Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.


Wow, this book was a letdown. The blurb on the back sounded amazing, but I personally feel like it was written by GenAI.

It was extremely flat, without the slightest bit of emotion. There were constant inconsistencies, even just a page a two apart. It was also very hard to stay engaged because of how weird the writing came across. The writing style kept changing as well, and it gave it a very strange feeling that was creepy in a bad way.

There was no soul at all in this book.

I really wanted to love this book. The premise is great. It sounded so fun and quirky. But I gave this book a couple tries and I just couldn't get into it. There's no character development and no plot development. It's just straight action. And for me, action without context is flat--engaging.

Since this was a DNF for me, I wont be leaving reviews on other sites.

I'll admit, I picked up this ARC purely because of the title and cover. I stayed for Amy and the weird romance between her and Kris.

There were a lot of parts of this I liked - the characters were interesting, the world-building was fun, and seeing all the different familiars and learning about people's creeds was cool. That makes for a fun and useful character tool, for the author and for the readers. Sometimes it felt a little info-dumpy, and at times the amount of information I was receiving was too much at once. Some of the pacing was wonky too, partly due to the info-dumps, partly due to the plot structure being a little nonconventional (maybe not bad?). The plot twist felt like it was a little too twisty haha, but the triumph I felt when Jack basically leveled up?? Priceless.

Seriously though, Amy was my favorite character. Her plotline was super interesting, and her whole rivalry/romance/thing with Kris was fun to read about. The tension between her and her teammates, her family, and her familiar made for some seriously good reading. She managed to be a strong female character without being insufferable. Kris was great too, don't get me wrong, and going back to his POV felt very comfortable and familiar (no pun intended), but I think Amy was my favorite.

I hope I can track down the next book in the series, because I'd love to hear how Kris and the gang are doing. There's a lot of unanswered questions, and I need to know about Yuri and Amy, and Kris himself, especially with the way things ramped up in the third act. Many thanks to NetGalley and the author for providing me with an e-ARC of this book!

DNF AT 34%

I was hoping for something fun, to be honest. The title was promising and I was ready to be captured by the book but... sadly it didn't really work out for me. The idea is interesting, the part about the spirits and their Creed and their relationships with humans are good and original, and I loved that every spirit is unique and we get to see so many of them! I loved this part.
But I didn't particularly enjoy the characters, Kris is not bad but Jack came out as annoying most of the time, and Clark doesn't seem so good. I don't think he is bad, but I don't trust him. Yuri was maybe the most interesting and the one with the great potential but... nope! And the girls aren't better. I think they are worse, to be honest. Anyway, the majority of the time we have characters posturing around, in a neverending race to see who has the biggest d*ck (not literally!) and this would be a great book with some banter in it, some humor peppered here and there. It is like a big missed opportunity for me!
The story is not bad, but I didn't really care, and everything was quite mediocre, sadly.

Stuck with a Pumpkin Familiar is a whimsical fantasy full of humor, magic, and heart. The story kicks off when the protagonist Kris unintentionally bonds with a troublesome pumpkin familiar, throwing their carefully planned life into disarray. What starts as a routine magical task turns into a chaotic adventure, packed with unpredictable spells, odd creatures, and plenty of pumpkin shenanigans.

The bond between the protagonist and the mischievous pumpkin is the heart of the story, balancing laugh-out-loud humor with genuine moments of connection. Their dynamic feels playful yet meaningful, adding emotional depth as they navigate magical mishaps and unexpected challenges together.

With its fast-paced plot, quirky world-building, and endearing characters, this book is a delightful mix of cozy fantasy and light adventure. It’s perfect for readers looking for a short, feel-good story filled with magical chaos and unexpected friendships.

A fun, refreshing read that’s hard to put down!

Thank you to NetGalley