Uhm this book is just perfect for the spooky season and I’m glad I got to read it😍 The gothic atmosphere made me love it even more. It was so fast paced and forbidden and fun that it made me giggle out loud a few times. Ophelia and Blackwell’s dynamic was something that I really appreciated as well because you don’t see this kind of sarcastic banter a lot. Also the OCD representation was amazing! Another unique aspect about this book.

Spice level is high, which I do not mind when it is done correctly. It was never cringy. I loved the beginning, middle, and end of this book. In fact, if my TBR wasn't so currently large I feel like I would want to immediately re-read this book. I also got the audible version and enjoyed the narrator: Laura Horowitz. Thank You Netgalley for the electronic version of book. This is currently available on KU.

When the cover & book vibes match 100%, I'm a happy reader! Smith absolutely delivered on the gothic, mysterious, sexy story that was promised. Overall, I recommend this book to romantasy readers who prefer stories more heavily weighted to romance themes.

The plot: When Ophelia's mother dies unexpectedly, leaving behind even more unexpected debts, Ophelia is left reeling. The next day, her sister leaves without a word and enters a deathly competition at Phantasma where most entrants will die in search of the elusive prize: one wish granted. Ophelia is forced to compete to save her sister, facing 9 levels of intense challenges in the haunted and twisty manor where physical and spiritual threats alike are on the hunt for blood. The most dangerous temptation facing Ophelia may be a less obvious threat: the charming phantom stranger who offers to assist her in exchange for help in his own fate... because falling in love is, of course, forbidden at Phantasma.

My opinion: I liked this. The premise was a unique spin on the challenge/battle theme, and I enjoyed the explorations of deadly sins as challenge themes. There was also a great variety of magical beings from devils to ghouls to necromancers, which added interest. and depth to the story. The explorations of Ophelia's OCD were vivid and bold, especially the personification of her condition during Phantasma's manipulations and her explicit thoughts of harm. The romance between Blackwell and Ophelia was enjoyable, although a bit too "insta-love" for my tastes and verging on the border of smut vs. romance with fewer scenes emphasizing emotional connection compared to physical connection. I would have liked to see a bit more exploration in the challenges themselves of how the sins affected the contestants, and possibly more interactions between the other contestants and Ophelia. This would have added more depth to Ophelia's character (aside from her relationship with Blackwell and Genevieve) and allowed her to mature in her social relationships beyond her standoffish, isolationist start at Phantasma. The ending was somewhat predictable but in a satisfying way given the unfolding of the story throughout. Overall I rate this 3.5 stars and recommend to romantasy/gothic fiction readers.

Thank you NetGalley and Second Sky/Forever for this ARC!

Overall I quite liked the story. Was it good? Yes. Was it great? Not really. Would I recommend it? Ummm, I don’t know. But I quite enjoyed reading it.
I found the premise of this story quite interesting. A necromancer and a ghost, it’s quite an intriguing pair.
I found that the plot itself was fun and the characters were varied.
I would give this a 3.5 stars just because the fantasy was not as present as the romance was. I also felt like there could’ve been a slower burn and more chemistry between both MCs.

Phantasma was a cross between the trials from Serpent and the Wings of Night, and the Haunting of Hill House were unexpected family secrets lie, with a heavy dash of gore.

Ophelia inherits her mother’s powers as a necromancer when she finds her mother’s died unexpectedly. As she struggles with the grief she discovers her mother’s debts and her sister’s plan to attend Phantasma mansion, a competition wherein deals with devils could cost more than your soul. The prize is a boon that could bring back a loved one. Ophelia doesn’t know what she’d ask for, and doesn’t care as long as she can get her sister back.

Ophelia finds herself attending Phantasma, but is in a separate part of the trials, locked away in another wing. She quickly sees things other attendees does not with her experience as a necromancer, and while people make deals with devils, she finds an ally in a phantom called Blackwell. He’s able to help her through the trials, for a price; find out why he’s trapped in Phantasma. Between him and her own moxie she survives both the trials and the nightly horrors of the house, and the pair quickly find themselves falling in love. Only the house won’t stand for it, and if they want to find Ophelia’s sister, and break whatever bond holds Blackwell to the house, they may have to give each other up.

This story had one of the best opening scenes I’ve read for a while, with a promise of complicated magic woven into a family legacy that Ophelia was ready to shoulder. However I found that while Ophelia was an interesting character, it wasn’t until they get to the Phantasma mansion that the story really picks up. I loved her bite and cynicism and her banter with Blackwell, but the romantic scenes were more like erotica than a standard romance which was fine, it was more that for such an interesting concept the characters arrival to this intimacy was rushed, and there were a lot of the cliché expressions in the scenes that made this arc fall flat. I still very much enjoyed their banter and the relationship arc. The problems picked up for me when I started to notice a series of contradictions from page to page that didn’t flow well. There were rules to the trials that later were broken without comment, characters would contradict themselves, and there were world building problems with the magic systems. This was an imaginative and dark read that once got into the thick of the plot was predictable but very engaging with unique characters and interesting magic system.

I loved this story. It was described as caraval meet throne of the fallen and that is exactly what it delivered. Those are two of my very favorite books and I was not disappointed.

WOW. The romance wasn't so much for me but the concept of this book and the levels/games were deeply fascinating and I enjoyed them thoroughly. I'm ready for the second book! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

I was stuck between giving this book a 3.5 or 4 star rating. The spice is what pushed it to a 4 star for me.

I LOVED the cover, LOVED the blurb however maybe I hyped this book up too much for myself or maybe it was the seeing it EVERYWHERE. This book just fell short for me.
I would have liked to have seen a bigger build up to the romance side and a more explosive ending.

PHANTASMA had me hooked right from the start! The plot is super suspenseful, and I found myself racing through the pages to find out what happens next. The characters are really clear and compelling, each with their own unique backstories that kept me invested in their journeys. I loved how their struggles added depth to the story, making it even more thrilling.

That said, some parts of the writing felt a bit too on-the-nose, which kind of pulled me out of the spooky vibe at times. I wished it was a little more subtle in certain places. Still, I had a blast reading it overall! I’d definitely give it 4 out of 5 stars for the awesome plot and relatable characters. If you're into suspenseful supernatural tales, this one’s a must-read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts <3

I had the best time reading Phantasma!!! The gothic, haunted house setting + the battle royale competition sucked me in from the start. I loved that the challenges were centered around the seven deadly sins because they got more wild each time. Ophelia is such a badass fighting for her and her sister's lives and trying to avoid making deals with the supernatural creatures that haunt the halls. Every side character added to the plot in such a great way. The mystery also really kept me grounded in the book.

Blackwell is such a swoony MMC. I genuinely enjoyed how their relationship came to pass. Going from insta-lust to an honest-to-goodness love story can be difficult but Kaylie Smith did a phenomenal job. The will-they-won't-they back and forth tension was dizzying in the best way IMO. I just wanted to reach into the book and push these two idiots together!! The steamy scenes we're so good and really played into the character dynamics.

Read this if you like deathly competitions, haunted houses, solving mysteries, demons + devils + necromancers oh my, and will-they-won't-they romances.

Phantasma is a paranormal romance set in the vibrant backdrop of New Orleans. The story follows Ophelia, who becomes entangled in a world of ghosts, demons, and magic, all while trying to save her sister, learn to control her new magic, and avoid falling in love in a place where you will be cursed if you do.

I found the pacing quick. I wanted to keep reading to find out what happens next. Fans of romantasies like Fourth Wing or Acotar will likely appreciate the many different characters involved and the high stakes storyline. It’s also very spicy, with several very explicit chapters.

Overall, I found it to be an engaging read and a great choice for those looking for a spicy paranormal romance!

I grabbed this book from NetGalley because a bunch of people were talking about it in one of the fantasy groups I am in and I didn’t want FOMO so I grabbed it too. Now it did take me a bit to actually get to it but once I did I was super impressed. I listened it on audio and I wasn’t disappointed. I loved the narrator Laura Horowitz’s voice. It’s like the perfect Victorian gothic voice which is what this book was giving me. And I loved that she changed it for every character and it was enough that you can tell the characters apart, but they didn’t sound like silly voices that someone is just trying to all sound different.
The actually story was really cool it’s about how our main character Ophelia Grimm and how she is a necromancer and finds out her mother was in debt and her sister has left to enter Phantasma to win the game and take home the prize money. Ophelia being the great sister she is even though she’s pissed she didn’t know she also joins Phantasma to try and save her sister. Now if you’re like me and love a game you will enjoy this. Then add game plus demons/ devils/ and haunts. There’s also a love interest and a little spice. I wouldn’t say too spicy maybe like a 2.5 but it’s there.
I really enjoyed it. I’ll be reading book two when it comes out and I’d recommend it to everyone!

Thanks again to Netgalley, Second Sky/Forever and Bookouture Audio for the review copies.

This book was faced paced and the plot was PLOTTING. I fell in love with this cast of characters so instantly--even more so the more and more I got into the book. Many emotions were felt and I was living for the romance and action!

Phantasma by Kaylie Smith is a magical and engaging fantasy debut. With a well-crafted world, strong characters, and an exciting plot, it’s a fast-paced and immersive read that will appeal to fans of all genres. It is, of course, a must-read for romantasy lovers!

I absolutely adored this book! It was a perfect, gothic, spooky read! Perfect for spooky season. I really loved Ophelia and thought she had lots of layers - she was also relatable to me. I also love Blackwell - I wasn't aware I was into phantoms, but they/he sure does it for me! Ophelia's and Blackwells banter was fantastic and I loved how much he wasn't bothered by any of the insecurities Ophelia has and shared with him.

Something that was a little annoying at some parts was all the back and forth on if they were going to continue their physical relationship. It was giving me whiplash with "no we can't" to spicy times and then back. I think it was just done a few too many times throughout the book.

I don't have OCD, but from what I read and researched, this book show's respect to the condition. I could tell that the author did research or has experience with OCD.

Overall, I loved this book and recommend it to my friends! I cannot wait for book 2 to come out!

I loooved this book so much! Ophelia's daily life with OCD was really eye opening. And Blackwell was just amazing throughout the whole book!

A dark and sexy romantasy book

With some dark parts of the book that might trigger some readers

Will read this author again

A super fun, gory, unique, sexy romantasy set in New Orleans that surprised me, shocked me, and was a lot of freaking fun. If you love:
🩸 - blood and violence
🩸 - blood and making out lol
🩸 - devils and demons and phantoms and ghosts and ghouls
🩸 - thinking about haunted mansions and how you would escape while wearing a lacy nightgown

READ. THIS.

*I just wish it was gayer lol

This one had potential but just wasn’t for me. I’m not a much of a dark romance girl but I gave it a try and just didn’t love it. Not my cup of tea but might be perfect for others!

I picked this up when it was described as a darker caraval. I love creepy books involving games. The writing was easy to follow but not too simplex. The characters were interesting and not always doing dumb things as a plot device. It had a bit more spice than I’d normally read but it wasn’t over the top. I’m actually extremely excited to see a book 2. I loved this story all around