Honey Braxton doesn’t break rules, she enforces them. As an auditor for the Bureau of Magical Compliance, she specializes in wishing wells. Her audits are thorough, her judgments final, and her detachment absolute.
Her latest assignment lands her on the orchard of Ethan Hale, a skeptical single father who has no time for magic, or the cheerful meddling of his three children.
When Honey discovers that the kids used the family’s long-forgotten wishing well to keep the farm afloat, she knows her duty: revoke the unauthorized wishes, file her report, and walk away.
But something about Ethan and his family tugs at her tightly guarded heart and Honey finds her once-clear rules beginning to blur.
With her boss pressuring her to close the case, and the orchard hanging in the balance, Honey faces a choice: uphold the rules and risk destroying the fragile happiness this family has found—or break them, jeopardizing the career she’s spent her life building.
And in the midst of it all, she finds herself considering the one thing she swore she never would: making a wish of her own.
This is the first book in the Brim’s Hollow series, a new cozy romantasy series, and this is a fun option for a fall read. I was immediately intrigued by the pretty cover and title, but I’ve also enjoyed Danika Brown’s books before, as well as both narrators, so I knew the audiobook was going to be enjoyable. The writing and storyline are straightforward, and there isn’t a huge cast of characters to keep track of, which made this an easy listen—definitely a great option if you want to listen while multitasking, commuting, or enjoying a casual weekend read. And I liked that you get a little bit of everything in this book—a unique magic system, romance, small-town eccentric characters, family drama, and more!
The story is told from the third-person POVs of Honey and Ethan, and it’s very immersive and interesting to get both sides of this story. Honey’s an ambitious, by-the-book wish auditor who’s up for a promotion and determined to prove herself, so being sent to Brim’s Hollow is a big opportunity for her career. Ethan’s a single dad doing everything he can to keep his family and farm together after losing his wife, and he wants nothing to do with Honey or the Magical Bureau. They meet very early on when Honey arrives at the orchard to begin her audit, and Ethan tells her to leave, and I felt an immediate enemies-to-lovers possibility. What makes this setup more intriguing is how Ethan’s daughters—Mellie, Brooke, and Emma—play an important role in bringing Honey back to the farm and keeping her around for her and Ethan to actually spend time together. If you love a grumpy vs. sunshine rule-follower vibe, you’ll really love their dynamic and banter. I especially enjoyed watching Honey become more involved with Ethan’s family and invested in the happenings of Brim’s Hollow.
I also really enjoyed the mystery surrounding Ethan’s ex-wife, Leticia. The reason for her leaving the family is very slowly revealed, and what seems like a story about a struggling family farm and unstable magical wishing well becomes more emotional when all the secrets come to light.
The magic system was one of my favourite parts. It’s perfect for a cozy fantasy—easy to follow, but there are enough intricacies, including ley lines, magical territories, witch family lines, wishing wells, and more, to keep you intrigued and make the story feel fresh.
The eccentric townspeople of Brim’s Hollow were also so fun to follow. The town hall meetings were very entertaining scenes, especially as everyone becomes invested in what’s happening to Ethan’s family and his orchard. The town also has its own magical secrets, which I’m sure will be further explored in future books, including a secret gathering place and a magical game of exchanging secrets, which I found fascinating.
The chapters are short, there are frequent POV shifts, and the story moves at a quick pace and isn’t overly long—so you can easily finish this in one day, like I did. There’s some miscommunication between Honey and Ethan, which is honestly not my favourite trope, but it’s short-lived. Honey makes some unintentional mistakes that have devastating consequences and raise the emotional stakes—and I enjoyed how she was forced to deal with the fallout, which made me like her more.
Without getting too far into the ending, I really liked how everything comes together with the high-stakes hearing, the orchard’s magical history, Leticia’s story, and the support from the people of Brim’s Hollow. There are some small twists, but nothing jaw-dropping, and the story gives a satisfying resolution, with an epilogue set a year later that gives the characters more closure.
Based on the ending, I’m assuming this will be an interconnected standalone series where future books focus on other characters in Brim’s Hollow. But I’d love to see Honey and Ethan make appearances in future books, as I’d happily spend more time with them and love to see how their relationship develops.
If you’re looking for a cozy, straightforward fantasy romance with charming characters, small-town magic, family drama, and a fun magical system, this is a good one to add to your TBR, especially for the fall!
The audiobook is the format I’d recommend. Rebecca Avery and Will Collyer both did a fantastic job bringing Honey and Ethan to life, and I loved the expression and range they brought to their respective POVs. At just over eight hours, it’s an easy audiobook to finish in a day or a weekend!
Narrator Performance
As You Wish is read by seasoned narrators Rebecca Avery and Will Collyer. I’ve listened to both of them before, so I was excited to hear them together.
Rebecca gives protagonist Honey Braxton a warm, determined voice from the start. You can hear how ambitious she is when she gets the call from her supervisor about being sent to Brim’s Hollow and learns this is an opportunity for a promotion. I really enjoyed the exchanges between Honey and her friend Ruby. Rebecca’s delivery really conveys the ease and familiarity between them, particularly when Ruby unexpectedly turns up in Brim’s Hollow later in the story. Their conversations are even more fun and immersive once they start digging into the mystery together, and Rebecca does a great job making them sound like two friends enjoying investigating something they probably shouldn’t be. 😂
Rebecca also does a great job establishing the chemistry between Honey and Ethan almost immediately. Ethan wants nothing to do with her, the Bureau, or her audit when she arrives, but Rebecca’s narration still makes their underlying attraction apparent. A highlight is how Rebecca delivers the interactions between Honey and Ethan’s daughters—Mellie, Brooke, and Emma. The girls warm up to Honey faster than their father does, and Rebecca gives each of those relationships its own feel. Some of the later scenes between Honey and Emma, especially when they talk about Emma’s mother, were really well narrated with emotion and authenticity.
Another standout for me was Rebecca’s performance during the Bureau hearing over the orchard. By this point, Honey’s realized that her mistakes have helped put Ethan’s family in a bad place, and you can hear how determined she is to make things right. I was invested in what was going to happen, and Rebecca’s delivery played a big part in keeping me fully engaged.
Will Collyer gives Ethan Hale a very different energy from Honey. When she arrives at his doorstep, Ethan’s defensive and wants her gone, and Will gives him a voice filled with conviction, frustration, and anger. Will also gives Ethan an underlying exhaustion, which fits a man trying to hold his family and farm together for a long time with no help.
The town hall scenes were a major highlight, as Will gives distinct voices and personalities to the eccentric residents of Brim’s Hollow. I particularly enjoyed Will’s performance during the scenes between Ethan and his best friend and police officer, Theodore, especially when Ethan’s considering selling the truck his grandmother gave him. You can hear the concern in Theodore’s voice because he knows his friend well enough to know that Ethan wouldn’t normally consider selling it. There’s a sense of history and friendship between them in their exchanges. Will’s delivery also emphasizes how Ethan is determined to be independent and insists that he can handle things himself.
As the story progresses, I really liked hearing Will shift Ethan’s performance as he becomes more comfortable with Honey. His voice becomes warmer and more open around her, and you can hear his attraction while Ethan is still fighting some of his own feelings. I also really enjoyed Will’s narration of Ethan’s scenes with his daughters. His voice changes depending on which daughter he’s talking to, and there’s a believable fatherly warmth even during more frustrating exchanges.
Overall, both narrators elevated the audiobook. They bring Honey and Ethan to life and also make all of the colorful characters in Brim’s Hollow easy to distinguish and entertaining. At just over 8 hours, you can fly through this, and it’s straightforward enough to listen to while commuting, multitasking, or as a casual weekend listen. If you’re looking for something cosy and magical to add to your fall TBR, I recommend picking this one up on audio!
Narrator Performance
As You Wish is read by seasoned narrators Rebecca Avery and Will Collyer. I’ve listened to both of them before, so I was excited to hear them together.
Rebecca gives protagonist Honey Braxton a warm, determined voice from the start. You can hear how ambitious she is when she gets the call from her supervisor about being sent to Brim’s Hollow and learns this is an opportunity for a promotion. I really enjoyed the exchanges between Honey and her friend Ruby. Rebecca’s delivery really conveys the ease and familiarity between them, particularly when Ruby unexpectedly turns up in Brim’s Hollow later in the story. Their conversations are even more fun and immersive once they start digging into the mystery together, and Rebecca does a great job making them sound like two friends enjoying investigating something they probably shouldn’t be. 😂
Rebecca also does a great job establishing the chemistry between Honey and Ethan almost immediately. Ethan wants nothing to do with her, the Bureau, or her audit when she arrives, but Rebecca’s narration still makes their underlying attraction apparent. A highlight is how Rebecca delivers the interactions between Honey and Ethan’s daughters—Mellie, Brooke, and Emma. The girls warm up to Honey faster than their father does, and Rebecca gives each of those relationships its own feel. Some of the later scenes between Honey and Emma, especially when they talk about Emma’s mother, were really well narrated with emotion and authenticity.
Another standout for me was Rebecca’s performance during the Bureau hearing over the orchard. By this point, Honey’s realized that her mistakes have helped put Ethan’s family in a bad place, and you can hear how determined she is to make things right. I was invested in what was going to happen, and Rebecca’s delivery played a big part in keeping me fully engaged.
Will Collyer gives Ethan Hale a very different energy from Honey. When she arrives at his doorstep, Ethan’s defensive and wants her gone, and Will gives him a voice filled with conviction, frustration, and anger. Will also gives Ethan an underlying exhaustion, which fits a man trying to hold his family and farm together for a long time with no help.
The town hall scenes were a major highlight, as Will gives distinct voices and personalities to the eccentric residents of Brim’s Hollow. I particularly enjoyed Will’s performance during the scenes between Ethan and his best friend and police officer, Theodore, especially when Ethan’s considering selling the truck his grandmother gave him. You can hear the concern in Theodore’s voice because he knows his friend well enough to know that Ethan wouldn’t normally consider selling it. There’s a sense of history and friendship between them in their exchanges. Will’s delivery also emphasizes how Ethan is determined to be independent and insists that he can handle things himself.
As the story progresses, I really liked hearing Will shift Ethan’s performance as he becomes more comfortable with Honey. His voice becomes warmer and more open around her, and you can hear his attraction while Ethan is still fighting some of his own feelings. I also really enjoyed Will’s narration of Ethan’s scenes with his daughters. His voice changes depending on which daughter he’s talking to, and there’s a believable fatherly warmth even during more frustrating exchanges.
Overall, both narrators elevated the audiobook. They bring Honey and Ethan to life and also make all of the colorful characters in Brim’s Hollow easy to distinguish and entertaining. At just over 8 hours, you can fly through this, and it’s straightforward enough to listen to while commuting, multitasking, or as a casual weekend listen. If you’re looking for something cosy and magical to add to your fall TBR, I recommend picking this one up on audio!
As You Wish is read by seasoned narrators Rebecca Avery and Will Collyer. I’ve listened to both of them before, so I was excited to hear them together.
Rebecca gives protagonist Honey Braxton a warm, determined voice from the start. You can hear how ambitious she is when she gets the call from her supervisor about being sent to Brim’s Hollow and learns this is an opportunity for a promotion. I really enjoyed the exchanges between Honey and her friend Ruby. Rebecca’s delivery really conveys the ease and familiarity between them, particularly when Ruby unexpectedly turns up in Brim’s Hollow later in the story. Their conversations are even more fun and immersive once they start digging into the mystery together, and Rebecca does a great job making them sound like two friends enjoying investigating something they probably shouldn’t be. 😂
Rebecca also does a great job establishing the chemistry between Honey and Ethan almost immediately. Ethan wants nothing to do with her, the Bureau, or her audit when she arrives, but Rebecca’s narration still makes their underlying attraction apparent. A highlight is how Rebecca delivers the interactions between Honey and Ethan’s daughters—Mellie, Brooke, and Emma. The girls warm up to Honey faster than their father does, and Rebecca gives each of those relationships its own feel. Some of the later scenes between Honey and Emma, especially when they talk about Emma’s mother, were really well narrated with emotion and authenticity.
Another standout for me was Rebecca’s performance during the Bureau hearing over the orchard. By this point, Honey’s realized that her mistakes have helped put Ethan’s family in a bad place, and you can hear how determined she is to make things right. I was invested in what was going to happen, and Rebecca’s delivery played a big part in keeping me fully engaged.
Will Collyer gives Ethan Hale a very different energy from Honey. When she arrives at his doorstep, Ethan’s defensive and wants her gone, and Will gives him a voice filled with conviction, frustration, and anger. Will also gives Ethan an underlying exhaustion, which fits a man trying to hold his family and farm together for a long time with no help.
The town hall scenes were a major highlight, as Will gives distinct voices and personalities to the eccentric residents of Brim’s Hollow. I particularly enjoyed Will’s performance during the scenes between Ethan and his best friend and police officer, Theodore, especially when Ethan’s considering selling the truck his grandmother gave him. You can hear the concern in Theodore’s voice because he knows his friend well enough to know that Ethan wouldn’t normally consider selling it. There’s a sense of history and friendship between them in their exchanges. Will’s delivery also emphasizes how Ethan is determined to be independent and insists that he can handle things himself.
As the story progresses, I really liked hearing Will shift Ethan’s performance as he becomes more comfortable with Honey. His voice becomes warmer and more open around her, and you can hear his attraction while Ethan is still fighting some of his own feelings. I also really enjoyed Will’s narration of Ethan’s scenes with his daughters. His voice changes depending on which daughter he’s talking to, and there’s a believable fatherly warmth even during more frustrating exchanges.
Overall, both narrators elevated the audiobook. They bring Honey and Ethan to life and also make all of the colorful characters in Brim’s Hollow easy to distinguish and entertaining. At just over 8 hours, you can fly through this, and it’s straightforward enough to listen to while commuting, multitasking, or as a casual weekend listen. If you’re looking for something cosy and magical to add to your fall TBR, I recommend picking this one up on audio!
