The Honey Witch is a cozy, witchy romance that had me giggling and kicking my feet.
This was a lovely debut book for Sydney J Shields!
I really enjoyed the magic system and the cottage core, whimsical vibes of this book and thoroughly enjoyed reading this.

Thank you to Netgalley, Hachette and Sydney Shields for providing me with a free copy of this book to review. The following review is my own, freely given.

This book reminded me of Meg's Tea Room on TikTok. Whimsical, cosy, lovely and like a nice warm cup of tea on a chilly winters night. I am generally not a huge cosy fantasy fan but when I read the blurb for The Honey Witch, something pulled me to this.

It does what it says on the tin, the prose is lovely, the story is heart warming, there is a little bit of an edge. I have to be honest though, this didn't set my world on fire. I feel like the author was trying so hard to sit inside that "Cosy" niche that she didn't push the envelope. Cosy shouldn't mean beige and inoffensive. I this she had more to say and could have really delved a bit deeper but towards the end it just felt a bit preachy.

Also 2 small gripes - Ashes are the opposite of Honey? Really? Nope. And the whole premise of the curse - nonsensical. I wonder if the author and editor fought over this.

If you like Sapphic CottageCore - This will be fine.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

DNF @ 15%

Unfortunately, this wasn't for me. I think it was the writing style and the characters. Not necessarily bad, but not for me. It was a bit strong on the info-dumping, and the "I'm not like other girls".

⭐️ 3.5
🌶 1.5

This sweet standalone tale will reintroduce you to the extraordinary magic of the little things in life - the humble bee, a delicate flower, the wind in your hair, warm sunlight on your face and the joy of friendship.

If you love the stubborn dynamic between Elizabeth and Mr Darcy from Pride & Prejudice, the whimsical kitchen magic of Practical Magic with dashes of the Regency era opulence of Bridgerton, then this sapphic cottagecore love story might be for you.

The strongest element of this book is the world building. The delicate Spring cottagecore aesthetics were vividly portrayed. Descriptions of nature and gardens were particularly beautiful, especially in regards to the magic system where enchanted honey is used with fruits, herbs, flowers, spices and moonwater to create potions, poultices and elixirs to render aid.

Another aspect I loved was the stubborn (sometimes thoughtless) banter between the FMCs. Their interactions with each other were often filled with great tension, which made for a delightful sapphic slow burn with healthy doses of hurt/comfort. The LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC rep were excellent, too.

However, for me, the heavy themes of familial loss and grief came at a difficult time in my real life, so I had to set this book aside for a while. The complex reality and loneliness of losing a loved one is portrayed honestly, hence why it hit close to home.

Beyond this, my main issue was the pacing. The beginning 30% started very slowly, seemingly focused on slice-of-life sequences, but without the details; it felt repetitive. Then, the final 30% felt rushed, again lacking important detail at times, making it difficult to fully connect emotionally with the plot.

Overall, this is definitely a tale where the journey was more fun than the rather obvious destination. For me, many of the plot points and mysteries were correctly guessed early on, so there were no great surprises or twists at the end. Still, it was fun getting there (midnight swims, drunken Truth or Dare, and a masquerade garden party, to name a few 😉).

Firstly you need to know this about me. I love Practical Magic. I love Bees. I love Wildflowers and Cute cottages. I love magic and love stories. I love someone who follows a path true to that be different to others but so close to their heart.
This book has all of that and more.
This is a beautiful, fluffy, romantic and beautifully magical tale about Marigold and her journey to becoming a Honey Witch. It was so great and so magical.

Marigold Claude couldn’t be more uninterested when it comes to following social norms and finding a suitor to settling down with. It just so happens that she may not need to. Upon her grandmother's latest visit, she learns that the first-born women of their family hail from a long line of Honey Witches. As glorious as it sounds, it also comes with a curse; no one can fall in love with a Honey Witch. As Marigold moves to the Isle of Innisfree to practice her newfound magic and enjoy a quant life of solitude, she meets Lottie; a grumpy sceptic who she grows to care for.

Thank you to Netgalley, Redhook, Hatchette Book Group + Sydney J. Shields for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’m going to start by saying that I’ve recently become obsessed with the Bridgerton series on Netflix, so you can imagine my excitement when I started getting Bridgerton vibes when I began reading. The Honey Witch is a great mix of Bridgerton meets Practical Magic with a wholesome grumpy x sunshine queer romance.

I was intrigued by the naturalist Honey Witches and how their magic system centres around honey, bees and flora which added to the cosy, cottage core atmosphere.

I will admit that I found it difficult to remain engaged at times as the plot and pacing moved very slowly. I also prefer books written in first-person so the third-person perspective was a bit outside my comfort zone. That being said, I enjoyed the gentle characters and charming imagery.

Pub date: 14 May 2024

2.5 stars

The Honey Witch follows a young woman Marigold who is whisked away too Innisfree by her grandmother when she discovers she shares the powers of all women in her family but she also bears their curse - a honey witch can never be fallen love with if they choose this path. Her loveable grandmother, knowing she is not long for the world, does everything she can to train Marigold to take over as the honey witch and protect Innisfree and it’s inhabitants when she is gone.

Marigold is content if not a little lonely with her new life when a childhood friend brings a grumpy skeptic to her doorstep. Lottie refuses to believe in Marigold’s magic due to her own baggage but Marigold accepts this challenge and the challenge of her generational curse.

The first 40%-50% of The Honey Witch is incredible! I was having the best time with Marigold discussing her magic and the new world with her grandmother by her side. It was giving cozy fantasy with stakes but you could tell there wasn’t going to be immediate conflict. Personally I think that’s what this book should’ve been because the romance came too late and to half-heartedly for a fantasy romance. The romance plot was super trope-y and predictable when put next to the fun and creativity the author put into the fantasy of the book. Without spoiling anything, you figure out what’s going on with Lottie very early on but the plot just gets so dragged out for the sake of ticking the slow burn box (in my opinion).

This is a debut and I do want to read future work from this author even if I didn’t love this book because I do think her writing was beautiful and whimsical.

The Honey Witch is a sapphic, cosy book, filled with magic. I really enjoyed this book, and its cottagecore vibes.

The story started off quite interesting, but I did feel like it perhaps took awhile to get into the 'guts' of the story. Once we got into it, I loved it, but initially I did think the pace was a bit off, and the world building was a bit tedious for a book of its size.

This is a beautifully written book, and it made me want to go find a field of flowers to sit in. The romance had a lot of depth and nuances to it, it wasn't a simple romantic storyline and I absolutely loved that.

Overall, a fantastic witchy book with gorgeous characters and a rich storyline. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC :)

The Honey Witch is written in such a whimsical way with cottage-core and practical magic vibes. It gets you thinking about all of the little things in nature that you may overlook. It speaks of connection between the land and humans, of putting others before yourself and having the courage to follow that instinct deep in your soul to find your true self.

It is buzzing with witchy reference, curses that span generations, friendships, forbidden love, grief, loneliness, sacrifice and self discovery. However I struggled a little with the writing style, pace and the scene setting in some key places, but overall found it to be an enjoyable , inclusive and easy read that I would recommend to others.

When twenty-one year old Marigold Claude is whisked away with her grandmother to the family cottage to be trained as the next honey witch, she accepts her fate. When Lottie Burke, a notoriously grumpy skeptic who doesn’t believe in magic, shows up on her doorstep, Marigold can’t resist the challenge to prove to her that magic is real. But very soon, Marigold starts to care for Lottie. When magic awakens and starts to threaten her life, Marigold must fight for her home and her heart.

Sydney is an excellent writer. Her writing style flows beautifully, leaving me very, very content. If it wasn't for that writing style though, I would have put the book down. This is a very slow building novel (to the point that the love interest doesn't even appear until around mid way) with an entire new kind of magic system. My problem with the read was the structural pacing of the plot. It felt like running on a treadmill - moving but never actually moving.

While I am sure there is a big market for a cottage core style read, that market was definitely not me. I will be sure to recommend it to my followers and friends that will love this style of read. Thank you to NetGalley, Hachette Australia and Sydney J. Shields for an advanced copy for review. The Honey Witch is available May 14th, 2024.

DNF @ 40%

Unfortunately this one just didn’t work for me, which I’m super sad about because from the description I thought I’d absolutely love it. I wanted to stick it out but there were just a combination of things that made me decide to put this one down.

What didn’t work for me:

The pacing: I’ve now read almost half of the book and genuinely feel like the plot is only just beginning to show (and even then its only in little hints and foreshadowing moments that are starting to be trickled in). I think you could condense the first 35% of the book into a single chapter and it would make just as much sense. There are a lot of chapters where you just kind of follow Marigold around and the whole point of the chapter seems to be like ‘oh she’s lonely’ or something like that and it didn’t really need as much time spent on it as it had.

The writing style: This really was the kicker for me. I probably would have stuck with the book inspite of the pacing issues if I gelled well with the writing style, but unfortunately it just didn’t work for me. I found the writing very stilted and awkward, and I couldn’t really get into the book easily as a result and found I was really crawling through it. It’s very much written like ’She did this. She did that. She said this. She giggled.’ Marigold is also sometimes a bit mean/judgemental? She is called out on this (I loved the scene where her grandmother told her not to judge other women’s choices) and I assume she would change over the course of the book, however at times, what I’m assuming are Marigold’s thoughts just trickle into the third person narration which is a bit odd- there’s one part where Edmund is introduced and before he even says/ does anything to warrant a poor reaction from Marigold he’s given this negative description.

The dialogue: I’m assuming this is because of a combination of the writing style and trying to have the characters speak more formally to match the regency time period, but the dialogue felt very stilted and unnatural to me, and the characters are all feeling a bit flat as a result.


What did work for me:

The queernormative world: I love this! It’s really refreshing to read a historical fiction and have people speak openly about their same-sex partners. I do wish there was more acceptance for asexuality though in this world- some people may not want to have a partner and that’s ok!

The animal spirits- they seem so sweet, and I really loved the sense of magic they added to the world!

Honey vs. Ash magic- again, really cool worldbuilding! Really unique take on preservation vs. ends and beginnings.

All that being said, just because this one wasn’t for me doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be for you! If you like books that are more vibes less plot and enjoy description of different whimsical potions and magical ingredients, if you like slowburn sapphic romance, or if you like historical fantasy and cottagecore type settings, you might really enjoy this!! I think if you’re picking it up in an actual bookstore my biggest recommendation would just be to have a flip through the first few pages before you buy and make sure you can get into the writing style.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Hachette AUNZ for the ARC!

If you're into cosy, witchy, grumpy sunshine historical romances, this might be right up your alley!

Marigold doesn't feel like she fits in, nor does anyone else. She's resigned herself to living as a spinster (at the ripe old age of 21!) when her estranged grandmother comes to visit and reveals that Marigold is a witch, and it's time for her to learn how to use her power. An Ash Witch has her eye on eternal life, and she needs a Honey Witch to get it - if Marigold doesn't learn to harness her magic quickly, she'll be vulnerable to attack.

Marigold takes to magic like a fish to water, and she's settling nicely into her new life, until she meets Lottie. Lottie is prickly, rude, sceptical and frustratingly beautiful. She doesn't believe in magic, but Marigold is determined to prove her wrong.

I have mixed feelings about this book, but I did finish it, so that's something! The prose is accessible, and there are some lovely turns of phrase throughout, which add to the overall cosy vibes.

Part 1 is definitely the slowest in terms of pacing, and feels a bit like watching someone else complete the tutorial level of a video game. Marigold is learning how to be a witch and while I appreciate that she isn't just so super special and powerful that she doesn't need to be taught, I would have preferred a bit more summary in this section than what we got. The following sections pick up a little, and the strong focus on the romance puts this firmly in the romance side of fantasy romance - which is fine, as long as that's what you're after.

The character voices felt a bit samey for me, and they seemed to vacillate between the more formal language readers associate with historical fiction and language that would be perfectly at home in a contemporary fantasy romance. I can't determine why this story was set in the 1800's, as other than one very minor plot point (which didn't have any impact on the overarching story as far as I could tell), you could transplant the story into the present day and have it be much the same.

I think I enjoyed the romance most of all aspects of this story, however it does have the love interest being mean to our POV character in the beginning. This is at least explained and dealt with, but if like me, you find it hard to get romantically invested with someone mean, that's a hurdle you'll need to jump over. As Lottie thaws, she becomes easier to like, and her and Marigold play off each other nicely.

Overall, this was a perfectly fun romance book, that maybe could have been a touch shorter. If you're a big fan of cosy romances, you'll probably love it, if like me you're on the fence, it's still a nice palette cleanser.

Thank you so much to Net Galley and Hatchette for providing me with a copt of this prior to publishing!

"The Honey Witch" offers a cozy and enchanting witchy romance with a touch of special magic, generational curses, and soulmates, all intertwined in a tale of self-discovery for the young witch Marigold. Feeling like she doesn't belong, lacking interest in love or apparent abilities unlike her family, Marigold's life takes a turn when her grandmother invites her to the family cottage on the quaint Isle of Innisfree to train her as the next Honey Witch. Although, embracing her newfound magic and freedom comes with a condition - no one can fall in love with the Honey Witch.

Reading this book felt like being wrapped in a favorite blanket, sipping coffee, and listening to the rain. The town of Innisfree now holds a special place in my heart, and the captivating magic within the story has become a personal favourite. The blend of honey, bees, and magic had me completely captivated from early chapters. While the ending was somewhat expected, I cherished every moment of the book, especially the gradual love story between Marigold and her true love (which is by far one of the best Grumpy x Sunshine romances I have read in a while). The bond between Marigold and her grandmother is deeply touching and stands out as the highlight of this beautiful tale, resonating with my own special relationship with my grandmother.

I highly recommend this book to fans of tropes like Grumpy x Sunshine, Soulmates, Family Curses, Forbidden Love, and Found Family!

This book has lots of cosy vibes and would be great for a quick spring read for some light fun.

It tells the story of Marigold, a young woman who feels like she doesn’t really fit in with her family in many ways. She finds out from her grandmother that she is the first born daughter and soon has inherited the role of Honey Witch and is brought to a small town to be trained by her grandmother.

It had a sort of regency vibe while also a cosy cottage fantasy story. If the at sounds like something that interested you I’d recommend checking this book out.

The things that I felt held me back from rating this higher were the extremely slow start, and the writing style. It’s written in what comes of as quite an objective way, that does a lot of telling and not showing. As a result I felt much less emotionally invested in the story as I’d have liked. The main romance was sweet but felt a bit rushed due to this tone as well.

I loved the relationship between Marigold and her grandmother. That was done well.

I would recommend this book to fans of this sub genre. Thank you for the review copy.

The honey witch!

Marigold never felt Norma, never felt like she fit, then she joined her grandmother and became a honey witch, in The Honey Witch, we watch Marigold, her family and her friends August and Lottie experience life and learn how to live and love. This book is Dynamic, engaging and Fun, I enjoyed every single second of this book, I laughed, I smiled I asked why! But ultimately this book was so good, I would give it six stars if I could

“The Honey Witch” by Sydney Shields is a spell-binding story that captivates readers with its tenderness. It weaves an enchanting tale of magic, self-discovery and love in all forms, while feeling both incredibly contemporary and completely new.

The story follows Marigold, a newly awakened Honey Witch who must contend with both the joy and sorrow of the responsibility that comes along with it. She revels in her newfound power, sense of purpose, and connection to the island of Innisfree. But Honey Witches inherit a curse, that they can never be loved.

The story’s strongest aspect to me is how charmingly entrenched in the natural world it is. Shield manages to bring life to the page through her descriptions of the verdant island of Innisfree. The incorporation of the apiary and the foraging that facilitates the honey-based magic system lets the reverence for nature bleed through the page, making it infectious.

The sheer amount of YEARNING in this book had me kicking my feet and blushing while reading a select few scenes. The tensions mount slowly, perfectly reminiscent of an Austen novel, until positively MOLTEN, but never veer outside of the scope of the narrative. The LGBTQ+ aspects of the book blended perfectly, and with a rare authenticity.

As a debut novel, it’s a fantastic entry into the cozy fantasy world. It could be slightly heavy-handed at times, like in pressing the point of ‘she felt out of place in Bardshire’, with more telling than showing. Additionally, the scene-blocking in the final few chapters was a bit confusing, leading to being slightly jarred from the emotional weight of the climax of the story.

Overall, however, I was completely enraptured from beginning to end, and I urge you to pick up a copy of the book (once it’s out), get yourself a cup of tea (earl grey & lavender) and a comfy blanket and sink right into the wonderful world of ‘The Honey Witch’.

Thank you Hachette Australia and Netgalley for providing me with an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Gosh this book is beautiful. It’s the perfect mix of fantasy, cottagecore and Regency romance. It’s also a queer-normative world which made my heart sing.

I loved Marigold, our main character. She’s so brilliant and unique and funny and lovely and sweet. I loved the way she owned her strangeness and didn’t shy away from it no matter how much she was mocked.

I ADORED Lottie, our prickly love interest. She was such a spitfire, such an interesting, deep character. I loved getting to know her and peeling back the layers alongside Marigold.

All the side characters and their relationships with Marigold were so wholesome and lovely which…kinda brings me to the one thing I didn’t like about this book.

I absolutely hate the way romantic love is heralded as the one true, real, important form of love and that Marigold will forever be alone and without love because she is cursed to never have someone love her romantically. She is surrounded by SO MUCH love. Her family, Mr Benny, August, even Lottie with or without the romantic factor. These relationships are important and meaningful and were genuinely heartwarming to read about. They are not less-than.

Regardless of this last personal issue, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a mostly cosy fantasy with a slice of adventure and heartache.

Review based on a free eARC provided by the publisher, thanks to Hachette Australia.

Cottagecore - Sapphic - Bridgerton - Romantasy.

This cosy cottagecore sapphic romantasy was a sweet, comforting read that suffered ever so slightly from issues of pacing.

While I found myself intrigued and charmed by the world Shields created, along with her sweet ensemble cast of characters, the middle of the narrative dawdled. And delightful as it was to spend more time in the regency adjacent village of Bardshire, I was left feeling as though this was achieved at the expense of a somewhat rushed conclusion.

The final climactic scenes could have been fleshed out further and greater resolution given to the character's happily ever after with just a few tweaks of editing.

Having said this, I did find myself often enchanted (not sorry for the pun) by this book and look forward to Shields' further works!

Book Review of The Honey Witch by Sydney J Shields 🐝
This review is based on a free advance copy provided for my unbiased thoughts and opinions.
Many thanks to NetGalley, Hatchette Australia & New Zealand and the author 🩷

Twenty-one year old Marigold Claude has always been viewed as a little odd. Not talented like her younger siblings and jilted by the man she thought to marry, she wonders if she’ll ever find true acceptance. When Marigolds estranged maternal Grandmother arrives, she informs the young lady of her familial legacy as a firstborn daughter; the power and responsibility of a Honey Witch. Desperate to finally have answers for her yearning to commune with nature, Marigold travels with Grandmother Althea to her quaint village home of Innisfree where she must learn to take the mantle for herself.

I really enjoyed this cosy and atmospheric read, with its lush descriptions, cottage core vibes and a practical magic-sequel curse. Set in the 1800s, The Honey Witch combines Regency elements and Green Witch folklore to create a whimsical and quietly introspective story. This is not a story for those who like a fast paced plot and it’s an ideal read for right before bed.
The magic system was unique and while I found the tense the author used a bit jarring at times (it was almost written by an objective observer), the sweet themes of found family, magic and love overcoming all were so pleasing. I found it odd that the main antagonist only appeared at 92% through the book and found the build just not there for the last showdown. The cover art of this book is seriously beautiful and I wish I had a whole shelf of them to display.

3.75/5
The Honey Witch was a refreshing, sweet, and cosy fantasy, but still explored deeper elements like love, loss, and grief. The 1800’s regency setting was beautiful, and certainly gave me Bridgerton meets ‘cottagecore vibes’. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of this story, and certainly would be great for those looking for a cosy fantasy.
I did find the pacing was off at times, where some parts dragged on (and some others went by very fast) – but that is definitely something I could deal with, especially for a debut novel. Looking forward to seeing this author grow and their future works!