The Witch Queen of Halloween

Let it be known ahead of this review … I named the love of my life… an English mastiff — Nixie, doy, doy, doy… she was named for Nïx, Valkyrie Queen and Primordial… Queen of Accessions. Not to brag but; her 12x grandfather was in fact, Hercules from the Sandlot. I loved Halloween so much my first and only son was born on the holiday. This book was written for my heart and soul. It did not disappoint. ‼️ SPOILER ‼️ ALERT ‼️ 👇🏻 I thought this would end with Poppy and Röx opening a haunted house for immortals but I can “see” where we’re going with “Wrath”. I am so glad Kresley is back! I’m not big on giving trust to someone a second time, especially since it was burned so hard waiting for Munro for so long. I am so excited for this series to continue. You’ve been sorely missed Cole! Welcome back! 💕

The plot was both on brand for Kresley but also pretty unique! The drama might have been resolved kind of quickly but I still really enjoyed Rok & Poppy and the teaser at the end!

I’m going to confess something that’s probably horrifying to a lot of people, though that does seem on brand considering the book we’re here about is The Witch Queen of Halloween (you’ll understand once you read this book and also that is not a dig towards the story at all because I flipping loved it!), but I’m not someone who loves Halloween. Now, I don’t hate it, but I just don’t have a deep love for it that I know so many do. It simply wasn’t a holiday that was very important in my household growing up and though I wish I loved it as much as other people do, I really only have a bit of a fondness for it right now. I hope that changes someday and that I’ll love Halloween fully, but until then what warm fuzzies I do have for Halloween will most be due to my love for horror movies, horror movie podcasts, and this book right here because as I said before — I positively loved The Witch Queen of Halloween! I have to say, the Halloween vibes in The Witch Queen of Halloween are immaculate! If you love Halloween and all the bits that go with it, I think you’ll love this book and have the best time reading it — I know I did. Rök and Poppy’s story was just so fun and I enjoyed every single second of it. Rök and Poppy were awesome, their dynamic and chemistry was so alive, and I just adored this storyline that Ms. Cole came up with. I know I’ve already said this book was fun, but I just want to keep describing it that way because that’s what it is — pure sugary, candy coated, spooky goodness F-U-N — FUN! It was totally the bomb and I don’t usually have books I read every Halloween, but I want to make a new tradition that I read The Witch Queen of Halloween every Halloween from now on starting this year even if that means reading it twice in one year. I don’t care, I just love it!

It’s like coming home I told myself going into it this morning that I would pace myself. “It’s a novella, Shakira. Savor it!!” Allllll of that flew out the window with the first page. It’s Kresley Freakin’ Cole for Hecate’s sake! Can you really blame me?! I blew through this sorry so quick and devoured each sentence like it were my last. Even with it being a novella, it’s jam packed full of the intricate details, action, and spicy scenes we all know and love when it comes to Kresley’s work. Rök and Poppy are a fantastical addition to the IAD series and I adored their banter. Now that I’ve gotten through my first read through, I will be doing a reread— the first of many— to scour for any Easter Eggs that Kresley is notorious for putting in her work. To Kresley: HAPPY RELEASE DAY!!!!