BY ANY OTHER NAME - Kate King

3.5 stars

A super-sexy, witchy-vibe revamp of Romeo & Juliet for the moody romance girlies. Come for the vibes, stay for the drama!

By Any Other Name follows the story of Etta Capulet, the only daughter of the Capulet witch dynasty in the town of Stratford, Massachusetts.

In today's world, the witches are still alive and thriving in the Northeast, but they're hidden in old money neighborhoods and hiding in plain sight as the movers and shakers of the American money and political landscape.

Etta is on the threshold of pledging herself as an adult witch in their coven, and with that kind of commitment comes a bunch of strings—including the betrothal to Harrison, a son from one of the other founding eight families in Stratford.

Too bad Etta doesn't care for Harrison. She's too busy looking at Roman Montague, her childhood archnemesis and overall supremely-hot emotionally tortured eye candy.

Etta and Roman have a legacy of obsession, petty childhood dramas, and inescapable chemistry.

And as they find themselves strangled in expectations and political maneuvering nonsense, they find that the only people they can rely on are... each other. Things are about to get interesting. (And steamy.)

I had a great time reading By Any Other Name.

Full disclosure, I'm not a huge fan of Shakespeare or Romeo & Juliet-specific retellings, so I think it's not a huge surprise that I didn't fall head-over-heels obsessed with this story. (I tried to love this one, because I love everything Kate King touches.) BUT considering my stance on the inspiration behind the story, I think I enjoyed it a fair amount.

This is one of those quick romance reads that has a good hook, good steamy scenes, and isn't mired in a bunch of logistical details. Come for the drama between Etta and Roman on an intimate scale, and stay for that drama. That's the long and short of it—no fuss, no frills.

I did wish for more detail and larger worldbuilding/plot in the witch community and the mystery angle to this story, but again I think that's because I was looking for reasons to connect to this story beyond the Romeo & Juliet moments so that's really a "me" thing versus anything wrong with the story itself.

Thank you to the author for my copy in exchange for an honest review.