A slow burner to begin with, but a rollercoaster of an ending.

We meet Belle as she is tackling changes at the bookshop where she works. A despicable new boss who is the son of the owner, thinks he knows best. He is progressively removing the appeal, some might say magic, that Belle has worked so hard to achieve.

We then learn that Belle is a witch and so maybe she has woven a little magic into her work at the bookshop. She could be in danger of losing the magic bestowed upon her on her 15th birthday. As now she is about to turn 30 the coven summon her to see how she has used her magic for the last 15 years. If they aren't satisfied with the evidence she could be about to lose her magic forever.

What follows is the mentoring she receives to try and pass the trial to retain her magic. I really liked the different trials and the magic, although at times it felt like it dragged a little as it was very descriptive. Belle is a great character as is her Mother Bonnie who is another witch. I didn't feel that I really got to know the other characters that well but towards the end of the book new depths to the characters were revealed.

Nice, but with room for improvement

"Rewitched" by Lucy Jane Wood is a witchy fantasy story about a witch who has to fight for her magic.

The cover promises a warm, cozy witchy story that I was really looking forward to.
The beginning of "Rewitched" captivated me pretty quickly!

Belladonna is a witch who hasn't used her witchy powers in recent years and has drifted further and further away from her witchy life. Bella works in a cute little bookstore and is seemingly living every bookworm's dream. However, this changes shortly before her 30th birthday. Shortly before her 30th birthday, the protagonist receives a letter from her coven telling her that she must take part in a test in order to keep her witch powers. Will she fight for her witch powers or would she rather live out her existence as a human without powers?

Unfortunately, the protagonist has not found a friend for life in me. Belladonna is insecure and doesn't believe in herself. She bites her tongue so often and doesn't say what she thinks that sometimes it really frustrated me. What really disappointed me was that she didn't really develop at all.

For me, the storyline got weaker and weaker. It was the many small inconsistencies that unfortunately made the story increasingly implausible for me. I would also have liked to have seen some character development, especially from Belladonna. The love story is more hinted at than developed, which is not a bad thing in itself. However, I found the course of the story a little too predictable and I missed the cozy vibes a little 🥹

Unfortunately, "Rewitched" only gets 2.5 out of 5 stars from me.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

What an absolutely charming witchy book this is! I fell in love with it early on and enjoyed watching Belle’s story unfold across the pages as she grappled with her magic and her purpose in life. As someone who recently turned thirty, and is also incredibly adept at talking myself out of things, I see a little of myself in Belle (though sadly, none of the magic!). Though the stakes are high and there are elements of danger, a lot of this story is incredibly heartwarming. I loved to see the friendships Belle was building, as well as the existing relationships in her life. It’s obvious she’s valued by friends, family, colleagues, and bosses, even if she doesn’t see it herself.

There were some unexpected twists along the way here, deceptions and secrets to uncover, and magic to learn. It kept me on my toes and was a sweet, fun read, drizzled with some life and death situations. The only thing that didn’t quite hit the mark for me was the blossoming romance between Belle and Rune. I adored Rune in all his quirkiness, including his goal to be mysterious that leans far more towards frightening. I thought he’d make an interesting character and so I was disappointed not to see more of him in the book, as I would have loved more scenes with him and Belle and to experience more of their romance than we got. That being said, it was otherwise the perfect read and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I received a free copy of this book. All views are my own.

Oh my goodness! This story was so much more than i had anticipated, it is so so cosy and to be honest it made me feel nostalgic and brought me back to my teen years watching Sabrina the teenage witch after school every day. I feel this has it all a cosy plot, a touch of whimsy and a gorgeous slow burn romance that gave me the fuzzies (that is a saying and i'm sticking to it!)

Absolute perfection especially with the autumn/spooky season incoming!

I really wanted to love "Rewitched." The cover is charming, and the description promised everything I look for in a cosy Autumn read. However, at 48% in, I simply couldn’t continue. The pacing is painfully slow, and despite the author’s skillful writing, the excessive descriptions bog down the story. Unfortunately, it felt like a chore to keep reading, and I ultimately had to DNF. While others may enjoy the detailed world-building, it just wasn’t for me.

This was such a fun read - and incidentally, while sometimes you read the blurb for a book and then, having read the book itself, you only see a vague resemblence, I thought the synopsis given for Rewitched was pretty much spot on. Cosy, autumnal, slow-burn witchy romantasy: check, check, check...

While there's some romance, of the aforementioned slow-burn variety, and the love interest ticks the 'book boyfriend' boxes, this is really more of a story of self-love. When we meet Belle she's well and truly stuck in the box she's created for herself, and the events of the story conspire to be every bit the kick up the rear end that she needs to find the gumption to take risks and believe in herself, to seize life, love and magic with both hands. Since this transformation is a whole process, it's safe to say there are plenty of times when I found Belle's self-sabotage grating - for the most part, though, the author did a great job in engendering enough sympathy, and I guess caring enough about a character to be annoyed when they're being obtuse is a sign of the right level of investment!

The magic system was probably a little more vague than I tend to enjoy - think JKR rather than Ben Aaronovitch (actually, the whole thing had a vibe of 'Harry Potter, but make it romantasy')- but I still really liked the world of Selcouth, the wicche/non-wicche setup, and the characterisation was great, as was the gentle humour and banter throughout. And of course, having the FMC be a bookseller was a nice touch - although I did feel that sometimes the whole thread with the bookshop was picked up and dropped where convenient, rather than being fully integral to the main story; this makes sense from the pov of the 'learning magic' element and needing to keep that the focus, but less sense when wanting Belle's hero moment in Lunar Books to have impact. And having her boss give her the place, rather than needing to actually take the financial risk/commitment she'd been avoiding, while nice, did make things a bit anti-climactic.

Despite any criticism I might have, this was a great read, particularly for a debut novel. While it felt like a complete standalone story, there was a sense that there was room for continuation, and I'd happily read more from this author in the future. Sits nicely on the bookshelf alongside Hex Appeal and similar cosy, witchy titles.

This was such a lovely read. The story itself might not feel like its brand new to the world, but its executed with such warmth and heart. I loved the fact that Belle's story was the key thread, especially how much she loves her life long friend Ariadne.

I am in love with the characters and they hold a special wee spot in my heart, especially one. The relationships are so well depicted, they feel real and palpable. The book is brimming with autumnal atmosphere, honestly felt a golden glow around the images as I read....

I would recommend you adding this to your autumn tbr and the Waterstones special edition is stunning; I'm looking forward toine arriving.

I'm so grateful to have gotten a netgalley arc; thank you Pan Macmillan.

Rewitched is the perfect cosy, witchy book and it was just the sort of book I needed.

The main character, Belladonna Blackthorn, is wonderful - I'm almost 30 myself so I found her struggles and worries very relatable. Her personal growth is what makes this story so special, the magic and world are fab too but the characters are what really drew me in. The side characters are full of life and all serve a purpose to the story, there's a little sprinkle of romance which I loved but it doesn't become the main focus of the story.

The magic system is excellent, it felt very traditional and nostalgic. The world is well thought out and the twists weren't predictable at all! The writing is amazing, you can't tell this is a debut book at all. It was so easy to read, I didn't feel confused by anything and I found myself highlighting a lot of quotes.

The whole story was just very heartwarming, it's the sort of book that feels like a warm hug, and I highly recommend it!

This book was *lovely*. The author's humour and personality really comes through making this a very fresh read.

I would be sure to mention to people that it's quite slowly paced to start. I've seen reviews point this out negatively but I do think it's a wonderful opportunity to build up Belle's world and the magical coven system before things start to get really juicy.

Quite a lot more perilous and dramatic than I anticipated by the end - which was a great surprise and I loved how powerful Belle became and felt.

I went into this book thinking I was getting a fluffy and cosy easy read but I’m so happy to say that I was wrong! What I got instead was a truly magical story about love, friendship and second chances ✨🫶

As someone who is also turning 30 very soon, this book spoke to me and addressed that panic-inducing thought of “have I done enough up to now?!”. Honestly, Rewitched was such a joy and I’d recommend it to everyone who wants an uplifting and poignant read for Autumn 📖🍂✨

Thank you so so much BookBreak for the opportunity to read Lucy Jane Wood 's debut novel ahead of its release!

I just finished reading Rewitched and while the beginning was a little slow, I'm now desperately hoping there is a sequel in the works because I NEED to know what happens next for Belle! While I loved the chemistry between Rune and Belle, I did really enjoy how the story placed more of a focus on Belle, her found family and finding herself. Overall, I think that this is a perfect cosy read that I will be reaching for again in October 🍂

Really easy to read autumnal book, set around a young woman Belle who is about to turn 30 and works in a cosy magical bookstore where she flicks her fingers and things happen. Books tidy themselves, lights turn on just easy magic that she loves to use
But now she has to appear before the local coven to prove herself as a witch can’t be to hard right?
Except there are certain witches who don’t like her but for reasons she doesn’t even know about but the pages will fly by and you won’t be able to put this magical book down
It’s a lovely book to read especially snuggled in a chair with a cuppa and cozy blanket over you on these autum days

3.5 stars

The magic element of this book is incredibly well written, this is a book very much about magic and spells and a lot of thought and care has gone into this vision, often you can just have a witch thrown in as a character and not much of the world building that comes with it – this is very much not the case here, the world building feels very thorough.

Belle is an incredibly relatable character and someone I personally identified with in my current situation of feeling quite lost yet afraid of stepping out into the world and challenging myself. That said, because Belle is so relatable, it also means she’s very flawed (and I can say that because I myself am very flawed). Characters don’t have to be perfect, especially if you wish for them to feel real, and while I can understand Belle and how she behaves at times, I don’t particularly find her likeable or understand why she ultimately has so many people rooting for her. Her friendship with Ariadne, for example, there are some sweet moments between Belle and her best friend, however on the page, the balance is more skewed towards Ariadne being the better friend, we don’t see more. Belle also snaps at her mother Bonnie quite a bit. It feels like a lot of this defensiveness comes from a place of insecurity for Belle but it rears it’s head with Rune the most and their lingering attraction, which I’ll go into more below.

I can totally understand how Belle would be attracted to Rune as he’s incredibly charming and tall and thoughtful and protective (although yes, he should stop jump-scaring her!). But I just never felt why Rune should be attracted back to this stranger as Belle is actually either horrible, standoffish or ungrateful towards Rune’s efforts, concerns or gestures – you’re told what he finds attractive about her and how he sees her but you don’t particularly witness it yourself on the page or understand why, or maybe I’m just projecting my own insecurities by identifying with her! Belle feels incredibly unnecessary towards him at times and gives him nothing back and the romance just sort of comes out of the blue for me to find it believable.

That said, while I didn’t particularly ‘feel’ the relationship with Rune, the true love story in this book is of self love and that is one that I rooted for throughout this book. As the book progresses, Belle starts to learn her potential and find the world a less daunting place she is unworthy of – she embraces challenges, steps out of her comfort zone and stands up for herself in a way the Belle at the start of this book wouldn’t have thought she deserved. That was my favourite part of this book and made this a charming, comforting read.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

To paraphrase Noah Khan, it's the season of the witch! Granted it's set to hit 23 degrees here on Friday though, gotta love an Indian summer (2 song references, 1 paragraph)

Rewitched is a really fun read. Belle is a witch who is frightened by the power of her magic, so she just uses it for cute things to help promote sales at the book shop where she works (Yes, of course there is a book shop) and to make a cup of coffee without getting off the sofa. All valid uses of magic, certainly. But close to her 30th birthday, she is summoned by her coven to carry out a series of tests which will determine if she is worthy of her magic or if it will be taken from her forever.

It's a visually stunning read, with lots of attention to detail. The bookshop is just the sort of shop that our people would love - it's cosy, beautifully decorated and sells cake and coffee. The place where the coven meet is vast and you can really picture the high, looming ceilings full of magic, the vast doors and giant wall hangings.

The characters are great too. I loved the chalk and cheese personalities of the sisters who are in charge of the covern (think of Miss Cackle and Miss Hardbroom in The Worst Witch) The female relationships are all strong throughout the book and it covers mother daughter dynamics so well. Belle has a great best friend Adri, and we have the devilishly handsome Rune, assigned to be her watcher throughout the trials. (In my head he looked like Damian Salvatore, which is never going to be a bad thing!)

Belle herself is a great main character. She's likeable and flawed, very full of self doubt and not always willing to stand up for herself. I warmed to her immediately and I really felt like I was on the journey with her.

I'm not going to reveal too much about the plot, as it is best you go into it with little knowledge about the book, but it is a magical, cosy tale and lots of fun.

Thanks to the publisher for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.
4 stars book from me. Loved the plot and the storytelling in Rewitched and relatable, likable characters,. Loved every single second reading it.

Not my usual genre for reading, however I found this magical novel to be easy to read with an interesting plot. I thought that it was going to be a romantic novel but this part of the story did not materialize until the end. I found the book to be a little slow to start but warmed to Belle as the story progressed. Ideal for the upcoming Halloween and autumn season.
Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the advance copy of this book.

“Rewitched” follows Belle as she is at a turning point in her life. After being super burnt out at work, just as she turns thirty she gets summoned by her coven. Thanks to the help of a mentor she’s going to learn how to hone her powers before chaos takes over.

I really liked the idea behind it and I enjoyed the beginning a lot because I could see myself quite a bit in Belle. However, I thought the descriptions were a bit too much for me and it made the pace extremely slow. I lost interest in the story quite early on as the plot didn’t start until way later on in the book.
I didn’t really care about any of the characters, love interest included and overall I found myself bored about both the plot and characters.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a e-arc copy.

What a wonderful and cozy witchy fantasy! Every year around this time I seem to discover another warm, fuzzy blanket of a book which instantly becomes a new favorite. It's giving similar vibes to The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches and The House in the Cerulean Sea, so if you're looking for cozy, early fall witchy books, I strongly recommend picking this one up.

Belle (the FMC) was extremely relatable to me, being a freshly-turned 30 year-old witch who lost her excitement for magic because she was living among non-wicche folk and had to deal with the usual adult responsibilities; this is something that everyone with hobbies went through as they grew up and had to put these aside in order to deal with adulting. Then there's also the lack of self-confidence and anxiety that she felt along the way, and her journey of rediscovering herself and her passion for magic which was absolutely wonderful for me, since I'm going through a similar phase in my life at the moment.

I absolutely adored the magic system, and this reminds me that simple, "traditional" magic systems with incantations and latin names sometimes work way better than the complex ones in order to deliver a lovely, warm witchy book which won't cause a headache when trying to understand how it works.

All in all, I really enjoyed Rewitched and it's the perfect book as we transition to autumn reads. I can't wait for the sequel! (I really hope there will be one!)

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was exactly what I needed to relieve my stress!! 4+ stars!

Rewitched is the charming and cozy read that I didn't know I was missing! With an elder who likes to bake and who is too sweet for his own good, a hilarious woman who just turned 30 and tries to get her life on track, loyal familiars, spells and witches, and ofc a super tall, handsome love interest, this book was utterly endearing!

Belle is a young woman who just turns 30 and receives a letter from her coven for a trial where she risks losing her magic forever. The fact that she hasn't used her magic much through the years isn't helping, either. She needs to relearn everything and she needs to fight to keep her magic. She is someone who tries to make a very serious situation lighter with jokes and witty comebacks, and while it was hilarious at times, it was unnecessary at others, I felt like. I appreciated how the mc was a little older, and yet, she didn't have everything under control. In fact, she really needed an intervention because she was undervaluing her life. She's really someone who wasn't living the life she wanted because she was afraid she'd fail, and if that doesn't resonate, I don't know what will. I liked how realistic she was, how Belle could have been anyone of us.

The love interest is the tall, handsome guy who has extremely broad shoulders and is extremely powerful as well as little broody. And while we see this type a lot, you will NOT see me complaining! He is loyal and dedicated to the coven and the greater good, he loves and takes care of his magic, and I really loved that about him. He's the careful one who checks all the boxes before he proceeds, and he was truly needed in Belle's life.

As you may have noticed, opposites attract in this novel haha.

Nice world building, with modern witchcraft and rules. I loved how we got into learning witchcraft together with Belle. It was fascinating!

Even though this is a cozy read, the plot twists were many and twisty lmao! Loved them all!

I thoroughly enjoyed Rewitched!! Like I said, I have been very stressed, and Rewitched made me chuckle and smile and lose myself in this beautiful story with magic, spells, familiars, weird coven traditions, and a woman who is trying her best to live her best life. I will be ReReading this many times in the future, and I hope/think there will be a sequel! We have a clear resolution at the end, but there's definitely a door open to a sequel! I would love to get a sequel and see Belle and Rune evolve!!!

There's a Waterstones exclusive edition with beautiful edges, so check out if it's in stock!

A completely charming, witchy book for the upcoming spooky season. I loved her growth as a person and a witch and the romance was really cute too!