First of all, many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for granting me a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Sometimes your husband is not the prince on the white horse, but the horse itself. I’m not kidding.

Jokes aside, even though my friends made fun of me for requesting this and kept on referring to that cursed my horse prince game, I highly enjoyed this!!

Favorite thing was that it was a little silly while also being an actual well plotted storyline with an intriguing cast of characters. I loved Bianca and Aric, but I also loved the horse puns (yes multiple, I was in heaven).

The only thing that bugged me was how we didn’t really get to truly know almost all of the side characters. Think I would’ve been more involved in the mystery of who the assasin was, if I would’ve actually known the characters. Due to that the ending felt a little rushed to me aswell.

BUT I do really hope we get some sort of sequel or spin off with Bianca’s sister, i’m in need of some courtly wlw <33

4/5 ⭐️

So cozy and cute!!

“Behooved” is a sweet and fun read, perfect for fans of My Lady Jane 🫶🏻
I absolutely adored the mmc Aric—such a cinnamon roll!— and I saw so much of myself in Bianca. Her struggles and fears were deeply relatable, and her journey felt so personal.

Some tropes you’ll find:

- only one bed
- enemies to lovers
- cinnamon roll mmc
- hurt/comfort
- arranged marriage
- chronic illness rep

The setting felt like a fairytale: magical woods, cozy inns and majestic castles—it was dreamy!

I had such a great time reading this!

Many thanks to NetGalley, M. Stevenson and Hodder & Stoughton for providing a digital review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts!!

I would say this is a cozy The Swan Princess meets My Lady Jane
It's cute and fun, the characters are likable and the romance is definitely central, I felt like I wanted more depth from the worldbuilding. But I love the whole soft boy MMC who's wifey takes care of the stabbing

I read an eARC of this sweet fantasy romance novel on NetGalley so thank you to the author and the publisher.

This was an enjoyable light romance rooted in fantasy tropes about two very nice people overcoming a magical setback to discover their inner strength, build connections and save a kingdom.

There’s a lot of familiar tropes in this book and nods to classic fairytales. However we also see a main character with a chronic illness and how they navigate once of the characters being turned into a horse! This made this novel feel different to others and provided new concepts to contemplate.

We see familiar romance tropes too including miscommunication which I’m not usually a fan of. However it wasn’t overdone here and the characters were able to resolve this fairly quickly without descending into meanness or insults or pettiness. They are both initially driven by obligation and this shapes their opinions of each other in the wrong way at first. However they are both inherently nice and kind people and their common courtesy to each other allows them to overcome their earlier apprehension.

I found this to be a pleasant and enjoyable read where I liked both the main characters and I was rooting for their success. I particularly enjoyed how they navigated the equine transformation! I would read this again.

This wa a fun and quick read! It’ a romantasy chaotic , full of action, horses and humor (which I loved it)! I loved the dynamics of the characters (which have a grate arc) and the representation of chronic illness.
So yes, it sounded like a bit of a Disney movie and I’m simply obsessed with it!

Extremely silly fun, if this is the kind of slightly unhinged book the author will continue to write I am here for it!

Thank you M. Stevenson, Hodderscape & NetGalley for the ARC!

Behooved is a whimsical subverted fairytale that throws reluctant allies-to-lovers together in an action-packed journey across a magical landscape.

This is a perfect example of a fun, exciting romantasy. It was like a Disney movie in a book, will a little bit of romantic spice which is suitable for new adult readers!

The political intrigue is more a side topic, as a reader you don't get to see much to it, since the story follows the relationship between Bianca and Aric, from reluctant allies to lovers. They are interesting because they are not your typical protagonists.

I also liked Bianca's development from thinking the country she's coming to is very "backwards" to acknowledging it has some advantages over her own, and Aric also admitting some of the truly backwards things could be something he should improve if he becomes the king.

The chronic illness rep was also very well presented and something to think about whilst reading. I loved that the characters were humanised with “imperfections".

The perfect blend of humor, heart, and representation makes this a must-read. If you love witty, fun stories that don’t take themselves too seriously but still have something to say.

What a fun read this was! “Behooved” is a quirky fantasy adventure that doesn’t shy away from its own absurdity - and that’s where it shines. The story kicks off with Bianca, a dutiful heroine who agrees to marry the neighboring kingdom’s heir, Aric, to prevent a war, when things go off the rails on their wedding night in an assassination spell gone wrong, transforming Aric into a horse. Now, Bianca must drag her horse-husband across the kingdom while uncovering a coup and searching for a cure.

It’s as chaotic as it sounds, and the book fully embraces its humor and magical mayhem, which I loved. It’s very much of cozier fantasy variety: the stakes are real, but the tone stays playful, with a strong humorous tone.

What stood out most to me was the character dynamic. There’s a refreshing gender-role reversal - Aric is bookish, shy, and useless in a fight, while Bianca has a weapon literally up her sleeve and knows how to use it. I also really appreciated the thoughtful portrayal of chronic illness through Bianca’s character. The conversations between her and Aric about her health added depth to their journey and made their relationship feel more genuine. Watching them work through their insecurities together and became a core strength of the story.

While I enjoyed their exchanges, I had some trouble buying into their romance. Their emotional connection didn’t quite land for me, and Bianca’s feelings for Aric seemed to develop without a clear turning point. The pacing also felt uneven - although the romance is billed as a slow burn, once things got physical, they moved fast. On top of that, Bianca’s frequent self-reflections sometimes slowed the story down, and I found myself more engaged once the plot picked up in the final third of the book. The central mystery surrounding the assassination plot was fairly predictable, which made it a bit frustrating waiting for the characters to connect the dots.

Still, this was a fun, fast-paced read filled with some cute moments of connections, comedy, and a unique premise that I enjoyed following. For readers that enjoy lighter fantasy reading, this is an entertaining escape with some quirky humor.


Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Plot 3/5
Characters 4/5

I really loved the characters, especially the book loving mmc but the plot…
I didn’t feel anything reading it.
There was not a lot of action and it was quite repetitive.

3.75* rounded up.
This book is perfect for My Lady Jane lovers! If you, like me, are still grumpy that we don't get season 2, pick up this book I beg of you!

This was a really cosy and sweet read, which was very easy to pick up, more world building would have been appreciated, but I also understood that's not what this book was setting out to give us.

The story follows Bianca, who is due to be wed to a King of a Kingdom where there is threats of war, but on her wedding night a spell turns her now husband into a horse by day.

We have horse jokes galore, we have representation of chronic illnesses, lesbians and bisexuals and it's all wonderful.

All in all, I really would recommend this book, it was so so easy to pick up and hear all about Bianca riding her husband (hehe)

I was so excited to read this given the pun title, pun tagline, and the listing as a cozy fantasy. Unfortunately those were not true. There is no humour inside this book. I was hoping for either a fantasy rom-com or at least something light-hearted in tone, but the book plays itself very straight.

Sadly it isn't cozy, either -- the plot hinges on politics (complicated and serious), the protagonist and her husband are on the run from assassins (high stakes and high tension), and if they should fail their two kingdoms will go to war (high stakes and high tension, literally the fate of all people in two large kingdoms). I don't think publishers understand what "cozy fantasy" means.

I enjoyed the first half more than the second half. Bianca and Aric had excellent reasons for distrusting and even hating one another. I wish that level of effort had been put into resolving their issues and then creating a romance, but unfortunately the moment they realise someone else is manipulating things behind the scenes it's straight into trope-ville. Oh, he's so handsome I can't stop staring despite my life being in danger. Oops, my towel almost slipped off in front of him. Oh, there's only one bed and wouldn't it be ever-so-hot to grind myself against his erection while he's asleep & unable to consent. The author tries to have some conversations between them to force a connection, but it's always very unrealistic. A "let me spill my darkest secrets and wishes to someone I yesterday despited and thought was trying to murder me". You don't know this person at all, why would you immediately jump to deepest intimate secrets rather than, I don't know, getting-to-know-you topics? Discussing the problems at hand? Making plans for what to do after hopefully reversing the horse-transformation problem? Worst of all is that protagonist Bianca has always been ruled by duty, and ML's reaction to this is "no, we shouldn't be beholden to our people or our families, we rule kingdoms, we should be allowed to rule ourselves and do whatever we want without anyone judging us!" Which is... certainly An Opinion. Especially in our current world climate where the rich ARE doing whatever they want and the rest of us are suffering for it. Very tone-deaf to have literal royalty arguing for no rules, no responsibilities, no oversight - just because he wants to spend all day reading without his subjects getting mad that he's ignoring critical matters of state.

If this is enemies-to-lovers, then the enemies stage worked much better for me than the lovers stage. The protagonists also confess their love at the 63% mark, which is simply far too soon to have the romance problems solved in any romance or romantasy novel.

I wish the novel lived up to the title-and-tagline promise of a fantasy rom-com. I think a lot of problems could have been solved if the novel weren't trying to be so serious - I wouldn't judge politics, romantic development, or themes quite so hard if this were a comedy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.


Rating: 2 stars -- Not terrible, but did not meet my expectations from the blurb, title, etc. Neither funny nor cozy despite promising both.

Behooved by M. Stevenson is a stunning and unforgettable novel that completely swept me away. From the very first page, Stevenson’s rich, lyrical writing style draws you into a world that feels both mythic and deeply personal. The story masterfully blends fantasy, folklore, and human emotion, creating a narrative that is as imaginative as it is emotionally resonant.

The characters are beautifully complex, each carrying their own struggles, hopes, and vulnerabilities. Stevenson has a real gift for crafting authentic, layered personalities that linger with you long after you finish the book. The world-building is immersive, full of vivid details and atmospheric moments that bring the setting to life without ever overwhelming the story’s emotional core.

What truly sets Behooved apart is its exploration of identity, belonging, and transformation. It’s a story that feels timeless yet fresh, with themes that are universally relatable. Every twist and turn felt purposeful, and the conclusion was both satisfying and deeply moving.

Behooved is a brilliant, original novel that deserves a place on every fantasy lover’s shelf. I cannot recommend it highly enough and am already eager to see what M. Stevenson writes next!

5⭐

Thank you M. Stevenson, Tor Publishing Group and NetGalley for the ARC!

Behooved by M. Stevenson was a magical and heart-felt read that blew my expectations for the cost fantasy genre. The chronic illness & queer representation is incredibly well done and I enjoyed reading about these characters so much! The chemistry between Aric and Bianca was sizzling from the beginning and watching it develop and unfold was satisfying to read about. The slow burn and tension between them was magnificent! There is so much effort put into this book and it turned out to be an amazing!

𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏 𝒆𝑨𝑹𝑪 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑨𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚 𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 𝒄𝒐𝒑𝒚 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒎𝒚 𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘.

Overall this is a really good read. I like the disability representation with Bianca's condition and relatability of the 'unknown' cause so many people experience.

When Aric was initially transformed into a horse and turned his head grumpily, all I saw in my mind was Maximus from Disneys Tangled and it made me laugh so hard.
I really enjoyed the banter back and forth between Biana and Aric at the initial transformation, it was really funny.

There was so much internal monologue that it almost felt too much. I feel like the book could have been slightly shorter and still have the same impact if some of the monologue was excluded.

Still a very enjoyable read.

Cute and cosy. I had a really fun, easy time with it, I was more invested in the first half than in the second. I just wanted more from the world (so interesting!), the magic system, and the romance. Swan Princess meets My Lady Jane vibes but with a litlle less tension.




Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the earc.

My Lady Jane Fans will go feral over this. With the whimsy of Howl's Moving Castle and humour of The Princess Bride, Behooved manages to be both lighthearted and filled with a steamy romance that had me glued to the pages.

Bianca is someone who absolutely does not know her own worth. Her parents have always called her weak, always seen her as disposable. She has always been the dutiful daughter, always hoping to make herself useful in whatever way she can, in spite of her debilitating illness that could creep up on her at any moment. But despite all of that she's no wilting wallflower, she is someone who has trained since birth to survive, to kill if necessary, and I really loved how Stevenson almost subverted the damsel in distress trope because Aric was absolutely more the damsel than Bianca ever was. She's an easy character to like, to empathise with, someone so unsure of their own power, so used to being seen as nothing more than a chess piece on her parents board, but her marriage to Aric opens something up inside her, and I honestly loved the journey of self love and worth she went on in this book.

Though we don't get Aric's pov, and I was a teeny bit disappointed by this, he's still fairly well developed as his own character. This is by far Bianca's book, and she is where the focus lies, but I enjoyed the time's we see him open up to her, begrudgingly at first, but the more time he spends with her, the more we understand the reasons for his aloofness. He's someone who has been told he's worthless, similarly to Bianca, and it's this feeling of being broken that bridges the gap between the two.

I mentioned Howl's Moving Castle before and I really think it's a good reference for this book, not only because of the whimsy but because of the almost basic introduction to the magic and world. I don't mean that in a bad way, this was absolutely more character/romance focused and it 100% worked with the way the characters are written, but for those who like a bit more to their world building, you may be slightly disappointed. The focus lies solely with our characters and the somewhat hilarious situation they find themselves in. Be prepared for horse/riding puns a plenty, a lot of blushing and nakedness. Stevenson does a great job of dealing with some hefty topics with enough levity that they never bog the plot down in any way. Her writing style, descriptions and use of humor really propel the plot along and I found myself flying through the pages.

The romance was almost perfect, the only thing it was missing for me was Aric's POV because I needed to feel that boy pining as much as Bianca was, but that's more a personal preference and I still loved it as a whole. It's the kind of enemies to lovers where they both fall hard early on, but neither are willing to put their differences aside and admit it... until the horse situation anyway, with some grump/sunshine thrown in for good measure. These are two people who have been told they are worthless, useful only as pawns in a bigger game, and it took a long while for them to realise that they are in fact worth more than that, worth loving. But alongside this journey, Stevenson gives us a story full of pining, of want and tension and it really does scream 'save a horse, ride your husband'... in more than one way if you get my meaning.

The side plot of the assassination was well woven through the book and I enjoyed how it allowed Stevenson to bring in some side characters to add tension, drama and a whole bunch of humour to the story. I especially loved Bianca's sister Tatiana, and some of their interactions, especially after she'd married Aric had me cackling. It really is just a fun book, it reminds me of Kingfishers in a lot of way, the quirkiness and the fast paced storytelling, but Stevenson has absolutely made this story her own and I am eager to see what she writes next.

Behooved was an absolute delight from start to finish. This was silly and whimsical and heartwarming. For those of us who grew up binge watching The Saddle Club, with our Breyer figurines and persistent nagging our parents for a pony of our own.

arranged marriage
cosy fantasy
queer representation
chronic illness rep
one bed/stable trope

This book does not shy away from how silly it is and I LOVE that. 𝑫𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔? 𝑵𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒆𝒓. Vibrant, colourful world building was the expectation here and it delivered. But what really stole the show for me were our main characters, Bianca & Aric, their banter was lighthearted and fun and they absolutely melted my heart.

An endless thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy of this book. I would absolutely love to read more from this author, especially if they continue to be as magical as this.

Full disclosure: this is a 5 star rating for the vibes.

Is the story absolutely perfect? No. Is the story perfectly lovely, hilariously witty, & deliciously sweet? 100% - and that is why it’s getting full marks from me. I’ll be honest, I could have done with a slightly slower burn with a few more days of angst between Bianca and Aric before they realise their love for each other, but the book is a quick read, and they go through so much together that I could justify it.

At its heart this book is really about two lonely souls who are perceived to be less than ideal heirs - and are reminded of it constantly. Finding each other through duty, they help each other realise that they maybe aren’t weak but rather have strength is a different way… their unconditional support (and later love) for each other is truly lovely to watch unfold. Added to this is the absurdity of the situation, some truly laugh out loud horse innuendos and puns, and two MCs that are incredibly endearing. A perfect recipe in my eyes!

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton | Hodderscape, Stevenson & NetGalley for the opportunity to read & honestly review Behooved prior to its release.

Behooved had a lot of potential, and while it didn’t fully deliver for me, there were still things to appreciate. Bianca is a strong protagonist, and the chronic illness representation? Fantastic. We absolutely need more of that in books.

The humor and horse puns add a fun touch, but the story never fully commits to being either a lighthearted romcom or a deeper, more emotional narrative. It hovers somewhere in between, which makes it feel a little unsure of itself. The romance, too, could have been stronger—there’s a shift from mutual annoyance to miscommunication to insta-love that happens so fast, it doesn’t quite feel earned.

The pacing dragged at times, and I kept waiting for that hook that would pull me in completely. That said, there were definitely enjoyable moments, and the unique premise kept me curious enough to see how it all played out.

Overall, Behooved is a decent read with solid representation and some charming humor, even if it didn’t completely win me over. If you’re in the mood for a story with a unique setting and a protagonist worth rooting for, it might still be worth a shot! ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you Netgalley, Hodder & Stoughton and M. Stevenson for this ARC.

I came into this book not quite sure what to expect, however it turned out to be a relaxing cosy fantasy, with much amusement on a curse that turns the King into a horse every day! I enjoyed the banter between our two main characters, Bianca and Aric, their relationship did take a while to warm up to me which was partly the plot and a little on my side (took a while for me to feel invested.

Bianca is a Duchess who is told by her parents she is to marry a King in a neighbouring kingdom to ensure peace, however not everything is as it seems. Aric is about to be crowned King after the unexpected death of his Mother, and is not very welcoming to Bianca, especially after he becomes cursed to turn into a horse during each day, and a man by night. The story follows their journey to remove the curse and slowly fall for each other.

The horsey innuendos definitely made me chuckle, and roll my eyes in amusement in parts. The characters were well written and had good representation. I would recommend this as an easy to read light hearted novel.

Tropes:
- Only one bed
- Chronic illness rep
- Arranged marriage/marriage of convenience
- Cosy fantasy
- Queer-normative world
- Hate to love
- Witty banter