Thank you to NetGalley, Stephanie Burgis, Macmillan Audio, and Tor Bramble Publishing for an Advanced Listener's Copy of this title!

I definitely didn't know I needed a witch queen X sweet "dark wizard" librarian (with a secret) romance in my life, but boy am I glad I found it! Wicked Witch Queen Saskia would love nothing more than to spend all day locked in her laboratory to minister to her experiments, but she unfortunately has an empire to run. When a hooded and cloaked wizard arrives on her doorstep to fill the position of castle librarian she thinks little of him, not knowing that he is actually her archnemesis the Archduke in disguise and on the run from problems of his own. Hilarity ensues, and only time will tell if their budding romance will spark a greater magic once his true identity is revealed.

This was such a fun and unserious Gaslamp Lit (fantasy X historical fiction) listen that also tugged on my heartstrings a bit. I love the Uno-reverse of the powerful royal being the FMC and the soft and sweet mortal running after her as the MMC - of course I love a wicked dark king who's good at all the things but watching this man categorize books, write poetry, sit at her feet to let her take control during ~spicy time~, and stand back to let the FMC do her thing definitely healed something in me. I loved the sassy and grumpy found family; the almost cartoonishly-evil-stereotype of Saskia having a murder of crows and gatherings of bats following in her wake while she runs around wearing a crown of bones; and the meddling of Saskia's "friends" in the background, disturbing her peace and leaving glitter rainbows and melting ice in their wake.

I also thought the narrator did an excellent job moving between characters, keeping the tension, and generally giving this book a fun, tongue-in-cheek feel which made it really easy to listen to!

Overall, if you like books with the vibes of medieval-ish fantasy that lean into their own stereotypes (I kept being reminded of "Assistant to the Villain" when I was reading this, in the best way), FMCs who get to ask "who did this to you", goblins, the concept of having a private librarian, meddling deities, bisexual panic, winter balls, "be a good boy" MMCs with earrings, friends who are the embodiment of Elphaba and Glinda, and overall the kind of adult fantasy romance that Disney could probably make a killing on if they weren't cowards, you'll love this book (AND the next one to come!).

“Wooing the Witch Queen” by Stephanie Burgis is the first book in a new series, “Queens of Villainy”. This romantasy novel follows Queen Saskia, an extremely powerful sorceress who seized the throne from her despicable uncle to protect her people, and Felix, the archduke who Saskia hates.

Felix is pretty much held captive by his in-laws and is the figurehead for his father in-laws schemes to overthrow Queen Saskia. He decides that he needs to escape in order to live so he disguises himself and seeks out Saskia for aid. Upon arrival at Saskia’s castle, she’s a bit impatient to get to her lab to experiment that she mistakes Felix for a dark wizard whom she’s waiting to fill a librarian role for her. Felix, unsure how to reveal himself after the mishap, takes the position and figures out quite quickly how much he enjoys it. While learning of Saskia’s plan to capture the missing archduke and kill him, he becomes more scared to reveal himself. Especially as their relationship starts to turn into something more. But how can two “rivals” really end up together?

This book is filled with wholesome characters and offers fun dynamics among them. There is some slight world building, which may come into a fuller picture has the series progresses which would be an added plus. There is a good amount of fantasy blended with the romance aspect, as is my preference. If you’re a fan with strong female lead characters, I definitely recommend!

What a cute book! I had no idea what to expect when starting this story but it was so perfect for the season. Such a sweet cozy romantic fantasy and I will definitely be adding the next book to my TBR when it comes out.

What I loved-
I loved the whimsical setting, the different creatures that lived in the castle added such a fairytale feeling to the story. I also love a romantic, gentle, and studious MMC and Felix was such a cutie. He added so much warmth to the story. The 3 queens added such a fun dynamic too and I would have loved even more of them!

What I didn’t love-
As much as I loved both main characters I felt the romantic relationship was under developed, It went from attraction to love without much substance to get them there in my opinion. I would also say that I a have absolutely no idea what the magic system was, it felt very random.

Overall I would give this book a 3 star rating, I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a cozy romantasy.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

This was such a fun, sweet time.

Looking at the cover (honestly both the US and UK covers) I was really worried because this book had about a 50% chance of being charming, and a 50% chance of being annoying af. Thankfully it wasn't the latter!

Characters/Romance:
This story is very centered on two characters who were born into royal families but, for one reason or another, were controlled by the people in their lives such that they never previously had a chance to rule (or any related training).

She's newly come into ruling her kingdom, and he's on the run from his. Both are tentative and insecure, putting up fronts to disguise themselves, and stepping into uncomfortably unfamiliar roles in totally cinnamon roll fashion. But even without looking for romance, they find themselves drawn to each other (though he falls first so hard, lmao, it's on sight).

As noted about the cinnamon roll thing: "queens of villainy" is a bit misleading-- their primary villainous acts are being women who don't behave the way tradition/society dictates they should.

Secondary Cast:
The list of supporting characters is quite long, but memorable. And the ending definitely sets up the next romance for one of the other queens in a way that intrigues me to continue the series.

The World-Building:
This is such a character focused story that we really don't learn much about the kingdom, the different species, the magic system... It's pretty much just details that are related to the characters' backstories and motivations, in order to facilitate the story.

The good news is that it didn't seem to break internal consistency or present a lot of logical holes, and there's definitely room for future nuggets and development. But this is a Romance first and foremost, with Fantasy as a much lighter concern.

Overall:
I'm in for book two! I think the banter and mischievous menace vibe of the heroine in the next book could prove to be my fav in the series.

Delightful! A briskly paced romantasy with plenty of political intrigue and a charming supporting cast of magical creatures. The audio narration was competent, with some differentiation between characters.

I was absolutely delighted by Stephanie Burgis's series opener "Wooing the Witch Queen". This cozy gaslamp romantasy. After the Witch Queen Saskia overthrows her murderous uncle and usurps the throne of Kitvaria, she’s viewed by her people as a villain. Saskia is far from a power grabbing villain, she's actually trying to protect her kingdom, especially as her kingdom teeters on the brink of war with a neighboring empire. She finds more comfort creating powerful new spells in her laboratory than deal with court politics. When dark wizard Fabian shows up on her doorstep, she assumes he’s come to fill a vacancy in the castle’s messy magical library and hires him without a thought not knowing that Fabian is actually the enemy.

The world and politics of "Wooing the Witch Queen" is very accessible and the plot moves at a brisk pace. The characters are wonderful and supple ample amounts of humor. I also really enjoyed the slow burn romance between Saskia and the cinnamon roll librarian "Fabian". The ending sets up book 2 quite nicely and I'm really looking forward to continuing this series. Definitely pick this one up if you're in the mood for a low stakes low steam fantasy like Travis Baldree and T. Kingfisher.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bramble/Macmillan for an advanced reader's copy of the book.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC of Wooing the Witch Queen by Stephanie Burgis. All opinions are my own.

Wooing the Witch Queen was such a fun and easy fantasy to get into. The story was lighthearted, and the romance was very sweet. I’d recommend this book to readers that enjoy cozy fantasy stories.

I enjoyed both main characters in this story because they were likable and their conflicts with each other were easily resolved.

The other creatures in this book were also a fun addition, and I liked how the witch queen treated her household staff as family even when other people looked down on those creatures.

The audiobook narrator was great for this story. I do wish that there would’ve also been a male narrator for the archduke’s parts, but it was overall enjoyable.

The romance was slightly open door but there wasn’t much explicit content at all, so it would be easy to skip if you wanted to.

Overall, I would recommend this book!

This was a delightful fantasy romance with a strong heroine and sweet hero. I'm a fan of a kickass heroine who is the protector and a caring hero who is on the softer side. There's a moment where she says the words, "who did this to you" (yaaaa-aaa). There is some deception since the hero is someone the heroine believes is her enemy. Unbeknownst to her, he's coming to her for protection. When he overhears her saying that she hates the Arch Duke, he decides to stay disguised and enter her employ.

There were a lot of sweet moments as they get to know each other. This is a slow burn with a bit of a strangers to friends to lovers vibe. There is a crow sidekick who is a fun addition to the cast of characters.

While I loved it, there was something a little simplistic in the writing that took it down a little. I'm not sure if I can explain why, but it wasn't a 5 stars for me... but it was really fun and I recommend it. I received this audiobook for free as an advanced reader copy.

Safety deets
- The hero is 23 and the heroine is 25 (I think) which seems a little young for how much history each of them have.
- The hero was married before and lost his wife more than a year ago. He had married a childhood friend and they made the best of their marriage before she died from an illness. He was only with the one woman before the heroine.
- The heroine has a prior lover who still works for her and it sounds like she's slept with various other women and maybe some men as well. There's a wee bit of jealousy/drama on the part of prior lover, but it's not a big part of the story.
- This is kinda open door, but didn't feel very explicit or spicy at all.
- I always hate when a character doesn't allow their romantic partner to reveal their secrets before they get intimate. That was a little frustrating but thankfully, it doesn't blow up the 3rd act too much.

A magical romance.
I love how this jumped right into the story. It gave the important background quickly without drawing it out and becoming tedious. The witch queen was strong and everything you’d want out of someone with her title. Felix really comes into his own. They have such a magical story. It evolves well within the relationship and the events around them. I look forward to what happens in the future with the fairy queen.

Delightfully wicked and surprisingly sweet. Wooing the Witch Queen is such a fun book to read and in my case listen to. The narrator, Amanda Leigh Cobb, did a fantastic job narrating everyone. I was very excited and eager to read this book, I was so hopeful that it was going to be as amazing as it sounds and boy did Stephanie knock it out of the park! The side characters were a lovely touch, our gentle librarian not-an-evil-wizard hero and fed-up-with-everything queen are perfect. I love this book. I can't wait for the rest of the world to fall in love with it, too!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC! ♥

This book surprised me with a great story and increasing action in the toward the end. The characters were fun and the slow burn was delightful! the pacing was good throughout and absolutely driving in the third act.

The cover and title of this book were mildly off-putting but the description sounded so intriguing I picked it up anyway and I’m so glad I did! I started off hesitantly but the story and characters drew me in and by the end I was giggling and smiling and having a grand time slamming pages as the excitement increased and the story ends so satisfyingly.

I was lucky to try both the ebook and the audiobook version of this title and I switched back and forth. On the audiobook version, it was nice to hear the place names pronounced. The narrator pronounced Gryphon differently than I’ve ever heard, but I got used to it by the end of the book. She did a good variety of voices and inflections so that the characters were distinct.

This was a fun story and I enjoyed it!

This was so easy to listen to! It feels like a cozy fantasy but the lead character is wicked so the attitudes, perspectives and plot has a lot more intrigue. Amanda Leigh Cobb did an amazing job narrating both Queen Saskia and her secretive librarian Felix. Although my favorite character is probably Oscar the crow.

If you love a flip on the het-norm stereotypes, then you will adore this romance! Saskia is so sick of people. If it was up to her, she'd never have returned to claim her throne, focusing instead on her magical sciences. But someone had to kick her tyrant of an uncle to the curb. Now she has a whole kingdom to bother her. She decides to hire a wizard to help her since only men were allowed to study magic secularly. She's expecting a pompous, sexist pain in the ass but man who arrives is quiet, polite and shows her the proper deference. And that is because Felix is a fraud!

The writing was delightfully chirpy with Saskia's anti-social black cat energy and Felix's sweet nervousness and admiration. The author introduces you to the world and other Queens of Villainy so gently. And then in the last 25% it all explodes into an incredible political drama that sets up the next books in the series. It's so masterfully done! Everything just ties together. And the excerpt of Book 2 proves that this is not a one-hit-wonder. I will be closely following this series next year.

Thank you Macmillan Audio, Stephanie Burgis and Netgalley for the opportunity to review this audiobook. I'll start by saying,,, damn! Aren't "villains" and witches and women misunderstood all the time, too often? Then WHYYYYYY was this so good? I adored the sweet secretive MMC and his more passive approach to heroics, not ostentatious or showy at all, just genuine and lovable. And I loved the softening of the FMC while still maintaining her ferocity and strength. This was just a wonderful fantasy romance and I can't wait to read a bout the rest of the Queens of Villainy.

I am a witch girly and this was a really great paranormal/fantasy. Saskia is a newer queen and by defeating her uncle she has finally been able to rule her kingdom. She is a little unsure of herself as queen, but with her new dark wizard by her side she is becoming more comfortable being strong.
Felix has run away from his kingdom to seek refuge with Saskia's, but she mistakes him for something he is not and rather than tell her and risk harm, he pretends to be a wizard to help her in her library. As they get closer and closer he wars with himself daily. He wants to tell her about his past, but he is scared.
I thought it was great to have the woman be the alpha here (in my opinion) and have Felix be the counterpart to believe in her and make her stronger. They are both strong characters in their own rite, but the way they play off of one another was great! I can't wait for the next books in this series. The narrator was great!
Thanks to Macmillian, Netgalley and Stephanie Burgis for an ALC.

This was a sweet cozy fantasy and I had a fun time listening to it! A kind, gentle, librarian with a crow familiar for and MMC and a cool witch queen who is supposed to be evil but is actually super kind and inclusive…?? Love it. And the FMC is the one who says “who did this to you…..” with menace and rage behind her tone. Had great found family vibes too. Overall a good read. I’m actually really looking forward to the next book too! There was a short excerpt from it at the end of the audiobook!

Review up on Goodreads!!

“She might be a wicked queen, but she wasn’t a monster.”

Wooing the Witch Queen is an adorable and funny story of hidden identity, characters with terrible reputations hiding hearts of gold, a variety of magic races, and some swoony slow burn romance.

I loved the two main characters- prickly, overpowered Queen Saskia and her gentle, kind dark wizard librarian with a secret.

While there are some high stakes and genuinely villainous characters (mostly offstage), the wonderful found family and overall vibes make this a sweet and cozy read.

This was my favorite of the recent reads with the “villain” as lovable main character. If you enjoyed Dreadful by Caitlin Rozakis or Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer, you’ll love Wooing the Witch Queen!

I listened to the audiobook and the narrator, Amanda Leigh Cobb, was excellent. I’m already planning to reread the book when it releases on February 18!

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for the advanced copy.

This was such a fun, surprisingly warm-hearted fantasy! I loved the idea of these Queens of Villainy and seeing all these strong women lead with love even though they let the world think they're evil.

Queen Saskia might try to appear as the wicked sorceress everyone fears, but truly, she is a good friend and leader - truly just someone who wants to believe in her own strength and be able to protect those she loves. And ah Fabian, my little sweetheart!! What a sweet, loving character. I really loved seeing Fabian as the softer one in their relationship, while also facing his fears and strengths after so many years of being used.

This was not at all what I was expecting but I loved every second of it! This audiobook captured everything perfectly and made me fall in love with the characters! I cannot wait for the next book!

A wonderful cozy fantasy romance. The wicked queen, the librarian, the crow friends and the ogres just went so well together. This is a slow burn which focuses more on the plot and I was absolutely here for it. I had the chance to listen to the audiobook and it was fantastic. I’ve been sort of in an audiobook slump and I finally find myself wanting to listen with this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this advanced copy! You can pick up Wooing the Witch Queen on February 18, 2025.

This book was exactly what I needed – a sweet and spicy romantasy with wicked witches, gentle librarians, and royalty in disguise. I loved Felix and Saskia's relationship and how we see them truly yearn for each other and develop a deeper connection over time. The mask hiding his identity added just the right amount of tension (plus, the mask stays ON, iykyk), and I love how both characters felt they could truly be themselves around each other for the first time in ages. Felix and Saskia were used to others fitting them into boxes for those others' selfish needs, so to see the two of them empowering and uplifting each other was so heartwarming.

The magic and lore of this world was also SO fascinating. I loved the lowkey politics and the way different species interacted with each other (there are DEFINITE found family vibes). Plus, the female friendships Saskia developed with the other "Queens of Villainy" and the hints we got for the next book in this series were lovely and hilarious.

10/10 recommend picking this up if you want a cozy and spicy romantasy!

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to Wooing The Witch Queen.

The most powerful witch queen, a huge miscommunication, and a sweet slow burn with a librarian/ archduke- sign me up!

This is a slowwwwww burn and more of a fantasy than romance, but it was a fun listen! I loved the side characters, especially the pet Crows! 3.5 stars