⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Okay, first, let's take a minute to appreciate this cover. It's giving bodice ripper, but make it fantasy 😍 I love it!

I really enjoyed this book! It grabbed me right away (which I think is super important for romantasy) and kept my interest the entire time. I thought it was unique and fast-paced... always having me wanting to know what was going to happen next!
The chemistry between the FMC & MMC was of the charts, and the spice was SPICING! 🥵🔥 I was not expecting there to be that much spice, but it worked with the story & didn't overshadow the plot at all, in my opinion.

I could've used a *little* more world building, but it wasn't hard to follow as is, and I can't wait to see where the rest of the series takes us! It's a great intro to the romantasy genre for Falon Ballard, and I'd definitely recommend it to all the spicy romantasy lovers out there!!

Thank you, NetGalley for this ARC! There were some parts of this book that I liked and some that were harder for me to get into. I felt like the mixing of world-building and romance-building was rushed. At times, the FMC and MMC’s romance felt too quick and didn’t have enough tension and yearning for my liking.

I went into this book thinking the premise sounded cool and there was going to be tons of opportunities for unique world building but unfortunately there was a huge lack of world building straight from the start. There was some, but there was a lack of it enough to the point where the plot was confusing at points. I did like the letters ( maybe even journal entries??) we see throughout the book and that did help me figure out some of the missing pieces. Just the lack of world building took away a huge amount of enjoyment for me.
The characters on the other hand, I liked some of them. And others I didn't, I enjoyed Cat, she was honestly my favorite and I thought her gift was unique, but I just didn't enjoy her sister. And maybe that's because we didn't see so much of her ( I have a feeling the next book will be about her ). I did like her romance with Callum and I enjoyed the more spicy scenes that were littered without.
Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Oh I so wanted to love this one! The premise and cover were to die for. But some of the world-building was confusing and hard to follow; same with the plot. The chemistry between the main characters was to die for, though!

This book is sexy, alluring, unique, and utterly bingeable!

Something Wicked feels fresh and different in a genre where too often books feel like slightly distorted carbon copies of those that have come before it.

Fallon Ballard took a risk jumping from contemporary romance to romantasy and I think she’s on to something great. This wasn’t a perfect book but it was a great debut to the genre and I’m excited to see what comes next from this author.

What’s to love…
- MMC with red hair AND curls ::::swoon::::
- fast-paced and utterly binge-able
- perfect blend of Macbeth and Moulin Rouge
- interesting magic
- top-tier chemistry between the MCs
- FUN, this was a blast to read
- perfectly hateable villain
- SPICY! A book with this much spice can sometimes feel like they’re banging constantly for no reason and you can’t get a single break. This was NOT that. They are definitely doing lots banging but it’s sprinkled throughout in a way that gives you a bit of a breather between sessions and always feels purposeful.
- sex lessons
- Bi FMC (although we only get one WLW interaction and its no longer discussed BUT still worth mentioning imo)
- I really enjoyed that this book gave an interesting (and positive) take on sex/sex workers with Caterine's magical power. The idea that sex/orgasms can be to used to heal is so powerful and certainly true under the right circumstances.

What not to love…
- World-building, I think this would be a good book for those who don’t mind a superficial world or are new to the genre, but those that want a fully fleshed out world and high political intrigue may find this to be a bit lacking.
- A bit predictable. I usually don’t remark on this, because I am autistic and pattern recognition is one of my strong suits, BUT I think its safe to say that in this case others may find it a bit predictable too. Mostly I found the letters/journal entries at the beginning of chapters to be a bit too obvious.
- Pacing. This was certainly fast-paced and easy to binge but it felt a little too rushed during the climax/falling action. I wanted more.

🌶️- This one is SPICY. The FMC is a courtesan in a smex club, we get scenes right from the start and they continue to be sprinkled throughout. Sorry I don’t have chapter numbers for you this time, the ARC was in PDF format and my kindle was really struggling with syncing and saving bookmarks! Just know it’s SPICYYYYYYY.

Thank you NetGalley and Putnam for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

I’ve been excited about Something Wicked since Ballard revealed that gorgeous cover (look at how beautiful). And while it’s not a perfect book, it’s fun, seductive and spicy as hell - we’re talking McCormick levels of spice.
Okay, so Cate and Callum are super hot and fun MCs who you totally root for. However, some of the side characters don’t feel very fleshed out. Like some of the other courtesans and Callum’s sister Dom feel like they were stuck in there to help move the plot along or to be sacrificed for MCs’ character growth. Hopefully this is the beginning of a series and in future books these characters will be further explored?
The world building is good and keeps you interested - the idea of gifted women who are used and bodies are regulated felt apropos of the current times. And the transition from a monarchy to a democracy was compelling. However, a lot of the political plot kept me wanting more and didn’t seem fully fleshed out. Including the Uprising - but again, if this is just the first book of the series, hopefully there are plans that would expand on that plot.
At the end of the day, I had fun and I loved the parts I loved and they more than made up for the parts that fell flat for me.
A huge thank you to NetGalley and Putnam Books for the eARC!
4/5⭐️

2.75
So… this was a little addicting at first, but overall it made little sense. For a fantasy the world building was pretty nonexistent. Where are we? When does this take place? The nuances of the world were introduced but not really explained (Bonds and Gifts). The villain was one dimensional and annoying. Ultimately I just didn’t care about any of the characters or anything that happened. The spice was nice, but there was a ton within a handful of chapters and then none. It all just felt a little pointless and like there were no stakes.

First of all the cover is everything. I was very excited to see Falon moving into Romantasy. I really enjoyed this one and am very excited for the next. There was just something missing that I usually get out of falons romcoms. I wanted to connect to the characters way more than I did. Overall a great read tho.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a great quick read in between series and I loved the prose of the book. And the description.

Obsessed, I hope this turns into a series because I am hooked. The setting, the characters, everything felt sumptuous and engaging.

I loved the love story and the cliff hanger at the end. There were some high stakes losses which I appreciated because some writers are unwilling to kill off characters and find silly magic loopholes to bring them back.

This book grabbed me right from the start, and I couldn’t get enough. There’s something about the tension between Callum and Cate that feels electric, and I was absolutely drawn to it. I loved how this book didn’t shy away from the darkness that both characters face. The writing style is magnetic, capturing the complexity of the characters without bogging you down in unnecessary details. The slow burn romance between Callum and Cate is exactly what I adore; slowly building, full of emotional depth and raw, magnetic chemistry. And the world-building is phenomenal. I loved the unpredictability of it all. Just when you think you know where the story is going, it shifts and takes you to new, unexpected places. It’s a story of sacrifice and emotional vulnerability that leaves you aching for more. The first book sets such a perfect foundation for what’s to come, and I’m just not ready to let go of this world and these characters.

In the past I have sometimes found Ballard’s characters to be a tad flimsy, but I enjoyed these. I just don’t quite think the characters overall were strong enough to support the more complex plot at times. Still, very interesting concept and I think this will be a fun one for the fall/winter time. Absolutely love the cover design!

3.25 on StoryGraph

I want to start this review off by saying I have really enjoyed Falon Ballard’s other books. I’ve been delighted by her writing style and how she handles her main characters, so being able to snag this book was super exciting for me and I was excited to dive into the world.

I’m bummed I didn’t really enjoy this book. The setting seemed super interesting and the tension and magic system were really interesting but they were not really explored much in this book. The saddest thing though was that the characters felt more like plot devices instead of characters. Even the emotional punches and twists in this book that impacted our cast felt more like a choice to move plot forward or at least somewhat rationalize choices instead of reflecting on the characters.

Even our main pair falls to this problem. There’s insta love here and yes there is reasoning behind that, but honestly there’s only a couple of scenes where our main characters build their relationship up more strongly outside of the bedroom. I sorely missed seeing them build up a connection and more of the why behind their relationship.

Overall, the world here is interesting, there’s a lot that could have been added to the plot if some of the minor world building items were fleshed out and given a bit more time. I’d forgive the world building piece if the characters felt more alive.

There’s potential for the sequel, I hope that it gives our characters more time to shine and builds out the world a bit more.

(Falon, still love your other books, and will still pick up what you write next!)

This is a different world in which Avon's monarchs have been overthrown, and the candidates for the first presidential election can kill the monarch. Callum, the son of the dethroned king, would like to be able to accomplish this. To avoid the guilt that would come with that task, he turns to Caterine, who can manipulate emotions.

The cover to this book drew me in, and then when I read the description I knew this book was right up my ally. I could have used more world building with this book - there are a lot of layers here with the monarchy, the new political climate, and the Gifted. I really, really enjoyed learning about all of this, but was left wanting more. What did work very well was the chemistry between Callum and Cate. There is a lot of spice in this book, and it pairs very well with political scene.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam/G.P. Putnam's Sons for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

HEHEHE I was SO excited to read this book and it DID. NOT. DISAPPOINT!! The romance was MWAH!!! SO good!

First of all, thank you to NetGalley and Putnam for this eARC!! I was intrigued by this book almost immediately when it was announced & loved the cover and premise.

Okay, for most of the book I kind of felt like that one gif of the guy with all the question marks around him.

I kind of suspected this would be the case because of the premise. Our FMC Cate has the ability to manipulate people's emotions if they orgasm in front of her, and our MMC needs her help because he has to kill his dad to become president and feels understandably shitty about that. So, I knew going into this book that I would have to suspend my belief... a lot. But it was a bit too much for me. I think as a lot of other reviewers said, the premise is really unique and intriguing, but I just wanted more from it. More world development, more fleshed out characters, wayyyy more questions answered (for all the sex that is being had I don't remember birth control being brought up??), and more romantic chemistry.

I didn’t need extreme world building but I needed more so that the plot would at least make sense. In the same sense, I needed the characters to act a bit more rationally, for their motivations to be clear, and for them to have some real emotional conflict connected to the choices they made. I found myself questioning why a bit too often, ever for a book with a bit of an unusual plot.

This read like a contemporary romance, which makes sense given the authors other works, but to make a romantasy work you need elements different than that of a rom com because it’s set in a completely different world. In a contemporary romance, you don’t have to ask how someone gets from point a to point b or why they made such a choice because you can make assumptions based on your own experiences; in a fantasy novel, you need to explore these choices just a bit more. Additionally, and this is kinda a final nail in the coffin, the romance fell really flat for me and does take center stage.

I think the part that really bothered me though is that in this world, the only people with magic (the Gifted) are an extremely oppressed class… and they are all women… who have no reproductive rights and need to be sponsored by a man to work!! I don’t even know if this is ever explicitly stated that only women can be gifted (and if it was it was so minor I missed it) but in our current political climate this story has sooo much potential here. I don’t know why this issue is not explored more? That is what I would have liked to see more of. It felt very weird and tone deaf to read a story where there are very real political mirrors… that are just never really addressed beyond oppression = bad.

This series has SOOO much promise and really is such a fun premise; I hope it gets one more round of editing to flesh out some of the world and characters though prior to getting published :)

i'm having a hard time reviewing this one to be honest. i finished it, didn't think about it for a couple days, and came back to it and i just have very mixed feelings. the premise is so cool and i loved the setting of la puissance. that being said, it just fell so flat in every other area: the world building as a whole is not fleshed out enough for me and i was left with so many questions. the other characters felt a bit one dimensional including cate at certain points. the political intrigue aspect could have been leaned into a little bit more as that was a bit more interesting. i think the main thing that really grinded my gears however was just how insta-love this was. i was missing the build up, the tension, the aspects that make it so interesting to read and this just felt so instantaneous and cliche. <spoiler>also of course they're bonded. this didn't even fit with the rest of the story well in my opinion. but we just have to take that as the explanation for everything because ~bonded~</spoiler>

This book is in the romantic, sci fi and fantasy genre. I absolutely love the cover and that is what ultimately caught my attention! It starts off strong, then slows down a bit. The spice in this book is intense! Whew! I think that Callum and Cate had a strong chemistry! I had a difficult time with the world building in this story, for some reason. This is a fast paced, hard to put down book. I read it in just one sitting. I know that this is the author’s first romantacy novel and I think she did really good with most parts of the book! Be sure to read the content warnings of this book. I will definitely be reading her upcoming books in this series! Overall, I rate this a 3 out of 5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley, author Falon Ballard and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons for this digital advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

It was decently written, I wish I could have enjoyed it more than I did. There was just a lot lacking from the plot that left me craving more world building but I didn’t feel connected to the plot at all.

So the spice was absolutely fantastic and I enjoyed reading it but the magic system was a bit shaky and the worldbuilding was not fully rounded off. I think this will be very popular and maybe another round of edits could solidify the world because I did get confused at times.