This audio book was read by two amazing narrators who were able to capture this Sapphic retelling of Rapunzel. Set in a fantasy world where magic and monsters clash two girls must work together to uncover the secrets each side is hiding.
As the story progresses there is an unraveling of what truly makes someone a monster. Our two main characters Kaye and Ava are forced to reconcile within themselves what they have learned to be true and what they know to be true as they seek to survive the dangers that wait for them as they run into, like every good fairytale starts, into the woods.
The forest is home to many different kinds of monsters, some even, wearing the faces of friends, and I was on the edge of my seat to see how the story would end, happily ever after? Or something more dark and grim?

I really liked this sapphic retelling of Rapunzel, but I will say it does get close to blood libel at one point. I really liked the narrator though

Once I heard the plot of this book and that it had vampires and witches I knew immediately that I wanted to read this book. Now this is very much geared towards YA and I’m far from that so to me it was lacking but knowing me even 10 years ago I would have read this book in a day. The Rapunzal re-telling is loose at best so I was expecting more from the original story than just a girl locked away with really long hair. It is a slow burn romance playing with friends to enemies to lovers in a way. I would have enjoyed a little more world building especially in this two worlds of vampires and witches that are so intertwined. Overall I enjoyed the book and would recommend to my someone like my younger self.

I really wanted to like this book! I'd seen it advertised in multiple places, it has vampires, witches, sapphic romance, what's not to love?

The problem, in my opinion, was that all of the characters fell very flat. Their motivations and personalities were all one-dimensional. It's about a vampire trying to escape her confinement and let someone know the evils her mother is plotting and a witch (with a dead mother) who's sole purpose in life is hunting vampires. That is the entirety of the main characters. Presumably, at some point, Kaye (the witch) rethought her position on vampires if she was able to love Ava again now that she is one, but the reader doesn't really get to know how this thought process/emotional growth happened.

I thought the pacing of the story was pretty good. The way that history and lore were dropped in from outside texts at the beginnings of chapters was a nice touch for world building, but the fact that so much information came from a journal that had been in Ava's possession for two years (which she spent trapped in a tower with presumably little to do) but which she hadn't read yet seemed off to me.

The ending felt a bit hurried and simple, but the action was intense and fun to read. Overall, it was a good enough fantasy novel and I'm sure there will be teen readers who enjoy it. The narration of the audiobook was well done and made the story an enjoyable listening experience.

I really liked the narration: it really puts you in the story, you can really picture all that’s happening.
I really was into the story at first, but I feel like it’s too long: at one point you just feel like it’s the same thing never ending.

2.5 stars

stunning cover + sapphic + rapunzel retelling + friends to enemies to lovers = everything i would love

and still i didn't end up loving this book 😭

I was flying through the first couple of chapters but somewhere towards the middle all the characters started feeling the same and the decisions/thoughts they had would be completely different from their core values and beliefs that we had been reading for the first 100 pages.

I never liked ava because she felt like the weakest character, not on strength but in development. BUT i did love kaye for a while until she also lose her personality.

the magic system and the plot were super interesting and what made me want to finish this book. here we have different kinds of witches, we mainly focus on the ones that can control fire and earth but I'm guessing we'll see different kinds in the next books. I'm still on the fence if I would read the rest of the series but right now I'm leaning towards doing it to see if these characters get a bit more depth and development.

Thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press and Dreamscape Media for the ARC of this!

I love a queer retelling and in that aspect this didn’t disappoint. A friends to enemies to lovers done right. The end got a little chaotic, I’m not sure it fit with everything we’d been doing up until then. Overall, I thought it was fun though.

I really wanted to love this book. It has all the right ingredients but it just fell flat for me. The narrators were okay but the story didn't really grab me like I like in a fantasy novel. I was hoping the audiobook would bring it to life more than the ebook but I just found it so hard to stay engaged.

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of the audio for an honest review.

I had such high hopes for this one every since it was announced, but alas, it was incredibly disappointing. The magic system wasn't explained and the characters felt one dimensional.

"Trust looks like a girl who wants to live so badly she forgot she's dead."

Ava and Kaye used to be best friends. Until everything changed. The two friends were not only separated by not only two different worlds- a witch bound by duty and a vampire bound by " call It what you will, fate, destiny... - A horse." ( See what I did there tangled fans?) but by actual life and death. Can the two build a bridge to connect these two worlds? Or shall I say, can they see the light in a society that uses hatred as a fog? Scary and malicious until you cross and get to the other side.

If you find all these themes interesting then my I guess is this book is for you, and I recommend you pick it up. But I'm not here to discuss only ideas, I'm here to discuss the execution of said ideas as well. Following is my personal opinion, what I want and look for in a book and in no way shape or form Is my intention to discourage you from reading this book. This audiobook was provided to me by Netgalley and Dreamscape Media in exchange for an honest review! Many thanks to the publishers.

It was just trying to do too much. It was Vampire diaries mixed with first kill and twilight, with some Rapunzel themes involved. In my opinion, it had nothing going for it but vibes.

Sometimes one of the protagonists would have an epiphany about their beliefs and opinions starting to actually analyze them and question them, then next thing you know they're back like this whole act of thinking belonged to someone else entirely!
The characters felt two- dimensional. All we ever got about Kaye's past was that her mother was dead...And in a weird sense I felt like she was grieving her in everyone else's eyes other than her own? What I mean by this Is that death seemed like an excuse to everyone's actions but without necessarily having dealt with such grief or actually stop and feel it. Was she actually grieving her mother? because that's what it kept saying and yet not showing.
The end was unsatisfactory to say the least.
Ava was a mix of Bella with some nuances of Rapunzel and some sprinkles of a cliche ya protagonist. I just wish it would've done more. Especially from a such overused "genre" like vampires and witches. It relied too much on it being an inspiration of famous tales, series and stories that it forgot to bring it's own. Everything was so underdeveloped. Predictable. And calluna did never feel like a person that really existed. I guess in that sense it succeed in her being a memory but not actually empathizing with her or caring for Kaye's loss.

The only bonus for me was the queerness and the lack of the said word. Sexuality just existed and it didn't have to be analyzed or categorized.
The pace was satisfactory. The audiobook's narration was very pleasant.

Vampires, magic, romance and Sapphic? That's all I knew before wanting to read this book.

I loved the slowburn reconnection that this book offered me but wished it was more present. It felt too long and I found myself getting impatient.

I did ultimately end up enjoying the book and would recommend it to readers looking for a different take on the enemies to lovers or vampire trope. The vampire lore is really different and I love the way the author explained how magic works for vampires. There's a lot to enjoy if you are willing to stick with it the whole way!

2.5 stars. This book has all the right ingredients: a queer Rapunzel retelling with childhood friends to enemies to lovers between a vampire desperate to escape her secret confinement and a witch sworn to hunt vampires. However, the story itself was just fine. All of the characters, no matter how major or minor, were very one-note, black and white, showing very little growth and unclear motivations throughout the story. The narrative style was very telling, so relationships felt very surface-level. The pacing was slow with repetitive details and stakes that never felt as high as they should have. The world building was interesting and easily lent itself to explorations of deep themes regarding prejudice and abuse, but only explored these issues in a cursory way. There wasn’t any one thing I actively disliked about the book, and there were certain scenes I really enjoyed, but the confluence of lackluster elements left me wanting more. This is by no means a bad book, but it’s just okay compared to all that YA fantasy has to offer.

I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the dual narration overall. I definitely recommend that route if you want to read this book.

I received this as an audio galley to listen to for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for giving me access.

I was pleasantly surprised by this one! Naturally, I didn't read the synopsis and felt that there was a Rapunzel(Tangled) vibe to it...well low and behold, it is indeed a Rapunzel retelling.

Sometimes the whole vampire genre is overrated and repetitive. The Witch and the Vampire gave this genre new life...or death. Pick your poison LOL. I enjoyed it more than I ever thought I would and am confounded by the negative reviews it has gotten. I'd say, they read something completely different than I.

Throw all preconceptions about this and give it a try!

First off, this cover is just all the heart eyes emojis! The synopsis immediately had me adding to TBR list when I originally heard about it being published. The book and audiobook did not disappoint! The atmosphere that Francesca Flores creates in this book was second to none. I was immersed from the first chapter. The characters were fascinating and I could not stop myself from reading and finding out what happens with them.

I don’t know how to feel right now. This was fine? I think I just had too high of expectations bc it was pitched at a sapphic rapunzel retelling and I got more of an adventure story. Not saying that’s a bad thing just not what I was wanting.

I do think that the writing was good and easy to follow. I think the plot and the characters were very flushed out. Where it lost me was I just didn’t like where to story was going? Is that bad to say? I wanted a cute romance with a vampire and a witch but it turned into this big kidnapping trapped in a cage story. I just found it to be kind of boring. The middle dragged and dragged. I did like dark fairytale vibes. The world was interesting, I just think the book lost the plot 🤷🏻‍♀️

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this audiobook. This is my honest review.

I really really wanted to like this book. The blurb was intriguing, the premise interesting.

Overall it's a Rapunzel retelling, with vampires and witches as the sapphic protagonists. Kaye is a flame witch and determined to avenge her mother. Ava is a captive in her own home, trapped by her scheming mother and her cruel stepfather.

The premise of witches and vampires was interesting but the book felt very slow at the start and then rushed at parts. The world building and lore was overall ok but I didn't feel a lot of chemistry between Ava and Kaye.

The narrators did not do this book many favors. The main characters were ok when voiced but some of the minor characters (a vampire and Ava's mom to name two) were somewhat excruciating to listen to.

It's overall an ok read, the idea set out interesting but the execution somewhat lacking. Maybe try the physical book as the audiobook wasn't the best experience for me .

2.75 overall. The narration brought score down.

I really enjoyed this book. A sapphic retelling of Rapunzel. But this time in a semi post-apocalyptic world with witches and vampires.

Its star crossed lovers. its taboo. its best friends turned enemies turned lovers. Its sweet.

I really enjoyed the narration by the 2 fantastic narrators. They really did a fantastic job. the balance of the heartache and the anger. The frustration. You 2 really put your hearts into this book. and the magic came thru.

Thank you @netgalley & @dreamscape_media for the ARC audiobook!

This book was just good. This was a subtle retelling of Rapunzel. It’s sapphic (which I love).

I found the relationship between Ava and Kaye charming. The growth felt natural.The book surprised me a couple of times at the end.

The writing is a little repetitive. I found Ava’s stepdad very cringey and her mother deplorable.

I probably would have found the book just okay if I read it instead of listening to it. The audiobook was good. The voice actor wasn’t for me.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher. I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I KNEW this is going to be amazing, but did not expect to fall in love with Ava!
If you like retellings with a twist, this is for you: not the average Rapunzel retelling you expect! It is filled with vampires, witches and so many emotionally breaking stories.

Ava is looking for a way out, from her vampire turned witch mom and stepfather, we see her struggles and trauma. Kaye is a witch, who has been friends with Ava until the point of her disappearance (looked intot he tower). We follow them and how they find each other again, rebuilding their relationship - doing this while they need to work together to find THE vampire.

A beautiful sapphic retelling (friends turned enemies to lovers), honest to the bone, with great magic system and unique lore on vampires & witches! The journey was not only about the "quest" but also about finding their way back to each other and being friends again (then with the sloooweest slowburn: more).

It was enjoyable as an audio and I think I need a physical copy now!

Thank you so much for the publisher for the ALC!

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.

This is a Rapunzel retelling with a vampire and a witch. Ava has been locked in the tower under the supervision of her witch turned vampire mother and sadistic human stepfather. She has been longing to escape and find her way to the vampire queen to warn her of something afoot.
Kaye is a witch and has been heartbroken since her mother's sudden death 2 years ago. Kaye and Ava were best friends until Ava disappeared... 2 years ago.
This was a great story. I think there was some great storytelling and the magic system was understandable. However, it seemed like the last quarter of the book was rushed. A lot of the story was dialogue that didn't need to be explained or that it could have been explained in text and not spoken. Overall cute but ending was rushed.
2.5/5 stars