The Spellshop is snuggling up in your favorite chair with a cozy blanket, a mug of hot chocolate, and a beloved pet sleeping on your lap. Every fan of cozy fantasy should give it a read.

Kiera, a blue-skinned blue-haired librarian, and Caz, a magical sentient spider plant, flee political unrest in the capital. They've rescued several crates of books but most contain forbidden knowledge of magic so they need to lie low. They head to Kiera's home island, where her parents still owned a home.

There are elements of a Hallmark movie - gal from the big city returns to her home town and learns how to live again. There's even a tall neighbor guy who helps with handyman stuff. There's also a bit of Tea Dragon Society mixed in. The island is populated by many fantasy creatures: centaurs, goat-horned people, mer-creatures, and I'm not sure what to call some of them. The island is doing poorly due magical environmental damage and storms.

The spells of Kiera's definitely-not-magic shop are made from plants and other natural reagents, along with magic words. Not everything is native to the island, so they need to improvise, and Kiera has no training in magic. There are some hiccups as she figures things out.

The pacing is very slow and everything is richly described with all five senses. You can smell the salt water, taste the cinnamon buns, hear the birds, and feel the worn quilts left in the cottage by Kiera's parents. It's not pure vibes; there are conflicts and worries to overcomb. Even at its most stressful moments, The Spellshop left me more relaxed and optimistic than when I started reading.

This book was so cute and full of adventure and wonder. I love the atmosphere the author paints here and it is so quaint. The characters were quirky and detailed.

I absolutely adored this book. Watching the main character grow and develop sweet relationships with the people around her was incredibly heartwarming. The worldbuilding was well thought out; not only was the magic system clearly explained, but the variety of species that inhabited this world helped make this standard romance plot feel new and refreshing. I'd definitely recommend this title for anyone seeking a fun cozy fantasy.

The Spellshop follows a librarian as she flees from her burning library and ends up back home to the place her family moved from when she was a child. It’s feels a bit Hallmark in that, for the huge stakes Kiela faced, none of them felt that big. Extra stakes were inserted and promptly diffused, and all the characters were very forgiving.

Overall, the Spellshop is a cheerful light read.

The Spellshop had such a cute premise but ultimately this book missed the mark for me. I think I’m finding that cozy fantasy is just a little too slow for my liking and the stakes were so low that nothing kept me hooked. I liked the world building and the idea of an introverted and sheltered librarian using the knowledge from her books to help her community. For romance readers, this is very light on the romance and the main character repeatedly doesn’t understand why she is attractive, so that may be a turnoff for you. I don’t think it’s a bad book by any means, just not for me! Readers who enjoy a comforting, sweet and slower paced stories will love this.

Books! Spells! Found family! Romance! JAM!

This book is everything I love about the cozy fantasy genre but with one of my favorite authors at the helm. I was so excited to get an arc of this to review as I've love Sarah Beth Dursts previous work, and I was not disappointed at all! This author has done several different types of fantasy that I've read from their Queens of Renthia series to their standalones that I loved and still think about Race the Sands and Vessel. I was confident she would rise to the challenge of cozy fantasy which I find a delightful but suddenly saturated genre.

The characters are brave and gentle and nuanced in a way I sometimes wish for more in this genre. This was a bit longer and more fleshed out than others in the genre I've enjoyed also. It was also very focused on the MC's growth and journey with friendships being just as important as relationships. There is also an incredible message about censorship and the accessibility of knowledge that I think hit home for me specifically as a librarian. I am hoping others will enjoy this as well, and perhaps think about these topics more deeply thanks to Durst. For these reasons, I worry some romance readers might find themselves missing a specific something they were looking for, but please give this book a chance to delight you and enjoy the journey!

This was so sweet and fun I found myself craving jam to match both the plot itself and the delightful vibe of the book itself!
Recommended for anyone looking for a book in a beautiful island setting with a focus on community and personal discovery.

The Spellshop was one of my best reads in 2023. It was everything I love in a book. It had libraries, magic plants, a diverse cast of magical beings, found family and romance. It is one of the coziest fantasies I've ever read and I rank it as high as I rank Legends and Lattes! I could not recommend this one enough!

Thanks to NetGalley and TOR publishing for this digital ARC.

This gorgeous book delivered what it set out to…a warm hug of a book that forced you to believe in all things unbelievable.

What I enjoyed most were the reference to starting fresh, libraries, gardening and setting up shop. All things I feel great affinity towards.

It did feel a little like the author had a checklist of all things cottage-core lifestyle to cover.
Potions - ✔️
Quilted aprons - ✔️
Boundaries - ✔️
Magical cats - ✔️
Plant babies - ✔️
Canning - ✔️
Baking - ✔️

But overall, this found-family fantasy was soothing and engaging. Great way to start off my reading year.

Oh to live in this book.

This is a read for the vibes first, everything else second readers. It's a nice vacation from heavier hitting novels.

The Spellshop gives the vibes of the video game Sun Haven in the most complimentary way. It's so wholesome. The natural setting, the creatures, my new bestest lad Caz, its got it all.

The message about breaking down barriers to access will hit home with anyone in the library field and active library patrons.

The descriptions get a tad repetitive of times (I get it, the water is pretty!) but that's a crux of the cozy genre as a whole and not a point against only this author.


Now if you'll excuse me, this book made me need some jam on toast for the soul.

The best word I can think to describe The Spellshop is endearing. The author wrote in her acknowledgements that this book started with hot chocolate, and I can see that perfectly. Just enough magic & whimsy too. Also a special mention of Caz is necessary. What a fun character!

I received an ARC of this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As a fellow author (and fan!) of cozy fantasy, I was *so* excited to get my hands on this book--and am delighted to say that it was everything I'd hoped it would be and more.

Set on a lush island, The Spellshop was a gentle, warming tale about finding a home in others. The book sparkles with whimsy and magical details -- herds of merhorses, bear-like forest spirits, sentient houseplants! -- and, of course, all the raspberry jam you could possibly want. But it manages to be sweet without turning saccharine, and is grounded by the protagonist's (a socially awkward librarian! my heart) complicated feelings about returning to a past she thought she'd left behind. Along the way, there's a charming romance with the kind, helpful former-boy-next-door, plenty of baked goods, and a cozy cottage on a hill.

Stardew Valley in book form -- a cozy, comforting daydream of a novel.

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst is a delight. When revolutionaries force the librarian Kiela to flee the burning library she works for with her assistant Caz, a sentient spider plant, she returns to the small island she grew up on. She left with what may be the last remaining rare spell books from the capital's most prestigious library. Now, the only way Kiela and Caz can protect the books is to keep their existence a secret, even though helpful neighbors keep coming around to help them. Will they be able to protect their secret as the temptation to use the information inside the books to help everyone they meet grows? Can the surly Kiela resist the ever-helpful, sunshiny Larran forever? If you are looking for a warm hug of a cozy fantasy book look no further.

Now, I was inclined to like this book after enjoying many books in the cozy fantasy canon and many of Sarah Beth Durst’s backlist. Nevertheless, this book is a delight. The Spellshop explores what it means to come home and how people can redefine what home means to them at any stage of their lives. Kiela begins the book as an isolated character whose primary interactions are either with Caz or a library patron. She ends the book as a member of the community who cares about others and is cared for. Everything from the character dynamics to the magic system, to the political unrest just makes sense. As an aside if you are looking for a fantasy book that references the negative environmental effects of wealthy corporations and groups misusing natural resources to the detriment of the rest of society, you have found it.

Simply put, The Spellshop is a likable book. I like the main character and her slow-burn romantic relationship with her neighbor who just so happens to be her long-lost childhood friend. I like her friendship with her sentient plants. I like the townspeople and the bakery and the mermaids. The book just brought a smile to my face the whole time and I cannot recommend it more.

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst is set to release July 9, 2024, from Bramble with sprayed edges to complement its gorgeous cover, so I would recommend preordering a copy as soon as possible. I know I will. Thank you to Bramble for an eARC for an honest review.

The writing was overly narrative for me personally, and I stopped after chapter 1 (3%). That said, the target should be really happy, as it feels like solid pacing and solid vibes. I’d imagine and easy three stars with four to five for the right readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for the ARC.

I just finished this book and it is one of my new favorites. I have already preordered a copy for myself. As a librarian, this book has become very special to me and speaks to many of my beliefs about the mission of libraries. I will be recommending this book quite a bit and can't wait to hold a physical copy in my hands! I will be rereading it as soon as it is released!

A lovely, sweet cozy fantasy with a similar vibe as Travis Baldree's _Legends and Lattes_ and Sarah Addision Allen. A little romance, a little magic, a little conflict (but not epic "end of the world" type conflict), and a talking spider plant. What more could you want from a book?

The cottagecore fantasy romance we’ve all been hoping for definitely lives up to the hype! I loved all the characters and was rooting for all of them the whole time. I would live in this fantasy world if I could. It was definitely lacking something I couldn’t quite put my finger on but overall it was a solid 4/4.5 stars. Can’t wait to read more from this author

I absolutely loved this story as an atmospheric fantasy with lots of cozy vibes. I found the themes of community, moral rights versus legal right, and freedom of knowledge had added and enhanced the ongoing plot threads that were taking place in the story. I really enjoyed the characters in the story, especially the side characters and their development which I didn't expect for them to get as much development as they did. The romance aspect of the plot was very simple and sweet with the boy next door vibes and I honestly preferred that since with all the plot (even though low stakes) the story was, there was a lot to take in. Even the worldbuilding was given enough space to fully let set in as we redefined the what a librarian does to fit the world that was created and its themes as well as the political struggles that slowly bubbled to the surface the closer you got to the end of the novel.

I overall really enjoyed the novel and think this would be perfect for anyone that need something to read on a quiet rainy day that wanted a fantasy read that wasn't too hard to follow but also had a bit of a sweet romance.

I really enjoyed this book! It is a great magical fantasy story complete with a girl who loves books, talking plants, mermaids, merhorses, flying cats and all sorts of magical creatures. There is romance, imperial investigations and comic relief that make this a heartwarming tale of what it means to go home again and how we can all choose our own family no matter where we are in life. There is a touch of romance, lots of great character developments, forging friendships and magic.
I don't generally read a lot of fantasy but I am soooo glad I read this book & will definitely be preordering the beautiful lavender sprayed edges hardback. Honestly, after reading this book I am questioning my career choice. I should've been a librarian. LOL!

It was the promise of a sentient spider plant and a beautiful cover that initially drew me to this book. I love concept of a cozy fantasy but often find myself having a difficult time being absorbed in the plot even though the world may be fun - and I am so excited that that was not the case with The Spellshop. The stakes of the plot itself remained high without all of the stress and tension. Overall The Spellshop is a cute, fun and easy read that I think a lot of readers will find refreshing!

Thank you for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book for an honest review. I think individuals who love fantasy books (especially COZY fantasy books) will devour this book. However, this is not for the fantasy romance readers. I would have loved more romance, but that was on me because I don’t think I understood that this wasn’t marketed as a romance read to begin with! :)