#rewitched

[futuristicson]

🥰

[kartman1993]

[ijustkindalikebooks]

Review: Uncharmed by Lucy Jane Wood.

I loved the first in this series so much, that I had to get the second one and when I saw it appear on NetGalley I felt like the stars had aligned. The Second book in the Rewitched series, Uncharmed sees back in the same world following new characters and another plot to wrap up in a blanket and drink cocoa reading - it is so autumnal this book it must smell like cinnamon when you purchase a copy.

One thing that I do love about Lucy's style of writing is her use of metaphor, this author can take you by the hand and tell you in such incredible visual exactly what this bakery is like, ugh, and I really really wanna be there - just for an eclair please. Scents and visuals come to life on the page in this book with every chapter and it's such a rich way to fall into the world that you're reading - I bloody love it and I wanted to go back as soon as I was finished.

The characters are charming and so delightful to follow and this story does really have its moments where it keeps right where you are reading because you must know what's going to happen next - yeah its mainly fluffy and light but it has its moments and I appreciate the balance this book brings and the romance is also really really cute.

I love this series and it is perfect for the nights ahead as we slip in to the autumn.

(Thanks to Netgalley and the publish for the arc to honestly review).

[a-skirmish-of-wit-and-lit]

Book Review: Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood

On her thirtieth birthday, Belle Blackthorne receives a summons from her coven and faces a trial that tests her capabilities as a witch. After said trial goes disastrously, she has one month to find a mentor, train, complete magical tasks, evade a nefarious force that's trying to sabotage her, and change her coven's minds. Sounds simple, right?

(Spoiler alert: it isn't.)

I appreciated the cozy witch vibe of this. In fact, that's what drew me to the book initially. I love me some autumnal whimsy this time of the year and this fit the bill in that regard; however, I couldn't connect to either the characters or the plot. The magical trials Belle had to face seemed to blur together, the mentor portions fell flat, plus the romance left much to be desired. I'm sure other readers may find much to love about this one, but it wasn't for me.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

2/5 stars

**Follow me on Goodreads

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3/5

Book Blurb:

In this spellbinding warm and cozy debut novel, a burned-out witch will need to turn to her friends and trust in herself to find the magic in her own life again.

Belladonna Blackthorn hasn’t lost her magical spark, precisely . . . but she hasn’t seen it in a while either.

With her witchcraft under wraps and a toxic boss making her days miserable, Belle is struggling to keep her beloved Lunar Books afloat and just make it through the day. The last thing she has time for is perfecting her magic. 

So when her thirtieth birthday brings a summons from her coven and a trial that tests her worthiness as a witch, Belle fears the worst. With only the month of October left to prove herself or risk losing her magic forever, Belle will need all the help she can get—from the women in her life, from an unlikely mentor figure and even from an infuriating coven watchman who’s sworn to protect her...

Review:

A super cozy magical read about a thirty year old witch who finds her life turned upside down when she is summoned to trial for her thirtieth birthday in order to see if she is worthy to be a witch and keep her magic. Belladonna "Belle" Blackthorn is a witch who doesn't really use her magic all that much. She spends her time working at her favorite bookstore and hiding her magic... and she's burnt out. With her 30th birthday coming up she is suddenly surprised by a handsome stranger who tells her that she's been summoned by her coven for a trial that could take away her magic for good if she fails. With only one month to get things right and evil forces out to sabotage her, Belle and her friends will have to find a way to succeed. This book was a super cozy and warm read, it was disney channel levels of sweetness (except the romance was essentially PG and barely even there). Its a light read and honestly could be a middlegrade book with how it felt. The pacing felt a bit off to me, it was never really moving all that much and you neber really find yourself fully into the book however it's a nice light hearted read and a cozy one for anyone looking for something simple and low stakes to read during the autumn.

Release Date: September 17,2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group | Ace for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[justanothercharmedone]

one year of charmed 205 | 365

[justanothercharmedone]

one year of charmed 145 | 365

[janchei-reads]

Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood

Synopsis:

"Belladonna Blackthorn hasn't lost her magical spark, but she hasn't seen it in a while either. Balancing work at her beloved London bookshop, Lunar Books, with handling her toxic boss and concealing her witchcraft from those around her - Belle is burnt out. Perfecting the potential of her magic is the last thing on her mind.

But, when her thirtieth birthday brings a summons from her coven and a trial that tests her worthiness as a witch, Belle risks losing her magic for ever. With the month of October to fix things and signs that dark forces may be working against her, Belle will need all the help she can get - from the women in her life, from an unlikely mentor figure and even from an (infuriating) coven watchman who's sworn to protect her . . .

Can Belle reignite her spark before it's too late?"

My thoughts:

I have one word to describe this novel: boring.

At first Belle seemed to be an interesting protagonist: she's a witch (cool!), she sells books for a living (same as me!) and she hates all the stupid stuff her boss puts her through (well, not my boss per se, she's nice, but the bookshop chain I work for should re-evaluate the amount of people per shop...).

Sadly, the whole thing is much more boring than it should be.

Belle is the typical female lead most cozy fantasies have to offer: she's sassy (with everyone but her "Boss"), she has no self worth and she's never heard of a backbone. That is, until she has to be a brat towards people she wronged. I wanted to like her and for the forst few pages I did: her struggles with the bookshop felt so very real! That's how it is! The very same chapter made me go "Huh?" when it was said that it's a little cozy bookshop... but also, they have events every other day, they host a reading group for small kids and they have coffee and cake. There's a bunch of other things that really confused me as someone who actually works at a bookshop, but it boils down to "this makes no sense for a privately owned store". For a chain events every other week would have made sense

The writing style is very long winded. A scene starts, then long long pages of background informations to characters or places happen and then, 10 pages further into the story, the scene continues. The worldbuilding is literally dumped on the reader in three chapters and then it's all "drama" about how Belle wants to keep her magic, grows a backbone to finally buy the stupid bookshop and gets with the smug ass shit of a male lead. Can't we have a genuinely nice male lead for a change? Just.... once? Please??

I need to reread A Language of Dragons

I can't recommend this book because it was so very boring I stopped reading every other page. Even the Fae Guardians were more interesting to read - Pecherczyk knows how to write, even if I don't like what she writes lol

The only reason I finished it that stopping to read a book is very hard for me to... not finish a book.

I finished this book on December 27th, 2025.