The Witches of Moonshyne Manor is like if the Golden Girls and Practical Magic had a baby. It’s hilarious, and heartwarming. Five octogenarian witches band together to save their manor from an angry mob of townspeople. All five of these witches were special in their own ways, and I loved seeing them come together to help solve the looming deadline of their late payments. I’m serious when I say that parts of this story had me laughing out loud.

One of my favourite parts of this book were the Grimoire pages that were sprinkled between chapters. Such a fun little addition. An addd bonus were the short chapters, which caused me to flip through this one very quickly.

If you’re looking for a quirky, unique, hilarious and heartwarming book; I definitely recommend this one!

The characters definitely made the story great as the plot line felt like something I've read/seen a bunch of times but I still loved it.

These characters are fantastic! I loved this whole plot line and the character of Ruby was inspired and full of magic! So much fun and so invigorating. I was rooting for these ladies until the very end.

This book was so much fun to read!!! I loved how relevant, modern, and fun this book was. At first I was drawn in by the title and was not really sure what to expect but as soon as I started reading it pulled me in. Great read if you are looking for something fun and easy to break up reality with!

A witty and fun paranormal book about sisterhood, aging, and standing together. I loved that the main characters were all elderly—something you don’t see as often in the genre.

The Witches of Moonshyne Manor was a nice change of pace from all the teen/YA witchy literature. It was like a magical version of Golden Girls, complete with funny, irreverent characters and repercussions of past mistakes.

This was a fun read perfect for fall. I enjoyed the cast of characters and how the author grew their personalities.

This is a fun hilarious book about octogenarian witches and their lives. It is the author’s complete personality in a book. So funny and sharp and even included a heist!

"The Witches of Moonshyne Manor" was a book I wanted to love, but just couldn't get into. I know that there will be plenty of readers who will have loved and enjoyed this book. Unfortunately, it was difficult for me to get past the first half.

The description of The Witches of Moonshyne Manor by Bianca Marais promises adventures - a coven of witches, a heist, a threat, a fight to save a home – and the bonds of sisterhood. Unfortunately, for me, the story does not live up to its promise. From nudity and sexual innuendo to ageism, the depiction of the women is not the one I expected. For this and other reasons, I find myself not the reader for this book.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2023/12/the-witches-of-moonshyne-manor.html

Reviewed for NetGalley

Add this to your cozy fantasy lists: witches of a certain age, sisterhood, a grand magical heist, and a touch of romance. I loved it.

A delightful and enchanting tale of aging witches, sisterhood, and a daring magical heist, brimming with feminism, secrets, and unexpected alliances.

DNF at 35%

I'm so sad, I was really looking forward to this one. But every time I tried to start it, I got bored and gave up. I finally forced myself to give it a valid shot and it didn't get better. Too large of a cast of characters introduced too quickly. None of them felt that different, I couldn't tell them apart. I also felt like this played into super cringy stereotypes. Seriously, what was up with the hyperactive child? Like, "fighting the patriarchy"? I mean, come on. That was irritating.

I also didn't love the worldbuilding, it confused me. These women are witches, yeah? And the townspeople know this, yeah? But suddenly, they want to burn them? Confusion. Also, the other stereotype. Man's World. I mean, again, come on. Stereotypes are a great way to point out hypocrisies if they're subtle and used intentionally. They weren't here. It just felt like propaganda trying to beat a message home

I love witchy books so had to read this one. The cast of characters makes this book with their wit and warmth. The plot is nothing new but it feels fresh thanks to the author's writing style and the larger-than-life characters.

I ended up not finishing this book. It started off really cute and fun in a quirky kind of way but a few chapters in and I was very lost. I had no idea what the story plot actually was or who was doing what. I really wanted to enjoy it because it started off strong, but I could not make sense of what was happening at all.

This was my first book by this author, but mot my last. The writing was stellar and the story engrossed me. Great pick for fall reading.

This book is a cocktail consisting of a double shot of magic, a single shot of Golden Girls and a heavy pour of FUN FUN FUN.

The Witches of Moonshyne Manor was the perfect read to close out 2022. While the plot was slow-moving, the reader was among friends with these characters.

Sex and the City meets Hocus Pocus, this book is an entertaining read most would enjoy.

I’m a big bianca Marais fan and I am witch obsessed. This was a great book for the spooky season and just plain fun!

This was such a fun look at a coven of badass witches in their 80’s! I laughed, I cried, and I loved every minute! Bianca Marais can’t write a bad book, and I loved each of these women!

Behold my field of fucks. Lay thine eyes upon it and thou shalt see that it is barren. - (Possibly the best line I’ve ever read in a book)

I loved this interesting and unique take on the witchy books genre… and yes, ‘witchy’ is a legit genre in this day and age! In this particular book we follow a coven of older witches and explore how they’re relationships to their home and each other have developed over their many years together. But there is one person missing from the coven, Ruby, and as the story unfolds the reader learns what happened to Ruby and how those events impacted their lives. The witches are also at risk of losing their home if they don’t come up with a plan soon- but luckily an unexpected interloper shows up and teaches those old dogs new tricks!

It’s admittedly been a couple of months since I finished this book and even though I’ve read many, many books since finishing this one this story and the things I loved about it have still stuck with me- which is more than I can say about many of the books I read over a year’s time. One of the main things I loved about this book is something I always love to find in stories and that’s a found family. I just love a story about a family that chooses one another rather than their loyalty being based on a relationship bound by blood. Beyond that it was awesome seeing a found family of elderly women which is something I don’t think I’ve ever seen before, at least in this capacity. It’s hard to find something completely new in a book when you’ve read hundreds of them but this one definitely stuck out in a crowd.

There is a wholesome, cozy vibe to this story but it’s also full of action and mishaps and bickering and love. There are ghost and heists and sentient birds. There’s magic and history and old hurts. This book encompasses so much including gender identity and diversity of character. I really loved the discussions this novel raised and I also loved seeing this group of people come together to face down their adversaries.

If you’re looking for a witchy book that does a little something different while also encompassing the core values of humanity than you’ve found that book. You’ll laugh and probably tear up as well- this isn’t a story you’re likely to forget anytime soon.