This weekend I baked a batch of pecan sticky buns while a thunderstorm rolled over Colorado Springs. I measured, stirred, and watched the dough rise, notebook at my elbow. I read a few pages of A Sensual Summoning between glaze-stirring and folding towels. The book kept tugging at me even as the timer dinged and the house smelled like sugar. I think that says something: a story that follows you from oven to couch. It settled easily into my cozy routine and refused to leave my head.
Plot Summary
A Sensual Summoning by Rachel J. Roman follows Faye Kyteler, an exiled witch who stumbles on a hidden grimoire and unintentionally frees a daemon trapped within its pages. The daemon, Rafael, is brooding, demanding, and far more dangerous than Faye expected. Set in a modern, slightly shadowed world where magic and everyday life overlap, the story centers on the fallout of that summoning. Faye must navigate the moral and magical consequences while Rafael pressures her to help free him. The central conflict mixes personal growth, power dynamics, and a growing, complicated attraction. This book reads as a standalone paranormal romance with strong fantasy elements and an intimate focus on the two leads.
Why I Love This Book
I love how Rachel J. Roman builds mood. The world feels lived-in. The magic is tactile and messy. I connected to Faye right away. She carries guilt and hope in small, believable ways. Rafael is grumpy and sharp, but also unexpectedly layered. The emotional beats landed for me. The pacing kept me turning pages between chores and family time. The heat scenes feel earned and tie into character growth. I also enjoyed the balance of humor and darker moments. As a reader who devours paranormal romance, A Sensual Summoning felt both familiar and refreshingly bold.
Who Will Like This Book
If you enjoy paranormal romance, witch-and-demon dynamics, or spicy fantasy romance, you’ll likely love A Sensual Summoning. Fans of grumpy/sunshine pairings, forced proximity, or morally gray heroes will find this compelling. If you like immersive world-building that still centers on character emotion, this book fits. I’d recommend it to readers who don’t mind explicit content woven into the plot. It leans steamy and intense while keeping the romance central.
⚠️ Trigger warning: explicit sexual content, demon/incubus themes, power imbalance, forced proximity, references to emotional manipulation, dark or morally complex situations, intense sensuality.
Tagged As
paranormal romance, dark romance, witch romance, demon/incubus, grumpy vs sunshine, forced proximity, standalone, steamy fantasy, explicit romance, modern fantasy setting, emotionally complex characters, indie romance
Steam Level
The steam in A Sensual Summoning is explicit and contributes to the character dynamics. Scenes are descriptive and frequent enough that they are a clear part of the book’s appeal. The sexual content is generally integrated into the plot rather than gratuitous, but it is definitely for adult readers comfortable with intense sensuality.
