You know I am not really into witches or anything of the natural but this series is doing it for me. This was a strong ending and I have to say I really like the characters. The representation was on point not jus culturally but also in sexual orientation. I'm very excited to see what this author comes out with next!!!

Although the plot was predictable, it was still a very enjoyable read as a sequel and might’ve actually been better than the first book (which is rare for me)!

I enjoyed These Witches Don't Burn so I was looking forward to This Coven Won't Break.

3.5 stars
The character development was better, Hannah's was well done. And her relationship with Morgan is the cutest thing ever. I had a mini heart attack for a bit thinking they weren't going to be end game but I was wrong! The book was enjoyable and kept me captivated throughout. Was I hoping for a third book of course I would like to know what else Hanna and the rest of the Coven get into. But I enjoyed her story and it ended okay.

HECK. YES. This series has been one of my favorites and I cannot wait to reread! Everything about this held my attention and made me want more. I'm addicted and have been pushing the series into readers hands/TBRs.

I enjoyed the first book and I enjoyed this one! What I loved most about it was the descriptive emotion during the growth of the characters! Character development is my favorite part of a book and this was clearly depicted! The love between the two girls was sooooo cute and heartwarming. I loved the organic pace of the book. I was a bit apprehensive picking up the second book since I loved the first one so much! I look forward to reading more by this author!

The second book in the series picks up just a few weeks after the events of the first. In This Coven Won’t Break, Hannah is headed back to high school for her senior year where she is the talk of the hallways given her attempted-murder at the hands of a classmate. However, a bigger problem is that although the magic-suppressing drug she was given has worn off, any attempt to access her powers leaves her in excruciating pain. Two other things are also complicating Hannah’s life; the trial of her would-be killer is due to start in only a few weeks’ time, and the witch hunters are ramping up their efforts to permanently strip all witches of their magical abilities.

With Hannah splitting her time between school, preparing to testify with the DA’s office, and working with the Council to help stop the Hunters, her only opportunities to relax come from her Reg (non-magical) best friend Gemma whose new knowledge of magic puts them both at risk, and her girlfriend Morgan. Being around Morgan is the only thing that helps Hannah’s powers work properly – something no one is able to explain – but the pair cannot be permanently together.

As the Council prepares to launch a dangerous mission to stop the Hunters and their magic-stripping drug once and for all, Hannah must work with a team of all types of witches, many of whom fear the others, to bring everyone together and end the ongoing threat to their safety.

I may have actually enjoyed This Coven Won’t Break more than the first book in the series. This is largely a heist story, differentiating it significantly from the previous book while keeping it firmly in the same universe. With the drama between Hannah and Veronica largely put to rest, the story also has the opportunity to widen its scope. We get plenty of world-building with lots more details about the magic systems of the other clans, the hierarchy and politics of the magical world, and much more.

The witch hunters were particularly terrifying antagonists. Armed with a “cure” for magic, they have convinced themselves that they are “saving” the witches whose magic they destroy by returning them to true humanity. The whole narrative is scarily reminiscent of certain religious groups and their belief that homosexuality can be cured in conversion camps and the dialogue in the scenes where the witches are able to talk with the hunters will be uncomfortably familiar to any LGBTQ individual who has faced individuals with a similar savior complex.

The only thing I really disliked about this book is that it is the end of the series. I had believed this was going to be a trilogy (which it sort of is given the limited existence of a prequel – This Spell Can’t Last) and the ending seems to be setting up for a third book, which made it especially galling to read on the author’s website that Hannah’s story concludes here. I really hope that one day we get another book in this series that explores how the witch clans move forward given all they have learned here and the new changes we see being made at the end of this book.

Picking up pretty much right where we left off, the witches are back and better than ever. Higher stakes, more mature issues, this one definitely improved on an already great first book!

I loved the heighten action in this sequel and the depth of Hannah having to deal with the trauma from what happened, both the PTSD, the grief, and having to reconcile her tormentor with the version she knew when they weren’t enemies.

This was super fast paced with even more magic and charm than the first with an added emotional complexity that made me fly through it. The reveal near the end was shocking and I loved every minute of the resolution. Fingers crossed for a third book!

This Coven Won’t Break is a sequel to These Witches Don’t Burn. Hannah discovers that the witch hunters are planning to use the serum that was used on her in the first book worldwide. Hannah and her friends try to help their coven defeat the witch hunters.

I found Hannah to be obnoxiously annoying in this book. I understand that she went through something traumatic in the first book, but her inner monologue drove me bananas. The twists were predictable and I felt that the story just went on too long.

I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion

Thank you so much NetGalley for this e-arc! This much anticipated sequel to These Witches Don't Burn was everything i hoped it would be.
I loved how well written this was while tackling heavy topics.
Five stars definitely from me!

A really great follow up and conclusion to These Witches Don't Burn!
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Finished this one in a day, I didn't want to put it down - I almost felt that something might happen without me because it was pretty fast paced. This book is a great continuation of the story, but I found it to be quite different than the first book. This doesn't have the "mystery" element and is FULL of action. Thinking back on it, I'm kind of shocked by how much happened in the space of this book IN ADDITION to all the amazing descriptions, the inside look into Hannah's emotions, and ROMANCE HECK YEAH.
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The author does an amazing job of describing trauma and loss and that is very heavy in this book, but makes it that much better. Hannah has gone through so much and doesn't just spring back and easily use her hurt and anger to be more powerful. She is crushed, she is hurting, she is grieving and she is having severe PTSD. That is real and written so well by the author that I could really feel it myself; it really put your inside the story and made everything that happens that much more powerful. And not only Hannah but many of the other characters have such strong feelings and they are all presented so well.
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As usual, amazing amazing rep in this one which made me so happy, especially to read it right before Pride month. The characters are so amazing and I love the romance and the witches and ah I could gush about them all. So many "side" characters shown brightly in this book which I love.
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My biggest complaint is that I wish Veronica was in this story more. I didn't always love her in the first book (she really irked me at times) but she is also such an interesting character and a big part of Hannah's life that I was surprised that she was barely mentioned. Yes she went to college, but it just seemed out of character for her to just "want to get away and pretend nothing bad is happening" when she was so involved in the coven and everything that happened in the first book.
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Overall I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend this series to all readers and even non-YA or fantasy readers.
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Thank you to the publisher for a netgalley copy of this book; all my thoughts are my own.

Thank you SO much Penguin Teen & Netgalley for allowing me to read this book before its publishing date!
I’m a HUGE fan of Isabel Sterling’s writing, and I absolutely loved her debut, These Witches Don’t Burn. I was ecstatic when I saw the sequel was being released!
First of all- I LOVE how all inclusive this novel was. So refreshing to read about so many unique characters, who all exist in the real world yet are not quite being included in novels (yet, anyway). Love all the non binary characters, the trans characters, the queer characters, and everything in between. I’m 100% HERE for the exclusivity 🙌🏼

This story was very well written, I felt Hannah’s frustrations and anxieties like they were my own throughout reading this, and I really truly felt for her character. She had been through so much in the first novel, and now here she is again- navigating her way through being a witch, a teenager, a girlfriend, a best friend, and an overall elemental badass all at the same time. While trying to compartmentalize her own grief over losing her father, the trauma over almost being burned alive by someone she truly trusted, upcoming trial with said someone she truly trusted, and on top of all of that- not being able to fully reach her magic. Poor girl has been through the wringer and deserves all the happiness in the entire universe.
I will admit, the only thing keeping this book from being a five star read for me, was that it seemed to be so much going on at once- especially during the lab raid, and it was a little hard to follow. I kept getting lost, and I would have liked to have seen that stretch out over a few chapters to avoid my confusion.
Benton Hall actually being sort of a decent person in the end was just the sort of thing I didn’t know I needed. I remember being so shocked at the ending of These Witches Don’t Burn, because I had really loved his character, so for him to actually come through and help Hannah and Archer escape the lab holding cells was so fulfilling for me.
The end twist of one of the Elders being the one helping the Hunters the entire time completely blindsided me. I had my money set on Alice being the snitch, but in the end, she turned out to be pretty decent too, in her own way of course.
I loved watching Hannah and Morgan’s relationship grow during this book, for sure, and fingers crossed for a third book because I love them both so much and want to see where life leads them after high school!

I’d recommend this to anyone who loves a good witchy read, but definitely grab the first in the series before this one- it can’t really be read as standalone without you being totally confused.

The queer witchy adventures continue in This Coven Won't Break! Hannah and her girlfriend Morgan, alongside friends and family, must battle against the Hunters who are intent on seeing witches eradicated. The tension throughout is palpable, and to paraphrase Hannah's mom, Hannah does seem to have a habit of rushing into danger. But her coven, her (broken?) magic, the people closest to her--their lives are on the line, so she'll have to face both her past and work alongside enemies to safeguard her coven's future.

This is a fantastic book for teen readers with its stellar representation, with themes of acceptance and agency, as well as sacrifice (cue sobbing for reasons). Also, Hannah and Morgan have a respectful relationship, and it's so great to see that on the page. I look forward to whatever comes next from this author!

Isabel Sterling has done is again!

This Coven Won’t Break was even better than These Witches Won’t Burn.

This Coven starts out roughly where the first book left off. Hannah, her mom and the coven are dealing with the aftermath of the attack and the death of Hannah’s father. The main focus of this book is how the clans are going to stop the Hunters from attacking witch clans across the country.

I didn’t think it was possible, but this sequel is full of even more heartbreak than the first book! I definitely cried at least a handful of times.

I really enjoyed the turn this book took with the clans coming together and I am keeping my fingers crossed for a third book in the series!

THIS COVEN WON'T BREAK raises the stakes for the series, expanding its world and characters. The way Sterling weaves mental health and magic is extraordinary. I cannot wait to see what Sterling does next with Hannah and her coven.

TW: Violence, death, abduction, stalking, bigotry

I've been waiting for the release of This Coven Won't Break since I finished These Witches Don't Burn back last summer. I really enjoyed the first book in the series and found a strong connection to the characters, so I was excited to see the continuance of the story and to follow up with Hannah after such a traumatic ending to book one.

After Hannah's near-death experience due to witch hunters, she's lost most of her magic and is only able to feel her elements when her girlfriend, Morgan (a blood witch), is around. But the hunters are still around, and they're worse than ever. They've developed a drug that will get rid of a witch's magic, and it's up to Hannah and her clan to save magic.

I really like the books in this series because the representation of so many queer characters, both witches and nonmagical. In the first book, I really liked the development of the characters and getting to know each of them, however I was disappointed by the lack of POC characters. In book two, This Coven Won't Break, there are a couple of POC characters, but they weren't main characters. So again, I would like to see more representation in terms of race and ethnicity. Coven is different than Witches, because instead of the story focusing on developing each of the characters, it moreso focuses on action and adventure. We know the characters at this point, and while we're introduced to a few new characters, there's a lot more story driving this plot, as opposed to a more character-driven plot like Witches.

I was so immersed in the story, and unlike the first book, this book hit the ground running. There were things happening from the get-go, and I needed to know what was going to happen next - the entire magical community depended on what happened next! And the ending was such a complete shock. I absolutely didn't see it coming.

"Salem High isn't a place to discover who you are. It's a place to survive and move on. A place where the swing from celebrity to outcast is only one misstep away. Especially for a girl like me." - This Coven Won't Break, Isabel Sterling

I love this series and I love the characters. I know some books within series can work as standalones, but these are not those kinds of books. You absolutely need to read Witches before Coven, or you'll be missing critical information that's very necessary to be invested in the book and to understand what's happening. Coven does mention some background information, but it doesn't have quite the effect that reading book one has. I definitely recommend these books, and if "queer witch YA" doesn't grasp your attention, then this book probably isn't for you anyways.