Author: Sangu Mandanna
Genre: Found family, paranormal romance
Pages: 318
Release Date: August 23, 2022
Blurb
Mika Moon is a witch in Britain. She’s always been a rule follower, and the rules say you can’t fraternize with other witches too often, and you can’t share your magic with others. This is how all the witches stay safe. But Mika has one little secret – she has on online account making fake witchy videos – because who would believe it’s real?
Then she gets a message to her account, begging her to come to Nowhere House to teach three young witches how to control their magic. They believe she’s the real deal, and they’re right. Even though Mika shouldn’t go; she does. And she can’t say no to helping the young girls, who are living similarly orphaned lives to her own and growing up with caretakers.
Mika quickly finds a found family with the mix of characters at Nowhere House that include a sweet housekeeper, a mellow groundskeeper, a retired actor, and a grumpy but young and handsome librarian… But there’s a reason the girls need to learn to control their magic, the estate’s lawyer wants to visit by the end of the year to check on everything and everyone, and how can they explain the girls levitating and setting things on fire?
The thing is, being a witch is extraordinary… It might seem sometimes that all we are is odd and different, but the truth is, we’re amazing.
Mika
My Thoughts on The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches
This was my book club’s October cozy, witchy read. And it was exactly that! Everyone gushed that the book was so cozy and sweet. We all enjoyed it. The found family and characters were so loveable. And as much as I love romance, I didn’t even need that plotline. It felt slightly underdeveloped, and the steamy scene was a bit of a shock in the context of the rest of the book.
I loved the diversity of the characters and how they all came together to be the perfect little family. Ian and Ken were such opposites attract, playing the eccentric grandfather figure and mellow groundskeeper. There was Jamie, the grumpy father figure/librarian and love interest. The girls with their uncontrolled, developing magic. Lucie, the long-term housekeeper that keeps them all together. And Mika, there to teach the girls how to control their magic but finding so much more.
I enjoyed the plot twists (some were predictable, while some were certainly not!). I liked how Mika went from living on her own, literally alone, to realizing maybe she was ready to leave that life in the past, and form connections and have friends. Her relationship with Primrose (her sort of mother figure) added to the story and her self-discovery of what she wants out of life.
The rules for the witches – not being able to see each other more than once a quarter, and how the magic worked – seeing a magical glow in a person and the potions and spells – was unique in this story. Also, that witches were always orphans – creating this need for adopted families. It created a lot of good discussion for a book club!
Overall, if you want warm, cozy, witchy vibes with a found family and light love story – this is the book for you!
Farewell Thoughts
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