ARC Review: Hot Hex Boyfriend by Carly Bloom

This post may contain affiliate links. Please check our privacy policy for more information.

Book Cover of Hot Hex Boyfriend by Carly Bloom
Decorative collage for book cover of Hot Hex Boyfriend by Carly Bloom
📝 What is Hot Hex Boyfriend About?:

Delia Merriweather thought magic wasn’t real, until she accidentally breaks a hex and restores her family’s powers. Max, her neighbor, reluctantly helps Delia and her bumbling relatives control their magic, but soon finds himself unsure if he’s helping or falling under her spell. As Delia grapples with her newfound abilities, Max struggles with his growing feelings for the witch who might just rule the entire witching world.

📚 Genre: ROMANTASY
🎧 Format: ARC E-Book
💞 Feels: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.25

I enjoyed the setup of the story. Letting the reader into where Delia is at in her life. How she doesn’t believe that her family has any magical ability – and she’s very skeptical about magic existing at all. It was fun to know more than her; that in this world magic does exist. And she just hasn’t met the right person yet, to help her break the hex.

When I saw this book compared to Practical Magic, I was in. I didn’t need any more info…but then The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches was also invoked in the blurb! Perfect combo of secret witch society world-building, sweet family dynamics and a mysterious family hex to kick off my cozy spooky season revels.

This book had me making playlists…I was so inspired by the family’s attempts at witchcraft. I only got one song added in though ‘cause then I didn’t want to stop reading to add more songs in. So Soup by Remi Wolf is the one song that made the cut. I’m sure every time I listen to it going forward I’ll think of this book. Soup has a very big presence in this book. It’s the perfect autumnal treat or a hex breaking concoction – minus a sacrifice, of course.

There was just enough romance in this book. And I didn’t find myself worrying about the relationship dynamics as much as the witching world drama once the third act came into play. I’ll take a good showdown over a third act breakup any day!

Getting technical

Loved the foreshadowing in Hot Hex Boyfriend. It’s always fun to make guesses while I read – so looking back now at my annotations and seeing that I was right for the most part just makes my know-it-all heart palpitate. I don’t like guessing at obvious plot twists, but character quirks are appreciated; i.e. guessing at who else in this small town could be a witch. I didn’t even have to wait too long for reveals. Great pacing and while the third act climax did accelerate and wrap everything up in a nice neat little bow; I enjoyed reading the ending.

I actually read up to 80% of the book and then stopped reading it for about 5 days. I didn’t want the story to end and I could sense that the end was in sight – and the third act wrap up. The ending was a little too convenient, but it relates to my favorite character (Nikki) so I’m not going to be too nitpicky about it. Because I can’t think of an alternate way to fix my issue with the ending. I do wish the history of the hex had been detailed more and we’d had more time with the Shadowlark witches (staying vague about names, to avoid spoilers). Anyway, when I finished the book I “awed” and thought how cute. It put a smile on my face. What a great experience.

You’ll like this book, if…

You’ll like this book if you’re a fan of The Ex Hex by Erin SterlingPayback’s a Witch by Lana Harper, or This Spells Love by Kate Robb.

✅ Spinoff novella nomination:

I’d like to nominate Nikki, Lucy and Amy for novellas – together or separate. I want to see more of these characters.

Have you read Hot Hex Boyfriend by Carly Bloom? Let me know what you thought of it in the comments.

shop for Hot Hex Boyfriend by Carly Bloom:

Subscribe to our newsletter to get more reading recs in your inbox!


Posted

in

by

Discover more from wallflower bookshop

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading