I so enjoyed the first book Go Hex Yourself in the Hex series last year, so I was excited to jump into the sequel What the Hex. But I always find the second book in romance series to be iffy. I think it’s a ‘me’ problem and I get to attached to the first set of characters, that it’s hard for me to switch into the new characters.

Penny has been on the familiar list for years and is nowhere near getting assigned to a witch. Willem Sauer is a witch banned from taking a familiar for another decade. When Penny is presented with an opportunity to be Willem’s familiar off the books, she jumps on the opportunity even though it could cost them both if they’re found out.

I loved Penny in Go Hex Yourself. She was enthusiastic and charming, and while she starts that way in this book, her personality felt all over the place. Occasionally she was a doormat, and sometimes she took what she wanted. It felt inconsistent. She also makes some CRAZY decisions which were cringy. I mean who jumps to saying their trying to have someone’s baby like that, there were so many other options she could have used. Literally anything else would have worked. Willem’s personality was the typical grumpy male love interest but while I liked him, I never loved his character. The relationship between Penny and Willem was cute. The progression of their relationship was abrupt but the sexual chemistry between the two was well done. This is definitely an Open-Door romance, even more so than the first book, so be prepared for some steamy scenes.

Normally we have one main romance trope but there are 3 big ones used in this story, which I felt was a lot. Not only is this a bit of an enemies to lovers story just like book 1 but it also incorporates fake dating, and the grumpy/sunshine trope as well. It was a bit much for me.

Overall, this is still a fun and quick rom-com but was the transition from Penny and William hating each other to loving each was a bit abrupt. I never felt truly invested in their ‘love story’ which took away from the story for me. I’d still read another book in the series, but this one wasn’t my favorite.

AMAZON | GOODREADS |★★★

What the Hex comes out April 4, 2023. Huge thank you to Berkley Books for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.  If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof.books.