This book is definitely the start of a series. And like the start of many series it needed a little time to get going. In fantasy you anticipate some world building and there was enough world building without letting it take over the entirety of the book.

This book was a little hard for me because I did not feel especially invested in the couple but to me this felt like one of those romance series that will have a different book for every couple and I can tell even though I didn't feel as connected to this couple that I enjoyed the writing enough to know that my couple was coming. Because that preview for the next couple ... GIVE ME MORE!! I was all about them. The banter, the tension, the drama. Yes! that is what I will be interested in reading. This book set the scene built the world and I know these characters crawled so the next ones can walk.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this story. And PS Please remember me for the next book in the series.

A neat romantasy that focuses on a witch queen with trauma trying to hold onto her power, and the man on the run who's trying to pass himself as a dark wizardly librarian, and how their paths cross as she tries to protect what's hers from her shitty uncle. Plays around with tropes but stands well on its own as a romance and a fantasy, deals with emotional trauma and its aftermath and not running, and fun, hot sex scenes while we're at it. And the narrator does some great things with the characters voices, and does really well with the romance and sex bits. Definitely worth your time.

I thought this was such a great story and I also enjoyed listening to the narrator.. Ordered both the physical and audio books for our readers. Thank you for the eARC.

A really unique addition to the romantasy genre. He escapes his cruel advisor who has used abuse to take control of the throne. He runs to his enemy in the hope of allying with her. She assumes he's a dark wizard there to assist her.
Through being himself, they fall in love.
One of the few "he's keeping a secret and reveals too late" trope stories that MAKE SENSE, and I'm like, yea okay fair.
A great fun time that I highly recommend to anyone looking for a lighter fantasy. Veyr excited for the next book!

Great fantasy romance about a "wicked" queen and librarian.
The crows, fountain pens and found family made for a great story.

DNF @60%

I kept forgetting that I was reading this book, and when I did remember, I didn't feel compelled to pick it back up. I can live with not know how it ends.

In my opinion, the vibes are like every other romantasy out there. I think I need to take a break from the genre because the monotony is getting to me.

Charming, witty, and with an excellent case of mistaken identity at its core, Wooing the Witch Queen is a romantasy with a delightfully Gothic flavor, as our titular enchantress rules over her castle of goblins, ogres, and other supposed monsters with curmudgeonly care. The budding romance between her and the incognito archduke posing as her librarian is sweetly believable, as is the conflict between their kingdoms keeping him from revealing his true nature to her. Short but fun, and I have a feeling I'm going to be just as entertained by the spin-off novel.

This review is based on the audiobook gifted to me through an ARC from NetGalley!

What an unexpectedly fun ride this book is in a slightly steamy, genuinely cozy, fun romp of darkness. We meet Saskia, the Witch Queen herself and Archduke in Disguise, Felix. Looking to seek asylum to break from those actually running his country, he is mistaken for a dark wizard and set to task on managing the mess of a library Saskia inherited. Grateful for somewhere to hide, Felix takes it upon himself to do his best - as man who is absolutely, definitely not a dark wizard they anticipated him being for the job - to do exactly what is expected of him. Along the way, we get a lovely slow burn between Felix and Saskia as they deny feelings, get close, then pull away again. It is teasing and delicious and at one point, I even threw my Kindle down out of shock!

What unfolds is fun and witty, a myriad of close call reveals, and lots of twists and turns with a touch of a cliffhanger ending - and thank goodness this audiobook came with a few minutes of a preview for the next book, because you will be left wanting more! I had high hopes for this one and Burgis delivered. I really enjoyed learning about the other witch queens and am curious to see how things hopefully continue to unfold with their stories!

I also thoroughly enjoyed the narrator, who did a wonderful job speaking for all the parts. Narration can be tricky with books, but Cobb is a master at their craft! They spoke with beautiful inflection, pacing, and diction. Often, I find that I have to listen at 2x - or faster - but with Cobb, I just needed to bump it to 1.25, but it was otherwise crisp and well paced for my ADHD addled brain!

I think this was a perfect cozy fantasy romance! I am excited for the next book in this series. It does have a little bit of spice, but not too much. I also love that the MMC was the damsel in distress. The pacing was good and the fantasy world was easy to follow. The audiobook was a great listen!

A young man, rumoured to be a bloodthirsty, untrustworthy monster, and a young woman rumoured to be a bloodthirsty, violent monster, are put together, and very quickly their perceptions of one another are turned on their heads, in a delightful, swoony, cozy story of two hurt souls finding their soulmates, and preventing the misuse of their names and power by nefarious others.

The two leads are sweet and kind, and have been used egregiously by parental figures who claimed to have their best interests at heart. Yeah sure. More like the parental figures had their own best interests at heart!

Author Stephanie Burgis brings Archduke Felix and witch queen Saskia together, and because Saskia mistakenly believes Felix is her new dark wizard she hired to organize all her magical texts in her library, Felix gets to hide his identity (and face behind a mask) and the two get to know each other without the burden of their reputations. Felix sees how generous and compassionate she is with her staff/friends, while she sees how gentle and kind he is (you know he's kind when a young, adorable crow befriends him immediately).

There are two other witch queens who decide to ally with Saskia, as they know that an alliance of not terrible magical users, i.e. , them, is needed to protect their respective lands.

This is very much a slow burn romance, as Felix and Saskia learn to trust each other, and gradually fall for each other, and discover that their reputations were fabricated by their parental figures for political gain. Saskia is very much a good person, wanting rights for all in the land, not just humans, and Felix wants nothing more than to be kind and care for others.

I enjoyed this story a lot, and loved Saskia and Felix together. Burgis has more coming in this world, and it looks like she'll be focusing on the other two witch queens in the remainder of this series. Can't wait!

I listened to this story, and liked voice actor Amanda Leigh Cobb's work bringing the characters to life. Felix's gentle tones, and Saskia's personality come through, and I really enjoyed Cobb's voicing of Saskia's troll butler/major domo/second in command.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Macmillan Audio for this ARC in exchange for my review.

(3.75 stars)
Wooing The Witch Queen was a lovely story with a slow-burn romance, which I believe will delight readers of “cozy fantasy.”

Saskia is a young queen who has a reputation for being really evil. (But she’s really not.) She’s trying to protect her kingdom from the schemes of a neighboring kingdom, supposedly ruled by Archduke Felix, but really ruled by his cruel relative. Saskia took over the kingdom from her own cruel relative, so Saskia and Felix actually have a lot in common but they don’t know it.

Felix manages to escape somehow and finds his way to Saskia’s castle, where he hopes to seek shelter/asylum. But she thinks he’s a dark wizard answering her ad for a librarian to organize the totally unorganized magical library she inherited. Felix says his name is Fabian and wears a mask to conceal his famous face (it seems that wasn’t usual for a dark wizard?).

Saskia is a powerful witch and Felix/Fabian has no wizarding skills, but he works hard to read and categorize her collection of magical tomes and miscellaneous spell papers. Most of the book centers on the growing relationship between these two. It’s sweet to watch them gradually fall for each other - but of course Saskia doesn’t know who Felix/Fabian really is.

This is the first book in a series and it seems that the rest of the books will focus on the other “queens of villainy.” These women provided some comic relief, as did Saskia’s First Minister. There are two major non-human characters who serve Saskia: Morlokk, her majordomo, an ogre, and Mrs. Haglitz, her housekeeper, a troll, both of whom were wonderful characters, as were the castle’s crows, especially Oskar.

Note: There is a bit of steam in the later sections of the book. And there are references to physical punishments inflicted on the two main characters in the past.

I mainly listened to the audiobook version, which was beautifully narrated by Amanda Leigh Cobb. It kept me entertained on a long flight.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to a review copy of this audiobook and to Bramble and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a review copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Wooing the Witch Queen by Stephanie Burgis is a blend of cozy fantasy, romantasy and trope-humor. Queen Saskia successfully took the throne back from her evil uncle in order to protect her people, and now has to deal with neighboring kingdoms that do not appreciate having a powerful sorceress on the throne. Felix is the runaway Archduke of the neighboring rival kingdom, masquerading as a dark wizard and a librarian (despite being neither) in order to escape being a figurehead in his own country. Of course, he can’t tell the book-loving Saskia who he really is, since their kingdoms are at odds, and of course, this means they will fall in love.
Stephanie Burgis crafts a captivating world with a sweet, sensitive hero and an introverted, yet powerful, heroine. Saskia, the Witch Queen, is a refreshing character (and bisexual FMC), trying to balance her duties with her desire for peace and magical research. Felix, disguised as a librarian, is a charming and calm hero, whose quiet courtship of Saskia is really just… cute.
The story is rich with found family, alliances between "evil" queens, and a looming threat from an Empire determined to eradicate magic. Burgis seamlessly weaves humor and whimsy into the narrative, while also addressing themes of inclusivity, acceptance, and the importance of freedom. Despite some darker undertones in Felix's backstory, this book will appeal to a wide range of readers. The romance is heartwarming, and the light political intrigue gives it some depth. I particularly loved the personal touches Burgis incorporated, from Felix's love of fountain pens to the crow that adopts him.
The writing is straightforward but has an almost Pratchett-like sense of humor, in that “dark queen” elements like ravens and flaming skulls are used, but they are turned on their head a little, and Saskia is more than aware of the irony of using such things herself. This kind of humorous writing isn’t my favorite, but will definitely appeal to fans of Assistant to the Villian, by Hannah Nicole Maehrer and Dreadful by Caitlin Rozakis.

This was a really cute, cozy romantasy. It was really easy to read, however I prefer a slow burn and this felt more like insta-love. The storyline feel rushed and the court politics could have been further explored. There is some open-door romance later in the book, although it is not overly graphic. I enjoyed the narration in the audiobook and it was very easy to listen to.

Expect:
-golden retriever MMC
-low stakes
-not-so-evil evil queen

Thank you to NetGalley & MacMillan audio for the ALC of this book.

Cute and fun, easily digestible fantasy with romance! I enjoyed following along with Saskia and Felix - Felix specifically was such a fun puzzle to work out for Saskia, and I was rooting from the start for them to give in to their attraction!

Wooing the Witch Queen had potential, but it was buried under a frustrating mix of contradictions, plot holes, and lackluster world-building.

There was so much telling and not enough showing. The author over-explained unnecessary details while skimming over things that actually needed development.

Characters made decisions not because they made sense but because the plot needed them to. Which, in turn, made the plot feel forced .

That said, I did like the raven.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

Rating: 5/5
I received the eARC for my honest opinion.

I loved this book so much, it was romantasy, but it was also like a historical with a good mix of fantasy in it as well. I loved that even though you have fantasy book this has more romance in it. This book also has action, drama and a lot of laughter. In this book you will meet Felix who is the Archduke of Estarion but he really isn’t he is just the figure head. He has been abused by his regent and father-in-law. You will meet Saskia who is a fierce, loyal and caring even though she knows that she is powerful, and she knows when to use it. They meet when Felix runs away to her kingdom looking for help but when he gets there, she is too busy in her potion room and mistakes him for the new dark wizard. He has the challenge of helping her get her library organized, and he takes it and learns that he will have to hide his identity.

This was a such a cute romantasy with a little (a very little) of spice. I loved that they were both falling for each other, but it was of course he falls first, and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. You will get to watch these two heal each other’s emotional abuse and even some physical. You will see these two learn to grow and understand themselves and want they want in the end. I found Felix to be such a sweetheart even though he has been through hell and back. He soon realizes that his father-in-law has ruined his reputation as the Archduke. He wants to make changes to his life and how his people see him in his area and the other areas as well. He is misunderstood, and I wanted to wrap him up in a cozy warm blanket and hold him for hours. I loved that Saskia is so fierce, and caring even though she has been through the ringer as well. Her parents’ loss was traumatizing to her and how her uncle treated her afterwards. She doesn’t trust right away but if you gain this queen trust you will see how far she will go to protect her friend/family. The side characters were well built, and you can see their stories coming alive in this book and I can’t wait to see what the next book will bring us.

I also received the audio of this book and wow. Amanda Leigh Cobb did a wonderful job bring the characters to life, as well as the book. You can tell that she really cared to bring the readers the best audio.

I want to thank NetGalley and Tor for the opportunity to review this book.

Queen Saskia is a wicked witch queen with powers feared in neighboring kingdoms, including where the Imperial Archduke resides, her mortal enemy and attempted assassin. After putting out an advert looking to hire a sorcerer, she hires "Fabian", a silent, sweet and nerdy stranger to be her librarian. Little does she know that Fabian is not at all who he seems, and this does not stop him from being tempting for the witch queen.

I enjoyed the writing of this story and the light worldbuilding, but I really did not see Saskia as "wicked" in any sort of way, which was promised. I liked Fabian and his love of fountain pens and crows, he was very cute, but I did not buy their love story as much as I would have liked. The stakes felt low despite the possibility of war and was more on the cozy side, which is usually fine with me, but with such a looming possibility of conflict, felt at odds to me. I did like the representation of Queen Saskia being bisexual.

The first in a new historical fantasy series that involved a bookish witch queen a secret nobleman masquerading (literally) as a librarian/servant. This was my first book by Stephanie Burgis and I enjoyed it quite a bit for the slow burn, forced proximity love story with betrayal, heat and heart. I look forward to seeing what happens next and enjoyed it on audio. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review! Recommended for fans of books like A study in drowning by Ava Reid.

Whimsical, adventurous, and fun—Wooing the Witch Queen was a great addition to my fantasy reads this year. This cozy fantasy follows an archduke in disguise as a dark wizard and on the run from his past. When serendipitously is confused as an applicant for the position of Librarian at the castle of the Witch Queen Saskia, he throws himself into the job of bringing order to her magical library. Saskia is a queen just trying to protect her people, especially from the encroachment of the humans. Forming a tentative alliance with the other witch queens, Saskia spends hours experimenting with magic to protect the realm, and her new librarian, “Fabian,” seems eager to help. As the two fight their growing attraction to one another, war seems like it is about to come knocking on their door. When the secrets between them are revealed, they will have to decide what matters more—what side of the war they’re on, or what they know of each other.

❤️ What I loved: Great characters, a fun story with high stakes but levity to match, and a super sweet romance. I loved the dynamic between our two main characters and the relationship that grew between them throughout the story.
💔 What I didn’t love: I might have liked a little more of the world-building to see the bigger picture, but since this is a planned series, I imagine we will get more glimpses in the future books.

I highly recommend this book to fans of cozy fantasy and romance, and I am looking forward to the next book in the Queens of Villainy series, which is focused on the Fae Queen and the general!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 (4-4.5)

Acknowledgments & Disclaimers ✨ Thank you to NetGalley, Stephanie Burgis, and Macmillan Audio, for providing an ARC and the opportunity to share an honest review of this book. ✨ All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own. ✨ My reviews and ratings strive to evaluate books within their own age-demographic and genre.