The Entanglement of Rival Wizards

By: Sara Raasch

Narrated by: Sam Stark

Ali Hazelwood meets Dungeons & Dragons in this enemies-to-lovers fantasy academia romcom where rival grad student wizards are forced to work together without killing—or falling for—each other.

Will they conjure love, or evoke chaos? Two rival wizards are about to find out.

Sebastian Walsh: Evocation Department. Human. The first of his family to pick college over the military.

Elethior Tourael: Conjuration Department. Half-elf. Pretentious asshole. The latest legacy Tourael at Lesiara U.

Both: Mageus Research Grant finalists.

Sebastian refuses to let anyone snatch this away, least of all a snob riding on old money. But what’s worse than a nemesis stealing your grant? You could both get it. Under the condition you work together.

Sebastian is in hell. Thio’s broody. Takes up their shared lab space with his projects . . . and biceps. Brings treats for Sebastian’s familiar . . .

. . . and is nothing like Sebastian thought.

When Sebastian’s past with the Touraels forces him to choose his research or Thio, the decision should be simple. But while working with his rival is volatile . . . falling for his rival might blow up Sebastian’s future.

A Macmillan Audio production from Bramble Books

Critic reviews

Praise for The Nightmare Before Kissmas:

“A joyful, holly-covered, romantic romp!"—Ashley Herring Blake, USA Today bestselling author

“Candy cane-coated catnip for those of us who grew up on Disney Channel Original Movies and wished they made them now for adults! Rollicking, imaginative, and sweetly steamy, The Nightmare Before Kissmas transports readers to a holiday world you won’t want to leave.” — Timothy Janovsky, author of You’re a Mean One, Matthew Prince

“The forbidden romance has a major swoon factor, while the holiday mismatch leads to plenty of funny and fanciful moments.” —People

“While perfect for any time of year, Raasch’s adult debut is definitely a book to put on display for the Christmas season.” —Library Journal

“An irreverent holiday fantasy that involves court politics, young-adult growing pains, and holiday cheer…equal parts silly and romantic.” —Booklist

“A delightful paranormal rom-com that sets up the series for good things to come.” —Publishers Weekly

“Raasch has a unique take on a holiday romance that’s deeper than expected.”—US Weekly

“One of the sweetest, sexiest, messiest, most delightfully unforgettable love stories of the year.” –NY Post

“Things get spicy, quickly, and this book is as delightfully weird as it is funny, fluffy, and immersive in a fantasy world where problems revolve around hookups and the holidays, not well, you know what we’re dealing with here on earth.” —Vulture

“Snappy and heavy on the banter, The Nightmare Before Kissmas...combines the spooky with the jolly in a delightfully easy-to-consume package.” —Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

Who is this man?!

This book was simply lovely. I genuinely enjoyed it and the characters but honestly I dont think Sara can even write a bad book.
My only issue is the cover art, that is NOT how Sebastian is described at all lol its mentioned multiple times he has curls, are the curls in the cover art with us?!

An amazing and enchanting read!

Oh. My. Goodness. I absolutely loved this book and what a way to end my 2025 reading! I loved the story, the characters, the tension, and the steamy scenes. Literally what I have been wanting to read for so long. No notes. So good. Can’t wait to read the next book next year!

Academics will love this

Such a good book. The details, plot, and characters are all amazing and well thought out. I adore Thio and Seb’s story.

Perfect romance

Hits all the story beats that you need from a good romance! Believe the hype on this one - probably going to be one of my top picks for the year. J love it so much that I went ahead and bout a few more books from the author. I would TOTALLY recommend this to anyone who loves romance and/or fantasy

Cute easy romance to listen to

This was a great story to listen to while Christmas baking. I loved the characters and their backstories and their growth.