I would recommend A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon to any romance lover, even if they’re not a fan of fantasy. It’s fun, sweet and sexy. Mariel is a bundle of joy, even though her family is something out of a villain origin story and Ozroth is adorably cute underneath the aloof façade. Was left a bit confused with the next book excerpt but will definitely be reading it. Make yourself a favour, and get a copy asap.

Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

“She wanted flowers and muffins and the contentment of being exactly enough for someone.”

It seems to be that I keep falling for sweet, cosy sounding romances that are actually smutty.
A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon had a really nice story at its heart: learning to accept and love yourself for who you are and the talents you have, and screw those that can’t accept it. Mariel begins the story as meek and frustrated - she can’t do what her family expects of her, which she doesn’t want to do anyway but that doesn’t mean she won’t try with increasing annoyance. With the help of her friends, she comes to realise her earth/plant magic (which is really cool!) is just as powerful as summoning something.
I liked the side characters and the setting, plus the world building it did for the demon plane (hell). However, sometimes it felt like it was trying a bit too hard to combine the magical and non-magical worlds. The start felt really cringey and I considered DNFing just because I felt too awkward reading it. But then I settled in and it was easy to read.
Despite the title, there was very little fake dating. It was more awkward cohabitation.
I don’t think the sex was necessary, it didn’t add anything to the story, but I also don’t think it would have been so bad if I’d been expecting it.
So, overall, it was a fun, easy read. I enjoyed the magic, I liked the message, I just could have done with less cringe and less sex.

Omg! What a funny, whimsical book! The characters are so great! Very quirky and at times awkward af Mariel reminded me way too much of myself. Very grumpy x sunshine at first. Im obsessed with Oz. Hes the perfect man honestly.

Firstly I’d like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC 🥰😘

Mariel is a witch who loves plants, flowers and all nature magic. What she doesn’t love is when her family get on her about how she’s not that great at basically everything other kind of magic. So when she tries to summon some flour for a recipe and accidentally summons a demon it’s fair to say she’s not in the best of moods. Ozroth the Ruthless is a demon with a reputation to be, well, ruthless but he’s hiding something quite significant…a soul 😅😅 So when he’s summoned he figures it’s his way to get back to how he used to be, if he can strike a bargain with Mariel he can become the merciless demon he used to be. Unfortunately for him Mariel is not interested in trading her soul for anything so they become roomies. Simple enough for Ozroth, he’ll just hang around a beautiful, curvy, funny human for a few days until she gives in. Or they could fake date to throw off Mariel’s mother for a little while not being attracted to each other…no sweat, right? 😏😂

This book is so funny and wonderfully written!! It just made me smile so much!! I love anything that’s enemies to lovers, opposite attracts etc. so this was right up my street and these guys are so opposite is perfect for the trope!! 😍❤️ I love Mariel’s friends so much, they’re so sassy, loyal and the 3 of them bounce of each other so well.

The storyline is so current which I found really refreshing. I always love the romantasy but I also loved the environment aspect of the story too!! 🥰🥰 The book also deals with a lot of issues in regards to Mariel’s family and though it’s a funny and light book they’re dealt with really well. The bullying, pressure, disrespect, belittling and the undervaluing of Mariel is a huge part of the story and is handled really well ❤️❤️

I really enjoyed this book, it’s romantic, fun, deals with important issues and is spicy 😏😏 You should definitely add it to your TBR!! 4✨

Thank you to the publisher and author for my ARC copy.
I loved this read! Not only was it funny and charismatic throughout but the relatability of the main character made for an enjoyably fun read.
The authors writing is both energetic and cosy, making this an enjoyable read for many different readers. I would highly recommend!

This was so fun! A really entertaining paranormal twist on a typical romance, following a witch who hasn't got control of her powers and a demon she accidentally summons, I enjoyed this much more than I expected to. I really liked the characters and the setting of Glimmer Falls; it really made me want to visit this eccentric magical town. Magic is incorporated into our world in a way that feels really natural and I loved that so much.

I do think the romance happened a bit too quickly for my tastes, BUT it still felt well-developed and I could definitely feel the chemistry between Mariel and Ozroth, although the third-act breakup was completely unnecessary and didn't feel quite right for the characters. I am really excited to see that we will be getting a second book following Mariel's best friend and another demon who is introduced in this book - I think that their romance will be really interesting.

There was a subplot going on in here discussing environmental welfare and I really enjoyed seeing how even when there is magic in the world, there is still a need to do the right thing when others are being too greedy - I thought it made the book feel even more natural fitting into our world. (Although I did find it to be pretty predictable what was causing the issues).

This was cheesy and fun, and if you're looking for a quick and easy, lighthearted read, I would really recommend picking this up!

The story is well written with a unique situation that resulted in a funny romance with spells going astray. However, there were deeper threads woven into the novel that gave it insight into relationships, family dynamics, power, competitiveness, honour, manipulations, prestige, friendship, romance, belittling, and bullying. The book also contains multiple explicit steamy scenes and some swearing.

5⭐️ 2🌶️

Mariel is a wonky witch who is just trying to live up to her mother’s expectations. Ozrath is a demon with a soul. When Mariel tries to summon flour for a muffin recipe she gets him instead, and he’s not leaving until she makes a deal with him.

I’m so thoroughly charmed by this book! The world building is fun, the characters are incredible (even the unlikeable ones!), the pacing is spot on, and the romance was so, so sweet. I got completely sucked in and was smiling and laughing the whole way through! Mariel’s squirrel like attention span felt very relatable and Ozrath’s increasingly jokey attempts at making a deal became a fun inside joke between them. I wish there was more spice (because I always do lol) but what we get is hot and intimate. Such a fun and cosy read 🥰

“There was still a soul to claim, but for now, there was spaghetti.”

I made a prediction when I was reading about a possible book 2 and who might be in it and I’m so pleased I was right! The little teaser at the end has me even more excited for what comes next!

Thanks to the author, Gollancz, & Netgalley for the ARC - all opinions are my own.

I loved, loved, loved this book. It had everything I wanted in a book. This paranormal rom-com has a sassy witch and a delicious, oops sorry I meant scary, demon. When Mariel accidentally summons Ozroth she doesn't know what to do. The two seems like they can't find a compromise or tell the truth so they resort to fake dating, but spending time together brings their feelings closer until they both need to make a decision on where they stand.

The fake dating plus the sunshine and grumpy tropes go perfectly well together, especially with the magical elements mixed in it.

Really enjoyed the way this story didn't take itself too seriously, there was just a lot of humour throughout and overally a nice quick read.

If I could describe this books with one I would undoubtedly be using, “Enchanting” because that’s what it was. I was enchanted by it from the very page and had been till the very end!! Loved and enjoyed it so much.

This is such a fun read. I'm not sure I'm the right target audience because I found some things a little too silly. But on the whole it was a great escape

Honestly, I'm sad I didn't like this book....not one bit. The characters come across as teenagers instead of adults and I'm not sure if it's because they seem two-dimensional or that the writing is really immature in a sense. Every trope you can think of is thrown in but none of them are executed well. It looks as if the author didn't really know how to fill out the book other than the intent of doing "demon trapped but falls in love". It reached a point where I was rolling my eyes every time one popped up like "here we go again".

The worst part of this "enemies to lovers"/ "grumpy-sunshine"/"fake-dating" was that there was NO TENSION. You want there to be a push and a pull, you want to be teased with them possibly having a chance of liking each other and then taking that away. The way the book went was just insta-love. At 20% they were basically in each others arms already. There was no fun at all.

Whatshisface is meant to be the grumpy to her sunshine but really he's not. I would have loved to have seen more of his denial or anger towards having gained emotions/having to deal with a witch with no control of her powers, but instead he was fighting attraction straight away and cleaning up her house.

Mariel was no fun either, nor were her friends. The book basically circles around and around on how she is a failure and a disappointment. It was said so many times. And her mother was so weird and had no depth at all. All she did was talk about vagina's and sex. Like maybe it was meant to bring in humour but it was just a tad overdone.

I'm really not trying to slate this book but it's hard not to talk about it with some bitterness because it was disappointing. The only good thing, and the reason I gave 2 stars, was the part of Mariel standing up for herself and believing in her affinity for nature.

But yeah, the whole thing was a cliché. I was most annoyed by Mariel believing in Oz the whole time until one person suggests something is his fault and she goes and turns her back on him straight away like BRUH.

....yeah

Ozroth the Ruthless has been a bargainer for centuries, exchanging souls for desires, but he’s never been summoned by mistake. And with his reputation on the line, he has no intention to back down, but neither does the witch who summoned him.

Mariel Spark’s fate had been predicted at her birth, promising a legacy of great magic and power, except that, so far, the only magic she can make is with her plants. She’s been deemed a failure both by her family and by the town, especially her successful and overbearing mother, who never miss the chance to put her down. Things don’t get any better when, instead of summoning flour to bake she calls for a demon, who won’t leave until she claims her wish. Mariel can’t admit to her family that she messed up her magic once again, so she pretends that Oz is her boyfriend. And the more time they spend together, the less fake their relationship becomes.

A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon was such a fun and addictive read with lots of romance, laugh, and fantastic characters. The story is told from the perspectives of both Mariel and Oz and I loved those two characters. Mariel is sweet, optimistic, the sunshine to grumpy Oz, but she strongly feels the pressure of her family’s expectations, especially her overbearing perfect mother. She loves plants and nature and she uses her magic to protect them. Ozroth is one of the most powerful bargainers, famous for his merciless bargains, but six months earlier a bargain went a bit wrong and now he has something that no other demons owns: a soul. With his reputation on the line, he thinks that the bargain with Mariel is exactly what he needs to get things back to normal. Except that she won’t give up her soul, and after a few days of forced proximity, he is not sure he wants her to give it up either.

Romantic, hilarious, and bewitching, A Witch’ Guide to Fake Dating a Demon is the perfect read if you love fake relationships, close proximity, and witty banter with the addition of delightful magical creatures and an evocative setting.

Everything about this story pulled me in from the beginning. I can identify with being the black sheep of the family, the one they expect a lot from and are disappointed in and though you can see it affects her, she still maintains a facade of happiness that even some of her close friends only see on the surface, while others experience first hand.

When Marial Sparks has yet another clumsy moment, brought on by her mother's unfair pressure to live up to a so-called prophecy given at her birth, she accidentally summons a demon. With the words ‘I would give my soul’ this demon is a bargainer, Ozroth the Ruthless. Of course, he has to be hot; tall, dark-haired and intense. And of course, he also has something to prove.

Ozroth answers Marial’s summoning because she accidentally called him by name, but as soon as he senses her incredible power (which she doesn’t acknowledge or know how to tap into) he knows he has to take her soul.

When her mother arrives unexpectedly she has to figure out a way to hide who Ozroth is, so he becomes her boyfriend.

What happens now is a comedy of errors as the two work their way around the idea and slowly start to develop feelings that they don’t want to recognise.

This was a fun read, a great way to get out of a mini-reading slump and I look forward to reading the sequel.

Mariel Spark has been prophesied to be the most powerful witch in centuries but she can barely grasp a basic summoning spell. She’d much rather spend her time baking and tending to her plants than trying to live up to the Spark family legacy. Then she accidentally summons a demon instead of flour and he just won’t go away.

This was loads of fun. Ozroth the Ruthless’s name is kind of similar to the magic word for flour and so he turns up expecting Mariel to trade her soul for something. Despite her inability to live up to her mother’s expectations, she quite likes her soul and doesn’t want to do the deal. But that’s not how the demon summoning gig works. Ozroth is going to stick around until she decides what she wants.

Of course Ozroth isn’t like other demons, he has a soul and it’s starting to make him feel things. Undemonly things. The banter between them was genuinely funny, at least at the beginning, but it did turn mushy very quickly. However there was plenty more going on that kept me engaged until the very end.

Mariel might not be good with the kind of magic witches really respect, but she is good with nature and the plants respond to her. When the town’s mayor decides to turn a hotspot for magical nature into a luxury spa, Mariel is outraged and a lot of the remaining, non-romantic, plot centres around trying to save it.

It’s a fantasy romance rather than a fantasy with a romance, so expect certain tropes, a bit of sex, and things to be resolved quite neatly to enable the HEA. It’s super enjoyable all the same and I’d certainly read the sequel (for which there is a sampler in the copy I read but I can’t seem to find evidence of it online).

I thought this was going to be a cute romance book but when I saw the phrase 'sensitive horns' I knew EXACTLY where this was going lol.

Mariel, a prophesied powerful witch is considered the 'joke' of the family as she's not good at traditional magic - but has a natural aptitude for garden magic. When practicing her spells, she accidentally summons Oz, the demon with a human soul. Due to the nature of the soul bargain, Oz has to stay with Mariel until she gives up her soul, so they fake date while Mariel is trying to figure out what is hurting the forest around the town.

I really enjoyed this book! It's a really refreshing romance with loveable characters and an interesting plot. Mariel's friends were really great characters, so often in contemporary romance the friends suck but these ones were communicative and fiercely in the MC's corner.

The concept of a demon getting a human soul and being overwhelmed by all the emotions is just such a cute and funny concept, but I also love he's not given a free pass on his shitty behaviour for being a sensitive boy. The narrative does a great job of countering problematic behaviour in all the characters in a really satisfying way.

My only gripe was that it felt a little cartoonish - some of the dialogue was cringe and the villains especially seemed two dimensional. The premise was also a little shaky at the beginning, I was a bit confused why he didn't just leave as it's not clear that he actually can't because of the magical bargain, but once that was clear and we got some detailed demon lore I really enjoyed it.

As far as witchy romance novels go this was a good one. Mutual attraction, sexual tension, two genuinely good and kind people in need of overcoming personal trauma/issues through the power of love…with magic sprinkles on top. It was enjoyable. Like dessert that’s just right. I did like the additional complication of the demon bargain and I loved how it was resolved as well.

Like other witchy romances this is very white, set in America, with witches whose lineage can be traced back to Europe - with not a single mention of native Americans or their existence. In this book the language of magic had some clear linguistic traits of European languages - I recognised Latin, Italian, Finnish, and what I think might have been Dutch - which also begs the question: what of Native American languages and magic? Aren’t ley lines a European invention? What are they doing in the Americas? No mention of pre-existing magical traditions or beliefs or systems? It’s baffling and it’s frankly not a good look. I would enjoy these romances so much more if there was any acknowledgement at all of native Americans. I get that many Native American cultures are closed and a non-native not in that culture shouldn’t draw on it, but I have a hard time believing that would extend to in-universe explanations that take that into account. A line about how these white European (white supremacy?) witches don’t have access to Native American magic but that it nevertheless exists? Would that really he so hard?

Ugh. I don’t know why I keep trying these.

Tl;dr: enjoyable romance, too white.

So this book for me is like 2.5 stars 3 at a push.

I absolutely loved the characters for a start. I felt them grown and progress throughout the book. Their relationship to me felt a bit like a plant that the main character loves so much. Can have a rocky start but with some nourishment and support can thrive and grow into something beautiful.

The thing that fell short for me simply was how cringy the sex scenes were. I am a big lover of a smutty romance book. These just did not hit the mark for me and had me sat going ewww a couple times.

For me if the book was simply just a cute romance it possibly would have scored higher.

I've read a lot of witch romance recently, there is a lot of it on the market and it's definitely one of my favourite sub-genres, and this was one of the best ones I've read. The characters were brought to life so well and had a lot of depth. It was also very witty, I couldn't stop laughing. I also really enjoyed that it poked fun at a lot of the tropes it was using.

My only issue was the pacing towards the end. It took a long time to build up and then bam it was over in a few pages.