Lighthearted, quick and easy, non-spicy romantasy read. Felt a little YA but I'm not mad about it. I'm not sure I would necessarily seek out this series but it was a fun little palate cleanser for me between heavier books.

This book was a really solid, quick read and a nice way to start the new year. While I've read this author before, I haven't read her Isle/Magical series. I think readers might benefit from reading the other books set on the Isle, but I didn't feel lost or confused.

I do wish we had learned more about Alessia and her past. I mean, there had to be some signs of her magic before, right? I just think this book would have benefited from being a little longer with more training scenes, information about her parents, and just things to fill in the gaps. I loved all the side characters and felt they were well written and described.

Silas was a solid MMC but again, I'd just love to know just a little more about his past. His interactions with her brother were some of my favorites. I wouldn't be mad to see more of Atlas in this series.

All in all, the book was a good read. It does make me want to read the other magical books the author has.

It was a very quick and easy read but well written. It’s a story of magic, love, and self discovery. I thought it was a very light and beautiful romance.

This is a captivating read for fans of fantasy romance who crave a story of self-discovery, love, and empowerment, as it weaves together elements of magic, adventure, and the struggle to find one's true identity and purpose.

It is an easy, quick read; the characters are likeable and well thought out. The relationship between Alessia and Silas was written well and was believable. My only gripe was that it got a bit slow-paced through the middle. Overall, it is a sweet, clean romance with magic thrown in 3.5 stars!

Overall I thought this book was okay. The book fell into a trap of telling and not showing, which is why it ultimately fell flat for me as I couldn’t find myself immersed in the magical isle or its characters. I truly think this novel had a lot of potential had the author put more development into the world and character building. The first chapter is so good, throwing us right into our main character being taken from her wedding by a mysterious man, but everything after that isn’t really shocking. My biggest complaint is our protagonist doesn’t find out she is fae until about 70% into the book, but we readers know that going into it from the description.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Cursed by Gina LaManna is so so good. I rated it 5 stars because I loved the experience of reading this book. Lovely characters, lovely storyline.

Shorter length, spice free (only a bit of kissing seen) fantasy romance.

Alessia is like a character in her own life.  She seems to have zero input in anything she does - her one small rebellion was being a family doctor rather than a fancy surgeon like her dad.  She doesn't even seem to like her fiancé, never mind being excited to marry him!  So when a dashing stranger storms into her wedding and saves her from marrying the egotistical jerk, she gladly runs off with him.

However, finding herself on a hidden magical isle in the middle of the Great Lakes was unexpected to say the least.  This island has a plague besieging its inhabitants and they are in dire need of a doctor to help them.  But what they really need is a Queen.

Silas and Alessia were a great match.  He, the enigmatic hero and her the runaway bride, doctor and, it would appear, late blooming magic wielder! Silas is kind and daring, a lover of his people and righter of wrongs.  He's also a bit of a feminist and is big on making sure that Alessia knows her word is his order, he's really big on consent!

The secondary characters are fun, friendly and charming - I especially loved Mollie and Ranger X.  I'd really love to see more of them in future books, they were a bit like NPC's - they didn't have a whole lot to do with the story really. I would have liked to have gone a bit more in-depth on worldbuilding but this series does interconnect with another set in the same world so reading those may fill in some of the gaps for me.

I would have liked to have seen a few flaws in our MC's.  Alessia is all a bit perfect and polished for me and Silas needed an annoying habit or something to dirty up the perfect! I just wanted them both to work a wee bit harder for the respect and adoration they were afforded.

Would I Recommend The Book?: No

Objective Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Subjective Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Romance/Spice Rating: 🌶️ ½ [Some kissing]

Violence Rating: 🗡️

SFW/NSFW: SFW

Potential Content Warnings:
Illnesses and ailment, impromptu birth scene, mentions and discussions of blood, some minor violence, fist fights, brief discussion of institutionalization, neglectful and bad parent system, toxic relationship with ex fiancé

Additional Comments:
This book entertained me while I was reading it. It was a good palate cleanser, and it was interesting enough to keep me engaged. I really liked the vibes, and it reminded me a lot of a Disney Film and the aesthetics that come along with it.

I also really liked the characterization of all the side characters. They were often very distinct and had distinct appearances.
Silas and Alessia have some snarky fun chemistry between them that’s fun to read. I really like the dynamic between them. I really appreciate how Silas is big on consent and really emphasizes Alessia’s consent in the situation she’s in. I don’t often see books do that and I really like that. He's not toxic.
I also really liked how there was this encouragement for Alessia to engage in healthy habits, such as taking breaks and having active self care. I really appreciated it, because it’s not something that I see in writing very often, authors don’t often do that.
However, this is nothing groundbreaking. A lot of the concepts are interesting, but it feels like we don’t linger on them long enough. I wish that some of it was lingered on or developed more outside of conversation.

The side characters, while I like the characterization, were often static and had no character development throughout the story. We’re told things about these characters that we’re never really shown. This book has a really bad habit of telling things about our characters and setting without any description. The entire book feels like “Tell Don’t Show” and the entire book was a series of conversations- and the conversations just gave the same information repeatedly. Alessia rarely spends time alone, and rarely develops.

Please bare in mind I don’t give this criticism lightly:The main protagonist almost feels like a Mary-Sue. She catches onto things quickly without much training or struggle, she can see things that nobody else is able to notice, and has an amount of power that nobody has seen in a very long time. The struggles she does have throughout the novel are hand waved away because of her magic. All conflict is solved by the end of each chapter. We’re told she’s intelligent but we’re never really shown. She’s sarcastic, and she is a victim of her life before ending up on The Isles, but other than that she has no meaningful flaws that negatively impact her decisions or her character. Nearly everyone on the Isles likes her, or at the very least respects her, because of her magic and none of it really feels earned. I wish she had been developed more. I wish we got to see her before she was whisked away to this magical world. Everything was handed to her.

I wish that we had gotten to see more of Alessia’s story before she gets whisked away to this magical world. We only really see one chapter and were told a lot about the relationship with her parents and fiancé. I think that her character could have benefited greatly from having a bit more time to develop herself as a skeptic and as someone who is lonely.

Overall, this book was okay. It was enjoyable while I was reading it, but I was a little disappointed with the final product.

Cursed is a fast-paced book that I couldn’t read fast enough to find out what happens. We meet Alessia the day of her wedding as she is ‘kidnapped’ by Silas, a mysterious man. She goes to a magical island and for the first time ever, feels like she’s at home… the only problem is a curse that is killing islanders. Alessia has to discover herself, rethink her beliefs, and fight for what she believes in. Thank you NetGalley and LaManna Books for the eARC.

As someone who has never ventured into the world of fantasy books—being a realist who often struggles to connect with magical or otherworldly characters—I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed this story. This book, about a lost soul who happens to be a doctor and discovers she is a long-lost Fae in an enchanting "otherworld," completely shifted my perspective on the genre.

What made this book stand out for me was how relatable the protagonist was. Like me, she begins the story as a skeptic, questioning the existence of magic and the otherworldly realm she finds herself in. It felt like we were on this journey together, slowly learning about and coming to terms with this fantastical world. The author did an exceptional job of explaining this new realm in a way that felt immersive and easy to follow, making it an enjoyable and seamless introduction to fantasy.

I also appreciated the balance between the fantastical elements and the grounding connections to reality. The descriptions of the otherworld were vivid and captivating, pulling me in completely, and the main character’s journey was easy to connect with—I found myself rooting for her throughout.

What makes this book particularly unique is its character-driven narrative. While there is a love story woven into the plot, it doesn’t overshadow the protagonist’s personal growth and the overall story. The action-packed sequences added an element of excitement that kept me hooked and made it hard to put the book down.

There were a few repetitive moments in the writing, but they weren’t distracting enough to diminish my enjoyment. The book does have a young adult vibe, which may be common for fantasy stories, though I can’t say for sure as a newcomer to the genre.

Overall, I’d highly recommend this book to anyone who, like me, is new to fantasy. It’s a fantastic introduction to the genre and proves that even a realist can fall in love with a story about Faes and magic. It’s a journey well worth taking!

This was such a cute read! I was sucked in from the first couple sentences, and could not put it down until I finished. I absolutely adored the story telling, the magic system & most of all: silas and alessia. I cannot wait for book 2!

I really enjoyed Cursed! The plot was engaging, and the fast pace made it an easy and enjoyable read from start to finish. Alessia’s journey pulled me in right away, and I loved the slow-burn romance. The book is well-written and keeps you hooked with twists, magic, and a few secrets revealed along the way.

Alessia tries to help a tall, dark and mysterious man, to stop a dangerous curse that could destroy everything. The world-building is detailed but very easy to follow, and the characters are so well thought of and developed. If you love a fast-paced, magical world with a hint of romance you will really enjoy this book, I would highly recommend!
#cursed #netgalley

I really enjoyed the balance between modern reality and the fantasy aspects within this book. They did not seem too over-the-top compared to other ones I have read. Everything had some sense to it and not just all thrown in for flare or absurdity. Furthermore, the names chosen for the characters are aesthetic to the genre that it is, which made it kind of beautiful, in a sense. I realized that very early on that I had already highlighted a numerous amount of memorable quotes that I already wanted to read the next book in the series once it comes out.

This book felt so much like a FairyTale with the market audience being adult female romance and urban fantasy stories. The book even included a bit of a lesson which is also true of fairytales. Aleissa is stuck in a life that on the surface may look idyllic from the rich handsome fiance to the well to do upbringing but underneath she is drowning until she first calls on her power. Then the true tale of Aleissa begins, a tale about a woman finding her place in a world much different than the familiar. It is a tale about a woman pulled along in her life with her parents and finance planning each step going to a woman unafraid to stand up for her self, a woman so strong a selfless she even saves a cursed evil siren about to kill her.
Silas's short non-answers drove me crazy for a while but it also kept me turning the pages trying to determine when Allie wold learn the full truth. Otherwise, he was a good character trying to atone for something he was not responsible for. The other characters from Millie to Irina and from x to Lilah helped round out a good tale. I was most fascinated by learning that magic was all around Aleissa from the 6th Borough to magic corporations casting spells. However, it took Belief to open her eyes and belief in herself to help her save the world or at least the magical portion of it.
I would recommend this book and look forward to seeing where the story goes next.
Thanks to NetGalley and LaManna Books for the opportunity to read this ARC.

3.5/5

If you like that one scene in A Court of Mist and Fury where Rhysand shows up at Feyre's wedding, then this book is for you.

This is a super quick book (only about 200 pages) about a girl who is about to get married, doesn't really want to and doesn't really want to. She is begging for something to happen, for something to stop this and then he shows up. This dude magically appears and takes her away to a far more magical place than New York. And that's how this story kicks off.

I would definitely recommend this, it was so quick to read and I had a fun time. I feel like because it is so short that by saying anything else, I might be spoiling something, so I shall say nothing more.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap-up.

Through NetGalley, I received a free copy of CURSED (Book 1 of the Court of Isles urban fantasy series) by Gina LaManna in exchange for an honest review. Alessia “Allie” Wells has spent her entire life bowing down to the will of others. Now, here she stands about to marry a man she doesn’t even like, in a venue she didn’t pick, decorated in a way she didn’t want, wearing a dress, shoes, and hairstyle she finds painful. So, Alessia closes her eyes and makes a heartfelt wish to escape her desperately unhappy life. Wish granted! Alessia awakes to life on a magical island where she can live her life doing the one thing she always wanted to do—help people. There’s only one proviso, she has to BELIEVE—in magic and, even more difficult, in herself.

I liked this book and look forward to the next one. I recommend this book to fans of romantic urban fantasy featuring exotic locations, witches, mermaids, fairies, elves, gods, and magic.

#Cursed #NetGalley

Alessia always felt like she didn’t belong, but it wasn’t until her wedding day that she understood why.

I quickly fell in love with the main characters in this story, especially Millie! The action was fast paced and never boring, but there was still definitely a sufficient amount of world building to really dive into this world. There was really a sense of found family in the isles that i most definitely enjoyed.

After further research i can see the author already has a series based in this world, (although this new series can be read without spoilers) which i will definitely be open to reading in the future!

read this book in one sitting!

4⭐️

This was a great read! Will absolutely be finishing the rest in the series. I loved the writing style and the story. I have already recommended this to others I think would enjoy it and can’t wait to hear their feedback also! It was great.