Gotta love a cozy supernatural hallmark-esque romance…plus spice!

This was another knockout by Asher. I love how her writing is always so quirky, but in a natural way that doesn’t come off as trying too hard. I also really liked how she amped up the cozy small town and found family vibes for this one.

Hopefully more to come from Fates Haven!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Pub Date: May 13, 2025

4 stars
A fun paranormal/fantasy romance. I like Asher's romance's, they are easy to get pulled into and while there are fantasy elements it isn't heavy on world building so it is easy to read and enjoy. There was some nice set-up for future books with side characters which I am looking forward to.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for providing an eARC of A Simple Twist of Fate in exchange for this honest review.

Publication date: May 13 2025
Rating: 2.5/5 ⭐️
Tropes:
-Fated mates
-Second Chance Romance
-Animal Shifter & Witch

I would not call this a good book, or really an okay book either... Is it a bad book though?? I would put this somewhere in the wattpad, Zodiac Academy type of writing family where you definitely aren't reading it because of it's fantastic writing (or lack there of) but instead because it somehow manages to be entertaining even if it is cringe-inducing. I'd call it a palate-cleanser book if you are in need of something that won't make you think too hard but still have some fantasy elements.

Want to read something with unnecessarily inappropriately named baked goods from a place called Sugar Tits? How about random paintball / other "challenges" that somehow are drawing large crowds for this supposedly middle of nowhere town? Or maybe a round of Adult Jenga that appears out of thin air? Then congrats, here you go!

Issues:
1. Every opportunity for a crude joke or immature humor is taken, which gets really tiring. It's just not funny 🤷🏼‍♀️

2. Jaxon, our cougar-shifting MMC love interest, is in fact your stereotypical brooding (rude), arousal sniffing mister "I'm the alpha and you'll listen to ME" character.

3. No one willingly communicates, they just blow up over information and then storms off as if that is healthy or productive. Everyone knew Harry was just in town to get help figuring out Grace's shifting, but as soon as there is a mention of maybe going back to NYC (mind you, due to snooping and blowing it up instead of talking about it) suddenly everyone turns against her?

4. Illegal overuse of the word "mound". And referring to sex feeling like a "tight, wet fist". 🤢

I voluntarily read an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I did enjoy this book by April Asher. I had read her previous supernatural romances before, and kept thinking they were related. But I don't think they are set in the same place (unless I'm mistaken, sorry) and this is a new series.
I enjoyed the side story of Grace and her parents, which was good, as sometimes Harry and her being away for so long annoyed me a bit. If you loved someone, wouldn't you have checked on them once at least, during that time? That was probably why I had to take away the one star.

When I first picked up A Simple Twist of Fate by April Asher, I thought this was going to be super deep and involved. I was expecting angst and romance with a side of single guardian. Instead, this was super cute and breezy.

Despite being over 300 pages long, this really felt like it was 200 or under. The pacing was just way too fast. It never felt like we had a chance to linger with a character or relationship because the second we got close to anything, we were whisked away to the next scene. I wish we could've spent more time learning about Jax and what his relationship with Harry was like. I wish we'd gotten glimpses of Harry's friendship with Larry and Elodie. I wanted to feel the angst over running away from home because the love of your life was announced to be the fated mate of your best friend. Instead, we're pretty much just told they loved one another and they were best friends and let's continue the story along. It honestly felt like this was a set-up story for a burgeoning series, which I'd love to read, but I still wish we could've focused more on the character relationships, platonic and romantic.

Despite how fast this blew by, even the surface level interactions we see were cute and lovely. It felt cozy. The stakes felt low and there was never a moment where I thought Jax and Harry wouldn't get back together. The competition was fun and Grace was adorable. This just felt comforting.

I think if you're looking for something with angst or deep character dives, you might not get that here. If you're looking for something sweet and light, A Simple Twist of Fate by April Asher definitely hits the spot. It's super fast paced and introduces such a great cast of characters. I'm positive if this turns into a series, the subsequent books will settle into a steadier pace and I am really looking forward to that!

There are a few authors I always trust to write cozy PNR, and April Asher is one of them. I haven't watched Gilmore Girls but this book gives Gilmore Girls ibes but with magic, maybe more like a Halloweentown that fucks?

A Simple Twist of Fate brings Harry, our FMC, back to her hometown after running away years ago when the boy she loved was fated to someone else, and she refused to get in the way of fated mates. Now she's back with her niece by choice, looking for solutions, hopefully from the Alpha of her hometown, but she missed the note that the old Alpha has retired and her former love of her life, Jax, is now the one who's help she's petitioned.

If you like fun, campy, light romcoms with a side of magic and shifting, then A Simple Twist of Fate is the book for you to pick up.

Thank you St. Martin's for the eARC!

This was the best ARC I have read so far. Their story was just .... the cutest and best. The heartbreak and neither knew the truth until years later. The banter was on point. Loved this so much. Can't wait to get the physical copy!

3.75 ⭐️ April Asher does it again with another fun paranormal romance! A Simple Twist of Fate has the same small witchy town feel as her other novels and introduces a twist to the typical shifter character by introducing other kinds of shifters (the fae dragon… very cool). As always, her characters are likeable and well written if not a little impulsive for my liking. While miscommunication is never my favorite, I appreciate the way Asher explained it with the Fate Witch twist.

I’ve always been a fan of spice for furthering the plot and Asher typically does it well but in this one, they felt a little unnecessary. While there aren’t many scenes, none of them felt to really move the plot along other than showing our two love interests were still very much in love.

My other issue and the plot felt a bit predictable. While it was fun and an easy read, I could see what was going to happen before it did. All in all I would say this was one was a fun easy paranormal romance that is perfect for someone who loves to read for the vibes!

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martins Press for the arc!

Thank you to author & NetGalley for allowing me to read this story before publishing for an honest review!

A Simple Twist of Fate by April Asher

3.5/5 ⭐️

“Holy shit.” “Baby, there is nothing holy about what I want to do to you right now.”

This story was a cute, fun second-chance romance set in a small town setting full of magic, shifters, witches, angels, demons & all sorts of other supernatural beings!

For the last 13 years, our main character, Harlow, a Pierce witch who grew up in Fates Haven, has self exiled herself from her hometown due to a Fates ceremony gone wrong. The wisps made it clear that the boy she was completely head over heels in love with was fated to another, one of her best friends of all people.

Harlow returns to Fates Haven on a mission to help her roommate/friend’s daughter Grace gain more training with her shifter powers & potentially find some information about her unknown father. Seeking the help of the town’s Alpha, she realizes that the Alpha she thought was going to help her retired & is now replaced by her son, Jaxton, Harlow’s past love.

Within the story, themes of re-found family, second chance romance, spice & rekindling are super strong. It was funny, witty & and had some topics modern to our world now.

With this being a standalone (that I know of) some of the characters lacked depth & the ending came up so quick. A lot of loose ends were left with a lot of characters.

It was definitely super entertaining and spicy, but also predictable. The resentment the two main characters had for each other ended super fast. Still a fast, cute read!!

This was a cute book, it’s not something I normally read. I enjoyed the story and got Gilmore Girls vibes from it. There was a lot to take in at the beginning and I got a little confused, but overall I enjoyed it.

A fun book! Romance and adventure and a bit of mystery all tangled up together. The setting of a cute little paranormal town in the Rockies was excellent. The cast of characters was great and I am definitely interested in a sequel.

4/5 stars: This is Asher's Paranormal Steamy Romance stand-alone set in Colorado that follows a witch and an Alpha shifter who get a second chance at love when the professional organizer returns to her magical hometown with her half-human, half-shifter goddaughter in tow looking for help. Heartfelt and humorous, Asher's writing and character work are excellent; the characters are well-rounded, complex and yet remain very likable. Harry and Jaxon are both dealing with a lot and I love how they grow and come together to get their HEA. Oh and I love the side characters, I'm hoping to see them features in their own books. The world building is fun and has a great mix of paranormal species (Vampires, Angels, Demons and more) with a romance that's top notch with plenty of swoony banter and OPS scenes that are oh so steamy. A very nice second chance romance, which I'm hoping is the start of a new series.

I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

Thank you St. Martin's Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

The premise of this book was interesting: a woman forced to face the life she ran from to help her goddaughter figure out mysterious powers.

Unfortunately I struggled with the pacing of this book. The build up took way, way too long while the end felt rushed and anti-climatic. I didn't mind the characters so much, though the dynamic between FMC and MMC felt less angsty and more deliberately drawn out. Honestly, all the characters sort of read the same way as well - snarky. In fact, the author calls this out several times throughout the book.

Overall, this felt like a decent prequel to Grace's story (not sure if that will happen, just saying that's what this story felt like, a set up to another story).

The story has potential, but I think it needs some finessing.
Personal petpeeve: Harry as a nickname for Harlowe. It's not the same pronunciation....

A feel good paranormal romance. Wonderful characters that will make you smile as you follow along with their stories. Really enjoyed this story.

A Simple Twist of Fate is a fun book to read!

Witch Harlow “Harry” Pierce never intended to return to Fates Haven, Colorado after her disastrous first Fates Haven Finding Ceremony matched her boyfriend Jaxon Atwood with her best friend. But thirteen years later she needs help with identifying her goddaughter Grace’s abilities with fire while her mother tried to find Grace’s father.

Shifter Jaxon Atwood is now the alpha of Rocky Mountain Pack and finding out that Harry has returned after all this time and needs his help with Grace wasn’t in his plans. But maybe helping Harry with Grace could fix Fates Haven issue with its failing magic.

You will love to read A Simple Twist of Fate because it is just a fun book to read where magic and shifting are normal and nobody would bat an eye when fate and the Blue Willow Wisp picks your fated mate.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the author and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

DNF at 26%. April Asher is very hit-or-miss for me, and this definitely feels like a miss. The cringe jokes, especially the sexual ones, were too much. “Frosting cums in all flavors?” Erection eclairs? Sugar-tits and cinna-boob buns? Wtf?!

Format - E ARC (Netgalley)

Rating- ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Spice- 🌶

Series- Standalone for now

Troupes- Second Change, small town, paranormal, mutual pinning, forced Proximity, Dragon Shifter


If you enjoyed Asher’s Supernatural Singles series then you are defiantly going to want to dive head first into this new story about a small town in Colorado that is full of all the paranormal and magic you could want.

Harry and Jax haven’t seen each other in 13 years, after a batched Fated Ceremony tore out both of their hearts the space was needed. But Harry is back with a mystery in tow and she needs all the help she can get. Jax has never been able to say no to Harry so forced proximity for the win!

I loved the world building in this one. It’s something April does very well. The haracters are flushed out and dynamic and I loved everything about the Town of Fates Haven. My only complaint is that I wish Harry was just a little less dramatic. She made a lot of decisions 13 years ago that seemed drastic and that had she taken the time to listen to anyone from home we could have avoided that whole 13 year heart break. I know that we wouldn’t have a story if she hadn’t but this just seemed a little over the top for a character that was other wise pretty level headed.

This a great spooky season read but I also thoroughly enjoyed it in the spring! I can’t wait to return to Fates haven soon!

Thank you April Asher, St Martins Griffen and netgalley for the advanced copy, all opinions are my own.

A Simple Twist of Fate is a wholesome paranormal romantic comedy full of whimsical creatures (there may be a dragon involved) and exciting fantastical elements: wonky magic, talking inanimate objects, and fated love. The banter is fun, the characters are unique, and the town is charming.

April Asher orchestrates a heartfelt family reunion that blends angst, healing, and magic. A lovable cast of characters who feel like found family brings the story to life. The resolution left me in awe of the entire story.

The book begins with a playful, almost young-adult fantasy tone, but the transition into mature scenes feels abrupt and somewhat distracts from the plot. While the pop-culture references (Taylor Swift songs, Halloweentown, etc.) were initially fun and charming, they sometimes felt like shortcuts for emotional expression that could have been more deeply explored.

Beneath the wonky magic and quippy humor lies a story grounded in belonging, forgiveness, and second chances. This lighthearted fantasy swept me up in a magical tale of friendship, family, and romance.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First off, thank you to St Martin’s Press and NetGallet for this eArc!

Historically, I’ve absolutely ADORED April Asher’s paranormal romances. However, this one just isn’t working for me for a number of reasons. Let’s start with the good:

If you like your PNR to have a dash of cozy Gilmore girls vibes, this is really exactly that. There’s lots of small town antics, mother-daughter(like) bonding, and long standing friendships and relationships being rebuilt. The humor is rather funny, and the mystery of Grace’s powers is intriguing.

Unfortunately this is where it starts to fall off for me. I think ultimately it’s trying to be too many things at once: the small-town cozy doesn’t feel fleshed out or focused on wuite enough for me to believe it, but that aspect of the story is large enough that it feels like it’s detracting from the romance between the main couple. By the 50% mark, I just don’t feel invested enough in either storyline to continue. The writing style also feels like it’s trying a little TOO hard to be Gilmore Girls-y, enough so that it feels a little tangential and easy to zone out of. This isn’t a problem I had at all with April Asher’s books, so do with that information what you will.

I’ll still pick up this authors work in the future, I think this just didn’t strike my fancy quite right.

Have I ever met an April Asher book I didn’t like? The answer was and still is no, because this Gilmore Girls-esque town in Colorado full of magic gone wonky, witches and shifters was nothing short of magical. Fated Mates is always a blast, and early on you can tell what the misunderstanding was all those years ago, which made her MCs dancing around each other without outright saying the words was so much fun and absolutely hilarious in the context of the flirting. I loved the addition of Grace in a really unique way and her journey was so much fun to go on. Nora? I absolutely LOVE Nora!!!!! And the Fearsome Four versus the Big Bads added a level competition to the atmosphere that kept things light-hearted when they got serious. And the revelations near the end?! Whiplash on the best way! This was an incredible escape and blew through the whole book in a day and I don’t want to leave Fates Haven so I really hope we get more soon because as much as I adore Jax and Harry, I am so invested in these side characters and the backstory of a certain someone! Well done!