I was drawn to the cover and the blurb of this book and was excited to get going with it. Sadly it just was not for me - and I was disappointed as I had so many high hopes.

I felt like the first few chapters were quite slow and hard to get into, but I managed to push through. As the story developed I felt like the author was trying to cover a lot of different topics which became a little overwhelming and the historical side just fell flat for me. It also became hard to follow and I found myself struggling to keep up.

A massive thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this e-arc, it was a fab opportunity - just not for me on this occasion.

An Intrigue of Witches definitely has the same feel to it as the National Treasure films. I really enjoyed the majority of the characters and loved getting to follow them on their journey to uncover mysteries about their past.

However, this book leans much more science fiction than fantasy for me, even though there is a magic system. The intertwining of quantum physics and the magic system was confusing for me to understand, although that may be the point as Sidney is struggling to understand it for herself.

I almost DNF’d it due to all of the conspiracy theories about VR and AI which felt like it got weirdly political. In the end I am glad I kept going because the parts that held more true to the history of the secret society were enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn House for the e-ARC.

Secret society of black witches ruling the world, a villainous organization trying to control the population with virtual reality, and race to find a missing artifact that can save the world.

Sidney is a history professor who finds herself furloughed from her dream job at the Smithsonian when she finds an artifact that suggests everything we know about American history is a lie. Without a job she returns to her hometown of Robbinsville, North Carolina where the local museum director has a job just for her. Sidney needs to find an artifact lost to history after a secret society of witches was murdered in 1820. Sidney, her friends, and family must come together to find this artifact if they have any hopes of saving the world.

This book started off really well. The background of the witches in America was really fresh and fun, the characters were interesting, the world building made sense. Then around the 60% mark it just started falling off the tracks and really struggled to get back on. The puzzles felt like cheap escape room plots. The main character who is smart becomes really oblivious to the heavy handed foreshadowing. The villain goes on like 3 really boring monologues that are basically just rehashing the plot of WALL-E and the "good guys" belief that their the ones with divine right to rule without any kind of supporting argument for that outside of being born special just did not support the first half of the book. By the end it got a little bit back on track but I'm not really sure if a sequel can save the overarching plot.

From a story structure stand point, the transitions from one scene/location to the next were almost non-existent and very jarring. There were multiple places where a character was either called or referred to by the wrong name out of dialogue. Some of the dialogue was the most jarring, out of place, nonsense I've read in a while.

An Intrigue of Witches by Esme Addison is a very good mystery, historical fiction, and fantasy. The plot reminded me of "National Treasure" mixed with virtual reality. There are a few points where the story drags, but it is worth making it through. I enjoyed this story.

Mystery, history, and a delightful adventure! This book is like National Treasure meets A Discovery of Witches in the best way. It was so enjoyable, with a complex, intriguing plot with the right number of twists. It’s a treasure hunt mixed with historical discovery mixed with the mystical.
Some of the themes were a bit far fetched, but the author pulled it off and tied everything together. The depth of the myths and history used helped ground the book. I couldn’t stop reading and the end left me feeling inspired and satisfied.

This was described as National Treasure meets Discovery of Witches. DoW is my favorite book so I was “intrigued.” I really enjoyed the National Treasure/Da Vinci Code aspects of the book. It had more of a Da Vinci Code feel to it than DoW, even with the supernatural/witch aspects. A definite read if you like escape rooms, mystery, and treasure hunts.

DNF. Got 20% in and 80% of that was infodumping with multiple descriptions of the same thing/people.

I really liked this book, the merging of history with magic and secrets was interesting and kept me engaged throughout. Some parts felt kind of slow but i can appreciate we were learning at the pace of the FMC. I would recommend these to readers who enjoy a historical element with fantasy woven into the plot.

I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and honestly review an advanced reader’s copy of this book.

This was fine! I kind of struggled in the beginning. The main character felt quite flat to me. I couldn’t really connect with her, didn’t really feel in her head.
And while the plot was fun, and maybe slightly too fast moving, I think the writing really let it down.
It’s just so much of “I did this, and then I did this and I thought about this and then I did this-,” It was All Tell, no Show. And that made this really hard to read.
It’s a quick read though, and I think the plot was definitely intriguing! I definitely recommend making up your own mind about this one.
2.5⭐️

I DNF'ed this book at 17%. I thought the premise sounded interesting from the synopsis, but in reality it did not hold my attention at all. The central conflict in the book was ridiculous and I really tried to suspend my disbelief, but I couldn't. Usually in the first fifth part of the book, the characters have been established and I have feelings about them — either good or bad or something in between— but I had absolutely nothing going on in my brain for the FMC and the other supporting characters. They felt like paper dolls. No substance. I left off about the point where she was working her way through a sort of escape room with lots of intricate puzzles to figure out, and it was like she was breezing through on easy mode, there was no tension or anything that made me want to keep reading. I didn't even get to the witch part of the book, which is why I requested the ARC to begin with, which is sad. I hardly ever DNF books and am sad that this one didn't hold my attention.

This is definitely a nice cozy mystery, I just feel like it felt a little first drafty at times, but the vibe was really nice.

An Intrigue of Witches by Esme Addison Is a Good witchy read that made me want to go to Scotland. The cover caught my eye and then the title made me History read it . This book has the right amount of Mystery , Scottish History / Mythology, And Witchy vibes that i couldnt get enough. Great read!

This definitely was a really intriguing read, filled with mystery, puzzles, sci-fi, mystery and a touch of magic.

Sidney is a Historian, however after being placed on furlough, she receives an invite to find an artefact - if she finds it, she'll receive a cash reward. The location of this treasure hunt? Her home town of Robbinsville.

Venturing back to Robbinsville, where her grandmother Fiona lives, Sidney takes on a job at the local museum - a cover for her to freely move around to try and find the clues of this artefact. But the more Sidney digs, the more dangerous this quest becomes.

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
This definitely reminded me of some sort of Da Vinci Code film, the mystery, puzzles and clues... alongside other people attempting to stop you, by all means necessary.

I enjoyed adventuring with Sidney to uncover the clues of the artefact, and the revelations told along the way. The different societies really intrigued me, alongside the magic that surrounds these groups. I am a big fan of Ancient Egyptian history, so loved the connections to this timeline.

Although enjoyable, there were quite a few places where there were large information dumps, causing me to zone out of what I was reading and get slightly confused.

With this being book one however, it definitely sets the other books up nicely.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this copy. This review is voluntary.

An Intrigue of Witches takes us through the story of Sidney - placed on furlough as a popular historian, she returns to her hometown to follow a mysterious request to uncover an ancient artefact. As Sidney follows the clues, she learns more about the town, her family, and magic.
I particularly enjoyed the Scottish links in this book. The VR/quantum physics baddies were a little jarring for me, personally. The characters were rich and well written.

If you're looking for a historical magic fantasy sci fi mashup, this is the book for you.

This book was an interesting mishmash of the past and present, filled with history, political machinations, and a critical eye to the dangers of technology. Diverse characters and an compelling premise. Many of the historical characters referenced in within the pages were based on actual people from American history, which gave this book a bit of an educational allure.

But there were also things I didn't love. There was a lot of genealogy, which became confusing. There were sections that felt like info dumps—slow, convoluted, and (again) confusing. There were places where the pacing was far too slow. And there were also sections where it was hard to muster the appropriate suspension of disbelief.

I liked it. There were some good aspects. But I didn't love it.

I absolutely loved this book! As many others have said it has a real Davinci Code feel about it. The touch of magic and the paranormal was just perfect.

The main character, Sidney, is well respected historian who finds herself back in her home town having to solve a mystery that at times threatens her life. I found Sidney to be a likeable character - she is intelligent and driven. As the book progresses you learn much about her family history which really helps to understand her.

The book is fast paced - I often didn't want to put it down as the chapters ended with cliff hanger after cliff hanger. The references to current political situations made the story feel modern. I did struggle a little with following some of the AI elements of the book but this didn't distract from my enjoyment of it at all.

I can see that this book is the first in a new series and I will definitely pick up the next book.

Thank you to Netgalley for an eARC of this book.

This had the potential to be such a good story, but unfortunately it fell flat for me. There was SO much information crammed into the book that I became overwhelmed and couldn't keep things straight. If it is setting things up for a trilogy, though, I think the second and third book have the potential to be better since so much groundwork was laid in this one.

Thanks to NetGalley and SevernHouse.com for the advance reader's copy of this book.

An Intrigue of Witches is a fun, fast paced novel of history, myth, magic and imagination. Sydney Taylor is a talented historian searching for a mysterious artifact. As she uncovers clues, and questions historical beliefs, Sydney must decide who can be trusted. She must also determine what is possible in this new understanding of the history of her family, and the impact on the future of the world.

I look forward to Sydney's next adventure!

Thank you Netgally and Severn House for giving me access to this eARC.

Sidney Taylor is a thirty year old American history professor who after getting benched at work receives an anonymous invitation to hunt for a missing archeological treasure. And a bounty of one million dollar. Sidney must now return to her hometown Robbinsville where she will find much more than she bargained for.

This book made me extremely confused. It’s marketed as “National Treasure meets A Discovery of Witches” which made me really interested, I LOVE A Discovery of Witches. There’s just one problem and that is that there’s no discovery of witches here…

Instead of the thrills of National Treasure and the dark academia vibes you get from A Discovery of Witches we get threats of AI? And a whole story that revolves around AI taking over the world? I truly didn’t see that coming when I requested this book and I did not like it. I can understand the thought behind it but I feel like it was rushed and felt very weird.

Sidney doesn’t feel like a thirty year old woman, she feels so much younger. Especially when we can read her inner monologue and all that. She could pass as someone in their early twenties…
The writing of her felt really off for me regarding how she handled when bad things happened to her. She could be almost murdered and then continue on like nothing happened. Myself would need a few months with a therapist but that might just be me..?

The love interest (?) was an insta love with barely any conversation between the pair. She lays eyes on him and instantly feels a “connection”. Girl please, he could be a serial killer for all you know.

Speaking of serial killers, (there’s none in the story… ish?) the person who sends Sidney threatening text messages felt really off. It was such a short storyline, the messages felt like a teenage girl had written them (I thought of Pretty Little Liars and all of A’s messages) and I wasn’t scared for the main character at all? SPOILERS: Also the part where he enters their home and ties up the grandma? And then does nothing more? Hello???

The story fell really flat for me and it could have been a Wattpad story for all I know. Especially with all that end stuff. I- I don’t even have words. Sad to say this is a 1/5 rating for me and I won’t be continuing the series.

ALSO, what was that artifact that Sidney found but could not reveal at her old job? It was never mentioned and that’s the biggest mystery of this book.

Thank you NetGalley, Severn house Publishers and the author for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book to be released in May 2024 in exchange for an honest review.

An Intrigue of Witches - A Secret Society Mystery # 1
by Esme Addison

What would you do if everything you knew about American history and their leaders was planned by a secret society formed centuries ago in Europe?

Fans of The DaVinci Code, and National Treasure meets Outlander, and A Discovery of Witches will love this new urban fantasy filled with magic, ancient bloodlines, cryptic messages, puzzles, hidden rooms and a treasure hunt that leads to the most coveted relic in the world.

Thirty year old Sidney Taylor embarks on an unexpected mysterious treasure hunt that has been hidden in her hometown for centuries. Guarded by a secret society to keep hidden from the evil that wishes to rule the world, she must locate the relic before they do which is not an easy task. Even for this well educated historian, she too must piece the puzzles together to find it.

The closer she gets to the truth, Sidney, her family, and the people sworn to protect the artifact and bloodline are in more danger. They are all closely watched, and there isn’t anything they won’t do to obtain what they seek, including murder.

I’m a big fan of mysterious Indiana Jones/National Treasure type stories, and an even bigger fan of stories with witches and ancient magic. I found this book very interesting and loved the inclusion of history and weaving in the past to write an adventure with focus on well regarded black figures through time.

Her families ties to fated restoration of power back to a fated family who plans to only bring protection to the world was weaved well. It seems this character and her powerful friends and family have much more work to do. I look forward to reading about it.