A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon

By Sarah Hawley

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publication Date: March 7,2023

Publisher: Berkley

Source: Received an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Amazon Indiebound

Description:

Mariel Spark knows not to trust a demon, especially one that wants her soul, but what’s a witch to do when he won’t leave her side—and she kind of doesn’t want him to?

Mariel Spark is prophesied to be the most powerful witch seen in centuries of the famed Spark family, but to the displeasure of her mother, she prefers baking to brewing potions and gardening to casting hexes. When a spell to summon flour goes very wrong, Mariel finds herself staring down a demon—one she inadvertently summoned for a soul bargain.

Ozroth the Ruthless is a legend among demons. Powerful and merciless, he drives hard bargains to collect mortal souls. But his reputation has suffered ever since a bargain went awry—if he can strike a bargain with Mariel, he will earn back his deadly reputation. Ozroth can’t leave Mariel’s side until they complete a bargain, which she refuses to do (turns out some humans are attached to their souls).
 
But the witch is funny. And curvy. And disgustingly yet endearingly cheerful. Becoming awkward roommates quickly escalates when Mariel, terrified to confess the inadvertent summoning to her mother, blurts out that she’s dating Ozroth. As Ozroth and Mariel struggle with their opposing goals and maintaining a fake relationship, real attraction blooms between them. But Ozroth has a limited amount of time to strike the deal, and if Mariel gives up her soul, she’ll lose all her emotions—including love—which will only spell disaster for them both.

Review:

When ARCs of this book went out, my social media was full of people gushing over how delightful it was. I requested a copy and I’m happy to report, it lived up to the hype. Mariel is a witch who well, isn’t very good at magic. Or at least the magic her powerful family is known for; she’s quite good at garden magic. This leads to disastrous results including accidentally summoning a demon who wants to bargain for her soul. But Mariel is perfectly happy with her soul and now the demon, Oz, is stuck and can’t leave her side. These hilarious events set up our story, which includes immortal eccentric relatives, overbearing parents, the definition of pixie friends, and a whole host of other paranormal creatures. The world building in this book is delightful and quickly pulls the reader in, always a potential pitfall with the first book in a paranormal series. Oz, a demon with soul, who can’t understand why he’s falling for this bewitching and adorable witch, is just the right amount of confident and yet vulnerable hero that we love to love. Honestly, the word I keep coming back to describe this book is delightful and I think it sums it up perfectly!

Published by SomewhereLostInBooks

I’m Melisa! I’m an avid reader. I love romance novels and decided, hey, why not write about what I love and hate about the genre. And my favorite books. And when I get to meet authors. And all round why romance novels are awesome. Expect a lot of fan-girling, laughter, and some tears. View all posts by SomewhereLostInBooks