Thank you so much to Berkley for the e-ARC of Cackle!

I have officially read all of Rachel Harrison (outside of SO THIRSTY) & it’s official, CACKLE is my new favorite. 🧙‍♀️

CACKLE is perfect for the spooky season — with cozy vibes, the cutest little spider pal & a badass female friendship..

I absolutely LOVED CACKLE. Annie was such a relatable character for me & I definitely saw myself in her, so the development she undergoes throughout the story is so incredibly inspiring. Plus the horror-related scenes were so SOLID. With that being said, I wouldn’t go into this expecting it to be heavy in the horror; this is a cozy read that’s emphasis is more on the friendship, women SLAYIN’ & the character development.

A fun witchy, feminist, read. It was perfect to read during the Halloween season. It’s one of those books that I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

The Pluses
The cute tiny spider. It made the book more fun. In fact, I wouldn’t have minded it being the narrator because Annie could whine like nobody’s business and this guy was always happy and chomping down on critters of one kind or the other.

The friendship between the two main characters. I’ll always champion women friendships.

The Minuses
God, Annie was tiresome to the extreme. She says she knows she hasn’t actually been on her own throughout her life and that this needs to change. And yet, when her douche of a bf asks to visit, she immediately says yes. Even when she pretends to believe in herself, she’s actually doing it to impress Sophie. What’s more, the way she presented the bf, in the beginning, was SO NOT the true story. He was an asshole through and through. Besides that, she whines all the time. Doesn’t even like her job and lets her students walk all over her. In other words, not a favorite protagonist.

Now for Sophie. She could have been an empowering influence over Annie–even pretends to be one. But her actions don’t support her claims. Drugging someone, cutting them off from the rest of the world, gifting them pets to spy on them, showing up uninvited, and sneaking around someone’s property are not the actions of a person who seeks to empower.

Final Word
It seems the author wanted me to view the two main characters as empowered women. I only saw them as mean people who terrorize a whole town while looking for the next downtrodden woman to train as a protege.

I really liked reading this book. It was fascinating to see Annie's change from a woman who complains about everything and always seeking for validation from men. This is not a love story, but a story about female friendship and the general question what makes you happy and what are you afraid of. Also, I loved the cozy village which had Gilmore girls vibes, flavored with magical horror events. It is a very uncommon combination, but I enjoyed it very much. Also, I liked the fact that Annie is a very imperfect heroine with a lot of flaws. Sometimes I was a bit irritated by the behavior of Sophie, Annie's new best friend. Not letting Annie have a glance on her smartphone was a bit too much, even if this is for Annie's best. It should have been Annie's decision. But well, this shows how both characters are not perfect, full of flaws. I loved Ralph the spider as an animal side character! So funny and cute.

Overall, the atmosphere was very cozy and a perfect autumn read paired with a pumpkin spice latte!

Cackle was at the top of my fall TBR because I am looking for all the witchy books! This one started off really well, but I felt it was a little too drawn out in the middle. I was also expecting it to be more horror filled, but it just felt like a cozy story about witch best friends. I did really enjoy the main character Annie and her struggles with self love. I also loved the setting of the small town of Rowan. I think if I had gone in with different expectations, this could have been a winner for me.

I really loved Such Sharp Teeth so I will definitely be reading Black Sheep by Harrison soon. Thanks to Berkley for the gifted copy!

Loved this novel- it was fun, a little cozy but with some darker elements, and just flew by! Great pacing, some humorous sections, and great characters. Appreciated Annie's mid-life fresh start and her process of finding herself. It definitely hit the spot for a reader my age looking for growth and redemption with the main character!

The first thing that drew me in was that stunning cover. Thankfully the book is just as amazing as the cover is! Loved everything about this book.

Annie is reeling after her longtime boyfriend abruptly dumps her. Always the guarded, safe type, she takes a risk, leaving her New York City life for a teaching job in a small town upstate. While she’s hesitant, everything runs smoothly. Her housing is practically a steal, the locals are friendly, and she even makes a new friend, the seemingly flawless Sophie.

Everything’s perfect.

It’s almost like magic.

From her first lines, author Rachel Harrison’s work feels familiar. She lulls the reader into this world, casting Annie as a timid educator about to reinvent herself in small-town America. In another book, this would be the perfect start to a sweet romcom. Then Harrison gradually lets the cracks begin to show.

Something spooky is lurking behind the façade. Annie’s new apartment suddenly has a spider infestation, friendly locals seem to be hesitant to say too much, and Sophie … well, she’s Sophie, living life to the fullest … in a mansion in the middle of the woods. While the basics of what’s happening should be quickly apparent to most readers, Annie’s ability to brush aside even the most spectacular of incidents quickly shifts from amusing to downright hilarious. For all the marketing placing Cackle into horror, Harrison has also written a wickedly funny novel.

Ultimately, that’s the point. Harrison tangles with the macabre, infusing it with elements found in traditional romance novels. Yet, in Annie’s struggle to overcome a breakup and figure out her life, Harrison has found a unique lane. Empowerment and confidence doesn’t necessarily have to come from a rebound or job change. Sometimes facing the supernatural with a new friend is more than enough.

Cackle is a Hallmark movie with attitude and a pet spider.

Cackle is the perfect book for people looking to dip their toe in the horror space. It's cozy, charming, and accessible. Harrison once again proves that she is a master of examining female friendships through genre fiction. While this book is not as firmly horror as her previous work, it is perfect for folks who love the Halloween aesthetic. If you enjoy Hocus Pocus, Practical Magic, and hosting Halloween parties, Cackle is for you!

Light and readable but with a touch of darkness and enough character and story depth to satisfy, this is a thoroughly enjoyable book. Full of small-town, fresh start energy and witchcraft, it was fun but we'll balanced with power and creepiness. I'll reread this whenever I need a guaranteed good read

Oooooooh, what a quick and fun read! Who doesn’t love witches? The story was super cute, as we watch ‘just turned 30’ Annie attempt to restart her life after a breakup. Slowly, she learns to call the village of Rowan her home. She makes friends along the way, but is there something fishy going on with this Sophie woman the whole town seems to be afraid of…? I would recommend this book to anyone who feels sad, lost, or entirely too single. Its message was great and I loved every minute!

Final thoughts: you couldn’t pay me enough to have a pet spider.

“Is this how it happens? Is this how you make friends as an adult? You stumble upon someone wonderful, and all of a sudden, you’re close?”

“I will not meet him there. I will not shrink myself down to his size, or anyone else’s, for their comfort. For their appeasement.”

I sadly was unable to finish this book because I struggled so much to connect to the story, characters, and kept putting this down. I was extremely disinterested in all content and tried this in ebook and audio but had to officially DNF it.

Rachel Harrison is one of those writers that gets dark and creepy. CACKLE is no different. There is true wit within her narrative, the author layers the fear factor so that you don't even realize how scary the book is.

This was a great witchy horror about a woman starting over in a new town after a toxic relationship. And a spider wears a hat!

This was a wild ride of a novel is darkly funny and strangely empowering. It was a delightful read for the Halloween season.

This book was... not what I expected? Granted, my expectations were a bit blank, but somehow I thought this wouldn't be as modern as it was. It was wholly weird, and while I did enjoy most of it, there were parts that were a little over the top for me personally. All in all it was a quick and okay read.

Such an interesting story. Definitely not what I was expecting but I really enjoyed it. And Ralph was adorable!

This is a quirky read about Annie, who is 30 years old, newly single, a serial monogamist, needing validation and lacking self esteem. I felt bad for Annie at first, she's immersed in a relationship thinking marriage is on the horizon, only to be blindsided by the opposite. We've likely all been there, some of us more than once.

Annie moves to a new town due to financial issues, and finds herself so lonely and miserable that she is talking to spiders. I felt bad for her... but I could relate to the lonely feeling so then I felt bad for myself. And that was depressing. But, I digress. TMI and all that. Annie is a high school teacher, although she doesn't enjoy it and it seems to add to the self esteem problems. I found that odd. Other than that initial lonely connection, I found it hard to relate to Annie.

Anyway, Annie moves to this picturesque little town with strange undercurrents. She meets a mysterious new friend who is intriguing and strangely clingy. The towns people seem apprehensive, but carry on with a friendly facade. This mysterious creature and friend is Sophie. Who is she? What is she? What's her story, how does she fit with this town, what's the history? I liked Sophie, but I had so many questions that are unanswered. I felt like more details about Sophie and her history would have drawn me into the story more.

Overall this is a story about Annie coming back to herself and realizing that losing a bad boyfriend is not the end of the world. Along the way she gains a new friend and some special abilities. I feel like this may be a cathartic read for anyone going thru a recent breakup, but for others you may be left a little wanting. I would like to see a follow up book with more details.

Such a perfect book to read during Halloween time! Who doesn’t love a witchy vibe? Definitely could see this becoming an annual Halloween read.

This was a strange story umm if you like a kind of weird twisty witchy book that doesn't have a clear cut happy ending pick this up. This is a very hard book to describe for me because there points you don't really know what going on and if you like that then once again pick this book up. the blurb hook me in but I'm not sure this book was for me personally still not sure of what I read and i see why there mix reviews of this book out there this isn't a happy witchy book it a little more darker with that said I didn't love it nor did i hate it it was a very entertaining book at time and lulled at other it just left me in the middle with my feeling but that just me