Review--A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon by Sarah Hawley

 

Mariel Spark knows not to trust a demon, especially one that wants her soul, but what’s a witch to do when he won’t leave her side—and she kind of doesn’t want him to?

Mariel Spark is prophesied to be the most powerful witch seen in centuries of the famed Spark family, but to the displeasure of her mother, she prefers baking to brewing potions and gardening to casting hexes. When a spell to summon flour goes very wrong, Mariel finds herself staring down a demon—one she inadvertently summoned for a soul bargain.

Ozroth the Ruthless is a legend among demons. Powerful and merciless, he drives hard bargains to collect mortal souls. But his reputation has suffered ever since a bargain went awry—if he can strike a bargain with Mariel, he will earn back his deadly reputation. Ozroth can’t leave Mariel’s side until they complete a bargain, which she refuses to do (turns out some humans are attached to their souls).

But the witch is funny. And curvy. And disgustingly yet endearingly cheerful. Becoming awkward roommates quickly escalates when Mariel, terrified to confess the inadvertent summoning to her mother, blurts out that she’s dating Ozroth. As Ozroth and Mariel struggle with their opposing goals and maintaining a fake relationship, real attraction blooms between them. But Ozroth has a limited amount of time to strike the deal, and if Mariel gives up her soul, she’ll lose all her emotions—including love—which will only spell disaster for them both.

I was in the mood for a light and paranormally fluffy read so I picked up A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon by Sarah Hawley and it totally fit the bill! This was a cute read and had some good conflicts in it for added measure.

Mariel is a witch who can’t live up to her mother’s high standards. Her magic is mostly average, but she thrives in plant magic. Working with plants makes her happy and brings great joy, but her mother sees it as a worthless hobby for her. Then when she was trying to practice “worthy” skills and summon some flour, she ends up summoning a demon; Ozroth the Ruthless.

Ozroth has had a rough go of it lately. Up until awhile ago, he lived up to his name in being a ruthless demon. He was among the elite soul bargainers demon type. He helped to make deals with humans and trick them out of their souls. Human souls help to power the demon plane, so they are essential to their livelihood. On one of his last “collections” though, things went haywire and the soul went into him. He is now a demon with a soul. So when the witch who summons him tells him it was a mistake, that she doesn’t want to give up her soul for anything, he knows he’s going to have to work at it to to clean up his previous bumble.

Ozroth does not and cannot accept that as an answer. So he vows to not leave her side until she strikes a deal with him. Then almost immediately Mariel’s meddlesome mother shows up and to explain this stranger’s presence she blurts out that he’s her new boyfriend.

Soon begins a fake dating relationship between Mariel and Ozroth. Meanwhile we watch as Mariel struggles to live up to her family’s impossible standard and try to stop a spa from being built in the nearby forest with an endangered species in it. Ozroth is being hounded by his demon mentor to close the deal with Mariel quickly, as their world is depending on human souls to keep it running and with Mariel’s magic, her soul would be a much needed power boost. But naturally, feelings start to develop between Ozroth and Mariel that will make this impossible.

This was a positively adorable read! I loved all the supernatural characters; mostly witches and demons but it makes for a lively story! The romance element was pretty intense between Mariel and Ozroth. It borders on forbidden romance so it has that nice niche! 

The pacing was a little on the slow side but I kind of expected that based on the storyline so it didn’t bother me so much. The story is very character focused and I loved watching the romance develop between Mariel and Ozroth anyway! I was eager to see them overcome a slew of obstacles to get to that HEA ending!

So if you’re a paranormal reader like me and are looking for a light and fluffy read with paranormally goodness then I highly recommend checking this one out! There’s already a second book which will focus on Mariel’s friend and another demon…it promises to be a great read all around with Hawley at the helm!

Overall Rating 4/5 stars