💜 arranged marriage
💜 Curse
💜 Animal shifting
💜 LGBT characters
💜 Slow burn
🌶️

I received an audiobook arc from Macmillan Audio and Netgalley in exchange for a honest review. The audiobook was also great! It was one narrator as Bianca was the pov and it was in first person.

If you love My Lady Jane and Vin/Elend from Mistborn then you would love Behooved. Bianca is the fmc who agree to an arranged marriage with the neighboring kingdom heir apparent Aric. Bianca and Aric never met so they didn't get off to a great start and on their wedding night, Aric get turns into a horse and they escaped from assassins. Working together to break and curse and clear Bianca's name for his "murder", the married couple slowlyyyyyy fall in love.

The slow burn works since they just met and heard bad things about each other. They remind me of Vin and Elend from Mistborn since Bianca is the fighter heroine while Aric is an avid book lover (if you brings books to a ball, you're basically Elend).

The book is a low stakes romantasy similar to the Spellshop and Assistant to the Villain. It's a standalone but the author could do a sequel with supporting characters. Most of the characters are queer with both the FMC and MMC being bisexual. The book was great! I love the romance. I wanted more since I didn't want the story to be over.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5 stars)

Behooved is such a sweet and magical story! ✨🐎 The plot is totally unique and had me hooked from the beginning—there’s something whimsical and heartwarming about the whole vibe that made it feel like a cozy escape. The horse details were super fun and added a special charm that made the story stand out. 🐴💫

The audiobook narrator absolutely nailed it—their voice brought so much emotion and depth to the characters, and it made the whole experience even better. 🎧❤️

This book has a soft, gentle feel to it. The romance has just a hint of spice 🌶️ (very mild!) and honestly, it could almost be a YA novel in tone. That’s not a bad thing at all—it just feels like it might connect more with younger readers or anyone looking for a low-angst, emotionally sweet romance. 🥰

Now for the mixed feels: I loved that both the FMC and MMC were soft, real, and flawed in a super relatable way. 🙌 But I did wish the FMC had grown more emotionally. She struggled with insecurities throughout the book, and I was really rooting for her to find her strength by the end—but she kind of... didn’t 😕. It left me feeling a little bummed, even though we still got a happy ending. 💕

Overall, I’d still give this a solid 4/5 stars. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ It’s magical, different, and engaging—and definitely worth a listen if you're in the mood for something heartfelt and unique! ✨📚💕

Thank you to Netgalley for this advanced reader copy of the book and audiobook!

This has filled the My Lady Jane-shaped hole in my heart. Also, weirdly, the Shrek-shaped hole.

Bianca accidentally curses her husband (of inconvenience) to turn into a horse every sunrise, and if that doesn't interest you, I don't want to be friends. This was so much fun! A romantasy that for once did not have the couple banging every 30 pages from the 25% mark but was actually deeply romantic and swoony (proving yet again why slow burn is still superior in my shelf). Bianca and Aric go on an adventure to reverse his curse and save a kingdom and I loved watching their character development and relationship bloom.

I also really appreciated the disability rep, although I had no idea it was meant to be celiac disease until I saw the author mention it after I finished reading. But in hindsight it makes perfect sense and was well-written.

Listen, we may not get another season of My Lady Jane, but we did get this! I signed up for horse puns, some magical tomfoolery, forced marriage and one-bed trope, with a dash of adventure - and that’s exactly what I got!

This was charming and whimsical and felt like an easy breezy fairytale updated with lots of amazing representation! Our main (bisexual) character has chronic pain that appears to be reminiscent of celiac disease, and despite her tummy aches she is so brave! I love her big heart and her urge to do right by the people around her no matter what. I loved our MMC - dude doesn’t want to rule a kingdom, he just wants to sit in a library and read all day (SAME). I love their banter and their chemistry and found myself giggling throughout the audiobook!

This was such an easy read and I could see it being a comfort book for plenty of people (including me!). It doesn’t take itself too seriously and leans into its charm as a result.

I am so excited to grab this on release day and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future!

Perfect for fans of My Lady Jane and other stories like The Princess Knight or Once Upon a Broken Heart! This was a charming and whimsical fairytale with just the right touch of adventure, humor, romance, and heart!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for arc in exchange for an honest review - I had such a great time with this one!

SUCH A FUN READ! Is it the best written or the most original, no, but DANG did I have a good time! Loved the romance, the representation of a chronically ill protagonist, and the representation of a book smart/introverted/soft spoken love interest. If you’re looking for a Romantasy that gallops along (pun intended), this is for you.

This is a standalone fantasy romance which I appreciated. For me it came off as more of a cozy read even though our princess clearly has deeper emotional trauma from her parents lack of love and our prince never really feeling accepted due to his love of reading over swordplay. I really lived all the horse puns and humor in the beginning of the book. Knowing from the book blurb what was coming I did find it very comical.

I really feel the narrator did a great job bringing this story to life! The intonation and pacing was perfect and really helped immerse me into the story. Since this is a single POV story it is single narrator as well. I did love the way the narrator threw her voice for different characters it didn’t feel forced and helped really envision the scene.

Given the short nature of this book there is not a lot of world building, with the plot being more focused on the predicament of the prince being turned into a horse. But you know what? That’s ok! We get just enough world building to let you know what’s going on so you can flow right into the main storyline.

I do feel that there was good character growth. Both characters were so insecure to start but I loved them grow together. The characters themselves were likable and interesting and really had me routing for their HEA.

I recommend this book of your looking for a cozier romantasy read!

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.Thank you to Tor and Bramble for providing me with a physical ARC for early review!!. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.

This one is for the Barbie in Swan Lake girlies. This is for the Bella Sara girlies. If you owned a Breyer horse stable and loved the Princess Bride growing up, *this will be your book of 2025.*

One of my autistic special interests is horses, especially magical horses, and I'm also a huge lover of cozy fantasy. So when Behooved came across my radar, I knew it was my sacred duty to get my hands on it. And low and behold, this is probably going to be my favourite book of 2025. No one is surprised.

Behooved tells the story of Bianca, dutiful daughter and Duchess of Damaria, a country which has made great strides in technological advancement towards weapons of war and destruction via their Adept guild of magic users. She concedes to be married off to the heir apparent of Gildenheim, Aric, after the mysterious death of his mother, the queen. However, neither of them have any blinders on when it comes to the reality of the situation; this is a forced marriage, and it will not be a happy one.

On the night of their wedding, Aric is attacked and Bianca is left with her husband, now a horse, and a royal plot to assassinate the heir of Gildenheim. During their travel across the country, Bianca learns that the cold, frosty exterior of her husband hides a warm, kind, and anxious soul who has been put down his whole life for not being someone more assertive and cunning. And who knows, maybe the two royals can find love in their hearts after all...

LISTEN. The tropes of this. Cozy fantasy. Forced marriage. Only one bed. Only one stall in the stable. Grumpy x grumpy. I can't even express how tailor-made this book was for me! The horse puns. Them both being terrible at communication. The eventual enthusiastic consent (WE LOVE!). And above all, the incredible attention put on Bianca as a person with chronic illness. While not stated by name in the text, Stevenson confirms in the notes explicitly that Bianca is meant to have celiac disease. There's no magical cure for it, Bianca doesn't get "fixed" by witchcraft or sorcery even though magic is inherently present in the world. She struggles with it every day and night and has to deal with flares and bad episodes throughout the story. I've literally never read a fantasy where I felt like the character was so human. Listen. Her tummy hurt and she was so brave about it. Brave to the point of literally standing up to four grown adults with weapons during a bad flare in order to try to protect Aric. Bianca is twenty six years old and has spent her entire life being told that her condition makes her weak and that it is a weakness she must not show at all costs. And every single step she takes in the story proves that she's the strongest person in the entire book.

Speaking of Bianca being twenty six, Aric is twenty eight! I feel like we rarely get to see characters in this age demographic as main characters. It was so refreshing and it made their romance feel so much more mature and believable. Even though I don't think I can classify this as slow burn. They knew each other for like, max, three weeks!! But it was meant to be. Tatiana making dirty jokes about Aric turning into a horse had me giggling like a child. The supporting cast as a whole were wonderful. Juliana and Catalina and Marya all felt super well-charactetized but Tatiana takes the cake.

The attempted-murder mystery isn't really very veiled--- we're only given one real suspect for whodunnit and it isn't a super complex reason. And it almost felt like there was an epilogue missing where the rest of the assassination plot got resolved. But with a happily ever after as sweet as the one given, it behooves me to be lenient.

As for the audiobook edition, wow. Getting Natalie Naudus to do your debut fantasy novel's narration is such a win. I adore her, she is such a talented narrator and has the most beautiful voice that perfectly suited Bianca and elevated the story to new heights. Really just an incredible performance.

Overall, I am so pleased and tickled pink to have been given the chance to review something that speaks to me on so many levels. I can't wait to see more from Stevenson!

Cozy fantasy about an arranged marriage between a noblewoman and neighboring kingdom's heir, who has no interest in the throne.

Prince Aric also has no interest in Bianca. Their wedding night brings chaos and an assassination fail turns the prince into a horse...yes, a horse. Biance rides away (yes on her husband/horse) to safety and later finds out she is being framed for the murder, causing more chaos between kingdoms.

Horse by day, prince by night - the two will have to work together to try and break the curse, clear Bianca's name, and find out the truth about their kingdoms who appear to be using them both as pawns.

This is an unserious fantasy where a lot doesn't make sense, but if you're in the right mood (I was), it can be enjoyable.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. Release date 5/20/25.

Woah, Nelly! I really enjoyed this slow burn romantasy (.5 🌶️). Bianca is everything I want in a main character and the MMC is a stallion (lol- and also an amazing character). I loved the representation of chronic illness in this book and how the FMC wasn’t considered “less than” for her extra needs.

There is a miscommunication trope but it actually makes sense, isn’t drawn out, and is extremely well done. This was an absolutely amazing and fantastic ride (pun intended). 4.5⭐️

Thanks for NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to the audiobook Behooved!

Going into Behooved, I wasn’t sure what to expect—maybe something overly quirky or too niche—but I ended up being pleasantly surprised. Stevenson’s writing has a certain rhythm to it that draws you in, and the story unfolds with just enough intrigue to keep the pages turning.

The characters, while not always deeply fleshed out, had moments that felt honest and engaging. I appreciated the balance of absurdity and heart—something that’s not easy to pull off. There were a few slower sections, and occasionally the tone felt inconsistent, but overall, it worked better than I anticipated.

It’s not a book I’d shout from the rooftops about, but I’m definitely glad I gave it a shot. If you’re on the fence, it’s worth a read—you might be surprised too.

I loooooved Behooved and have been hoping to read this for some time. It's the story of a woman sent away from marriage who accidentally turns her prince into a part time horse. The story is fast paced, charming, and engaging from start to finish.

Beyond enjoying the story, I LOVED the narration. The moment I realized I was listening to Natalie Naudus, I felt like I was with an old friend again.

This was such a cute read! I definitely got lots of classic Disney princess movie vibes but with some mild spice added in too. I really enjoyed listening to this on audiobook; the narrator did a wonderful job. Throughout the book were so many little passing thoughts and details of chronic illness and lgbtqia+ representation that just made it feel so heartwarming and uplifting. Plus, I always enjoy a fun magical adventure where the two reluctant allies end up developing real feelings along the way. I mean, what other way to fall in love is there?

Bianca and Aric both feel trapped by their duties to their kingdoms. Seeing them grow and learn to overcome their parents’ expectations and demands was both frustrating and so rewarding. They both grew to love and accept themselves, despite their perceived flaws (including one being a horse), through each other in a really wholesome way! The plot was well paced following the two try to break the curse and find who was behind the assassination attempt but I also really enjoyed the tidbits about the unique magic system. The setting was an interesting backdrop for this story without overshadowing the characters’ internal journeys and discoveries.

If you’re in the mood for something extra sweet and mildly spicy with the nostalgic vibes of a fairytale but a slight twist of roles where she’s the warrior princess and he’s the bookish prince out of his depth but willing to fight for love, I highly recommend giving this book a try!

We follow Bianca, she travels to the neighbouring kingdom to marry the prince, on their wedding day an assassination attempt leaves Aric turning into a horse and together they flee for safety- beginning the story of slow-burn romance.

To me this book reads less romantasy and more a romcom, I think it would be enjoyed by people who don’t like fantasy much.

The narration of this audiobook was fantastic, the narrator does a great job for voicing male and female characters and kept my entertained and focused on listening!

Likes:
The book is well written, easy to read and engaging. It’s a simple plot but the unique aspect of character turning into a horse made the story enjoyable and fun.

The story has great chronic illness representation, we see Bianca suffering with a sickness which is incorporated into the story in an important and fluid way- later on in the book we find out something about her sickness which I thought sullied rep. Nevertheless, it was still quality rep.

The characters have likeable personalities, Aric follows the trope of a grumpy character, initially their relationship starts rocky as they were forced into the marriage and experience a miscommunication trope.
Throughout the book the characters have natural banter and funny interactions. I mean, turning into a horse must have some funny moments.

I loved the little creatures of this world at the beginning, we see a creature on the boat and in the forest which were very cute moments and I wish we experienced more.

Dislikes:
It’s a very weak fantasy plot, the politics are lacklustre(I wish the world and politics of both countries and their magic were expanded more) and the plot only felt important during first and last portion of the book.

We spend too much time travelling whilst they’re on the run and it lost my interest, it felt like multiple things were repeated during this time causing the story to feel stale. We did have some fun moments during this time though, but to me it felt like their travelling journey was just a bonding vacation between them and It didn’t feel like stakes were high enough for someone being the princes assassin.

The book loves its one bed trope. I felt like it was overused, it was funny occasionally but got boring.

——

3.75 star, I had fun and enjoyed my time but it was an average experience for me. It’s a great debut novel and I think people into more romance will enjoy it more.
Thank you Netgalley and MacMillan audio for an ARC.

This was a fun, low stress read with an entertaining premise. I’ve seen other reviewers mention this book is inspired by “My Lady Jane”, and I definitely see what they mean by that.

I listened to this on audiobook. Natalie Naudus narrates the audiobook and as always she kills it! She gives such an outstanding performance. Good pacing, clear character voices, and easy to stay engaged with her speaking.

The main plot of the books starts out when Prince Aric turns into a horse on his wedding night due to magic neither him nor his new wife Bianca, the FMC can explain during an assassination attempt. They have to try to figure out what happened and who’s behind it, which leads them on a wild but fun *forced proximity* adventure.

The story is cozy romantasy mystery. Not a lot of deep worldbuilding, but enough to follow. But I really don’t want deep world building when it comes to cozy and lighthearted books so for me it was great. The mystery part isn’t subtle, there’s really only one suspect, and you start guessing at who that is right away, but that’s fine. The focus stays on the two main characters and their relationship.

Bianca the FMC, has a chronic illness (with symptoms that sound similar to mine so I related to her every time it was mentioned!), and it’s handled well. No magical fixes or cures which was a nice break from a lot of books that mention chronic illnesses. She’s not weak because of it, just tired of pretending it doesn’t matter or exist. Aric is awkward and a little closed off, but they’re both trying in their own way. It’s a forced marriage setup with miscommunication and slow trust.

Some stuff doesn’t make sense if you think too hard about it. But if you’re here for a soft cozy fantasy with solid characters and a lot laughs, this works. I would read another book by this author, especially if it were in this same genre.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for sending this ALC for review consideration. All opinions are my own. .

What a fun story! I’d recommend this book to anyone who appreciates a light fantasy. This story is set in a land where magic exists, so it’s not too far to reach to accidentally turn someone who you don’t trust into a horse!

Great plotting and action fill the pages of Behooved! I listened to the audio book version of this story and I found the narration very pleasant.


Thank you to M. Stevenson, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the ARC!

I enjoyed this even more than I thought I would. A magical tale with so many important underlying themes. The MC learning her own worth after living a life of just hoping for a scrap of her parents seeing her value. Her leaving that dynamic lets the reader see her character develop. I really enjoyed Behooved and would recommend it.

This is a great read to help you relax in between reading other things! It was a bit silly at times with the concept of a prince turning into a gorgeous white stallion every day. Bianca gets into an arranged marriage with Prince Aric to help their kingdoms politically and financially. At first the two have a strong dislike for each other until someone tries to assassinate them. They start to grow closer as they realize things may not be as they seem.

I enjoyed Aric and Bianca's relationship and watching them learn how to communicate with each other. Things started to flow smoothly between the two after they learned how to trust one another. Things progress quickly with them, but it also seems natural. It didn't feel like instant love or even enemies to lovers for that matter. Everything just felt like it was meant to happen.

I enjoyed the narrator and I think that they did a good job portraying the characters. Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, and M. Stevenson for an ARC of this audiobook. This review is my own honest opinion.

Read this book for the fun time. The mmc turns into a horse randomly on his wedding night and the adventure to reverse the spell to cure him begins. The horse jokes were the best part of this. All I could think about was that this really changed the only one horse trope

Horse by day, man by night - this was not the marriage that Bianca signed up for.

Bianca has been married off to the presumptive king of Gildenheim, Aric, by way of treaty agreement under threat of war. As a dutiful daughter of Demaria, she reluctantly acquiesces. With a very lackluster start in the bedroom, things only get worse when she tries to thwart an assassination attempt on Aric's life. In her struggle to fight off the attacker, she unleashes a defensive spell made by her sister, Tatiana, that has the unfortunate side effect of cursing Aric to be a horse by day, and man by night. Desperate and scared, the two flee as they have to work together to break the spell. As they journey, a romance slowly unfolds while they uncover the political machinations that pushed them together to begin with.

Behooved is a cozy-ish fantasy with a bit higher stakes than a typical cozy fantasy and was a lovely way to spend a weekend. There is some lovely character development - Bianca has been brought up in a society that does not value emotions or weakness - which is of course tough for any human, but on top of that Bianca has an inflammatory bowel disorder (fellow UC girl here and appreciated the representation!) that flares up at the most inopportune times. Having had it hammered in to her for years and years not to show any weakness, she slowly allows herself to care about Aric and explores what it means to actually care about other people.

The book is primarily from Bianca's point of view and the majority of the character work is through her, but we do get to see Aric come out of his shell, and also some great side characters including Tatiana, Bianca's sister, and Marya, the captain of Aric's guard.

Some of the tropes include forced proximity and only one bed - a delight as always.

Finally, I listened to this as an audiobook. I always enjoy Natalie Naudus' narration - and Behooved is no different. She does a wonderful job bringing life to Bianca and Aric as they have their misadventure.

Thank you to NetGalley and to MacMillan Audio for the advanced copy.

3.5 Horse by day, man by night. Set in a queer normitive world with chronic illness rep. This was definitely a cute read, while the plot was predictable at times, the stakes never really felt as high as I think they were intended to be and I wish we got a bit more from the magic system. I did enjoy this read. I thought the romance was cute, and their connection was well done. I also enjoyed the horse puns scattered throughout the book. Thank you, Netgalley and the publisher, for a chance to read this book for an honest review.