to plan an event with the goal to bring marginalized members of the community together. The problem: Sloan played a big part in making Daisy's high school years like hell for her. It is unimaginable for Daisy to work together with Sloan. Can the two of them put the past behind them and cooperate for the sake of the project?


Characters

Daisy is an outsider. When she was a little girl, her parents were banished from Leeside for selling magic to humans. Daisy was ostracized and bullied for her parents behaviour. Thus, her self-confidence and self-perception are low. Through the event planning, she can finally prove her abilities to the community and be part of something.

Sloan is the exact opposite of Daisy: wealthy, popular, confident. Her family has influence and a certain reputation - but Sloan would like to escape all that and go her own way. She wants to use the event to improve her image, but also to show everyone that she has changed.

I liked that both main characters are in their 30s (although they act very childish for their age at times) - I think the representation of 'older' characters is far too rare in many books. Overall, I liked them both, but Daisy was sometimes really annoying as she was often dismissive towards Sloan and unwilling to compromise.


Lovestory / Sex Scenes

I don't read romance novels very often, but I usually like the “Enemies to Lovers” trope because I feel that in this type of love story, the relationship is built up realistically and romantic feelings develop slowly. Unfortunately, in my opinion, this aspect came up short in Pushing Daisy. Although Daisy and Sloan don't like each other at the beginning and learn to appreciate each other more and more as the story progresses, the love story moved far too quickly for me. Basically, they both find each other attractive from the beginning and feel (physically) attracted to each other. That didn't work for me at all.

The focus is very much on the love story (the arguments, the mutual affection, the sex). The project does play a central role, as it is the trigger for the love story, but it is still more in the background. The relationship between Daisy and Sloan develops very quickly and I found it lacked depth overall. I couldn't quite understand until the end why they find each other attractive and what they like about each other. Because of this, some of the dialogues seemed a bit unrealistic to me.

I also had a few problems with the sex scenes. I don't mind reading explicit scenes, but I felt a bit uncomfortable reading them, especially because they both think about sex a lot without there being a suitable context. The sex scenes I've read so far also contained verbal eroticism, but in a much more “elegant” form. In contrast, the choice of words in Pushing Daisy seemed a bit clumsy and silly. I would classify the scenes more in the direction of “smut” - they were definitely very hot and explicit.

In the first 60% of the plot, the focus is more on arguments (which were annoying in the long run), mutual attraction and sex; later on, the feelings take center stage. That's why I liked the second half of the story more. A better balance between the two would have been ideal.


Miscellaneous

I really liked how magic works in this story: the magic differs from person to person and adapts to emotions and situations. I found this very exciting and I would have liked the focus to be more on the witchcraft/magic aspect. I also found the grimoire interesting, so much more could have been done with this part of the story. For the fact that Daisy and Sloan are both witches, there isn't as much witchcraft in the entire plot as I expected it to be. The story could have been written without magic and not much would have changed.

Other things that bothered me a bit: There is an unnecessary amount of swearing. Words or phrases are often repeated at short intervals, which disrupted my reading flow. The massage is weird and doesn't make sense in the project context in my opinion. The nicknames and the epilogue were too cheesy for my taste.


Stand Alone or Sequel?

Pushing Daisy is the second volume in the Leeside series, but it can be read independently from book one (With This Witch) as it is a stand-alone story. However, it often refers to the content of the first volume - so if you want to avoid spoilers, you should read With This Witch first. Everything important that happened in the previous volume, including the introduction of characters, is explained. Nevertheless, I sometimes had the feeling that I had missed background information from volume one in order to better understand certain thoughts/actions.


Summary

Unfortunately, Pushing Daisy didn't quite live up to my expectations, but this is probably primarily due to my personal preference for love stories/sex scenes. If you enjoy reading spicy romance books and don't mind more superficial relationships where the focus is more on attraction and sex, you'll like this book a lot more than I did. Overall, it's a sweet and cozy story, but I found it lacked depth and could have integrated the magic better.


Thank you to Netgalley and Wordy Whims Press for the opportunity to pre-read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I got this as an arc on Netgalley and it has since come out. It took me a bit to get into it, but when I got into it and they got into it, the book got devoured as quickly as they devoured each other. Nicely witchy and sapphicly smutty.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this arc!!

What a good book! I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I loved the main characters! They had great chemistry and worked so well together. I loved how the book just flowed. My first by this author but will not be my last!!!

Sapphic romance about women in their 30s with witchy will vibes? Yes, this book has it all. And it all comes together in such a beautiful way. I was totally rooting for the couple from page one and loved watching their story unfold. This was such a fun read. I would definitely recommend!! 💘

A super fun enemies to lovers sapphic story. There were moments that I struggled to get behind the characters, but mostly I was excited to see them fall for each other. A fun fall witchy read.

I LOVE an enemies to lovers plot, I also love supernatural books so this was great :)

I didn’t read the first one as I didn’t know about it so some of the things I say could have happened in the first but I’d of loved more background on her parents, like what exact were they doing, were they helping people and others didn’t like it or were they actually causing harm, it wasn’t clear to me. I also would of liked background to why the wilks disliked Daisy so much especially the mum, I didn’t understand why she hated her so much.

The ending was perfection, I can’t stand when a book ends and I’m left wondering what happens so I love that it wrapped it all up.

Love the representation in this book!
Women in their 30's - YES!
Women establishing their independence - YES!
Women bringing a community together - YES!
Daisy and Sloan are both working to distance themselves from their families - for vastly different reasons. Having learned to do it themselves, they must learn to depend on each other for a successful event, meeting their community's high standards.
A delightful Sapphic romance with found family, trust, trauma and moving on - with a little cheesiness here and there.

This was a cozy, witchy tale with an enchanting enemies-to-lovers arc and a touch of childhood bully redemption. I loved watching Daisy go on her own journey of self-worth, learning to trust not only those around her but also herself, despite her traumatic past and the grief tied to her parents’ actions. Sloan’s growth was equally powerful, as she found her voice and broke free from the weight of her family’s reputation. It was so satisfying to see her take accountability for her past while forging a better present and future.

Pushing Daisy by Isla Winter is a beautifully crafted novel that explores themes of love, loss, and personal growth. With its evocative prose and relatable characters, Winter captures the complexities of human relationships and the challenges of moving forward after heartbreak. The narrative is both poignant and uplifting, offering moments of humor and introspection that resonate deeply. This heartfelt story is a must-read for anyone seeking a touching exploration of resilience and the transformative power of love.

Los padres de Daisy, cuando tenía 11 años, fueron desterrados por vender posiciones a humanos. Su castigo consistió en no acercarse a menos de 5,000 km de Leeside, lo que obligó a Daisy a vivir en un hogar de acogida. Allí, la comunidad no la trató bien, convirtiéndola en una paria social.

Veinte años después, Daisy se reencuentra con sus padres, quienes, no han cambiado y buscan aprovecharse de ella. Como castigo por sus acciones, se les borrará la memoria. Daisy, que no se encuentra en el mejor estado de ánimo con todo ll que esta pasando, también recibe la noticia de que deberá trabajar con Sloane, quien le hizo bullying en la escuela.

El consejo, en un intento de reparar el daño a Daisy, la nombra coordinadora de eventos. Su misión es diseñar un evento comunitario que fomente un renovado sentido de pertenencia entre aquellos que han sido marginados. Ella deberá crear un espacio donde otros miembros de la comunidad puedan reunirse, relacionarse y establecer conexiones.

Sloane, proveniente de una familia privilegiada. Era parte del grupo que atacaba a Daisy. Aunque al final se reveló que no participó directamente, pero no intentó detenerlas y guardo silencio.

En cuanto al romance, me pareció poco convincente, ya que surge de la nada; los personajes pasan de un odio mutuo a un interés amoroso sin una transición clara.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This review poses a challenge, doesn’t it?

On one hand, acknowledging the effort authors invest in their narratives is crucial. Yet, the struggle to articulate a fair critique remains. I received this ARC, just like countless others, eager to dive into the tale. However, I found myself grappling with the writing style.

Take, for instance, a line from the start:

"Now, thanks to Petra and Lachlan— Petra’s husband, the demon representative on the council, and Daisy’s boss and friend— she finally gets to see her family again."

This sentence, while ambitious, feels tangled. The attempt at a flowery prose style seems to create distance rather than connection.

PLOT VS. STYLE
Now, let’s discuss the plot.

The enemies-to-lovers trope, a classic favorite, holds potential. Yet, it requires a reader’s commitment to truly engage. The story, filled with entertaining moments, offers glimpses of excitement. However, the writing style detracts from the overall experience.

In conclusion, while the premise intrigues, I wouldn't recommend this as a reread. Sometimes, even the most imaginative plots falter under the weight of their execution. It’s a reminder that flow and coherence often play pivotal roles in storytelling.

The second book in the Leeside Witches series, Pushing Daisy focuses on Daisy and Sloan. Daisy's parents trashed their family reputation, leaving Daisy to be raised in a foster home and as a bit of a social pariah. Sloan was one of Daisy's tormenters in school... but was she really? They get put together to work on a big social gathering following the events in book 1 of the series, With This Witch. Daisy has the lived experience of being ostracized from the community and Sloan has the name and connections to get things done. I was really looking forward to this after the first book, but the insta-love threw me. I needed a bit more build-up I think before the intimacy was introduced. I liked the characters, but the story left me wanting a bit. If you're looking for an LGBTQIA+ story about witches, check it out... however, if that isn't totally your vibe there may be better books out there for you.

Thank you to Wordy Whims Press and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy!

Thank you NetGalley, Isla Winter, and the publisher for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Pushing Daisy was a real treat! I really enjoyed getting to know both Daisy and Sloan and see their dislike for one another (or more so Daisy's dislike of Sloan) turn into an understanding, and eventually something more. The enemies to lovers trope played out wonderfully in this book, and was not too slow or too rushed. I also love a good one bed, forced proximity trope and Isla Winter did it SO well! I hadn't read the first book in the series, but reading this one has made me more interested in Petra and Lachlan's backstory as well, so I'll be checking that one out asap :)

Overall, a really fun and easy read!

This book, while not without some entertaining moments, is a bit all over the place. Also there's a few things I didn't understand such as why an event for outcast people meeting for the first time would require couples massage classes. And the bigger one, why Sloane is attracted to Daisy in the first place. Daisy treats her badly from the beginning asking to switch partners, ghosting her, yelling at her, and demanding she leave. Yes, Sloane did some bad things to Daisy in the past, but with the way Daisy is acting now, I just don't see how Sloane could feel any kind of attraction to her. All of a sudden after one awkward dinner filled with mostly silence, Sloane is feeling like Daisy could be "someone special" and starts being attracted to her. It just didn't make sense to me. There's many moments where it seems like they're making progress only for Daisy to decide otherwise and revert to hating Sloane out of nowhere. This makes sense somewhat for her character having trust issues, but it made the book frustrating to read at times. It wasn't all bad, however, there were a couple of cute scenes and good chemistry between them when they aren't fighting, or I should say when Daisy isn't starting something or pushing Sloane away. Overall, 3.2/5 stars.

While this book is the second in a connecting world of characters, it stand well on it's own and I did not miss anything by not having read 'With This Witch' first, though maybe there would be some Easter eggs if I had. I highly enjoyed this story and finished the majority of it in one day. It's like the author took a handful of my favorite tropes and then said "let's make it witchy and sapphic" which just enhanced the experience for me. I grew to love the perfectly imperfect Daisy and Sloan as their walls broke down and the tension between the characters swelled and resolved several times over. I add brownie points and extra appreciation to the author for the content warnings in the first pages and making consent and safe sex practices sexy.