Hex Appeal

Hex Appeal is a fun page turner filled with so much energy and immaculate witchy vibes.
I adored this one so much more than I thought I would.

Kate Johnson wrote such an enjoyable read! The adorable witchy vibes were so fun.
The writing in this was also beautifully done, the descriptions were always so vivid. it was amazing.
The setting was definitely one of my favorite aspects. The village of Good Winter sounds like an amazing place to be.
Right from the start I was hooked by our introduction to your main character Essie Winterscale and the side characters are just too much fun.
And the ending was so satisfying and cute!! It was a pleasure to read about such lovable and relatable characters. The perfect story to snuggle up to and get lost inside the pages.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

One More Chapter,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my blog, platforms, BookBub, B&N, Kobo and Waterstone closer to pub date.

I will this book to turn into a series and to the author to write more books about the fierce and charming witches of Good Winter I will.

Promise me, promise me, promise me (if you know, you know) to have at least a sequel to Hex Appeal. I was NOT ready to leave this witchery wonderful world. Hex Appeal was action packed, contained a great romance (Essie and Josh’ initial flirting was A+), a coven of compelling characters, and an interesting magical system built into our boring, common world. That being said, I would have LOVED to drench myself in this world and wouldn’t have minded to be info dumped just a tad more. There were so many fun things going on (a cat and a dog fencing! Sultry plants! Time travelling! Crazy parrots!) and I really wanted more time to enjoy all these imaginative details the author created. While reading Hex Appeal I just couldn’t stop thinking this book could have easily been chopped up into three books and be like sevenhundred pages per book - and I would still have loved it.

The author’s note at the end upped my appreciation for Hex Appeal.

4.5 stars. I really liked it!

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for sharing an digital ARC with me in exchange for an honest review.

I read this in less than 24 hours - it was that good! The author makes it easy to suspend disbelief and truly enjoy the witchy elements, like you would any other amazing romance novel. It’s a perfect Autumn read 🍂🍁🍂

I absolutely loved this book! I raced through it in a day (which isn't something that happens often). It's the sort of book where I read it while I was cooking, read it while I was waiting in line, just to keep reading.

Essie is a witch and lives in Beldam house with a coven of other witches - There's Blessing who is a fertility witch and qualified midwife, Avery who helps manifest people's desires (and makes medicines), Prudence who is a ghost and Maude who knits the future (maybe affects it, or maybe just predicts it) and Lilith who ... well, they don't talk about her.
Josh inherits a decaying farm house and finds he owns some Beldam house and they owe him rent. Except he can't find the house. If he finds it, he promptly forgets it. He meets Essie outside of the house and he's not about to forget her. Except of course, that she wants him to forget about the back rent...
And then to make matters worse, there's a evil stirring.

This is a romcom with witches. These are very practical witches - like Terry Pratchett's ones (more Tiffancy Aching and Granny than Nanny). Some of the things about the house are completely bananapants, but it totally works and it's very funny in places.

I enjoyed this book a LOT.

I had amazing time and laughed out so loud at some chapters! Quirky hero and heroine: amazing supporting characters, enemies to lovers story with magical and witchery powers!

Welcome to Essex,Good Winter village where a bunch of witches live in a magical place called Bendam House: no one knows where is located and any visitor forgets its existence as soon as they leave the place. A house that changes by the moods of the witches, having a tree and bunch of animals: singing parrots, dancing rats, nervous goat, fighting cat-dog.

The witches live rent free for nearly 300 years till their landlord: a handsome, quirky, blonde, boyish lawyer Josh who recently inherited a dilapidated mansion, deciding to meet with his tenants for collecting the debts!

Josh is adamant where the Bedham House located. He finally meets with quirky, red head- blue eyed, eccentric Essie: who is witchery kind of Elsa, rejecting to sing “Let it go”, bringing the winter, chilling the places ( her ability to freeze is convenient to chill the white wines)

Josh follows Essie to her house and meet the eccentric tenants but interestingly he’s strong enough not to forget things he’s seen.

The other witches also carry different kind of abilities: Maude knits the future. Blessing nurtures and brings things to
fruition. Avery manifests ideas into reality.
And Essie’s mom Lilith time travels.

Essie decides to keep Josh at broomstick’s length but when Josh’s very pregnant step sister moves to live with him and hires Blessing as her midwife, two families get a little closer.

And when an incarnated monster starts to threaten their existence, Essie teams up with Josh to confront the witch- finder who can bring the end of the world!

This was smart, fast pacing, humorous and also heartwarming fantasy! I liked the author’s unique hex touch! I’m rounding up my 4.5 stars to 5 magical, frozen, healing, romantic stars! I’m looking forward to read more works of the author in near future!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK/ One More Chapter for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

Honestly, I expected to enjoy Hex Appeal. I was looking forward to a fun, sexy, Halloween-y romp with a witch MC. To my surprise, I got that and SO much more! I absolutely loved this book, these characters, and the feminist, historical, meaty plotline that kept me glued to my couch cushion.

Essie, an English witch living in a mysterious coven, meets a cute American guy who is new in town. She will come to learn that there is more to him, and his family history, than meets the eye. The historically accurate depiction of (accused) witches in England was absolutely fascinating. I also enjoyed the colorful cast of characters that made up the coven, including one who changed genders as the mood hit.

Another delightful surprise was just how creepy, even terrifying, this book could be at times. Some scenes chilled me to the bone. This book also had some great subplots about family, power, and control that filled it out nicely.

I would give this 10/10 stars and recommend it to anyone who likes romance, thrills and chills, history, or adventure.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters are personable and likeable, and the story is an easy read - the plot follows 2 people who are not looking for love, but whose lives collide in the most unsuspecting way. I really enjoyed reading their story, especially the twists and turns along the way.

The writing flows beautifully, is easy to follow and makes for an enjoyable read.

I'd recommend for anyone who enjoys romance, cosy mysterys with paranormal hints.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

If you’re looking for a spooky, romance mystery this is the book for you!

Lovers of The Ex Hex would enjoy this book!

Favorite Quote from the Book: “You froze his d*ck?”

This book was an absolute pleasure to read from start to finish. I like that there was a clear climax in the middle but then it was like but wait there’s more and we got a second climax. We don’t always get clear storylines like that these days so I really enjoyed that.

I did not see the plot line coming at all. I saw all the hints but I didn’t get how 1 2 and 3 were all going to add up. It all played out really well.

I gave it a 4 star rating because while it was a great read and I did enjoy it. I typically reserve 5 stars for books that knock my socks, and are so good they are seared in my memory forever. This was good, but it didn’t knock my socks off. I will be recommitting it to friends and in my book groups because it was a really fun read.

Paranormal Romance - MF - Overall 4/5 - Spice 3/5

Lovely witchy vibes throughout with some historical references too. A slow burn romance with some mysteries to solve. I really loved Essie and her confidence and wit.

I liked the bits of humor and sarcasm throughout. The characters were relatable and quirky in a good way. The Beldam House's mysterious ways had me wanting to know more about the house and the witches who live in it.

In the end I could not put the book down, and would recommend this twisty love story.

Thank you to NetGalley and ONE MORE CHAPTER for the ARC!

This was lovely. A fantastic escape form the world we are all living in now. So light and cheesy and warm. Loved it.