Phantasma by Kaylie Smith Book Review~A dark, lavish, new romantasy story

This is my review of Phantasma by Kaylie Smith, which is an adult fantasy romance book. Enjoy!But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

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plot 0:44
likes 2:33
dislikes 4:40
rating 9:35

Summary: Megan reviews Phantasma by Kaylie Smith, an adult romantasy novel. The story follows Ophelia, who lives in New Orleans with her sister and mother at Grimm Manor. After their mother passes away, Ophelia learns that the family is facing foreclosure due to unpaid debts. Ophelia discovers she has inherited her mother’s necromantic abilities, while her sister Genevieve has entered a deadly tournament called Phantasma to win money to save the house. Ophelia joins the tournament to find and protect her sister, entering a dangerous world filled with magical beings and deadly trials. Along the way, she meets Blackwell, a ghost who offers her a life-altering bargain to help her survive the tournament.

Megan liked the world-building, especially the different magical creatures like devils and ghosts, and compared the book to Caraval with its mysterious tournament and morally gray characters. The trials were engaging, with a mix of cleverness and danger, and there were moments of romance and explicit scenes to break up the action.

However, Megan found the characters underdeveloped and the romance immature. Ophelia's character was a "Mary Sue," and Blackwell's ghostly nature felt inconsistent, especially during intimate scenes. The side characters were largely forgettable, and one antagonist, Cade, was poorly written. Megan also felt that Ophelia's magic was overly convenient, making it too easy for her to progress through the trials. The romance was seen as juvenile and filled with unnecessary drama, with lack of communication between Ophelia and Blackwell being a key issue. The climactic moment of Ophelia finding her sister was anticlimactic and missed an opportunity for suspense.

Despite these issues, Megan appreciated the inclusion of OCD representation in the book and gave it a generous 3 out of 5 stars.

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