Honestly, I really loved the concept of Always Carry a Silver Cross. I think I would love moving to a small town and finding out that the supernatural is real. However, I cannot stand insta lust/love romances, and that kinda killed the vibe lol

I was so captivated by the premise of this book and it was a really fun and engaging read. I was expecting a cozy paranormal romance (and it delivered on that!) and I was pleasantly surprised by all the twists and turns of the story. I didn't realize it was a series and the ending made me so interested to read the next book.
Thank you Net Galley, author and publisher for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

I received this ARC from NetGalley, Montlake Publishing and Andrea Robertson and I’m glad I did. This book could only be made better by reading it during spooky season.

This book follows Selene, who loses her best friend, Emma. While she’s devastated from that, she ends up becoming guardian to her daughter Allie and has to change her life and move to a small magical town called Avondale.

Once getting to Avondale, within what seemed like minutes, Selene finds out that Allie (16) has a boyfriend, Josh (17) who happens to be a werewolf. I will be honest, I was hoping for more of a building up and information to come out about the paranormal side of things, but I get it… like she was thrown into “parenthood” we were along for the ride.

We are along for the ride as Selene navigates life full of Werewolves, Vampires, Fae and Witches. Helping Allie deal with a teenager’s first love… while finding something like that herself with a moody pack leader Fenris (Fen). I do feel like the relationship with Fen and Selene felt rushed, but I liked the banter and feel of them together.

When I got to the end of the book, I was like WAIT… is this a series? There’s no way you could leave me like that… so I’m now waiting for the next book. Some things I hope are better in the next book include better world building. The story could have had better pacing to draw the reader in more. Some things happened too fast while others seemed not to at all. But the book had good overall character development and which I enjoyed, but it would be nice to have a bit more of it. I would recommend this book to others!

If you like the following, this book is for you:

✨ Small-town vibes
✨ Fated mates
✨ Touch her & die vibes
✨ Found family
✨ Paranormal
✨ Secrets

Rate: 3/5⭐️⭐️ ⭐️
Spice: 2/5🌶️🌶️

Releases October 21st

So… no trigger warnings for the multiple sexual assaults that happened on page. If I could have DNF’d I would’ve. That alone was enough for me to be pissed and never recommend this book to anyone.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Montlake for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

So - I wanted weird... and I guess it was weird, It just didn't hold the emotional impact that I was wanting - and quite frankly Allie (the FMC) started off fun and intriguing, and ended up annoying me to no end. The magical moments all felt odd and dull, and there is no worldbuilding at all - it was promised, but there's just none. The found-family is also strange and not well written - by the time you care about anyone they disappear... and well, that's about it.

Not my favorite but I'm sure that some. would enjoy it far more than I did!

If there were half stars I’d give this a 2.5. I like the concept of this story but the execution fell a bit flat. The story jumped from one crisis to another and most of the characters felt two dimensional. And I’m not a fan of how many loose threads were left at the end of the book. I really wasn’t expecting that from a romance novel. It really left everything hanging unless the author plans to write a sequel to wrap things up.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

This book follows Selene, a woman who recently became a guardian to her best friends daughter after her best friend is killed. When Selene moves to this new town, she comes to realize that this town is special. When she meets the leader of this town, things quickly get hot between them.

I was not a fan of this book. I feel like there was instant love/lust and things heated up really quickly. They loved each other after less than a week of knowing each other? No thanks. While the romance heated up quickly, the story itself was so slow. I saw the big plot twists from a mile away but they took forever to happen so they had no effect on the story to me.

I also found the spicy scenes to be so awkward and cringey. I don't normally read a lot of romance so I'm not sure if this is how all spicy scenes are written but this one just had some weird word choices that were not working for me.

I also feel like the author didn't know if she wanted a cozy read or something more serious. Certain aspects were cozy but then serious. The tone of this one just confused me.

I hope this book finds its readers but unfortunately it didn't work for me.

I was mildly disappointed in this book. While it was an enjoyable read, it fell short of my expectations. I had been hoping for more meat to the story... And expected more out of the characters. If Fenris really is crusades old, and is finding a mate after the death of Miriam, why doesn't he show more restraint?? "Oh, but he can't help himself... His primal instincts make it impossible to stay away..." *rolls eyes* I'm tired of pack leaders who find their true mates and can't keep their hands to themselves. Selene is wholly new to the paranormal world - surely her mate would be able to hold himself back and not scare her away?? The bones of this world are a little flimsy...

Thanks for the advance copy, but I'm not sure I'd recommend this to anyone. I wanted to like it more but I just couldn't.

I don’t know if this is part of a duology or series, but it was not made clear and I can’t find any mention on Goodreads or the authors social media. It’s quite disappointing to read a romance that does not end in HEA. I think the idea of this being a series needs to be better marketed.

If your idea of spooky season is practical magic and Buffy the vampire slayer, this one’s for you!

I truly enjoyed this book, the story and writing were great. The romance had me giggling and kicking my feet.

The issues I have: this whole book takes place over maybe 2 weeks, so I’d call it instalove if that’s not your thing. Also it’s part of a series?? Maybe? So the ending is not HEA

Absolutely loved this!

I’ve been a huge fan of Andrea Robertson for many years and loved reading this adult PNR from her!

Mixed feelings about this one. The town of Avondale was giving Halloweentown (which I love) but I did not enjoy Selene much as a character and did not connect with her. I felt her character development was a bit weak, and it was exacerbated by the quick timeline of events in this story. I enjoyed Selene and Allie's relationship at times, but all the other relationships felt very rushed.

I love the premise of this book - town that seems normal, but isn't at all. I found Selene to be engaging as the FMC. Her story was compelling and I cared about what happened to her. Fenris was swoony as an MMC and everything I love in a wolf-shifter 🫠I'll definitely be waiting desperately for book 2!

First of all I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was another good paranormal romance with the added extra of spice. It is the first in a new series so I’m looking forward to seeing what else comes from this and the town of Avondale.

Warning to everyone it does leave you on a cliffhanger so be prepared!

First, I did not realize or had forgotten this was the first in a new series, so I was upset as the pages left in the book were getting less and less and stuff was -still happening-. Upon finding out this is Book 1, I feel comforted 😆.

I thought this was good for what it was. It’s a light hearted fantasy romance with aspects of found family. It gave me that refresher I’ve been wanting as a fan of Blood and Chocolate when I was a teenager, except this is much spicier and left me wanting both a Fenris and a Gabriel.

The book does function quite a bit on people just not telling another character something and this creating a problem that now needs to be solved. That was a little annoying in some areas. Some of the pacing and timeframes are a little wonky, but it didn’t take me out of the story entirely. I enjoyed it overall, had a great time, and am waiting for the next one basically posted up outside this authors home like a dog keeping watch.

When starting the book, I did not expect for so much to happen so fast. Right from the beginning the reader, just like Selene, gets thrown into the supernatural world. And from then point in, all happens very fast. The entire story takes place in under 2 weeks. In that time, Selene and Fen meet and fall in love and become each others mates. At times while reading I had to remind myself that they knew each other for only a week when it got spicy.

The story is very fast paced and it goes from one big moment to the other. There are multiple plot lines going on that intertwine but A LOT happens with all of them.

I still enjoyed my time reading the book and was looking forward to picking it up again after a break.

Thank you to netgalley and Montlake for providing me with an arc copy for my honest review.

This was a 2.5 star situation for me. It took me a little bit to get into it, and I did enjoy the book. I didn’t love the insta-lust and I felt like the conflicts in the book could’ve gone on for longer. It seemed like one crisis after another was happening. Overall, it was good and I would read a second book if this became a series.

Always Carry a Silver Cross is a fun start to a paranormal romance series. Selene moves to the supernatural town of Avondale to support her niece Allie, and quickly finds herself caught up in magic, mystery, and werewolves.

The world-building is intriguing, and Selene’s reactions—especially to Allie’s much-older werewolf boyfriend—are relatable and refreshing. The heart of the story is the sweet, believable bond between Selene and Allie.

While the romance with Fenris felt rushed and underdeveloped, and some friendships could’ve used more depth, this is a solid series opener with lots of potential for future books.

Writing style wasn't for me. Felt quite childish. I think it was set up to quickly and I lost interest pretty fast

DNF - Unfortunately, this ARC expired before I could read it so I will request it on Libby once it’s available and review it later!

3.5⭐️

Always Carry a Silver Cross is a fun paranormal romance. The story follows our FMC Selene who decided to move to Avondale to make it easier for her niece Allie after the death of Allie's mother and Selene's bestfriend Emma. Selene is quickly thrust into the magical world of Avondale, a haven for the supernatural world. The setup is compelling and had me excited to read this book.
Selene's decent into the supernatural is initially entertaining and completely relatable, her reaction to Allie's boyfriend being a werewolf and much older than initially thought was justified and refreshing. I did wish she kept some of her real world sensibilities as the story continued. I do wish Selene could have more time to learn about the supernatural - though since this is the first book in the series and there is a plot point hinted in this book i expect it to be continued in the next one.
The strongest relationship and what i feel is the heart of this novel is the relationship between Selene and Allie. The bond the pair share is very sweet and a highlight in a book i feel struggled with establishing/ fleshing out the relationships. The relationship between Selene and our MMC Fenris felt rushed to me and i didn't feel myself caring for their relationship or really buying into the fact they were meant to be. Selene's friendships were good but i wish they had some more development especially with the later plot.

All in all, it's a quick fun read perfect for the upcoming spooky season.

Thanks to Montlake for providing me with an ARC. All opinions are my own.