Olivia Atwater is a brilliant author who excels at writing simply and engagingly. I'll write a longer review but for now, I just want to say it's a great, breezy read. Highly recommended.

(4.5 stars rounded up)

This book was such a pleasure to read in the autumn season! Moody and eerie, we follow Winnie, a competent "governess" who has been hired to protect her charge from the fae-cursed house. Winnie herself was a wonderful main character - she has her faults! But I never found them annoying or tiresome. But what struck me the most about her character was her fears.

"I am not even afraid of being desired. I am simply afraid of what desire becomes whenever I dare to decline it."

This character detail had me shaking my kindle because yes!!!!! exactly that's it! I've never been the type of gal thats been scared of things like the dark or heights. But THIS fear? This is something different, and it was such a wonderful read to have Winnie face it and talk about it.

I docked the book half a star for a collection of little complaints. Mostly because I felt that there was not enough time to let the characters breathe and grow together. The romance was nice! But I would have loved to get to know Mr. Quincy just a little bit more. Just a little bit more bonding moments between Robert and Winnie would have been wonderful as well. It felt just a little threadbare to me.

Another half a star had been docked for My Quincy's tail. Fortunately half a star had been added for the presence of Oliver. Love Oliver <3

I adored Winnie, she is cunning and independent, and you understand exactly why once her backstory is revealed. I think consent of someone who experienced molestation as a child was incredibly well done (and dare I say, hot.) I almost put the book down several times as we experience her disembodied assault during her dreams (again, another great representation / metaphor of dissociation during abuse.) It made me so uncomfortable, which was its aim as a gothic romance, and I do not fault it for that.

This does not stand alone. Now, I've read the other three books in Atwater's regency trilogy but I do not recall details of the stories. As such, I felt very lost. I could tell I was supposed to recognize names, characters, and stories but I was so lost and it became very frustrating. You can tell that you are missing half of story, which led to an empty experience. Like...what the Lord Sorcier is within this world is not explained, nor is the system or world of magic and faerie. I felt like I was reading mist, I couldn't pin down any of the story concretely or understand what was going on as the worldbuilding and historical context was not defined or explained. I muddled through but I can see this being a very frustrating read for new readers who do not know they should start with Half a Soul.

Goodness, I love Olivia Atwater's brain.

The Witchwood Knot takes everything I loved about the Regency Faerie Tales series and makes it just a tad darker. We still get the wonderfully mischievous faeries and their cunning antics, but this book injects a wonderful gothic atmosphere into a world I was already in love with, and I had such a good time with the outcome. While this is technically the beginning of a new series, I strongly recommend reading Half a Soul and its sequels first, as there are quite a few references and spoilers mentioned in this one.

The Witchwood Knot follows Winifred Hall, a woman posing as a governess in Victorian England in order to investigate the mysterious Witchwood Manor. The master of the house insists nothing is amiss, but the local villagers and the servants of the house are well aware of Witchwood Manor's dark origins. Winnie must protect her charge, deal with the dangerous faeries that haunt the house at night, and try to unravel the Knot without dooming the whole town.

Atwater always does such a wonderful job of weaving in heavy themes with her whimsical tales. The characters of The Witchwood Knot are all dealing with their own demons, but to see them shed their fears and reclaim a part of themselves hit me so hard. Atwater explores sexual harassment, grooming, and abuse with a delicate hand, and while the mystery of the Witchwood Knot was the driving force of the novel, the journeys our characters go through leave a very strong impact.

I loved Winifred as a heroine. She wasn't exactly morally grey, but she often describes herself as a knave and a liar and I found I quite enjoyed those characteristics as she confronted the faeries in this story. She's been through a lot in life, and she knows how to navigate a dangerous situation. Her cartomancy was also fun and unique, and I loved how her background intersects with some of our beloved characters from Half a Soul.

Mr Quincy reminds be a bit of Cardan from The Cruel Prince (he even has a tail!), so I think readers will probably either love him or hate him. I, myself, really enjoyed his character. He often walks the line of terrible and thoughtful, which you often see in faerie stories, and I honestly just eat that up. It's just such a fun thing to witness, and I thought he and Winifred had a fabulous dynamic.

I absolutely adored this book and I can't wait for the next one!


Thank you to Olivia Atwater and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really love OIivia Atwood's clever gothic romances and The Witchwood Knot, a new series set in the same world as her Half a Soul trilogy, didn't disappoint. Danger and darkness lurked on every page, tempered with humour and a beautifully subtle romance.

Winnie has been summoned by an old friend to be a governess. Children are not Winnie's area of expertise but magic and dealing with faeries is and as soon as she sets foot in Witchwood Manor she knows something is terribly wrong. Its not just that every part of the manor is made from wood, or the strangeness of the butler who greeted her, or the obvious fact that all the staff are under a compulsion, but the very real sense of evil. An evil that comes alive when she sleeps. But it's not just the supernatural world where monsters lurk and Winnie is more aware than most how appearances that humans can be the most dangerous of all.

A really enjoyable start to the new trilogy. Recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. (via Netgalley)

3.75 stars. Kind of slow in the beginning but it picked up in the second half. The romance was a slooow burn but I liked the cast of characters. Curious to see where the next one will go.

⚠️Content warning: includes mild sexual harassment of a woman and child

Set in the same world as Half A Soul, this story follows Winnie who is employed as a governess at the mysterious Witchwood Manor to protect, not teach, the grandson of Lady Longfellow.

This is a dark, gothic faerie tale about trauma, love, and greed. With perfect haunted house vibes and beautiful world-building. I found the FMC hilarious due to how straightforward and matter-of-fact she is. The MMC is mysterious and fascinating with Heathcliff vibes. The romance in this is such a slow burn that I didn’t see it coming.

I was entertained from page one and it was a very easy read coming up to just over 200 pages. It is a fun, atmospheric, and cozy read perfect for chilly autumn or winter nights. There are no spoilers for Half A Soul however there are references to some characters. I look forward to seeing where the story goes and can’t wait for the next installment in the series.

Though the book was a bit slow in the beginning, I loved the gothic faerie tale this story led me through. The character development was interesting in that the more you read, the more you’d slowly piece together who Winnie and Mr. Quincy were with their own tales of their past, the teachings Winnie gave Robert, and the dangerous path Winnie and Mr. Quincy would go down together. Half the time I thought I understand the characters only to be given another piece that changed my outlook on them again. Highly recommend to anybody wanting a darker faerie book.

I really enjoyed this! The Witchwood Knot may technically be a different series than Half a Soul, but it is, at a minimum, the gothic cousin. I don’t think it’s necessary to read Half a Soul or the other two books in that triology to understand what’s going on but it would certainly help.

The Witchwood Knot follows a magician turned temporary governess, summoned to a gothic manor to try to deal with the magic cursing it. She quickly discovers that things are more complicated—and more dangerous—than she bargained for. The protagonist of the story is deeply likable; she’s clever, loyal, and kind, and it’s hard not to root for her success. I will be excited to read the next book in this series. hope we learn more about her sisters next!

The Witchwood Knot was another standout book from Olivia Atwater! In this book, we follow Winnie as she slowly unravels the mysteries behind Witchwood Manor. I adored this book and the cast of characters. I was so happy to see that this novel was set in the same world as Half a Soul and I really enjoyed the darker undertones of this novel. I hope that there are more books with this darker and more gothic feel from Atwater in the future!

✔️ Magic & Fae
✔️ Strong FMC
✔️ Gothic Fantasy Romance
✔️ Undead cat that comes to life as a familiar

We start this book with Winnie arriving at a manor haunted by the fae. She’s hired as a governess to deal with the curse of the household and protect a young child. She meets a mysterious butler named Mr Quincy, and over her time at the manor trying to figure out exactly what happened there, things get more dangerous and complicated.

Winnie was fantastic. I absolutely adored her character. She was strong, sure of herself, smart, and didn’t take anything from anyone. She uses her wit and knowledge of fae behavior to overcome the challenges presented to her, and it is magnificently done. I love that she relied on herself versus her magic - while she had it, she didn’t use it to solve every problem, and I enjoyed the banter throughout the book. She had a cat familiar named Ollie who protected her, and I enjoyed that relationship. It was so sweet and kept up throughout the story. The romance was my absolute favorite. It was emotional, real, and raw. The author did an amazing job on backstories, and I truly felt connected to these characters and their tragic stories. All of them felt real and relatable or believable. The dialect was also beautifully done for the time period in which this book is set.

The plot was easy to follow and structured well. The setting was Victorian era, steeped in magic, and it was utterly enchanting! This story is dark, mysteries, wholesome, and feels like a fairytale. I couldn’t have loved it more; it is likely one of this year's favorite reads. I cannot believe I haven’t read anything by the author before, but I will remedy that problem immediately.

Overall, this is a perfect spooky read with a dash of romance, overcoming fears, brilliantly developed characters, magic, cruel fae, and an adventure that was paced perfectly. Thank you to Netgalley and Starwatch Press for a digital arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This felt like a true fairytale, I love the way Atwater writes it’s a good mix of regency style books mixed with fantasy. This even had some gothic horror vibes as well that lead to some good atmosphere.

There were a few lulls and I wanted to skim to get to the anwsers but fans of Atwater’s previous work will enjoy this.

3.5/5

Thank you to the publisher for the advanced digital copy all opinions are my own.

This was such a well written fairytale with wonderful atmosphere and a great MC. I felt enthralled by all the characters, and the setting was so interesting and fun while being based in lore. I don’t usually finish books in 1 sitting but I did with this one! Can’t wait to read the rest of the installments as they come out.

This was my first Olivia Atwater book and I'm so excited to read more now. This one was so atmospheric and intriguing. A fascinating plot, that reminded me a lot of T. Kingfisher, with the dark fairy tale vibes. I absolutely fell in love with this cast of characters. Maybe my only complaint was concerning the ending, which I felt a little anticlimactic and underwhelming, but overall it was a pleasant surprise and I can't wait to read more.

Check out trigger warnings before reading.
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Pub Date: 28 Nov 2023

Thank you to Netgalley, Starwatch Press and the author for giving me the chance to read this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

'I am still not afraid of you - i am not even afraid of being desired. I am simply afraid of what desire becomes whenever I dare to decline it'

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really enjoyed this book and all of its witchy and gothic vibes! One of my favourite things from this book is the big creepy house. I am a sucker for old eerie houses so that instantly drew me into this book.

I also really enjoyed the whole concept, the magic system was interesting and the witchwood knot itself had me captivated and eager to find out more! As I settled into the book and the writing, I enjoyed it more and more and became more intrigued by the characters. One of my favourites was Oliver the cat, such a fearlessly loyal companion , even his backstory had me pitying him. #oliversupremacy

Winnie was a really fierce main character, I was excited to find out more and explore her magic abilities. Mr Quincy was also very interesting and mysterious. Robert really grew on me, he was quite a lost soul but he really found a friend in Winnie (even if he was a nightmare to begin with😂).

I really appreciated the natural development of Winnie and Mr Quincy’s relationship, it didn’t feel forced and took its time rather than being a sudden change and I loved that! I also loved how they both saw character development with Winnie reclaiming her sexuality and Mr Quincy reclaiming his autonomy.

What lowered the rating for me was mainly that I didn’t feel the Victorian essence as much as I would have liked. I would have also liked to see the magic expanded on more and to see Winnie’s abilities more, so hopefully that happens in the future books!

Overall I would definitely recommend. It was a nice easy read that I flew through with fun concepts and magical elements. I look forward to the rest of the series!

Thank you to @netgalley and @victoryeditingngc for letting me read this book!

Thank you to Starwatch Press and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC.

When I saw Olivia Atwater, the author of the charming Small Miracles and the Regency Faerie Tale series (home to delights like Ten Thousand Stitches and Half a Soul ), had written a spooky continuation of the latter's world, I knew I had to read it. Like all of her novels, The Witchwood Knot. features a charming and quirky romance as well as a strong female protagonist, Winnifred “Winnie” Hall, who is dealing with the often catastrophic fallout of faeries.

"There has always been something wrong with Witchwood Manor, ever since Lord Longfell had it built. At first, it was less noticeable—little noises in the dead of night, and whispers in the halls. But then...the servants started leaving. Some disappeared entirely.*"


Unlike the former entries in Atwater’s world, this novel takes place in the Victorian Era, rather than that of the Regency. Fans of Victorian novels might be disappointed that this setting doesn’t play more of a role in the novel, but it’s really just a briefly mentioned backdrop. The main action revolves around the home in which Winnie finds herself employed in as (a very reluctant), governess. Winnie quickly discovers that the eponymous Witchwood Manor is home to more than just the ailing lady of the house and the few servants who can bear to work there.

But The Witchwood Knot is unlike Atwater’s other novels in that it asks the question: are fairies really the true monsters of the world? Winnie is more traumatized than Atwater’s previous heroines, which is handled with sensitivity and realism. Though I found her backstory incredibly compelling, I did, at times, think that this clever and resourceful heroine was a little too calm and level-headed for what she had been through in the past. Despite finding her ability to think so quickly and rationally on her feet in times of great danger and emotionally triggering situations a little difficult to believe, I still found Winnie to be an interesting and complex main character with a lot of admirable qualities.

I also really enjoyed the darker atmosphere and tone of this novel. It’s certainly less cozy than the others of Atwater’s works I read, but it never came across as too spooky or chilling to me, in spite of being marketed as a gothic novel. I couldn’t help but to feel like The Witchwood Knot wanted to be both scary and gothic as well as sweet and charming, but that it didn't quite find the right balance to both of these things. Though I enjoyed both of these elements, I couldn’t help but to wish that the novel had fully committed to one of the tones.

"There were no easy answers to her current dilemma. Sometimes, faerie cruelty was simply inescapable."


For example, the darker elements of the novel pertained to the male lead, which made it hard to support his romance with Winnie. For much of the novel, he was a main and sinister antagonist working from the shadows to thwart Winnie, so I wasn’t quite sure he was even actually supposed to be the love interest for her for most of the novel. Though it was hard for me to see this character in a different light, it did end up working for me, just not as well as I think it could have or as it did in Atwater’s previous novels.

I think it’s also worth noting that The Witchwood Knot does include references to Atwater’s previous novels. Unfortunately, I read these books over a year ago, and have a very poor memory, so I wasn’t able to fully appreciate these references as they were intended. Though The Witchwood Knot is the first in a new series, and the references ultimately aren’t that pertinent to the novel, this may not be the best book to get started with when exploring the author’s works. However, it certainly sets up well for future entries in the series and I'm very interested to see where it all goes.

I will definitely pick up new entries in the series, as I'm very invested in the world and its characters. I think fans of Olivia Atwater's previous books and new readers who are looking for a fantasy read with spooky-but-not-too-spooky vibes will really enjoy The Witchwood Knot.

*All quotes taken from an ARC and subject to change at time of publication.

This advanced copy was provided by Starwatch Press, via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

TW: sexual harassment, child abuse, grooming, pedophilia, abandonment, blood and gore.

4.5

The Witchwood Knot is a dark gothic tale of a young governess who must protect her charge from the faeries.

Winifred Hall is not someone who can easily be fooled, but The Witchwood Manor is about to test her capabilities. Winnie must not only protect the young lord, but survive the trials the manor will set her, and the man who is interfering with her quest.

I don't believe you need to read the author's previous trilogy in order to understand this story, though I think it gives you context about some characters that are mentioned in this novel. As someone who's only read Half a Soul (and loved it), my lack of knowledge didn't interfere in my reading experience. If anything, it made me want to read more.

Olivia Atwater always mesmerizes with her writing. I have read my share of faerie stories, and she is one of the few authors who showcases the ruthless and the intrigue we find in folklore. Her character development is also remarkable. I was invested in Winnie and Mr. Quincy's story as well as Cook, Margaret, and the other background faeries.

While this is advertised as a gothic romance, the romance is not the main focus. This is a fantastical tale with chilling monsters that creep around the corner, and a survivor who will do whatever must be done.

I want to thank the publisher for the opportunity to read this story, I had a marvelous time reading about Winnie.

I really liked this one! I think gothic romances in second world fantasy is really hard to pull off on account of how ghosts aren’t mysterious and spooky if you’re even a very minor kind of wizard or your sister is a necromancer. Olivia Atwater has <em>almost</em> pulled it off here. I don’t think she’s quite hit all the proper notes to make this a great gothic novel, but as a fairy-tale style fantasy romance, it is really lovely.

There are some definite weaknesses in the romance—while Mr Quincy does have his charms as a love interest, we don’t really see any of them until the back half of the novel, and her whole attitude change towards him seemed very abrupt and based on very little.

I did, however, absolutely love Winnie’s relationship with Lady Longfell, and her growing sympathy for the Lady’s grandson. The vibes are impeccable, and I loved the fairy tales within the fairy tale. I would, however, advise you go back if you haven’t read <em>Half a Soul</em> yet—you could skip the rest of the first trilogy if you wanted to, but knowing the Lord Sorcier and the Hollow Lady is key to understanding quite a few key plot points.

Thank you to NetGalley and Starwatch Press for the eARC!

I’d actually like to start this review by quoting someone else’s: Shelley Parker-Chan blurbed this, “The Witchwood Knot delivers the best kind of comfort—the kind that doesn’t shy away from the world’s injustices, but faces them with indignation.”

I absolutely love that. I read and enjoyed the entire Regency Faerie Tales trilogy, and I’ve been thinking a lot about where Atwater falls in the emerging canon of cozy fantasy. I could go on a tangent here, and I’ll do my best not to; all I’ll say is that there is a glut of “cozy” stories with nothing to say. Stories written for escapism or vibes without a solid grasp on their own thematic subtext or willingness to engage with hard topics.

Atwater isn’t writing stories like that, and that’s exactly what makes them actually cozy: facing the world’s injustices “with indignation.” The Regency Faerie Tales are whimsical and charming historical romantasies, but they’re tied together by this fiercely simmering sense of justice: they’re angry, and repeatedly posit that a just person in an unjust world *must* be angry. That anger is not a moral failure, but in fact, essential to begin the work of righting systemic wrongs.

A gothic novel is a vastly different undertaking, but I felt like the author took the change of pace in stride. We pivot here from The Regency Faerie Tales’ themes of class consciousness and workers’ rights to a story that is both quieter and more personal, yet achingly familiar: a young woman repeatedly victimized by the predation of powerful men. CW for sexual harassment and pedophilia; feel free to shoot me a message if you need more specific details.

Winnie is such a powerful character: I love reading about women who will unapologetically do whatever they need to in order to survive. I love reading about women who are not “perfect” victims. Her arc as a character was so full and intertwined perfectly with Mr Quincy’s arc - two feral and deeply damaged people, taking comfort in the honesty of the other’s blatant enmity, until it transforms into something else. Incredible, cathartic, no notes.

While this isn’t a “cozy” novel, it’s certainly less… intense? …than other gothics that I’ve read. Atwater keeps her signature prose, which is light, concise, and compulsively readable. The setting was fantastic, reminiscent of some of my personal childhood favorites: Coraline and the Spiderwick Chronicles. (I’d also recommend this to anyone who enjoys T. Kingfisher’s similar brand of macabre fairytale whimsy.)

Just to poke holes for a second, I have to admit that I found the ending surprisingly abrupt and a bit underwhelming compared to what I was expecting. I would have liked to see this book push the envelope more with its horror elements, but I didn’t really expect that based on the author’s typical wheelhouse. I’m also surprised to see that this book acts as a more traditional first novel in a fantasy series, setting up the conflict and villains to come; the previous trilogy followed the popular romance series format of loosely interconnected stories with crossover characters.

Altogether, I really enjoyed this and can’t wait to add a physical copy to my Atwater collection! Pick this one up for properly horrific faeries, an undead cat, characters cheating at cards with magic, a house that’s bigger at night, a spoiled rotten child who’s still worth saving, and a dash of very sweet, very slow-burn romance.

This reminded me a lot of the Stariel series, except much more gothic and mysterious. A lovely, darker fantasy, without being too much.