This was just what I needed! Lighthearted and humorous, with a dash of spice and swoon, this was the perfect combo! I really enjoyed reading this one and some of the humor made me snort out loud.

I’ve already highly recommended this to friends for a fun and easy read!

A fun, magical rom-com about casting a love spell — with very unexpected results. Light, sweet, and full of charm.

This was cute but not my favorite! I do like a cute witchy romance book but the plot felt a little lacking.

I think there’s something wrong with me because everyone loves this book and I just can’t get into it. I found the pacing of the book to be very slow and I felt like the characters were written as caricatures of what people think a Millennial is. Also, I was hoping for a little bit more magic in the book. I felt like they alluded to it in the synopsis to draw certain readers in and then never delivered.

It's like The Midnight Library's less depressing cousin lol! If you loved that, but you want a rom-com: look no further! Very cute.

This Spells Love is a friends-to-lovers romcom with a multiverse twist.

The story starts with a heartbroken Gemma who completes a “love cleansing” spell to make her forget her ex. She seals the spell with a (“platonic”) kiss with her best friend, Dax. She goes to bed thinking it didn’t work, but realizes it did when she awakes in a different reality altogether. In this universe, she never dated her ex which changes the entire course of her life, including her now non-existent friendship with Dax. To reverse the spell to get back to her old life, she has to get Dax, who is now a stranger, to kiss her. In doing so, she ends up falling in love with him and doesn’t know if she even wants to go back to her old life.

I was super intrigued by the synopsis and cover and thought this would be something I loved. The story was light-hearted and cute overall, but I found myself skimming to stay engaged.

The story does start with a spell (and there’s the whole alternate reality situation), there really are no other magical elements. This is the first time I ever read an alternate reality story, and I’m not sure it worked for me, though this may just be more about my personal taste.

My biggest complaint is the frequent name-dropping of real brands, which took me out of the story and that the characters talked in a very crude way, which felt unrealistic and just weird? I don’t think people really do this IRL? I could totally be wrong though.

I think this would work well for readers who love romcoms, friends-to-lovers romances, and want a hint of magical realism.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kate Robb, and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Dial Press and NetGalley for the e-arc of Kate Robb's debut novel This Spells Love in exchange for an honest review.

What can I say that won't give everything away. Robb has a way of writing magical realism that is interwoven into real world and relatable life moments that is just perfect. This was the perfect read for an escape from the chaos around the Thanksgiving holiday and I read this in 24 hours. I couldn't be bothered to put it down.

This reads like a classic 2000's rom-com, which are my all time favorite type of movies and books. It also made me want a margarita in the best way possible.

Once again, thank you Dial Press and NetGalley for the e-arc of This Spells Love in exchange for an honest review.

LOVED everything about this book!! The plot was unique and refreshing-something that was run to read but really left you with a new perspective. Seeing Gemma get exactly what she thought she wanted and then realizing she has everything she needs was heartwarming and a fun ride! Will definitely be reading more books from this author!

Tropes: alternate reality, friends to lovers, magical realism?

Spice: There is the standard number of open-door scenes. Like 1-2 and they aren't that explicit.

Gemma, reeling from being dumped, winds up drunkenly casting a spell to have never met the man in first place. This causes her to wake up in a parallel reality where her life took a completely different path. Overwhelmed with the changes she runs to her best friend, Dax, only to find out that he has no idea who she is.

Without the obstacle of her ex, Gemma is able to see Dax in a different way. And this Dax is different in small ways because this Dax hasn't had Gemma in his life. You kind of see where he has been in love with her all along in the details. The friendship and then the relationship between Gemma and Dax feel so fated. They complemented each other so well, you could feel the love. It felt natural in both stages.

I do wish there was more on the back in when she got back to her original reality. I felt like she just blurted out her feelings to OG Dax and it felt rushed in a way. Because yeah sure this is still Dax, but it isn't the same one she fell in love with. Idk. I also wanted more on her aunt and sister's reaction to the spell or whatever. Seems like something left on the table for them to not remember the spell since they were there with her when she cast it.
FMC: Gemma is a riot. Her path to self-discovery resonated with me. She had to learn to let go of her fear of change and her fear of failure in order to have everything she could dream of.

MMC: Dax is such a supportive and loving character. He was there for Gemma in whatever way she needed. He was so smitten with her! I wish I knew more about what was in his head. But I think that it just me wishing that all rom coms were dual POV. I still loved Dax. He was witty and a comforting presence even when he was going through it.

This was very cozy and gave the warm fuzzies I think a lot of us are looking for in the tumultuous political climate we are currently in (in USA.)

I will definitely be looking for more books by this author.

Picture waking up in a whole different universe where your best friend isn’t your best friend and has memory of anything that happened between the both of the night before. It{s a whole alternative universe with no recollection existence. If given the chance to stay in the same path would you a follow the path or b would you choose a different road where you would do everything in your power to no make the same mistakes with potentially losing he the person you love.

Gemma and Dax were relatable and endearing making root for their relationship. The book itself is friends to lovers. Gemma got her wish and got to see how life would{ve been otherwise. While Gemma wanted to forget her ex she also met her best friend the same day. When she wake up in the universe where she never met her ex she comes to the realization her best friend doesn’t remember her. Her life in this universe seemed to be 100% better but didn’t realize what she had when she was dating her ex and her best friend.

Gemma ends up falling for Dax and realizes he’s always been there for her. But its not all sunshine and rainbows. They worked it out and I was surprise how quickly it got romantic between both main characters. I loved their relationship Dax and Gemma were meant to be for one another. Even if Dax felt like Gemma was stalker 🤭

This is a quirky read that gave me the same cozy feel that I got from the Nicole Kidman Bewitched movie. Silly, fun, romantic.

3/5 stars! I really liked the cover of this book and the premise was entertaining. The book isn't exactly original and doesn't do much to add to the magical contemporary romance genre. But it doesn't detract from it either. It kind of reminded me of 13 Going on 30. I enjoyed it and Dax was a cinnamon roll. I think it's an enjoyable book that could have benefited from a bit more depth of the characters.

I liked, but didn't love this one:
- likable characters
- interesting plot - if your memory of your friendship was erased, would you still be friends with them if you met them again for the first time?
- an ending that wraps things up without loose ends

Overall, a cute and fun-paced read that I do think has a clever story. I've seen the whole alternate universe before, but not done this way- especially with a Friends to Lovers trope! We are following best friends, Gemma and Dax, who have always been platonic despite underlying flirtation and attraction here and there. Gemma ends up having a devastating break-up and her Grandma having witchy tendencies does a spell on her throwing her into another universe where Gemma and Dax have never met, are not friends, and Gemma;s life is completely different. I'll be honest, I didn't care much for Gemma for most of the book, but I was really rooting for her and Dax. I actually loved all the tropes, and the ways she was trying to get Dax into her life using other universe Dax knowledge, BUT I was most interested in her living out her real passions (a skincare brand) in this AU. Seeing how successful and happy she could be if she worked hard and put herself out there was more interesting than the love story aspect for me. I wanted a lot more of that part. Also, for a book that definitely makes it seem like this is going to be witchy, title and cover, it's not. Also the side characters weren't flushed out at all, and I would have liked to see more of Grandma! Overall, a fast paced interesting read, cute and worth it!

a really fun love story, i enjoyed the story along side the character's chemistry and development. the angst was just right and the idea behind the book was genius, truly a great read that I believe I flew trough

This book was a cozy little romcom. The plot was a little dull for me but the characters, and magicalfeel of the story made up for that.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I love the Canadiana of it. I love the premise. I even love the characters. But I found the plot just a little too contrived. Because Gemma ends up home a month after the initial spell, it made me wonder what that other Gemma was doing in all that time and why there wasn't MORE of a fallout from HER actions. In my opinion it would have been better if the spell had returned Gemma to the morning after it had been cast which would have given her the full agency to change her life.

- Friends to lovers
- Magic
- Alternate reality
- Family
Love is definitely in the air! After being dumped and having one too many margaritas, Gemma, her sister, and her aunt cast a spell to go back in time and erase her ex. But when she wakes the next morning, she’s finds herself in an alternate reality where she finds that her true love has been there all along. I loved this story! Gemme was such a relatable, sweet character and Dax was *chef kiss*. I found myself laughing at their wittiness and cheering in our MCs throughout the story. Dax and Gemma’s had major chemistry and I was living for it. Definitely a quick, sweet read that will have you swooning.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of This Spells Love by Kate Robb in exchange for my honest review and opinion. This book was absolutely lovely and I truly enjoyed every minute of it. The most disappointing part was it ended too soon! If you want a fun read pick this up at the first chance you get!

I absolutely adore everything about this magical read. The character build was perfection and I will absolutely be visiting this world many, many times.