Review: Spellbound

When this book popped up on NetGalley, my interest was piqued by the cool cover, and then the more I read of the description, the better it sounded! M/m paranormal romance set in 1920s New York? It’s as fun as it looks…

Book: Spellbound by Allie Therin

Read before: No

Ownership: E-ARC sent free of charge via NetGalley. All opinions my own.

This is a delightful romp of a book with a central romance that I really enjoyed. Paranormal Rory can see the past of items when he touches them, and he’s currently working behind the scenes at an antique shop, verifying the history of the things brought in for analysis. When he scries into the past of an extremely dangerous ring, he’s brought into the world of Arthur, an ex-soldier who is hunting down these highly magical objects to protect the world from their powers, and the two of them must work together to save New York… and maybe work out this attraction to each other.

I really loved Rory and Arthur’s relationship, right from the start when they were bickering, right the way through until the end. The two of them play off each other very entertainingly – Rory’s instinct for distancing himself to protect his secrets vs Arthur’s desire to protect Rory and his secrets is just so much fun to read! Once they work things out, though, they’re clearly an excellent couple, and though the steamier scenes do fade to black, they clearly have great chemistry. The secondary characters were also really good fun – I particularly liked Jade, Arthur’s best friend, who is telekinetic and just incredibly cool, and Mrs Brodigan, Rory’s aunt, who seems like a meek middle-aged woman, but is actually pretty badass.

The plot absolutely races along, dragging you with it through danger, heists and more! This is a very pacey read and would be perfect to read all in one sitting, or as a palate cleanser between longer books. It finishes really satisfyingly, but enough threads are left open that I’m looking forward to the sequel. I think it’ll be a good bet for those who like the hijinks of The Invisible Library, or the wit and adventure of Gail Carriger’s Parasol Protectorate series. Five out of five cats!