Mystery, magic, and spooky thrills- this book had me on the edge of my seat! This was definitely a fun read for spooky season but, in the end, I was left wanting more!

This was darker than I was expecting it to be, and the premise was great. However, it just seemed like it was missing something. I was very intrigued by everything happening, but the main character was a little hard to like. There were many plot points that felt disjointed, especially things involving her fiance. With so much going, it seemed like certain things didn't get wrapped up in the end.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Liv Edward is 26 years old. She lives with her fiancé and planning to enroll in law school. Then she receives a message from her estranged high school best friend, Sam Mendez: “I need help and I don’t know who else to turn to.” An internet search reveals that Sam is missing. Liv rushes home to Guilford, Mass., to find her. When Liv arrives home, her mother and sister are more interested in signing her up for a consultation at Beloved, a cultish bridal boutique owned by two of Liv’s former classmates — Eden and Cora. Her mother and sister don’t seem interested in helping her find Sam. Soon, Liv learns that Sam was working at Beloved before she disappeared. Eden invites Liz to join the Sisterhood. She decides to as she hopes it will help her find Sam. Eden and Cora teach her to harness the qualities that have always made her feel different, Liv discovers that a much darker reality may be lurking in herself and her hometown. Will Liz find Sam?

A mystery that is supernatural , mysterious and creates more questions than answers. I was compelled to read this book as I wanted to know what was going to happen next. Liz was a character that I found to be an interesting person as she didn’t give up on finding Sam. I would had like more background on Sam and the Sisterhood. The magical elements were creative. The author wrote a creative book.

Under Her Spell
By K. L. Cerra

I'm not sure what to call this book. It is a mystery, a fantasy, involves dark magic – and even darker emotions. It begins when Liv Edwards, a recently unemployed, engaged woman receives a cryptic note from her best friend from high school, Sam, asking for her help. Since they have been estranged for years, Liv is taken aback, but decides she must go back to try and help her friend.

Alas, by the time she arrives, Sam has disappeared. Thus the mystery. But there is more here than just Sam's disappearance. What has she been doing? Why has she been involved with two girls from high school that she previously loathed and feared? As the story progresses and Liv gets sucked in to Eden and Cora's sphere, it take on a darker and darker feel.

There is a lot here that is weird and unexplained. At first I found the storyline interesting, but I really didn't like any of the characters all that much, and I felt let down by the ending.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reader's copy of this book.

Hm. This has promise I think, and maybe Im the wrong crowd. I will say its not boring, but definitely too urban for me. Maybe if i were in a different state of mind of had different assumptions going into this I would feel differently. So o for me.

Ⓑⓞⓞⓚ Ⓡⓔⓥⓘⓔⓦ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

𝕌𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕣 ℍ𝕖𝕣 𝕊𝕡𝕖𝕝𝕝
𝗞.𝗟. 𝗖𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮
Thriller
368 pages

Sʜᴏᴿᴛ Sʏɴᴏᴘsɪs
Liv is content with her life until she receives a letter from her old best friend requesting her help.

Liv heads to her hometown in search of her friend. This is when strange things begin to happen.

Mʸ Tᴴᴼᵁᴳᴴᵀs
Although the plot is interesting, I struggled to get into this one.

Under Her Spell is a dark and tangled story that alternates between the past and present. The author takes us back in time to learn about events relevant to what is happening now.

There is an eerie vibe as what’s called “The Sisterhood” comes to the forefront of the story, and the New England setting is a fantastic backdrop for this witchy story.

I found the characters and their actions odd, even for women with powers. It felt a bit like the story glazed over the surface, missing details I wanted to know. The ending also kind of left me hanging.

💕Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing this ebook for me to read and review.

Cerra’s Under Her Spell is the perfect book for spooky season. It’s an edge-of-your-seat mystery with themes of revenge, friendship and magical/witch elements. Trigger warning for some DV content.

This is a decent and interesting read. I love books where someone has to return to their hometown to solve a mystery. I also loved learning about the fallout between the girls. It was okay.
Thanks for the ARC. I am always excited to read them.

If you like an eerie, spooky witchy fantasy thriller then this is right up your alley. It didn’t grab me like I had hoped with the dual mysteries but maybe it’ll be a book for someone else who loves it.

A creepy book that horror genre lovers should read around Halloween! This is one of those books that can make the reader want to yell at the naive protagonist for continuing to walk into traps and horrible situations. In this case, Liz is a young woman who receives a mysterious letter from her former high school bestie, Sam who then disappears. There are a lot of things that don’t make sense in this book if you examine them closely such as Liv’s sister’s role which seemed totally unnecessary and out of place. In spite of all the warning signs around the “sisterhood”, Liv just keeps blindly stumbling into danger - it reminded me of what I imagine to be a B-rated horror flick. And parts of the story are downright creepy. The book is heavy on magical realism which I usually enjoy without all the creepiness. Otherwise, I am rounding my rating up for the constant action and entertainment value.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

What I expected to be a witchy, cozy mystery was so much more. As the story unfolded, the mystery became much more sinister through the lens of feminism. This story revealed a unique perspective on motherhood and societal expectations. It had just the right amount of female rage I didn’t know I needed. I can’t wait to recommend this!

I apologize for being late with this review. I actually finished this months ago and somehow missed reviewing it here. 😬

That being said, it was the perfect eerie atmosphere. The dual mysteries with the past timeline and current situation were enthralling and ended in a satisfying manner.

It’s never easy moving to a new town when you’re young, but moving right before the start of her senior year was not what Liv had planned for. All alone in a new town and a new school was beyond intimidating for Liv, but on the first day of school, Liv, met a savior in Sam. Sam and Liv became best friends quickly and did everything together. Liv also met Eden on that first day and was attracted to the Sisterhood she shared with two others. Liv steered her away from them saying that they were bad news. When Liv betrayed Sam in the most horrifying way, their friendship was severed. Nine years later, Liv receives a note from Sam saying she needs help and doesn’t know who to trust. Liv, being at a crossroads, quickly returned home to help out her old friend only to find out Sam has gone missing. Liv finds herself leaning on Eden to find out information about Sam, but has she dug herself too deep? Is there any chance of surviving the Sisterhood? This book has a creepy vibe. Not a genre I would usually gravitate to, it did keep my interest from start to finish, even though I can’t say I really liked the story. The ending was on the unsatisfactory side, leaving me wishing for more, but I’m not really sure that it wasn’t the perfect ending either. Thank you to Bantam and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

I received a DIGITAL Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not 100% sure what to make of this book but I did enjoy it. I liked the dark witchy aspects of it but I wish that it didn't take as long to get there. I also liked the dual timelines so you could see the friendship between Liv and Sam falling apart.

The main thing I did not like though was the ending.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was an eerie atmospheric mystery with fantasy elements. I was intrigues throughout but ultimately did not find the conclusion to be satisfying.

It was interesting but I wanted more. I felt like there were loose ends but not cliffhangers.

# Under Her Spell
# 10/30/2024 ~ 10/30/2024
# 3.0 / 5.0

This was a lot darker than it seemed it would be but that isn't necessarily a problem. However, I didn't really like the characters, or the ending. The dual timeline was well done though.

“Under Her Spell” by K. L. Cerra follows Liv and her search to find what happened to her high-school friend, Sam, who has gone missing. Her search brings her back to her hometown where most things have stayed the same, while others have changed greatly. Liv gets embroiled with The Sisterhood, a group of girls from school who were always closed off and close knit in the things they did. Liv realizes that to find out what happened to Sam may mean getting close to those Sam was around the most and hope she doesn’t get pulled under their spell along the way.

I thought the overall story was intriguing and had a lot of potential. The pacing was a bit slower than what I would have liked. I felt that majority of the story was spent setting up instead of finding out what happened to Sam. I did enjoy the flashbacks to Sam and Liv and how it did give life to Sam’s character and why it is so important to Liv to find out what happened.

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

Liz returns home to see her best friend that she hasn't talked to in over 10 years after receiving a concerning note from her. She also starts to plan a wedding?

This is a spooky, witchy novel with a big message about being a woman in 2024. Not really my normal cup of tea, but I did fly through it. Overall, I get what the author was trying to say. There's really no winning as a woman these days. Perhaps, we never were winning and we're all just hyper aware of it now.

Unfortunately, that message is a little blurred by a slew of unlikable characters and some contrived plotting. Why would Liv start planning her wedding in the town she never visits? What was the point of the mystery from the past, and how does it have anything to do with what is going on in the present?

In the end, this story did get me thinking, which I always appreciate. I think it could be a really fun Halloween read for any woman about to embark on the journey of marriage and potentially having kids. I am right in that demographic and was terrified!

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for my ARC in exachange for this honest review.

Love a good spooky town mystery! Although the beats were easy to predict this book thrives in the atmosphere it creates. I wish we saw a little more of Liv wisening up as the book progressed but the book itself sits perfectly at the intersection of being a dumb kid and an adult all too aware of the worlds horrors