A librarian, magical creatures, forbidden magic, and an island setting, what's not to love? Oh, and a stunning cover! Unfortunately the telling of the tale fell a little flat for me. There was a little bit of danger, and little bit of suspense, some magic, and a tiny bit of romance. I wanted more depth in each of these areas and more detailed character development. All in all, a light, cozy read, perfect for a lazy summer day.

This is a super cute YA book filled with magic and mythical creatures. The found family that the FMC makes is so adorable and her little jam/magic shop is now something I would love to own. I love the cover and the fact that it will have sprayed edges!

However, I was a little disappointed because it is marketed as a romantasy book but really it’s a YA Fantasy that has a romance element to it. The two characters are super cute but with how much of a slow burn it is, it’s more of a side plot. And while this book is under 400 pages and I listened to it on audio it felt a little long. A lot of book is the FMC being anxious over all her choices.

Overall, this is a super cute read and if you want something simple and feel good I would recommend.

This was EXACTLY what I wanted out of a cozy fantasy romance!! It's precisely the right amount of coziness and small town vibes, but with high enough stakes that there's an engaging plot, and a cute slow-burn romantic subplot. Also the main character has a sentient spider plant named Caz as a companion!

The Spellshop follows Kiela and Caz as they flee the city and political unrest to her childhood home on a small island. Kiela had been a librarian and brought with her crates of forbidden spellbooks to save them. She's not great with people, but she's going to have to learn to be, what with a handsome neighbor dropping by to be helpful. In order to survive, she decides to open a jam shop from her cottage, while secretly offering useful but illegal spells as "remedies" to do things like heal trees and make berry bushes grow. It's incredibly delightful and one of my favorite things I've read this year! the audiobook also hits exactly the right notes. I received a copy of this book for review via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

“The Spellshop” is such a cute and cozy romantasy! I love the cottagecore theme. I had the pleasure of listening to the ARC audiobook.

This is a whimsical and enchanting book. Even if magic is outlawed and terrible consequences would happen if caught. Sarah did a great job with building a descriptive world. The whole time I really wanted a nice cup of tea and toast to go with the raspberry jam. I loved the romance that blossomed. Definitely a very low-stakes story.

I highly recommend this book if you’re looking for a perfect rainy day read with a hot mug full of coffee, tea or hot chocolate.

Thank you Netgalley, Macmillan, and Bramble for this audiobook ARC.

4.5⭐️
Have you ever wanted to read something that feels distinctly like a Disney movie?

This. This is it.

The Spellshop is easily one of the sweetest fantasy romances with cottagecore vibes. I am not usually someone who enjoys cozy fantasy, however, this was such a fun listen that felt like a good mix between fantasy romance and cozy fantasy. The story follows Kiela, an introverted librarian escaping the capitol city in the midst of rebellion with crates of spellbooks. She escapes certain death to the home-island from her childhood with her sentient plant-friend, Caz. (Perfect comic relief!) Though they intended to lie low, the two are kind of helpless at small town living and need to rely on the locals and neighbors.

The cozy small-town feel of nosy neighbors and everyone-who-knows-everyone was so funny. It was a bit repetitive and expected, but not in a negative way. I adored the plethora of magical creatures and how Kiela began making a name for herself within the small community as she uses magic to resurrect the island.

The conflict was... a bit silly and was resolved so quickly. But when I stopped taking this so seriously, I had a blast. (Maybe I just have a soft spot for kids movies & Stardew Valley...) This is such a charming story with an endearing set of characters with plenty of their own flaws. Friends, community and a bit of magic is all you really need.

🌱 Socially awkward FMC
🌱 Magical Creatures
🌱 Nosy Neighbors & Close friends
🌱 New Beginnings
🌱 Sweet romance
🌱 Hilarious sentient plant best friend
🌱 Learning magic to help others

Thank you NetGalley, TOR Publishing & MacMillan Audio for the ALC of The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst.

4.5 ⭐️ This was such a great book, I loved listening to the story. It has the perfect amount of cozy cottage core with plot to move the story along. I loved all the character's and the love story which is so wholesome and sweet. The side kick Kaz who is a talking spider plant complemented the main character Kiela well! The writing was really beautiful and helped me picture the world, I even laughed out loud at some parts where the dialogue was pretty witty.

This fluffy cottage core book is perfect for someone who is loves a cozy book with a great cast of friends and the magic system is pretty light.

Thank you NetGally, Sarah Beth Durst and Macmillan Audio who provided me with an audio ARC !

First thing’s first: thank you Netgalley for the ALC of this book!
The Spellshop was a sweet and cozy fantasy about Kiela, an imperial librarian who flees during a rebellion with stolen books so they won’t be destroyed. She escapes to the remote island she grew up with her books and her sentient spider plant assistant. She falls in love with the island and its residents and discovers pieces of her she’d left behind.
I really enjoyed this one! It was so cozy and darling. Almost slice of life, but a little more happening and a bit more interest. If you liked Legends and Lattes, this will definitely appeal to you. I love a found family story and this was no exception. I loved watching Kiela settle more into her new life and make meaningful relationships that she never expected to want. She makes jams and spells and risks herself to save her new friends and ugh I just really loved this one.
4⭐️

Kiela and her spider plant friend Caz have fled their library and the city they live in inorder to save their lives. The only thing they bring with them are crates of books that they managed to save from the fire engulfing the city of Alyssium. Kiela and Caz head back to the island that Kiela was from to start their lives over. Without looking back they hid the spell books in her family's cottage and try to make a life for themselves. Caz is always worrried that he will be eaten by something and is afraid to leave the cottage. Kiela is trying to figure out how to make money to buy food and supplies in order to survive. Between them both they decide to try some magic to help them along the way, even though it is forbidden. This is a clean romance with mythical creatures that help both Kiela and Caz along the way. I would like to thank both NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for alowing me to listen to this audio book.

OOOH this was such a cute cottagecore cozy fantasy. The librarian who just wants to be alone, the magical island, a complex magic system, a living spider plant, magical books, a handsome loner, and nosey neighbors! So perfect. If you like Legends and Lattes, Can't Spell Treason Without Tea, or The Honey Witch you'll love this.

FYI, this is not sapphic, so just want to make that clear.

This audiobook was fantastic! The narrator did a great job making me feel a part of the story!

The adventures of Kiela and Caz were very fun! I loved how they escaped and made a home on the island. Helping themselves by helping everyone else!

If you ever dreamed of running away to a hidden cottage in the woods and becoming a witch, this book is for you.

It is the most enchanting cozy cottagecore fantasy, and such a delight to read. The writing was immersive, and the world was just so lovely. This book has sentient plants, flying cats, raspberry jam, cloud bears, and spell books. The found family was perfect, and the romance was sweet.

As a socially awkward introvert, I LOVED Kiela. I am Kiela, and she is me. I've never resonated with a character more. Seeing her fumbling through interactions with various characters was hysterical.

This book was such a joy to read.

I almost gave this book a five. It was so cute from start to finish. I love the main female character and I love the main male character. I think Kaz was my favorite by far. He was so funny and made me laugh out loud. I can picture this location. I can picture all of the town's people. It was so well written. Really a joy to read.

Cannot rave about this book too much! I was lucky enough to snag an ARC audiobook. I've been anxiously awaiting the release since I saw my first targeted add.
And I couldn't be happier!
Caitlin did an amazing job on the voice acting. I love the warmth she adds to her reading.
But Sarah is the main event. Not only did she created an enviable coastal island. She filled it with the sweetest, most adorable characters. Making it a hometown feel good book.
Not only is the book cozy, it's chock full of magical creatures, some you might recognize. While others were wholly original. If that doesn't tempt you, the homespun romance and sassy plants certainly should.
If you loved Legends and Lattes, or PC Cast's New World Series. You won't want to miss this one.

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillion Audio for the ARC of The Spellshop in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: July 9th
⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Spellshop is the low stakes, high vibes, cozy fantasy of 2024 🍿

This is a really fun quick listen. Kiela is so painfully awkward and introverted seeing her trying to interact with people is hilarious, but the real star of the show is not one, but TWO talking plant side kicks and a sassy chicken 😂🌱🌵🐥

Plot (no spoilers):

Kiela lived in a library where she reads all day, food is brought to her, and she doesn't have to interact with anyone (the dream life really). A raid in the city causes her to flee with as many books as she can manage but with nowhere to go she finds herself on the island where she was born.

Trying to figure out how to survive in this new life, Kiela struggles to interact with the real world again on top of the fear of being discovered by the empire for stealing books and doing magic. Throw in a hot neighbor who's also awkward, villagers that give you all the warm and fuzzy feelings, and Kiela awkward desperation to keep her past a secret. 🫠💕


#2024newrelease
#thespellshop
#macmillionaudio
#sarahbethdurst

Such a fun book to read. It's hard to imagine this is a standalone novel. There is so much depth and character it could be a series! I would enjoy more stories about this far away island.

This writer knows how to pull in a reader and make them feel connected to the characters and the story! I want to move to the little town and live in a cottage just like the main character! I loved this and plan to later purchase a copy of the book for my shelves. Also, I’m obsessed with the cover design!!

What a gem! I am a big, big fan of cozy fantasy and this did not disappoint. The writing style flowed along so easily and the story of course was darling. I loved every single character (even the grumpy ones) and how they added to the plot. Definitely will recommend!

This book is wonderfully paced, and I was hooked from the very beginning absolutely devouring it in just a couple sittings. The story follows Kiela, a librarian who rescues books from a rebellion and flees to her childhood home on an island where she uses her knowledge of research and magic to help make the island a better place. The book includes romance, world building, and a talking spider plant! It is a lovely read for fans of cosy fantasy such as Legends and Lattes.

This fantasy book shares the importance of books and how much we can learn from books in a fun, magical way. The characters were great, but my favorite was the talking spider plant. The narrators really brought the story to life.

I received an e-arc from Net Galley to review.

If you are looking for a cozy fantasy about spells, sentient plants, and found family with a touch of romance, this is your book. It reminded me of Legends and Lattes as far as pacing and the amount of tension.

Pros: There is a quaint village full of magical creatures and distinct personalities from a cast of villagers. Our FMC shows character development growing from a quiet, introverted librarian to a strong spell caster that puts it all on the line for her new friends. There is a sentient spider plant capable of doing advance research and also a sentient cactus that only says, “meep.” A golden retriever MMC that is utterly devoted to our FMC and definitely falls in the, “acts of service,” love language category.

Cons: The magic system isn’t well fleshed out - it’s just there with no lore or anything that makes it special. If you can mix together some common ingredients and recite a spell, you too can do magic. There were some great opportunities to explore the system more and really play into something other than mixing and reading that came and went within pages The found family trope goes a little too far - everyone can get in on this group. There is some instant love with a side couple.

Overall, it was a cute story that will give you cozy feelings without requiring too much thought on your part. It needs more details / specificity to really create the world though so I don’t think it will stay with me for very long. 3.5 rounded up