Unforgettable magic-wielding characters headline this brisk romantic story.
In Gateley’s urban fantasy, a journalist enters a secret world where the unpredictable magic trapped inside her may prove a threat.
Dr. Ronan Gallagher, part of the Druidic Order, investigates the rubble of a building in British Columbia. The destruction definitely involves the sinister, corpselike Wraiths, who use magic derived from the natural world—Wraiths trap the magic inside themselves, giving them longer lives but also slowly decaying bodies. The Druids eventually find Phoebe Ashburn, a survivor of the devastated building, where she and others were the Wraiths’ unwitting test subjects. Phoebe’s been tracking down Wraiths and swiping their classified documents; she can continue doing that if she joins the Order, which can also help remove the volatile magic that the Wraiths have trapped inside her—or at least slow down whatever it’s doing. (“She tucked her hands into her armpits and sank down to the floor, hugging her ribs and gripping her body tight in an attempt to contain the magic. It wasn’t working.”) In the meantime, missions for the Order sometimes necessitate using that magic. Phoebe and Ronan may also be falling for one another, though after a traumatic year in captivity she understandably has trouble trusting people. Gateley’s novel is a spinoff from the author’s earlier trilogy, in which Ronan is a prominent character. This tale masterfully fuses worldbuilding (the “underground magic”) with a burgeoning romance. Snappy dialogue complements the concise narrative descriptions, making Ronan’s frequent discussions about his ambivalent feelings for Phoebe thoroughly engrossing. The two leads’ relationship takes narrative precedence, as do their individual dilemmas (both, for their own reasons, are saddled with nightmares). Still, there are flashes of action that showcase Phoebe’s formidable magic, as well as mystery—like the strange leafy vine with an alarming food source. The many questions that linger and a smashing cliffhanger are more than enough incentive to keep eyes out for the next installment.
Unforgettable magic-wielding characters headline this brisk romantic story.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 9781069434708
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 8, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A romance that could have used significant rethinking.
Childhood friends, almost-sweethearts, a misunderstanding, and a funeral.
Blair Lang and Declan Renshaw were best friends who went on one date before a disagreement and an accident sent them in different directions after high school. Now Blair is back from college to be with her great-aunt Lottie, who’s dying, and to support her single mother in small-town Seabrook, California. Finding a job at a coffee shop puts her in the path of her former boyfriend, since he turns out to be its owner. Can the two get past their mistakes? The novel uses the popular second-chance romance trope, but Pham fails to energize it through interesting characters. Blair’s grief over her great-aunt’s death and her plan to help her mother are overshadowed by internal monologues about her feelings, the way her friends aren’t paying attention to her, and the novel she plans to write. Declan’s distinguishing characteristic, besides being a former high school quarterback, is his skill at building birdhouses. Unsurprisingly, the couple doesn’t have much chemistry; when they embrace, their “bodies meld like…memory foam.” The wooden characters, unusual word choices (“conglomerate of pedestrians,” “litany of plants”), and odd turns of phrase (“tension melting from his eyebrows like butter melting in a warm pan”) are almost enough to obscure the lack of plot development. What passes for stakes is easily defused when Blair comes into an inheritance that saves her from working as a consultant at Ernst & Young in New York—so she can write a romance novel.
A romance that could have used significant rethinking.Pub Date: March 3, 2026
ISBN: 9781668095188
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Feb. 16, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2026
Two hot people confronting their trauma, making passionate love, and solving violent crimes! ’Nuff said.
A heartbroken man lusts after his therapist while seeking revenge on a drug kingpin and his enforcer.
Mitch Haskell’s wife, Angela, died two years ago of an apparent suicide, but Mitch has always believed the scene was staged. Certainly, she would never have willingly left their young son, Andrew, behind. Consumed with a thirst for vengeance, Mitch—a former Marine and undercover agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration and currently a police detective—is struggling with alcohol dependency and uncontrolled rage. Andrew is living with his in-laws, who are making not-so-subtle suggestions that they might apply for permanent guardianship if Mitch can’t get it together. So his boss and best friend, John Bowie, mandates that he go into therapy, which puts him in the path of sexy Dr. Dylan Reede. Within a few days, Mitch makes a connection between two new murders and the death of his former partner; finds a big clue that points to the truth about Angela’s death; goes undercover as a homeless man; takes on a vicious drug cartel; and obnoxiously bullies Dylan with a charm offensive that leads them inevitably to bed. While Mitch seems to lean into the stereotype of the ex-soldier/cop with deeply buried trauma who believes that the ends justify the means—at least in law enforcement—Dylan offers the strength and sweetness to help him start breaking down his walls, allowing herself to be vulnerable in turn. Is passionate sex enough to ground a relationship and a family for the long term? For these characters, and the breakneck speed of this thriller, it’s as good a foundation as any.
Two hot people confronting their trauma, making passionate love, and solving violent crimes! ’Nuff said.Pub Date: March 17, 2026
ISBN: 9781538743027
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Review Posted Online: Dec. 11, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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