4/5

For fans of: Magic in the real world, ACOTAR, magical bargains, enemies to lovers, spice, rival families, witches vs. vampires, rival covens, revenge, courtroom drama

The Big Questions:

• What genre is this in? Fantasy, romantic fantasy

• Are there any swoon-worthy characters? Gabriel a lá Rhysand

• Is it spicy? YES. MC is very sex positive

• Is it violent or gory? Magical violence

• Should I buy, borrow, or pass on this book? If you are a fan of the first book, buy it!

Synopsis: Sadie Sadler is a powerful witch; a daughter of the dominant magical clan in the north; and probably the soulmate of Gabriel Thornber, the scarily attractive half-demon who’s her family’s longstanding enemy. If only she wasn’t always trying to run as far away from him as possible…

Back in London, Sadie's tranquility is shattered when a mysterious letter arrives from Lavinia Morven, the enigmatic head of the London Coven. To stay in the city, Sadie must be bound by a lien – a promise to serve the coven, whatever’s asked of her. And while she’s not thrilled about putting her magic under Lavinia’s control or getting embroiled in more messy witch drama, she’s not going to humiliate herself by crawling back to the very person she came here to escape.

Sadie might have left Gabriel Thornber in the north, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t visit her nightly in her dreams. Part of Sadie would give anything to be back in his arms again… but she fears the price for giving in is more than she’s willing to pay. Meanwhile, Gabriel didn’t just get into Sadie’s bed and her heart over the summer—he also schemed his way into a deal with her family. And it turns out that the new alliance has interests that conflict with Lavinia’s.

Suddenly, Sadie finds herself in the shadow of a dangerous new ally, with no choice but to work against against the combined forces of her family and the man she both detests and desires . It’s not long before Sadie must confront Gabriel in court once again. She gave up her magic and her body to him before… with the dark powers of the London Coven behind her, will she be able to break free from his grasp for good?

Review: And just like that, we are back in the world of rival covens and magical bargains. The expansion of the world building to include London was really fun, especially with a new cast of characters as well as Mannith coming to London. The plot revolves around ancient grudges being brought to light, which is always juicy. Lavinia is an intensely powerful and even more petty figure that excels in getting what she wants. I could have used more of her backstory, honestly. A second storyline involving a very weakened Bren and rival Nikki was a nice break from the courtroom drama that further deepened the Mannith connection. That relationship was definitely fun to watch and I hope there will be more of it. Also, who knew Bren was such a romantic?

I gotta say, this time around, Sadie’s stalwart stubbornness and need for justice that I loved in the first book really got her in some hot water. I love Sadie as a character, but I was frustrated out of my mind for a good amount of the book as Sadie was clearly being manipulated like a chess piece by forces far more powerful and far older than her. Like, come on Sadie, things are going TOO WELL right now. SOMETHING IS WRONG. I mean, I think we all strive to have that level of delulu to get through our day, but the red flags were flagging. But at the heart of all this is her relationship with Gabriel. I NEED MORE. What I wouldn’t do for a story in his POV. My only criticism is that there just wasn’t enough witty banter, but again, because I need more Sadie and Gabriel. Hopefully, there will be more of that in future books.

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the free digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.