Heather’s Bookshelf: Conjuring & Crossroads
Author: Luciana Morfa
Released: 06/17/25
Genre: Adult Fantasy/Romance
“When the followers of different pantheons began to make contact with each other for the first time, the gods made a peace treaty. A treaty saying we would never recruit mortals again, that they had to feel a connection and approach us willingly.”
“Conjuring & Crossroads” follows Hecate, the Greek Goddess of Witchcraft and Crossroads, as she maintains her responsibilities during current times.
Between attending to her follower witches and helping out in the underworld, Hecate is a busy Goddess. She finds little time for herself, much less a love life. So when Maia begs her to attend a human-led winter solstice ball, she does so reluctantly.
It doesn’t take long before Hecate meets the most beautiful woman she’s ever seen. Stefana Val is a new witch under the guidance of the Norse Goddess, Freyja. Sparks literally fly between them, but life’s much more complicated than that.
Hecate is bound by Zeus to not reveal her true self to anyone besides her followers. As Stef follows Freyja, she must lie to maintain her anonymity. Meanwhile, Stef is called to investigate the murder and magic stealing of a fellow witch. One death leads to another. Hecate and Stefana must partner up in order to find the killer and prevent anything worse from happening.
Will they be able to put their hang-ups aside to save their fellow witches or will it all be too much for the Goddess and the witch?
Trigger Warning: sexual situations, adult language, murder
Overall, I enjoyed this story. Told through dueling POVs of Hecate and Stefana, the alternating pushes the story forward. However, there are periods of the story that feel redundant and repetitive as occurring in both POVs or referenced to more than once. An example of this is the bind preventing Hecate from speaking the truth. The story mixes several mythologies including ancient Greek and Norse as well as many mythical creatures like mermaids, witches, etc. I enjoyed the mash-ups as they were done in a way that made sense and I found the coven format well-done. I would have liked to learn more about why the witches chose their go-to-Goddess and more differences between covens (Freyja was a strong ancillary character). Hecate is my favorite of the two protagonists with her POV feeling much more in control and deliberate (much like her character). My biggest issue was with the rapid evolution of Hecate and Stefana’s relationship. It seemed way too intense and way too fast. It didn’t seem like there was enough time for the evolution of feelings and so it took away from the seeming importance or realism. The ending wrapped everything up for the tale while also leaving open the possibility of future stories. The mythology mashups could certainly turn into a series if the author wished.
I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.
OVERALL REVIEW:
A mythology mashup fantasy with a strong romantic storyline. Challenges with progression during timeline drew a bit away from the relatability.
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