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Cover of Strange Familiars

Strange Familiars

by Keshe Chow

🌶️fade to black·spoiler·The Seamere College Duology #1

Why Read This?

You'll get a deliciously angsty rivals-to-lovers romance with heart-tugging tension and a magical mystery that keeps you hooked until the cliffhanger.

Synopsis

Strange Familiars is Sunday Times bestselling author Keshe Chow's adult a dark academia fantasy where t wo scholars of magical veterinary science must put aside their lust and loathing to save the world in the first installment of this whimsical, romantic, dark academia duology All's fair in love and magic. Gwendolynne Chan just needs to get through her final year. At Seamere College of Magical Veterinary Sciences, she spends her days using her powers to heal companion animals while her nights are spent studying for exams. As the top student in the magical familiars stream, she is on track to be awarded Dux of the entire school - as long as the pretentious twat Harrisford Briggs doesn't beat her to it. Harrisford Briggs was born into privilege. His father, the Chief Financial Officer of Magecorp, a major global distributor of magic, expects him to come top of the year. Harrisford, though, can't help but notice that his father has been acting odd. Really odd. And there are strange whisperings, too. Rumours of uncontrollable surges of excess magic, which Magecorp has been trying to cover up, as well as rampant corruption within the Magical Ministry itself. When these magical surges begin to rock their way through London, causing chaos and explosions and familiars going feral, Gwen and Harrisford find themselves without a reliable source of magic, putting both of their academic careers at risk. To fix this, they must put aside their duelling feelings of lust and loathing, and - along with Gwen's snarky cat familiar - team up to diagnose the problem. If they fail, not only is their education at stake, but also the fate of the magical world.

At a Glance

4.40 ★ Goodreads
Spice Level🌶️fade to black
Endingspoiler
PairingM/F
Romance Pacingslow burn

Top Tropes

forced proximityacademic settinggames/trials romance

Mood

romanticmysteriousdarkangsty

Book Details

Goodreads Rating

4.40 ★

Page Count

432 pages

Published

2026

Primary Genre

Romantasy

Pairing

M/F

POV

Dual POV

Romance Pacing

Slow Burn

Cliffhanger

spoiler

Audiobook

Available

Yes

Format

Standard

Narrator

Unknown Narrator

Narrator Count

Single

Tropes

RomanceMagicActionAngstWorld
Theme Constellation

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Mood & Vibe

Mood

sign in to see writing style, pacing & more

Characters

FMC: bookworm/scholar sign in to unlock

Spice Details 🌶️

N/A sign in to unlock

self-harmanimal death (implied from feral familiars)traumaviolenceanxietycaptivity (possible from magical surges)war

World & Setting

low fantasy / secret magic sign in to unlock

Reading Context

the angst delivered sign in to unlock

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