The Witchstone is, for the most part, a fun and enjoyable adventure in which two siblings team up with a demon to break a centuries-old family curse. The Drakefords, descendants of a judge who sentenced a witch to burn, are cursed to slowly turn into monsters once they near adulthood. Maggie has watched her father slowly devolve over the last few years from her dad into a horrifying monster in excruciating pain, and it’s starting to happen to her. Meanwhile, Laszlo is the demon in charge of the Drakeford curse as its Curse Keeper, and he’s been given one week to ramp up the Drakefords’ misery or else he will be destroyed. He crafts a foolproof plan: trick Maggie into thinking there is a way to break the curse, then pull the rug out from under the whole family. The ensuing journey to collect special and rare items needed to break the curse takes Maggie and her younger brother Lump on a whirlwind tour of Europe, chased by demons the whole way.
On the whole, this book was pretty enjoyable. I really enjoyed Maggie and Laszlo’s dynamic and struggle for power, and Lump was a hilarious genius child who added a lot to the story. However, one aspect bothered me a lot: a stipulation of the Drakeford curse is that members of the family must always have their own children in order for the curse to continue. Plot wise, I understand why this was done and makes sense; but its execution was pretty gross. Essentially the curse forces Drakefords to try and sleep with pretty much anyone nearby, and also compels those people to try, including via r*pe, to impregnate them. I think some more thought could have gone into this, because as it is, those sections are absolutely gross to read.

"An unforgettable, high-stakes, laugh-out-loud funny novel, The Witchstone blends the merciless humor of The Good Place with the spellbinding fantasy of Neil Gaiman's American Gods.

Meet Laszlo, eight-hundred-year-old demon and Hell's least productive Curse Keeper. From his office beneath Midtown, he oversees the Drakeford Curse, which involves a pathetic family upstate and a mysterious black monolith. It's a sexy enough assignment - colonial origins, mutating victims, et cetera - but Laszlo has no interest in maximizing the curse's potential; he'd rather sunbathe in Ibiza, quaff martinis, and hustle the hustlers on Manhattan's subway. Unfortunately, his division has new management, and Laszlo's ratings are so abysmal that he's given six days to shape up or he'll be melted down and returned to the Primordial Ooze.

Meet Maggie Drakeford, nineteen-year-old Curse Bearer. All she's ever known is the dreary corner of the Catskills where the Drakeford Curse has devoured her father's humanity and is rapidly laying claim to her own. The future looks hopeless, until Laszlo appears at the Drakeford farmhouse one October night and informs them that they have six days - and six days only - to break the spell before it becomes permanent. Can Maggie trust the glib and handsome Laszlo? Of course not. But she also can't pass up an opportunity to save her family, even if it means having a demon as a guide...

Thus begins a breakneck international adventure that takes our unlikely duo from a hot dog stand in Central Park to the mountains of Liechtenstein. As the clock ticks down, tough-as-nails Maggie and conniving Laszlo will uncover a secret so profound that what began as a farcical quest to break a curse will eventually threaten the very Lords of Hell."

This has that Evil vibe. And Evil is one of my favorite shows ever.

So. Good. I was drawn in immediately and within the first chapter I was obsessed with Laszlo. The comments comparing this to something by Neil Gaiman are, in my opinion, perfectly justified. One of my recent faves.

Loved this title so much and can’t wait to recommend it to people. Funny and engaging with well developed characters and story. Absolute gem. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy.

An unforgettable, high-stakes, laugh-out-loud funny novel, The Witchstone blends the merciless humor of The Good Place with the spellbinding fantasy of Neil Gaiman’s American Gods.

I loved this so much. I didn't know what to expect when I started it, but I smashed through it so fast because it was just so good.

I thought this sounded interesting but I had such a hard time getting into this story. I wasn't vibing with the characters and the story wasn't really going anywhere for me. I dnfed it at 10%

★ ★ ★ ★ • 4

The book was pretty entertaining, with the same type of sardonic humor and portrayal of demons as seen in other works like Good Omens. So if you enjoyed that? This book is a probably a safe bet.

The story itself is for the most part straightforward and not particularly dark despite having a demon as the main character. There wasn’t a lot of character development, but it didn’t affect the plot much that the characters were the same in the end of the story as they were in the beginning.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC for review!

I'm always looking for standalones these days and happened upon this one, an urban fantasy all about trying to break a curse. We have a demon main character who is tasked with increasing his mortal despair ratings in order to save his life pretty much. But in order to achieve this, he has to convince this family that the curse that turns them into monsters can be broken. This was really funny, not taking itself too seriously, quirky which are always fun to throw in between all the dark and epic fantasies so if you’re in the mood for something eccentric in June, this could be it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for an Advanced Reader’s Copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this story!

Neff has created an amazing world. I think this is the first book that has made me laugh out loud – not once, but multiple times. The reader follows Maggie Drakeford, a girl from upstate New York determined to break her family’s centuries old curse, and Laszlo Zebul, a Class Three demon with a lot of daddy issues and a sarcastic wit few other characters possess.

The world, ranging from urban New York to Hell to portals through centuries of European history, is very well fleshed out. The secondary characters, most notably Laszlo’s hysterical colleague Clarence the goblin shark, and Maggie’s younger, adventurous brother Lump, bring power and comedic relief to the story.

The humor was extremely effective from all characters. Laszlo’s morally grey persona really made me question my allegiances at times. Heartwarming and filled with impressive character arcs throughout.

I couldn’t put the book down. The middle did not suffer from ‘middle of the book syndrome’, and I was fully engaged in the quest. The ending was as much of a ‘boom!’ as I hoped it to be.

I hope Neff plans to continue writing in this world. Maggie, Laszlo, and co. have infinite possibilities in front of them.

4 stars...first off thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the eARC of this book. I really enjoyed this book. It had all the right criteria for me to like it: magic, curses, demons, a quest, some betrayal, secrets, familial love, friendship, other fantastical creatures. The characters were loveable and the plot was great. I would definitely recommend this when it come out on the 18th.

It's been a while since I've appreciated an urban fantasy but this was great. This is part magic quest and part heist movie, with a Germanic mythology flavour - and a particularly horrible curse. It's snarky and twisty and I just had a good time reading it; sometimes that's better than world-changing high literature and this hit the spot for me. The ending is possibly a little pat, but it's a heist movie! So it's actually perfect! Recommend if you're feeling worn out and want something fun.

Never in my life have I ever felt so attached to a demon. Never in my life have I ever laughed, cried, and felt physically ill over circumstances within the same story. But The Witchstone allowed me to experience all of that and more! This is a tangled menagerie of curses, coming-of-age character growth, monsters, adventure, and deception. The way Henry H. Neff summons the reader into this magical place is worthy of the highest praise. The cast of characters are among some of the best I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know in a long time. The adventures and chaotic moments meld together with the mystery and cleverness of Neff’s storytelling to keep you on your toes for the entire hellish ride! I will absolutely be recommending this as a must read for anyone interested in anything even remotely related to this tale! I can’t wait to see what else crawls out of Neff’s imagination!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book!

I loved every minute of this! The story and characters were immediately engaging, and getting to know Laszlo, Maggie, and Lump was just the most fun. It was a perfect balance of lighthearted and heartbreaking, and the twists and turns were so interesting and well done!

Highly recommend for fans of The Good Place and sassy, selfish demons!

This book is hilarious. Loved it. The characters are full of personality. There is action and snarkiness. Hope and misery. Lazlo and Maggie are great together. This book would be a great movie and needs a sequel. I highly recommend.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the ARC.

Maggie Drakeford's family has been under a curse for centuries and over the years The Drakefords have given up hope that it will ever be broken. They have reached a point that they know that no matter what they do they will eventually turn into monsters, honest to goodness monsters because an angry witch was interrupted while casting a spell. Little does Maggie know that a new Curse Keeper has been assigned to her family's curse, Lazlo, probably the laziest demon in all of hell but he's determined to break the curse, or kill Maggie trying.

Was this exactly what I expected it to be? Yes, yes it was. Do I care? Not even a little bit. It was absolutely hilarious and completely heart-warming. Maggie was absolutely a badass while also trying to just be a 19 year old kid, Lump was the most adorable little brother, and even though Lazlo is an absolute jerk I still love him.

Overall, if you are looking for a fantasy adventure with smart ass characters that'll keep you from crying in public with their well timed jabs this is definitely the book for you!

As always thanks to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for the eArc!

4.25 stars!!

What do you get when you invite Lazlo from What We Do in the Shadows to work at the Bad Place? The Witchstone!!! This comedic fantasy quest was just an absolute delight from page one!

Maggie Drakeford and her family have been cursed for centuries- cursed to turn into monsters and cursed to always have children to pass that curse along to so that it never dies off. Laszlo is supposed to be the demon in charge of the curse, but his laissez-faire attitude has left him pretty hands off- until a new demon boss comes in and gives him 6 days to make some changes or get turned back into goo. This kicks off an epic journey that crosses the ocean, crosses borders, engages with demons of all kinds, as Maggie, Laszlo, and her little brother Lump (George) have to collect the objects needed to break the curse...or are they en route to break themselves?

Everything about this was delightful, and it felt like a nice little refresher of a book to pop into and escape my Monday! The manipulation and the planning all our characters got a chance to do kept me engaged throughout, and all of Laszlo's nonsense had me giggling. I'm guessing based on the epilogue there's a chance for a spin-off series and let me tell you, I am IN.

Thank you so much to Henry H Neff and NetGalley for a chance to read this in exchange for an honest review!

This was so much fun! I've been in the mood for a genuinely funny fantasy for a while now - my last few attempts at reading fantasy have been let-downs, and it was such a treat to read an urban fantasy that absolutely nails it. One review I read describes this book as "George Costanza, the kid from Up, and a highly unimpressed teen girl with a mean right hook go on a road trip" and I think there's really no other way to describe it. The characters are charming, funny, and delightful. The plot is fantastic, but it's a real credit to the author here that the foundation of these characters is so strong that I can easily think of several ways the plot could've been altered to focus on other aspects of the characters' personalities. An absolute gem worthy of the Good Omens comparisons. I loved this book.

I inhaled this book. I laughed, I cried... it was such a good time. Urban fantasy, road trip, curse breaking, time constraints, comical demons, hell is an office.... what's not to love?

Laszlo and Maggie are brilliant characters. Laszlo brings the perfect amount of humor without taking away from the urgency of the plot. The book is well paced and always interesting. I seriously need a 7 book series with these characters and this world (get to work Mr. Neff).

Thank you NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for an advanced copy of this book.

Honestly, I requested this because of the cover and didn't really dive too deep in to the premise, but I must say The Witchstone was absolutely fantastic.

I can’t remember why I requested this book, demons aren’t usually my thing. But this ended up being a lot of fun. I enjoyed the banter between the characters and the treasure hunt style adventure they had to go on to find all the objects to break the curse. The end left the door wide open for a sequel and I’d love to see what happens next.