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Fae & Human Relations #1
Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms
Roger not only had to prove himself to the Council, he also had to prove himself to Wyndham Wrenwhistle.
Fae and humans alike are returning to London for the Season, but the excitement is marred by the growing poverty rate among humans with low magical scores.
Tenacious Roger Barnes proposes a new rubric for testing magic to the Council, hoping to resolve the predicament for his fellow humans. But when he is paired with Wyndham Wrenwhistle, a dashing fae who has disliked him since childhood, the project seems destined to fail. Even after reaching a tentative truce, their fragile partnership crumbles due to malicious lies.
Adding to the disarray, a popular gossip column unexpectedly announces that Roger and Wyn are engaged. Obliged to go along with the falsehood to save their families from scandal, they are forced to reconcile their differences for the sake of the rubric — and for their impending marriage. As the project bleeds into their wedding plans, the pressure to flawlessly execute both mounts even higher.
Together, they have the chance to solve a crisis decades in the making — but they'll need more than magic to succeed.
Fae and humans alike are returning to London for the Season, but the excitement is marred by the growing poverty rate among humans with low magical scores.
Tenacious Roger Barnes proposes a new rubric for testing magic to the Council, hoping to resolve the predicament for his fellow humans. But when he is paired with Wyndham Wrenwhistle, a dashing fae who has disliked him since childhood, the project seems destined to fail. Even after reaching a tentative truce, their fragile partnership crumbles due to malicious lies.
Adding to the disarray, a popular gossip column unexpectedly announces that Roger and Wyn are engaged. Obliged to go along with the falsehood to save their families from scandal, they are forced to reconcile their differences for the sake of the rubric — and for their impending marriage. As the project bleeds into their wedding plans, the pressure to flawlessly execute both mounts even higher.
Together, they have the chance to solve a crisis decades in the making — but they'll need more than magic to succeed.
480 pages, Paperback
Published January 27, 2024
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January 8, 2024Regency. Fae. Queer. Cozy. If you prefer a Bridgerton-esque approach to alternate history worldbuilding, Wallace and Callahan's Breeze Spells & Bridegrooms will provide a slow-burn romance to delight you.
My fave is a minor player but he's big in my heart. For a character that began life as a nameless placeholder, Sage Ravenwing really packs a punch. Thanks to Callahan and Wallace for bringing this horrible boy to life.
My fave is a minor player but he's big in my heart. For a character that began life as a nameless placeholder, Sage Ravenwing really packs a punch. Thanks to Callahan and Wallace for bringing this horrible boy to life.
January 18, 2024
*dreamy sigh*
If there ever were two authors meant to co-write a book (a series!!!), it's Sarah and Shannon.
I was familiar with these authors since their books were some of my favourite reads last year, but I was still blown away by how beautifully their writing fused together, forming this whimsical, heartwarming and tender story.
Set in a queer normative world, with a clever magical system and the most magnificent slow burn romance, Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms tells the story of Wyn, a snarky misunderstood Fae, and Roger, a shy, sensitive and all around good human.
Pushed together by meddling characters and forced to co-exist in order to strengthen the relationship between humans and Fae folk, these two clueless idiots go from childhood enemies to friends to lovers, but not without a bit of pining and a pinch of silly miscommunication. Do not fear, they were both quite adorable in their obliviousness. 🥰
I felt like this entire book was woozing compassion, love and understanding. Even the slightly antagonistic characters were portrayed in such a way that all you could think of was: they're just flawed, they deserve to be understood and loved too! (Can I hope for a book centered on Sage Ravenwing?! Please! That would be such a good redemption story.)
One of my favourite parts of the book was the demisexual rep. I personally think it was perfect and I wish more authors could take notes. The connection between the main characters was so carefully and patiently constructed that every time they interacted my heart squeezed with delight. I wanted to smile and cry at the same time, and then squeal with absolute joy. They're that precious. The way they tune into each other, and not just magically, but rather emotionally, is simply wonderful.
And so, if you enjoy queer fantasy, magical systems, steaming cups of tea, slow burn romance, enemies to lovers, grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity and diverse representation, this book is for you!
If there ever were two authors meant to co-write a book (a series!!!), it's Sarah and Shannon.
I was familiar with these authors since their books were some of my favourite reads last year, but I was still blown away by how beautifully their writing fused together, forming this whimsical, heartwarming and tender story.
Set in a queer normative world, with a clever magical system and the most magnificent slow burn romance, Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms tells the story of Wyn, a snarky misunderstood Fae, and Roger, a shy, sensitive and all around good human.
Pushed together by meddling characters and forced to co-exist in order to strengthen the relationship between humans and Fae folk, these two clueless idiots go from childhood enemies to friends to lovers, but not without a bit of pining and a pinch of silly miscommunication. Do not fear, they were both quite adorable in their obliviousness. 🥰
I felt like this entire book was woozing compassion, love and understanding. Even the slightly antagonistic characters were portrayed in such a way that all you could think of was: they're just flawed, they deserve to be understood and loved too! (Can I hope for a book centered on Sage Ravenwing?! Please! That would be such a good redemption story.)
One of my favourite parts of the book was the demisexual rep. I personally think it was perfect and I wish more authors could take notes. The connection between the main characters was so carefully and patiently constructed that every time they interacted my heart squeezed with delight. I wanted to smile and cry at the same time, and then squeal with absolute joy. They're that precious. The way they tune into each other, and not just magically, but rather emotionally, is simply wonderful.
And so, if you enjoy queer fantasy, magical systems, steaming cups of tea, slow burn romance, enemies to lovers, grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity and diverse representation, this book is for you!
February 3, 2024
THIS BOOK!!
It’s honestly like the authors went into my head and took all the elements I love and wrapped them up in a big bookish hug for me 🥲
I mean…
- Enemies, to colleagues, to friends, to the purest sweetest slowest burn love 🥰
- It’s regency, BUT MAGIC!
- AND society is a mix of humans and fae.
- AND it’s queernormative!!
- AND one of the MCs is fat.
- AND there’s lots of magical researching…alongside lingering looks and touches 🥰
I loved Roger instantly and absolutely adored seeing Wyn so gradually soften and let go of his defensive walls.
I’m really gonna struggle to say everything I loved about this, ‘cos there was so much. It was so cosy and lovely and left my heart full to bursting. Basically I wanted to jump in these pages and live in this world.
Was so glad to see in the acknowledgements that there’s more to come, because there are so many characters who I would love to see get a book of their own!!
It’s honestly like the authors went into my head and took all the elements I love and wrapped them up in a big bookish hug for me 🥲
I mean…
- Enemies, to colleagues, to friends, to the purest sweetest slowest burn love 🥰
- It’s regency, BUT MAGIC!
- AND society is a mix of humans and fae.
- AND it’s queernormative!!
- AND one of the MCs is fat.
- AND there’s lots of magical researching…alongside lingering looks and touches 🥰
I loved Roger instantly and absolutely adored seeing Wyn so gradually soften and let go of his defensive walls.
I’m really gonna struggle to say everything I loved about this, ‘cos there was so much. It was so cosy and lovely and left my heart full to bursting. Basically I wanted to jump in these pages and live in this world.
Was so glad to see in the acknowledgements that there’s more to come, because there are so many characters who I would love to see get a book of their own!!
March 15, 2024
What a sweet and delightful read! There was very little angst, so minuscule that I can happily say this was 500 pages of pure joy. If you want a break from heart-breaking, tear-jerking stories, please read this book. Wyn and Roger will have you smiling from ear to ear!
January 30, 2024
WHY IS THIS SOOOOO LOOONGGGGGGGGGG
January 28, 2024
I can't stop smiling. This. Was everything I needed
**I've got an arcs from the authors all thoughts are mine**
I can't even explain how much I loved this book. I spend the whole afternoon reading it and smiling at my copy. They're so good.
I'll try to write a more thorough review later. But. Damn. ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR
Edit: First, thanks to the authors for the arc, I’ve had so much fun reading about Wyn and Roger.
I wanted to add some stuff to my initial review!
First, this is a fluffy blanket of fluff and you’ll squeal in delight while reading. But it’s not only that, Roger and Wyn bickering was so fun to follow. Their feud was so entertaining and the way they completed each other later on: 100% recommend.
Wyn was a bitch to Roger and at first I thought I would not like his character but he was so endearing. Like Roger, I was defenseless against him.
And Roger, sweet summer angel who want to change things for everyone. He’s too cute for this world, no one deserves him.
Anyway I loved it, and I can’t wait to have my copy !!
**I've got an arcs from the authors all thoughts are mine**
I can't even explain how much I loved this book. I spend the whole afternoon reading it and smiling at my copy. They're so good.
I'll try to write a more thorough review later. But. Damn. ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR
Edit: First, thanks to the authors for the arc, I’ve had so much fun reading about Wyn and Roger.
I wanted to add some stuff to my initial review!
First, this is a fluffy blanket of fluff and you’ll squeal in delight while reading. But it’s not only that, Roger and Wyn bickering was so fun to follow. Their feud was so entertaining and the way they completed each other later on: 100% recommend.
Wyn was a bitch to Roger and at first I thought I would not like his character but he was so endearing. Like Roger, I was defenseless against him.
And Roger, sweet summer angel who want to change things for everyone. He’s too cute for this world, no one deserves him.
Anyway I loved it, and I can’t wait to have my copy !!
March 1, 2024
I never thought I would say this, but... This book is too long.
Far too long for the story its trying to tell. I think with half the number of pages the plot would have run more smoothly but, then again, I guess we´ll never know. I DNF this at 65% and here I going to enlist all the problems I found that made me reconsider and go waste my time somewhere else:
- The first thing that made no sense for me was the age of the characters.
Because, you see, they are 29 and 30 respectively and the book is tagged as "Adult". Okay, but when you actually read the story, you realize that in this universe the authors created, the majority of age is reached not at 18, nor at 21, but at 30!
That is very odd for me. And it gets weirder when you notice the main characters behave like teens, and their parents also treat them as kids. I´m a bit like... Excuse me? What is this? The narration also reads VERY young adult so I cannot really understand why tagging this book as "Adult" when they could have, idk, made the main characters be in their early 20s and tag it as "YA".
- I´m not going to deny the premise looked interesting, with a human protagonist (Roger) trying to come up with the rules for an exam that would benefit faes and other humans if done correctly. But soon I found there were A LOT of plot holes surrounding this task and the authors seemed more eager to write a romance than to deliver the promised issue in regards this exam.
Let me put a classic example. So, in the beginning we get to know Roger is the only one who has proposed to change the exam and gets tasked with creating that new test. Right, we knew that from the summary. But my question here is, what occupation or titulation does Roger have to be given this supposed honour? I mean, apart from his dad being a member of the council who approved his idea.
Because all it´s said about Roger is that he scored badly in his own exam, he was bullied back at school, has no means to have a profession (due to that bad score) and he cannot be engaged either.
And later, when we get to the few scenes where Roger actually gets to work in this project, we notice the guy has NO IDEA of how fae magic works, even though part of this work he´s meant to do is creating a test for fae.
I ask again, what is this? Wouldn´t it make more sense to give the task to someone who actually is well versed in both human and fae magic? Why waste time giving the task to two people who are clearly not acquaintanced with human and fae magic respectively and therefore they must use a bunch of precious time to inform themselves before doing anything for the project?
Well, obviously, it´s because convenience of the plot. Because this serves as means to get the two protagonist to work together
- And yes, this is another thing that bothered me inmensely: During the entire plot, it´s said the creation of this new exam is very important, to the point it could end the discrimination between fae, humans and also help not outcasting people for low scores. Yet, NO ONE CARES about the project. Maybe some do by word (Roger), but most of them don´t.
Why do I say this? Well, a bunch of reasons, starting with the fact that the only reason the Council put Roger and Wyn to work together (in spite knowing they didn´t get along) was because they shipped them.
Yes, you read right. That is the whole motive.
The romance plot is VERY FORCED. This is the kind of story where two people don´t get along well (to the point that one of them even bullied the other in the past, but we´ll brush that off quickly, don´t worry) and yet all their family and acquaintances have an attitude of: "Oh, but you´d be so good together! Why don´t you marry already?".
It was overwhelming. Too ridiculous.
I hate when other characters try to force a relationship like that. I could have put up with it if it were for one or two scenes, since it wouldn´t be something uncommon for a YA story. It´ll still be annoying, but I´d deal with it. But no, it happens during the WHOLE book. Even when Roger and Wyn are engaged, people are still acting as if their kids are going to marry and nothing else matters.
The Council was like, "oh, you got this social engagement now? Don´t fret, we´ll pospone the deadline for your work". And the family was like, "oh, don´t work so hard! Come to this social event and you´ll finish that later".
And you see... For each scene where we see Roger and Wyn working on the project, we see other 10 of them going to a pointless party or social gathering of some sort. This happened ALMOST EVERY DAY. To the poing it became repetitive and it looked like all these people did was having time of leisure instead of working (no, but seriously, if you´re new to this book and try reading it, can you reply to this review with the exact number of party / opera visits and social engagements these people attended, then compare it with the times Roger was at his study actually working on the project? I lost count on the way and I´d be interested to know).
- But let´s talk about the marriage engagement, because I saw a funny thing here.
You see, the engagement happened for an absurd reason:
I want to clarify here that I got nothing against that way of forcing an engagement (yes, I might think it´s petty and cliché, but it´s okay because at this point I didn´t expect anything better). But my problem came when I saw how they dealt with this unexpected trouble.
Because you see, the engagement was never cancelled by the excuse of: "It would be a scandal saying the paper was wrong."
Like, excuse me? Then newspapers in this world can invent whatever they want and NO ONE is going to complain but go with it.
Because that was not only the protagonists way of thinking, it was also their respective families´ point of view: They were told it was all a mistake from the newspaper and, instead of providing support and find a way for them not to marry, they are happy as if the engagement was something that came from Roger and Wyn, quite willing to make the wedding happen.
It was... strange.
Almost as strange of Wyn´s change of personality during this part of the book (before he had been a brat towards Roger, always complaining and acting like he was better than him, but suddenly since they got engaged he started acting like a normal person who actually doesn´t mind to be engaged to someone he used to despise). I didn´t understand a shit, tbh. There was no reason to change his character from one chapter to other.
- Also, this book amazes me in the sense that is inclusive in some things (like LGBTQ+ marriages being normalized) but quite retrograde in others, treating some male characters as if they were XIX ladies in need of escort or, weirdly enough, to get out of a carriage (???)
But let me put a couple of examples here that left me wondering: So, after the engagement is announced, Roger´s parents demand that he abandons the house where he is living alone and come back to live with them until the wedding. My question here is, and more so since Roger is technically an adult in this world, what is the need for that? Don´t you find it absurd?
It might make sense if he were a woman in our XIX world, but here is a bit...
And then there were things like the estatement that, once married, "Wyn will receive this house and you two can live there together" which made me question, where was living Roger until then, to be able to change houses so easily? He wasn´t the owner of the place? And if he were, why is it unilateral this decision of him having to give up his house to come live with Wyn when the time comes?
It also bothered me when Roger´s mom, after knowing about the wedding, told him something by the means of: "I didn´t teach your siblings how to run a household, since they are heads of their own families, but I can teach you". And yeah, she said it happily, but I was so weirded out because it very much sounded as if a XIX lady were telling her daugther she would teach her all about the household chores (you know, the usual for a woman at that time) while assuming Roger WAS NOT going to be head of his family.
My question there was: Why did she assume he wouldn´t be that? Is it because he is a human marrying a fae? But then how do you explain that, in this society, it is worse seen being a fae than a human? And also all the points I talked about before where they pretty much treat Roger as the woman of a relationship (btw, speaking of this, I don´t want to think bad but... Wyn has sexual experience, while Roger -specially after the engagement- acts like an innocent maiden and obviously has had no relationship experience. Does this sound familiar to you?).
Anyway, I dragged this for too long. Just like this book.
It was repetitive, the romance was forced and barely went forward, and all the fae / human discrimination part made no sense because they barely stopped on it. Kudos to the person who made the cover, because it´s gorgeous. But that is nearly the only good thing I can say about this book.
Thank you very much for your attention.
Far too long for the story its trying to tell. I think with half the number of pages the plot would have run more smoothly but, then again, I guess we´ll never know. I DNF this at 65% and here I going to enlist all the problems I found that made me reconsider and go waste my time somewhere else:
- The first thing that made no sense for me was the age of the characters.
Because, you see, they are 29 and 30 respectively and the book is tagged as "Adult". Okay, but when you actually read the story, you realize that in this universe the authors created, the majority of age is reached not at 18, nor at 21, but at 30!
That is very odd for me. And it gets weirder when you notice the main characters behave like teens, and their parents also treat them as kids. I´m a bit like... Excuse me? What is this? The narration also reads VERY young adult so I cannot really understand why tagging this book as "Adult" when they could have, idk, made the main characters be in their early 20s and tag it as "YA".
- I´m not going to deny the premise looked interesting, with a human protagonist (Roger) trying to come up with the rules for an exam that would benefit faes and other humans if done correctly. But soon I found there were A LOT of plot holes surrounding this task and the authors seemed more eager to write a romance than to deliver the promised issue in regards this exam.
Let me put a classic example. So, in the beginning we get to know Roger is the only one who has proposed to change the exam and gets tasked with creating that new test. Right, we knew that from the summary. But my question here is, what occupation or titulation does Roger have to be given this supposed honour? I mean, apart from his dad being a member of the council who approved his idea.
Because all it´s said about Roger is that he scored badly in his own exam, he was bullied back at school, has no means to have a profession (due to that bad score) and he cannot be engaged either.
And later, when we get to the few scenes where Roger actually gets to work in this project, we notice the guy has NO IDEA of how fae magic works, even though part of this work he´s meant to do is creating a test for fae.
I ask again, what is this? Wouldn´t it make more sense to give the task to someone who actually is well versed in both human and fae magic? Why waste time giving the task to two people who are clearly not acquaintanced with human and fae magic respectively and therefore they must use a bunch of precious time to inform themselves before doing anything for the project?
Well, obviously, it´s because convenience of the plot. Because this serves as means to get the two protagonist to work together
- And yes, this is another thing that bothered me inmensely: During the entire plot, it´s said the creation of this new exam is very important, to the point it could end the discrimination between fae, humans and also help not outcasting people for low scores. Yet, NO ONE CARES about the project. Maybe some do by word (Roger), but most of them don´t.
Why do I say this? Well, a bunch of reasons, starting with the fact that the only reason the Council put Roger and Wyn to work together (in spite knowing they didn´t get along) was because they shipped them.
Yes, you read right. That is the whole motive.
The romance plot is VERY FORCED. This is the kind of story where two people don´t get along well (to the point that one of them even bullied the other in the past, but we´ll brush that off quickly, don´t worry) and yet all their family and acquaintances have an attitude of: "Oh, but you´d be so good together! Why don´t you marry already?".
It was overwhelming. Too ridiculous.
I hate when other characters try to force a relationship like that. I could have put up with it if it were for one or two scenes, since it wouldn´t be something uncommon for a YA story. It´ll still be annoying, but I´d deal with it. But no, it happens during the WHOLE book. Even when Roger and Wyn are engaged, people are still acting as if their kids are going to marry and nothing else matters.
The Council was like, "oh, you got this social engagement now? Don´t fret, we´ll pospone the deadline for your work". And the family was like, "oh, don´t work so hard! Come to this social event and you´ll finish that later".
And you see... For each scene where we see Roger and Wyn working on the project, we see other 10 of them going to a pointless party or social gathering of some sort. This happened ALMOST EVERY DAY. To the poing it became repetitive and it looked like all these people did was having time of leisure instead of working (no, but seriously, if you´re new to this book and try reading it, can you reply to this review with the exact number of party / opera visits and social engagements these people attended, then compare it with the times Roger was at his study actually working on the project? I lost count on the way and I´d be interested to know).
- But let´s talk about the marriage engagement, because I saw a funny thing here.
You see, the engagement happened for an absurd reason:
I want to clarify here that I got nothing against that way of forcing an engagement (yes, I might think it´s petty and cliché, but it´s okay because at this point I didn´t expect anything better). But my problem came when I saw how they dealt with this unexpected trouble.
Because you see, the engagement was never cancelled by the excuse of: "It would be a scandal saying the paper was wrong."
Like, excuse me? Then newspapers in this world can invent whatever they want and NO ONE is going to complain but go with it.
Because that was not only the protagonists way of thinking, it was also their respective families´ point of view: They were told it was all a mistake from the newspaper and, instead of providing support and find a way for them not to marry, they are happy as if the engagement was something that came from Roger and Wyn, quite willing to make the wedding happen.
It was... strange.
Almost as strange of Wyn´s change of personality during this part of the book (before he had been a brat towards Roger, always complaining and acting like he was better than him, but suddenly since they got engaged he started acting like a normal person who actually doesn´t mind to be engaged to someone he used to despise). I didn´t understand a shit, tbh. There was no reason to change his character from one chapter to other.
- Also, this book amazes me in the sense that is inclusive in some things (like LGBTQ+ marriages being normalized) but quite retrograde in others, treating some male characters as if they were XIX ladies in need of escort or, weirdly enough, to get out of a carriage (???)
But let me put a couple of examples here that left me wondering: So, after the engagement is announced, Roger´s parents demand that he abandons the house where he is living alone and come back to live with them until the wedding. My question here is, and more so since Roger is technically an adult in this world, what is the need for that? Don´t you find it absurd?
It might make sense if he were a woman in our XIX world, but here is a bit...
And then there were things like the estatement that, once married, "Wyn will receive this house and you two can live there together" which made me question, where was living Roger until then, to be able to change houses so easily? He wasn´t the owner of the place? And if he were, why is it unilateral this decision of him having to give up his house to come live with Wyn when the time comes?
It also bothered me when Roger´s mom, after knowing about the wedding, told him something by the means of: "I didn´t teach your siblings how to run a household, since they are heads of their own families, but I can teach you". And yeah, she said it happily, but I was so weirded out because it very much sounded as if a XIX lady were telling her daugther she would teach her all about the household chores (you know, the usual for a woman at that time) while assuming Roger WAS NOT going to be head of his family.
My question there was: Why did she assume he wouldn´t be that? Is it because he is a human marrying a fae? But then how do you explain that, in this society, it is worse seen being a fae than a human? And also all the points I talked about before where they pretty much treat Roger as the woman of a relationship (btw, speaking of this, I don´t want to think bad but... Wyn has sexual experience, while Roger -specially after the engagement- acts like an innocent maiden and obviously has had no relationship experience. Does this sound familiar to you?).
Anyway, I dragged this for too long. Just like this book.
It was repetitive, the romance was forced and barely went forward, and all the fae / human discrimination part made no sense because they barely stopped on it. Kudos to the person who made the cover, because it´s gorgeous. But that is nearly the only good thing I can say about this book.
Thank you very much for your attention.
September 5, 2024
So Adorable. So Cozy. A Hug In A Mug.
Oh I love this so much. This was one of the books I picked up blindly. And what a good surprise!!
A more proper review should come soon.
PS: Please let there be a sequel. Something with Torquil Pimpernel-Smith and let's say.. Emrys, would be most interesting.
Oh I love this so much. This was one of the books I picked up blindly. And what a good surprise!!
A more proper review should come soon.
PS: Please let there be a sequel. Something with Torquil Pimpernel-Smith and let's say.. Emrys, would be most interesting.
February 29, 2024
4.5 stars
This one was quirky and cute with a very smart world building and an endearing Enemies to Lovers, Opposites attract relationship between a human and a fae. All that while touching upon social discrimination, demisexuality AND body positivity. The audiobook is stunningly narrated by Matt Simpson.🤌🏻
This one was quirky and cute with a very smart world building and an endearing Enemies to Lovers, Opposites attract relationship between a human and a fae. All that while touching upon social discrimination, demisexuality AND body positivity. The audiobook is stunningly narrated by Matt Simpson.🤌🏻
January 26, 2024
When Roger Barnes comes up with a proposal to give to the council that oversees Fae and Human magic that will help streamline the magical testing process and save future generations from being riddled with a low score that leaves them unable to find good work and often shunned from society, the council sees fit to pair him with a fae to work through how the new magical testing should be done. Of course he is paired with Wyndham Wrenwhistle, a fae he knew from childhood. The pair never got along, finding the other to be rude or exhausting.
Luckily both men are curious and want to learn more about the other's magic. Throw in an accidental proposal, the pair find themselves growing closer as their proposal research progresses and their imminent wedding draws closer. Can true love blossom between these two oposites?
Okay. So. I loved this. But at first I HATED Wyn. He wasn't just rude to Roger but it often came across as maliciously rude. As the pair warm up towards one another the reason behind this becomes much more evident and its very easy to forgive Wyn. I was honestly a bit uncomfortable for the first few chapters with the expectation that I would have to root for someone as terrible as Wyn. Spoiler: he's not terrible, he's lovely and a bit misunderstood.
Having the setting of this novel be one that is set during Regency times as well as queer normative (plus fae) was a true joy. I LOVE Regency romance and this is a true cozy joy. There is just one instance of intolerance that is SWIFTLY put down by other characters and I LOVED that. Seeing Wyn and Roger grow closer while researching their magics is lovely and cozy and squishy.
I think it is deeply impressive that the authors came up with not one but two separate magic systems with rules to follow and figured out how they could compare and compliment each other. Very cool.
The book is LONG and seems unnecessarily so at first. I saw the number of chapters and was like "oof, she's too long" but as you get down into it the chapters are short and often switch between perspectives in the same scene and it was really enjoyable to read, in real time, how both Wyn and Roger felt about various situations. All in all the book flies by and I found myself wanting even more of the adorable Wynn and Roger by the end.
I really enjoyed the Gossip Girl, Lady Whistledown character Torquil Pimpernel-Smith and very much hope we get tons and tons more of them in the other books that the authors have planned for this series.
Definitely a recommendation if you enjoy cozy romance, historical romance, and non dark-sided fae. 4.5/5 rounded up.
Thank you to Sarah Wallace and S.O. Callahan for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. Keep up the great work, ladies!
Luckily both men are curious and want to learn more about the other's magic. Throw in an accidental proposal, the pair find themselves growing closer as their proposal research progresses and their imminent wedding draws closer. Can true love blossom between these two oposites?
Okay. So. I loved this. But at first I HATED Wyn. He wasn't just rude to Roger but it often came across as maliciously rude. As the pair warm up towards one another the reason behind this becomes much more evident and its very easy to forgive Wyn. I was honestly a bit uncomfortable for the first few chapters with the expectation that I would have to root for someone as terrible as Wyn. Spoiler: he's not terrible, he's lovely and a bit misunderstood.
Having the setting of this novel be one that is set during Regency times as well as queer normative (plus fae) was a true joy. I LOVE Regency romance and this is a true cozy joy. There is just one instance of intolerance that is SWIFTLY put down by other characters and I LOVED that. Seeing Wyn and Roger grow closer while researching their magics is lovely and cozy and squishy.
I think it is deeply impressive that the authors came up with not one but two separate magic systems with rules to follow and figured out how they could compare and compliment each other. Very cool.
The book is LONG and seems unnecessarily so at first. I saw the number of chapters and was like "oof, she's too long" but as you get down into it the chapters are short and often switch between perspectives in the same scene and it was really enjoyable to read, in real time, how both Wyn and Roger felt about various situations. All in all the book flies by and I found myself wanting even more of the adorable Wynn and Roger by the end.
I really enjoyed the Gossip Girl, Lady Whistledown character Torquil Pimpernel-Smith and very much hope we get tons and tons more of them in the other books that the authors have planned for this series.
Definitely a recommendation if you enjoy cozy romance, historical romance, and non dark-sided fae. 4.5/5 rounded up.
Thank you to Sarah Wallace and S.O. Callahan for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. Keep up the great work, ladies!
July 1, 2024
I loved this so much!!
The audiobook was just perfect!
RTC
The audiobook was just perfect!
RTC
February 4, 2024
This was one of the most feel good books I think I have ever read. I wasn’t sure in the first few chapters if it was going to be high angst, with a villain and magical mayhem. Because of that the first few chapters felt a little slow to me but then once I settled into the pace it became an incredible sweet, almost tender romance story with fake engagement, enemies to lovers and so much tooth aching sweetness. This may become a reread book for me when times are tough because the amount of queer, genderqueer and sex positivity was just truly lovely.
January 30, 2024
If you love Bridgerton (the show) but want to make it gay and throw in some fae folk then you will definitely want to read this! This was so adorable.
July 17, 2024
I liked thos book, I really did but it was too big for what it was. If it was a little bit smaller, it would have been so much better.
But moving on, I liked the whole vibe of it, it was adorable.
Wyn was the most resistant one and yet he fell so hard, it was very entertaning to watch.
Roger was a cutie pie, and he deserved a person who loved him for him. And he got it with Wyn
But moving on, I liked the whole vibe of it, it was adorable.
Wyn was the most resistant one and yet he fell so hard, it was very entertaning to watch.
Roger was a cutie pie, and he deserved a person who loved him for him. And he got it with Wyn
February 8, 2024
So logically I know that this was wonderful and beautiful and magical and all of the wonderful representation that I could ever dream for. Realistically I listened to this while I had a migraine and I don't remember very much. A reread is definitely in my future hopefully sooner rather than later but definitely before the second book comes out.
February 12, 2024
✨ Regency Era Historical Fantasy
✨ Queernormative World
✨ Opposites Attract
✨ Slow Burn
✨ Gay MC
✨ Demisexual MC
✨ Fat MC
In a world where your position in society is determined by how high your magical testing score is at the age of 12, the poverty rate of humans with low scores is climbing. So while Fae and Humans alike are returning to London for the season, Roger Barnes is proposing a new testing rubric to the Council, in hopes of a less prejudiced future for younger generations.
In order to keep both the human and fae testing systems similar the Council proposes Roger work together with dashing fae, Wyndham Wrenwhistle, to design mirrored rubrics that examine more aspects of one's magical ability.
However, Roger and Wyn couldn't be more different and Wyn seems to hate everything about Roger. Is their project destined to fail or will something more become of this forced partnership?
🌹🌹🌹🌹
Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms is the queer cozy fantasy of my dreams ❤️ Seriously y'all this one is so good, especially if you are a fan of a good slow burn.
I absolutely adore Roger and Wyn. The way their relationship developed and grew through out the book was absolutely beautiful. I could read about them forever.
Initially, I did wonder how these two were going to fall in love because there was so much mutual dislike. I felt Wyn was particularly antagonistic towards Roger. However, then Wyn set some things on fire (literally) and I was like "Ah there it is"🔥
I'm excited to see where the authors take this story in book two especially with the wonderful cast of side characters that were introduced.
Thank you to Sarah Wallace and S.O. Callahan for providing me with an ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.
✨ Queernormative World
✨ Opposites Attract
✨ Slow Burn
✨ Gay MC
✨ Demisexual MC
✨ Fat MC
In a world where your position in society is determined by how high your magical testing score is at the age of 12, the poverty rate of humans with low scores is climbing. So while Fae and Humans alike are returning to London for the season, Roger Barnes is proposing a new testing rubric to the Council, in hopes of a less prejudiced future for younger generations.
In order to keep both the human and fae testing systems similar the Council proposes Roger work together with dashing fae, Wyndham Wrenwhistle, to design mirrored rubrics that examine more aspects of one's magical ability.
However, Roger and Wyn couldn't be more different and Wyn seems to hate everything about Roger. Is their project destined to fail or will something more become of this forced partnership?
🌹🌹🌹🌹
Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms is the queer cozy fantasy of my dreams ❤️ Seriously y'all this one is so good, especially if you are a fan of a good slow burn.
I absolutely adore Roger and Wyn. The way their relationship developed and grew through out the book was absolutely beautiful. I could read about them forever.
Initially, I did wonder how these two were going to fall in love because there was so much mutual dislike. I felt Wyn was particularly antagonistic towards Roger. However, then Wyn set some things on fire (literally) and I was like "Ah there it is"🔥
I'm excited to see where the authors take this story in book two especially with the wonderful cast of side characters that were introduced.
Thank you to Sarah Wallace and S.O. Callahan for providing me with an ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.
January 9, 2024
Reviewed on behalf of The Book Boyfriend Addict. A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.
Roger Barnes hopes to find a solution to the testing that’s been used to test magic in his fellow humans. He knows better than anyone the implications of receiving a poor score on an inherently unfair test. The Council accepts his proposal to explore a new testing rubric but then pairs him with Wyndham Wrenwhistle, an arrogant and handsome fae who’s seemingly disliked Roger since they were children. He’s pretty sure the project is doomed but much to Roger’s surprise he and Wyn manage to put their differences aside long enough to make some headway in their task.
Their tenuous partnership is challenged when a popular gossip column announces that the pair is engaged. Not wanting to disgrace their families, they must go along with the lie. As they work to solve society’s testing problem while also trying to pull off the perfect wedding, they may find true love along the way.
This book was the absolute sweetest! I enjoyed the world these authors built, it was interesting and robust and I appreciated that the magical elements weren’t overly complicated. One of my very favorite things, though, was that it was a queer normative world. I loved seeing a historical romance where no one bats an eye if two men are betrothed or if two women are courting one another. It was very refreshing. It was not a world without faults, though. A human and fae pairing was still not widely accepted but I enjoyed seeing how Roger and Wyn’s pairing worked toward changing that outlook.
Speaking of our two heroes, these two were so cute together. Well, not at first because Wyn was brooding, arrogant, and often unkind to Roger. But as he got to know him more, he slowly began to thaw and realized he had misjudged Roger. It was sweet seeing the subtle ways he started to support and boost Roger up. He became Roger’s biggest cheerleader and worked to get Roger to see his worth. Roger was the most precious bean, the kind you want to protect from anything bad. Wyn did a good job of that! But the best thing was seeing how Roger recognized the struggles that Wyn often kept hidden and stepped up to support and protect him. They built such a beautiful partnership.
There was very little (if any) angst in this story and it was the slowest burn to ever burn but the writing was so good. Some of the descriptions of the scenes and the magic spells were breathtaking. It’s a long book, clocking in at nearly 500pgs, but it was so sweet and cozy that I was happy to take my time and bask in the good vibes!
Wyn brought the flower up, brushing the petals gently over his lips. With his other hand resting on his stomach, a desperate attempt to settle all the fluttering going on, he decided it wasn’t something terrible happening to him, but something terrifying.
He was falling helplessly in love with Roger Barnes.
Roger Barnes hopes to find a solution to the testing that’s been used to test magic in his fellow humans. He knows better than anyone the implications of receiving a poor score on an inherently unfair test. The Council accepts his proposal to explore a new testing rubric but then pairs him with Wyndham Wrenwhistle, an arrogant and handsome fae who’s seemingly disliked Roger since they were children. He’s pretty sure the project is doomed but much to Roger’s surprise he and Wyn manage to put their differences aside long enough to make some headway in their task.
Their tenuous partnership is challenged when a popular gossip column announces that the pair is engaged. Not wanting to disgrace their families, they must go along with the lie. As they work to solve society’s testing problem while also trying to pull off the perfect wedding, they may find true love along the way.
“Roger,” Wyn said.
“Hm?” Roger asked.
Wyn felt his honest words come out faster than he could stop them.
“I’m glad it’s you.”
This book was the absolute sweetest! I enjoyed the world these authors built, it was interesting and robust and I appreciated that the magical elements weren’t overly complicated. One of my very favorite things, though, was that it was a queer normative world. I loved seeing a historical romance where no one bats an eye if two men are betrothed or if two women are courting one another. It was very refreshing. It was not a world without faults, though. A human and fae pairing was still not widely accepted but I enjoyed seeing how Roger and Wyn’s pairing worked toward changing that outlook.
Speaking of our two heroes, these two were so cute together. Well, not at first because Wyn was brooding, arrogant, and often unkind to Roger. But as he got to know him more, he slowly began to thaw and realized he had misjudged Roger. It was sweet seeing the subtle ways he started to support and boost Roger up. He became Roger’s biggest cheerleader and worked to get Roger to see his worth. Roger was the most precious bean, the kind you want to protect from anything bad. Wyn did a good job of that! But the best thing was seeing how Roger recognized the struggles that Wyn often kept hidden and stepped up to support and protect him. They built such a beautiful partnership.
There was very little (if any) angst in this story and it was the slowest burn to ever burn but the writing was so good. Some of the descriptions of the scenes and the magic spells were breathtaking. It’s a long book, clocking in at nearly 500pgs, but it was so sweet and cozy that I was happy to take my time and bask in the good vibes!
“You are a marvel, Roger Barnes. The world is lucky to have you and your glorious mind in it.”
January 24, 2024
[I received an ARC for an honest review]
Rating: 5 stars (10/10)
Spice: 🌶️
Tropes: human x fae, childhood E2L, forced proximity, magic, fake engagement, historic romance
Review:
This world and these characters are so amazing, and I was so glad to be able to review this book. It is set in 1800s England, and we follow Roger Barnes, a human who got a bad score on the Hasting's test, which is a magic competency exam conducted at 12 years old, and of which much of one's job and marriage prospects are hinged on, as he tries to appeal to the council for fae and humans to consider a more nuanced rubric for grading magical aptitude to help combat the increasing number of students getting lower and lower scores. We also follow Wyndham Wrenwhistle, a fae aristocrat who grew up around Barnes, and who also scored low, but is more commonly known for his good wardrobe and rambunctious lifestyle. The council approves of Roger's proposal, but requires a fae to help choose fae spells to match the human spells Roger suggests for the new rubric, since fae and humans do not learn about each other's magic growing up, and in fact they tend to hate each other's magic for the different ways they conduct it.
There is this intense displeasure for each other which has existed for a couple of decades, and suddenly they're forced to work closely together on something that Roger is very passionate about, and Wyn doesn't really care about. A news (gossip) column which posts every week to the citizens of London becomes a common place for the two of them to dig at each other, and many of the comedic moments come from the ways in which things go wrong for them and the other by silly impulsive letters they send to the editor. In a cruel twist of fate, suddenly all of London is now made aware of the engagement and upcoming nuptials of Roger and Wyndham, unbeknownst to both of them, and now suddenly they have to plan a wedding, adjust to the fact they will be marrying a person they've had a disdain for for a long time, and now somehow still work on this proposal. Things from here change tone a little bit, as we focus a little less on the humour and hostility between the two, and we watch as they both finally address their grievances with each other, and begin to work together towards something more.
The second half of the book had me in a chokehold, watching the ways in which Wyndham softened and opened up to Roger, and how he came to understand what he wants in someone and has had missing for his life. And seeing Roger learn of Wyndham, and to feel validated and appreciated, as well as protective of Wyn and the ways in which he struggles under the pressure of his name and image. They become each other's strength, and watching them build each other up was honestly so sweet. It is never stated, probably since there isn't really terminology for it and society is open-minded about sex and gender, but Roger presents as demisexual in the way he thinks about and feels about relationships, and watching Wyn treat him so carefully and gently around physical intimacy was also so sweet. This story is not at all spicy, but that is not the point either. Watching the ways in which their forced proximity finally gave them a space to be themselves and express their inner desires to someone else showed them how complimentary they are, and I really appreciated the ways in which they were validated by the other. I really really recommend this if you lime slice of life, gentle fantasy with an interesting magic system, and two rivals slowly falling in love with each other, with a healthy dose of humour and aristocratic hijinks.
Rating: 5 stars (10/10)
Spice: 🌶️
Tropes: human x fae, childhood E2L, forced proximity, magic, fake engagement, historic romance
Review:
This world and these characters are so amazing, and I was so glad to be able to review this book. It is set in 1800s England, and we follow Roger Barnes, a human who got a bad score on the Hasting's test, which is a magic competency exam conducted at 12 years old, and of which much of one's job and marriage prospects are hinged on, as he tries to appeal to the council for fae and humans to consider a more nuanced rubric for grading magical aptitude to help combat the increasing number of students getting lower and lower scores. We also follow Wyndham Wrenwhistle, a fae aristocrat who grew up around Barnes, and who also scored low, but is more commonly known for his good wardrobe and rambunctious lifestyle. The council approves of Roger's proposal, but requires a fae to help choose fae spells to match the human spells Roger suggests for the new rubric, since fae and humans do not learn about each other's magic growing up, and in fact they tend to hate each other's magic for the different ways they conduct it.
There is this intense displeasure for each other which has existed for a couple of decades, and suddenly they're forced to work closely together on something that Roger is very passionate about, and Wyn doesn't really care about. A news (gossip) column which posts every week to the citizens of London becomes a common place for the two of them to dig at each other, and many of the comedic moments come from the ways in which things go wrong for them and the other by silly impulsive letters they send to the editor. In a cruel twist of fate, suddenly all of London is now made aware of the engagement and upcoming nuptials of Roger and Wyndham, unbeknownst to both of them, and now suddenly they have to plan a wedding, adjust to the fact they will be marrying a person they've had a disdain for for a long time, and now somehow still work on this proposal. Things from here change tone a little bit, as we focus a little less on the humour and hostility between the two, and we watch as they both finally address their grievances with each other, and begin to work together towards something more.
The second half of the book had me in a chokehold, watching the ways in which Wyndham softened and opened up to Roger, and how he came to understand what he wants in someone and has had missing for his life. And seeing Roger learn of Wyndham, and to feel validated and appreciated, as well as protective of Wyn and the ways in which he struggles under the pressure of his name and image. They become each other's strength, and watching them build each other up was honestly so sweet. It is never stated, probably since there isn't really terminology for it and society is open-minded about sex and gender, but Roger presents as demisexual in the way he thinks about and feels about relationships, and watching Wyn treat him so carefully and gently around physical intimacy was also so sweet. This story is not at all spicy, but that is not the point either. Watching the ways in which their forced proximity finally gave them a space to be themselves and express their inner desires to someone else showed them how complimentary they are, and I really appreciated the ways in which they were validated by the other. I really really recommend this if you lime slice of life, gentle fantasy with an interesting magic system, and two rivals slowly falling in love with each other, with a healthy dose of humour and aristocratic hijinks.
January 7, 2024
I really enjoyed Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms!
It's a cozy fantasy book set in a queernormative regency era world and has a fae x human romance.
This was actually my first book by either author, and it definitely will not be my last as their writing was absolutely amazing!
The world and the magic they created was also really good.
My favourite part of the book, though, was definitely the romance between Roger and Wyn.
It was a slow burn romance, which has always been my favourite.
I really just loved both of them, and they had me smile so much throughout the book.
One thing I have to say is that this book is over 450 pages, and I did feel like it dragged at times, and it probably could have been shorter.
This didn't really affect my enjoyment of the book, but I felt like I should at least mention it.
I've actually already preodered myself a physical copy and can't wait to have it in my hands, and i'm also really excited for more books in this world.
I definitely highly recommend checking out this book!
It's a cozy fantasy book set in a queernormative regency era world and has a fae x human romance.
This was actually my first book by either author, and it definitely will not be my last as their writing was absolutely amazing!
The world and the magic they created was also really good.
My favourite part of the book, though, was definitely the romance between Roger and Wyn.
It was a slow burn romance, which has always been my favourite.
I really just loved both of them, and they had me smile so much throughout the book.
One thing I have to say is that this book is over 450 pages, and I did feel like it dragged at times, and it probably could have been shorter.
This didn't really affect my enjoyment of the book, but I felt like I should at least mention it.
I've actually already preodered myself a physical copy and can't wait to have it in my hands, and i'm also really excited for more books in this world.
I definitely highly recommend checking out this book!
January 10, 2024
This is such a warm, cosy, comforting regency romantasy novel and I absolutely loved it. The queernormative world is beautiful and there is demisexual, demiromantic, gay, lesbian and enby rep - I'm sure there's actually more that I'm forgetting to list. Also there was no silly/manufactured third act conflict, which I appreciated so much!
I don't know what else to say really. This is a great book, do yourself a favour and read it
N.b. I was very kindly sent an early copy, by the authors, for review purposes
I don't know what else to say really. This is a great book, do yourself a favour and read it
N.b. I was very kindly sent an early copy, by the authors, for review purposes
July 14, 2024
I’m glad I did the audio for this because it was a lot of fun to listen to. At first I was unsure of Wyn as he was an ass in the beginning but then I fell in love with their sweet love story.
Minor niggles… if you’re going to write ANY steam, then write steam. Not half assed hand jobs a couple times at the very end. Either have it or don’t, but please don’t put it in almost as an afterthought. Annoys the crap out of me.
Also the narrator has a hot mic and I could hear every smack of the saliva in his mouth and there were times when I wanted to reach through my headphones and scream. 😬🤪
BUT, this was a super fun book. Huzzah.
Minor niggles… if you’re going to write ANY steam, then write steam. Not half assed hand jobs a couple times at the very end. Either have it or don’t, but please don’t put it in almost as an afterthought. Annoys the crap out of me.
Also the narrator has a hot mic and I could hear every smack of the saliva in his mouth and there were times when I wanted to reach through my headphones and scream. 😬🤪
BUT, this was a super fun book. Huzzah.
January 10, 2024
This is such an adorable cozy fantasy book! I found myself smiling and tearing up with how adorable these two were.
In the beginning, I was not a fan of Wyn. The way he treated Rodger in the beginning pissed me off. Rodger just seemed anxious around Wyn but he was very kind. Wyn seemed to be pompous and unwilling to listen to Rodger and anyone other than himself really. I’m so glad he got a proper character development. The slow burn romance between them was amazing to see. The magic here was so unique as well. I had never read anything like it. Seeing them try to create something between them was adorable.
As cozy fantasy goes, this is in the top for me. I really enjoyed Rodger and Wyn and seeing them develop. I’m excited to read more from both of these authors!
In the beginning, I was not a fan of Wyn. The way he treated Rodger in the beginning pissed me off. Rodger just seemed anxious around Wyn but he was very kind. Wyn seemed to be pompous and unwilling to listen to Rodger and anyone other than himself really. I’m so glad he got a proper character development. The slow burn romance between them was amazing to see. The magic here was so unique as well. I had never read anything like it. Seeing them try to create something between them was adorable.
As cozy fantasy goes, this is in the top for me. I really enjoyed Rodger and Wyn and seeing them develop. I’m excited to read more from both of these authors!
February 8, 2024
4.75*
I will give review after i will be able to. Now i need to be happy and giggling to the pillow 😂
edit:
first thing first i would like to thanks to the authors for eARC.
This book was perfect. It's great mix of sweet, cozy and magic so when i was reading i couldn't stop smiling. That's also why, if you would ask me what did i liked the most, it would be the pure love not just the romantic one but also friends love, parents love and love for nature.
now let's start with more detail review:
I will start with the flaws and that was the score rating which wasn't more explained. it's literally the main plot, because Roger an Wil are working on change in the system of the rating, but we don't actually know why is there this magic score, how it works or why is so bad to have low score. It's there but its's not something with deep meaning, i guess it's also because of the fact that the plot is on the second place, meanwhile we are following the characters interaction.
So that't the only issue i have with the story. Now let's look on the rest. I totally love the parents of both guys, they are so respectful and supporting, that you will be jealous because there aren't so many parents in reall world. The book has queer normative setting which is so lovable that I had so strong feelings of happiness, i felt in long time.
Another things i loved one was the news articles. It's funny and so gossiping that I felt like i was on market place with few grandma's. I laughed so hard it started to feel pain in lungs. And the writers were so sneeky i totally falled in love with them (ps they'r nonbinary)
Roger and Wil had such a great chemistry i their relationship, so it really was enemies to lovers and pretty great slow-burn like the type of slow-burne when the kiss is after very long time.
Magic was based on nature and it was divided on material use with signs, which is the human magic, and the fea's one which was based on 'sense'. I don't know how to described this but Wil could just thing on the element he wanted to use and it just 'came', also his was special because it react on his feelings. On the other hand Roger needed to use processed elements. For example: dirt, branches,ash and so on. But that wasn't all because he needed to draw something like runs under the raw materials
for it to work.
So i can with my ful hard recommend this book, because you will feel loved.
I will give review after i will be able to. Now i need to be happy and giggling to the pillow 😂
edit:
first thing first i would like to thanks to the authors for eARC.
This book was perfect. It's great mix of sweet, cozy and magic so when i was reading i couldn't stop smiling. That's also why, if you would ask me what did i liked the most, it would be the pure love not just the romantic one but also friends love, parents love and love for nature.
now let's start with more detail review:
I will start with the flaws and that was the score rating which wasn't more explained. it's literally the main plot, because Roger an Wil are working on change in the system of the rating, but we don't actually know why is there this magic score, how it works or why is so bad to have low score. It's there but its's not something with deep meaning, i guess it's also because of the fact that the plot is on the second place, meanwhile we are following the characters interaction.
So that't the only issue i have with the story. Now let's look on the rest. I totally love the parents of both guys, they are so respectful and supporting, that you will be jealous because there aren't so many parents in reall world. The book has queer normative setting which is so lovable that I had so strong feelings of happiness, i felt in long time.
Another things i loved one was the news articles. It's funny and so gossiping that I felt like i was on market place with few grandma's. I laughed so hard it started to feel pain in lungs. And the writers were so sneeky i totally falled in love with them (ps they'r nonbinary)
Roger and Wil had such a great chemistry i their relationship, so it really was enemies to lovers and pretty great slow-burn like the type of slow-burne when the kiss is after very long time.
Magic was based on nature and it was divided on material use with signs, which is the human magic, and the fea's one which was based on 'sense'. I don't know how to described this but Wil could just thing on the element he wanted to use and it just 'came', also his was special because it react on his feelings. On the other hand Roger needed to use processed elements. For example: dirt, branches,ash and so on. But that wasn't all because he needed to draw something like runs under the raw materials
for it to work.
So i can with my ful hard recommend this book, because you will feel loved.
January 29, 2024
All the hoopla girlies who listened to this on audio and it kept skipping whole paragraphs and a chapter at one point and had to borrow the actual ebook to fill in the blanks RISE UP!!! I SEE YOU IM ONE OF YOU!
This book is one satisfying dreamy sigh of fucking relief!! Defiantly a new comfort read!! THE DEMISEXUAL REP OH MY GOD I FEEL SO SEENNNN
This book is one satisfying dreamy sigh of fucking relief!! Defiantly a new comfort read!! THE DEMISEXUAL REP OH MY GOD I FEEL SO SEENNNN
January 22, 2024
Review to come
December 5, 2023
Thank you so so much to Shannon and Sarah for gifting me with an advanced reader's copy of Breeze spells and bridegrooms!
Breeze Spells and bridegrooms is the absolute perfect marriage of Wallace and Callahan and their writing styles.
I enjoyed every moment and every aspect of this story. Both authors bring to the table the love and respect for absolutely unique and extremely believable forms of magic from their respective literary universes and weave them together into the most intricately beautiful tapestry.
Reading as these two absolutely clueless fellows fell for each other, thinking that the other could not possibly feel the same, was hilariously frustrating and I didn't want to stop reading! Thrown together by circumstance, and maybe some scheming relatives, Windham and Roger need to work together to come up with a new form of testing children's magic. Rivals since childhood these two butt heads and spark romance rumors all through the London season.
I love the social commentary of fae and human. Finding the differences and similarities between them. The idea that these groups of peoples have been so separated culturally, and that they can find a way to work together so beautifully was such an amazing commentary on true acceptance of people and equity and equality.
The richness of the magical universe that has been created and the absolutely compelling way that the magic is explained is so astoundingly beautiful and so incredible that beyond even the love story of our characters the magical discussions and castings felt like a love story in and of itself. The magic felt like love.
I never wanted to put this book down, I wish it had not ended!
I anxiously await more books in this series and I could not recommend this book more 100% 10 out of 10!
Breeze Spells and bridegrooms is the absolute perfect marriage of Wallace and Callahan and their writing styles.
I enjoyed every moment and every aspect of this story. Both authors bring to the table the love and respect for absolutely unique and extremely believable forms of magic from their respective literary universes and weave them together into the most intricately beautiful tapestry.
Reading as these two absolutely clueless fellows fell for each other, thinking that the other could not possibly feel the same, was hilariously frustrating and I didn't want to stop reading! Thrown together by circumstance, and maybe some scheming relatives, Windham and Roger need to work together to come up with a new form of testing children's magic. Rivals since childhood these two butt heads and spark romance rumors all through the London season.
I love the social commentary of fae and human. Finding the differences and similarities between them. The idea that these groups of peoples have been so separated culturally, and that they can find a way to work together so beautifully was such an amazing commentary on true acceptance of people and equity and equality.
The richness of the magical universe that has been created and the absolutely compelling way that the magic is explained is so astoundingly beautiful and so incredible that beyond even the love story of our characters the magical discussions and castings felt like a love story in and of itself. The magic felt like love.
I never wanted to put this book down, I wish it had not ended!
I anxiously await more books in this series and I could not recommend this book more 100% 10 out of 10!
January 3, 2024
Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms is a thoroughly entertaining, delightfully sweet M/M historical Regency fantasy romance.
Roger Barnes is human, Wyndham Wrenwhistle is fae. They hate each other (but Roger thinks Wyn is pretty) and are forced to work together on Roger’s proposal to the Council for Fae and Human Magical Relations to better society for folks like him who have magical aptitude in other ways than what is societally accepted.
Their relationship is one of my favorites in a romance. The range of emotional depth and vulnerability, the love and lust, the friendship and the romance. Just truly in awe of the range shown. And how they grew together.
I also loved the demisexual rep (Roger) and autistic rep (Wyn) so much. I also got demiromantic/gray-romantic vibes from Wyn as well.
The magic world building is fascinating and I am so eager to see more in future books in this joint universe of S.O. Callahan and Sarah Wallace.
The Bridgerton vibes are perfection, with interspersed gossip columns that had me falling in love with the half fae, half human Torquil. I so hope they get their own romance in a future book!
If you like M/M romances, Regency setting and Bridgerton vibes, human and fae magic, slow slow slow burns, fake engagement/arranged marriage, please read this.
Thank you to Sarah Wallace and S.O. Callahan for an e-ARC of this book!
Roger Barnes is human, Wyndham Wrenwhistle is fae. They hate each other (but Roger thinks Wyn is pretty) and are forced to work together on Roger’s proposal to the Council for Fae and Human Magical Relations to better society for folks like him who have magical aptitude in other ways than what is societally accepted.
Their relationship is one of my favorites in a romance. The range of emotional depth and vulnerability, the love and lust, the friendship and the romance. Just truly in awe of the range shown. And how they grew together.
I also loved the demisexual rep (Roger) and autistic rep (Wyn) so much. I also got demiromantic/gray-romantic vibes from Wyn as well.
The magic world building is fascinating and I am so eager to see more in future books in this joint universe of S.O. Callahan and Sarah Wallace.
The Bridgerton vibes are perfection, with interspersed gossip columns that had me falling in love with the half fae, half human Torquil. I so hope they get their own romance in a future book!
If you like M/M romances, Regency setting and Bridgerton vibes, human and fae magic, slow slow slow burns, fake engagement/arranged marriage, please read this.
Thank you to Sarah Wallace and S.O. Callahan for an e-ARC of this book!
November 21, 2023
Three and a half stars.
This is a very warm, comforting and gentle romance about a human and a fae overcoming their longstanding enmity to cooperate on a reform to a magical testing system that governs their social world, and stumbling haplessly into a very public engagement. It is very sweet and while it maybe skips a bit hastily from prickliness to harmony it is engaging and perfect if you want something cosy and soft. The two main characters are likeable though I'll admit to enjoying the spiky, difficult fae the most. The parts that didn't work for me were basically world-building details and as they're possibly mildly spoilery I'll put them below...
There are pitfalls to writing Regency-inspired romance, and this book has both the obvious (a few lapses into modern Americanisms and management-speke) and the subtler jumbling of value systems. In this version of Regency London it is unclear precisely why a single magical test affects inheritance and financial or matrimonial prospects in the way it reportedly does: an issue central to the plot. The wealthy central characters don't experience any actual hardship so their reasons for concern about their scores are quite vague, likewise the supposed tensions between human and fae are left hazy. It is also hard to reconcile magic-using, queer-normalising, fae-accepting society with a semblance of the sexual strictures that were dictated in reality by Christianity and cisheteropatriarchy. I understand the impulse to make a cuddlier version of past eras but it tends to lead to a bit of a mess, and in this instance the result is a notoriously promiscuous fae being bound in a formal public engagement with a male human who is expected to be virginal and chaperoned for no very clear reason, with noone raising the question of how such a union could be expected to be successful (characters being shunted from socially enforced virginity to socially enforced marriage isn't a ~fun~ aspect of Regency settings so I question it being retained for a queer interspecies relationship! It's also odd to me when a possible mismatch in terms of interest in sex is treated as an unimportant afterthought rather than a potential marital problem.) However, if you're happy to go on cute vibes and waistcoat designs then that won't bother you! And I think that's fine, I just prefer a bit more internal logic with world(re)building. Overall an enjoyable, if light read.
I received my copy free in exchange for a review.
This is a very warm, comforting and gentle romance about a human and a fae overcoming their longstanding enmity to cooperate on a reform to a magical testing system that governs their social world, and stumbling haplessly into a very public engagement. It is very sweet and while it maybe skips a bit hastily from prickliness to harmony it is engaging and perfect if you want something cosy and soft. The two main characters are likeable though I'll admit to enjoying the spiky, difficult fae the most. The parts that didn't work for me were basically world-building details and as they're possibly mildly spoilery I'll put them below...
There are pitfalls to writing Regency-inspired romance, and this book has both the obvious (a few lapses into modern Americanisms and management-speke) and the subtler jumbling of value systems. In this version of Regency London it is unclear precisely why a single magical test affects inheritance and financial or matrimonial prospects in the way it reportedly does: an issue central to the plot. The wealthy central characters don't experience any actual hardship so their reasons for concern about their scores are quite vague, likewise the supposed tensions between human and fae are left hazy. It is also hard to reconcile magic-using, queer-normalising, fae-accepting society with a semblance of the sexual strictures that were dictated in reality by Christianity and cisheteropatriarchy. I understand the impulse to make a cuddlier version of past eras but it tends to lead to a bit of a mess, and in this instance the result is a notoriously promiscuous fae being bound in a formal public engagement with a male human who is expected to be virginal and chaperoned for no very clear reason, with noone raising the question of how such a union could be expected to be successful (characters being shunted from socially enforced virginity to socially enforced marriage isn't a ~fun~ aspect of Regency settings so I question it being retained for a queer interspecies relationship! It's also odd to me when a possible mismatch in terms of interest in sex is treated as an unimportant afterthought rather than a potential marital problem.) However, if you're happy to go on cute vibes and waistcoat designs then that won't bother you! And I think that's fine, I just prefer a bit more internal logic with world(re)building. Overall an enjoyable, if light read.
I received my copy free in exchange for a review.
June 25, 2024
DNF.
This book managed to anger me so much.
I do not understand how people like this book so much.
The love interest is a bully and I do not care to see his development cause I despise him already.
At some point I just couldn't deal with him anymore.
The protagonist is such a pushover and has no will of his one,he just wants to please Wyn.
The romance starts early one,this for me was not really slow burn.
I do not understand why we always need to have the love interest be so experienced in sex and the main character be someone who has no idea about it.
Why did I have to read about the love interest having a threesome and then the next chapter to read about how our protagonist wants the attention of his crush and wants to please him ? Really?
At least have the main character be with someone too not pine after the love interest.
This for me was a miss and it's such a pity cause I was really interested in the plot.
This book managed to anger me so much.
I do not understand how people like this book so much.
The love interest is a bully and I do not care to see his development cause I despise him already.
At some point I just couldn't deal with him anymore.
The protagonist is such a pushover and has no will of his one,he just wants to please Wyn.
The romance starts early one,this for me was not really slow burn.
I do not understand why we always need to have the love interest be so experienced in sex and the main character be someone who has no idea about it.
Why did I have to read about the love interest having a threesome and then the next chapter to read about how our protagonist wants the attention of his crush and wants to please him ? Really?
At least have the main character be with someone too not pine after the love interest.
This for me was a miss and it's such a pity cause I was really interested in the plot.
February 7, 2024
This review was originally published on Before We Go Blog
4.5 stars
In Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms, Sarah Wallace and S.O. Callahan take all the best elements from Bridgerton (the show), except make everything a bit more magical and a lot more queer! Allow yourself to be transported to a delightfully queernormative Regency London in this cozy, diverse, charming, dazzling, and highly amusing historical fantasy romance!
Childhood enemies Roger Barnes, a bubbly tenacious human, and Wyndham Wrenwhistle, a classy dashing Fae, are forced into a reluctant partnership to help solve the problem of the dwindling magical scores amongst humans. But with the next Season in London about to commence, the local gossip column is thriving, and soon Roger and Wyn discover that they have unexpectedly been declared as engaged. As magical experiments and wedding plans take over their lives, the winds of change sweep in and their tentative alliance might just slowly blossom into something more.
Oh, where to start with this absolute delight of a story?! I was just completely entranced by the warm air of whimsy from the very first page, and it took me no time to just fall head over heels in love with Roger. Wyn admittedly took me a bit longer to warm up to, with his haughty better-than-thou Fae arrogance, but soon he conquered my heart as well once he started showing his true colours. We got to know these loveable idiots so intimately through the brilliantly executed dual-POV set-up, and I loved seeing the similarities and contrasts in how they each viewed themselves, each other, and the world around them.
Their complicated history together is smoothly woven into the narrative, which really helped strengthen my emotional investment in their relationship. Themes of forgiveness, redemption, and self-discovery are so beautifully explored in Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms, and I loved how we got to witness every tentative step in the slow development of their feelings for each other. What starts out as a tentative alliance full of snarky remarks and exasperated sighs soon builds into a very tender, passionate, supportive, and heartwarming dynamic that will just light your heart on fire, even if it stays very low spice (thank all that is holy!).
Also, I just adored how wonderfully and casually diverse the world and cast of characters in Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms is; not only in terms of gender and sexuality, but also in terms of body types and mental health issues. The beautiful and authentic plus-size, demisexual, neurodivergent, non-binary, and social anxiety representation were all just so lovely to see, and I also appreciated that there is little to none miscommunication in this entire story. Like, you can actually talk to each other about your fears, doubts, and anxieties, what a concept?!
Speaking of communication, the dialogue in Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms is just hysterically funny in the most effortless way. With this story being set in an alternative version of Regency Era London, it’s full of silly sensibilities, snide quips, and snarky banter that honestly had me rolling. What’s more, all the inserts of the juicy local gossip column were also highly entertaining; they truly give Bridgerton’s Lady Whistledown a run for their money!
Now, I have to admit that there were some sections that felt a little too slow for me, and I don’t know if Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms entirely deserved its 500+ pagecount. But at the same time, I truly didn’t want this story to end, and I was just devouring, inhaling, and gobbling up all the heartwarming goodness. And ultimately, I was also extremely impressed with how cleverly and smoothly the political, magical, and romance threads of this plot wove together to result in an utterly satisfying conclusion.
Safe to say, I had an absolutely marvellous time with this charming story, especially consuming it as an immersion read with the masterfully performed audiobook (highly recommend)! And while this first instalment in the Fae & Human Relations series stands beautifully on its own, I am honestly already counting down the days until I can return to this dazzling world.
So, if you are looking for a diverse, slow-burn, and low-spice queer historical fantasy romance with endearing characters, silly Regency Era sensibilities, steaming cups of tea, juicy gossip, and a dash of magical light academia, then I can’t recommend Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms highly enough!
4.5 stars
In Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms, Sarah Wallace and S.O. Callahan take all the best elements from Bridgerton (the show), except make everything a bit more magical and a lot more queer! Allow yourself to be transported to a delightfully queernormative Regency London in this cozy, diverse, charming, dazzling, and highly amusing historical fantasy romance!
Childhood enemies Roger Barnes, a bubbly tenacious human, and Wyndham Wrenwhistle, a classy dashing Fae, are forced into a reluctant partnership to help solve the problem of the dwindling magical scores amongst humans. But with the next Season in London about to commence, the local gossip column is thriving, and soon Roger and Wyn discover that they have unexpectedly been declared as engaged. As magical experiments and wedding plans take over their lives, the winds of change sweep in and their tentative alliance might just slowly blossom into something more.
Oh, where to start with this absolute delight of a story?! I was just completely entranced by the warm air of whimsy from the very first page, and it took me no time to just fall head over heels in love with Roger. Wyn admittedly took me a bit longer to warm up to, with his haughty better-than-thou Fae arrogance, but soon he conquered my heart as well once he started showing his true colours. We got to know these loveable idiots so intimately through the brilliantly executed dual-POV set-up, and I loved seeing the similarities and contrasts in how they each viewed themselves, each other, and the world around them.
Their complicated history together is smoothly woven into the narrative, which really helped strengthen my emotional investment in their relationship. Themes of forgiveness, redemption, and self-discovery are so beautifully explored in Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms, and I loved how we got to witness every tentative step in the slow development of their feelings for each other. What starts out as a tentative alliance full of snarky remarks and exasperated sighs soon builds into a very tender, passionate, supportive, and heartwarming dynamic that will just light your heart on fire, even if it stays very low spice (thank all that is holy!).
Also, I just adored how wonderfully and casually diverse the world and cast of characters in Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms is; not only in terms of gender and sexuality, but also in terms of body types and mental health issues. The beautiful and authentic plus-size, demisexual, neurodivergent, non-binary, and social anxiety representation were all just so lovely to see, and I also appreciated that there is little to none miscommunication in this entire story. Like, you can actually talk to each other about your fears, doubts, and anxieties, what a concept?!
Speaking of communication, the dialogue in Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms is just hysterically funny in the most effortless way. With this story being set in an alternative version of Regency Era London, it’s full of silly sensibilities, snide quips, and snarky banter that honestly had me rolling. What’s more, all the inserts of the juicy local gossip column were also highly entertaining; they truly give Bridgerton’s Lady Whistledown a run for their money!
Now, I have to admit that there were some sections that felt a little too slow for me, and I don’t know if Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms entirely deserved its 500+ pagecount. But at the same time, I truly didn’t want this story to end, and I was just devouring, inhaling, and gobbling up all the heartwarming goodness. And ultimately, I was also extremely impressed with how cleverly and smoothly the political, magical, and romance threads of this plot wove together to result in an utterly satisfying conclusion.
Safe to say, I had an absolutely marvellous time with this charming story, especially consuming it as an immersion read with the masterfully performed audiobook (highly recommend)! And while this first instalment in the Fae & Human Relations series stands beautifully on its own, I am honestly already counting down the days until I can return to this dazzling world.
So, if you are looking for a diverse, slow-burn, and low-spice queer historical fantasy romance with endearing characters, silly Regency Era sensibilities, steaming cups of tea, juicy gossip, and a dash of magical light academia, then I can’t recommend Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms highly enough!
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