This book is the Freaky Friday meets Groundhog’s Day meets Into the Spiderverse combo my soul didn’t know it needed. If a good friends to lovers story stokes your fires, This Spells Love is for you. It has all the laughs and heat and longing mixed beautifully with it’s a consistent sense ‘WTF is going on?’ to put a new spin on the classic magic gone wrong trope. 12/10 would recommend.

Holy crap this book was amazing. Once I started it I could not put it down and finished in a matter of hours. It was the perfect romcom and I wish I could reread it for the first time. Normally I’m an enemies to lovers girl but this book has converted me to friends to lovers. Dax is an actual dream and so swoon worthy. I think I’ve found my new book boyfriend!

Seriously though, if you like the movie 13 Going On 30, this book is a MUST read. I will definitely be adding this author to my auto buy list.

Incredible! One of my favorite reads of the year! This is a story about a girl wanting to forget a relationship and the love for not only herself, but someone who has been there all along. I was excited for this book from the moment I read the synopsis, but once I started reading it I couldn’t put it down. When Gemma finds herself in an alternate reality where she never dated her ex Stuart, she realizes that much of her life that she loved or was comfortable in is gone. She works to get her best friend back and finds the feelings she’s held for him all along. I loved reading the journey to find her friendship again and the resulting relationship with Dax, then her struggle to decide to go back to her life or stay in this one. I was captivated to say the least. I hope to read more from this author soon as I’m sure she’s going to be one of my “must buy” authors from here on out.

I'll begin by saying I was excited to read This Spells Love. The premise intrigued me and as events unfolded in the first third of the book I was not disappointed. However . . .

The best friends to lovers trope always interests me because as sweet as it sounds in a daydream, I don't see how it can ever work in real life. Ok, so we're talking romance novels here, but there still has to be a basis for it to work. What guy can stand by watching, sometimes for years and years, while the love of his life engages in various relationships and all that involves with other men? Best friend listens to her complaints, heart breaks, stories of new found passion when the next one comes along, and simply waits for his turn? A turn that may never come because she has friend-zoned him into her sounding board and crying shoulder?

What started out as different about This Spells Love and gave me hope the trope would find a new life is when Gemma Wilde is catapulted into an a parallel what if universe after taking part in a spooky love cleanse cast by her quirky Aunt Livi. Oddly, our heroine wakes up in the bed of a strange man who never seems to appear in the story again after she makes her exit. Everything about her life is changed, including that her best friend Dax doesn't even know her. She lives in a crappy basement apartment and has no car, but for some reason her dream-fantasy shop selling clean cosmetics has become a very successful reality. Dax still has his shop selling custom athletic shoes but he's got a whole other life, too. He's not as successful here for one thing. Gemma must work hard to establish the friendship she has taken for granted in her other world. Her persistence pays off because we are simply told they click in any universe.

For me, this is where things get messy. Gemma begins to notice Dax more as a man than a friend, He's sexy and hot and likes tight pants and has killer abs. What we aren't told is what really draws Gemma to Dax as a person. Why is he special? Does he do more than listen to her problems and love stories? The spark of physical attraction is there. We get several chapters of erotic descriptions as Gemma explores that in depth. But what else? Is Dax lonely? Is she? Does he have other dreams for his life than running a shoe shop? Gemma sees herself as a self-styled free range lover who succumbs to the moment. Is this all she wants because a best friend can take care of the rest? I never saw a real feel-good emotional connection develop between these characters. The feels were not there even though Gemma seems headed for an awakening about her selfish ways..

Ultimately, on the arrival of the waning gibbous moon Gemma must choose between her real world and the parallel existence she's living. In one world, Dax is her loyal friend and in the other he's her lover. Can she find a way to mesh the two into what she now wishes for? Will the Dax waiting in her reality world want things to change? This story could be so much better if we really knew why.

Thank you Net Galley, Random House and author Kate Robb for opportunity to read and review this pre-release ebook file version of This Spells Love.

Thank you for the amazing early read of this debut! This fresh and fun read is the perfect escape! Gemma and Dax are too cute. I love their chemistry and true friendship. The steamy scenes were amazing! The family dynamics were very real. I love the older sister parts because I really relate to Kiersten.

I can’t wait to read more in the future from Kate Robb!

Overall, I loved this book. The intersection of love and magic is where my heart lies, so I was very excited to find this in the first place. The writing is good. However, there were a couple of things that bugged me.

First, Gemma says that she and Dax started curling together when she needed an activity for work. It doesn't say that she joined his existing team. Which means, he shouldn't have been curling at all when she went to meet him that first day.
Second, I was really with Dax on "Gemma's a stalker" and had a hard time buying how fast he changed his mind. I guess I shouldn't underestimate the things a guy will overlook to get laid, but still.
Third, the end. I know Gemma wished that she would "remember" everything in her alternate universe when she went back. That's fine. But there is absolutely nothing that explains how original-world Gemma was making changes during the month she wasn't really there. Those changes were based on things alt-world Gemma *didn't know yet and couldn't have acted on.*

I also don't buy that the exact same basement apartment just happened to be available 4 years later, because there is no reason to ever think that. If Gemma had woken up in her old life and started making immediate changes instead of this bizarre ending, the book would have been a 5 star read.

*Review based on ARC*

Gemma Wilde has a good life, on the whole, but had a rough breakup with her boyfriend. Her support crew, comprised of her aunt, sister, and best friend, tried to be there for her and to refill her bottomless margarita glass one night. Her aunt was a bit of a mystic, and with a book’s spell, Gemma got a glimpse at what could have been. Gemma then had to decide what She really wanted out of this crazy thing that we call life.

This Spells Love by Kate Robb was such a fun, steamy, realistic, and witty romance. It was also really great at creating opportunities for moments of personal introspection, when considering Gemma needing to choose her desired path and what that could mean in our own lives.

Thank you so much, NetGalley and Random House for this ARC!!

Ahhh this book was the hard reset I needed to get back in the flow of reading. Even though it's not a new premise, This Spells Love delivers a charming story with great characters. The two leads could have been developed more (Gemma's oblivious neediness got a little old and Dax was written basically without a flaw), but otherwise I loved this book.

Release Date: December 5, 2023

📖📖📖📖📖

When Gemma Wilde gets dumped by her long-term boyfriend, she reacts the way any reasonable twenty-eight-year-old would: by getting drunk with her sister, kooky aunt, and best friend, Dax. Naturally they decided to preform a love spell. When Gemma wakes up, she realizes that this silly spell has worked. Not only does it seem that she never dated her ex, but the rest of her life is completely unrecognizable. The worst part: Dax has no idea who she is. To reverse the spell and get back to her old life, Gemma must convince her once-best-friend-now-near-stranger to kiss her. But as she carries out her plans, she finds herself falling for him--hard. Soon, Gemma begins to wonder whether she even wants to go back to the way things once were. What if Dax was The One all along?

This is one of the cutest, most clever novels I've read and I absolutely adored it! The alternate universe angle was so fun! And the steam…wow! It was the perfect start to summer read! This book doesn’t release till December so mark your calendars and get ready to cozy up to a fire with this hot number!! Highly recommend!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

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I was excited when I realized that this book was set in and around Hamilton. I have been there a few times and so the landmarks and the whole vibe was very familiar to me, as a Canadian and someone who has been in the area. Because so many books are NOT set in Canada, I did have to do a bit of a double take and ask myself "wait, did she really say Hamilton there" but it was clear when she mentioned Toronto .... For the book itself, I have always found anything to do with time travel a challenge. This time, though, it was more parallel realities which I can handle. I did find Gemma a bit annoying sometimes especially with her inability to see that she was so needy with her sister. Those types of leads bother me even though I have no siblings from which to frame the experience. Just seems very unkind to always go to your sibling for help, expect them to drop their lives to support you, and then not really even ask them how they are doing despite noting that they may not be doing great. It's also how I think she neglected to really see Dax in both timelines.

Dax and Gemma are fun characters despite everything, and I enjoyed so many of the elements of this book, including all of the extra folks around them, that it was hard to really hold Gemma being selfish against it. Maybe we could have skipped some of the "he's my friend so I don't want to mess this up" which took up a lot of bandwidth but other than that, an enjoyable romance with a Sliding Doors vibe, although only just a bit because you only really see one Gemma story.

Oh. And I am still totally wondering what happened to Other Gemma. Was this a true trading spaces in which case is there a sequel like Lost in Austen where you see the alternate reality unfurl?!

if you could erase one mistake, would you???

"I've always loved him, but I'm also falling for him at the exact same time."

I giving this book 0.5 extra stars because the main character's name is Gemma and she literally reminds me of my daughter whose name is also Gemma.

Gemma get dumped by her boyfriend (the one she thought she would marry) and takes the pity train to "my life is over". After too many margaritas and a very quirky (magical?) auntie, Gemma performs a love spell and erases every meeting her ex. But she accidently erases her boy bestie and in order to reverse the spell she must convince him to help.

- magical/alternate reality
- the hot mess + perfect best friend (friends to lovers)
- spicy banter + open door romance
- frank the spider

This Spells Love had so much more depth than the synopsis entails. For a debut novel, this was quite entertaining. It has the makings of all my favorite feel good romance novels - fun, sweet, & spicy.

If you're looking for a little escapism romance read pick up this book IMMEDIATELY. You won't regret it.

CW: sexual content, alcohol

Gemma breaks up with her long time boyfriend Stuart and then ends up in a time warp and a different life because If spell her family and friend Dax put on her . She has to decide if she wants to stay in the new life she has or go back to her old life . She discovers love a long the way and what she is willing to sacrifice. The writing is good and it’s a sweet story with a decent plot . I like the friend Dax a lot .

Thanks netgalley

I found this book charming and delightful! Would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a rom-com with a twist!

this was super cute. perfectly fluffy and not too deep. it kept me interested although it was a little slow in the beginning.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cute. Sexy. MAGICAL. “This Spells Love" has it all! I couldn’t put down this book which made for a super quick read, but I enjoyed this book as much as Gems enjoys caffeine!

I’d say this is not your average take on “what would my life be like if I’d taken a different path”. In ways, it’s actually quite bonkers. Somehow it all works though and instead of being a mess it makes for a delightfully quirky story that’s as fun as the characters. Bonus to the author for making the sport of curling sexy AF.

I enjoyed this spell of a tale and would definitely give Kate Robb another read!

This was a really fun and unexpected twist on what normally is found in the "witchy" subset of romance novels. I loved how it intertwined alternate reality with a bit of woo! Gemma and Dax were really fun to get to know in both the timelines and it was neat to see what changed and didn't and just how much small things changed big things.

This was a delightful and enjoyable read and I hope to read more by this author soon!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC copy of this novel in exchange for my review.

Gemma has just gone through a terrible breakup, and makes a wish that she never met her ex. She awakens to find herself in an alternate reality where everything is different- even her best friend Dax doesn’t know her. Gemma needs to decide which reality she belongs in.

This was such an unexpectedly adorable rom com! I loved the characters and the concept of the alternate reality, as well as how our small choices can change everything. I really loved the friends to lovers trope here, and Dax is the perfect best friend turned boyfriend. I loved how he would accidentally on purpose call Gemma by his last name- so cute! This book is a bit spicy but still sweet and fun at the same time. I can’t wait to read more from this author!

Thank you to Kate Robb and Random House for sending me an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was a little different but overall well written. Cute plot with well developed characters. I'd like to see a sequel.

This was cute!

I had a good sense of the characters, and the AU/Sliding Doors storyline was interesting and fairly well done. Some details (like she worked as a buyer but could somehow easily run a small retail business without effort?) were a bit underdeveloped and there was some suspension of disbelief beyond the obvious magical realism. Way too easily adjusting to a brand new reality. But the characters themselves had some depth although I would have liked to see a bit more depth in the sister and the aunt - very much supporting characters revolving around the main. The main character was pretty self absorbed but redeems herself - there is some growth there.

The romance had some great slow burn and some steam to it that was a well written and enjoyable. I was rooting for them!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

After the slow beginning (with not really believable heartache) this story is delightful! I loved the twists and turns of the timelines and quietly characters. This had all of the fun, laughter, and steam that I look for in an HEA.