I found this to be lacking the magic that comprises "generational magic". It was more based around family lore, which is fine, but not what I was expecting. It's very atmospheric and rich in detail, but not something I would read again. It puts me in mind of Heather Webb's Starlight Cafe.

Thanks to Book Club Girl, NetGalley, Avon Books, and Harper Voyage rUS for this copy of "The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells."

I was so excited to read about the Morgan women of Woodsmoke who use mountain magic to help the townspeople, although they're still viewed as outsiders.

We meet Carrie who's returning to Woodsmoke after 10 years (we later learn why she left) to claim an inheritance from her grandmother Ivy - a cottage that she's required to renovate to fulfill the terms of the will.

But when she meets Matthieu who conveniently offers to help her with the construction, she remembers an old tale about one of her ancestors and a mountain man who disappears.

As you can probably tell, I enjoyed this story. I was hoping for a little more eerie atmosphere, but overall it was sweet and memorable.

This book gives the perfect cozy witchy vibes in the very atmospheric small-town setting of Woodsmoke with the backdrop of the mountains that seem to be the source of Carrie's family magic.

I loved Carrie's relationships with her great-aunt and uncle and how the slow-burn romance worked perfectly within the story. The writing is atmospheric and sucks you in and you sucked into Carrie's everyday life of trying to fix up her grandma's cabin and deciding whether or not she is staying in Woodsmoke for good. And the relationships with the people she left behind, which she's unsure if she wants to fix. I did like the family lore surrounding the magic, although some of the back and forth of the timelines left me sometimes confused about what led up to the separation of the family.

Not going to lie I was quite excited for this one! The cover is fantastic and the description gives all sorts of cozy, witchy vibes, perfect for Spooky Season reading but the actual story and the three main characters did not do much for me.

The family curse was a bit confusing/convoluted, there was a betrayal, love potion and broken hearts we learn about through flashbacks to the past as Carrie returns home to Woodsmoke to face her ex and his wife (her former best friend).

Recommended for Practical magic fans (although for me this story was nowhere near as good as that one). Just an okay read for me if I'm totally honest and one I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells by Rachel Greenlaw ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1/2

Avon Books
Pub Date: 10-22-24

Thank you @netgalley, @avonbooks, and @rachelgreenlaw_ for this eARC.

"I’ve searched everywhere for a place to feel rooted, to belong. Woodsmoke is that place. And these mountains will not break me."

Return to the small town of Woodsmoke with Carrie ten years after abruptly leaving and cutting ties with her friends and family.

Carrie is a 'Morgan Woman' - described as being 'a curse and a gift' - so has always felt like an outsider in Woodsmoke. She returns following her grandmother Ivy's death to renovate and sell the cottage left to her - and possibly repair relationships with those she left behind.

Carrie meets an enigmatic stranger. Her great-aunt, Cora, warns her of the mountain tale of a stranger who appears at the first frost and disappears when the frost melts - leaving a broken heart behind.

This story includes all the things I love in a good book: multigenerational women's stories, friendship, love, and a little magic/mystery. This story was comforting to return to as the story progressed with the changing seasons. I took a deep breath when the story turned to Spring wary that the frost would soon melt!

#thewoodsmokewomensbookofspells #rachelgreenlaw #avonbooks #netgalley

3.5⭐️ Cozy read for the fall season. Love the small town with a magical history, the familial magic passed down to granddaughters and the path that they take with it. The story of facing your past decisions and deciding where to guide your future. Mending relationships and new beginnings.

Carrie returns home with her grandmothers passing after 10 years away. She falls for a mysterious stranger who appears w the frost and then vanishes. Is he real? Is he a manifestation of one of the old family stories?

I would love to read a full book of Cora or Carrie or Jess but the three all together left me wanting more from each of them.

I like the book over all, the magical element feels unique and I wish I could visit this magical town, the mountains are mysterious and trying to figure out the twists along the way was a great way to spend the gloomy rainy days while reading.

Thank you so much for this ARC from NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager

A woman comes home to her hometown of Woodsmoke to reclaim a home she ran away from, face old friends, old magic, and a potential new love. Carrie Morgan ran away from her small town of Woodsmoke ten years ago... ran away on the day of her wedding and never looked back. Carrie has been haunted by her decisions all those years ago and when her grandmother dies and leaves behind her dilapidated cottage, Carrie comes home to renovate it. Carrie was only meant to stay for the one winter but then she meets Matthieu, a handsome newcomer who offers to help fix her cottage saying he knew her grandmother. Now that she's back Carrie has to face her ex fiancee.. who also happened to have married her ex best friend who used a love spell to get him... and the fact that her great aunt Cora has been warning Carrie that she is to stay away from her handsome new stranger. Carrie can't tell if Matthieu is real or if he came from the forest... but magic is happening and Carrie has to finally find her place in Woodsmoke. Can Carrie finally find her home in Woodsmoke and can she find her love at last? This was a beautiful story that had a touch of magic and romance, but it was mostly about finding your place and claiming your own home. It's a sweet read and one I'd recommend for anyone who is looking for a touching magical read with a cozy vibe and some small town magic!

Release Date: October 22, 2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
5 stars from me!
This was the perfect spooky season read! It had everything I want in a book: romance, mystery, witches, strong female characters, generational strife, nature. This book had everything! I would highly recommend this to any witchy book lover!

3.5 stars rounded down. The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells is part magical realism, part mystery, with cottage core/ folklore vibes, a forbidden romance, and definitely for fans of Adrienne Young’s June Farrow. I think one of my favorite things about this book is that it's super atmospheric, and perfect for Fall. It’s cosy and woodsy but also eerie and folky (is that a word?) at the same time. The quality of the writing and prose itself was very poetic, and this is one of those books that when you read it, you know each word was meticulously chosen. The reason this one only gets 3-3.5 stars from me is that I found it to be a bit slow at times (which, admittedly, kind of felt purposeful). This is something that happens a lot for me when books have time jumps or multi-POVs (I often jive with one POV or time period more than others, and then struggle with others. But given that this was a multi-generational story about a family of witches... I expected there to bit a bit more magic. All in all, there was a lot that I really appreciated about this one, and I can see myself wanting to read more from Greenlaw in the future-- like I said, the quality of the writing itself was great, even if I wanted a bit more magic.

Thanks so much to Avon, Greenlaw, and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

After a ten year absence, Carrie has returned to Woodsmoke following the death of her grandmother, so that she can fulfill the requirements of her will. She had left suddenly after learning that her fiancé did not have the same plans as her to travel. He had arranged for them to settle down without telling her. So she ran and never did find somewhere that she felt she belonged. In Woodsmoke, her family is known for providing remedies and there are rumors of spells. Because of this, Carrie never felt like she fit in here either. As she works on renovating the cabin and meets a guy who helps her, things slowly start to change. I give this 3.5 stars because while it is well written, I was not drawn to sit and read it.

Rachel Greenlaw, why would you hurt me like this???

Immediately, I was hooked from the synopsis alone. The tension and mystery started Carrie's return to the Woodsmoke Mountains and her Aunt Cora's reservations about her homecoming. The perspectives of all three women were wholly unreliable, leading me to think that I wasn't very attached to any of the characters, but boy was I wrong! I cried multiple times while reading, and I wish I couls have stayed in Woodsmoke longer!

This was such a lovely, witchy novel‐ the perfect addition to my October reading list! Thank you to Rachel Greenlaw and William Morrow/Avon Books for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

3.5⭐️ this was a fun cozy realism magical seeet story. The low magic, but high emotions, give off vibes that are cozy and healing.

Tales of the Morgan women, and their mystical affinity with the mountains, have always run rampant through the town of Woodsmoke. After leaving ten years prior, Carrie Morgan is summoned back to Woodsmoke after her grandmother dies to fix up her old cottage. With Carrie’s return, old wounds will reopen, new love will spark, and the looming mountains will continue to claim their due.

The Woodsmoke Women’s Book of Spells is atmospheric and lyrical, akin to old folktales. At its core, it’s a story of sisterhood and friendship, the bonds of which waver between taut and limp. You’ll often find yourself questioning what is real and what can only be described as magical intervention. The mountains themselves act as a sentient presence as they careen each character down their intended paths.

While told in three separate POVs, this novel belongs to Carrie. Accentuated by the fact that her chapters are the only ones written in first person, Carrie’s story is one of uneven footing. She is unmoored, desperate to find her place and lay down roots.
She struggles to maintain familial, platonic, and romantic bonds and her journey of self discovery was both haunting and revitalizing.

Carrie’s great aunt Cora and her childhood friend Jess make up the other two POVs. I would have liked to see a little bit more from both of them especially after discovering their culpability in what drove Carrie from Woodsmoke. I also wanted to see more of Carrie and Jess’ reconciliation, as their bond held similar parallels to Cora and Ivy’s.

Perfect for fans of Practical Magic and Adrienne Young’s adult novels, The Woodsmoke Women’s Book of Spells is an enchanting tale that leaves a last impression.

What You’ll Find:
Practical Magic vibes
Atmospheric prose
Mysterious mountains
Small town gossip
Magic requires balance
Complex family & friend dynamics

Thank you Avon Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book didn’t sadly enchant me like I was hoping. Carrie was an okay character, but she didn’t shine how I wanted her to. The real star of the book was truly her great aunt Cora. Who with how the story plays out is a very important character. Between Cora, Carrie, and the legends that seem to follow their family historically it makes sense that Cora was so concerned about Matthieu. I just feel like I was expecting more magic, or higher-grade magic. This family is very much what I would call green witch. More using the earth around them to help stop bad things from happening. Overall, there was just something I didn’t connect with like I wanted to. That being said. This book is not bad, it is just not the right book for me.
Thank you so much to Avon and Harper Voyager and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells by Rachel Greenlaw is a gripping, fast-paced adventure that masterfully blends rich world-building with complex characters. Greenlaw's vivid storytelling and amazing plot twists keep readers on the edge of their seats, making it a must-read for fantasy lovers
The writing is gorgeous and the world’s Greenlaw created is captivating.
The characters were very well rounded and the plot moved throughout the story well.
A truly enjoyable story that I very much enjoyed.

Thank You NetGalley and Avon for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This was a cozy, witchy read. The premise sounded really intriguing, but the execution fell slightly flat for me. I would have enjoyed more magic. The story’s flow felt somewhat choppy due to multiple points of view and timelines. However, this was still an atmospheric and interesting book, especially nice for this time of year.

Thanks to Avon for the gifted copy of this book!

A witch my story in the veins of Adrienne Young, WOODSMOKE WOMEN is an atmospheric and lyrical read with small town drama, mysterious woods, and magic. This was definitely on the slower side, and I had a hard time really connecting with cheering for the main characters. I was also hoping that the magic would interweave with a story in a more powerful way. Definitely a good recommendation if you enjoy small town reads or Practical Magic.

A beautiful story of loss, friendship, belief in magic, and the pull of home. The characters all struggle with past mistakes and the serious course they took for each one. Their belief in the power of mountain magic and lore deeply shadowed the truth of mistakes, failure, regret. A simply wonderful novel.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Praised for its atmospheric writing similar to Adrienne Young, 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗼𝗼𝗱𝘀𝗺𝗼𝗸𝗲 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻’𝘀 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗹𝘀 combines magical realism with a small mountain town’s folktale about a mysterious stranger who appears with the first frost and disappears after the last. Her grandma’s death forces Carrie to return home and finally come to terms with her past. What she also finds is Matthieu.

Each chapter started off with a small insert from her family’s Book of Spells, which I loved and hoped that Carrie would learn from. The problem was the amount of girl drama, especially between the sisters, that made up the book. Many eyeroll moments from me when they need to communicate better.

However, never before have I questioned the existence of a character as much as I did with Mattieu. Part of me wanted him to be the mountain’s magic, and part of me wanted him to be real. Between that and buddy read with Emily, it kept me turning pages.

Details: Rachel Greenlaw • 320 pages • October 22, 2024 • Gifted: @avonbooks @netgalley

I enjoyed the cozy atmosphere of this one! The romance plays more of a secondary role in the book, with the main focus exploring the friendship and familial bonds between women through the relationships between Carrie and her great aunt, Cora, and ex-best friend, Jess. I enjoyed how it was slowly revealed why Carrie left Woodsmoke. I like how the book kept you guessing on if Matthieu was real or a figment of the mountain. The magical realism was great for reading in October!