"That's what they do to people like us," her mother had whispered. "That's what fear makes them become."
Eleanor was seven the first time she watched a woman hang for witchcraft. She was eleven the night her own magic rose to answer her father's hands, and a priest in crimson robes stepped out of the mob to claim her before anyone could light the kindling.
He called it salvation. Then he burned her village to the ground so no one could call it anything else.
Now she is Wren: silent, watched, quietly extraordinary. The secret instrument of a Royal Confessor whose ambitions reach far past the crown he serves. Only one person in the palace sees her clearly: Prince Kaelen, the second-born son with nothing of his own but a gift for noticing what everyone else overlooks.
What begins as stolen friendship deepens into something that could destroy them both. Because Father Thaddeus has spent seven years sharpening Wren toward a single moment, and when it comes, in a cathedral draped in wedding silk, the only weapon that can stop him is the one he forged himself.
A slow-burn romantasy of faith, power, and the long, patient work of becoming unbreakable.
S.B. Logue has been building worlds since she was old enough to roll a d20, first around kitchen tables in Dungeons & Dragons campaigns, then in the margins of an English degree she earned mostly so she could keep reading fantasy on purpose.
She writes fantasy and romantasy: intricate magic systems, strong women, powerful romance, and neurodivergent characters who get to be the heroes of their own stories. Her books return to found family, the slow work of figuring out who you are, and the push and pull of power, both magical and human.
She lives on Canada's west coast and writes from the Shawffice, a she-shed full of Lego builds plants (because she can't keep the real ones alive), with a dog underfoot and a kid never far behind.
This was a quick fantasy read. I loved the bleakness and the atmosphere. The pacing was pretty close to perfect. I gasped at times and found myself rooting for the MCs.
I got the is as a ARC read. I loved this book! The characters felt so well written. The story kept drawing you in and was fast paced. The world was fleshed out very well and the descriptions made you feel like you were there. I loved the main character Wren she seemed so kind and smart just someone you would love to hangout with and get to know. Kaelen the main guy was just as well written the depth to his character was amazing. I cannot say enough how amazing this book is. You will be rooting for these characters from the first page to the last page.
“You're not cursed child. You're chosen. Chosen in a way that could change kingdoms.”
✨ Friends to lovers ✨ Slow burn ✨ Duty vs desire ✨ Witchy magic
This was such a sweet read. I really loved Wren’s journey throughout this. After everything that happened to her, watching her slowly reclaim her identity and figure out who she actually is was such a satisfying part of the story.
She’s spent years being shaped by someone else’s plans for her, so seeing her start to take back that control, while also coming into her own with her magic, was such a good part of the story.
“Your magic saved you, Wren. And even then, even terrified and lashing out, you were the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.”
And then there’s Kaelen. Their relationship starts with friendship and gradually becomes something more, and I really loved how sweet they were together.
There’s also a lot of that duty vs desire conflict, with Kaelen having to navigate what’s expected of him as a prince versus what he actually wants for himself.
“This is what it means to be a prince... We dont get love stories. We get strategic alliances and carefully arranged marriages and the knowledge that our personal happiness matters less than grain shipments and trade routes.”
Even with all the time they spend apart, that connection between them never really disappears.
“So much time spent apart and she could still read him like her favourite book.”
And despite being a slow burn, there was enough happening around the romance to keep the story moving.
“No mask could ever hide those eyes. You do realize you've ruined the colour green for me, don't you?”
Chaos, vibes and opinions are all my own ✨ please give credit if you share.
Thank you to the author for this Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of an exciting new historical romantasy read! I thoroughly enjoyed this quick paced book and the romance was top tier.
It follows a witch saved as a child by a scheming palace priest and her surprising friendship with the second born prince. She’s forced to cultivate her power for the priest with nefarious plans in a world that would otherwise wish her dead.
✨Childhood friends to lovers. ✨Duty versus desire. ✨They save each other. ✨Elemental magic. ✨Strong character development. ✨Dual POVs.
This is a slow burn , friends to lovers romance, between Wren and Kaelen . Wren ‘s character arc was fun to watch. I enjoyed watching her growth and in her finding herself. I really enjoyed this fantasy read!
4.25 stars. This is a lovely story with character struggles that many of us can relate to: pressure to fit in, to make ourselves smaller or less to be viewed as acceptable. A love story interwoven with learning to reclaim one's own identity and finding one's own path in life.
I enjoyed this book for the first half, and really struggled with it after that. I wanted to like it more than I did, but it was in desperate need of better editing: certain aspects were so repetitive that it became distracting/annoying (in two different sections/contexts, the FMC asks of the exact same person, "And if I refuse?" and gets basically an identical manipulative answer). In terms of the writing advice "show, don't tell," the author did show ... AND tell. And then told again! To the point that I eventually felt as though they were hovering over my shoulder going, "hey, hey, did you catch that??" Maddeningly, this was paired with strange, small contradictions littered throughout the text.
The storytelling felt similar to being told a fairytale, at times, which gave it a more juvenile/young adult feel. I didn't mind this so much in the beginning because the characters themselves were younger, but it persisted as they grew older. All of the characters felt somewhat flat. The main characters were somewhat better developed, but their entire identities were mostly wrapped up in their trauma/single-minded frustration at their circumstances. The bit of progression they had often didn't feel earned; there would be a couple of pages of "oh she/he did X or Y, so now they're different." Between the style of the storytelling (reminding me of fairytales/children's stories) and the immaturity of the characters (which perhaps was fitting, given that they are only 18 and 20 by the end), the spice in this book was actually off-putting, for me. I was not into reading about intimacy between two characters who seemed so adolescent and skimmed over those parts.
I could go on, but I'm trying to avoid too many spoilers. Overall I think this author has potential, and I'm sad that this didn't hit the mark for me. I hope they get better editors/beta readers in the future.
Wren and Kaelen first meet as children. He is a 13-year-old prince accompanying his older brother and the royal palace’s priest on a diplomatic mission. They happen to be in a small village on the fateful night a drunken father accuses his 11-year-old daughter of witchcraft and tries to kill her, in front of townspeople too fearful (of her) to intervene.
She is rescued by the priest and taken to the palace to be raised as his ward. But it is Kaelen’s patient friendship that helps her recover from the trauma of that night and coax her out of her shell.
As years pass, their relationship deepens into the kind of innocent yearning where every brush of the hand feels like a seismic event. But the danger of their forbidden connection overshadows every stolen glance. He is duty-bound to marry for political advantage, and the scandal of their romance would draw scrutiny that could mean certain death for a witch in hiding. Their desperation is further complicated, of course, by plot twists and nefarious schemes that I won’t spoil here…
I love a good enemies-to-lovers trope as much as the next guy, but this book offered an alternate narrative so riveting and heartbreaking, I couldn’t look away. Watching two best friends grow into the realization that they’re in love with each other, knowing the whole time that they can never be together? Come on!
Logue’s writing is profound and quotable, offering depth to even minor characters, and dropping wisdom bombs when least expected. I understand this is set to be a standalone, but would love to read more stories in this world! Highly recommended.
This book gave me all the feels! I put off starting it because I wasn't sure it would be for me - then the father I got into it the faster I read it.
The main focus of this book is the romance, which is why I thought it might not keep me interested (the world wasn't ending) but the character and the stories were so captivating that I couldn't help being in love with all of it. I would say this book helped solidify for me the difference between a romantasy, and an epic fantasy/romantasy.
The character development for the FMC, Eleanor/Wren, was gorgeous. From a lonely and mistreated child to a confident, magical young lady, with lots of tribulations in between.
"Women have always done the work men take credit for. The church is no different."
I so appreciated the relationship between Wren and the kitchens lady, Marta. It was the real show stealer heart-warmer in my opinion. She might also be the reason I shed a couple tears at the end of this story. 🥹
"It was the finest thing she had ever worn - silk the colour of spring leaves, with tiny pearls sewn along the neckline that caught the light from the stained-glass windows." 💜
If you love romantasy leaning towards the romance side, but also love your stories to include magic, give this book a read!
Thank you to the author for sending me a free copy of this book to read and review.
This is my new favourite romantasy book. The slow burn friends to lovers gave me all of the good feels and I found myself smiling and kicking my feet through several sweet moments.
The yearning felt so real as Wren and Kaelen faced struggles that were compelling enough to propel the story forward and hold my attention from start to finish.
Kaelen is the second son of the king, constantly torn between duty and desire. I actually cried for him when he had to make difficult choices that went against his heart.
Wren is a witch in a world that condemns magic and is used and manipulated by other people who see her more as a tool than a person.
Wren and Kaelen only ever feel truly seen by each other while the rest of the world tries to force them into being what they ought to be: the witch and the spare.
I was rooting for these characters from start to finish.
We follow Wren and Kaelen as they meet in tragic circumstances, as children, and stay with them as they grow together.
We see their struggles, wren, as a child witch in a land where magic is outlawed and she is under the thumb of the church, and Kaelen, the second born prince, as he comes to terms with life as the ‘spare’ and what his royal duties mean. We see them struggle with their individual lives and with the forces that are destined to pull them apart.
Their story is beautifully written, totally endearing and completely gripping I honestly got cross that I had to put my kindle down and adult! It was awful 😂
If the gorgeous cover and the quotes on the last slide don’t sell this book to you, I don’t know what will! Both Kaelen and wren would burn the world down for eachother… my heart is melting for them!
I just finished The Witch and the Spare by S.B. Logue, and it was a spellbinding ride. The character development is spectacular; watching the characters grow, evolve, and navigate their complex journeys made me deeply invested in their dynamics. It is a real slow burn, with so much yearning. The theme of duty over choice, added so much emotional weight to their decisions.
The plot is packed with mystery and intrigue that kept me hooked all the way through to an absolutely spectacular ending. My only critique is that the chapters felt long, which occasionally dragged out the pacing and slowed down my reading momentum. However, the phenomenal character growth, high stakes, and unforgettable conclusion make it well worth the read!
Every so often I'm reminded I'm a glutton for emotional devastation in my books. The Witch and the Spare delivers intensely on it, but also in a beautifully, painfully yearning romance that spans the main character's childhood to early adulthood. S.B. Logue crafts a breathtaking Romantasy that places the question of duty over love front and centre, with heart wrenching, emotional writing that left me in tears multiple times. With an intriguing magic system, deeply unnerving villain, and Wren and Kaelen being two characters you can't help but want to win, The Witch and the Spare should be on your list of romantasy to watch for.
Find out in this slow burn, friends to lovers, opposites attract supernatural read. Historical paranormal fiction, with royalty, evil and controlling church entities and witch trails.
✨️ Rebellion ✨️ Destruction ✨️ Tryannical priest ✨️ Social constraints ✨️ Political expectations ✨️ Healing magic ✨️ Found family
I really enjoyed this book! The character development is so beautifully written. This book is well written, engaging and very memorable! The plot kept me hooked from the first chapter Friends to lovers Forbidden romance Slow burn tension Duty vs desire Villan I hated!! All up my street loved every minute of this book
Thank you to the author, S B Logue, and Goodreads for this advanced copy of The Witch and the Spare. This is a genre I don’t normally read but I really enjoyed this book. Reading it, I felt like I was watching a movie. Very easy to quickly get into the book. Really enjoyed how the ending was done also. Great read and the cover is just beautiful!!!
I’m a sucker for anything fantasy, but make it a forbidden romance between a witch who’s very existence puts her in danger, and a second prince who never really had a place where he belonged, and I was SAT.
The yearning, angst, growing feelings and everything in between was top tier. Wren and Kaelen really took us on a rollercoaster and I was here for it !
Thank you S.B Logue for the early copy of your book. The characters were well developed and story line of good and evil. You go through the trials of both Wren and Kaelen as they fight for their love and the evil that tries to destroy their world.
Beautifully written story with great character development. The evolution of the relationship between the two MC's will have you both laughing and sobbing. Thoroughly enjoyed this and hope to read more from this author!
This book has so much potential, the story is good and the main characters, whilst a little 2 dimensional, are extremely likeable.
It is, however, let down by the constant and infuriating repetition of phrases and events from earlier in the book. I almost walked away from it several times, but as it was an ARC, I wanted to be able to give my honest opinion.
Additionally, it is riddled with small inconsistencies and contradictions from one paragraph to another that a good editor should have picked up. I found myself wondering towards the end if hasty rewrites had taken place without checking that the plotline remained completely intact, as there were gaps that I felt were not explained.
The supporting characters are sparse and mainly one dimensional, which is disappointing as I think exploring those relationships would have been the better option to fill out the book rather than the tedious repetitions.
The author has a great story here and I enjoyed her style of prose - the final showdown scene was brilliant, 5 stars for that! With more refinement I could have awarded this book more.
I think with more experience we will see some spectacular work.
If you want rich world-building, slow-burn childhood friends to lovers and a villian with a twist, then put The Witch & The Spare on your TBR list ready for its release in November.The two main characters are bound by duty, but are drawn together despite a truly horrible villian twisting the world around them. This story will keep you guessing till the end - my only issue is I now want more from these characters!
I got this book as an arc read and I am so in love with these characters. This is a beautifully written story with many twists and turns that keep you from wanting to put the book down. The book feels like a warm hug after you’ve been through a rain storm. You will not be disappointed.
The Witch and the Spare is a story filled with magic, suspense and a longing to belong and be one's true self in a world filled with societal pressures. Shawna's vivid, immersive descriptions bring the story to life, while the compelling plot keeps you on the edge of your seat. A thoroughly enjoyable read!