Book 2 was an interesting book in the Trouble with Hedge Witches Series. I enjoyed this author's writing.

Synopsis:
Mystery. Magic. Revenge. Not all fairy tales are meant to come true. Magic doesn’t grow on trees—except for hedge witches with an affinity for plant magic.

After Abigail MacQuillan’s family has been murdered by Fae, she decides there’s only one thing to be done—she needs to become a powerful witch so that she can make her enemies pay. In order to learn to harness her powers, she apprentices with Baba Nata, the Witch of Nightmares. Nothing is free in the Faerie Realm, and there will be a price to study with Baba—which might cost Abigail her fingers and toes.

Baba seems wise and all-knowing with her powers of divination. Even the Fae don’t want to cross this witch’s path. Yet there are some monsters even Baba fears. A mysterious Fae force is draining Witchkin children and lesser Fae alike.

If Abigail doesn’t defeat this new foe, she might be next.

This is the second book in The Trouble with Hedge Witches trilogy. A dark YA fantasy where Abigail, a hedge witch, seeks to avenge her dead family. Not only does Abigail have to sacrifice things to her new which tutor, but her life is in danger from a worse foe.

I read book one and loved it. Book two was even better! Humor, romance, witch that you will love and total adventure!
Highly recommended read!

The series continues with Abigail seeking knowledge and skill to revenge the deaths of her family. While this one is a little darker than the 1st story, it's still suitable for young adults. Sarina Dorie writes great stories that fit her target audience. I've read many of her books and intend to keep reading them.

I received an ARC of this from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second novel in the series and I liked it better than the first. Both Abigail and Lucifers powers are growing as are their feelings for one another. This time, they must deal with a Fae royal who is killing mortal and Fae creatures alike to feed off their magic. The teens must venture into the mortal realm for the first time to procure a few items and this is where they meet the very kind Grace Lawrence.
There’s romance, action, and a showdown along with some conflicting feelings from Abigail about the morty realm not being so bad after all.
Another good novel and now I’m off to the third.

Abigal’s family has been killed by the Fae. She has decided to become a witch even though her mother told her to practice only good magic. Abigail wants revenge so she becomes an apprentice to the witch of nightmares known as Baba Nata. She knows that nothing is free in Fairie land. Abigail does have some magic already as she has what is known as plant magic. She can help plants grow and heal them if needed. Abigail has to do personal sacrifices as she learns spells. What are the personal sacrifices she will have to make? Will she still want revenge after learning the spells she needs to know?

In this second book, Abigail is growing up as well as learning her spells. When Baba Nata send her to the portal to go to the mortal realm, she has adventures and find friends. She has temptations handed to her and must decide what to do. I enjoyed reading about her learning spells and what happens to her in the mortal land. There is learning experiences, a little romance, and adventure.

Abigail is learning her craft while apprenticing alongside Lucifer. Baba Nata is concerned that the two teenagers are growing too close. She is right to have concern as their affection seems to cause difficulty until they gain better control of their powers. A trip into the morty realm opens eyes and possibilities. The cover artwork is beautiful in this series and the stories are as captivating as one would expect from Sarina Dorie.

Three and a half
A good instalment that encourages the reader to want more . This series follows Abigail who lost all her family to the insidious Fae and in this book she's desperate to learn how to control magic in order to get revenge. Together with Lucifer she's apprenticed to Baba Nata ( Baba Yaga ) but I thought what this particular story showed was that actions beget consequences.
I think mixing up Baba Yaga with Hansel and Gretel plays out very well here. This isn't sickly sweet but dark and very gruesome at times. I particularly enjoyed the way Abigail discovers that as wicked as Baba Nata can be she's perhaps in her own unique way trying to help. This story sees the beginning of a possible romance but I wouldn't count on it as I'm fast learning that this author has a very twisted sense of humour !
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I couldn’t wait to get my hands on book 2 of Abigail MacQuillan’s adventures! She’s very endearing, and these short books are a quirky mix of scary and witty sarcasm sprinkled with a little dusting of fairy tales.

In A Cauldron Full of Curses: Book 2 of the Trouble With Hedge Witches Series, Sarina Dorie takes us into Abby’s not-so-distant future. Three months into the future. She’s an apprentice with the oddly endearing Baba Nata (aka the Witch of Nightmares), of Hansel and Gretel notoriety, and her now adoptive brother Lucifer (aka Lucy), the Witchkin boy who kept trying to help her in book 1. Abby decided to apprentice with Baba Nata so she can learn to become a powerful witch and avenge the murders of her family at the hands of the Fae, but of course, things aren’t going as she planned. As in, she isn’t learning any of the things she’ll need to become strong enough to take revenge at all. And of course, everything comes at a price – hers seems to be costing more than a few fingers and toes.

While Baba seems to know everything, and scares just about everything in the woods around her cottage, there’s at least one thing out there that scares Baba. A mysterious Fae is draining Witchkin children and weaker Fae of their life force. It’s up to Abby to defeat this new villain before she’s its next victim.

This book is scarier than the previous one, so I’m glad it’s a short read so I could sleep. Normally I stay away from scary stuff, but I’m already committed to the series (yes, even after one book,) so I have to stick it out and find out what happens. But there is a payoff here. We get to see Abby grow a little as both a girl and a witch. She matures emotionally and physically, especially since this book takes place over the span of a couple of years. She’s willing to go pretty far in her quest to learn to hone her skills as a witch, and learn the skills she will need to get her revenge. But her morality is still problematic for her. On one hand, she desperately wants to make the Fae pay for what they did to her family, but on the other hand, she remembers the last thing her Ma told her, which was to be a good person and not practice magic. She’s obviously blatantly ignoring part of that statement, but her dilemma is really in how far she’s willing to go in her quest to punish the Fae.

In this book, we learn more about where Lucifer comes from and what his backstory is. It’s worth the read, but you’ll have to read it for yourself. There’s even a little romance in the cards! Also, as an interesting side note, we see that maybe Baba Nata isn’t totally a horrible, evil witch. Yeah, she does eat children and all, but she does have some redeeming qualities.

I always like a good reimagining of an old tale. In the previous book, aspects of the Hansel and Gretel story are used to fashion a completely new story. In this one, the author incorporates a tiny bit of the Russian tale of Baba Yaga but in a very different way than it is traditionally told. There are snippets of information that are attributed to folklore and myths or tales about the Fae and witches (cold iron, saying thank you, eating children, etc.) woven into the story without seeming artificial. I like the snarky sense of humor the characters have.


Gasp Factor: 3

Total Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Overall, I think it’s a good book in a series of good books (thus far). It’s becoming a series that I’m enjoying thoroughly and look forward to reading when I get the chance to sit for an hour or two without interruption. The books are well edited and the settings are described clearly without overly done. There is a little more violence in this book than the last one. But overall I still love it. It also includes a sneak preview of the third book in the series, which is a little darker than the last two, but that seems to be the trend, so I can’t say I’m not expecting it.

An engrossing and entertaining read. I liked the cast of characters and the plot.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.