I received an advanced audio copy of Not the Witch You Wed by April Asher from the publisher St. Martin’s Press and Dreamscape Media via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

What It’s About: Violet Maxwell is a witch, but she has got no magic. She also wants nothing to do with her ex-boyfriend, alpha wolf shifter Lincoln Thorne, who broke her heart when they were teenagers. But due to arcane Supernatural Laws that forces both to find mates, Violet and Lincoln agree to fake dating to give themselves more time to find their mates. But as they both face new challenges in their magical communities and are pulled together, they are forced to face the fact that maybe these feelings aren’t so fake!

What I Loved: I don’t normally read supernatural or paranormal romance, but this is a really great introduction. I found this magical version of New York to be intriguing and I liked the family dynamics and getting to know our characters. Another thing I really appreciated is that the standard miscommunication we see in romances is really necessary and we can understand why it must exist.

What I Didn’t Like: I felt that a lot of the world building wasn’t clear. I couldn’t keep track of the rules and the differences between the organizations. I also had no clue what they were doing half the time, what their jobs were, etc. I think the plotting was a bit all over the place though I still enjoyed the romance and the history.

Who Should Read It: People who love paranormal romances. People who are looking for a fall read that plays with magic.

Summary: A witch and a wolf shifter fake date to appease the supernatural community.

This was a cute paranormal/supernatural romance! Violet is such a strong and sassy FMC whonis out to prove she is doing fine on her own and doesn't need a man to make her life easier, especially one that broke her heart manu years ago. I alsp enjoyed Lincoln and how even though he was an alpha he wasn't over baring with Violet and knew when he had to step back and let her figure things out for herself. I would have liked for a female and male narrorator but the female narrorator did just find except the few parts where it sounded like you could hear her swallowing.

Violet Maxwell is the eldest of the three Maxwell sisters, and is supposed to be one of the most powerful witches in her generation, but there is a small catch–she’s magicless. Considered a dud in the paranormal world, Violet makes it her life’s mission to blend in and evade notice. Much to her mother’s annoyance and her grandmother’s amusement. But during an event where Violet is forced to mingle, she finds herself back in the sights of Lincoln Thorne–the very wolf pack Alpha that broke her heart a decade ago. When things go sideways for both of them, they find themselves forced to fake-date to buy time with the elders of their community. However, it's easier said than done when fake feelings become real and Violet’s magic decides to awaken.
I cannot express to you all just how much this book worked for me. It combines all my favorite tropes and genres into one and I just could not get enough of it. Violet and Linc’s connection was absolutely delightful and sizzling to read. I loved how even in their anger they couldn’t not be there for each other. Usually I’m not one for a second chance romance, but when you combine it with a paranormal twist, it just somehow works wonderfully for me.
The family dynamics were chef kisses and the audiobook narration for this was actually the highlight for me. I loved how Zura Johnson really brings the story to life and gives each character a different tone and feel. I was instantly entranced from beginning to end and I cannot wait to read the rest of the sisters' stories as the series goes on!

Audiobook archived before I was able to listen to it. I have an ebook version that I will hopefully get to soon.

*Thank you @dreamscape_media for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review. Review not posted to Amazon/Goodreads because less than 4 stars or DNF.*

A fun read. Good world building, although as a NYC native some things were off and clearly written by someone who probably has never lived here and didn't bother to do some research. It took me out of the story but not too badly and someone not from here probably wouldn't notice. I really liked both leads, and I loved that it wasn't instalove but a reunion. Two adults trying to reconcile their pasts in a supernatural world. I can't wait for the next book.

Also the audiobook narrator did a fantastic job creating voice for every single character.

I have tried to get into this audiobook at least three different times in the last year and something is not working for me. I will not be reviewing on Goodreads since I DNF at 20%

This witchy read was fun, cute and of course magical and did not skimp on the laughs. Violet was a strong leading woman who was not about playing the demure damsel in distress. Lincoln was a leading man with a lot of integrity and determination. I love that they both had their passions that they were willing to fight tooth and nail for. They make a great power couple. The tension building throughout the book really pulls you in and you really get invested in all the characters. I can’t wait to read the next book!

The audiobook was a great experience with a wonderful narrator!

This was such a fun book to listen to! I absolutely enjoyed the narrator and the gusto she put within the characters she so lovingly voiced. This is the first book I have read/listened to by April Asher and I am so glad that I did! I will definitely be reading more of her work!

The characters portrayed within this book were delightful! I absolutely loved the relationships they carried throughout the book, and the new ones made within the storyline! There wasn't anything that I disliked in the least about this storyline and characters. I cannot wait to read more from April!

I was pleasantly surprised by Not the Witch You Wed. This fake engagement romance is what I thought we were getting with that big crop of paranormal rom-coms that includes The Ex Hex, Payback's a Witch, and all the others. It's funny, sexy and generally a good time. It doesn't take itself too seriously and while there are internal and external obstacles in the protagonists' personal and romantic arcs, it's not a heavy book.

Violet is the oldest of a set of triplet witches and the only one without magic. Her inheritance, the role of Prima of the witches, has instead been passed to the middle triplet, Rose (MC of book 2). Until she gets reacquainted with wolf alpha Lincoln--and her magic--and an irrestible second-chance romance--activates.

Not the Witch You Wed suffers a little from its First in Series status, with quite a bit of focus on building out the world and cast of characters, but I'm currently reading the second (Not Your Ex's Hexes), which benefits from that setup and jumps right in.

I liked the build-out of politics of Asher's supernatural world and the friend/family groups her main characters move in. I really liked the two of them together. And mostly? Mostly I liked that it was what I expected. Sometimes there's a lot of fun to be had with a book that doesn't blow you away, but delivers exactly what you want at that moment. This is a solid read.

Audio Notes: This is third-person past tense with dual POV. The chapters don't alternate between the characters. Instead, Linc's POV is sandwiched into the chapters. It flows better than I'm making it sound, I promise. Dual POV is often less fun with a single narrator, but because of the way Asher structured the book and how Zura Johnson voices the characters, I didn't miss the second narrator. I found Johnson's narration to be a good fit for the humor of the story, never making it twee or flat. If you like audio, this is a good choice.

This was cute but I don't love the witch books - that's a me problem though - if you don't mind some magic, definitely try this one!

I enjoyed this book and the fat rep within! It’s always exciting to read a book that represents part of you and does it well. I also really enjoyed the swoon-worthy romance! Definitely one I would recommend to others.

i was hoping for more from this one. i thought it was good but i was hoping for some more with the characters and the storyline

This book was lots of fun. Is it full of tropes? Oh yeah. Let’s list off the tropes real quick. They are fake dating, miscommunication, and it’s a romance novel so of course, happy ending with an old friend. The story revolves around Violet. She is the dud of a three-sister witch group. She’s the one without magic. Her sister is the soon to be the Prima witch, and must witch bond because it’s required by law. Lincoln is an old friend who also happens to be the North American alpha. He is a wolf shifter. The other trope, I forgot to mention was something went wrong in the past. Right out of high school these two would’ve run away together. They hadn’t been together as boyfriend girlfriend, but it was working up to that and Lincoln never showed up. And now it’s 13 years later, both are on deadline for life altering things that are required by their magical and supernatural community and neither of them want it. Once again, this was fine. It’s everything you expect in a romance novel. I can’t wait to see some of the later books in the series especially the friend who is a succubus and the other friend who is a guardian angel. Bring it on. This was exactly what I want out of a witchy romance for the month of September

This is a lovely read, quick and light. At times it can be a bit cheesy, and that cheesiness does occasionally turn to cringe-y, but it is a refreshing read to balance out any heavier books on a TBR. The magic system and worldbuilding was very well done, and the times that it intersected with a more realistic world was incredibly believable.

I'm certain that there's an audience for this book, but sadly it wasn't for me. I found this book to be cliche and the characters annoyed me to no end.

I came for the fake dating, and I kinda got what I came for?
The story falls into some cliches – both good and bad. For example, most female characters are introduced with their bra size. Miscommunication/Lack of communication was a significant plot point, but it had a good twist!
It was hard to tell when it switched between Violet’s and Lincoln’s perspectives until it explicitly stated who it was. There was no change in how their inner dialogue was written or narrated.
On to the fake dating – it did not last nearly long enough to satisfy my taste.
Overall, it was an entertaining read that, while predictable, was fun and enjoyable. I plan to continue the series!
<b>Audiobook Review:</b> It took a while to get used to the voice actor – she spoke slowly with long pauses that made me think my sleep timer had gone off. The voices were also very breathy. While I got used to the narration, I’d recommend reading versus listening to <i>Not The Witch You Wed</i>.
<i>Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.</i>

This was very cute. I'm not very big into paranormal romance, but this has me thinking I definitely could get into it. Violet is a FORCE, and we love a strong female MC. I also love that she's curvy instead of traditionally depicted. It's good to see more diversity in book characters. Definitely a fun weekend read if you're looking for something not too serious. I did enjoy the audiobook, the narration was wonderfully done with what felt like an engaging tone and I enjoyed listening. 3.5 rounded up.

Fake dating has become one of my favorite romance tropes, so I jumped at the chance to read this adorable witchy romance that combines both one of my favorite tropes with paranormal elements.

NOT THE WITCH YOU WED was such a delightfully entertaining read, and I loved the supernatural elements to the story.

Violet Maxwell is a magic-less witch and Lincoln Thorne is the Alpha wolf shifter who broke her heart as a teen. She wants nothing to do with him, but the Supernatural laws say they must find mates. It’s here that they come up with a plan to fake date.

It was such a cute story and I loved both the physical book and the audiobook was adorable, narrated by Zura Johnson.

*many thanks to St Martins Press and Dreamscape Media/Netgalley for the gifted copy and ALC audiobook for review

Paranormal romances are a weakness of mine, but a paranormal romantic comedy was a little new for me. This book definitely had some giggle worthy moments, but it was more complex than just a simple comedy. There was some serious world building that I wasn’t expecting, and though it was done well, the constant pop culture references kept throwing me off. I know that the magical world was supposed to be intertwined with the human one, but it felt weird that it was clearly supposed to be OUR human world. Something about that kept pulling me out of the story.


On top of the odd TV show references, I wasn’t a huge fan of the cheesy language in this book. There was a lot of magical and witch related puns that just made me rolling my eyes. I’m always down for a little bit of cheese in my stories, but generally I need that to come with a side of something… spicy. And this… did not. The spice was there, but it wasn’t nearly enough to make up for the amount of cheese I was being served. That may just be me though. I did really enjoy the plot, don’t get me wrong. A good enemies to lovers, with a little fake dating thrown in is something I normally live for, but this just didn’t live up to my expectations at all.


I really felt like this book was trying to do so many things, but just missed the mark. It had the potential for a really interesting magical world, but it got lost in the comedy and cringe aspects of the story for me. And though any book like this is bound to have some predictability in the love story, I felt like the enemies part faded much too quickly and suddenly for me that it made them coming together in the end a little underwhelming. Overall, just not a favorite of mine. I think that anyone who prefers magic and world building over mindless spice would be a bigger fan of this book than me for sure! I think if I hadn’t gone into this with the expectation of it being just a super spicey book, I would have enjoyed it for what it is a lot more.

Narration
This story was narrated by Zura Johnson, and though she did a fairly good job, the accents she did for some of the characters were highly distracting. They were slightly off and seemed over the top at times. She did a good job of trying to give each character their own voice, but all the male characters did sort of blend together.

2.5🌟

This is an absolutely adorable paranormal romance. It’s funny but at the same time has enough substance to make a great story! It’s a firm enemies to lovers with a touch of fake dating which always make me laugh anyway, and the way this one is done is amazing.

I’m surprised by how much I enjoyed this actually. These types of books tend to be hit or miss for me. I do enjoy the paranormal aspects and I think that’s really what pushed this to the higher star rating. We have witches, weres, vamps….they’re all in here. It’s interesting to see the way the different supernatural entities function along side not just each other, but the humans as well with few issues. I enjoyed the world this book takes place in and I’m definitely glad I read it.

Shoutout to NetGalley for the audio ARC!

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