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The Enchanting Eclipse
In "The Enchanting Eclipse," we follow the journey of Eclipse, a young woman whose childhood was toxic, with a new home life of constant struggles. Feeling trapped in her small-town existence and longing for a better life, she boldly decides to pursue exotic dancing to escape. As she plunges into this new world, Eclipse not only grapples with the profession's challenges but also faces the emotional weight of her past. Her surprise love interest and new friendships become both a source of support and a reminder of the dangers of her past.
390 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 27, 2025
3 people are currently reading
30 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 17, 2025
The Enchanting Eclipse is one of those stories that manages to shine a light on subjects that are often overlooked or misunderstood. Leadingham portrays exotic dancers not through the lens of stigma but with empathy and admiration, showing their artistry, resilience, and humanity in a way that feels both refreshing and necessary. It is clear the author wanted to honor the people behind the profession, and that care comes through beautifully.
The book also does not shy away from heavier topics like alcoholism. Instead of painting the struggle as hopeless, it offers a narrative of perseverance, healing, and redemption. Watching characters wrestle with their demons and still carve a path forward makes the story deeply inspiring.
At its core, this novel is about connection, the strange and unpredictable ways two lives can intertwine. The love story blooms in unexpected places, proving that you really can find the love of your life in the most unlikely moments. Leadingham even weaves in the invisible string theory, reminding readers that perhaps we are all tied to the people we are meant to meet, no matter how winding the journey.
What makes this book even more impressive is that it is K.L. Leadingham’s debut and her first self-published work. For a new author, she delivers with heart and confidence, crafting a story that feels both intimate and universal.
The book also does not shy away from heavier topics like alcoholism. Instead of painting the struggle as hopeless, it offers a narrative of perseverance, healing, and redemption. Watching characters wrestle with their demons and still carve a path forward makes the story deeply inspiring.
At its core, this novel is about connection, the strange and unpredictable ways two lives can intertwine. The love story blooms in unexpected places, proving that you really can find the love of your life in the most unlikely moments. Leadingham even weaves in the invisible string theory, reminding readers that perhaps we are all tied to the people we are meant to meet, no matter how winding the journey.
What makes this book even more impressive is that it is K.L. Leadingham’s debut and her first self-published work. For a new author, she delivers with heart and confidence, crafting a story that feels both intimate and universal.
January 7, 2026
This book is captivating. The woman who emerges through the ashes of her childhood has learned that happiness is a journey. This book gives such credit to how hard exciting dancers work and the lives they're striving to have. It needs a little bit of editing on the points of view and how that is broken up. Knowing this is a first book from this author and the enchanting story she unravels allows me to look past that, to the struggles and triumphs. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who struggles with generational trauma and the guilt that comes with healing from it.
July 2, 2025
I’ve seen a lot of negative reviews about this book, and I think it’s important to remember that everyone’s experience is their own. Many of the harsher critiques seem to come from people who personally know the author, yet overlook the fact that—while this is a work of fiction—it’s deeply inspired by her real-life experiences.
This story reflects the author’s struggles, victories, and fears. It’s more than just a book—it’s a piece of her. Unfortunately, some of the criticism appears to stem from personal connections to individuals who played a painful role in her life. And that, to me, is disheartening.
It’s especially disappointing to see family—cousins, aunts, uncles, even parents—reject something so raw and personal. We lived this. And whether they choose to acknowledge it or not, these pages carry truth.
To those hesitant to read because of the reviews: I encourage you to look beyond the noise. This book is a brave, vulnerable offering. It’s the heart and soul of someone who turned pain into something powerful. And that deserves to be seen.
This story reflects the author’s struggles, victories, and fears. It’s more than just a book—it’s a piece of her. Unfortunately, some of the criticism appears to stem from personal connections to individuals who played a painful role in her life. And that, to me, is disheartening.
It’s especially disappointing to see family—cousins, aunts, uncles, even parents—reject something so raw and personal. We lived this. And whether they choose to acknowledge it or not, these pages carry truth.
To those hesitant to read because of the reviews: I encourage you to look beyond the noise. This book is a brave, vulnerable offering. It’s the heart and soul of someone who turned pain into something powerful. And that deserves to be seen.
September 27, 2025
This book follows the trials and tribulations of the FMC, Krisha/Eclipse. It is a beautifully haunting tale of her battle with self-worth, addiction, and the stigmas that surround sex work. Despite a few editing flaws- one being the transition from first person to third person (I am unsure if this was intentional)- I could not put this book down at all. I stayed up all night to finish it and took any moment I could to read even a single chapter. Leadingham bares her soul in this work, sharing some of the deepest and darkest emotions someone can struggle with. It is heartbreaking to know that this is a tale that people can relate to, but also a beautiful way for people to heal from their own traumas. I absolutely loved this book and can not wait to see what else Leadingham comes out with.
February 6, 2026
The Enchanting Eclipse, is a solid debut novel. While it aligns with contemporary romance (closed door spice), the author draws on her own real life story to carefully, and respectfully present the dark realities substance abuse and addiction, very complicated, toxic family dynamics, sexual assault, mental health and PTSD, small town complexities, being poor and the choices people have to make to pull themselves out of and rise above harmful situations, sex work, challenging the beliefs systems and morality one is raised in, lacking self-confidence and self-worth. The novel then lifts us out of the darkness, and looks to offer healing through resilience, reclamation, self-empowerment, sisterhood, and love (self, platonic, and romantic).
As this is the author’s debut novel, there are some areas that gave me some pause. To be fair though, as she continues to write, I fully expect that we’ll see the growth and refinement in her writing in regard to these areas:
1. The author initially presents the novel in a first person POV, then later intentionally switches to a third person POV. The first person POV struggled a bit with “telling” versus “showing”, and left us a bit out of scene. The MC, Eclipse, also felt distant- I was definitely engaged with the storyline, but felt like I was being kept at arms length as a reader. I would have liked to get to know her more closely- know more of her history earlier on to feel more pulled in. Still, I think an argument can be made in defense of that style- being that this character was dealing with trauma and was very guarded, keeping her true vulnerability shielded and being unwilling (or at best hesitant) to really get close with anyone for a good portion of the book. However the switch to third person POV, we are more in-scene, and it feels like more of those barriers come down.
2. The novel covers a lot. A lot. And it can feel a little too sequential at times. I think there are some minor transitional scenes that I would have rather seen cut out in exchange for delving deeper into and expanding on some of the more emotional moments of the book.
3. Let’s talk Logan for a minute. We are introduced to Logan in the section of the book that is third person POV. I think, since he wasn’t presented through Eclipse’s narrative POV, I would have liked to get to know him more unrelated to his thoughts about/interactions with Eclipse. Most of his scenes, even when Eclipse is not physically present, revolved around Eclipse- thinking about her, planning something for her, wrestling with his emotions for her, seeing her etc. And yes, I know this is technically a romance and all of that is absolutely wonderful and important- but I would have loved a bit more of getting to know who Logan was, flushing him out a bit more, outside of the context of Eclipse.
Overall, this work is important. It provides visibility and acknowledgment and humanizes the struggles of women who are so often unfairly judged and considered taboo, cast off to the edge of “decent” society. This novel is a love letter- a letter of hope, for those who can relate to any of the many very real, very difficult themes.
I look forward to reading the next book.
As this is the author’s debut novel, there are some areas that gave me some pause. To be fair though, as she continues to write, I fully expect that we’ll see the growth and refinement in her writing in regard to these areas:
1. The author initially presents the novel in a first person POV, then later intentionally switches to a third person POV. The first person POV struggled a bit with “telling” versus “showing”, and left us a bit out of scene. The MC, Eclipse, also felt distant- I was definitely engaged with the storyline, but felt like I was being kept at arms length as a reader. I would have liked to get to know her more closely- know more of her history earlier on to feel more pulled in. Still, I think an argument can be made in defense of that style- being that this character was dealing with trauma and was very guarded, keeping her true vulnerability shielded and being unwilling (or at best hesitant) to really get close with anyone for a good portion of the book. However the switch to third person POV, we are more in-scene, and it feels like more of those barriers come down.
2. The novel covers a lot. A lot. And it can feel a little too sequential at times. I think there are some minor transitional scenes that I would have rather seen cut out in exchange for delving deeper into and expanding on some of the more emotional moments of the book.
3. Let’s talk Logan for a minute. We are introduced to Logan in the section of the book that is third person POV. I think, since he wasn’t presented through Eclipse’s narrative POV, I would have liked to get to know him more unrelated to his thoughts about/interactions with Eclipse. Most of his scenes, even when Eclipse is not physically present, revolved around Eclipse- thinking about her, planning something for her, wrestling with his emotions for her, seeing her etc. And yes, I know this is technically a romance and all of that is absolutely wonderful and important- but I would have loved a bit more of getting to know who Logan was, flushing him out a bit more, outside of the context of Eclipse.
Overall, this work is important. It provides visibility and acknowledgment and humanizes the struggles of women who are so often unfairly judged and considered taboo, cast off to the edge of “decent” society. This novel is a love letter- a letter of hope, for those who can relate to any of the many very real, very difficult themes.
I look forward to reading the next book.
August 15, 2025
I could NOT put this book down. The story of Eclipse was captivating and each page left me eager to discover what would happen next. A story full of emotion and characters that truly draw you in. The author created real connection between the reader and the characters adding the the book’s allure. I highly recommend this book as your next read!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews