Thank you so much to the author, Thea Hawthorne, for the free early copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a lovely, cozy fantasy, the environment was super well-described. I think one of my favorite things about this novella was how atmospheric it was! I really felt like I was in Esk and in the countryside with these characters. I enjoyed the fantasy aspects of the story with the aether, and I would love to learn more about it. The fantastical components of this were not too complicated to follow; While they were present, they did not overwhelm the narrative, which I appreciated since the story was so short. I love the summer house party vibes that were established in this, this is just a setting that I generally like to read about.

The story's beginning was instigated by a bet, which I thought was a fun concept. I appreciated seeing the character growth that Nora and Lisette underwent throughout the story. The paintings and the creative aspects of the story -and I don't think I've read too many stories focused so heavily on the arts - was refreshing. You can tell that the main character is very guarded at the beginning, and it is really a journey of peeling back the layers of the characters. However, I will say I did expect a greater focus on the romance in this novella, things do not start to pick up until over halfway into it. I wouldn't have had an issue with this except for the fact that it is heavily marketed as a cozy, sapphic novella. I also did not love how Nora's friends treated her at the beginning but they get a bit of redemption at the end.

Overall, I think this was such a cozy and exciting story. There was excellent character development throughout this and the atmospheric setting was two key aspects that I adored about this novella. The countryside estate evoked such a mystical, dream-like feeling within me which made me feel cozy and warm within. Lisette's companions in the story were super boisterous and vibrant bringing a lot of life and hilarity into the pages. This novella was a quick read that I would recommend because of its whimsy and is one that I think will have a wide appeal to people interested in the cozy romantasy genre. Definitely planning on going back and reading the first novella and keeping up with the series going forward!