Let me tell you how much I love the writing of Hester Fox! I stumbled across The Witch of Willow Hall some years ago and was BLOWN AWAY with that atmospheric, gothic ghost story! It's stuck with me through all these years and it still comes up in my thoughts from time to time. Speaking of which, I really need to go back and read it!

If you haven't read The Witch of Willow Hall, I highly recommend!

For a Lullaby of Witches, Augusta is our main character. She is written in such a way that I felt an instant connection to her. I was rooting for her throughout the story. She deserved a better life! Then, one day, as if by magic, she is offered ...something better!

And that's where the trouble begins. (rubs palms together)

This dual timeline offers plenty of romance, suspense and even a few surprises!

I thoroughly enjoyed A Lullaby for Witches and am so excited to see what comes next from Hester Fox!

I started and stopped this book twice before I actually read through it. Having enjoyed Hester Fox’s previous books, I was surprised with myself for not enjoying this book. The premise is very interesting and I liked how the plot wove back and forth in time. However, I just really could not get into this book.

Have been unable to review due to illness. Review coming soon! This novel looks fantastic and I highly recommend this author to everyone! Can't wait to read this one!

A riveting story! Loved the strong women in A Lullaby For Witches!

Two women. A history of witchcraft. And a deep-rooted female power that sings across the centuries.

Once there was a young woman from a well-to-do New England family who never quite fit with the drawing rooms and parlors of her kin.

Called instead to the tangled woods and wild cliffs surrounding her family’s estate, Margaret Harlowe grew both stranger and more beautiful as she cultivated her uncanny power. Soon, whispers of “witch” dogged her footsteps, and Margaret’s power began to wind itself with the tendrils of something darker.

One hundred and fifty years later, Augusta Podos takes a dream job at Harlowe House, the historic home of a wealthy New England family that has been turned into a small museum in Tynemouth, Massachusetts. When Augusta stumbles across an oblique reference to a daughter of the Harlowes who has nearly been expunged from the historical record, the mystery is too intriguing to ignore.

But as she digs deeper, something sinister unfurls from its sleep, a dark power that binds one woman to the other across lines of blood and time. If Augusta can’t resist its allure, everything she knows and loves—including her very life—could be lost forever.

I usually love Hester Fox’s stories. However, this one seemed a bit too rushed. The story seemed to be undeveloped. Augusta seemed very bland and made many bad choices. I like the historical aspect more. However, Margaret and Jack’s story felt incomplete. Still, this is very atmospheric as usual. I think that if Mrs. Fox had taken her time and not rush the story, it would have been more enjoyable. Therefore, I recommend this for fans of Simone St. James, A. G. Howard, and Wendy Webb!

Hester Fox can do no wrong in my opinion. There has not been one book I've picked up that I haven't absolutely adored. Two Women. Two timelines. Pure Magic! Hester Fox knows how to write a chilling, atmospheric and engaging tale! Fox has bewitched me with this tale. Usually with two timelines, I enjoy one more than the other. But in this book, both timelines were intriguing and magical. I love when I pick up a book and I am compelled to keep reading. I read most of this book in one day. I did not want to put it down. I love all things witch related and this book left me spellbound.

Augusta takes her dream job at Harlowe House, a small museum in Tynemouth, MA. While there, she stumbles across some items about a daughter that the Harlowe's had, one that almost no one knows about 150 years later. There's no records of her, just little notes, and the possibility of a painting that's unnamed. Augusta decides that it's a delicious mystery, something that she can sink her teeth into and gets permission to see if she can find more information on the daughter of the original owners of the Harlowe House, and to find out what happened to her. They knew little more than her name, Margaret Harlowe, but as Augusta investigates, she finds out more about the woman who disappeared from the family records, and why.

This read was a wonderful blending of the present and the past. We learn about Margaret and what kind of woman she was, while at the same time, we learn about Augusta, her life, and her relationships. There's great writing, great characters, and a wonderful story arc. I definitely recommend this book for anyone who is a fan of mysteries, witchcraft, and women's literature.

**I received an ARC of this story from the publisher and Netgalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

I just had a hard time getting into this book. I could not find a connection to the characters, and it did not draw my interest.

A magical witch story. I love the Salem Witch trial elements. This is a mixed timeline story. One in the 1800s and one in present day. So you get two stories in one! If you're into witch stories, add this on to your to be read list!

Thanks to NetGalley and Graydon House for the advanced reader copy of A Lullaby For Witches. This was a very unusual book about a young woman (Augusta) working at a museum that was once a house where a witch (Margaret) lived. Right from the get-go, Augusta feels the pull of Margaret, and her unfinished business with the physical world. I found Margaret's story to be much more interesting and definitely a stronger "voice" than Augusta's..several times things would happen to Augusta that had no resolution, or that were hinted at but not flushed out.. I found that a bit off-putting. Overall, a very rich and creative story..I would recommend.

This one was honestly so good! Such good gothic vibes with just a hint of horror thrown into the story. Highly recommend if you're looking for this kind of book, but especially for autumn/early winter vibes.

I found this book really boring. The main character in the present time was dull and forgettable. The sections in the past were frustrating. Why wouldn't a character who keeps saying she knows how to prevent things like pregnancy not do it with for herself? She knew the consequences. I just wasn't enjoying my time with it, so I gave up.

Well written and part of the current witch trend which I love. A dual timeline story of two maybe-witches in New England and their entertwining histories.

My very first note when reading this book was about a weird comment the protagonist made about counting calories that made no sense or had any connection to the story. I made a list of 4 other fatphobic comments/exposition before DNF'ing. I later learned from a review that this may have been connected to the magic or the protagonist in some way. I don't remember the details but I just think there could have been a better way of creating a totally made up history of magic than having it be reliant on caloric intake/making its MC obsessed with it.

Other than that I just did not see this as a cohesive book. The Augusta chapters felt like they were written by an entirely different person. Margaret's chapters were lush and descriptive whereas Augusta's were all tell and no show. It felt very shallow and I struggled to connect to her as a character because of this.

Lots of people liked this book and I wish I was one of them.

The dual timelines are interesting and well-written. I think a lot of women will be able to relate to Augusta's need for more and Margaret's growing into herself. I read the first 10%, and it's an easy three stars for the average reader, 4 stars for the right reader.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the ARC.

Augusta is fed up with being a tour guide at an old Salem jail and finds a job working at the Harlow House museum. She discovers a little known about Harlow, Margaret. There is hardly any records of her and no birth or death certificates. Augusta starts to try and find the mystery of Margaret.

We get to see the past and the present in dual timelines. We see Margaret as she dabbles with dark magic though the townfolk see her as a healer.

This still had the very Gothic feel that Fox is known for. You have to suspend belief near the end as these two worlds dangerously collide.
The ending was a little bit of a disappointment to me as I wish we got to see more of what Margaret could do in the present.

Hester Fox is an author whose books I have followed since her 2018 debut “ The Witch of Willow Hall” , and 2019’s “The Widow of Pale Harbor” in her recent novel “A Lullaby for Witches” does she again take the reader to the eastern sea board of New England. In it do we follow two women of different time periods one in the late 1850’s and the other in the present day. Intrigue, curiosity, family curses, and power are elements that forwarded my interest in this novel.Fox’s ability to create atmosphere engaged and enticed my reading experience. I give the novel a high 3.5 out of 5 stars and on goodreads rounded it off to a four star read. Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing, Grayson House, and Netgalley who provided me with a e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

For fans of books like Sarah Penner's The Lost Apothecary, the new book A Lullaby for Witches connects two times with one powerful mystery.
Margaret Harlowe is from a well-to-do family in New England, but she has never quite fit in with the others. Preferring the woods and cliffs around her family's home, she discovers she has some pretty amazing powers. However, something dark is finding its way in. One hundred and fifty years in the future, Augusta Podos starts working at the now historic Harlowe House. When Augusta discovers Margaret's name, and very little else, she finds the mystery something that she can't let go. The problem is, that darkness from one hundred and fifty years ago isn't done, and it just might take everything from Augusta.

I love a good ghost story and look for books by Hester Fox for her writing style and just the right amount of eerie. There's just the right balance of the history, romance and the supernatural.

Augusta Podos has worked at a dead end job giving tours in Salem, when she discovers her dream job at the historic Hawlowe House. While working, she discovers a woman named Margaret Harlowe, who lived in the house a hundred and fifty years ago, but her life is a mystery. Augusta makes it her mission to find out everything she can about Margaret to get her the justice she deserved. However, her research reveals a close bond between the two women, that Augusta must overcome to finally get to the truth.

This was a tragic story about how women can be lost in history. Both Margaret and Augusta experienced abusive relationships. In Margaret’s case, it ended in her disappearance from history. Margaret was rumored to be a witch, and wasn’t well liked in her time, but she still deserved to live her life and have her story told after death. This story told the complete history of Margaret and tied up all the loose threads in the ending.

This story took a surprising supernatural turn that I wasn’t expecting. I really enjoyed the story but I wasn’t expecting it to have a supernatural, ghostly element. I won’t say too much about that so I don’t give any spoilers. This supernatural element was unexpected in a historical novel but I enjoyed it.

A Lullaby for Witches is a beautiful historical fiction story.

Thank you HarperCollins for providing a copy of this book.