A queer Rapunzel retelling with vampires and witches? Count me in! I really enjoyed this book, though I thought the storytelling was a little choppy in some parts. The world building was fun and the characters were great. I wish Tristan and Casiopea had been developed more, but I loved Ava and Kaye.

I would like to start by saying this cover is absolutely gorgeous.

As for the novel and writing itself, I was honestly let down. It startled out putting us directly into the action which caused confusion. The world building and characters were a let down. I wasn’t really intrigued or interested. It read very cringy, fast, and childish.

Was super excited based on the cover and author but it just wasn’t for me. Their other book Diamond City was a better fit for me in general. The kindle addition of this arc had a lot of missing parts, weird lettering, split sentences, etc. Editing is clearly needed and this helped ruin the reading experience for me. When you’re already that frustrated the rest doesn’t help even in a good book. The world building was lacking. I did appreciate how Ava’s abuse and being turned against her will was written. That’s an unimaginable experience and it was written in an appropriately dark way. I however did have an issue distinguishing between our two FMCs Ava and Kaye. They were basically interchangeable except for Ava’s abuse.

3.5 stars

Witches, vampires, dark rapunzel retelling, and sapphic romance? Count me in!

Ava and Kaye used to be best of friends…until one night two years ago. Now, Kaye’s mother is dead, and Ava is a vampire. Bent on revenge for her mother’s death, Kaye is determined to prove her worth as a flame witch. She’s ready to rid the earth of any vampires, including her old friend.

Ava has been locked in a tower since she was turned two years ago. Her mother has been keeping a secret from the town, and she needs Ava to remain locked up in order to keep it. Ava never wanted to become a vampire. She longs for the day that she can escape. Her mother is planning something terrible, and she needs to stop it before it’s too late.
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The concept of the world was extremely interesting! I was pulled in right away. This book was a lot creepier than I was expecting it. And it touched upon some darker thoughts. But I ultimately really enjoyed this book! It was unique and imaginative.

Towards the end, I felt it was a bit rushed. However, I really enjoyed this book! I would definitely recommend this to someone looking for a new witchy read!

The cover got me with this one but the story within did not work for me. It just felt very rough rather than the polished work it should have been. Interesting idea and it will appeal to teens but I am unsure if they would stick with it.

I got about 25% through this and had to DNF. I was a little confused the whole time and it just didn't grip me like I had hoped

late review but anyways this book was so fun. i really enjoyed the characters and seeing their relationships play out.

I was so excited when I saw this book's cover and synopsis. Unfortunately, this one fell flat for me. The audiobook did it better, but I struggled to understand the storyline. I wanted to love it. Who wouldn't love a sapphic Rapunzel spin/retelling... but sadly, the romance and world-building didn't live up to the cover. I couldn't picture the world that these two characters were a part of, and I felt like they didn't interact much. I wanted the love story to be more of a central part of the story. I'm hoping that the author writes more and the work continues to get better. This is definitely suited for a YA audience and will do well with younger readers.

Ava and Kaye were best friends. When vampires broke through the magical barrier protecting the town, Kaye’s mother disappeared and Ava was turned into a vampire. Since then, Ava has been trapped in her house. When Ava sees a chance to finally escape, she takes it.

That’s the time that Kaye also sees her chance to fulfill her duty as a flame witch and kill vampires, including Ava. As they travel together, Kaye plans to turn her in the whole time.

But through their journey, they both discover more things about the world that turned everything upside down, their plans start to change.

This is a hard one to review. I don’t feel like there was anything wrong with this book necessarily, but it didn’t work for me.

The reader gets Ava and Kaye’s POV which I struggled with. They both had the same tone to the point where I often forgot whose POV I was in. I’d have to look to be reminded or wait until I got some identifying part to remember.

There was also a struggle of pacing for me. Too often it felt like it was dragging and not moving forward. It felt stuck. I do think part of this was due to the constant state of angst. The tension felt so high most of the time, for one reason or another, that when it did pick up I felt so burnt out that I couldn’t properly enjoy it.

I would have loved more world-building. A lot felt like it was glossed over or quickly told without anything beyond that. It felt like there was so much potential for this world, but it was just continually glossed over or ignored.

This simply wasn’t the book for me. I wanted to love it. Witches, vampires and a Rapunzel retelling, but it just missed the mark for me.

I started reading this book, but I lost interest in the story and did not end up finishing it before it expired.

This story follows two girls who are current enemies but used to be friends. Ava is a witch and Kaye is a vampire. Ava has been trapped in her home for two years thanks to her controlling mother, but she escapes one night. Kaye follows her and convinces her to travel together into the forest, while secretly planning to turn her in. Ava agrees, hoping to rekindle their old friendship, and the romantic feelings she'd started to have for Kaye before that terrible night. The rest of the plot can be found in the synopsis, but I personally think it gives too much away.

I really wanted to love this more. It's a decent sapphic retelling of Rapunzel and had the elements for a compelling story, but the execution left me a little disappointed.

I read a lot of fantasy, but this world was a little tricky to understand and could have used a little more tightening up. The romantic progression and character development were more show than tell, which impacted how invested I felt in the two girls' story. I was hoping for well-rounded, complex, and morally grey characters, but they felt one-dimensional to me at times. There was also so much angst, which is fun for me sometimes, but I needed some calmer moments and maybe some humour to match the overall pacing and tone of the story.

That being said, I did like Ava and Kaye. I do think this book had a lot of potential and is worth a read if you want an enemies to lovers fantasy romance that is entertaining but isn't too complex or layered. I didn't connect with this story as much as I'd hoped to, but I think other readers might, and I am interested in picking up another book by this author.

The Witch and the Vampire was a 3 star read for me. While there were some parts that I enjoyed and would have really liked to know more about, nothing really grasped at me and made me want to reread this again.

Ava is a witch turned vampire who we are introduced to while she is being held by all intents against her will by her mother... who is also the vampire that turned her. Vampires are held prisoner in the woods by a bone wall, but on occasion, they break free, and that's when the flame witches come in to protect the city.

Kaye is a flame witch who used to be best friends with Ava. Until Ava disappeared on the night Kaye's mother was murdered. Fate finds their paths crossing once again and what ensues is a race against time to protect the city.

I found the magic system intriguing and would have loved to have seen this explored even more. There was quite a bit of back story that was hinted to but never got fleshed out. Ultimately, I think that had this had a bit more editing, it would have been a pretty solid YA fantasy novel.

I received a free copy of The Witch and the Vampire from Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press (Wednesday Books) in exchange for an honest review.

Queer Rapunzel retelling, cursed forest, vampires, magic. Tell me that’s not a beautiful mixture of adventure-romance possibilities. And! It delivered.

The Witch and the Vampire is fast-paced, exciting, and steamy (though not too steamy). The vampires were unique, which is a feat in and of itself, and the enemies-to-lovers trope was executed exceptionally well. I desperately hope we return to this world in future writings from Francesca Flores, because this was an amazing introduction.

The Witch and the Vampire had a beautiful vision that, unfortunately, didn’t always come together. Author Francesca Flores has a phenomenal world in mind for readers to explore. While the pieces are brilliant, sadly, the final story doesn’t totally feel complete. There is a sense that this story could have been really special if this story embraced all it could have been. Instead, readers will likely feel like they’re wanting more.

Full review below.

I didn't finish this one only because it didn't fit my personal taste, but I still think it's a solid YA fantasy for those interested. Would rec to teens.

friends to enemies to lovers...love it! the plot is well paced and I enjoyed the characters. Excited to read more!

I received this book from Netgalley for an honest review.
A romantic Rapunzel tale featuring witches, vampires, and friends who become enemies to lovers. Regrettably, it didn't meet all of my expectations, I did like reading it.

In my opinion, the first half was stronger than the second. I thought the second to last half was hurried. Although the magic in the world was fantastic, I do wish it had been more thoroughly explained or that we had been given more background. It was a pleasant read all around!

Younger YA than I thought, but it was...cute, I guess. Not a lot of character development, and probably far too much infodumping, both of which really took me out of the story so many times. It was a struggle to finish this one, and difficult to get (and stay) engaged every time I picked it up again. Some of my younger students may enjoy the story simply because of the Rapunzel retelling or the queer representation, though.

*Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book for review.*

A Rapunzel retelling that starts strong. Within just the first page, you can tell its a Repunzel retelling because its just that strong.

Ava hides things with meaning to her. Remains in her room with a bar window and waits because her mother will come and take from her. Ava is a vampire, made against her will. She also still has the witch abilities after becoming a vampire too. Not only trapped by having to be inside all the time, but the barrier created to keep vampires away from the humans. Ava wants to get out and find Casiopea, the Vampire queen.

Now, her parents I already have a strong dislike for. They have Narcassistic traits and its such a trigger, so do be warned about that.

Kaye, a witch patrolling the forest. Missing Ava, but at the same time wondering if the night she left was due to her killing her mom. Could it be true? Or could it be that she was just forced to leave? Either way, she plans to get to her.

However, I only made a few more chapters after that before delcaring it a DNF. The cover and description of the book had dragged me to request it. But that's really it. This book didn't really come off as YA, it really boarded on the YA/MG line.

There was too much info dump. You just keep being feed all this imforamtion to the point it was just a headache. The characters could have been devloped more and even though its told on dual POV, it seemed to blend rather than separate the characters, almost not needing it to be told in POV. This book would have benefited a lot more if this book went through a few more edits.

The Witch and the Vampire is a great retelling updated for modern times. The females are fierce, loyal and a positive influence for LGBTQ+.