Ravished by the Rasselbock

by B.L. Brown

Willkommen zum Oktoberfest!

Far from home and on her own for the first time, Gisi is determined to make a life in Munich work. With years of experience working in her parents' restaurant under her apron, she takes a job serving in the famed Festhalle Rasselbock, named for a fae creature from the Thuringian woods she calls home. But staff politics and bad weather leave her short of wages and out in the cold...until she catches the attention of a mysterious, bright-eyed stranger.

Now, re-assigned to the indoor balcony reserved for wealthy tourists, Gisi's dreams start coming true—along with a few minor desires she's only ever voiced to the statues of the Rasselbock within the festhalle. Weirder still, the bright-eyed stranger seems to be the one responsible for granting her wishes. If only Gisi could figure out what he wants in return.

~

Ravished by the Rasselbock is a lighthearted m/f romance set in the fictional festhalls of Oktoberfest. You'll find no Augustiner and Paulaner here, but the beer from Schwarzberg and Rasselbrau are as delicious as the fae entities that brew them.

244 pages, Paperback

Published February 11, 2025

About the author

B.L. Brown is a writer of paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and fantasy. She loves a good slow burn but recognizes that sometimes two characters collide with explosive chemistry that must be acknowledged. And boy, is it fun to read.

Random musings appear on Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram.

There's also a newsletter that releases new material with less frequency than George R. R. Martin.

https://brittawritesthings.com/contact/

Reviews

[Alejandra Guerrero · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it. It was interesting, though it was a bit annoying how Gisi was just stubborn for no reason other than to create more drama.

And the mix of German and English made me think of Rufus Goodboy and his rendition of German Shepherds. I was laughing half of the time because of this, though I don't think that was the author’s intent.

[K.C. Norton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I 100% bought this book for the cute illustrated cover (which I guess is not listed on GoodReads, but it’s heckin’ adorable). Judging this book by its cover worked out well for me.

There were times where I was confused my some details—having been a waitress for many years, I was somewhat bewildered by how the payment system worked, and we spend so much time on it that I got a little fixated. I also have a couple of questions about the magical components of this story, which may be answered in later books. (Ugh, please tell me Heidi is 🌈 and get her a hot girlfriend in the future.)

Mostly, though, what stood out to me was the style of the storytelling. This is very dreamy and surreal, and after reading a bunch of books with very direct commercial prose, I wafted along on this fairytale logic of this book. At times I was confused and I just let go and trusted that things would make sense eventually. For the most part, they did.

I’m not a big fan of fae romance for a number of reasons, including the gross age gap. Hey, this was a fae-adjacent romance that DIDN’T make it weird once we got the full story. While I could have done with less of the same three German phrases repeated to remind us of our location, I enjoyed the smaller details peppered throughout the story. And the spice was spicing. 🌶️

I have a few more B.L. Brown books on my TBR and I’m looking forward to seeing her other work. Gimme those sapphic forest girlies!

[Callie · Rating 5 out of 5]

First time reading this author, will not be the last! Great book, I used to live in Germany when my (ex) husband was stationed there.
The book is amazing, centered around Oktoberfest and the Rasselbock. At the beginning of the book you learn his sad tale, then the story begins.
Gisi has gone to Munich in order to be a server at Oktoberfest and works at the Festhalle Rasselbock. It is her first time and she has some troubles there, but she is determined to do well.
This book is amazing, filled with magic, wonder and a mystery underneath it all. I whole heartedly recommend reading it! It does have German words, but they do have them at the beginning of the book so you can refer back to that in order to verify the word as you’re reading, if necessary.
Grab it and read it, I guarantee you’ll enjoy it!.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Louise H · Rating 4 out of 5]

What, you thought I WOULDN’T read an Oktoberfest romance, during Oktoberfest, that I first heard about the day I went to a local Oktoberfest celebration? Come on

Overall a very cute story, but could use some TLC (grammatical and spelling errors and a few poorly structured sentences that could be quickly corrected)

The love story is very cute (a man who YEARNS and loves consent, we stan) and good step into a less used source of fantasy books: German Folklore. I’d argue that it’s different than Germany Fairytales because this gets more into regional fae and mythical creatures than say a Snow White retelling

I did find the repetitiveness of Gisi not remembering a bit, well, repetitive (send this girl to a library or something to do research but oh no, the pages on Rasselboch have been torn out) but I do look forward to more of this world building and further adventures

Also, WTF Goodreads?? KU has that absolutely stunning cover and you don’t??

3.5 ⭐️

[Hildie Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a cute, fairy-tale-like book that was just right for me. As it's currently Oktoberfest, this was both a timely read and quite fun to read! I liked the German speech mixed in: as a German and English speaker, it was a joy to see my meine Muttersprache included in the telling of this tale. While you won't find Rasselbocks in the Brothers Grimm, they ARE part of German folklore, though in Bavaria (where this book takes place, they are called Wolpertinger ("jackalopes," but with wings, too).

If you are looking for a cozy, slightly fae read, and would like to read something in a German setting, this book is just right for all of that! I really enjoyed it and hope that the author writes more in this tradition and setting.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is just what I needed for the perfect fall read. The atmosphere and pacing were perfect. I felt like I was at the festival with Gisi and was rooting for her the whole time. It has strong fairytale and Octoverfest vibes with a lot of whimsy, lore, and of course a riddle.

Mild spoiler: the MMC is a patient consent king and is down so bad. The spice was extra spicy with wonderful build up.

[Ladnamal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting story with some elements of German fairy tales interwoven in it. I hope we will get more stories with some of the other characters that have been cursed.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Bookwyrm_in_KC · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot of fantasy stories pull most of their inspiration from the folklore is the British isles, so it's always refreshing to read a story inspired by less well known folklore.

Ravished by the Rasslebock weaves together Germanic folklore and Oktoberfest into a fun and compelling romance tale as we follow Gisi's adventures as a beer maid at Festhalle Rasslebock during Oktoberfest in Munich. And Wulf? That walking green flag is such a sweet, charming consent king. 😍

[Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I totally picked this up for the cute cover it has on Amazon and I was not disappointed! It was spicier than the books I normally read, but it also had a really unique story and setting that I have never seen done before. I thought it was really well-written and I flew through it!

[Michelle Roehl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this book. It sounds like it's the start of a series and I'm going to need more ASAP. Oktoberfest and Fae? Sign me up!!!

[Caroline · Rating 2 out of 5]

for someone who needs to "think less," she sure doesn't think about anything at all

[Gabrielle Volstad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written, but I was confused about some things that felt a bit unresolved.