Five stars to this magically mysterious love story. The author reeled me in from the first page. I enjoyed the cast of characters. They each brought something to the story. The hilarious town Facebook page had me giggling aloud.

Title: Cursed in Love by Emily Colin
Release Date: February 14, 2025
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Rating: ⭐️⭐️

** I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

In small town Sapphire Springs, Rune Whitlock lives a quiet life with her rescue cat Valentine. She’s always felt like she didn’t belong. Rune is a seer, gifted to be able to see the future and cursed for no one to believe her. All seems to be going relatively well in her life until she’s forced to work with Donovan Frost, data analyst at the company she works for. The moment they meet, chaos ensues. While she is trying to keep her head above water and figure out how to melt Donovan’s walls, she learns that dark forces are coming straight for Sapphire Springs and she must find out the truth of her curse before it’s too late.

The overall concept and storyline of this book was what originally drew me in. I love a good “forced to work together” trope, and two nerds falling for each other sounds like a delight to read. Unfortunately, it was quite difficult to get through this one.

There was so much going on so quickly I felt like my head was spinning. This book takes place over the course of just a few days I believe, and the quick turnaround from “I hate you” to “I want to jump your bones” was too quick even for me. I think there were too many things shoved into this book for it to make much sense. The barebones of the story is great but unfortunately, the delivery was poor.

The writing style was not my vibe, it had a juvenile tone which was contradictory to the characters and themes of the book. It felt rushed and difficult to keep track of what was happening at times.

Thank you to NetGalley and Black Orchid Books for an ARC copy of this book.

This book was so good and not at all what I expected!

I thought it was going to be a cutesy romantic book with a slight bit of magic…. But it’s a romantsy mystery full of comedy, twists and turns and a wonderful ending ✨❤️

The first half of the book definitely gives rom-com vibes but it slowly builds up to the magic and fantasy side and it didn’t disappoint.

I loved all the characters, the slow burn romance and the mystery of not knowing which characters to trust.

My only pet peeve with this book was….. sweet purple ponies 😫 27 times!! It almost made me put the book down but I’m glad I looked past it as the book was really good this phrase just annoyed me so much

a 10/10 book, Emily knows how to drag you in and keep you interested with a good plot and some good times if you know what I mean.

Thank you to Black Orchid Books and NetGalley for the ARC of Cursed in Love in exchange for an independent review.

I'm really not sure where to begin, but I figured I should start with the fact that I absolutely loved everything about this book! Rune and Donovan are now one of my favorite book couples. For me, this booked checked all the boxes.
-Small town witchy vibe
-Enemies to lovers
-Forced proximity
-Grumpy MMC
-Hilarious FMC that kept me laughing over and over
-Mysterious intriguing plot that did not seem fake or forced
-Captivating storyline that kept me hooked throughout the entire book

I do mean it when I say that this book is hilarious on so many levels. The commentary provided by Rune and her banter with Donovan kept things so light hearted and I appreciated her witty humor so much. The storyline was fast paced and I appreciated that the author just kept things moving and I was never bored. I'm a lover of all things witchy romance, and this one was just a home run. If you enjoyed similar titles such as This Spells Love by Kate Robb or The Ex Hex trilogy by Erin Sterling, then you will surely appreciate Cursed in Love and I would highly encourage you to pick it up on Valentine's Day this year (how adorable)!

An exciting fast paced story that engages you quickly from the start. It was fun small town cosy witchy vibes with a big dash of drama and chaos. It was funny in places, I enjoyed the twists and turns. I would say there is a particular phrase the FMC uses way too often that I would edit down a bit just to avoid so much repetition.

I unfortunately had to DNF @50% due to not feeling uncomfortable with a seance type situation. It was super cute and comical throughout, but when I got to the women sitting in a circle with candles doing a ritual, I had sadly stop reading.

This book was pure Chaos (iykyk) from beginning to end in all the perfect ways! I don't know where to begin with writing a review!

What worked:
- the world building, I loved the setting, the community who supported Rune from afar
- Our FMC Rune was a tough badass, she overcame some horrific situations and grew into a loving, compassionate homebody
- Valentine the cat, loved this little cutie
- The tension between Rune and Donovan (MMC)
- The HEA, thank goodness its a standalone, I don't think I could have been left on a cliffhanger with this story!
- The magic, the curse, and the turn of Cooper (thank goodness he ends up decent-ish)
- The trio of witches who jumped in to save Rune with enchiladas and helped her find out about her parents

What could be improved:
- The suspected love triangle with Cooper, I found myself getting frustrated every time he popped up, until the end!
- There were parts of Donovan's personality that were abrasive, I know its his past, he's been burned, but come on, Rune is stood in front of you literally begging!! Give her a break!?
- Ethan's motives, why did he do all the badness?

2.5 stars
The premise of this book was really good but the execution was kind of lacking. There was so much happening in this book and so many different genres that it got kind of confusing. The FMC and MMC went from 'strangers' to obsessed with each other in like less than 24hrs and that's not really my thing. At the end of the book I feel like there was still a few loose ends but that's maybe just me.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for providing me with this ARC.

This was absolutely precious. Light hearted but one of the coziest books I’ve read lately. I think it’s a perfect mix of Gilmore Girls meets Charmed and I love that description for it, matches perfectly.

Oh this was such a fun read! Far better than I expected and I expected a really good cozy witchy read but this was far better! Loved it!

Sweet purple peonies, what a read!
🔮 Forced Proximity
🔮 Opposites attract
🔮 Paranormal Romance
🔮 Forbidden Love
🔮LOL banter and wit
🔮Small Town Shenanigans
I devoured Cursed in Love by Emily Colin in one day- it was too good to put down. What I thought was just going to be a paranormal-romcom had me sucked in with so many twist and turns!
Rune is a graphic designer who lives in the small town of Sapphire Springs. She’s had a troubled past and has grown up a bit of an outsider. It doesn’t help that she’s cursed. Rune has premonitions of death but unfortunately is also cursed to have no one believer. (Alexa play The Albatross and Casandra by Taylor Swift).
Rune is typically WFH but has been called into the office for an urgent project where she’s paired with Donovan Frost, a data engineer. It’s immediately clear that Rune and Donovan are opposites on so many levels but with her career on the line Rune does her best to win over Donovan.
Unfortunately for her, her curse goes into overdrive.

This book was SO fun and literally had me laughing out loud. The romance category can often be predictable, but I truly did not see where this book was heading. The small town shenanigans were so funny and I love the idea of a group of little old ladies spreading gossip and havoc across town. Our characters definitely go from zero to “I’d catch a grenade from ya” but it works for this books plot. If was being super critically, I think the FMC exclamation of “Sweet purple peonies” was a little overused, but it still didn’t deter me from using it this post and photo.
#steamyinthesprings #fatedmates #donorune #ronovan

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing for this ARC!

This book just wasn’t very good from my perspective.. The characters went from strangers to obsessed with each other within 24 hours. I’m not a fan of insta-love, and they had barely spent time together for that to even be a possibility. The whole book takes place within a week, which also makes it more unbelievable. There were a lot of repetitive phrases within the book that were very cringe-worthy.

I found the main character, Rune, to be a bit immature and annoying. I will say that the author is very descriptive in her writing, especially about her characters, and that is always something I enjoy. I really wanted to love this one because I love a cozy, witchy, romance. However, this just didn’t do it for me. I would be interested to read something else by Emily Colin to see how her style differs within her other books.

A cute rom-com type read. The story was fun & I really enjoyed it. It really did give me stars hollow vibes which I'm absolutely here for.

And we all love a grumpy/sunshine romance right? A low stakes, easy read that I really did enjoy.

Cursed in Love is set in a wholesome small town and follows the story of Rune, a funny woman who has the gift of seeing the future. She was adopted, unsure of her parents, and throughout the book is forced to face her past. Quirky town members (the Sinsters club literally has me keen to be old and join a raunchy smut book club) make the book so fun.

It’s full of romance, yearning, will they won’t they, enemies to lovers, and also takes many twists and turns. It’s Gilmore Girls wholesome town vibes with a dark twist that you will not expect.

It’s a mix of fantasy/paranormal and romance. There were times there were repetitive words and sentences that took me out of the book but besides that I enjoyed it.

I found it’s a good palette cleanser between big series reads as it’s a one off and I was hooked in to wanting to know everything that was happening.

I would recommend this to anyone looking for a cute, wholesome witchy read that turns quickly to more dark themes that will keep you on your toes the whole time.

Do you like romance? Do you like witches? Then you will love this book!! From the very start I couldn’t wait to pick it back up and read what happened next! It’s nothing like I have read before! Rune( fmc) and Donovan(Mmc) are undoubtedly meant for each other! The way this book layers the story together and wraps it all up in a beautiful bow at the end, chefs kiss! You won’t regret reading this book!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for allowing me to read this arc

"Sweet purple ponies", that will live in my head for the next few months for sure.

What I expected: a cozy paranormal rom com, with paranormal references. What I got: A witchy rom com with a while high stakes paranormal main plot. What I initally THOUGHT was going to the the plot as per the blurb: cute with seer abilities meet grumpy "normie". Cue premonition of his death, and Rune trying everything to change fate so they can live happily ever after. What I got was a small town that's actually not-so-normal, hiding two covens of witches, one good, one bad, Rune and Donovan end up being at the very center of the whole damn ordeal and everything turns into an epic battle against the bad witches, sprinkled with a side of murder mystery ("Who killed Rune's bio family and why?").

That was one HECK of a wild ride and I LOVED every second of it. I would definitely recommend this book, it surprised me in a very good way.

One teeny tiny bad feedback would be to re-process the editing (which I hope they do between the ARCs and the final release) because there are still a few grammatical and punctuation errors here and there, but they are very minor.

Also if I don't become a Sinster by the time I hit 60, I will have tragically failed at life. Those ladies are GOALS.

This review has been posted to Goodreads, Fable and Story Graph, links included!

Cursed in Love by Emily Colin is an interesting mix of genres, being a paranormal rom-com. It has a good deal of scary and spooky moments, while having less romance (more insta-lust) than I would expect from a romcom. Cursed in Love follows Rune and Donovan, who are polar opposites that end up having to collaborate on a project for work. Rune is a chaotic, funny main character while Donovan is cold and brooding. Rune seems to have something constantly going wrong, partially but not entirely due to her curse.

Rune and Donovan start out as office enemies, and while I do love a good enemies-to-lovers romance, this one just felt a little out of place. They both outwardly dislike each other, going so far as to criticize each other's character, and then suddenly the story jumps to them making out in Donovan's office. I could have missed some cues that there was a mutual attraction building, but the romance felt very out of left field. I think Colin is a good writer, and I definitely enjoyed parts of this novel, but the development of the romance left something to be desired. I greatly enjoyed the setting of Sapphire Springs, it felt cozy and magical and I can see the inspiration drawn from Gilmores Girls. I also really enjoyed the Sinsters and their individual characters. I feel that Cursed in Love has great potential, but the mixing of genres felt very uneven to me. Colin did a great job of writing a paranormal novel, but I was disappointed with the rom-com side of things.

All in all, this was a decent read that I would recommend to anyone looking for a great paranormal novel. However, I wouldn't recommend this if you're looking for a rom-com with a dash of magic. Thank you to NetGalley and Black Orchid Books for allowing me to read and review this e-arc of Cursed in Love by Emily Colin.

Thank you to NetGalley and Black Orchid books for the eARC!

This was such a good book! I loved both main characters (and the side characters too!). Sapphire Springs is such a cute town - I really hope Colin thinks about setting another story here.

I loved the way the story unraveled - there was so much I didn't guess, but the puzzle pieces fit together so well. Rune is a great character - I liked the way we learned her backstory. And her chemistry with Donovan is off the charts.

I really appreciated Colin's use of the forbidden love trope. It never got to be too much - she handled it beautifully.

I eagerly look forward to Emily Colin's next book!

I went into Cursed in Love expecting a cozy romcom with a dash of magic, but Emily Colin delivered so much more. While the book is packed with charm, humor, and swoon-worthy romance, it also has serious stakes and emotional depth that took me by surprise. Rune’s backstory is tough (the content warnings are definitely there for a reason), but these moments never detract from the magic of the story—they only make it richer.

Rune is an amazing protagonist: quirky, fiercely independent, and endearingly awkward in a town where Big Brother-scale gossip blogs ensure she can’t so much as slip without everyone knowing. (I could never live in Sapphire Springs, but the town is certainly a character of its own.) Her “curse” is fascinating—being able to see the future but never be believed? Perfectly woven into the plot. And then there’s Donovan Frost. Imagine Henry Cavill as a grumpy data engineer with a spreadsheet obsession, and you’ve got him. The chemistry between Rune and Donovan? Absolutely sizzling. So honestly, I couldn’t blame the town for shipping them so hard.

What I loved most, though, is how the book constantly kept me on my toes. Just when I thought I had the story figured out, Colin threw in a twist that had me gasping. And when it all came together at the end? Wow. Brilliant!

As a longtime fan of Colin’s romantasy (The Sword of the Seven Sins trilogy, Fate and Fury), I was curious to see how her signature style would translate to a contemporary setting, and she nailed it. This book has her trademark elements: magical curses, badass female leads, unexpected plot twists, and moments of awakening. Somehow, she’s packed all the essence of romantasy into the quirks and chaos of “real life,” and it’s pure magic.

Cursed in Love has everything: romance, magic, high stakes, low stakes, and a heartfelt story about a woman learning to come into her own power -- all while falling for the grumpy coworker. Highly recommend for fans of Charmed, quirky small towns, and love stories that’ll make you laugh, cry, and believe in magic.