Spellbound was, indeed, a spellbinding work. I loved every minute of the story, and fell in love with both Arthur and Rory. Their relationship developed at a believable pace, with instant attraction but not instalove. Meanwhile, the plot was interesting and contained plenty of action and adventure. I did regret the fade-to-black sex scenes. After the slow build-up I was keen to see the characters finally get together and would have liked to have witnessed a little more of those intimate interactions, but that's a minor complaint, and it certainly didn't ruin my overall enjoyment of the story. I would like to read more from this author in the future and am definitely keen to continue the Magic in Manhattan series when book two releases next year. An easy 4.5-star read for me, and I recommend Spellbound to fans of MM fantasy looking for works that encompass memorable characters and a strong, well-written story.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book!

Title: Spellbound
Author: Allie Therin
Rating: 4 stars
Rep: Gay MC and bisexual (?) MC. POC side characters.

Carina Press is fast becoming a favourite publisher of mine, so I am constantly checking out their catalogue of books to request. When I saw this one, the cover and synopsis instant drew me in, 1920s New York, magic and romance? Definitely my cup of tea and this didn't disappoint.

The writing style and plot was very gripping, entertaining and engaging, I read this book in one sitting! Such a unique premise, I really loved the world/magic, I was confused at times but overall I really enjoyed it. I will admit that my knowledge of the 1920s is limited to the reading of "The Great Gatsby" at school, though.

On the whole, I really liked Arthur & Rory and their relationship, at times there were some cringy moments and at the start, I was very sceptical, but I ended up loving and rooting for them.

While the plot and characters frustrated me at times, I had a lot of fun reading this and I won't hesitate to pick up the next book!

I would definitely recommend this to people who enjoy diverse characters, unique settings and magic!


Review will be posted on my blog, closer to the release date.

This is one of those books I picked up off Netgalley because it sounded like it might be my cup of tea and, for the most part, it pretty much worked for me. It's historical urban fantasy, for lack of a better descriptor, set in the Prohibition era in the US but with added magic - a number of the characters we meet during the book have various powers and this is not generally known.

Their way of life is under threat from the import of artefacts which can be used to devastating effect by people who have these magical powers, though usually at a high cost. One of our protagonists (Rory) has such a power, in his case the ability to see the history of an object, which he uses to determine whether or not antiques are fakes and he helps his aunt run a profitable business in Hell's Kitchen. Early on, Rory crosses paths with our other protagonist (Arthur), who has no magic of his own but who hangs around with a hell of a lot of people who do - he and his friends also have a troubled history with magic and its misuse, which led to the death of people they cared about.

There's a lot to like about Spellbound, the adventure plot of which mostly hangs together well and the setting of which also promises some future issues around period-typical discrimination even if those are only alluded to in this particular book. There's enough period detail to make the setting work without falling into infodump territory or the perils of an author wanting to demonstrate that they have Done The Research.

In terms of the romance storyline, this book was on the knife-edge for me between 'these characters are delightful' and 'these characters are annoying me now' and I'm not completely sure which side they landed in the end. For a novel-length story, there's a temptation for miscommunication to get over-used and I think this was a little too heavily done here. There's only so much mileage to get out of 'surely he can't feel about me the way I feel about him?' and this was a fraction overdone for my tastes.

There's also some messing about with names, as one of our heroes is commonly known as 'Ace' and that's used interchangeably (and not always consistent with the temperature of the relationship at the time) while it's revealed partway through that Rory is actually using an assumed name and not only does he get called by both names, there's also a nickname added in too. I initially thought that Rory's big secret, one of those 'you wouldn't like me if you knew the truth'-type secrets, was that he was trans and that then led me down the wormhole of dead-naming someone, which made the name usage really not work for me.

Anyway, an enjoyable enough read even with the issues above and apparently the first of at least a trilogy, so I guess if I end up reading those then we'll see whether the author can push the characters firmly back into 'delightful' for me!

"Spellbound" is the first book of a paranormal romance set in New York during the prohibition.

Rory is a 20 year old with a special talent - he can see into the past of objects. He works in an antique shop and tries to keep his gift a secret - but then a new client appears who changes everything. Arthur doesn't have any talent of his own but is friend with several people with magical abilities, and together they try to save the world - as one does. Rory soon becomes entangled with Arthur and his group - *especially* with Arthur.

This book pulled me out of my romance reading slump, which alone is something to be said for it. I loved the setting and both the main and supporting characters - I'm a sucker for found families, and there's plenty of that here. I also liked that the sex happened behind closed doors.

Rory and Arthur were cute together, although I am a bit afraid of what's to come in the next book - I feel like I've read that sort of dynamic about a million times already (both think neither is good enough for the other and the other person is Not Serious, and neither will talk about this .. I really hope this part will turn out differently). Now that I think about it, the dynamic is similar to K.J. Charles' Magpie Lord, although Arthur is much nicer than Lucien.

With plot-heavy romances, my problem tends to be that the plot isn't gripping enough. That was true here, too - it was just rather predictable, especially the showdown.

Despite that, I enjoyed it. I read romance for the emotions, not so much the plot, and I felt like I got what I wanted in that regard. I love the world and the characters, and for me the strengths of the books made up for it's weaknesses.

Author Allie Therin introduces us to the New York City of 1925 - a world of jazz, Prohibition, crime, corruption, speakeasys, skyscrapers ... and paranormal magic. Arthur Kenzie - Congressman Kenzie's son, former soldier, Harvard quarterback - has surrounded himself with paranormals, like Jade with her telekinetic powers and Zhang who is an astral walker. Then Arthur comes across Rory Brodigan, who has the power of psychometry:

"Think of magic as radio waves. Most paranormal powers make magic - most powers transmit. But magic also broadcasts its own signal, and some powers <b>receive</b>. Your psychometry receives magic into your mind from the objects you touch."

The author does an admirable job of world building as Arthur (also called Ace) and his band of paranormals try to find out the who, what, when, where and why of a mysterious shipment arriving in NYC - a relic, an "object that's become a vessel for magic," something with unknown destructive power. In the midst of saving NYC, Arthur uncovers Rory's secret past while Rory rails against Arthur trying to help him, in my opinion, for far too long. There's building sexual tension, and then there's endless variations of Rory taking exception to almost everything Ace says and does. But finally, finally Rory and Ace become lovers (in mostly fade-to-black scenes) but there is a palpable attraction between the two.

The plot is innovative and interesting, and the stage is set for the continuous of the series with lots of unanswered questions and adventures. The relationship building is a bit too slow for me personally, and as a result the pace of the story feels slow at times. But the suspenseful ending really brings everything together and I''m looking forward to reading the next book in this series. 4 stars.

Allie Therin's debut novel, Spellbound, is a fun and fast-paced historical/paranormal romance set in a 1920's NYC backdrop with "X-men"-esque super-humans. Our two main characters, Arthur and Rory, were equally self-loathing in both a frustrating and endearing way, and the two definitely had some personal demons they had to work through. However, I thought they were both great characters that were easy to get attached to. There was also some discussion of power dynamics between the main couple, which is great to see in a romance.

I did find a few issues that stuck out during my reading experience. Overall, the romantic tension was decent, but it did feel a little forced at times and the ongoing development was abrupt. The 1920's setting was flimsy at best, if not a tad bit anachronistic. Still, this was a solid paranormal romance debut, and I'm looking forward to reading more of Arthur and Rory's adventures!

Actual rating: 4.5/5 stars

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

"You're mine now, Rory--Theodore--and the past can't have you anymore."

Alright, so. Where to begin? I have no clue. This book was everything. It's officially one of my favorite reads of 2019 and I'm so sad it's not available in hardcopy! I would've 100% bought myself a copy and shoved it into everyone's arms. It was so good!!

What I enjoyed most was the dynamic between the different characters, especially Rory and Arthur of course, but also Gwen and Ellis, or even Jade and Arthur. The side characters did feel a bit flat but that eventually added up to Rory's character being absolutely amazing and super interesting. We need more shy/awkward MCs!

I'm sad the 1920s world wasn't mentioned more clearly. I never really thought of them being in the 20s except for the occasional mentioning of the War. They could've been in 1940s/1950s for all I cared. I wish Therin would've made that more explicit. I wish she would've played more with the atmosphere of the 20s instead of mentioning that most characters wear hats.

Still, the magic system was amazing. I loved Rory's powers and how Therin handled the whole "relic" plotline. It was great. 9/10 would recommend!

I could not put this book down! Literally. I finished the whole thing in a day (a workday, nonetheless), and my only question - is it 2020 yet and when can I read the sequel?

I'm always thrilled to be intrigued by a new paranormal world, and in this case, I was hooked from the first chapter thanks to a great combination of 1) fantastic world-building that felt fresh and new, and 2) really good pacing. Having just finished book 2 of Libba Bray's Diviners, you would think I would be a little tired of 1920s New York (I thought I might be), but for a world as good as the one in Spellbound, absolutely not.

And can we talk about the characters???! I was immediately rooting for Rory and Arthur, both as individual characters and for their relationship. Both main characters were likable while still being realistic, interesting, well-fleshed out, with real backstories and personalities that informed their actions and motivations in a way that actually made sense. The growth of their relationship was believable, well-paced, and also adorable as all heck. (heart-eyes emoji)

I requested this ARC on a whim and was so glad that I did! This was such a fun, action-packed, romantic little book, and it absolutely made my week.

Romance or Urban Fantasy?

If you like either genre then I can guarantee you'll enjoy this book. But if you like both genres then you are going to LOVE this book. I'm one of those people who like to say they enjoy a really plotty romance and people take that to mean I prefer plot to romance. No the case at all. What I mean is I adore a good heart clenching romance but I'll enjoy it even more so if it has a really meaty plot to sink my teeth into. And this book hit both aspects out of the park.

The main characters for the story are Rory and Arthur aka Ace who could not have come from more different backgrounds. Rory is a half-italian (young) man who has the ability to read the past of objects and is desperate to ensure no one ever find out about it. Arthur is a member of a politically minded family and a former soldier of the Great War, dedicated to hunting down magical relics. Their paths cross when one of those dangerous relics is shipped to New York.

Let's start with the plot because if we start on the romance I might never stop gushing. The plot on the surface is like many others in the UF genre; there's a magical macguffin, there is the bunch of people who want to use it for evil, and there is the bunch of people who want to stop the first group from doing that. What I love about this novel though, and what makes it unique, are the characters. Rory and Arthur are...hmm I don't like to say realistic because what is my reality might not be anothers', but they are very well written. They are both traumatised individuals and there are moments when it feels like they might go back to use it as a shield or a weapon to push away people, but they don't. They take a chance, and they learn, and I love reading that in any books I read. They also have a support system that they acknowledge and are grateful to, which is nothing something you find in many UF or even romance novels. Mrs Brodigan, Jade and Zhang, who make up the secondary cast are delightful and badasses in their own ways. It was so nice to read a parental/mentor figure like Mrs Brodigan who lives to support and care for their characters.

The pacing was good for me, I like it fast and moving, with the occasional moments of down time in order for our characters to get to know each other. I think the only criticism I have on the character and plot front is when it came to the villains. They were talked about a lot but I didn't really feel like I got to spend much time with them as a reader. Which is a shame because their stories sound fascinating. Hopefully, the sequel will give us more details.

And to end it off, the romance. Phewwwwwww the romance. It was adorable. It was about two people who wanted to be loved and wanted to love, and not sure they deserved each other and my poor heart. I love a bit of inferiority complex when it comes to romances, but not too much and this was juuuuuust the right amount for me. Rory is snarky and sassy and prickly on first (second and third and...) meetings and Arthur has a protective streak a mile wide. And the way they bounce off each other was sooooo fulfilling to read. I'm not a huge fan of pages of sex so the fade to black worked for me.

Ultimately, this was a really enjoyable and well crafted book. It's chock full of UF and mm romance tropes, and I like it that way. Pick this up if you need something cute and fun to read.

This was such a delightful, fun and exciting story! It’s full of magic and it’s done like nothing I’ve read before. Each paranormal has a unique ability that is fascinating. The main character, Rory, is a psychometric and he can read the origins of an object by touching it. The problem is that he can get lost in his scrying and can lose time, the longest he lost was 3 weeks! He works out of a shop that his friend, the lovely Mrs Brodigan owns. He is scared of his ability and doesn’t go many places, just to the shop and home.

Our other main character is Arthur who has no magic abilities but is entwined in the world of paranormals. His best friend is Jade who can move objects with her mind, works with her family at a speakeasy at the height of prohibition and wears sharp suits. I adored her! They are also friends with Zhang who walks on the astral plain so he can be in two places at once. The friendships between them and the relationship forged with Rory and Mrs Brodigan really brought this story to life.

There is a lovely romance that starts between Arthur and Rory but it starts with Rory not always liking Arthur who is rich to his poor, tall to his short and everything Rory believes he can never live up to. Arthur, or Ace as his friends call him, cannot help but be charmed by Rory and they form a bond like no other.

The group of these characters are looking for relics that have paranormal abilities locked in them and if they fall into the wrong hands things can turn very bad very fast. There is a HFN ending and the story is left open so that it can continue. I am very excited to read what happens next in this magical world!!!

I loved this. Everything from the setting to the characters whisked me away from the first page. It was hard to put down and lingered long after it was over. The entire cast is extremely well developed and so real. The post WW1 setting was beautifully constructed and the world was so vibrant and realistic. Will definitely be looking out for more books by this author!

This debut author has impressed me with her in-depth world building and attention to detail in this post-WW1 historical fantasy. It is the 20s in New York City and Rory Branigan is scraping by using his powers of psychometry to determine fake antiques from the real ones (no weapons allowed). He is brought to the attention of Arthur Kenzie, a wealthy scion of a political family, who is trying to find people with paranormal powers to help stop a plot to destroy the city.

The chemistry between Rory and Arthur is instantaneous but there isn't a lot of trust straight away. Rory must overcome his trust issues, and Arthur has overprotective syndrome big time. The secondary characters were fun but could have done with a little more filling out.

This has lots of classic MM tropes and has fade to black sex scenes.

Lots of fun for fans of paranormal romances with a historical twist.

The descriptive bit: Arthur Kenzie is wealthy, educated and has some very magical friends. He keeps the supernatural secrets of his friends while trying to make sure that magical objects don’t fall into the wrong hands. Rory Brodigan is living a secret life, hiding his supernatural gift by working as an appraiser. The two men meet up when Kenzie finds an object that he needs read by someone with the right abilities. Then, things get really complicated!

My thoughts bit: This was enchanting! (I don’t regret the pun!) I loved every moment of this book. It was fast-moving, intriguing, and had the absolute perfect amount of sexual tension. The chemistry between Arthur and Rory was carefully crafted and has ensured I will be anxiously awaiting a sequel. In addition to the wonderful main characters, the supporting cast is all well-rounded and contributed a great deal to the plot.

The supernatural powers in the story were based on the traditional powers one might have read about, but I loved the authors twist on losing oneself into the magic. Each power demonstrated by one of the characters seemed to have an equal drain on them, and the terrifying possibility of losing themselves to a power they were unable to harness.

This is a creative twist on the supernatural mystery and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

4* A nicely done tale that introduces a new paranormal cabal. Book 1 in a series, it seems.

This book was a little slow to start with, but I warmed to the characters quickly.

The tale is set in 1925, and you have to bear that in mind, as there are some pretty unpalatable things in it, such as racial divides, class divides, a real danger of being killed if you're even suspected of being LGBT and people who are snobs; however, I think the author portrayed everything realistically.

The tale at times did meander a bit, but that was expected as it's the first book in a series and readers need a bit of an infodump, but once I figured out that this was a tale of baddies who became baddies through betrayal and loss and a need for revenge, as well as baddies who did stuff to others out of selfishness and all the regular vices, and a cabal of guys and gals who wanted to prevent disaster and destruction, I was good with the tale.

It's not your average PNR tale and it reminded me a bit of Gail Z Martin's Deadly Curiosities series, though that's contemporary. The book is very well written, with fades-to-black sex scenes commensurate for the time and for what the author had created, and I found it refreshing. I also liked how everyone in the tale seemed to be protecting the others, covertly and not and that there was great respect and loyalty and that ageism was not a thing. Book 2 will be out before the end of the year, and I will be reading that. I actually think that this tale could have worked as well without any hint of a romance because it didn't really feel as if there was one firm set of characters who stood out as a couple, despite the blurb referring to Arthur/Ace and Rory/Theodore/Ted as the leads. And, also refreshing was that they didn't gush about love and feelings, unless you count when R/T/T was under the influence of booze, and they seemed along the lines of 'when men were men', again in keeping with the tale and the time.

ARC courtesy of Carina Press for my reading pleasure.

An utterly enchanting and spellbinding debut! It took me a few chapters to get swept away into the story, but once I did, I was a goner and stayed up ridiculously late to stay with the characters and find out what would happen next. Spellbound sucks readers in with its magical and historical world-building, a rich cast of compelling characters, and a heart pounding romance that strikes the perfect balance between slow burn and intimacy. I can’t wait for the sequel!

*ARC received from NetGalley in return for an honest review*

This book took all my expectations and threw it out the window. Everything was way better than I expected and I loved every minute. While there is an age gap, 28 verses 20, the characters discuss this at great length. The magic is something that felt familiar and yet so different that it was apart of a whole new world. While there was some insta-like the love slowly crept in feeling quite natural. The plot revolved on more than just the love story which was a great decision. Giving the reader more information about the world and what was at stake made the romance feel even sweeter once they finally did get together. I can't wait for the second book to see what is in store next for these characters.