The Nikolaev witches have always been outcasts on Swans Island. Useful for entertaining the tourists with their fortune telling and spells, but held at arms length out of suspicion. But for Zoya Lane, witchcraft is her life, from morning until night. Even her dreams are flooded with the visions of her pesnya dushi, the person whose life threads are forever tied with hers.Unfortunately for her … for her that person is Johnny Sharpe, and he’s burned her more times than she cares to count. While she can’t escape the visions of him at night, she would at least like to keep him out of her waking hours. When Johnny returns to the island, it’s clear he has different ideas and a heart determined to make her forgive him.
To complicate her love life, there’s a new mysterious man in her dreams. He arrives to her house handsome, powerful, and with definitely questionable motives. Is he here because he’s Zee’s soulmate or does it have something to do with Aunt Nadia, the house ghost and the closest thing Zee’s had to a mother?
When the protective wards on the house and island start cracking, Zee’s emotions are more tangled than ever. It’s going to take everything Zee has to keep her home and aunt’s spirit safe from a threat more powerful than she could have possibly imagined. No matter what the dreams say, she can’t imagine Johnny sticking with her through what’s to come.
This book is a magical ménage romance novel at 96,000+ words and is intended for audiences 18+ in age. There is mature content.
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I really loved this book. The heroine is living on a sleepy little island town. When the boy she always loved who didn’t treat her very nicely as children returns to town, it triggers a love story that takes many twists and turns. I loved every second of it and highly recommend it.
I loved this second chance romance with a magical little twist. Excellent read.
Another solid read from the mighty Kathryn Moon. Her characters are dimensional and writing style engaging and well-rounded. Looking forward to much more from this author. Check it out, you won’t be disappointed.
Command the Moon is the newest contemporary stand alone romance book from the author. It tells the story of Zoya or Zee and her cousin Sam, witches who lives in an island where they have been shunned pretty much all their life along with their aunt, Nadia. After their aunt’s death, the cousins depended on each other to get on with their lives by running their herbal shop, The Lab. Things started to get interesting when her pesnya dunshi, the boy who has tormented and rejected her during their teens, turned up to win her back. She might open her heart for him again, but what about the new guy in town, Lucas Wolfe? The mysterious man who haunts her dream and waking hours? And what of the “little incidents” happening around their house?
I have read several of the authors work and so I have come to know a bit of her writing style. However, this book is a total 180 from her last book, Good Deeds. That goes to show how versatile the author with her writing and that is in itself big points because for me it means that you will have a lot of interesting reads to choose from.
The story telling starts with going back and forth in time, indicated by date and year of when the story happened, so be sure to take note of that. Personally, I’m not used to this style so it took me maybe 2 chapters in to get into it but after that I found my rhythm. I love the slow build up of the love story of Zee and Johnny. I am a sucker after all for “enemies to lovers” trope, well sort of. I like Zee’s character. She is one of those silently strong type of girl which is refreshing and relatable. I love how she handled Johnny’s remorse of his past deeds. When you are the island’s pariah, trust is a commodity that is not freely given. Thankfully, her exceptional instinct helps her to learn to trust again when Luke came in the picture.
Overall, I love this book and would recommend it to anyone. My only wish is that I get a novella but only because I want to see more of Luke and Zee time together.
I’ve seen many people comparing this book to practical magic, for me, this read more like Ocean at the end of the Lane by Gaiman. Once you start reading it the book has a way of latching onto you and not letting go until the last page, I pulled an all nighter on a work night because I couldn’t stop. While the type of magic used here can be akin to that from practical magical, the backgrounds and reasons differ greatly, and many other books make use of this type of magic instead of wands and fancy spell casting, just because the magic is woven in a subtle way, doesn’t mean it’s not real or there, and this book is indeed, magic. This is a story about second chances and believing people can change, yes Zoya can be considered naive by these days standards, but it is a character trait the world needs more of and not to be seen as something bad for the book or unrealistic. Her personality and that naivite were the reasons this story gripped me so hard, because like her I still carry with me that knowledge that people are not always good, but if we don’t believe in them we become bitter and bitternes is not something worth having in ones life. As for the romance part of the book, it is steamy, it is about second chances, but those are not given easily and without work. It is about believing someone is worth saving and fighting for that. It’s unorthodox, and shows that sexuality has little impact on what it means to love. Before Kathryn the only MMF book I had read before was a short by Christopher Rice that gripped me as much as this one. The theme is approached in a very natural way, and while this is a story about Zoya, Johnny and Luke have their time to shine too. Also, this is not a menage in a way that most are written, where the men cater to the woman and cringe about touching each other in a way that is not accidental, first comes love, and connection, and the three together form a cohesive unit. The first Reverse Harem I read was Written, Kathryn’s first published book, I was wary of the genre but loved it so much I decided to give other authors a try, no luck. Kathryn is the only author I can read a poly relationship without cringing at the interactions or the sex scenes, her characters are full and the story woven like an ocean tide that carries you away. She’s the next best thing in the literary world, she’s the author that readers who grew up reading Harry Potter and Neil Gaiman go to when they want some more spice with their whimsical.
This is an honest voluntereed review of a free copy provided by Kathryn, the reason you’re not seeing a “verified purchase”? I’m saving for the day when I can get print signed versions of her books shipped internationally
I love Kathryn Moon! I am a fan of her other series and I was so excited to read this new book. She’s such a creative, original writer. I LOVED this book. It was different but captivating. The characters are amazing. I want more!
Zee and Sam are from a strong witch line. They don’t hide the fact that they are witches which I love. They live on a small island, people know they are witches yet they have a love-hate relationship. They crucify them publicly but go to them privately. Small town mentality.
I loved the idea of fated mates. Johnny is back and is Zee’s fated mate. What I really love is that even though the concept is that you are fated, you still have a choice. They can choose whether they want them or not. I love that because it’s not insta-love but they develop a relationship.
Lots of twists and turns, humor, wit and some steamy scenes but not all consuming.
Overall: 5/5
I received an ARC copy to review.
It took me a bit to get into this story but once I did it just grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. This is a book of witches and ghosts. A unique approach to mystical things in their island society.
Command the moon has an engaging plot, dynamic characters, and lots of magic.
While this book goes between the past and present, the timeline is easy to follow and gives the relevant pieces of the past when needed. This is has very sexy scenes, including MMF, MM, and MF. I received an advanced copy and am voluntarily leaving an unbiased, honest review.
Awesome story! I love the characters and the writing is great. Another amazing story by Kathryn Moon. Great steamy scenes & plot!
This book follows Zoya(aka Zee) and her cousin Sam. Both women are witches and live on an island in Zee’s deceased aunt’s house. Between dealing with prejudice from her neighbors, Zee also has to contend with a painful reminder of her teen years and an embodiment of something that isn’t all that nice.
The first thing I want to say, so I don’t forget, is that this book weaves in and out of time. Pay attention to the headers of the chapters. As long as you do that, you’ll be fine. If you don’t then you are likely to become confused. We stay with Zee and we see how her past shaped her and what is happening now. The past scenes are important to the backstory.
I really liked the characters. Zee, the FMC, is a strong witch. She has endured a lot of pain throughout her life but is still able to care about people, even those she doesn’t really want to care about. She is also a really good witch and does readings for locals and tourists as well as make charms. She can do other things, but this is where her strengths lie. She lives with her cousin, Sam. Sam is also a witch and is a whiz at potions. The two are close and you can see that they have a good relationship with one another. Nadia is their aunt and really is a nice lady who cares deeply for the girls. The rest of the cast includes her love interests, Sam’s guy, some local women, new friends and her enemies. I’m not saying who is who because I don’t want to give anything away before you get a chance to discover it for yourself.
The world building is well done. The setting is an island where we see some of the places in the nearby town and the girls’ home which sits on a cliff near the town. It is described well enough to get a picture without being overly wordy. The rules of the world are easy to follow and makes sense. It is mostly the same as our world, but with some people having the witchy genes. Those people are able to do things that one would think of when you think of witches(charms, potions, spells and such) with a couple of fun extras thrown in. This makes the book easy to read and enjoyable.
The writing style is one I think most people will like. It is a nice smooth journey that you are easily able to fall into. The dialogue sounds natural. It isn’t stilted or awkward. There isn’t any weird conversations either that makes you question it(aka suddenly professing their every emotion and their love while brushing their teeth or having a serious game plan convo while kissing). Things are said when they naturally would be. There is no insta love in this book.
I did not notice any issues with spelling, grammar or continuity in my copy(KU ebook).
Overall I would recommend this book. Be sure to pay attention to the headers as I said earlier. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to seeing what this author does next.
Could barely put it down I needed to know what was going on to the end. I enjoyed every minute. Its heart wrenching and emotional but perfect.
In Kathryn Moon’s new book, Command the Moon, we encounter witches and magic and spells, but we also experience many sides of human nature: love, grief, fear, loneliness, lust, longing, joy, anger, acceptance, self-doubt, gossip, and courage.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and ended up dragging it out a bit to savor it awhile longer. And while I love the steamy aspects (and there are some grab-your-fan moments!), I also really appreciate the complexity of the characters and attention to details throughout the novel. Flashbacks provide context to better understand the Nikolaev family, particularly our leading lady, Zee, as well as connect past experiences of characters to present-day events in the novel.
Some of my favorite things about Zee and other characters in Command the Moon are their “realness.” These are characters who are multifaceted and reflect many readers’ emotions and thoughts at different points in our lives, and there are characters I either would want to get to know in real life and/or who already remind me of family, friends… and even myself. It is easy to form bonds with the characters, sympathizing (and sometimes empathizing) with their current-day struggles and choices as well as those of the past – which can also end up haunting them.
The plot is engaging and well crafted, playful while serious at times. It examines insecurities individuals may struggle with while providing quiet encouragement to them to keep pushing forward; it reminds readers that good, kind people do exist, and sometimes individuals may need second chances; it demonstrates the power of family and the bonds of friends who come together for one another; and I felt that it also unapologetically highlights the fickle, duplicitous aspects of small-minded naysayers and the dangers of mob mentalities.
Overall, Command the Moon is flirtatious and sexy, mystical and grounded, honest and hopeful. Let it weave its magic on you today.