There wasn't a lot of character depth and development in this story, as lots of it surrounding what was happening around them and not so much on them. For me it made me not as invested in the book or outcome as usual.

Hazel Beck is at it again with this second installment of Witchlore, which picks up right where *********************Small Town, Big Magic********************* left off. Emerson Wilde has just shucked off her mind-wipe, embraced her power as a confluence warrior, and saved the world. She’s also pulled her unwilling sister, Rebekah, back into their small town.

As the book starts, we see the ruling coven, the Joywood, unwilling to back down from their original assessment of the Wilde sisters, and instead maintain that their magic will be re-tested, and in all likelihood, the girls will be executed for treason. This story focuses on Rebekah as she re-enters their small town following a decade in exile.

Thanks to the publisher, Hazel Beck, and NetGalley for this early review copy of Big Little Spells. All thoughts below are my own.

If you enjoyed the magical realism, romance, and high-stakes environment of *********************Small Town, Big Magic*********************, you’ll probably also enjoy this story. There’s something incredibly cozy about the small town romance vibe (although Nicolas x Rebekah is much more of a ******shadow daddy****** romance than Emerson x Jacob).

That cozy atmosphere is challenged by the idea that the world-wide ruling coven also lives here. I appreciated the exploration of the Joywood as evil figureheads in this book, and I think the jaded viewpoint of Rebekah was the right perspective for this segment of the story.

Overall, if you liked the first book, you’ll probably like this book.. However, I felt that with everything going on plot-wise, the writing was weaker this time around. I’ll still definitely see this series through to the third book. If this sounds like a book for you, it will be released August 29.. And if you still haven’t read Small Town, Big Magic, that’s available right now!!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Big Little Spells continues the story of Small Town, Big Magic. Sister Emerson and Rebekah, formerly “spell dim” have publicly shown the extent of the magic that they aren’t supposed to have. The ruling coven of witches, the Joywood, are willing to reconsider their prior determination of their magical abilities, only if Emerson and Rebekah are willing to relive one of the scariest experiences of life; high school. Both sisters work alongside their fellow witch friends (creating a coven of their own) as well as a brooding and gorgeous immortal witch, Nicholas Frost. Rebekah fights to keep her dark secrets hidden as well as her feelings for Nicholas, whom she’s felt drawn to all her life. Will the sisters be able to prove their standing as powerful witches? Or will they be deemed “spell dim” once more?

This was a great continuation of Small Town, Big Magic. As much as I liked Emerson in that book, I MUCH prefer Rebekah. I love a good redemption arc in a book.

Following some of the witch lore and practices in the book were mildly confusing for me personally, but I really enjoyed it! I can’t wait for the next book and to see what the Riverwood coven gets up to next!

Favorite Quotes from the book are below!


“That’s the difference between real sisters and chosen sisters. The real ones have all that family stuff between them, and whether anyone wants it or not, it always gets in the way. But the sisters we choose come without baggage. Where a blood sister might argue with a story you tell about your life, a best friend embellishes it.”

“I’ve been through therapy. I know all the right things to say and feel. And still, everything she says echoes inside me, the ache of knowing it’s stupid to hurt and futile to wish…while not being able to keep from it. I lived down to every expectation. I embarrassed them— fairly and unfairly. I was and am a stain on the family name. I flaunted being that stain. Still do. And yet, just once, I too want them to look at me and think I’m enough.”

“You learn or you die. Sometimes that death is long and drawn out and looks a lot like fear, but it’s death all the same. You learn so you can live.”

“Maybe I should be appalled, but I understand too well the mistakes we make and sins we commit. When we haven’t healed what’s broken within us. When the dark is too tempting.”

“‘Making mistakes doesn’t make you worthless, Rebekah,’ my grandmother tells me, her voice as steady as her gaze. As her grip. As her love, across all these years and death besides. ‘It makes you alive.’”

“Time doesn’t go one way. It isn’t just the now or then. It’s all things, and I am in tune with the weaving, waving nature of it all. Chaos. Diviner. Me”

“The best kind of recovery I can imagine is love.”

I really enjoyed Emerson more than Rebekah, thus I didn’t like Big Little Spells as much as I enjoyed Small Town Big Magic. I also totally pictured Frost as a creepy, grumpy old man in STBM, so him being the broody love interest in this one just couldn’t catch in my head. And I really can’t imagine have such an awful coven as the Joywood in such a cute town as St. Cyprian.
This book certainly isn’t a cutesy small town magical story- it’s honestly pretty dark and sad with lots of conniving characters and some definite pacing issues that made it kind of drag for me.
That said, this one picks right up where the first left off and if you enjoyed the first, you’ll like another dive into this series with this cast of somewhat misfit witches in an adorable setting. The town & coven traditions are interesting and more details about the Wilde family were welcome.

The second book in Hazel Beck’s Witchlore series does not disappoint. This time, we follow Rebekah, long-exiled and recently returned sister to Emerson Wilde. While Emerson’s journey in the first book is about finding her way back to her magic, Rebekah’s journey is about finding the calm amid life’s chaos so that she can stop hiding from her magic, her loved ones, and most importantly, herself. Rebekah and Emerson must, with the help of their coven, their departed ancestresses, and one hot and temperamental immortal, prove to the residents of St. Cyprian that their magic was never dull, and that they are powerful in ways St. Cyprian has never seen.

Big Little Spells is a fun follow up to Small Town, Big Magic. I actually enjoyed the sequel more than the first book. Rebekah is fun and relatable character. I also love the morally grey Nicholas Frost. It was great seeing Rebekah, her sister Emerson, and their friends come together against the Joywood. I hope I can read more Hazel Beck books in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars

After ten years of exile Rebekah Wilde is back in St. Cyprians and must prove her and her sisters powers or die trying. With the help of their friends and the mysterious immortal witch Nicholas Frost they might just have a chance or surviving and maybe even topple the overarching tyrannical power that controls witch kind

Pros: I do really love the world that this series take place in, so many great details in the town, the community, and all their customs and rituals. It just is interesting and well detailed. I love the friend group this series follows, it's genuinely interesting cast or characters that each individually intrigue me and I can't wait to see their stories evolve.

Cons: I just sort of hate immortal/mortal romance, particularly when the immortal knew her when she was young. Obviously he states he wasn't attracted to her as a child or young teenager but she was into him and it's just really riding the edge of that line with grooming. It just makes me uncomfortable that they have a history involving her when she's young. My other complaint was I felt the end was a little rushed, I felt that there should have been way bigger consequences for the whole murders and attempted murder situation but they just had a party afterwards, after literally declaring war on the antagonists. It just seemed weird and like maybe they didn't want to end on a dramatic note ?

Overall I enjoyed the book and am excited for the next installment which hopefully is Zander and Ellowayne which is saying something since I don't like second chance romance

**Rated: 3.5

I definitely enjoyed this book more than the first. I was able to connect more with the characters, I loved this POV more, and even the love interest was much more my style, haha.

I definitely missed the small town vibes that I felt more in the first book, but overall still really enjoyed this book.

Also, if you are into found family - this is definitely your vibes.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was looking forward to the second book in this series, but I wasn't aware that this would be from Rebeka's point of view. I wasn't a fan of hers, but the book was enjoyable.

Rebekah left St. Cyprian ten years ago at eighteen, and has finally returned where she is happy to be back with her sister. But, she’s keeping secrets about why she truly left all those years ago. On top of that, the Joywood Coven, who preside not only over their town but over the entire magical world, are determined to prove that Rebekah, her sister, and their group of friends are a danger to all of witchkind. In order to stop them, Rebekah turns to her former secret magic tutor, an immortal named Nicholas Frost, for help. ‘The implications of her return are darker and more dangerous than they could have imagined.’

I am a huge fan of any book that is about witches. This book has everything. Family, friendships, romance; it’s the perfect fall book. While I enjoyed its prequel, Small Town, Big Magic, I enjoyed Rebekah’s story the most. She’s a very strong willed character, and I love that she is seen making mistakes and working through them, which made her so relatable. She has her flaws, but doesn’t pretend to be perfect, and it’s amazing to read about characters and their mental health struggles.

Some of the time jumps made things a bit confusing, and the romance wasn’t as prominent as I would have preferred, but that’s just a personal preference and doesn’t subtract from the story in any way. I’m just a huge romance girlie, and would have liked for it to be a stronger plot point than it was.

I’m excited to hear there are possibly two more books in the series, and I’ll be happy to see what else happens in the town of St. Cyprian in the future with Rebekah, Emerson, and their friends.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Hazel Beck & Graydon House for an ARC of Big Little Spells. This review is wholly my own and may not be reproduced (except quoted synopsis).

“Is her magic a threat to witchkind…or is she simply powerful enough to save the world?

Rebekah Wilde was eighteen when she left St. Cyprian, officially stripped of her magic and banished from her home. Ten years later, she’s forced to return to face the Joywood Coven, who preside over not just her hometown but the whole magical world. Rebekah is happy to reunite with her sister, and with her friends, but the implications of her return are darker and more dangerous than they could have imagined.

The Joywood are determined to prove Rebekah and her friends are a danger to witchkind, and her group faces an impending death sentence if they can’t prove otherwise. Rebekah must seek help from the only one who knows how to stop the Joywood—the ruthless immortal Nicholas Frost. Years ago, he was her secret tutor in magic, and her secret impossible crush. But the icy immortal is as remote and arrogant as ever, and if he feels anything for Rebekah—or witchkind—it’s impossible to tell.”

I absolutely LOVED Small Town Big Magic so I was THRILLED to get a copy of Big Little Spells.

I did enjoy the first a bit more, but was not disappointed in this one and the continuation of the story.

I loved the continuation of girl power and friendship. This is the perfect Fall read, especially for around October!

I highly recommend reading this one, but only if the reader has read Small Town Big Magic first!

4/5 Stars

*I gave this book 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

I mentioned in another review that I'm in my Fitness Girl era - which is true. But I've also BEEN in my Witchy Girl era for a minute now, so I was super excited to read this book. If the first 3/4 of the book were as good as the last 1/4 of the book, this would have been a 5 star read, no question. Honestly, all of the characters I thought were super great...except for Rebekah, which is a problem since she is the FMC and we are reading from her POV.

There was a lot of talk about teenage angst - and just angst in general. It felt like the book could have been made so much shorter if we had cut out the literal pages and pages of angst and emotions over everything: her mom and dad, Nicholas, school, her teenage years, all the years since her teenage years. Rebekah was overly worried about what "they" expected her to do and then making sure to do the opposite to the point that it got old really quickly. She was also overly critical of one of her coven's relationship, which is frustrating because the only thing "wrong" with the guy is that Rebekah finds him dull and boring...which really isn't for her to decide.

As I said, I adored every character (minus the Joywood and Rebekah's Dad), but I REALLY liked Nicholas. The way the author described him was amazing, and I could feel his broodiness coming off the pages. This is a minor spoiler, but when he declared his love for Rebekah, I definitely swooned. Move over, McDreamy - Nicholas Frost is in town and he's coming for your title.

To be clear: I didn't know this was a sequel, which is totally on me. It took me a few chapters to feel caught up on what was happening, and I made sure to not include that when I was evaluating how I felt about the story.

All in all, I would read the first book - just to get caught up on the story - and I am hoping there are more books coming - I want to find out what happens to the rest of the characters. While I wrote in my notes that a lot of the book felt redundant, it was a good storyline that kept me hooked, even if I didn't love it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

St. Cyprian really got its claws into me! I love the world that we were introduced to in STBM, and really love the side characters and magic systems. I was so pumped to read this next book in the Witchlore series. I started it months ago- months……and it took me months to get through. The story picks up immediately after the first, but gives NO summary or recap in, so you best have an amazing memory or access to the first book to refresh yourself. I had neither which right off the bat, made me disconnected. I remember the gist of it, but mostly the beginning was choppy for me, at best. And by beginning I mean almost half because that is how long one day of the story takes to get through. It was rough y’all. But, love the town, love the characters, love the world so we pushed through! Getting tons of back story for Rebekah was great, though I don’t love flashbacks in books that don’t give up impactful information or at least show us chemistry between romantic interests. And that brings me to Nicholas.
Now this is a total me problem, but, I envisioned him in a VERY not-sexy, borderline creepy, Volturi vampiresque type of being in the first book. So him as a broody sexy love interest made me have to go back and see if I missed something. Really hard to wrap my mind around him in a sexy way. And tbh, their romance was really lacking. I just didn’t feel the heat.
Overall, I’m still interested in the world and story, but I won’t be prioritizing the next book in the series. 2.5 ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy, in exchange for my unbiased review!

I went back and forth on my rating for Big Little Spells. The book is so much more enjoyable than the first book, in my opinion, but I could not over look some some of the issues and just enjoy it.
My biggest complaint with BLS is the way addiction was handled in such a careless way. Rebekah is supposed to be in NA and makes a comment that she even stays away from caffeine. Yet, time and time again she is the one suggesting the bar, margaritas, shots, etc. I've been surrounded my entire adult life by wonderful folks going to NA and working the program to the fullest and part of that is not drinking. NA includes alcohol. It feels so blasé and irresponsible to write about a woman struggling with addiction and then act like alcohol is completely fine. If NA was not mentioned at all I would feel better about it but honestly, the alcohol is so unnecessary in these scenes to begin with that it would've been more impactful to her character if she was the one refusing instead of the one suggesting. I really think a sensitivity reader would have helped so much.
Then there's the strange pacing. The first 31% of the book takes place over the next day where Small Town, Big Magic left off. It took me longer than a day to read about that one day. There are time jumps where we don't get to read anything that happens, and then suddenly it's an extended day again and we're just told that things happened. Because of the time jumps it feels like we miss a lot of really important relationship development, not just romantically, but also with the sisters and the people in the town and high school.
Speaking of high school. If I wanted to read a book about high school classes, drama, and prom I wouldn't pickup a book that's supposed to be about 27-28 year olds.
Other parts just didn't add up to me, like how they handle a book in STBM and when the same person gives a book to someone in BLS they don't even try the same spell to find answers?
I will say, I really enjoyed Rebekah as a character. BLS is very character driven with lots of internal monologue and not a lot of action, but it really highlights Rebekah's character arc. I know there are people that won't like the relationship aspect but I really enjoyed it and wish there was more time showing them working together and getting closer, instead of just being told about it.
The overall plot is really interesting as well. I feel like BLS leaves off in a good place to see how things continue to play out for the town and all of witch kind.

I stayed up until 1 AM finishing this book, which is unheard of for me. Who knew Rebekah was a little goth?? She’s a recovering angsty teen who has put in the work to become who she is today and is learning to stand firm in her power in a new way?? The romance was just right and didn’t overshadow how badass she is. Rebekah’s backstory unravels in this second book and it turns out I’m a huge fan. I, too, hated authority from a very young age. #relatable

Also, without spoiling - I love when a story leans into taboo topics, but also takes a minute to acknowledge why they can be taboo/problematic. Reading about a crush on an older man is cool, but power dynamics are real too! Ugh, I loved this. Totally my vibe.

I didn't read the first book when I started this so learning about the pre-established characters and setting was kind of a shock. I personally do not think this can be read as a standalone. However, this was such a light and whimsical read. Gave me the perfect fall romance vibes.

I adored this book, it was a phenomenal sequel. The world within is wonderfully witchy and so lovely, I'm really glad that this was a direct continuation from book one, and loved the fast paced nature of it. I could not put this down and want more in this world ASAP!

I was so excited to read this book because I adored "Small Town, Big Magic". "Big Little Spells" takes place directly after the events of "Small Town, Big Magic," however it has a lot less charm. It felt rushed and repetitive, which is a bummer because I was so excited for Rebekah's story. All of the plot points felt lazy and under-baked. The magic in this was less enjoyable, and the stakes didn't feel as high. A lot of this book takes place in Rebekah's head, with little interaction with the other characters you grew to love in the first book and wanted to get to know more of in this one. I feel like many of the high priority action items were an afterthought, and were "I received this item last night at this location," or "I had made connections with these people weeks ago, but we skipped to today because this was supposed to be the day of the battle". I'm sad with how this turned out, but still hopeful for the third book - which I will read upon release.

Wow is all I can say about Big Little Spells! I don’t know what I was expecting when I started reading this book but I can say that not being able to put it down was not one of the things I expected at all. I devoured this book. It has all the elements of the kind of books I enjoy: mystery, action, magic, self discovery and of course romance. Rebekah was a really endearing character, one I was often rooting for despite her faults and many mistakes. Watching her grow throughout the book was really interesting. Nicholas had some great chemistry with Rebekah but he was a bit too distant and cool with her for my tastes throughout the book. This novel was really well written which made it easy to binge in a few days.The secondary characters are fun and well developed. I loved seeing previous relationships and characters in this book and the ending is satisfying while still leaving the reader wanting to read the next book in the series, and I can’t wait!

I liked the first book in this series though agreed with a lot of reviewers who found the plot a bit convoluted and the FMC difficult to like. I still wanted to give the second book a try...and unfortunately the issues with the convoluted plot remain in this.

I read about a book a day - and this book took me a full week to read which is incredibly rare for me. I just didn't feel compelled by the plot and kept putting it down in order to read other things I was excited about.

I did end up really liking Rebekah but because this is single POV, we never really get to know Nicholas and therefore I could not see the chemistry between the two of them at all. I also am just always going to have an issue with an immortal being having known and "loved" her since he started tutoring her at 16. I recognize nothing actually happened when she was that young but she did have a crush on him. I get that it was supposed to be some sort of prophecy and he has "loved her across time" and dreamed about her when she was still mortal but...idk man it really gives me the ick and just feels unnecessary and borders on problematic. At the very least it's a huge power dynamic. Also...the end was just so obvious.

As much as I'm a completionist, I don't know that I'll continue with this series beyond this. If you liked the first book, you may like this one! I unfortunately did not. I do think this would have been improved if it was dual POV and the next one in the series surely should be if it's going to be about Zander and Ellowyn.

Thank you to Netgalley and Graydon House for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily.