I received an ARC copy from Netgalley and from Central Avenue Publishing. Thank you for allowing me to review this title.
The Goblins of Bellwater was classified as a New Adult title, but I think from the beginning of reading this novel it feels more young adult. The romance between the four main characters is very young adult in nature and does not have a built up feeling to how the characters engage with each other. I did like the forest scenes and the magic of the goblins. Livy and her sister Skye are good characters, but they needed to be flushed out more. I think this book will have a strong appeal to those who like magic, fairies, and romance. Plus, I feel like 16 and up will draw to this book more so that the New Adult audience that it is directed at.

This ARC was provided by NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

The Goblins of Bellwater was inspired by the poem “Goblin Market” by Christina Rossetti. I ended up reading some of the poem after I finished the book, and I think the story accurately captured some of the creepiness of the Goblins in the poem.

There are 4 characters this book focuses on, and the book is mixed up of chapters from each of their perspectives.

The first character we meet is Kit Sylvain, the emissary to the Goblin tribe, which is a role that has been taken on by people in his family for generations. He has the job of making an offering of gold every so often to the tribe to keep them from preying on unknowing humans. If he cannot buy the gold, one clause in the curse is that if he invokes that it’s for the goblins, other humans just don’t notice him stealing things. He doesn’t like this at all, he hates preying on other people to keep the goblins happy, but this is the curse of his family.

This is where we get our first look at the goblins in this story: “…she and the other goblins ordinarily looked like porcupine-sized gargoyles carved out of driftwood and decorated with shells and ugly jewelry.” We meet Redring, sort of the ringleader of the tribe, who when in her human form just kind of looks like a short, fat woman with big, voluminous, orange hair.

Some things about the Goblins:
-They can use gold and magic to make most things, which is why they value gold so much.

-They’re mischievous and their favorite way to trick a human is to lure them onto a Goblin path, sometimes with the smell of some yummy food like coffee or cookies.

-They’re named after the first item they steal when they’re turned

-Most of the Goblins started out as humans

When Kit makes his offering to the goblins in the beginning of the book, the goblins are not happy with how little he brought with him. He offers to bring them more soon, but he also makes it a point to ask for protection for his cousin Grady who is coming to town, so the goblins can’t mess with him. After this, they give him four days to bring enough gold to appease them.

After Kit, we meet Skye Darwen. Just a normal human with no relation to the supernatural, but she has a love of the forest and loves hanging out in nature. She lives with her sister Livy, and she is an artist with a big talent at painting and drawing. The book mentions, as she’s walking into the forest after getting off of work, that she knows there are little spirits or “teeny-tinies” (which is what her and her sister used to call them when she was younger) that inhabit the forest. Her curiosity gets the best of her and she demands that whatever is in the forest shows itself. She realizes too late she shouldn’t have called them, but they force her to eat one of their pastries and this begins the goblin curse over her.

We next meet Livy Darwen, Skye’s sister, who works for the Forest Service and has a deep respect for nature. We meet her two weeks after Skye is attacked, and she mentions that Skye is ill and that she and the doctors see it as sudden-onset-depression, but that nothing they do is helping and that she won’t really talk or eat. This is where Livy runs into Kit for the first time in this book, as he’s trying to take a giant piece of driftwood off the beach. Eventually Kit and Livy start up a friends-with-benefits relationship, and they spend a lot of time together.

The goblins told Skye that she will eventually come to them, that she will lose her way in the human world, and that she will come to the forest and pick a mate. Then she will become a goblin. The problem, outside of the obvious, is that she cannot speak, write, or even pantomime about what happened to her, so there is no way for her to tell anyone. When she is alone one day she feels a draw to the forest and she wanders into the woods and notices a human boy walking through them. She doesn’t know at the time that this is Grady Sylvain.

"Come to the woods and choose your mate.

They never said it had to be a goblin. And even a total stranger, so long as he was human, was better than a goblin."

Neither of them know who the other is, until Livy hires Grady (who is a professional cook looking for work) to come and cook for them every day, as sort of a personal chef.

Basically, the rest of the story is Grady and Skye becoming closer, as well as Kit and Livy’s relationship evolving until FINALLY Kit tells Livy about his secret (a.k.a. being the emissary), and Livy has to do everything in her power to undue the curse on Skye.

This is probably my favorite part of the entire book:

"As they soared across the inlet toward the woods, Skye began to laugh. In fact, she cackled."

Something about this quote as the curse comes to fruition just gave me the biggest chills. I don’t want to say much else on the story line for fear of spoiling things, so I’ll just go into what I liked and didn’t like:

Liked:
-The creepiness of the Goblins, as well as their tricky ways. I think it was really accurate of the way I picture goblins.

-The ships were pretty okay. I wasn’t totally obsessed with the Kit x Livy ship only because it really had no substance until the last like, 10% of the book. I liked the Skye x Grady ship, they’re both adorable, but the circumstances in which they got together almost makes you feel bad for them.

-The descriptions in relation to the setting were amazingly vivid. Ringle really does have a great writing style, her voice is pretty similar to mine when I write.

It would be a spoiler to mention what happens, but I wasn’t totally set on the book for a majority of the body, and the last, oh, 25% of the book really saved it for me.

Complaints:

-I think this book is missing a label. It’s described as “New Adult”, “Teens and YA”. However, much like ACOWAR, there is no way this should ever be published without a paranormal romance tag on it. There is so much sex, and it’s not glossed over like a lot of YA, it’s pretty descriptive.

-The sex/romance itself. This is literally my biggest complaint of this story because it takes up like 50% of the book. I’m all for the ships, but the sex literally came out of nowhere in a way that was so incredibly jarring to the story, so much so that I stopped reading this book pretty much as it happened, for like a month, and I love the romance genre. There was no transition, no warning at all and I feel like a lot of the book just focused on sex as a way to add fluff/filler to the story. Not to mention, there was literally no reason to bother adding the Kit/Livy scenes because it didn’t add anything to the story. I think the Skye/Grady scenes were written the best because most of them were viewed kind of vaguely and under the haze of the curse driving them to do it. I like romance when there’s a purpose to it. It almost got boring. I think that the romance could have been less in-depth and that the INCREDIBLE last 25% should have been longer.

-What happened to Grady, after Skye chose him as her mate, seemed really delayed. Skye was affected immediately but Grady didn’t seem all that affected until the shit hit the fan, and only then did Ringle mention that Grady has, over time, stopped being so creative in the kitchen and has grown kind of disinterested in the world. I didn’t even see the symptoms in Grady until way late in the book.


This book got an overall rating from me of four stars, although if the rating system were more flexible I’d probably rate it 3.5 stars. The romance in the book was just way too abrupt, and honestly the Kit/Livy sex scenes were unnecessary. I would definitely re-read this book because the writing style was great and the vivid descriptions she writes are literally stunning. You don’t often find books written with Goblins in the story, let alone in a front-running role, and I think that Ringle did an excellent job of depicting them.

I received an ARC of this book, provided by the publisher via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This book tells the story of four young adults who live in a small town in present day Washington (state). Although no one knows but Kit, who is connected to them by a curse put on his family generations ago, there are real goblins (and fae) that live in the forests around Bellwater. One night Skye, an artist and barista at a local coffee shop, is lured into the goblins lair and cursed. But she’s unable to talk about it, so everyone, including her sister Livy, is completely surprised by the sudden depression she seems to be in, and unsure what to do about it. When Livy starts “seeing” Kit, and Kit’s cousin Grady (who’s living with him for awhile) is pulled into Skye’s curse, things come to a head. And Livy, the only one of the four who is unafflicted by goblin curses, and who has a special connection to the local flora/fauna through her job with the state parks, must set out on her own adventure to save them all.

This is a really entertaining new adult fantasy/romance. It’s a light, quick read, that kept me interested with it’s well handled pacing and original twists on the traditional fairy tales about following mushroom paths, eating their foods, and making deals. The characters are all a little older than the traditional YA fantasy genre characters, all being at least 21 and older, and facing real adult problems like finding jobs and making a living and following your passion. Don’t get me wrong, I loved a good YA fantasy/romance, but this was definitely refreshing to read. I know and closely identify with these struggles. As I mentioned, the pacing was well handled. Relationships had time to begin and develop in a believable time frame and the tension that built before everyone’s “secrets” were out in the open built the perfect amount of realistic suspense, especially considering the need for the trust of new friends/couples to grow reasonably and super limited means of communication available for the information to flow through. Also, the mix of present day details, like iPhones, and fairy magic was executed smoothly and was cool in that it’s not something I see often. Normally, there is a whole “we start in this world and when the fairies show up we move into their parallel but completely separate realm that has no connection to the real world” situation. Again, I don’t hate that type of story at all, but the difference here was unique and definitely enjoyable as such. Plus, for someone who loves magic and really believes in it, I loved this representation of the possibility of real co-existence.

There were a few other details I loved as well. One, the way the elements, earth/air/water/fire, were used in this story was awesome. I know they are a cliched part of magic, but they got that way for a reason. And my husband and I have a huge soft spot for them – he even has a large tattoo of them on his back/shoulder. So when they are used well, as they were here, I can’t help but melt a little towards the story. Skye being an artist was used perfectly here, for communication and story progression. Plus, the fun ending, with her gift(s) to her sister and turning their experiences into a graphic novel, is creative and perfect given the situation. It allows the four of them to share everything with/in the “real” world but still keeps the worlds separate. On theme with many other aspects of the story, the single volume telling of this story (this is not a trilogy or longer series) and violence-less-ness (yup, I made up that word) of the ending is something unusual I don’t often see and was refreshing as well. Finally, it’s a small thing, but the last line is hella cute.

A few things did bother me. Overall the dialogue and interactions flowed well, but there were a few times that things were awkward. This happened, in particular, when the “couples” were talking with each other. Not every time, but enough that I feel it’s worth mentioning. Also, the “sacrifice”’ at the end. As I said, I liked how generally clean the denouement was, the way ending the curse(s) was handled, and the way loopholes in the magical rules were used. But the sacrifice that was made, itself, was kinda weird in its symmetry. I liked how it was put into everyone’s minds like it had always been the case, but it was not really explained why it was necessary and it just seemed…weird. Last, and likely the biggest overall critique, is that the characters were fairly two-dimensional. Maybe it’s just because the story happened over a such a short period of time. And to be fair, I enjoyed them and their relationships and I think those relationships within the story were overall written and developed well, but as individuals they were all just fairly normal, uninspired in the depth with which they were created.

Overall, this was a fun, easy, and entertaining read. I would definitely recommend it to a new adult crowd interested in a light fantasy with characters that they could really identify with as they experience a well-balanced current day life and a singular magical adventure. A little warning though, to anyone going into it, this novel is based on Christina Rossetti's eerie, sensual poem, "Goblin Market." I had not read it prior to picking up this book, so I check out some excepts. What I learned is twofold: 1) I definitely want to read it now, and 2) When they sensual they mean it. The Goblins of Bellwater definitely took the carnal innuendo of “Goblin Market” and ran with it, so don’t be surprised by it (and, of course, enjoy it, it’s tastefully done)!

Maybe I don't read enough about goblins, but this was an interesting read. Please note that this is a New Adult book, so there is some explicit sexual content.

The Goblins of Bellwater follows these two sisters and two boys who are cousins that live in a small town. Kit (one of the guys)'s family are basically servants to the goblins and try to protect the humans as much as they can. But Skye walks into the forest and eats goblin food, which causes them to start making her a goblin. Kit starts dating Livy, Skye's sister, and Kit's cousin, Grady, becomes mated to Skye in a goblin ritual. This story is about the four of them trying to save Skye and Grady and stop the goblins.

This was definitely an interesting read. I'm getting more into New Adult books because they are about people my age, which I like. The whole mythology behind goblins was something I haven't seen before so that definitely had me hooked. Also I was really happy about how interesting these characters were (sometimes characters are hard to tell apart in books, which is frustrating). Livy is basically a forest ranger, Skye is an artist and barista who becomes almost mute as a result of the goblins, Grady loves to cook and Kit likes to make wood carvings.

If you're looking for a NA book that's a bit outlandish, pick up The Goblins of Bellwater.

I loved The Goblins of Bellwater. I grew up on Jim Henson's Labyrinth, I love the movie about the Goblin King and ever since then I guess you can say I became a supernatural geek. I love the supernatural, I watch movies, tv series and of course books all with supernatural themes. Through out the years I never really found anything else about goblins which was sad because of how much I loved the movie. Then Molly Ringle wrote The Goblins of Bellwater and I found my happy place.

Goblins have come to the island of Bellwater and have taken over. Not only do they steal things (or should I say steal them vicariously *cough* Kit) but they curse people and sometimes take them. This story revolves around Kit, Livy, Skye and Grady, four people who have gotten into goblin trouble and have to fight to find happiness again, to free themselves from the goblins.

Skye is an amazing character she is such a happy and bubbly person who has an artist's nature then she is cursed by the goblins and everything changes. Molly had to transform some who is such a happy person, who sees the world in art, into someone who seems depressed and alone. Molly pulled this off so amazingly well. She was able to get me to understand that Skye was still Skye just altered, you can tell she is who she is underneath the spell. I so think that this mirrors depression and does a good job in describing someone who is depressed which isn't really shown in these types of books.

The relationship between Skye and Livy reminds me of me and my sister. They are really close and take care of each other. Livy could help but notice something was wrong with Skye and wanted to take care of her. Livy has that take care of nature which came across the page really well. What amazed me was what a bad ass Livy turned out to be, she was the unlikely hero of the story. She did some amazing things all for her.

Molly wrote a wonderful tale that weaves our world with another so seamlessly with the supernatural. The story flowed and kept my interest with vivid scenes and the new adult themes in the story, this book is most definitely for an older audience . The Goblins of Bellwater had magic, adventure, romance, curses, supernatural creatures, a faerie war and more.

4.5 stars

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"Everyone knew you shouldn't go biting into fruit offered to you by magical creatures in the woos, even if you'd thought until just five minutes ago that such stories were, you know, only stories."
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I really really liked this one!! It started a little slow, and I was afraid it'd be yet another disappointment (I seem to have hit a string of review books that just didn't do anything for me lately, and it's been a little depressing) but then it suddenly picked up and I was hooked from that moment through the end...

The eponymous goblins are horrid creatures, and the havoc they delight in wreaking is equally horrid. Kit Sylvain is tied to them by a generations-old curse that he bears no culpability - but all of the responsibility - for, and the book is largely the tale of his struggle to deal with that unfairness. Unfairness which is exacerbated, of course, by his feelings for the sister of the goblins' latest victim - which are further exacerbated by said victim's burgeoning "relationship" (curse-induced) with Kit's cousin... It sounds crazy and soap-operish, but actually isn't - it makes gloriously tangled sense in the course of the story, which is laid out with a lush opulence that is redolent of the book's gorgeous cover art.

I was afraid the story would get maudlin and lose me for a little while... In the beginning, things are pretty bleak for Kit AND Skye (the victim), and I was wondering where on earth the remaining vast majority of the story could go if no one ever escaped the goblins and there was no hope for a happy ending. Of course, this is fiction - there's always a possibility of escape AND of hope (particularly for happy endings) - and once that brief glimpse of opportunity presented itself, the story moved along at a superbly crisp pace that kept me anxiously turning pages.

The characters are endearing, even at their lowest points. The setting of Bellwater and its environs is perfect - damp, woodsy, gloomy, and laden with magical potential. And the story, while familiar, still offered enough unique twists and turns to keep me fully engaged and thoroughly entertained. I can't ask for more than that! Ringle is definitely on my Authors To Watch list!

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"Nature is awesome, but be careful, that shit'll kill you."
(technically from the Afterword, but it so easily could have been said by Kit!)
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Ahhh eek. Okay, this one didn't work for me unfortunately. It wasn't bad, just way too weird. It honestly reminded me of something out of those weird goosebumps stories from the nineties, mixed with something from trolls on crack. I think that's actually what the author was going for- so if you're a lover of the strange side of fiction, and you like to feel like you've been on drugs for the majority of the book, this one's for you. No judging! Lol. Just not my cup of tea.

I actually liked the beginning a good bit, and the characters were all very likable and well written, but I couldn't get past the strangeness of the actual goblins themselves. I think maybe it would have worked for me more if the story was set in a fantasy world, but I'm typically not one for mixing modern day with such a thing. I just had hopes that maybe the mystery side of things would be more alluring instead of strange, but I guess I had my warning in the description.

And the last half was just... eaghhrgh weird. I didn't buy it. Idk.

So, I think this book will work for some people, but not for me. Also please note there is strong sexual content etc etc because this is NA, not YA.

Not gonna lie, I was probably turned off this book from about 20 pages in, when I had to read the line She fell and never hit the ground. The goblins carried her crowd-surf style. because no one deserves to have to read a line that bad.

But I continued. And discovered just how much of a mess this book was. Firstly, for all that it was a fantasy book, there was actually not that much world-building in terms of the goblins. Later on, you found out how they got to be there, and the deal they had with Kit's family, but felt a little light. Come to think of it, most aspects of the book felt like that. There didn't feel to be too much in the way of characterisation or plot, and I was actually pretty bored for the most part.

Then I got to the mess that was Grady and Skye's relationship. First of all, Skye chooses Grady as her mate, so she doesn't have to choose a goblin. Does Grady get a say in this? No. Does Grady even know Skye before she comes up to him in the woods and snogs him? No. Does all this seem a dubiously consensual premise for a relationship? Absolutely.

Basically now, throughout their relationship, Grady is being influenced by the goblin's magic. Which means, what he might think he feels for Skye is actually a product of the magic. And Skye knows this. But does she try stay away from him, limit the damage, maybe stop him being involved? Nope. She instead takes him to a place where the magic is stronger, and has sex with him. In a situation in which he cannot give his consent because the magic is making him want to do it. Hence why I did not like their relationship. Kit and Livy's was somewhat better, although it did seem rushed, and to be quite frank, absolutely pointless. Do all the characters need to be paired up in relationships? Apparently yes.

What was good about the book was that it did have Grady and Skye have a discussion about all they'd done while under the goblins' spell. But I'd appreciate the attempt more if it had actually felt a serious one. They ended up deciding that they did genuinely have feelings for each other, although how they could have known that when they'd only known each other while under the spell defeats me. Maybe they should have tried to get to know each other anew, because that to me would make more sense. Either way, that relationship was the main reason I didn't like this book, despite the promise of the initial premise.

The theatre group I sometimes write for often does plays that involve magic, fairytales and so forth. One thing that I always make sure I do is never to have characters do anything remotely romantic when under a spell. Putting a love spell on a character and having them moon constantly over the other? Fine. Actually having both those characters under a spell and sleeping with each other…less fine. It’s why I’ve never been 100% sold on the ending of Midsummer Night’s Dream it just doesn’t sit right with me.

So in this book as soon as two characters under a goblin curse began doing the do (I’m an adult) I instantly got pretty uncomfortable. Now I know they’re both under the curse and I can see all the places where Molly Ringle is trying to make this ‘ok’ but really no one is consenting in that business and I didn’t really want to read it.

But I don’t want to bang on about it because I think it’s one of those things that could cause unnecessary controversy. I also don’t want to put down the good elements of this book. The idea of the goblins and the liaison with the human world was well thought out. I’d love to see some artwork of the goblins from this book as the descriptions of them are evocative and captured my imagination. There’s also a great underlying plot when you pull back a bit of the romance.

So yes, this book is not a total bust. In fact, if you took out those parts that just didn’t sit right with me it would be a decent book. If you expanded more on the goblins and less on the humans this would (in my opinion) be a great book. But it isn’t my book and I think lovers of paranormal romances might be a bit happier with this than I am. Just. People under magic spells can’t consent. And that’s complicated.

My rating: 3/5 stars (I would put two but that felt overly harsh to everything else that I did like about the book)

If you do want to see what I’m talking about, The Goblins of Bellwater releases on the first of October so you can order it now through your preferred means of book-grabbing.

By the way, I received a free digital advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, all opinions are my own.

How I stumbled across The Goblins of Bellwater: The cover caught my eye, and then the summary won my heart. There seems to be three types of books I gravitate towards: the historical fiction novels centered around heartbreaking events, the fun-and-cute-yet-thoughtful contemporaries, and the fantasies that take place in a whole 'nother world. By "whole 'nother world," I mean I want to be able to take a deep whiff of the book and smell the rotting skin of each hideous creature. The Goblins of Bellwater by Molly Ringle fits into the last category of course.

From the title, you know that this story is about the under-the-cover creatures who reside in the town of Bellwater. Kit, the poor guy, is trapped under a magical contract, living life as a mechanic who steals gold for a goblin tribe. Also in the town lives Skye, a barista-slash-artist, who is cursed by the goblins for entertainment purposes and has fallen under a depression which disables her from speaking about the curse. When Kit starts dating her sister, Livy, he is unaware that his visiting cousin, Grady, is dragged under Skye's curse. To say the least, things get messy.

The first 5% of the story had me hooked. There's the kind of irony that makes readers slap their forehead and warn, plead, and shout at the characters. The next 10%, however, slowed to make room for the romance. That was like a TV show playing the cliffhanger before cutting to commercial. The romance was cute, surely, but because the relationship happened earlier in the book, it didn't give me enough time to really root for the relationship. I just wanted to know more about the goblins! It was curiosity that kept reading until the story picked up again. Well, that and the gorgeous writing.

I love pretty words, a combination of fairly simple words that make me sigh and want to just lie in bed forever appreciating them. The beautiful imagery and world-building is really worth the praise. One thing I want to note about this world is that it's urban and something I like to call "mod and myth," when fantasy adapts to modern life. I don't see it often in fantasy, and that's one of the characteristics which makes this story special.

Tonight the sky hung pewter gray between the swaying fir branches high above, and on the forest floor the colors were washed out to a greenish black.

While I didn't have much of a chance to root for the characters to get together, I like each of them separately. Between the four of them, they hold a variety of careers and are all down-to-earth and likable. In Livy's case, being an environmental scientist is almost what allows her to a chance to save the others from the goblins. She earns magical help instead of being given magical abilities. Although Livy's journey is a tad cheesy and simplified, it's unique and goes to show that, even if you're not born with such a benefit, you can earn it through kindness (even and especially if it's to the earth).

The ending of the book was a special one for me. It was probably dragged out longer than it should have, but I liked it anyway because it felt like the story was in a sort of limbo. After having gotten to know the characters and see them through their sacrifices, I was proud of them. Four out of five stars.

The Goblins of Bellwater grabbed me from the start and pulled me in automatically. It's been a while since I've finished a book in a day but this was one of them.
The myth and legend that the author was working with was clear, fun, and intriguing. The story followed Kit, Grady, Skye, and Livy. Kit's family has been the liaison with the goblins for generations. When Skye eats the fruit of the goblins and comes under their spell, it's a race against time to save her from becoming a goblin forever.
I appreciated that the book kept to the basic plot, it wasn't convoluted, there were not unnecessary plot tangents, but rather just a well written book.
The one thing that bothered me, and maybe it's just because I'm from the Pacific Northwest, but the amount of times we were reminded that the story was set in the Puget Sound drove me a bit crazy in the beginning. After the first few chapters, we weren't reminded so much but honestly, one or two references are fine, anything more than that, is a bit tedious.
But overall, this was a great, quick, intriguing read. The magical creatures were well written and fun. I liked that there were the goblins who were portrayed as weeds and then the fae which were other magical creatures who had good qualities. It was a nice balance between the two worlds. Overall, I really enjoyed this one.

The Goblins of Bellwater promises us a dark and alluring tale about Goblins. The cover on its own is gorgeous. I was excited to find a book about goblins in such a way to read. Unfortunately that did not quite work out the way I had hoped.

First I’d like to point out this isn’t a badly written book. The writing in itself is engaging and manages to create a dark vibe throughout the book, mostly at the start and the ending. I just wish the middle part had been able to capture the same vibe and this could have been a truly exciting book.

Our story focuses on a foursome, two sisters and two cousins. One of the girls falls victim to a goblins curse and drags one of the guys with her, leaving the other two to work out how to save them. Two girls, two guys. You must have already guessed where this is heading. The romance took over the plot. The whole middle part was more about these four learning about each other than it was about the goblins. And I am sorry to say but with that title I had other expectations.

And it was a shame because there were honestly some very interesting things about the Goblins and Fae that were mentioned nearing the ending that could have woven a great story centered about Bellwater. Instead it focuses in on these four and their romance with in the backdrop a goblin curse.

I did enjoy the ending where one of the girls had to choose a way to save them from the goblins. But even there, there was so much more to expand on that was just casually mentioned along the way. It bothered me a lot. I wanted to know more.

One of the other things that bothered me however was to do with the effects of the goblins curse on Skye. The way it effects her, her sister and those around her call depression. I can see that. However she was ‘depressed’ for maybe a few weeks and her sister seemed to already be expecting quick changes from medication and other things. That rubbed me the wrong way a bit because it doesn’t work that way. Personally I have depression (post partum depression at the moment). I do think the author otherwise tried to sensitively deal with it, but it was a bit too much from the outsiders point of view looking in for me. I do think it is hard to deal with this topic in the context when it is the curse that is affecting Skye like that. Is the curse what makes her ‘depressed’ or is she getting depressed because of the curse and what happened to her?

Even so I did enjoy reading this book in parts. While I might not have fallen in love with any of the characters, they were for the most part a joy to follow throughout. And I do think Molly Ringle is a name I’ll be keeping my eye out on.

The Goblins of Bellwater by Molly Ringle

Star rating: ★★★★ ☆ 4/5 stars

Format: ebook galley

Summary: Kit is the human liaison for a tribe of goblins, an unpleasant job where he must appease them with a monthly tribute of gold. If he comes up short then they start to make dangerous mischief.

Review: I received an advanced copy of this book for free from NetGalley. (Although it is long been out at this point).

This book took me a long time to read but that is in no way a reflection of the story, I was just having a hard time with any reading. The story was actually riveting and as I came out of my funk I read it quickly wanting to devour it.

I really liked this book, I thought the goblins were great, I love malevolent fae. I liked the stipulations of the curse the goblins put on Skye, how they prevented her from talking about the curse and the rest. Skye tries to break it herself by kissing Grady and I thought it was great, of course it didn't work and complicated matters further by cursing him as well. I loved the "local" fae as well and how they interacted.

One thing that bothered me is that Kit and Livy act way older than early twenties, they're more like early thirties in my opinion. It bugged me a bit while reading it because Kit acted like he'd been such an old bachelor and like... He's not even twenty-five, maybe chill dude? The characters just acted way older than their actual age and i kept forgetting that they actually weren't in their thirties.

The relationships were really interesting. I liked how After the curse is broken that Grady and Skye are unsure if they actually have a real relationship or if it was all created by the curse. I liked how they had to figure that out and it wasn't an instant happily ever after deal. That was really nice to see.

Recommendation: I felt this was a great contemporary book about the fae. This year seems to be a good year for goblin stories (see also Wintersong). This isn't YA in my opinion, more NA so that is a cool change too. I'd suggest checking this out if you like fae.

First off, I really enjoyed The Goblins of Bellwater. Ringle does an excellent job at creating an intriguing but sinister supernatural world. After reading so many fantasies where characters enter into intimate relationships with otherworldly characters, it was really refreshing to have these creatures portrayed as wholly different from the humans they manipulate and kidnap. I was less into the human romance in the storyline. I would absolutely read a sequel to this, especially if it explored the dynamics of the goblin/fairy world moreso and the backgrounds of some of the creatures. Excellent read overall!

This is going to be one of the most talked about books for the fall of 2017! I think young adult as well as adult readers would love this book!

I think this book is suffering from lapsed expectations, which are entirely my own fault. I requested this book because I was intrigued by the title and beguiled by the beautiful cover. I'm not sure I even read the description, so I came to this book unaware of just about anything save for the name. As a consequence I read a book that wasn't really to my taste. That doesn't make GOBLINS OF BELLWATER a bad book, but it is not a book for me.

That said, there are things I liked about the book. I thought the settings were fantastically described. The atmosphere was immersive. The familial relationships between Grady and Kit, and Skye and Livy were lovely. I'd absolutely read another, more comprehensive family drama by this author. I absolutely loved the length Livy was willing to go to protect her sister. I think that was very cool. I would read an entire book about these two and the life they've led. (Livy on her own is just wonderful. She earns all three stars by herself.)

The things I did not like, I feel, are part and parcel of paranormal romance--which is not my preferred sub-genre. I wasn't impressed by the insta-love between Skye and Grady. I understand it, given the story, but I didn't care for it. I was also very uncomfortable with their sexual relationship as a result of their circumstances. It didn't feel entirely consensual to me despite the story's best efforts to justify their connection. I didn't like that. I was likewise unmoved by Livy and Kit, though there was a stronger basis for romance for that couple. As for their endings, I can see that they were certainly thoughtfully written which I appreciate despite not being heavily invested in them.

I wanted a better application of goblins, fae, and magic. The setting is ripe for it. The lore certainty offers a solid foundation for a more involved paranormal novel, but we don't quite get that, because the paranormal aspect is only part of the point. This book is a romance with healthy but unevenly applied smatterings of magic, and therein lay its weakness for me. That and the length. Were this book a touch longer, there might have been a better balance of magic and romance to smooth my way. But, again, I acknowledge I wasn't the intended audience for this book.

The book was perfectly serviceable in telling the story it meant to tell. That story was simply not for me. If family relationships, romance and sex with a touch of the dark world of fantasy is your scene, you will love THE GOBLINS OF BELLWATER. Don't miss it!

Thank you to NetGalley, Central Avenue Publishing, and Molly Ringle for allowing me to read this book ahead of publication.

I enjoyed this book but it wasn't what I was expecting. My enjoyment of this book was purely a situation of "it was me, not you" situation because I can definitely see this book having an appeal to those who love light hearted fantasy that doesn't clobber you with romance.

Most people have no idea goblins live in the woods around the small town of Bellwater, Washington. But some are about to find out.

Skye, a young barista and artist, falls victim to a goblin curse in the forest one winter night, rendering her depressed and silenced, unable to speak of what happened. Her older sister, Livy, is at wit’s end trying to understand what’s wrong with her. Local mechanic Kit would know, but he doesn’t talk of such things: he’s the human liaison for the goblin tribe, a job he keeps secret and never wanted, thrust on him by an ancient family contract.

Unaware of what’s happened to Skye, Kit starts dating Livy, trying to keep it casual to protect her from the attention of the goblins. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Kit, Skye draws his cousin Grady into the spell through an enchanted kiss in the woods, dooming Grady and Skye both to become goblins and disappear from humankind forever.

It’s a midwinter night’s enchantment as Livy, the only one untainted by a spell, sets out to save them on a dangerous magical path of her own. -Goodreads

This story was inspired by Christina Rossetti poem, Goblin Market (which is listed below the review.) Before reading this, you need to know that this is a new adult book. This means that there is sexual content not suggested sexual content but full blown sexual content with characters under the age of 25.

I was immediately sucked into this book. The story of goblins is something I don't touch too much. Its not as if   don't like their story, I guess it isn't as popular within the channels I run through to look for new books but its something I am going to look into. 

Anyway... as I said I was sucked into this book but the intensity I had reading into the beginning died. . . slowly but it died. It wasn't as if the story was not interesting. It was but the author took a little bit too much time of having the characters run around the issue. I felt that the resolution was too easy found and there wasn't enough fight or intensity leading up to the conclusion as there was with the sex scenes. 

I also didn't think there was a enough mythology in the book. I wanted something deeper in the overall story. I wanted more history and color overall in the story. I felt that the focus was too much on the relationships and not on the goblins their story, their end game or anything such as that. The story was fairly straight-forward and I'm not a fan of that. 

Despite the story hitting a slow patch, despite the lack of mythology and color, it provide a quick read and it introduced me to a new author.

2.5 Pickles (for a good foundation)

Modern fairytales seem to be a rising trend and some good stories are coming out of it. This one read much like a traditional fairytale as far as language and sentence structure goes, but it had some original elements like goblins using iPhones and other modern devices. I was finding it rather charming until near the end of the first chapter an F-bomb spoiled it for me.

I'm not a prude or easily shocked, but I had been thinking this would be a lovely story for adults and children alike up to that point and it served no purpose to the story except maybe to add some shock value. Was it worth making it unsuitable for children? I didn't think so until I saw the direction the plot would take.

The story continues in an enchanting style for a while, drawing the reader into the human interactions with the goblins. It takes a sinister turn just as the f-bombing starts again and then a set up for an apparent romance angle.

The significance of the human characters to the goblins all clicks into place by 20% and I started enjoying the original premise, despite the teenage-like relationships. It comes out that the characters are actually in their twenties and becomes decidedly sexual by about a third in, so any thoughts of sharing with children are out the window. I'll give it credit for stopping at 'sensual' rather than turning into graphic erotica, which I hadn't signed on for.

By this time the story has become about the humans and the goblins are left behind. They appear again periodically, but the fairytale atmosphere gives way to a Romance story. Readers of that genre may enjoy this more than I did. It went in a different direction than I expected and my interest waned accordingly.

The writing itself is good so I can't fault it, it just wasn't for me.

“Everyone knew you shouldn’t go biting into fruit offered to you by magical creatures in the woods, even if you’d thought until just five minutes ago that such stories were, you know, only stories.”

This story is a take on the Goblin Market, which is a poem by Christina Rossetti.

I was initially really excited for The Goblins of Bellwater, but found the story rather dull until the last half of the book.

It focuses on four adults, two sisters and two cousins, who are all linked to the goblins in their own way. Things happen and then they split into couples, which was fine at first. There is a heavy focus on romance in the story, but I didn't care for Grady and Skye's romance because it was insta-lust/love at its finest. Yes, they were under a spell, but I think it could have been written better. Liv and Kit's romance was more tolerable, but it wasn't amazing. Props to Ringle for writing about casual sexual relationships in a positive way. Considering this is supposed to be a NA book, I was expecting more steaminess from the sex scenes but they were actually pretty boring and tame.

The goblins and magic were my favorite parts of the story, I just wish they had been present more in the story. When they did appear, they were evil and maniacal just like one would expect goblins to be. This is definitely a darker version of a goblin story.

I didn't really care for any of the characters except for Liv and Skye, mostly Liv though. Her love of the Earth and her sister made her a really interesting character, especially towards the end when she had to go through some major trials.

I really wish that I loved this book, but the romance and slow first half dulled the enjoyment for me. With some cleaning up and fleshing out the story more, I think it could be really good.