I loved Scar! This book was so cute and well put together, each page made me want to keep reading to find out what happened. I could picture the Oak Haven and people in it, I could almost smell the pumpkin and spice. The way Emily used each chapter to give us a bit more of Scarletts history was fun, I enjoyed that you could picture her as a child in the town and as a young woman finding her way before she left. I love the way Nate came into the story and was her right-hand man, how she had the push and pull with him in the relationship gave us the perfect conflict to love. I cant wait to see what Emily comes out with next, I've followed her on good reads for the next book!

I wanted to love this, truly.

It starts great. A little bit witchy, has some fun references, perfectly cozy for autumn, and then it just... bursts apart at the seams.

The little nods and references quickly become WAY too much, taking over any existence of a plot. The town of Oak Haven doesn't make sense to me at all. The characters are all insufferable, and there are just far too many people to keep track of. The conversations and dialogue are super stretched out and run off on tangents. And... I just didn't care about the characters or development at all.

I finished reading this so that I could leave a review in good faith, but I'm honestly regretting it. The story just feels like it's trying hard to be funny and quirky with all of the pop culture references, but the characters and story overall end up lacking depth because of it.

𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓸 𝓝𝓮𝓽𝓰𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓐𝓿𝓸𝓷 𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴𝓼 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓪𝓷 𝓐𝓡𝓒 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓲𝓷 𝓮𝔁𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓰𝓮 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓶𝔂 𝓱𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀.

What a cute little read!

I loved the cosy vibes from this, perfect for the time of year.

So much mischief and magic gone wrong, whilst serious for the characters, it made for some funny scenarios.

Scarlett kept putting her foot in it and making things worse but she was so funny.

The romance was cute and developed well. Kind of "it's always been you" vibes.

I really did enjoy this. Just a nice light-hearted, comfort read.

This book was packed with cosy witchy vibes! Oak Haven sounds like an absolute dream especially in autumn! Full of interesting characters, lots of back story details and fun anecdotes it felt like you really knew the village. ⁣
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I loved the magical mishaps going on. Especially the gnomes that packed their bags and left ⁣
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This book definitely has a refreshing modern twist. So many witchy books tend to be historically. I loved the topical references, like the spell that tells you which streaming service a program is on! And the introduction of mobile phones to the village which caused a big stir. ⁣
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You could definitely feel the tension in the Melrose family. I did think they were particularly harsh towards Scarlett and used her past mistakes against her a little too often! ⁣
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Overall a wonderful seasonal read with lots of lovely magical moments 🥰

I really wanted to love this one, but it was just ok for me. It was cute and perfect for this time of the year, but it just didn’t wow me and I did get bored in places. I just didn’t gel with the main character, Scarlett. I just think I wasn’t in the right kind of mood when I read this. Maybe if I listened to the audio in the future I may love it more.

Thank you to the publishers Avon UK for the e-arc copy.

Magic is dying.

Scarlett left her magical hometown 10 years ago, and only her sisters calls could make her come back. Then there’s Nate, her once could have been, might have been, never was.

Stairs are high to save the magic of her town, and Scarlett has to believe in herself in order to save it.

Ok, so this was an excellent little witchy book! Absolutely perfect for the falloween season! There’s magic, spooky times, romance, small towns, and I was there for it!

Miss Grimoire does a great job telling the story, reeling you in and keeping you hooked. I loved her way with words, and the banter between sisters and friends? Top notch!

If you’re looking for a fall read, pick this one up!!

A cozy, witchy fall romance set in the small, fantastical town of Oak Haven, where witches and magicians are not the same. Magic is not how it once was and family tension is high. Blending second-chance romance and immersive autumn scenes, lovers of Gilmore Girls and Halloweentown will be captivated.

Impractical Magic has all the cozy, autumn vibes. Emily Grimoire’s descriptions were immersive and I felt like I was personally walking through Oak Haven.

While comparison is drawn to Gilmore Girls and Charmed, the story felt unique. Modern elements were woven into the story that I thought were necessary for the plot, but I understand might not be for fantasy lovers looking to completely escape into a new fantastical world.

Social issues and diversity of the supporting characters were presented with care and the story was told with ease.

The story begins with the main character, Scarlett, returning to her magical hometown by the request of her sister. It will be the first time in a decade that Scarlett has visited after unexpectedly fleeing her father’s funeral. Oak Haven is in trouble because something mysterious has the magic out of sorts. Guests of the family Inn are walking through portals to other areas of the world. Artists are performing concerts in the middle of dinner. The witch sisters must resolve their shaky history and join magic to save the town from the chaos. I honestly adored Scarlett and her sisters. They were a bit snarky, but isn’t that how witches are supposed to be?

The romance was subtle but came full circle in the end. Through half of the story, I felt Nate was a supporting character to Scarlett because Scarlett’s character development shined in this story. The end redeemed that perspective and left me in awe (no spoilers).

Impractical Magic was exactly what I search for in a witchy small-town autumn read.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon UK for this ARC of Impractical Magic by Emily Grimoire in exchange for an honest review.

Full review on blog dandelionlit.com

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5
🌶️ 1/5

As always, thank you to NetGalley and Emily Grimoire for allowing me to read an ARC of this book and share my thoughts with other readers.

There are some wildly mixed reviews for this book but I personally really liked it. I wouldn’t say love, but did thoroughly enjoy. It was interesting with a novel plot concept and it was exciting but it was a bit predictable at times particularly when it comes to the “mystery” of what is poisoning the oak trees in the groves. Again overall, it kept my attention the entire time though, I liked the contrast of witches vs. magicians in this book, which is something I really haven’t seen before in my paranormal romance adventures. That was a creative element!

All of the characters were overall well crafted. I do have a few issues with our FMC and MMC though. Scarlett and Nate were another borderline miscommunication trope which is always a bit of an ick for me, but the childhood friends to lovers kind of made up for it (except the end was a bit… weird? It was sweet but also kind of weirdly drawn out?) I don’t know, maybe that’s just me that didn’t love it, I loved that he waits for her but it nearly lost me. The spice between the two of them was lukewarm most of the time with two hot moments. The spicy scene was also very awkwardly written, sometimes it makes it less weird to just go for it but this was kind of descriptive in non-linear ways… if that makes sense. It made it confusing to understand what EXACTLY was physically going on, if you know what I mean.

That sounds like a lot of complaining, but I swear this was actually really good! It had great pacing, interesting characters and a novel concept. It’s hard finding something different but still in the same genre for spooky season witchy romance but this was a gem of an addition to my tbr and it will be to yours too! 🖤

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

Advertised as Gilmore Girls meets Charmed, Impractical Magic follows Scarlett as she returns to her mother's inn to help her estranged sisters break a curse.

This is one of those books that I think readers who don't mind simply flitting from trope to trope would love. There's a lot going on in that regard that is definitely enjoyable, from the autumnal witchy vibes to the small town coziness. For me, though, a book still has to live up to those tropes, and Impractical Magic felt like it really didn't. The writing seemed more concerned with the vibes than the characters or the story, so a lot of what, to me, actually makes a good story fell frustratingly flat here. The text was also chock full of references that started off kind of fun but quickly got exhausting, especially as there was no meaningful substance -- specifically rich character building -- to really back them up. I think with a good amount of character work, and an overall edit to tighten up the writing, this book could've been fantastic, but ultimately it left me feeling a bit underwhelmed and wanting more than what I ended up getting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for this ARC. Honestly, this was a big miss for me. While it does give off some fall vibes as promised, it was really hard for me to get through. The similarity to Gilmore Girls were blatantly obvious and a little forced with the Williams Hardware store and a chapter called "Oy, with the Flamingos already" for instance along with a couple other nods at the show, but other than a small town with fall vibes the comparison stopped there for me. The writing seemed very juvenile and the plot didn't make a ton of sense to me. For Scarlett, the main character, to be in her late 20's, she talks like a child. As do her two older sisters. And for her to be gone for 10 years with basically no contact and to just jump back into things with the town and with Nate, like basically nothing changed? That makes no sense. There were also several typos and missing punctuation throughout the book. Overall this was a tough one for me to get through and unfortunately did not hit the mark for me for the fall, cozy, witchy vibes.

Thanks to the publisher, NetGalley, and the author for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. It is out now.

Full disclosure: I did DNF this book at 19%.

This book has such a promising premise but it just fell a little flat for me. The main character, Scarlett has been away from home for the last 10 years after an accident with her magic. She moves to San Francisco to live a magic free life. But she gets called back to her tiny, witchy town when the magic starts acting up. She has to reunite with her sisters and her mother to try to get to the bottom of what is disrupting the town's magic. And there is a very handsome handyman from her past that shows up and perhaps she feels as connected to him as she used to.

I think partly what fell flat for me was what the description of this book was comparing it to. Comparing anything to Gilmore Girls, Charmed, and Practical Magic (which I assume the title is a reference to) is a tall order and one that should not be done lightly. What makes those stories especially great are the characters (their depth, quirks, flaws, relationship to each other, etc) but even through 19%, I could tell these characters were very one dimensional and frustrating. Sometimes I'm in the mood for something quick that I don't have to think too much about but that isn't what I'm looking for right now.

I do think the autumnal vibes are wonderful and the descriptions of the town are so cozy. If you are looking for a super light and quick read, this will be for you. But unfortunately it wasn't the right fit for me.

Thank you for allowing me to receive this copy for review!

If you love a witchy tale with Gilmore girls and charmed vibes combined then 100% this is for you! Within this book we have the true journey of saving the magic and learning to heal. This story is a true wholesome vibe and I love the magic; the town 100% gave me Stars Hollow feels and id love to see more from this tale and explore the magic further with the siblings of Scarlett!

The concept of this book was very fun, I loved the idea of a town being only for witches and the ‘small town’ vibes we got throughout. However, the plot was quite bland along with the characters who seemed to only ever be arguing with each other. The side characters were very surface level which was fine but really made the relationships pointless and the story feel quite slow. I felt zero connection with Scarlett and Nate so wasn’t really rooting for them at all and Delilah was so hard to read, everything she said was so negative and she just wasn’t a fun character to read at all.
I would recommend if you’re someone who wants a cozy book with magic and very low stakes.

Very slow moving. Not at all a mixture of Gilmore Girls and Charmed like advertised.

Thank you NetGalley, the author, and Avon Books UK for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

A captivating read for fans of slow-burning romance, cozy small-town settings, and magical realism, who will be swept away by the story of a strong-willed witch's journey to save her family's inn and discover the true meaning of love and responsibility.

I enjoyed reading Impractical Magic by Emily Grimoire. You will fall in love with all the characters. I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely. Happy Reading!

I am providing honest and unbiased feedback.

I couldn't decide whether to give three or four stars for this book, so it's probably a solid 3.5. The story is cute and I can see where the author is going for the Practical Magic vibe. To me it feel just short of a cutesy town vibe- like Eureka but with Magic instead of science. But while there are some oddballs, the story fails to properly capture the quirky element that made us want to stay in a universe. I'm not invested in any of the characters other than the sisters maybe, but for the most part, I'm not sure what makes this town worth saving. Where I feel this author fails is that the main character doesn't build the kind of relationships that make towns like this so idyllic. Especially with the sisters. When it comes to witch stories, sisterhood is usually key, but that is missing here.

But there is still a cute story with several fun elements involving magical lore and a sweet romance.

All in all this was a fast and enjoyable read!

A great mix of magic and fun. I loved the twist on the rebellion of the "fake magic" folk. It was a great story about learning about yourself and your mistakes.

I loved the cozy town and magic gone awry vibe, the rekindled slow-burn romance between Nate and Scarlett, and the ominous Time Witch. I really disliked the way Scarlett's family interacted, and it kind of took me out of my lovely little escape book - Kelly stole my joy just like she knocks the wind out of Scarlett!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for an ARC of this book! Opinions are my own.

I had a very difficult time getting into this book. The dialogue felt very abrupt, and I couldn’t tell who was speaking at times. I also feel as though there should have been more world building in the beginning of the story.

With that said, I really do enjoy the plot of this book. I think it’s a fantastic idea, and could be an amazing book.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book.