REVIEW; The Kiss Curse / The Wedding Witch

Title: The Kiss Curse / The Wedding Witch
Series: Graves Glen
Author: Erin Sterling
Genre: Adult, romance, urban fantasy
Type: E-book
Publisher: Avon

Gwyn Jones is perfectly happy with her life in Graves Glen. She, her mom, and her cousin have formed a new and powerful coven; she’s running a successful witchcraft shop, Something Wicked; and she’s started mentoring some of the younger witches in town. As Halloween approaches, there’s only one problem—Llewellyn “Wells” Penhallow.

Wells has come to Graves Glen to re-establish his family’s connection to the town they founded as well as to make a new life for himself after years of being the dutiful son in Wales. When he opens up a shop of his own, Penhallow’s, just across the street from Something Wicked, he quickly learns he’s gotten more than he bargained for in going up against Gwyn.

When their professional competition leads to a very personal—and very hot—kiss, both Wells and Gwyn are determined to stay away from each other, convinced the kiss was just a magical fluke. But when a mysterious new coven of witches come to town and Gwyn’s powers begin fading, she and Wells must work together to figure out just what these new witches want and how to restore Gwyn’s magic before it’s too late.

While I enjoyed the first book in this series, this one? This one caused me to have to hold back incoherent screaming over the sheer perfection. These are dynamics I die for – the seemingly out together dutiful child who is desperate for affection and is actually a disaster vs the seemingly irreverent human being who holds people at arm’s length because ew, vulnerability, and the absolute magic they create together.

No, but seriously though, Wells is My Type of disaster man and I love him a lot. I thought book one was fun and sexy and everything in between but this was immaculate. I just really, really enjoyed the banter and the chemistry.

I also put together the magic-less twist before the reveal (love when the pieces come together!) and honestly, I love how it all played out. Sometimes characters like Gwen can be Too Much for me, but she was just the right amount of sass, sarcasm and heart. Both of them care about their families so much! To find someone to understand and match that devotion! Really a match made in wherever matches are made.

Also, Wells is a simp and I love that for him. Fingers crossed it’s a Penhallow trait (because Rhys also was) and Bowan proves to be one too in the final book. 10/10 no notes, would read again.

Bowen Penhallow has always been a loner, studying dark and ancient magic on a mountaintop in Wales. He prefers it that way, but when his friend Declan—who happens to be a ghost—asks him to attend a Yuletide wedding at a grand estate deep in the Welsh countryside, Bowen reluctantly agrees.

Tamsyn Bligh is not a witch, but she makes her living off of them. As a procurer and seller of magical items, Tamsyn’s business is not always above board, but she’s been trying to fix that (mostly.) Bowen is an occasional customer—as well as the star of several of Tamsyn’s dirtiest dreams—but she’s been around enough witches to know that, as a human, getting involved with one is not the smartest idea. She’s finagled an invite to the Witchy Wedding of the Century in the hopes of finally making a score big enough to retire. Just one priceless magical artifact from Tywyll House would set her up for life.

But Tamsyn isn’t the only one sneaking about in Tywyll House, and the mix of a very strong spell combined with a wedding mishap transports Bowen and Tamsyn into Tywyll House’s past, to the Yuletide Celebration of 1957. As Bowen and Tamsyn work together to get back to the present, they must also face off with the origins of Tywyll House’s haunting, the suspicions of their fellow witches…oh, and the fact that somewhere between the mistletoe and the bonfire, they might be falling in love.

I started and finished this within a day which should say a lot. I haven’t done that in a while.

Bowan’s as much a simp for Tamsyn as the other Penhallow brothers were for their LIs. I love it, especially because he had little of their charm and flirting capabilities. This man has the social niceties of someone who doesn’t want to be where the people are. Mood, really. But he’s got natural charisma going for him and the animal magnetism plus intellectual capabilities to attract Tamsyn’s interest. I do adore their meeting of minds before they ever meet in person.

I loved learning more about Tamsyn. I love how attracted she is to Bowan and her constant “oh no, new kink unlocked” about him cracked me up. Honestly the romance was as central as the plot to me and it worked so well that way.

This was jam-packed with tension and shenanigans and the time travel of it all was so fascinating, I love it. Would read again and swoon just as much.

If you like my content, consider leaving me a tip on Ko-fi.