This book was so well written and had a very unique story with interesting characters and one main character that was amazing. The author created a world that perfectly mixed fantasy with reality to the point where I forgot this world is fiction. There were so many fun and intriguing details that the author included about the school and about Shay's experiences.

This is a well rounded book that had well written characters and a wonderful story. You find yourself rooting for Shay, wanting her to succeed, and rooting for her and Ana. Their chemistry was delightful and filled with amazing tension-filled moments. I feel that this is a character driven book that will hook you and consume you from the first page with a magical world that you wished was real. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Teen for the ARC

LOVE LOVE LOVED THIS BOOK! A LESBIAN WITCH IN A NEMESIS (really only one side) TO LOVERS ROMANCE SIGN ME UP!! Despite my first couple sentences, the romance in this book is very much a side-plot. I think the main plot, being essentially groomed by the teacher and decider for a major scholarship, was done really well. It made it clear to the reader while also leading us through how Shay is seeing everything happening to her.

The magic system was also so interesting I want to read all about this universe and how magic affects everything.

I literally flew through this book wow, one moment I was on chapter 5 and the next I was on chapter 28 and I didn’t even realize how deep I was into this book until I checked where I was at. The magic in this book, the school & wow the characters (especially the side characters aka Lex) were amazing and it honestly left me wanting more, I need more of Ana and Shay. This book has the best magic portrayal I have read in a while, it was captivating and so incredibly interesting and I loved every page of this book.

Sapphic love story? MagicMagic? Witchcraft?! Sign me up! I absolutely loved this story I picked it up and couldn't put it back down. I hope everyone picks this book up. It's 100% worth it

How To Succeed in Witchcraft is a great YA story about a teenage witch named Shay. It follows her as she navigates T.K. Anderson Magical Magnet School and her hopes of winning a scholarship to the college she wants to attend. She is kind of pushed into trying out for a play to up her scholarship chances and the practice is where a lot of the story takes place. Her rival for the scholarship Ana is also in the play and as time goes by she realizes that make she doesn't hate her after all, maybe she even likes her...I loved the chemistry between Ana and Shay, at times it was brutal but also hilarious. Drama teacher Mr. B is a real piece of work, you can really feel how uncomfortable Shay is around him through the writing. I thought the world that the author created was fantastic, I especially loved the potions and their effects. The characters were well-written and you really rooted for Shay, you want her to succeed in life and find happiness with Ana. It is an all-around great book.

An amazing take on the "magic school" fantasy subgenre. How to Succeed in Witchcraft has both a cool magic system and some very important things to say about class and power dynamics. It gave a realistic view on how our world would likely be if magic was part of everyday life. Shay was a fantastic protagonist, very easy to relate to. In fact, all the characters in this novel were fully fleshed out. The novel delved into some hard topics, but managed to stay optimistic. This is one of my new favorites, and I highly recommend.

College applications and scholarships are tough. For Shay, one of the top studenta at the top magical magnet school in her city, it has a special level of pressure-as one of a handful of minority students at the school, she has seen the difficulty her parents face in life, and wants to make things better, When she accepts the drama teacher's invitation to try out for the school musical, with the clearly implied quid pro quo that it will make her chances at admission to her dream school, and an excellent scholarship, better.

As a parent who just had a child apply for college last year, this is one of the most true magical school genre books anywhere. The level of competition, the time management struggles, and the racism and classism faced by lower income and minority students is very real, as is the difficult choice to be your best self and risk homophobic reactions as a LGBTQIA teen. . As a former music and drama kid, I also loved to see the magical workings of a school musical. And as the mother of a teen, I was glad to see abuse of power handled head on, and the difficulty in choosing the right thing to do at significant cost.

I simply can’t bring myself to finish reading this one. If the main character could talk about literally anything other than her parents financial situation, I might be able to power through, but the story completely bogs down on this one topic. I get that it’s relevant, but it’s outshining everything else.