tl;dr
One of my favorite reads of the year! Great mix of magic and romance featuring powerful wizards and an incredibly sexy love interest. MC's character development lags in comparison to everything else.

About
Leyna wants to help people, and it's been her life goal to join the Royal Guard. After an accident right before graduation, it looks like she may not get that chance. But to her surprise, an offer to join the Royal Guard appears anyway, and soon she and her friends are whisked off to the castle to join the king's elite. But Leyna's dream job turns out to not be as dreamy as she expected, with traitors in their midst, forbidden magic brewing, and the enigmatic court jester focusing on her for reasons unknown.

Thoughts
Dang, where to begin! There's a lot to like in here, especially for fans of magical schools and romance, who want something a step more adult. Most stories about magical academies end at graduation, so I was delighted to see that this story picks up from there. It's great to see our main cast are already competent spell casters with forged friendships and plans and history. The MC and her friends are already 22! Awesome. Was pleased to see that both MC's friends have their own things going on outside her existence, and that they're both more capable than she is in various respects. It's also a really great exploration of how dreams and reality don't always match up, as the MC discovers her dream job isn't nearly as noble as she imagined. World building is light, but with clear rules and an intriguing twist on the origins of magic that I really hope to see explored further in the second book.

As for the romance? Well, our mysterious LI is absolutely a winner. If you're looking for a roguish charmer with Just So Many Secrets along with some slow burn (MC) and guy falls first (LI), I've got great news for you. There's a lot of relentless teasing, plenty of mysteries, and a couple spicy lovemaking scenes that easily put this book in my top picks for the year.

I think the biggest downside of this book is that the MC doesn't get nearly as much character growth as she deserves. She's a hard worker, she has admirable dreams, she wants to put good into the world, and I like how seriously she takes things. But notably, she's also fairly classist, and weirdly lawful. She's hung up on using correct titles, to the point where she's aghast that her friend (who isn't nobility), keeps forgetting. She refuses to help her friends break innocents out of jail, because it's against the law. But unlike the "I believe in the justice system!" types who attempt to save innocent people through legal means (court battles, appeals, finding the true killer, etc.), she also seems reluctant to do anything on that front too. Her attitudes by the end of the book start to shift, and the cliffhanger ending implies a turnaround for her in book two, which I eagerly await. But in this volume, her development kind of lags, which is a shame considering how much I love absolutely everything else. It's still a strong recommend from me, and I hope to see her grow more in book two!

Beautifully written, enemies too lovers romance fantasy!
The magic, the characters kept me intrigued and obsessed the whole way through!
Loved the dark moments and the magic infused plot!

WOW! The Wizard’s Masquerade was adventure that I couldn’t put it down. It’s the adult version of Harry Potter that we all want and need.

I love everything about it! The characters, friendships, slow-burn romance, mystery, banter from the Jester, and of course Floofy.

Jay Pellegrin is an artist with words, that made Leyna and the Jester’s world come alive.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this eARC. And Jay for sharing your work with the world. I can’t wait for the next book!

An outstanding story that will be difficult to be put down. The development of the characters is a treat to watch develop. The story progresses from one surprise to another and catches the readers attention without fail.

This was a really fun start to the Huskarl Duology series, the cover is what drew me in. The characters were great and it worked really well in the story. I loved the use of medieval fantasy romance and thought the romance worked out so well. It was a great use of magic and was what I was hoping for. I look forward to reading more in this series.

“He tried to poison the king!” she snarled, half addressing the audience and the officials sitting at the High Table. The court gasped, a panicked murmur rising at the accusation. “I saw him!” she continued, looking between the king and the audience. “He had a flask and… he added something to the king’s drink!”

I can't lie, this fell flat for me although I really liked the premise. The romance was.a bit rushed but I loved the world it was set in. With what little world building it had that is. I still very much appreciate the story itself though.