Kacie Rogers does a fantastic jobs voicing our favorite demigod Tanrian Marshall, Rosie; the mysterious genius, Adam; any number of gods and a cast of characters from previous books. Her voicing of Duckers is a true delight!

THIS SERIES IS SO FUN!! I think this series is the perfect variation of fantasy and fun story telling. It has me giggling & swooning, while also loving each of these characters lots and lots

Megan Bannen delivers a deeply satisfying continuation of her earlier work with The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam, blending humor, heartache, and a dash of magical realism into a compelling sequel. Fans of the first installment will be pleased to find that the emotional core of Rosie and Adam’s relationship remains intact, even as new conflicts and deeper character developments push the story forward.

What stands out in this novel is Bannen’s ability to balance the raw with the whimsical. Rosie’s sharp wit and Adam’s quiet depth continue to make them an irresistible duo. Their chemistry, both romantic and combative, feels natural and earned. The "undercutting" referenced in the title works on multiple levels—emotional sabotage, buried truths, and literal plot twists that leave you reeling.

While the pacing occasionally dips in the middle, the payoff is worth it. Bannen’s prose remains both accessible and lyrical, and her supporting cast adds meaningful texture to the story without stealing focus. There’s a clear maturity to this sequel that doesn't rely solely on the momentum of its predecessor.

Overall, The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam is a strong follow-up that enriches its world and characters. It's not just more of the same—it's better. If you're already invested in Rosie and Adam, this is an essential and rewarding next chapter.

This book picks up about 10 years after Twyla and Frank, and a lot has happened in that time. The author does a beautiful job of keeping the reader in the loop of the changes in Tanria while also keeping this story moving. I was delighted to see that Duckers is Rosie’s partner now, so I knew we’d get to see a lot of him. Sorry to report, it doesn’t seem he will get a separate story. But a lot happens with him in this one, and I was satisfied with where Duckers is at the end of this book.

I adore Rosie. She feels so different from everyone around her, which makes her feel very alone. It’s clear Rosie has a lot of people who love her, but her childhood has made her keep everyone at arm’s length for fear of losing them. And let’s be real, she will lose them. Rosie is a true immortal. She has outlived countless friends and lovers over the span of her life, and it breaks her heart every time. But the people of Tanria and the Marshalls Rosie works with would lay down their lives for her. Every time she “dies,” it chips away at them, but she doesn’t understand that and often takes unnecessary risks.

Adam is such an interesting character. It doesn’t seem to be a secret to the reader that there’s something different about him, yet the characters are oblivious to his secrets. The way both Rosie and Adam have yearned for one another over the years, after having only met once before, is so sweet. They are so different, yet perfect for each other. A wonderful balance in every way.

For much of this story, Rosie, Adam, Duckers, and Zeddy are in a sort of bubble, away from everyone. Barely able to communicate, in danger, and not really understanding what is happening. Rosie and Adam are tiptoeing around their attraction. Zeddy and Duckers are stuck together after not seeing each other since they broke up 10 years ago! There is drama, tears, dragons, and a very laid-back nimkilim. It’s fantastic.

I hope this is not the end of this universe. I believe this is the last in this series, but I would love to see other parts of this world.

A quick note about the audiobook. Although there are two narrators listed, this is not a dual narration. The male narrator reads a specific section of the book to tell a story within the story, but that is all we hear from him.

This one, unfortunately, wasn't for me.

It was by no means a bad book, thus I'm giving it 3,5 stars. It just didn't hit the same spot that book 1 in the series hit. The story felt a bit boring to me and I didn't care too much about the romance. When Rosie and Adam finally got together, they were too lovey dovey for me. I just generally dislike when characters say "I love you" over and over again and when (after knowing each other for mere weeks) they already talk about being soulmates and being together for the rest of their lives.

But, of course there was also a lot of stuff that I liked about the book. One being the reversal of gender roles with Rosie being a lot taller and stronger than Adam. I also loved the dragons (they breathe glitter instead of fire) and the return of Saltlicker (of course he liked and listened to Adam, the diva). Gabo was a highlight, too, and I loved everytime he delivered mail and sass. The subplot with Zeddy and Duckers to me was more interesting than the romance between Rosie and Adam. And the final point: I didn't see all the plot twists coming and that was really refreshing.

🌟5
🌶️1.5
🎧4.5

✨ ARC ✨

🧡 Paranormal Romance // Romantasy
🧡 Tall queen // short king
🧡 Immortal demi-goddess // human engineer
🧡 Grumpy & sunshine
🧡 Witty, humourous, nostalgic, romantic, heartfelt, emotional
🧡 magic and old gods

This was so cute, so romantic, and utterly devastating. You will get your happy ending, because otherwise it would not be a romance however I cried probably for the last 20% of the book? Maybe?

Rose was absolutely such a happy go lucky spirit, and Adam the grumpy to her sunshine was such a proper dude with unexpected depths. I love these two so much!

And I have to say this all every time I read them, she always finds a way to make me cry even in the happiest cutest storylines! So freaking unexpected, because you’re reading a romantic fantasy with loads of Romcom vibes at Wham!! SUCKERPUNCH to the heart! But then before you even recover from that punch, you are healed in a warm happy ending blanket burrito…

Absolutely recommend 🙌

X

For me this one just didn’t hit. I think it’s because while Adam was broody it came across, for me personally, as just having no personality. Rosie, Deckers, and Zeddy carried this book with their big personalities and honestly I would have rather gotten Deckers and Zeddy’s book. That being said, if you need a light hearted low stakes romance with cozy magical elements this would be a good one for you! And I know you’re thinking a cowgirl in a desolate wasteland wouldn’t be cozy, but somehow it is? Don’t question it, just read it 😂

4.25⭐️ this whole series is so adorable & feels like the most perfect fantasy romance hug. All of my favorite romance tropes wrapped into the coziest fantasy setting🥹

Rosie was so spicy & fun and I just loved her banter with Duckers!! Her sunshine to Adam’s grumpy was the perfect quirky balance. I loved how we saw Rosie pull Adam out of his shell slowly throughout the story.

I loved how mortality was viewed in this story. So many fantasy stories romanticize immortality. But I loved how Rosie & Adam both experienced immortality in similar ways and viewed death as a beautiful thing. Mortality was used as a theme to show that every moment in life is precious 🫶🏼

All of the cameos, Hart, Mercy, Twyla & Frank, Duckers, & Zetty. THEYRE THE BEST 😭

Thank you to Hachette Audio & NetGalley for the early Advanced Listener Copy !!! 💗

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for a copy to review!

A delightful return to the word of Tanria with a new couple and new challenges. I enjoyed Rosies humor and the plot, but I wish we had more time to see the romance develop.

✨BOOK REVIEW✨

The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam - Megan Bannen

I absolutely adore this series; it is one of those cozy romantic fantasy series with gorgeous world building set in a world of gods and dimensions that celebrates culture and inclusivity. In this next installment we see demigod Rosie, stuck in an immortal existential crisis as she partners with Adam, the quiet and mysterious, Dr. Adam Lee, to figure out why the portals around Tanria are breaking down. While investigating the faulty portals, Rosie and Adam end up stuck inside the Mist as the rest of Tanria’s residents evacuate to safety. As they work to figure out why the mysterious and invasive plants are quickly taking over the Mist and breaking the portals, they discover that their lives are more tangled than the thorns that have trapped them.

This is a sweet slow burn romance that will warm your heart. I love that we get glimpses into the lives of the other Tanrian residents we have met earlier in the series. I was given the opportunity to review an advanced listener’s copy of this book and I really liked the narration. The narrator did a fantastic job with Rosie’s spunky energetic spirit and Adam’s reserved and guarded personality. She was able to capture so many comedic and romantic scenes and pivot seamlessly throughout the story.

Thank you to Hachette Audio and Netgalley for my copy; all opinions are my own. The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam is available today!

Thank you to netgalley for the arc of the audiobook.

At this point I don't think Megan can write a book I won't love. I'm so immersed and invested in the people (and gods) of Eternity that it's just such a delight to be back in their lives.

Every couple in this series has been so unique and lovely and Rosie and Adam were no different. It was so fun to unravel the mystery of the portals, the mist and the vines with them. While I saw the big reveal(s) coming, I was still so delighted to hear them played out.

Rosie is just sunshine incarnate I'm pretty sure. I'm not sure how much of this is due to the narrator's voice and how much is due to the character herself, but it felt like I was along for the ride with an old friend the whole way through. Adam of course is very stoic but getting to know and love him through the progress of the story was such a delight, breaking through the hard shell to his soft gooey center.

I will eagerly pick up anything else released from this author in the future, she's quickly become one of my favorites.

Another fantastic, cozy fantasy romance that was full of found family, fated mates, end of the world vibes. I loved Adam and Rosie as they sacrificed their own happiness for the good of the world. There was chronic pain rep and lots of laughs plus it was fantastic on audio. I can't get enough of anything Megan Bannen writes!! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio and digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

Holy humor, Batman!

This was hands-down the wittiest, most laugh-out-loud, banter-packed book I can remember reading—and I read a lot! Rosie is as funny as I imagine I am in my head…okay fine, way funnier.

Demigod Rosie Fox didn’t mean to die so much—it just kind of happens. Let’s hear it for immortality! Woohoo! But her latest death? That one was triggered by a mysterious, shadowy blotch-thing. A blotch-thing that also took down one of the Tanria portals she patrols… thanks to Rosie. Oops.

Enter Dr. Adam Lee: uptight, brilliant, and alarmingly attractive in a quiet, broody kind of way. Yumm. He’s been brought in to fix the portal, but things go from bad to worse when the mysterious splotch starts growing fast, and causing havoc.

Before they know it, all the portals are down, and Rosie and Adam are stranded in Tanria with no way out. What the heck have they gotten themselves into? What are these blotchy vine-things? How are they supposed to fix it? And why does Adam have to be so darn distracting? Well… being stuck together does have its perks.

What can I say? I loved this book! The hart (wink), the humor, the story, the characters. Rosie is everything I want to be: hilarious, caring, filter-free, and armed with the most delightfully unrestrained vocabulary. I need a reread just to steal half her insults and everyday phrases.

Adam? A dry, stiff, uptight, bespoke-suit-wearing inventor. Brilliant. And a perfect little soft cantaloupe (iykyk). Watching Rosie slowly work her way under his skin, teasing his personality out little by little, was pure magic. They’re the ultimate opposites attract—and their love story? Slow, tender, and filled me with that gentle warmth only the best romances manage to spark.

The world of Tanria is everything my 6-year-old heart used to dream of: unique, vibrant, whimsical, and full of pink glitter-breathing dragons. I can only imagine how much fun it was to bring it to life.

And the audiobook? Kacie Rogers nailed it. Animated, perfectly timed, incredible inflection—her performance elevated an already brilliant story.

This book is getting a standing slow clap from me!

I adore this series, and this installment was a gem and almost perfect. I loved Rosie the most and I was happy to see her interact with Mercy from the first book. I loved Rosie's friendship with Duckers, he is by far my favorite character ever and I am holding onto hope that the author will give us a Duckers story one day. Rosie is a firecracker, wise and sarcastic and just a joy on the page. She is fearless and a total girl boss and I love her. Adam took some getting used to for me. It was very dry and too serious for the matter at hand, sort of reminded me of Hart but not as loveable at first. I did warm up to him soon enough, and I did suspect there was a lot he was keeping to himself. I loved the little mythology story within the story and the background stories of both Adam and Rosie. I also enjoy the witty titles and how they are hints to the main characters jobs or stories. I had not picked up on that until finishing this book. Another great addition, looking forward to more of them!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. I have really enjoyed the other two books in this series, but this one didn’t do it for me. I got really tired of hearing about underwear. Maybe it was me but I was confused at the end where they pulled an Interstellar and were gone for 7 years. 3.5 stars.

🎧ALC review🎧

What a fun time! This is the perfect cozy read with some mystery and the cutest romance. The world is also so much fun. You can’t help but fall in love with these characters. The entire book is quirky and whimsical in the best way.

Rosie is an immortal demigod, and she’s sick of it. The thought of living forever does not appeal to her. When all the portals fail in her land, she gets stuck in Tanria with Adam Lee. They have to work together to find a way to save themselves and return to their land.

The audiobook was so much fun. Kacie Rogers and Jim Frangione are the narrators, and they both did a spectacular job. They really brought this audiobook to life and make it so much fun to listen to. I highly recommend this one!

The Undercutting of Rosie & Adam by Megan Bannen is out today! It’s book three in a wonderful fantasy romance series that I love so much! Thank you @HachetteAudio for the ALC! I was glad to be back in the strange and wonderful world that is Tanria.

The books in this series are interconnected standalone books but I would personally recommend reading them in order. I think you get the most out of them that way! But they do all have a complete story if you decide to go rogue.

This book was a little more fantasy than romance, meaning that the plot was slightly more important than the love story in my opinion. Rosie and Adam were still great together and actually perfect for each other though. I love them. We also got plenty of content from everyone’s favorite side character Mr. Penrose Duckers!

This is the end of the series (I assume? Like… she could keep going we would read it) and I’m sad about that, but it was also a great ending to the story and we got a lovely glimpse at all our favorite characters at the end.

Friends, I loved this series so much! Hart & Mercy is one of my favorite books, period. Read them, you won’t regret it! 🩷

The third entry in what has become a reliably entertaining romantasy series. I'm going to file this in the cozy category even though bad things happen and people get hurt and grief is real. It still feels like a warm hug. Yes, there are dragons. But the dragons sneeze glitter goop.

All of your favorite characters are back. More worldbuilding - perhaps my favorite part of this installment. Although you could read this as a standalone, I think the series is better read in order. If you didn't like the first two books, you won't suddenly fall in love with this one. But if you enjoyed the previous books, this is more of the same.

Edited to add: WAIT! I totally forgot this is an ARC. An audio ARC. Yes, you should definitely listen to the entire series. The narration makes the funny parts even funnier. Obviously, I was going to read The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam with or without the ARC. I made all my friends read Hart & Mercy two years ago, I will be obnoxiously talking about this one until they read it too. Thank you to the author, narrator, publisher, and NetGalley for the audioARC.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️.5 Thanks to NetGalley and hachette audio for the AAC for my honest review. I really loved this. I have read the other books in this series and really enjoyed them but I think the audio makes it even better, I just loved the narrator. Such a fun read, the characters are so quirky and the narrator does a phenomenal job of portraying this. The love story is so sweet in this whimsical story. Definitely recommend!

A chaotic cowgirl (think Jessie from Toy Story, but make it fantasy) teams up with a grumpy little inventor to save the day—portals, glitter dragons, and deadbeat gods included. Rosie might not have much, but she’s got heart, humor, and great underwear. While it can be read as a standalone, you’ll miss the emotional gut punches if you haven’t read the first two. I laughed, I cried (violently), and I loved every second. Magic might be broken, but this book isn’t.