●Castle of the Cursed by Romina Garber●

*I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review*

Releases August 1st!

Going into this book I had expected a YA darkly gothic romance with supernatural elements due to the trigger warnings and blurb, and whilst this book did have all of that, it didn't feel the way I'd anticipated.

This isn't a bad book, it's enjoyable but just felt scattered and a lot. The beginning chapters hook you, making you question what is going on, but then the pacing fades out and nothing really happens for a while. We get introduced to Estela's estranged aunt and the castle she owns in Spain. There's a odd town and even odder residents, and I enjoyed the atmosphere.

When the story begins to unravel and more questions and characters pop up around 30 percent in is when things become confusing. There's a lot of mystery and a whole magic system to learn, Estela is a flawed character which I liked, but she also makes some dumb decisions despite her having a 'detective' mindset. In the middle the plot begins to focus on the romance with a mysterious figure trapped within the castle, known as Sebastiàn.

The romance sadly wasn't my favourite part, it's enemies to lovers but felt rushed and sudden. Within two weeks the characters are madly in love with each other and willing to do anything, whilst this worked for the resolution and getting it done within the book, I personally felt like forced.

The last quarter of the book is...a lot. We get a massive info-dump along with some plot twists I didn't expect but didn't really care about, at this point my brain was kerfuffled. It kind of goes a bit sci-fi with different dimensions and timelines and such, and it just felt out of place for a gothic novel.

The ending seems to wrap up everything quite easily, but it does hint at a possible sequel with some troubles still unresolved. Overall this was entertaining and had the moody vibes, but I personally felt like it wasn't what I anticipated and was led to believe.

3/5 🌟

I really wanted to push through but at 71% I just couldn't continue anymore.

First, I really couldn't stand the romance at all. Spoiler: The main character goes from being mute (because of trauma) and suicidal, to being in love with a "shadow beats", who wanted to kill her a day ago, in two days. You may think it's because of her mental health and need for another person, any person, but it's not written that way at all.
There is zero emotional connection between the characters and I really couldn't understand why they fell in love immediately ... I didn't got an answer from the main characters inner thoughts and monologue either...
I continued reading because I absolutely enjoyed the atmosphere. A creepy, gothic castle surrounded by a small secluded village, with residents full of ancient superstitions? That's right up my alley! I loved the mystery around the small spanish town and that only those who believe in the old stories and secrets stay there.
Sadly that was the only thing that I liked about the book. I maybe could have overlooked the fact that I din't like the romance, if the writing would have been better. I often found myself confused by it and had to reread passages to make sure I didn't miss anything. For example, there are three characters in a scene, but suddenly one of them isn't mentionend anymore, even if they should have a reaction to what is happening.

Although I didn't enjoy the book I want to thank NetGalley and Puffin Books for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review.