It was a really good book. It has lots of plot twists especially later in the book which makes it exciting to read and hard to put down!

This book was FANTASTIC.
I loved the first book 'Hedgewitch' and this 2nd instalment was (dare I say it) even better than the first!
Cassie and Oak Patrol are just so likeable and complement each other so well.
The story this time has Cassie and her friends searching for a magical ancient spear that the the Erl King wants so that he can control the Hedge.
The book was exciting and engrossing and I can't wait for another one in the series!
I will definitely be recommending this book to others.

This was a good sequel, Cassie’s back and collecting more badges and unraveling more mysteries surrounding her mother. I thoroughly enjoyed, I just wish it had a bit more peril and less sniping from Ivy. Thank you to the publisher for this ARC via NetGalley.

When we first met Cassie, she was just about to run away from her boarding school. It’s a good thing she did, too, because that decision led to her meeting a talking cat named Montague (now her familiar) and finding the family she never knew she had in Hedgely. There she learned that the magic she’d previously only read about is real.

Hedgewitch, the first book in the series, gave loner Cassie somewhere to belong and introduced her to new friends and witchcraft. Thirteen year old Cassie is now a fledgling witch. She lives with her aunt Miranda, the Hedgewitch and Cassie’s Coven Mistress.

Central to the story is Cassie’s search for her mother, who’s been missing for seven and a half years. Aunt Miranda won’t let Cassie go to Faerie to search for her mother until she becomes a fully qualified witch so Cassie is working hard to earn the badges that will allow her to take the final test.

Cassie has the support of her new best friends, Rue and Tabitha. When some people in Hedgely begin acting oddly, Cassie and her friends take it upon themselves to investigate. The Hedge may as well be magnetised given how frequently the girls find their way there when the wards are weakened.

I’m really enjoying this series and am keen to read the next book. The characters are interesting. The central story of each book is resolved, while the overall arc is advanced. I need to go on vacation to Hedgely so I can visit all of its amazing locations.

I need to spend days in Widdershin’s bookshop, whose proprietor understands the value of first edition books. On the way, I’ll be visiting Marchpane’s, the bakery and sweet shop, and Bramble’s, the tea room. I hope Aunt Miranda doesn’t mind company because I’m moving in to Hartwood Hall.

Favourite quote: ‘But books can change you, change the way you see the world, and then there’s no going back.’

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Welbeck Flame, an imprint of Welbeck Children’s Limited, for the opportunity to read this book.

I couldn't wait to get my hands on this NetGalley copy of Woodwitch and McKenna did not disappoint, Woodwitch sparkles with magic, mystery and most importantly friendships! I loved being back in Hedgely with it huge cast of colourful characters including Hartwood and Morpeth! Book 3 is already top of my wish list!

Review time
Title Woodwitch
Author Skye McKenna
Rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Release date 2nd March

This was a fun read full of whimsy and magic that I can see why this series has been compared to Nevermor, Witches are a plenty in this story as well as fairies. I really enjoyed this book and the whimsy it had, children I think would love this series especially how this one plays out which is still going towards an arc which I think is end game but also a story of what happens when you find out about the world. I am greatly looking forward to telling people to read this book because it deserves all the love. Cassie is a strong character with a great ensemble of cast to help her navigate what it is like to be a witch.

This books picks off after book one and only builds on it. If you like Magic, whimsy, witchy and fairy lore you will love this book and I cannot recommend it enough there were times I was like nooooo, times where I was like yes and the fact that I stayed up till 1am to finish reading this book should tell you how good it was.

Thank you to netgalley and welbeck flame for the opportunity to review this.

Bookblurb

Step into the magical world of Hedgewitch, where the land of Faerie lies just beyond our own . . .

The enchanting new series continues. Cassie has settled into life in Hedgely when, out of the blue, her troubled cousin, Sebastian, comes to stay for Hallowe'en. Sneering and scornful, Sebastian trails after Cassie and her friends, interfering with their coven projects and belittling the dangers of the faery world. But Cassie, Rue and Tabitha have bigger problems - as the nights grow longer, a dark shadow creeps out of the Hedge and villagers start behaving strangely, possessed with the desire to find a mysterious object.

When the Hedgewitch is called away, the girls decide to investigate and discover that whoever is controlling the villagers is seeking a faery relic: an ancient and dangerous weapon, hidden somewhere in the village. Their magical training will be put to the test as they venture deeper into the Hedge and race to find the faery treasure before it falls into the hands of the Erl King.

My 6 year old daughter absolutely adored this book. When I asked her what she liked about this book, she said she liked when Cassie thinks about her mother and finally figures out that somebody called Toby was her dad. She said Cassie is super nice and when she makes mistakes she figures it out herself and corrects them. Highly recommended for kids who enjoy a good fantasy read.

Warning: contains spoilers for Book1.

Initially as a parent and then as a teacher, I have to say that I really do not enjoy Parent Consultation Evenings in school. While my daughter was a model student, my son was always that child – the one teachers would invariably describe as lively – and, while most parents and carers are lovely, as a teacher I’ve faced some quite unpleasant interrogations over the last few years. Something that now goes a long way to making the experience more bearable is being able to chat with bookish parents, on the lookout for titles for their offspring and the first in this series, Hedgewitch, was one I was delighted to recommend recently.

Looking for alternatives to the famous boy wizard – titles from series that are less sinister and rather more cosy – the adults of one of my more confident readers were pleased to return home with my reassurances of it being a read they would enjoy together. Not overly scary, with strong messages of the importance of friendship and an exciting storyline that would hook both them and their child, so that they could all enjoy reading it together, I also told them that this sequel would soon be published and promised to let them know my thoughts once I had read it. Picking up from Book 1, here again is a gorgeous read – perfect for fans of magical adventures, one that I know will go down a storm with young readers and one that I will most definitely be recommending when we return after the Christmas break.

For young witch Cassie, Christmas is a long way from her thoughts when we make her acquaintance once more as she tries her hardest to perfect her cauldron skills to help her gain her white Potioner badge at coven – the magical equivalent of guides. Momentarily losing concentration, her fire threatens to burn out of control and with the help of her feline familiar Montague she manages to put it out, ruining her potion and soaking her Witch’s Handbook at the same time. Rushing back into the house to hang up the book to dry, Cassie is given her mother’s old copy by the housekeeper, Mrs Briggs, who packs her off to coven with it. Arriving late, Cassie tries to sneak in unnoticed by the coven’s leader – the Hedgewitch, who also happens to be her aunt – and discovers they are all to work towards their Forager badges, collecting potion-making ingredients from the outside of the Hedge – the magical boundary between the human world and the land of Faerie.

Telling her best friends and fellow Oak Patrol members Rue and Tabitha about her lack of success with her potion brewing prior to the meeting, she is comforted by their promises to help but soon wound up by nasty comments from Thorn Patrol’s Ivy, who has conveniently forgotten the girls rescuing her from goblins at midsummer. Following the meeting, Cassie tells her friends of her plans to gain the coven badges she needs to advance her training and help her to look for her missing mother and is relieved when Rue and Tabitha suggest they work together on a new badge. Showing them the list of tasks necessary to obtain the Woodwitch badge, Rue and Tabitha readily agree to help Cassie earn it and they start to think about what they need to do.

Before the girls have much of a chance to start, Cassie’s cousin Sebastian comes to stay and does nothing to endear himself to her with his very obvious resentment at being there and his deep dislike of magic. Doing her level best to make him feel welcome, Cassie soon has other worries when she spots Ivy heading into the Hedge on her own. Going after her to investigate, Cassie comes across one of the villagers behaving entirely out of character and muttering about trying to find something. As Cassie and the other members of Oak Patrol start to investigate, other villagers also start to behave oddly and it becomes clear that dark magic is responsible. Just what is Ivy up to in the Hedge? Will Sebastian prove to be anything other than a massive pain in the bum? And can Cassie and her friends work out what the villagers are searching for and find it before it falls into the wrong hands?

Children’s books are full of wonderful friendships but here the bond between Cassie, Rue and Tabitha stands out as one that is solid gold. The three of them share the closest of bonds and are prepared to go to any lengths that they can to support one another whether that be trying to work towards their coven badges or risking life and limb tackling evil magical creatures. Although at times they face great danger, they always stand together and as a reader I so wanted to be a member of Oak Patrol too.

In stark contrast is the girls’ relationship with Ivy. Spiteful, catty and desperate to prove herself better than Cassie, she cannot resist being thoroughly unpleasant at every opportunity and is entirely blind to just how patient and kind Cassie is to her. This tolerance from Cassie is partly down to her empathy in response to Ivy’s personal situation but also because she is able to see that they have far more in common than Ivy is prepared to admit to. Although neither girl is perfect, Ivy’s dislike – hatred, even – of Cassie is steadily growing and will surely lead to far more careless and dangerous behaviour on Ivy’s part in the next in the series.

Despite my valiant attempts to find out more about a Book 3, I have drawn a blank but I very much hope that there will be much more of this series to come. As well as being a fabulous story, which would work well as a stand alone for anyone who is new to the Hedge, Cassie finds out more about her missing mother here, leaving us with more questions than we started with and which I for one am desperate to see resolved. Perfect for readers in Year 4 upwards, this and Book 1 would both make a brilliant shared read.

Woodwitch publishes March 2nd. My enormous thanks go to Welbeck Publishing Group and to Net Galley for my virtual advance read ahead of that date.