Member Reviews
Apologies for the delay in reviewing. Enjoyed meeting Clemmie and her sisters. This was especially poignant after the recent death of Liam Payne - the pressures of dealing with fame and the paparazzi
Who doesn't love a good spell of love?! I enjoyed this book a lot and just lost myself in the story and main character. Recommended read. 5Stars.
Oh my god! This book is outstanding! One of the best I have read! Literally from the minute I picked this up I was hooked. Loved the characters so much, they reminded me of me and my sister. Just fantastic! I’ll definitely be reading more from Laura Wood, I can’t wait for her next book to come out!
I ended up reading this in one sitting and just loving everything about it. I loved the plot, I loved the characters and I just loved the chemistry and romance between Clemmie and Theo. They had such an amazing relationship and I just loved their banter so much. Each had really fleshed out backstories and their own individual struggles. Theo is now my new book boyfriend because oh my God that man is just beautiful inside and out. I also really liked all the side characters, especially Clemmie's sisters who had their own unique personalities with their own clear voices.
Laura Wood is a fantastic author whose writing just has you absolutely hooked and needing more. This book took me through a roller coaster of emotions from laughing one moment to sobbing the next. Her characters are always so detailed, realistic and incredibly relatable. Also the sat nav scene had me in fits of laughter whilst also suffering second hand embarrassment (iykyk).
If you've been considering this one then take this as your sign to pick it up. I cannot recommend it enough.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Fun, fabulous and fierce! A mixture of swoonworthy romance with STUNNING friendships, amazing characters and a little dose of silliness.
Ooh I had Practical Magic feels throughout this book!! So if you love that movie as I do, then you need this book in your life!
we follow 3 sisters, Clem, Lil and Serena, who are sisters with a shared Dad! He's an aging rock god and managed to get 3 women pregnant at the same time during his heyday - so his wife left him and set up a commune with the other 2 women and they brought the girls up there! The media called it a 'commune' and called them witches so it's stuck with them forever. And while 2 of the sisters ended up working in the music business, Clem followed a different path and is now facing life with no job, flat or boyfriend - so sisters to the rescue to help her out!
She finds herself 'babysitting' a handsome rockstar who is supposed to be writing the next greatest album as his record company are losing patience with him.
What follows is a wonderful romp as we laugh along with the sisters and their funny banter, ponder the will they won't they question with Clemmie and Theo, and enjoy what life throws their way - it never is plain sailing!! I really enjoyed this book so much as it was pure escapism and the characters were a hoot - hope we get to catch up with them all again sometime soon as I loved their dynamic!
Oh my word. What a brilliant read! I read it till midnight last night, even though I had to get up brutally early today, simply because I couldn't put it away anymore - I wanted to know! I wanted more from this brilliant, beautiful banter between the characters that made me snort with laughter. From the very beginning to the very end, and it doesn't happen often - it simply felt so natural and easy and already navigation and God speaking had me in stitches.
Actually, everything in this book was perfect. Plot, characters, humour, the right amount of tears, writing style, bthe punchy and sharp dialogue, the sarcasm... EVERYTHING. The dynamics between the characters, the three sisters was so, so great. I think that, even though I loved him soooo much, because he was so funny and honest, Theo was the weakest link and even David outshone him. But whatever. There was enough chemistry between them to completely and absolutely buy this romance.
The huge difference in this book was the fact that the main characters FINALLY talked to each other - about their feelings and emotions and needs. THANK YOU for that, Laura Wood!
This book is actually so good that I also ordered a paperback copy.
This was a perfect summer read! It had fun characters, cute romance and a great, feel good romcom storyline that I couldn’t put down!
Love love loved it. Clemmie was a wonderful lead character and narrator and she felt like a fully realised and relatable character. Theo was exactly what you want in a mmc, charming, funny, silly, a bit adorable and a lot swoony. The chemistry between them from that first meeting was electric but more than anything I just loved the gradual and genuine friendship and companionship that developed between them whilst they were cocooned away and just how normal and cute they were. And just as wonderful as the main romance story was entire relationship between the three of sisters which I adored. The genuine love, affection and sibling energy between them was so wonderful and made this book extra special. Each sister so distinct with their personalities with Clemmie being the sensible, guarded one, Lil so free spirited and lovely and Serena the fierce badass with a steely exterior covering up the soft marshmallow inside. Such an enjoyable read from start to finish. 5 🌟
This right here is the exact dreamy, wholesome, funny summer romcom that I absolutely needed and you need too! Laura took the classic of extreme forced proximity post one night stand and turned it into something that made me feel big deep emotions I didn’t even realise were possible, whilst also having me giggling and smiling and of course, kicking my feet.
Clemmie had me laughing within a few pages (I would be the next dead body if I was at that funeral oh my word). It felt so effortless to follow Clemmie around and it’s Laura’s beautiful writing that made it feel like this. The dynamic between Clemmie and her sisters and their mothers oh my goodness; the entire setting with the house and the beach; Theo Freaking Elliott absolutely ruining me for life.
Honestly, everything about this was absolutely delightful to read! I had my teary moments as much as I had my laugh out loud moments, but it made for the perfect book to settle into.
This is a perfect romance read - chemistry a plenty plus lots of laughter and tears. Clemmie is a main character to fall in love with and Theo one of those swoon-worthy leading men - they both were scared of getting involved but needed to take that step of faith.
I really liked how Under Your Spell is more than just a romance though - the relationships Clemmie had with Serena and Lil and the mothers were really special. Their bond and undying support for eachother was beautifully written and I loved their memories of being together through their childhood.
This is a beautiful read full of love, laughter and taking chances.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Laura Wood’s adult fiction debut Under Your Spell is an enchanting romantic read sprinkled with magic, humour and charm readers will fall head over heels in love with.
Clementine Monroe has had the worst day ever. In one fell swoop, she loses her job, is dumped by her cheating ex and is in danger of losing her flat. With her life in tatters and everything going sour, Clemmie is desperate for some much-needed cheering up so when her sisters get her drunk and suggest reviving a childhood ritual called the breakup spell, she doesn’t see any harm in it. Things have already gone sour for her, so it’s not like she’s going to get any more bad luck, is she? However, Clemmie quickly realises that she should have been careful what she wished for…
Clemmie accidentally ruins a funeral, has a one-night stand and ends up with a job she definitely doesn’t want: six weeks alone with gorgeous but off-limits rock star Theo, who also happens to be one of the most famous men in the entire world. Clemmie’s life has imploded and her track record with relationships is hardly stellar, but will a harmless spell give her everything she has always wanted? Or has she just invited even more disaster into her life?
Laura Wood’s Your Spell is a magical contemporary romance with a lovely heroine, a gorgeous hero and plenty of wit, warmth, heat and humour to keep readers glued to its pages. Perfect for readers who love Emily Henry and Ali Hazelwood, Laura Wood’s Under Your Spell is a smart, funny, sassy and achingly romantic read that is absolutely impossible to resist.
I really enjoyed this book, but it was missing the enchantment that exists in Laura Wood’s YA books. This book didn’t sweep me up in the way those books did and I was a little disappointed.
As an adult romance though, it had everything I like. It was funny. It was romantic. It had two characters who were really close friends as well as having great chemistry. It was clear from early on that they were made for each other and I really liked them as characters.
It also was a great representation of therapy, showing two characters who were working through their issues with help from their therapists. Clemmie, had so many fears and issues based on her past with her father and her musician ex. It was a really positive picture of therapy and shows how much you can achieve with a decent therapist behind you.
Aside from the initial disappointment, this book was really good. I would recommend it if you’re looking for a fun, humour-filled romance.
Could three wishes, one funeral and a night to remember with a handsome stranger lead Clemmie to the new beginning she needs?
Clemmie is all too familiar with heartbreak. With a rockstar father who disappoints time and time again, and trauma from relationships past, the last person she expects to send her up in flames is the famous, and devastatingly handsome, Theo.
I adored this book. And I adored Theo even more. Funny, kind, supportive, sexy as anything, and the most fabulous book boyfriend.
Ignoring the building tension between them as they find themselves confined to Clemmie's family cottage leads to the best moments. This book was a fantastic blend of emotions, written beautifully, and it was a pleasure to follow Clemmie on her journey to rediscover herself.
Sexy, hilarious, steamy, emotional and binge worthy, this is a MUST READ!
When Clemmie is left loveless, jobless and homesless she and her two half-sisters, Lil and Serena, recast a teenage spell to turn her fortunes around. It looks like it has worked when she meets Teddy - but his career means he is they type of man Clemmie has spent her life avoiding. Will things ever work out for them?
This was funny, upbeat and emotional, with good characters and a well-paced plot. A really enjoyable summer romance.
Warm, funny, light, hot and compulsive. A great romance at its core with a strong side of female solidarity and friendship - I loved it!
Thank you for my earc of this book. I really enjoyed this romance and especially loved the relationship between the sisters. I thought the romance itself was great and loved the themes of family, fame and moving on from the past!
I love, love LOVED this book! There you go, that’s my review!
I suppose I should really tell you more. Right from the beginning of this book, I was captivated by the story of Clemmie and then of Theo too. Clemmie is from a rather unorthodox family and I so enjoyed reading about the close bond between her and her sisters, even though they were all very different. When Clemmie’s life seems to be falling apart around her, they are there to support her with love, wine and their adolescent ritual ‘break-up spell’.
Clemmie’s father, Ripp, is a legendary rock star but hasn’t exactly been a model parent to her. A previous relationship with a drummer left her very wary of the music industry even though both her sisters are involved in music in different ways. So a six week stint in her beloved late Granny Mac’s remote coastal house babysitting the hottest rock star in the world isn’t really her idea of fun but needs must. And it’s just a little inconvenient that she is hugely attracted to him…
The price of fame is a strong theme throughout the book. We see how intrusive the paparazzi and media can be and how absolute nonsense can be printed or posted online which people immediately take as truth. It was so interesting to hear from people on all sides about how this affected them. It made me smile when Theo’s sister was talking about how people would basically drool about Theo to her and she would be thinking ‘that man is my little brother‘. I’ve always thought how difficult it must be for people in the public eye to have any kind of privacy in a relationship and any kind of normal life. I think that Theo enjoyed his six weeks of solitude as it gave him a chance to live a relatively normal life and just to be himself.
I adored the chemistry between Clemmie and Theo. I’d say the growing chemistry but it was there from the start. Spending all that time together, even though it was supposed to be on a professional level, meant they really got to know each other and the slow-burn passion was always going to spark into a flame.
Under Your Spell could just be a perfect rom-com. It was fresh, funny, sexy and oh so romantic. I genuinely felt happy reading it and totally believed in Clemmie and Theo’s story. Laura Wood has weaved some kind of magic here and I was totally under her spell. If I could give this more than five stars, I absolutely would!
I have read some of Laura Wood’s young adult novels, especially I enjoyed her historical romance series, The Agency for Scandal, so I was excited to read her adult debut and I can’t tell you how much I loved this book. Under Your Spell is, without any doubt, at the top of my favourite books of the year and one of the best romcom I’ve read in a while. I adored the characters, the story, the setting, and the writing is exceptional.
The protagonist of the story is Clementine “Clemmie” Monroe. As the daughter of famous rockstar Ripp Harris, she’s always been under the spotlight, especially because she and her sisters Serena and Lil were born almost at the same time from three different women and were raised together in a big house (without their rockstar father). Whenever things were bad, they did a breakup spell, but they haven’t done it since they were teenagers, when Clemmie had her heart broken. Following another break up, the loss of her job and soon of her house, Clemmie and her sisters perform another breakup spell and make three wishes.
After a one-night stand with a stranger she met at a funeral, Clemmie is offered a very well-paid job by her sister Serena. Famous rockstar Theo Elliot is two years behind delivering his new album so his record company has organized for him to stay in a family cottage in Northumberland for six weeks, away from everyone and everything, and they need someone to babysit him and make sure that he works. With no other prospects in sight, Clemmie accepts the “babysitting” job, after all, how hard can it be? If only Theo wasn’t so handsome and charming and she wasn’t so attracted to him…
I couldn’t put down this book. Clemmie and Theo’s slow burn romance, their witty banter, the painful revelations about their past, the hilarious interruptions from their families kept me glued to the pages. I loved these two characters and how relatable and authentic they feel. She is introvert, bookish, with a love for vampire drama tv series, Chaucer and Enid Blyton, while he is honest, with a big heart and currently rediscovering his love for carbs and sugar.
Under Your Spell is a brilliant, funny, and addictive story of romance and family, but the author also addresses themes of mental health, grief, and parental neglect and it’s a story I will be thinking about for a long time (and probably rereading many times)!
What a brilliant book!! I am a huge fan of Laura Wood’s books and was so excited for her foray into adult contemporary romance and this was PERFECT.
I absolutely loved Clemmie from page one. She is so loveable and absolutely hilarious. Serena and Lil and the sisterly bond of the three of them was amazing to read about.
Theo was the dreamiest male main character and he was a true green flag throughout. Their relationship was so soft and swoony and made me grin like an idiot.
This book made me laugh out loud so much and was just a true delight to read. I can’t recommend it more!