Maggie and Arthur's Magic Moment

Pre-order this cozy and hilarious light academia romantasy from Leslie Renee and fall under the spell of Hawthorn College


Incantations professor Maggie Linden has plenty to worry about this spring term, between budget cuts at her magic college slashing her syllabus, and sharing a kiss with a mysterious stranger at the Beltane masquerade ball. So she REALLY doesn’t need to add being forced to share her basement office with the famous (and famously broody) alchemist Arthur Taliesin to her plate.

An accident in Taliesen’s lab has set loose a dangerous, haunting magic called a pall that renders the nicer parts of their academic building uninhabitable. With his insufferable attitude and unfortunate good looks, Arthur makes it impossible for Maggie to concentrate on anything—her research, her students’ final exams, or tracking down her mysterious May Day suitor.

She’ll do anything to get Arthur out of her office. Including offering to help him reverse the magic that threatens the school.

But Maggie is starting to realize her officemate may not be the conceited grump he pretends to be.

In fact, much of what she thinks is true about Arthur is merely a mask…

Leslie René (she/her) is a Virginia-based writer and editor. During the day, she is a health and science editor. At night, she writes fantasy novels with a bit of romance and romance novels with a generous helping of magic. She has a lifelong love of languages and is an experienced translation editor (English to Spanish) and translator (Spanish to English).

Leslie loves to get lost in a good book, go to concerts, and stitch yarn and thread into something pretty. Her happy place is playing in the garden with her family.