Rebel Witch

House of Magic #1

by Ariel Hunter

There’s only one thing you really need to know about the world I come from:
the witch council is as archaic and backwards in their ways as they are powerful.

So when they arrange for me to marry the most powerful warlock in the world so I can give them magic babies, I do what any sensible twenty-four-year old would do.

I run.
Or at least I try to.

Turns out, when push comes to shove, they’re willing to bargain on the whole marriage thing.

To keep my life the way I like it, I just have to do one little thing: claim my powers.

Easier said than done when the unruly power awakened inside of me is a magic that shouldn’t exist.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, my Mystic meant to guide me through the change is the very warlock I was supposed to marry.

Now I’m faced with another bargain, and this time there’s no getting out of it.

Train with Callan and learn how to control my magic, or face the Council’s wrath.

One of these things is sure to end in my demise.
The other? I give it a fifty-fifty shot.

Genres: Fantasy, Witches, Paranormal, Magic, Paranormal Romance, Audiobook, Urban Fantasy

316 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 17, 2020

About the author

Ariel Hunter is an author of sexy fantasy.

She writes about alpha males, badass women, and the magical worlds they inhabit. She lives on the gulf coast with her husband, adorable—though potentially part demon—children, and furbabies of all sizes. When she’s not writing, she is likely buried in a book, soaking in the sun, and eating tacos.

If you’d like to keep up with her new releases, please follow her on Amazon because she’s antisocial and doesn’t want to join social media. However, she is always happy to hear from adoring fans at authorarielhunter@gmail.com. She promises to try her very best to respond.

Reviews

[Mikky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally posted at:


This was exactly what I was expecting it to be: a fun, quick, and interesting read! Though I felt like I was missing a lot of background to the universe the author created because quite a bit about it didn't make much sense. For example the Witch Council. They seemed to be mean for the sake of being mean. I'd like to know where the basis for all these antiquated rules came from and why they've been kept in place all these years. Also, Marnie's mom for supposedly being an all-powerful witch was really incompetent for 90% of the story and that bothered me.

Marnie was handed a crappy situation on top of a crappy situation all against her better judgment. Her mother is the real villain in this story because she's the one who pushed until she got what she wanted all the while not maintaining her promise from the beginning. I understand Marnie's frustration with the arranged marriage. She's not necessarily against it, she just doesn't want anyone pushing it on her. She's rebelling because she feels trapped and it sucks to see her going through everything and not being able to get out of it.

Callan was not what I was expecting him to be. He was actually nothing but understanding, patient, and sweet to Marnie. He stood up for her when things got rough and helped her out in a few very big ways. The balance the author struck in him was great to see. He wasn't overtly pushy but he wasn't meek by any means. I actually ended up liking him very much!

The ending was sort of anti-climatic considering I didn't know the big-bad that was supposedly coming. This is where the world-building would have benefitted me. Due to that fact I didn't know much about this world for the fear the author wanted to strike in me to hit.

The Audio Book:

The narration was overall great but I would have liked to see more of a range in male voices from the narrator. She made Callan more soft-spoken than I expected (and even though it worked for me it may not work for everyone). When there were 2 or more men having a conversion I did get lost. There were no strange background noises in the recording but there were a few very distinct times where I would hear the mic trying to capture noises in the room (in quiet moments) where this was being recorded. Though it didn't affect the narration in any way it was just a detail that I noticed.

* I was given this free review audiobook copy at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

[Anubha (BooksFullOfLife, LifeFullOfBooks) · Rating 3 out of 5]

A witch who wants to be a normal human is forced to take a test which reveals pink magic and thereby signifying a unique power unknown to the witching world. She is forced to enter into arrange marriage and learn to control her powers from him. It's a hate to love trope on the girl's part, I would have liked it more if there was a scope for romance without arranged marriage hanging on the head. This made me feel like well, you are stuck with the guy, you are attracted to him, why resist? Which isn't how I like rooting for couples... so, not my cup of tea. I would have liked it to evolve throughout the series..

[Taleah Wright · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not A Romance

This was an introduction to what sounds like an interesting story but far from a romance. There isn’t any romance, period. No getting to know each other, no dating, no sex, no real connection made. She pushes the male lead away, a lot, and that defeats the purpose.The female is supposed to be 24 but her attitude is more 14-16 year old teenage mind and actions. However, I liked the male lead. I’m not sure if I will get the next book. I don’t like teenage stories anymore.

[JadeShea · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story had an interesting plot line, but I felt like the characters were bland and immature. It was very hard to like them. It made this story not that good for me.

[Tiera McMillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

So this has a really interesting premise for the most part, I am however, in a love hate relationship with the FMC. There are some really great things about her for sure, and her BFF is amazing.. her attitude though is just freaking horrible. Not only does she have this horrid complaintive, constantly combative, and irrational attitude but the story/FMC actually calls attention to the fact that her way of thinking is wrong quite frequently. The BFF will swoop in and speak reason and the world will make sense again, until the FMC runs it over with a truck... again.

Despite my tudey rant above, I did still like the story. I'm a little concerned that while I do understand Marnie and her wish for freedom, I'm concerned for the world around her and her uncontrollable powers. Its also concerning that she doesn't share this concern.. There's a lot of concerns here none of which our FMC seems to give and effs about since its messing up her oh so charming beach bum life. Hmmm. I honestly feel like Marnie should just put her big girl panties on and ovary it up because Callan seems amazing.. there is no reason to not approach the situation with a friendly and grateful manner for helping her learn more about her wild and chaotic magic.

Yea so there is where I'm at. I'm hoping for a little "more" in book 2 to decide whether or not I'm ride or die on this series. Where is the story really heading here?

[Hellsbells · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. As the blurb states its a slow burn romance book and you really get the start of the main characters relationship in this book. Marnie is relatable as a character and her friendship with Anya is sweet. Callan is a strong lead male character and I get the feeling he's hiding some secrets.

I feel this is a great start to a series and will be looking out for book number 2

[Jennifer Mullins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Marnies snarky, rebellious attitude! Her relationship with Anya is so sweet and I love the slow-burn, hate-I-like you aspect with Callan. Callan is amazing and I can’t wait to see what happens with him, Marnie, and the witch council in the next book!

Thank you to the author for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Jennifer Jensen]

Having a hard time with this one. I'm half way through and our FMC is immature and irresponsible. She willfully continues to work at a bar while releasing wild magic that causes harm to others and overall destruction. The witch council and her mother continue to try a force a marriage on her that she continues to refuse to be engaged to (they don't care because they want her to spit out magical babies for the good of all) but that doesn't keep her from lusting after him every other page. This magical council has been stalking her for years but somehow they have no idea the crap she's causing? Really inconsistent writing. Rating to follow when I'm done with the audiobook...

[Connie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not for me.
Witchy and very bitchy! I was not a fan of the main female protagonist. She is extremely immature and stubborn to no end. She acts like a teenager even though she's a grown adult. How does she not understand the consequences of her actions? Her decisions and actions are stupid, sometimes it's just for the sake of being stubborn or a smart ass. It was quite frustrating. I won't be continuing the series.

[Taylor Z · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intriguing storyline but...

I had troubles with how contrary Marnie is just for the sake of being contrary. It screams angsty, immaturity to me, she gets welcomed to this world of magic, learns she's powerful, and still wants to pretend she's ordinary which is hyper unrealistic. I loved Callen and will still try the next book, because it was a neat concept and I liked the magic system. I hope Marnie is less bothersome and embraces her magic.

[Mona Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rebel Witch

This is a brand new author to me and it will not be the last time I read one of her books.
The characters are interesting and make you want to know more about each of them. The storyline is fresh and pulls you in from the beginning. It makes you want to know more. I can't wait to read more from this author

[mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this book was good, the world building and characters were believable, but FMC Marnie was too bratty for my liking, and took the teenage rebellious attitude too far at 24, and that ruined it for me. The narration by Elle Sonali was very good, and a joy to listen to. I received this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Amber · Rating 1 out of 5]

Marnie, one of the main characters, annoyed me to the point I just couldn't finish the book.

[Cogito_ergo_sum · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars

Let me start off by saying that I don't care how formulaic a book is. There's nothing new under the sun. Asking an author to break moulds is a tall order. You don't have to be original to get me to enjoy your book. However, what I do care about is good execution. Simply going down a list in the paranormal genre and checking off that those elements exist is not enough.

This book has an excellent premise: a witch-born heroine wants to leave the supernatural world behind to live a normal human life. But her paranormal community forced her to participate in some paranormal ritual to awaken her powers and she turns out to be superpowered and this scares the crap out of her community. Furthermore, she's engaged against her will. So she goes on a journey to break that engagement and prove she isn't a danger to the community so that she can be left alone to live the life she chooses.

Sounds like it will be a fun read, right? It even has a fun cover. The cover character even gives a punky, sassy vibe. You kind of expect the narration to have undertones of humour.

However, this was not a fun read at all.

I'm going to focus in on the major issues (not in order of priority, just ordered in a way so that I have to write less to explain without going to the trouble of editing this--so yes, you're all getting a rough draft):

1) Romance

Do I expect the couple we're supposed to root for to get together in the first book? Absolutely not. Do I expect romantic tension so that I at least root for them in the upcoming books? Absolutely yes.
Unfortunately, the heroine spouting how hot he looks does not equal tension in my book. The lead came off like some kind of babysitter cleaning up after the heroine's messes. And not in a sexy way.

When asked why he liked her, the only bit we got was

"There's nothing quite like the ocean." I couldn't help but respond softly. "It makes me feel challenged, while still hopeful and powerful."

I looked up at Callan and he was smiling down at me. "[...] That's the true you, Marnie. That describes you perfectly. That's why I want to..." he coughed and looked away. [...] What was the rest of the sentence?

These are his feelings he carried before we learn that Marnie (the heroine) has superpowers. It's a nice bit of dialogue, but nothing in this book has shown us why these two are supposed to be a romantic couple. We got no backstory of any romantic interactions between them. Furthermore, there's nothing less sexy than the male lead telling the unwilling heroine (and acting all possessive) that she's his fiancée. It doesn't matter how many messes he gets her out of. Chivalry doesn't mean he's owed her hand in marriage.

Furthermore, he's done NOTHING to communicate WHY he likes HER. Telling us he's all gung ho about this marriage does not equal romance vibes. That little dialogue that I quoted is not a WHY. I haven't come by a single scene that made me feel romanced.

2) Character

The heroine's character is annoying. She is completely immature. Her heart is in the right place but her immaturity is grating. While I'm all for the growth in a character's arc, there must be some kind of balance so as not to overly annoy the reader. There was nothing to counter balance it. Humour? Nope. Deep mystery? Not interesting enough to feel invested. We're finally thrown something near the end to hint at something more, but by then I didn't care anymore. Exciting plot? Although things were happening, the pacing was molasses slow.

3) Plot

As mentioned, it was slow. Things happened but it was hard to care. We're thrown things from left field like the heroine having a toxic ex-boyfriend (addict) who is pulling her into his drama. This would have been a great avenue for character exploration but it feels like the only reason the author brought it him up was to use as a plot device (one--show jealousy from the male lead, and two--to lead to a plot situation where the heroine shows the reach and magnitude of her powers). If she intended to use him for character exploration and development, it was a very poor attempt.

In conclusion, it was an okay read. I think the author focused too much effort on trying to add some uniqueness to the magic system and not enough in where it really matters (character, relationships, and pacing). I'm not opposed to formulaic stories, but this story came off too calculated. It felt contrived. The author needed so and so to happen, so insert [plot device] here. It failed to evoke emotion from me. I couldn't connect with the story and root for these characters.

[Krys · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s not marked as such on Goodreads, but this felt like a YA paranormal romance, the eclectic storytelling style and my inability to truly connect with the story would make more sense if it was cause that’s how I tend to feel about the YA romances that end up in my adult romance pot on accident.

Where to begin. The fem MC was not a bad ass, she was obnoxious and obstinate to the point of pig-headedness, and it was not a good trait. It was incredibly frustrating because she was the kind of person who would argue till she was green in the face about the color of the sky just because someone told her to believe it was blue (even though it was, in fact blue). She thought she knew better than everyone else and she thought people were always out to get her and I’m not sure why. Though the council showed itself to be kinda shady in the beginning, they never actually did anything to her or her peeps for a majority of the book. It’s almost like they only appeared to set up the climax, disappeared in the interim, then reappeared during the climax. Hmm. Now that’s magic. Their intimidation factor was thus nil for me, because they were the epitome of telling instead of showing. But back to the fem MC, she just came off as someone who should have been 17 or 16 instead of her mid-twenties. I’ve met children more mature than her.

Holy thesaurus, Batman. I was listening to the audiobook, so I couldn’t actually do a search and find out how many times “magic”, “my magic”, and “(insert color here) magic” were used, but it was an obscene number of times. Ob-firgen-scene. There were many ways to describe what was happening without repeating the same things over and over every single time someone’s magic was referenced. It was distracting and really took me out of the action.

This book was definitely a build up for the next book(s) in the series because 7 hours of audiobook time could have been condensed into about 3 hours of actual progressive story telling. There was a lot of arguing, and a lot of repetitive arguing (if I heard about the fem MC refusing to acknowledge/accept she was engaged, I was gonna do something drastic), and a lot of repetitive discussions, with some action and shenanigans thrown in for fun. The major plot focus that was identified in the beginning- the fem MC needing to learn how to control herself or else, was not really fulfilled at all. The male MC was completely worthless when it came to this, and by the end of the book, she had a better idea of how her magic was manifesting (through her will. Sometimes. Okay, maybe 2 out of 3 times) but was no closer to actually controlling it though all of the characters wouldn’t shut up about how “imperative” it was she did so.

I didn’t understand the purpose of the male MC. Just like there are female characters in books and other media that are just there for T&A he was just there for his looks and his clothed penis (because there’s nothing more than making out in this book). He had no depth, no personality, and barely any purpose. The only things I can say he did were indulge the fem MC by praising her for casting difficult spells and cleaning up her messes, though she showed a disturbing propensity for letting her emotions get the best of her and harming others, and that 5 second span when he stood up for her and her bestie at the end by cussing out the council and calling them names. Questionably effective, definitely immature, and rather boring considering he can cast spells but “A” for effort I guess?

Despite the climax latching on to the issue of the fem MC reanimating her bestie, it didn’t resolve the moral issue it brought up when she “woke up”. I thought it was a fun question to play with because I’ve always seen this kind of thing from the side of the person animating the dead, usually accidentally, but this book brought up the moral question of what happens if you animate someone who didn’t want to be reanimated. I thought all the craziness that was always happening in the bar was a tad ridiculous (though after the shooting happened, I suspected the Collector had been behind the gunman attacking the bar, and maybe the other fights etc that had broken out too so he could test the fem MC’s powers) but the discussion the fem MC and her bestie almost had was titillating. Then the fem MC randomly fell asleep the the piles of broken glass and blood because it was past her nap time/she was depleted and that was the end of that. Very disappointing, it could have gotten very deep for a second. Even describing more of the bestie’s feelings about everything after that night would have been interesting, but the convo was left unfinished between friends.

I finished it, but I didn’t enjoy it. There were some fun/interesting elements, but for the most part this book was not particularly spectacular. I won’t be finishing the series, as obviously it’s not for me.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Urban Fantasy, it is definitely my favorite genre. I love the genre because it is action-packed, full of interesting worlds and characters, and is typically a quick read. I like short fun books. Lately that's all the effort I can put into reading, so I love a great romp through magical worlds.

Urban Witch is the first I read from this author, and I'm already a fan. It was short (the audiobook was just under 7 hours) and built up just enough interest in this world for me that I might be adding the rest of the series to my endless TBR list. Thank you Goodreads for keeping track for me.

I liked the heroine Marnie right away. She's spunky, and super into independence.  I like a strong female lead. Unfortunately, she's a witch. And in her world, she is promised to Callan as an arranged marriage, and she has to do what she's told. Ew. 

She tries to get out, she does. She even makes a deal to finally get the chance to leave once she does the ceremony accepts her powers. But that was too good of an offer to be true - and most likely a set up from her mom. She turns out to be one powerful and off-the-charts witch. These kind of powers are unheard of in their world. So, well, oops, you can't leave now lady sorry. Now she has to learn to master her abilities because she's kind of a scary thing.

So her fiance becomes her mentor, and there are definitely sparks between them. Yet, due to the forced arrangement, she pushes him away. Marnie is so stubborn about the whole not having control of her life thing. There are some smexy moments between them despite Marnie's reluctance to accept her feelings. Callan is pretty much a sweet guy wanting this girl he's really into and agreed to marry, to be into him. And as her mentor/teacher, he goes above and beyond in protecting her from herself.

They discover just how powerful she is, what she's capable of with zero training. She gets herself in a hell of a bind to save a friend, but the potential of her being something amazing cannot be denied. 

The book is a great start to a series but also short. I would have liked a bit more explanation into the magical world, into their customs, some more background of the relationships between characters. But I feel this will come in future books as we continue to get a taste of the world.

The audio was great! It was my first audio narrated by Elle Sonali and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I'll have to look up some other books she narrated. 

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

[Linds · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 solid stars!

This is the first book i've read from this author and I'm so happy to have discovered her!

I've been reading a lot (A LOT) of academy, bully and paranormal romance, and it is SO refreshing to read a story with a H who is swoon-worthy but also respectful. Callan - our H- is a warlock who is in an arranged engagement with Marnie, our h, a witch. Is he powerful? Yes. Is he Alpha? He definitely fights for what he wants, but he's not an asshole; in fact, he's patient and kind but he's no pushover.

The world where they live in is fascinating as they coexist with humans, but supernaturals aren't quite out in the open.

Witches need to go through a ceremony to find out their 'level' and when Marnie goes through it, surprise - she's off-the-charts. As in, her level/color is literally not part of the chart. As she's marked as an unknown, her plan to leave the witch world is put on pause until she's able to master her magic.

This book was easily a one-seating read for me. Yes, Marnie is a bit of a brat and a little immature, but not completely out of the realm for someone who yearns to do something different from what her entire family's legacy was built on.

My only wish (and why this was a 4 star book for me) was I wish they delved more into the supernatural world more- for example, Marnie goes to school once she's awakened, but how long does one have to be in school? does every witch have to be involved with the Guild? If Marnie went to school with humans (and in face her BFF is an awesome human girl named Anya) yet witches do not age after being awakened, wouldn't their human neighbors notice?

Overall, a great start to a series! Can't wait for Book 2!

[Autumn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad

To be honest I read the other reviews before downloading this book. Some of the reviews complained about punctuation while others complained there was no romance (despite the book being advertised as such) and others brought up “unrealistic” issues. So here’s the deal:

There are a few weird punctuation issues. One being that rather than italicize words to stress emotion or important information, the author underlined them. Typically, you don’t use underline for that. And yes, there was an occasional word left out (such as ‘and’ or ‘but’). Some sentences were a bit long and “over-talked”, as I say, but nothing horribly bad. Basically, this author just needs a better editor because the writing and plot are there.

As for the lack of “romance”, it’s a slow-burn, which I love. I think “insta-love” has poisoned a lot of people towards this style as of late, but personally I prefer the build-up. To me, it makes the relationship more realistic and relatable. I was totally fine with foundation that is getting built here.

Speaking of realistic, I know it’s so tempting to read/write about a character that is perfect right out of the gate, but to be honest, that’s more annoying than a character who has to grow and build. What’s unrealistic is throwing a life-changing event at a character and them just accepting it and being like “Oh, I have these strange and potent mystical powers? Cool. Yeah, no problem. Totally going to embrace it like it’s completely normal.” As for the other “unrealistic” issues: ITS A FICTIONAL NOVEL ABOUT MAGIC.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick and fun. Some of the reviews claim Marnie is immature in the way she handles all the archaic demands made of her but I honestly empathized with her anger, a lot of what she faces isn't reasonable and smacks of self-interest from those that are strong-arming her. I do, however, wish she was less ruled by her hormones. It's hard to keep respecting a girl who is so angry at someone for, as she sees it, belittling her autonomy yet at the same time absolutely cannot stop herself from having immediate sexual fantasies about him. That combination comes off as very weak-willed.

Still, Marnie is likeable as a loyal, friendly, somewhat aimless 20-something and her loving relationship with her best friend really helps to establish her as someone enjoyable to follow as a protagonist. The love interest gets less repulsive throughout the story as he continues to help her and slowly distinguishes himself as separate from the expectations of her that are related to him.

Maybe I'm just spiteful but I'm really hoping that the author isn't going to try to redeem the council in subsequent books. The heavy handed, obey-or-die routine they pull repeatedly with a very strong side of might makes right and our might makes us rightest designates them as utterly intolerable individual people. I dislike when villainous people are redeemed lazily. When old men and women tell a young woman she's a breeding mare and to shut up and fulfill her role, no amount of "it was for your own good all along" won't give this story an extremely bitter after-taste. Here's hoping.

[Spinneretta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Small cliffhanger

**warning: this book ends with a small book-hook type cliffhanger so get the next book lined up.**

All Marnie wants, is to be a surf bum and tend bar, but her heritage as a witch means that she has to accept her powers, and the witch council has arranged a marriage for her.
When her mother brokers a compromise for her, she accepts her magic, only to find herself the recipient of a magic unlike any the world has seen before.
Suddenly the compromise is a no-go, and Marnie finds herself struggling to control her magic, while desperately trying to hold on to what she wants...

This is an urban fantasy, set in the secret magical world alongside our own. The characters are interesting, and rather mysterious, and more than a few are hiding secrets.
It’s the beginning of a series, so it is really a setup book, introducing the world, and the characters, but perhaps the shining star in the book isn’t the main one.
Marnie is a little annoying, seemingly arguing and fighting for no reason at times. Fortunately her best friend Anya, though human, has way more common sense than her. It’s Anya who manages to talk sense into Marnie (on more than one occasion), and it’s Anya who reels Marnie in when she is a little over-the-top.

An entertaining beginning to a series, that holds a great deal of promise!

For fans of urban fantasy and paranormal romance.

[Eros Lovess rosethebookgriot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Antiquated traditions will be challenged. A compromise will be reached. But will Marnie be able to keep her end of the bargain? For what it’s worth, will the Council keep their end of the bargain?

After all, instead of running away Marnie has accepted to stay and enter into her powers on the conditions that 1-she can choose who to marry, 2-she won’t have to use her witchy powers if she doesn’t want to and 3- she can keep her human best friend .

Arranged marriage is out of the question for her. The only problem is that the very man she refused to marry -even though he is hot, and respectful and the most eligible bachelor- is also her mentor.

This book is the first of a series and is a slow burn. I enjoyed listening to it even though I would have wanted more in terms of connection. I wanted to see Callan and Marnie out of their mentor/protegé relationship. It would have given more intensity to their relation. I hope to see more of that in the next installment.

[Selena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wtf did I even just read?! She's stupid and the plot ughhh probably will read second book with the hope that she doesn't end up with this guy! I do not like him.

Edit here! I just found out this bitch is supposed to be in her 20s! WHAT THE FUCK!?!?!!!!! She asks like a 16-17 year old girl in high school having sexual interest for her teacher annddd the "male lead" fucking sucks like I love you vibes and wanting to marry her because of some unknown reason that he couldn't tell her! Ughhhhhh

The characters are immature. The only one I actually liked was the bestfriend and even she gave the bare minimum. Then even she died! Like wtf yea she was brought back but then homegirl had a dream of her decomposing make sure you couldn't turn into a vampire they got witches but no other supernatural creatures 🙄🙄🙄

The story felt rushed it was a quick read though read it in one sitting but shit I felt like it gave me too much information at once but then none at all if that makes any sense

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marnie is packed and ready to leave the life she loves behind but things often don't turn out as we plan. The Council wants her as an asset and have arrange a marriage for her but she doesn't want a bar of it! Her mum convinces her that if she takes her powers, and promises not to use them ~ she can have out of the magical world. Only problem is that her magic shouldn't exist and now she's up the creak without a paddle! Promises are broken, shots are fired, and lives are taken! The only people who can help Marnie is her mother, her best friend Anya and Callan ~ the guy she's meant to marry and who happens to be one of the strongest warlocks and sexy as sin! He's gonna make it hard to fight the system for sure!

[Rachel Osborne · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a unique and amazing take on witches. This book had me from the start. I loved the concept of witches and colours. Marnie is a fun, strong and determined woman and I loved her thoughts and feelings in this book. She's a force and her power is amazing. I loved watching her navigate through her powers and her attraction to Callan. I loved the angst, the battle of wills and the intriguing thoughts that this book shows. The plot thickens as the book continues on and I loved that we get to see more of the inner workings of the supernatural community. Rebel witch is a delight to read and Ariel has made me a fan of her work. What a beautiful book to read that absolutely draws you in and you just can't put it down. Absolutely loved it! I want more!

[Dayzee · Rating 5 out of 5]

✨ PinkWitch rocks! ✨💕 Awesome start!

loved it! i couldn’t put it down! Shes a rebel witch for a reason! Watch out! She is not down for all this council witch rules and arrange marriages and speaks her mind! But she accidentally always does more and lands in trouble more often that needed! Good thing she has a bff and hot fiancé Callen (whom she hates and likes at the same time) marriage arrangement remember? 😅 The more she gets to know him the more she realizes she misjudged him.. and possibly likes him more than she thinks! I love the slow-burn romance and awesome magic story and great start! Definitely swoon worthy scenes! I cant wait for the next one! #witchesDoItbetter#PinkWitchDontCare

[Kelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

I liked Rebel Witch well enough. I liked the different colors of magic and the council. It took a bit for Marnie to grow on me. I didn’t mind her attitude and not wanting anything to do with magic. It reminded me of a parent pushing their kid to master piano when they want to casually rock out to guitar. However, I’d have liked Marnie to take more responsibility for her magic and how dangerous it was. I felt like she was far too casual about it after a myriad of chaotic instances where humans were in danger. It didn’t show enough growth for me.

I liked the story though and the last quarter of the novel really hooked me in to the series. I def want to know what happens to Marnie and Callan next!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marnie is the main female character in this book. She is a strong willed character. Which is understandable. She wants absolutely nothing to do with her coven but her mother made some promises to her and in the end Marnie had no choice but to accept her coven with its antiquated rules/laws. This was a slow burn romance. Which is completely fine by me. I absolutely loved the storyline and I liked how Marnie doesn’t care much for the coven and how she truly cares for humans and those relationships she has cultivated. Callan seems like he’s a perfect man but how perfect is he really?

[Christy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Couldn’t finish

This book is extremely loosely described in the description. She doesn’t run, he doesn’t chase. She predictably is tricked by her council. However at 64% of the way through, the story hasn’t progressed past “we don’t know but if you don’t figure it out we will burn you at the stake.” The only thing I would have liked to know is why Callan was so adamant about marrying Marnie. But it wasn’t worth torturing myself to find out because the way it was going, the answer wouldn’t even be in this book.

[Mariela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg I LOVED this book! LOVED! The story is awesome, it’s about witches and one in particular who just wants to be left alone. She wants to live her life but her mother and father are witches so she has to embrace who she is. But when she takes the test to see her powers she’s like no other. She also has an arranged marriage to her childhood friend that she was not happy about. But when her training begins and he becomes her teacher. Well the book is awesome the story us amazing and I’m already on the 2nD book! A MUST READ

[Alyson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked: her magic (pink!), Her friend, night classes, motorcycle rides,
Didn't like: that she acted so irrationally (working at the bar despite the danger to her friends and other people), the innuendo at the end that the guy was evil, the unneeded stress her actions caused, the fact that her friend bore most of the consequences for her actions (dying/being resurrected, being threatened by the council), that her magic makes her super angry (like when she hit her fellow classmate),
Not for me: surfing