3.75/5

Pretty good. Could have been better.

What I liked: the characters, the bisexual and poly rep, the banter, the found family;

What I didn't like: the writing, the pacing of the plot;

First, let's start with the good: I had immense fun while reading this! I was already engrossed from Gisela and Kazik's first scene together, and Aleksey's story was an interesting twist. Gisela's entire found family was my favorite part of the novel, it managed to feel realistic without sacrificing the realtionships between characters, and Gisela's feelings towards them were, to me, the moving force of the plot. Gisela, Kazik and Aleksey's growth as characters was promising, but lacking in the sense that we do not see enough on-page development.

Which brings me to: The writing felt underdeveloped for what the author really wanted to portray, and it was just not enough. I wouldn't belive this is an author's third book, it feels more like a debut that it's still trying to find its footing. Nowhere is it stated if the book is or part of a series, so while reading it, I just assumed it's a standalone, like the author's other books. This, however, made the pacing feel extremely unbalanced, as I was still waiting for a satisfying conclusion as the page number kept dwindling down. The ending is pretty open, so I will expect a sequel to tie up all the loose end and bring a satisfying conclusion.

Overall: The vibes were amazing, the writing not so much. I'd recommend it for a fun read if you enjoy found family, great banter and romance that feels like comforting cup of warm tea;

This was such a beautiful story, a YA book with stunning atmospheric vibes and incredible characters, I knew I was going to love this book by the cover and description alone. If you’re looking for a fun YA fantasy with Slavic folklore and unforgivable vibes, definitely read!!!

This book is about Gisela, a water nymph who died a tragic death and yearns to become human again. After an encounter with her nemesis and the town's exorcist, Kazik, she finds out that he is losing his magic. Gisela attempts to blackmail him into helping her get a kiss from one of the neighborhood boys so that she can regain her humanity. Enter Aleksy, the human boy target who has secrets of his own. Together the three develop an interesting relationship filled with angst, humor, and crazy ghostly adventures.

Overall, it was a fun read. I would say the writing reads more young so think young adult but it does explore polyamory and queer romances. I would give it a shot if you are interested in those themes.

thank you netgalley and peachtree teen for the e-arc!
"Did you know, Kazik, that if a mortal kisses a water nymph, she can regain her humanity?"

YEP SOLD I’LL TAKE ALL THE COPIES YOU HAVE THANK U

This Fatal Kiss is a Slavic-inspired story that follows three main characters:

- Gisela, a water nymph who can’t remember how she died, but is desperately trying to find a way to regain her mortal life so she can take care of her younger brother. she also terrorizes Kazik.
- Kazik, the town exorcist. he lives an extremely isolated lifestyle, especially following the death of his grandma. he doesn’t really have any friends or family, besides his cousin who visits from time-to-time.
- Aleksey, a handsome and mysterious boy that grew up with Kazik. he’s very charming, but seems to be keeping something hidden from everyone around him.

all three are extremely fluid in terms of what gender they are attracted to and how they feel/approach relationships. which is so fun to read, but one thing that made me pause is how young our characters are. Gisela is 16 and Kazik is 15. Gisela is extremely flirty and both Gisela and Kazik make reference to having sexual relationships with people in the town and it took me a little by surprise. that, combined with the maturity that they all show in terms of their feelings and their attractions, made me feel like they should have been aged up a little bit.

also, to me this book was presented as a stand-alone story, but after that ending... it can’t be????? this is a bit of a personal pet peeve, but I prefer to KNOW ahead of starting a book if it’s going to be a series or not, so to be finished with the book and feel like there should be another book but still not knowing is... frustrating.

plot: ★★★★★
the plot was like a mix of The Little Mermaid x Spirited Away x Princess Mononoke. I love stories that weave in folklore. this took a spirit realm mixing in with the mortal realm, the idea that humans are mistreating spirits/nature, and a mythical being wishing to become human. and everyone is in love with each other, so A++.

writing/prose: ★★★★★ (4.5 rounded up)
the writing style was really fun. it does a great job of pulling you in right away and then having you learn the characters and lore as you go, but without “info dumping”. however, the time period was really difficult for me to narrow down. I was picturing a super rural village until someone mentioned having a radio and taking a train and I was like ???

pacing: ★★★★★
this book got me good with the “I’ll just read one more chapter” sh*t. I felt like the pace of this story was lightning speed. I had a really hard time putting it down because I kept wanting to know more and know what was happening next. I’m pretty sure I read like 75% of this book in a single sitting.

romance: ★★★★★
the romance in this book was mostly the build-up, so lots of flirting and pining. I’m still giving it 5 stars even though we didn’t really get to go very deep into like actual romantic relationship type stuff because the flirting and banter was just that good.

characters: ★★★★★
right off the bat Gisela and Kazik were giving me Vanja and Emeric vibes (Little Thieves) and I was LIVING for it. I was a little nervous to see if it would start to feel like a copy or not, but I’m happy to share that while they have a similar style of banter and the way they meet each other is similar, Gisela and Kazik grow in their own direction.

I wish we got more scenes with Gisela, Kazik, and Aleksey together, especially after they came to the realization that they all had crushes on each other. I’m praying for another book in hopes that we can have that in the future.

Kazik and Gisela’s banter was TOP TIER. I could have read 400 pages exclusively of them going back and forth with each other.

the side characters in Gisela’s life were interesting too and I would have loved to get more from them, but especially Wojciech (and his story with Kasia).

over-all: ★★★★★
I already mentioned being frustrated by not knowing if the series will continue or not, but even if it doesn’t I can still say with full confidence that I loved this book and I would reread it again in a heartbeat.

This book was SO CUTE! I was really excited to see a polyamorous romantasy book because it was something I'd never encountered before, and I loved the representation. I also really enjoyed that I felt like I was never 100% sure where things were going. Typically with romance books have a pretty good idea you're going to get a HEA, but the fantasy elements really brought more uncertainty to the outcome, so I liked that it didn't feel predictable. I genuinely really liked the characters as well, and the grumpy/sunshine dynamic Gisela and Kazik had. I also loved the incorporation of folklore to bring in the fantasy side of the story.

Thank you for the ARC of this book! I will be posting a review on my bookstagram in the next couple weeks.

This Fatal Kiss is a YA fantasy novel recounting and reimagining folklore of the Slavic rusałka (water nymph). It seems to blend pre- and post-19th century depictions of rusałki— but, thankfully, while actively challenging the perception of them as “unclean spirits”.

The focus of this novel is primarily on the perspective characters and their interpersonal relationships, but This Fatal Kiss could have benefitted from a greater focus on worldbuilding. There is very little sense of setting— both in its intended time period and its detailing of the characters’ surroundings. The characters are charming, and their banter is enjoyable (“What do you water nymphs usually do when you’re not trying to trick unsuspecting humans into falling in love with you?” “Sometimes we entertain ourselves by capsizing the little rowboats the tourists take out on the river to scare them.” “Don’t do that,” Kazik said immediately.)— a bit of flowery, whimsical prose in the worldbuilding could have rounded out the modern folkloric atmosphere quite nicely, I think.

Several plot threads were left unresolved, although the conclusion to the novel seems open-ended enough to allow for a sequel. I did expect this to be a standalone novel, so the lack of momentum and resolution did feel frustrating, at times. That being said, if a sequel novel is ever published, I will absolutely seek it out for exactly that reason!

What drew me towards this books was its beautiful cover and promise of Slavic folklore, dark fantasy and poly relationship and it did not disappoint. Furthermore, it went above and beyond in thwarting my expectations. It asks the question who is the true monster, is it truly all so black and white and straightforward or are there sides and different perspectives, it has the juxtaposition of old and new, the new being Kazik's faith and people taking over the land and the old being the traditions and spirits dwelling in those lands. But what stood out the most to me is that it is a story written to the eldest daughters. It is written to all the parentified and responsible daughters who have a hard time shaking off the role and living for themselves.

All in all, absolutely a five star read and I cannot wait for the continuation.


Thank you so much NetGalley for this ARC

- spirited away ghibli vibe
- enemies to lovers
- very cute YA read
- GRUMPY X MISCHIEVOUS SUNSHINE asdfhjk I swear this combo is very cutesy!

This Fatal Kiss follows Gisela, a water nymph who is trying to become human again by luring a boy to kiss her. Her attempt thus far, has been failure after failure because of Kazik, a powerful exorcist who believes undead creatures like Gisela are evil. When Gisela discovered Kazik's secret, Kazik had no choice but to agree to play matchmaking between Gisela and a boy named Aleksey. But nothing was as it seems!

This story was SUPER CUTE! It was fun and light from the first page with whimsical setting in a small magical town. I adore all of the characters and their character development. Each individual was written consistently with humane flaws that made each so relatable but not cringey as many YA characters are usually written; even the ancient spirits felt relatable. I love the complex romantic chemistry between Gisela, Kazik, and Aleksey, i think it was well written, cute, and showed how complex love can be. Despite the heavy theme about family, love, self discovery, the author managed to wrote in an easy to read way, making readers able to tag along on each character’s journey of selves easily with no confusion.

What I felt was a bit lacking was the ending… I wish we could get closure on Aleksey and how Gisela also Kazik would deal with Aleksey. Aleksey has had a great journey on self discovery and i hope Gisela and Kazik would continue to lead him to happiness.

This entire book is a cozy and cutesy whimsical nuance. I adore it so much!

Disclaimer : fluid sexuality, bi and multiple love interest 📚

And this is how you do a love triangle. An actual triangle, not a "V" being called a love triangle. Instaed of two people vying for the attention of a third person, we have 3 people (a monster, an undead and an exorcist), all vying for the attention of the other two. The romance was cute and funny and made you go "they are in love, your honour, not guilty. Because they are teenagers, with the weight of the entire world on their shoulders, you see a lot of that intelligent teenager-decision making, pining and banter. All the fun stuff.
And now, to talk about the fantasy. This book is based on a slavic folk tale. I am unaware of the original, so I can't make a comment on that. But the fantasy seems to be a gender-bent version of the story of "the princess and the frog", here we have "the exorcist and the frog". The world building is interesting and keeps you hooked. It's amazing to see the "monsters" finding their "found families". The familial bonds between them are what familial bonds are made of - teasing, irritating, fighting, but also a lot of love and having your family's back, no matter what.
The book ends, while setting up the next in the series, even if this story has a HNF, it's clear that more is coming.

P.S. I follow the Montessori method, so my reviews are based on completion without ratings. If I didn’t like a book, I probably wouldn’t finish it and hence won’t review it.

This book is filled with Slavic folklore and I absolutely loved it. I wasn't familiar with any of the folklore stories going in, but they were explained throughout the book so I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything. There's acknowledgement of the way these stories have been treated in the past, and how they are treated now, with younger generations following traditions for fun rather than worship.

The main polycule each get their time to shine in this book, with alternating POVs, but a focus specifically on Gisela and Kazik. I at first thought that there was going supposed to be a big lead-up to the secret Aleksey's hiding, and was worried that we had been given too much information too early, however as his POV came up more and more as the book progressed, I realised that the reader wasn't meant to be surprised by what he was.

I did unfortunately fall into a bit of a slump about a third of the way through the book, but it picked up again not too long after as other subplots were introduced and the characters relationships developed. It didn't feel like there were any major themes outside of an acceptance of who you are, so the book was a nice light-hearted read, which I quite enjoyed.

if you have an interest in folklore, this is definitely the book for you. The romance is slow and doesn't come to fruition until the end of the book, but there is a lot of character development in between to make up for it. These are definitely characters you will fall in love with.

Firstly, can we all take a moment for this cover. There will be a trophy copy of this on my shelf, it's so stunning I can not get over it. This was definitely on the list to be a cover purchase before I read the synopsis and then that got me.

I saw another review (sorry I don't know who it was on Goodreads) that said this is Slavic folklore meets Spirited Away and I have to say that that summed it up perfectly and I have not been able to get that thought out of my brain since. (If it was you who said that and you happen to see this, please tell me so I can tell you how correct you are!).

Setting: beautiful spa town with wonderful magical realism.

MC's: Kazik, brooding grandson of a holy witch who views it as his job to rid the town of pesky and dangerous spirits. Gisela, a water nymph or rusalka, cursed to haunt the river she drowned in but all she wants is to be human again. Aleksey, the hot boy with different coloured eyes that they both have a crush on.

Romance:.....they both have a crush on him and we know I don't like love triangles so that can only mean one thing!.....for those wondering, I think it's YA so don't ask about spice.

Story: beautiful. Just stunning. The story was woven so fantastically around the folklore of different creatures from water nymphs to forest demons. There are trans masc side characters, lesbian, bi and pan characters however not quite a queer normative world as there is faith based magic and therefore questioning. There is lots of character growth and I feel like a book 2 could happen?!? I would classify this as cosy fantasy, there are big moments but most of the time it felt like a hug.

I was immediately interested in this story after reading the premise, and the story did not disappoint. Each of the three view point characters were lovely to read, had a distinct voice to them, and complemented their motives. The dynamics and development of each relationship to bring them all together was believable. There is also some mystery that ties into certain characters, as Gisela was a human before becoming a water nymph after her death. I did not realize that this would be part of a series, so now I need to wait for the next part. In a way I find myself rooting for all of the view point characters and I hope they all get their happy endings.

Thank you for the complimentary ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

Our main character Gisela is a water nymph who wants to regain her humanity. In order to do, she has to be consensually kissed by a human. She makes a deal with the town's resident spirit hunter, Kazik: play matchmaker for her and she won't tell all the spirits he can't use his magic anymore. Gisela sets her sights on the cutest boy in town, Aleksey, but he may not be what he seems.....

I found this book to be a great deal of fun but mostly style with minimal substance. However, that may be my own fault as I was expecting writing along the lines of Katherine Arden and that is definitely not what we got. I would describe the prose as Katherine Arden through a Gen Z lens if that makes any sense. While the banter was quite good, the book lacked a certain otherworldliness or mystique that I feel stories about the spirit world should have. Plus, the world building overall was weak and left me confused. Does the story take place in our world or a fantasy world? What is the deal with Gisela's home island and where is it in relation to the village?

Although I liked Gisela as a character, she veered too often into manic pixie dream girl territory for my taste. That being said, her romance subplot was very sweet and I loved seeing her learn to appreciate her found family. Of the two leads, Kazik came off as the more compelling character. He goes on a believable journey of reckoning with his grandmother's legacy while also questioning said legacy.

Mad props to making pretty much everyone queer in some fashion with bonus genderfluid characters. A+ representation.

I would say give this a try if you're looking for a fun, lighthearted YA romantasy story that doesn't make you think too hard.

Reviews going live on Goodreads, Storygraph, Fable on 9/23 and on Tik tok on 9/24.

FIVE STARS!!!! I am obsessed. I need this book to release asap so I can talk to everybody about how much I absolutely adore it. Aleksey, Gisela, and Kazik were so cute together and I loved them. Such a sweet little throuple and they were absolutely adoring and obsessed with each other. I just love love love them. Wojciech, the water nymphs and Gisela’s found family was adorable. I need more about Gisela’s past and I need a second book as soon as humanly possible.

“It would be pure madness to admit he was smiling because of an unholy terror like Gisela.”
“I’d go to worse places for you.”

“You’re not looking!” “I don’t need to, you look good in everything.”

I had a difficult time starting this book, but once I got through the first part, I found it to be a fun read. The concept of this book, mixed with the folklore elements, was interesting and kept me captivated throughout the story. Also, I thought the characters were very likable.

This was enjoyable, though I expected more of it. The premise really sounded like it was going to wow me, but instead everything was so so to me. The plot was decent, the characters likable, but nothing really stood out. That is not to say I didn't like it, because I absolutely did!

You had me at poly-romance, whimsical fantasy, and dark magic.

The characters were indeed something special. I felt connected to them, and the author does an amazing job of creating tension and banter. Gisela is fun and sassy and sometimes so unserious that when you look over at Kazik, you can clearly see the differences between them and it's done so well.

I also love the dark folklore elements we get throughout the book. It was a nice mix between the whimsical fantasy, which was a necessary reprieve.

Overall, 4/5 stars. It was a lovely YA book with dark elements and lovely characters.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the e-arc!

This has been described as slavic folklore meets spirited away and I could not agree more!!!


This was fantastical, whimsical and atmospheric in the most magical of ways. The characters were lush and fun and the polyamorous relationship was such a delight because normally it isn't done so well. This book really highlights the intimacy and relationship which I appreciate so much..

"There’s a special, powerful kind of magic in the connections we make with other people."

The queer rep, visceral setting, banter, heart and folklore in this story made it easy and fun to read.

This Fatal Kiss follows Gisela, a rusałka, who desperately wants a mortal to kiss her because of a story that says it will turn her human again. Aided by a local grumpy exorcist, Kazik, who’s just happy to help get her out of her hair. The only problem is she turns her eyes on the handsome boy that he’s had a crush on for years. This was very fun. I’m not going to lie, some of the chemistry of this love triangle is much better than others, but that’s just the fun of these kind of stories. I’m not sure if this was marketed correctly as a polyamorous romance because of spoiler reasons, but it was compelling. It ended in an open way that makes me wonder if there will be a sequel or companion. Honestly, the ending was a little hollow with how well things go and how quick. I also think it lags a little after the first third.

Great romantic YA with fairy tale vibes! That cover had me hooked and no regrets! Very interesting concept, great characterisation and had me keen to keep reading.