Two pining geographers enter into a marriage of convenience that turns out to be quite inconvenient indeed. For what is actually worse than secretly loving each other while thinking the other loathes you?

The Tarrants travel to the outskirts of the UK in the 1800s to save the area from magical energy that is causing disturbances to the weather, land, and animals. As they overcome magical disturbances, the one bed at the inn issue, and incompetent help, they draw closer together. And who knows, maybe they will realize their feelings are reciprocated.

India Holton is always a hoot. Her writing style never ceases to amaze me and make me laugh. The writing is clever and smart. While the characters are endearing, sometimes the story felt stagnant because of the lack of communication between the main characters. This also influenced the pacing as it made some parts drag. However, the story is still engaging and fun.

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fans of grumpy versus sunshine rejoice! Holton delivers an absolute romp with her characteristic and delightful whimsy. Magical storm chasers, inconvenient marriages, and quirky villagers abound. You don't want to miss it.

Elodie is an expert in magical disasters and Gabriel is the grumpy man she married for convince who she also happens to secretly love. The only thing that fazes Gabriel is his wife whom he secretly pines for. When a magical disaster strikes a small Welsh village, they are paired together to tackle the issue.

I love the magic system in this book and the unique way the author writes fantasy books. I am also a sucker for any sort of grumpy x sunshine book.

If there is one constant in this world, it is my utter delight in India Holton novels, and her newest work is no exception!

Elodie and Gabriel Tarrant are married, but neither one of them is particularly happy about the arrangement. Where Gabriel is calculated, Elodie is a free spirit. Where he is tidy, she's a walking incarnation of chaos. And where he is deeply in love with her, she is also deeply in love with him---if only they would let the other know about it! When an emergency geography assignment pairs them together on an expedition to Wales, they must not only solve the mystery of this surplus of dangerous magic, but also their own relationship.

It is so easy for romance writers to fall into convention and routine. Pairings after pairings shine without too much individual and authentic characterizations, plots follow the same beats, and happy endings are formulaic and unoriginal. But Holton manages to avoid this pitfall like no other author in the contemporary landscape. Though her works all take place in the same world, and with similar pairings (in theory), the tropes she utilizes and her unique pacing manages to make every one of her novels a completely new and exciting experience. The characterizations of both Elodie and Gabriel both shined throughout this novel, and marked them as stand-out characters in her Holton-verse of fantasy and romance. This new installment in her extensive world is full of heart, magic, and above all else, swoony romance.

It is my joy to recommend India Holton and her works to every reader I come across (and working in a library environment, these chances are pretty frequent). I eagerly await the publication of this book and her next and final installment in her Lover's Academic trilogy. Her diction shines, her characters feel true and lifelike, and her romantic sensibilities cannot be topped. In short, I think I may be India Holton's biggest fan!

*special thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an e-galley of this novel in exchange for an unbiased and honest review*

EEEP!!! I am literally kicking my feet! How wonderful was this romance between two professors!!!! I love India Holton for her strong witty heroines and epic banter. This might be my favorite of her works so far!

4.5 stars!

The romance was aces but the actual story was too much to follow at times. It’s heavy on dense terms and unexplained magical happenings- which is also true of the first book. It hit different in this one though for some reason.

I love this author’s writing and characters though, so I will be on board for book 3.

I think the set up just wasn’t exactly my cup of tea this time.

5/5

When the worst thing in the world is actually having feelings for your wife

Two estranged professors of geography reunite after their failed marriage of convenience to confront a scholarly mystery in a Welsh village that could have dire outcomes on their academic worlds and the roles they have retreated into. Despite our hero's emphatic aversion to poetry, India Holton endeavors to suffuse her mixture of whimsy and utter absurdity into her latest historical romantic fantasy that left me far too entertained, swept up in the underlying romantic tension between two misunderstood academics avoiding their feelings as danger ensues. Endearing and entirely bemusing, The Geographers Map to Romance charts out a course rigged with chaos – American tourists turning into cows, waltzing to get out of quicksand, and intensifying versions of the “not enough bed” trope (a superior version dare I say). I just wanted to stay lost with this one, with Gabriel and Elodie proudly soldiering their hurts and their desire to be truly seen by one another adding or subtracting a few near-death experiences. India Holton has struck an emotional chord of belonging with this beautiful love story about meeting people right where they are. Elodie and Gabriel bring on the yearning and the not-so-quiet grumbling and all I want is to trek off on more adventures by their side.

A comprehensive review will be shared on my blog closer to publication

India Holton’s writing is quirky and ironic, and as a romance writer, is she is quite self-aware of the tropes that guide many romance novels. I’ve read her previous 4 books, so am quite familiar with her stories and after several books, there seems to be a plot pattern of some sort of travel element or landscape change. The plot feels a bit thin in The Geographer's Map to Romance, and I think the plot repetition from previous novels contributes to that thinness.

Plot issues noted, I still really enjoyed the characters – Elodie and Gabriel – and reading from both of their perspectives. This book brought me out of a reading slump with how funny and lovely it is. Holton’s writing is also quite flowery, which I love, but can appreciate that it may not be for everyone.

All in all, Holton releases a book, and I read it, and that pattern will also continue so long as Holton is publishing.

4/5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and Berkley Publishing, for the ARC.

Rating: 5/5 stars

Elodie—an expert in magical disasters—enters into an accidental marriage of convenience with Gabriel…only for a misunderstanding to lead to an immediate estrangement. But when they’re both called in to address an impending catastrophe in Wales, they will need to grapple with their true feelings once and for all.

I LOVED this book. India Holton’s writing style is so smart, and sharp, and funny, but here the pining and yearning was also SO heartfelt and drew me in immediately. I am obsessed with Gabriel—the stoic, secretly sweet man who is head over heels in love with his wife, and adored Elodie—the smart, wild, chaotic energy that brightens everything around her.

I generally adore this subspecies of enemies to lovers (where they are actually both obsessed with one another but misinterpret the other’s feelings and behaviors) and watching it play out against the backdrop of a fantasy United Kingdom and a subplot of pending magical doom was a delight. India is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, and I’m so excited for this one to officially release (and also for the NEXT one, because I can already feel that I’m going to relate to Amelia so much!)

CW: Sexism

3.95 ★ — oh this was incredible. especially compared to the first book. i love, love, love the characters. much more enjoyable relationship dynamic in this one—in the first, it felt like devon was exploiting the misogyny of 1890s english society to get with beth. gabriel is a much more likable character: he defends elodie against his deranged colleagues and seems to actually understand what it's like for his wife being in this profession, unlike certain other male leads. also, elodie is less libfem coded than beth, which is excellent for me.

somehow, this book incorporated every romance trope/plot point i hate and made it fun. one bed, forced proximity, miscommunication, sheer idiocy, unnecessary emphasis on elodie's married name, and yet! actually crazy how good it was. even the tumblrcore poetry insertions, which were obviously a bit, were pretty.

the only thing i didn't like was that at a certain point, it felt like the quirkiness was forced. we get it, the magic is weird, but enough. the plot was also meh? everything revolved around the romance. in the first book, i felt like the contest came first and bethdevon fell in love in the course of competing, but it was more natural and less the narrative forcing them together (ironic, because the point of that book was literally the journalists manipulating them to get together). i don't actually mind all that much because the gabelodie hold it down even without a plot, and i was actually invested in the romance (for the first time ever), but yeah.

and the excerpt of book 3?? i'm going to love camelia even more than the tarrants, i can tell. i'm genuinely so invested in this series?

thank you to netgalley for the advanced copy.

As long as India Holton writes deeply ridiculous historical fantasy romances, I will read them. I didn’t love this one quite as much as the first, the magic was somewhat less interesting and it was less romantic, but I love her style of writing and Elodie and Gabriel are perfect. This book is funny and cute and I really had fun reading it.

I’ve loved India Holton’s other books, so I was thrilled to get an ARC for this one. The premise seemed amusing, two quirkily geography professors specializing in magical energy with unrequited feelings for each other who set out on an assignment to contain some rogue magical energy field.

And then for SEVENTY PERCENT of the book, the quest for the rogue magic advances around the countryside, but the neither the characters nor their relationship to one another develop one iota. They’re stuck in their heads, frustratingly and incomprehensibly misreading each other’s cues, over and over.

The last quarter of the book evolves from that broken record and moves the plot forward, becoming more fun and eventful. If you like silly, steamy, suspenseful, magical reads, I’d recommend India Holton’s The Secret Service of Tea and Treason (Dangerous Damsels, #3) #thesecretserviceofteaandtreason

Thanks to @NetGalley for an opportunity to read this advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review

India Holton has become a comfort author and insta-buy. Witty, tension filled, and fiercely independent FMCs make every book a work of art.

If this book were even 1% more tongue-in-cheek I don’t think I would have liked it. While this book does contain a marriage of convenience, one of my emotional support tropes, I didn’t like this one as much as the first in the series, although I did still enjoy it! I’m really looking forward to what I assume will be the third book - Gabriel’s sister.

India Holton never disappoints! This book had more of the witty banter I’ve come to expect from Holton’s books! Holton’s heroines are always smart and funny, the kind of women you want to be best friends with, and they get to fall for their perfect counterparts over the course of a brilliant adventure. I couldn’t put this book down, and I can’t wait to read the next one!

I do love a male character who is DOWN BAD, SMITTEN, and SIMPING.

I liked the relationship between Elodie and Gabriel a lot! They were both so cute and going through it. I think it would have been a bit better if the author had made just kissing a part of their past, instead of full-on doing The Deed. It just felt a bit out of place for their history vs. where they were in the beginning of the novel.

It’s so much fun the way the author plays around with romance tropes and flips them on their head — it gives me a good lol.

Howeverrrrr… The actual plot that moves those romantic moments forwards was just a bit not enough. Last book, I felt all the ornithological stuff was a bit repetitive. And this time, maybe it’s just me, but I still couldn’t tell you exactly what their jobs were or exactly what they were trying to do by the end.

This gave me all of the cozy feels like the first book. Nothing can ever make me not love a good marriage of convenience. Now mix that with two scholars who couldn’t be more opposite and this is what you get. At times I found the writing to feel clunky and over complicated. But I still really enjoyed it!

Geographers map to romance
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really enjoyed the way the crossed-out thoughts and internal changes were handled. From Elodie's perspective, Gabriel feels distant and stoic, while from Gabriel's point of view, he's a mess, and she appears almost like an unattainable goddess. What started as a marriage of convenience quickly turns into a marriage of inconvenience, filled with tension and emotional distance.
The back-and-forth between the characters throughout the story does an excellent job of building toward their eventual union, making their eventual connection feel earned and satisfying. The book leans heavily into the familiar tropes of a marriage of convenience and the classic "one small bed" scenario, which provides plenty of deliciously awkward moments.
While the slow burn between them was perhaps a bit too slow for my tastes, once the spark finally ignites, it's absolutely worth the wait.

Spice: 🌶️


Favorite Quote:
“Geography wouldn’t be an adventure if we had life insurance.”

This historical fantasy had me giggling throughout. I loved the characters, the author’s style of writing and the humour. The whole concept was very quirky, but if you just go with it, it makes for a very fun read.

I first came across India Holton when I noticed how many people had requested the first book in this series at my library. I will definitely checkout her other books.

Thanks to Berkley Romance and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

SHE WAS CUTE!!! in all honesty i think i liked this one more than the first book! historical romance is her bread and butter and at this point im reading anything india holton drops. the romance was cutesy if not a little backseat to the historical bit but i digress (this is simply the romance lover in me begging for more)