In this witty fantasy romance, a widow attempts to resurrect her dead husband by blackmailing her rakish necromancer neighbor—only to find herself falling for him instead.
“Witty, whimsical, and deeply kind, A Widow’s Charm is beyond charming—it’s wholly enchanting.”—Alix E. Harrow, New York Times bestselling author of The Everlasting
Lady Hildegarde Croft is accustomed to changes in position. After all, she rose from maidservant to lady of the manor when she married Lord Thorgoode Croft. But when he dies unexpectedly, the plans that would have protected her and the people of Croftholde die along with him. What’s a widow to do?
Potential salvation arrives in the form of Lord Elmwood, who is fleeing the consequences of using his forbidden Charm to raise the dead. Now he’s injured, destitute, and hiding out at the neighboring estate.
My Review
I’m going to be completely transparent about why I picked up this book: there is a dachshund on the cover, I am a dachshund mom, and I had absolutely no choice in the matter. Rollo the dachshund immediately wormed his way into my heart and honestly might be my favorite character in the whole book.
A Widow’s Charm is a fun, flirty, low spice fantasy romance following Lady Hildegarde Croft, a widow who decides that blackmailing her neighbor into resurrecting her late husband is a perfectly reasonable plan. Hilde and Elmwood have genuinely good banter, and the slow burn between them is sweet and tender in a way I really loved. This is not a super explicit romance, but it gave more room for the sweeter, more tender moments to breathe, which I actually preferred.
What I didn’t expect was how much genuine emotional depth this book had. Hilde’s realization that she has spent her entire life taking care of everyone around her and never once doing anything for herself hit me really hard as an eldest daughter. I also loved the exploration of Elmwood’s PTSD from his time at war, which fantasy novels so rarely take seriously. Four stars from me, and dachshund moms be warned: the final chapter is from Rollo’s POV and I absolutely cried.
THE GOOD:
- Rollo the dachshund is an icon and I will not hear otherwise
- Hilde and Elmwood’s banter is fun, flirty, and genuinely charming
- The sweet, tender moments between the two leads are lovely
- Hilde’s arc about finally choosing herself is really emotionally resonant
- The exploration of Elmwood’s PTSD feels thoughtful and rare for the genre
- The themes around power and how it can be abused even in love add real depth
THE NOT-AS-GOOD:
- Elmwood’s immediate intense attraction is not for everyone (purely a personal preference…I’m not a big fan of insta-lust)
THE NEUTRAL:
- This is a low spice romance, sexy scenes are present but not explicit, so adjust expectations accordingly
- The final chapter is from Rollo’s POV and dachshund moms will not be okay (you have been warned)
OVERALL RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
A Widow’s Charm is a sweet, charming, surprisingly emotionally rich fantasy romance with a heroine worth rooting for, a hero with more depth than expected, and the best dachshund in all of literature.
PERFECT FOR:
- Fans of low spice fantasy romance with genuine emotional depth
- Readers who love a flirty, slow burn romance with good banter
- Anyone who appreciates fantasy that takes war trauma seriously
- Eldest daughters who have spent their whole lives taking care of everyone else
- Dachshund moms (bring tissues for the last chapter)
