Best Hex Ever by Nadia El-Fassi Published by Random House Publishing Group on October 1, 2024
Genres: Fiction / Romance / Contemporary, Fiction / Romance / LGBTQ+ / Bisexual, Fiction / Romance / Paranormal / General
Pages: 320
Format: ARC
Source: NetGalley
A kitchen witch with a penchant for baking and a (literally) cursed love life meets someone who’s worth breaking a hex for in this enchanting romance debut written with a heap of spice and an equal measure of heart.
“A spicy, spellbinding debut that is as swoony as it is sweet, this book is a cottagecore rom-com of magical proportions.”—Lana Ferguson, author of The Nanny
“Pure magic.”—Jenna Levine, author of My Roommate Is a Vampire
“A cozy delight!”—Lyla Sage, author of Done and Dusted
As a skilled kitchen witch, Dina Whitlock knows her way around a pastry recipe. In fact, she runs her very own London café, serving magic-infused treats to her loyal customers. She is not as much of an expert on romance, thanks to the hex hanging over her head. It’s hard to fall in love when your partner is cursed with a string of bad luck. But who needs love when your best friend is getting married, right?
Scott Mason has returned from global travels thrilled to embark on his new role as a curator at the British Museum. Having left London two years ago to recover from a devastating breakup, Scott has missed out on a lot. With his best friend’s wedding approaching, and Scott as best man, this is his chance to make up for lost time. Little does he expect to be enchanted by the magical maid of honor.
During a romantic weekend filled with a peculiar hedge maze, palm readings by candlelight, and a midnight Halloween ritual, there’s no denying the chemistry between them. But the hex still holds, and Dina knows that Scott is in danger of more than just bad luck—because she’s falling, hard. Will Dina be able to undo the hex before it’s too late?
My Review
I first want to take a moment to thank NetGalley, Random House Publishing – Ballantine, and Nadia El-Fassi for an Arc of Best Hex Ever in exchange for an honest review. I am sad to say that I did not get on with this book and ended up DNFing it about 35 percent of the way into it. I want to clarify that my DNFing of this book is a me thing, not a book thing. Let me explain. When I requested this book, I went based on the cover and the description like one does, and it sounded fantastic. The cover is so autumnal that I was eager to get right into it. I loved the idea of a witch who bakes delicious treats in a bakery that she owns. I mean, what isn’t to love, right? Another thing that really caught my attention about this story is the setting. It takes place in England, a place that I have always wanted to see. Granted, I did not get far into the story, but I really did enjoy the friend vibes between the female characters, and I was interested in seeing how things would play out between Dina and Scott. As I have said, I only made it to about 35 percent of the way through this book, and that is because I was not expecting all the spice. I picked this story up thinking it was going to be a cozy witchy fall read, and well, it did have those elements, but it also had ones that I was not interested in reading, which is why I DNFed this book. If you are looking for a witchy fall romance with steam, I think this might be a book you would be interested in reading. If reading spice doesn’t bother you, then I would say give this book a go because it really did have the cozy fall vibes (at least what I read did). Again, I want to thank NetGalley, Random House Publishing – Ballantine, and Nadia El-Fassi for this Arc. I am just sorry that it was not a book for me.