If you're a fan of Sabrina, Charmed and series that are similar you will love this book.

It's perfect even for those who don't love fantasy
I was really surprised in a good way :D

This urban fantasy follows three girls who discover they share a birthday and newfound magical abilities, brought together by fate and guided by an older witch. As they learn about their powers, they become entangled in a larger crisis—witches are becoming scarce, and the future of the Witch Sphere is at stake. The plot explores whether these three young witches might hold the key to saving their world. The author does a great job keeping the perspectives of the main characters distinct, which helps make them relatable and enjoyable to follow. The diverse characters are well-written, with depth and strong personalities that made the story engaging. The mystery around the Witch Sphere's birth crisis was also intriguing. However, I found the story cluttered with unnecessary details, especially when it came to things like the witches' handbook and random name-drops. Listening to the audiobook, it was hard to skip these parts, and the plot itself felt a bit disorganized at times. If you're looking for a light, humorous urban fantasy with strong characters and can handle a weaker plot that ends in a cliffhanger, this could be worth picking up. Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the chance to review this book!

I really enjoyed the narration and the story is delightfully witchy and perfect for the Halloween season. I love the three "Bad Witches" so much but definitely have a soft spot for kind-hearted Gabby. My only critique is in regards to the pacing. I wish the middle section (after they start their training with their mentor but before the gathering) was a bit shorter and that we had more time at the gathering. The ending felt a little rushed and I would have liked to see more of the sphere. All in all this book is a very fun read and definitely one I would recommend to anyone on the looking for their next Witch book to add to their October TBRs.

Thank you NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing!
This audiobook is a lot of fun! There are 2 realms, those of the typic, or non-magic world, and the Sphere where most of the witches live. Very few new witches are being born in the sphere and the community is in crisis.
In the typic world, three 22-year-old women end up in the same bar bathroom on their shared birthday and end up having drinks together. Upon leaving, they accidentally create golden threads of magic which not only saves the phone they tried to catch from falling into a street drain, but also bonds them with the strange experience. Each of the women gleefully begins to discover and explore their powers.
This is a cozy fantasy, I enjoyed listening to it on my commute. There is obviously needs to be a sequel and I hope that Imani Jade Powers will also be the narrator. If so, I will definitely be ready for the audiobook!

Thank you NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing - Audiobooks for this advance copy! 3.5 stars on my first read. I think I will have to read this book again to get more out of it. I loved the idea of this story, but it was so long and there were a lot of characters to keep track of. I was interested enough to read it all (and would keep reading as a series) but it was a struggle at times to stay engaged and on track. I think it'll be better the second time around, especially knowing about the plot twists. I recommend to anyone who likes modern witchy books with creative and unique spins.

This was a fun listen but it was pretty heavy on the plot jumping. Because of that, I found myself zoning out pretty frequently and almost didn't finish it.

The black cover with the rainbow letters made me fall for this book right away.
It catches your eye and for me this was a must read - it's just as magical as the story promised to be!

Bad Witches tells the story about the witches sphere, where you are being born into as a woman.
If you have the mark that shows - only - in the first moment after bird, you are most definitely a witch!

But truth to be told, not every witch knows about there abillitys, and that's the same with the girls in this book.
But when they meet and come together they happen to be able to do quite some extraordinary things.
When there powers are discovered they get a mentor... but with all hapening in the Witches Sphere they get a very special assignment.
The big question is, is everything as it seems?

Bad Witches is a strong written story that has some kind of Sex in the City vibe, when the girls meet each other and come together.
It shows humor, adventure and makes you want to read it till the end!

A lovely and original story that definetly makes you wonder what will happen in the next chapter!
A must read for fans of Charmed, Sex in the City and magical feelgood stories!

What a great "meet cute" of three powerful and bad witches. This is a fun book and I cannot wait to read the second one!!!

This was a fun urban fantasy. It was told from multiple POVs (five I think?). However, the author did a great job keeping the voices of the three main characters unique and easy to tell apart. I enjoyed how well they worked together and individually, and it definitely elevated the experience to have them all be relatable. They had good depth, and there was great diversity for the MCs. I could tell that the author put a lot of work into writing strong characters. The intrigue relating to the birth crisis in the Witch Sphere was also quite interesting.

Something that I didn’t prefer was how often too much information was included. This happened when the handbook/textbook was discussed, and another instance was when the author listed many, many names that didn’t seem to be relevant to know. It also happened in relation to makeup. It definitely got worse as the work went on and since I was listening to the audiobook version it wasn’t possible to skim these parts. I also wish that the plot had been a little less haphazard – it was often difficult to follow, and I just had to sit back and trust that the things happening were happening for a reason (they didn’t always, but that’s fine).

Read this if you’re looking for an easy-to-read and humorous urban fantasy that’s got good characters, a weaker plot, and ends with a cliffhanger. My thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was really cute! Fantastic debut novel for H.B. Akumiah. Would be a great lite fall read 🍂🍁It had ROM-com vibes/tone but with less romance and more mystery. Reminded me a bit of Finnly Donovon but with witchy vibes. 🕵️‍♀️🧙 I was bummed that I didn’t get an ending as this is the first in the series and I was left wanting a bit more from the characters. Because of the multiple POV’s I didn’t feel overly attached to any of them. I’m hoping to get the extended character development in the next book!

Synopsis:

In H. B. Akumiah’s lively and charming debut, three young women; A public relations assistant, a teacher, and a former child star walk into a bar bathroom ... On what happens to be all of their twenty-second birthday and, like many twentysomethings, become fast tipsy friends. But unlike most twentysomethings, their night of partying ends with an accidental act of magic. Suddenly, Maya, Gabbie, and Delali find themselves thrust into a world of spells and potions with only a mysterious mentor as a guide. Now these newly discovered witches, and their new-found magic may be the key to saving the world ...

This is the first in a light witchy mystery series 🖤

Three women meet in a bar and discover that they not only share the same birthday but also possess magical abilities. A magical scientist is searching for them as a potential solution to a crisis in the magical world: a declining birth rate among witches.

This premise has the potential to be an engaging first third of a book or a compelling pilot episode for a spinoff series inspired by "Charmed" or "Sabrina." However, the plot lacks sufficient substance to sustain an entire book. Much of the narrative revolves around the main characters experimenting with magic to enhance their careers. At the same time, the central storyline—becoming involved in witch society—only truly unfolds at the 75% mark.

Unfortunately, the quality of writing is lacking. Exposition is delivered in a rather heavy-handed manner, and I found it challenging to relate to any of the characters, as they felt rather one-dimensional and shallow. I also found it somewhat frustrating that the book places significant emphasis on the witches' elaborate outfits. The author dedicates nearly as much time in the audiobook to describing the attire for a grand gala event as to the preparation for the critical spell needed to save witch society.

Additionally, I would like to critique the underlying issue facing the magical society: the low birthrate of witches. While witches are capable of having children who appear healthy and happy, these offspring are born without powers. This raises the question: why is it problematic that witches are becoming less common? Is it merely because society places value on certain traits that newborns do not possess? This premise felt somewhat questionable to me.

To the audiobook: The narrator of the audiobook did an excellent job. It must have been very challenging to convey the essence of emoji-filled text messages, but the narrator managed to make it feel natural.

“Bad Witches” is a clever and unique story of three women living in New York City who discover their magical abilities on the night of their 22nd birthdays. It reminded me of one of my favorite shows growing up, “Charmed,” which was a fun throwback. I was mostly engaged with the story, but it was definitely meant for a younger audience. Because of their ages, I had trouble connecting with the characters. There were parts where I was hooked and others where the plot was moving a bit too slow. I think I just wasn’t the right audience for this book, but I definitely think it’s a great read for fall.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Imani Jade Powers. It’s never an easy task to voice an all-female cast, but I thought she did a great job. She was engaging and enjoyable to listen to.

Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to love this but found it just a bit too surface-level. I typically love a witch’s coming of age story but I was hoping for more world building and more depth, and I think that this really promising book could have benefited from a more rigorous beta-reader process before being published to help tighten up the characterization and pacing.

I was initially drawn to this book because of the beautiful cover and the fun description. However, it was not quite what I expected and I had a difficult time staying focused and remaining interested. While I think this is a perfect, fun read for a younger audience, I don’t think it was right for me.

Thank you to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Well this was a fun book to listen too! I really enjoyed the modern approach to witchcraft and listening to 3 young 22 year olds navigating every day life and realizing they have magic. Each character was quirky and unique, bringing different aspects to the story. On the other side, I also was intrigued with Nadia and how she lived in the witch world, the history of the mothers and the "world building". I enjoyed this book, but I did feel like it need a bit more development with the world building and more details into the FMC's magic and how they gained their powers. Why them, etc. And then is this going to be a series?? 3.5 rounded to 4.

This was such a fun witchy coming of age story. Perfect for kicking off fall! This would make such a fun tv series or movie!

This just wasn't for me. Those who love paranormal chick lit will love this but this was simple without being charming and the story was too pedestrian to keep my interest.

I really enjoyed the premise of this book! We’ve all seen the whole teen/tween witch thing done over and over, so it was refreshing to see slightly older witches coming into their powers. The decision to have the “typic” world and the Sphere separate locations was a nice change from the magical school route. I loved the relationships formed between characters, and found the characters pretty well developed making it easy to relate to them.

I did listen to this book on audio, and found the narrator’s voice captured the story very well. The diction was clear, pacing was great, and I had no issues with the playback.

As this book did end on a cliffhanger, I assume it is the first book of a series or trilogy. I look forward to reading the next book! Overall, I’d rate this book 4 stars, and would recommend to anyone who likes witchy stories. As this book did end on a cliffhanger, I assume it is the first book of a series or trilogy. I look forward to reading the next one!

🧚🏻A huge thanks goes out to NetGalley, Blackstone Publishing, and author H.B. Akumiah for providing me with a free audio copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Bad Witches - HB Akumiah

Three ordinary women and all they have in common is their exact date of birth. Fate leads them to find each other on their birthday and the magic ignites with them… They have no idea there is a world full of witches outside of the real world.

The story covers the 3 new witches and a witch who is looking for them because they keep using magic out of the bounds of the rules. She has no idea they weren’t born witches and they have no idea they are doing anything wrong.

It was decent enough, Maya, Gabbie, and Delali…. They weren’t great for me. I didn’t much enjoy them until the last 3rd of the book. Nadia, the witch trying to save her world, I liked her but we didn’t get as much of her as I would have liked.

It was definitely a decent start to what I am assuming is going to be a series, (the end doesn’t work if it is not) and it was more fantasy adjacent for me.. Is that even a thing? It wasn’t a heavy fantasy read and I wouldn’t have called it a romance either but maybe that is coming.

3.75 stars

I always have a hard time with witchy books and fantasy, but once I found out the author was Black and so were the characters, I didn’t waste any time requesting this. And I’m actually glad I did. It wasn’t as witchy as I was expecting and I think that light heartedness was what made it to me.

Ok so yes this was fantasy, but it was fantasy light. Which was good for me because I think it would have turned me off if it was anything else. The magic they use is for things that I would use it for lol And I really liked that they showed them doing the spells too. I enjoyed seeing the magic. I do wish there was more, but eh it was ok.

The reason I think we miss out on some of the magic is because we’re too busy getting all these POVs and what they’re doing. I’m not usually someone who complains about POVs, but in this case, there was like four of them and it made the book feel drawn out. And I hated that as soon as I felt like I was getting to know the character, it was on to the next one. But it wasn’t terrible. They all had different personalities and it was easy to keep their voices apart.

One thing I did like tho was the ending. I literally stopped in my tracks when things started going down. As soon as I got down to the last few minutes of this book I couldn’t stop listening. It was such a surprise that I was not expecting. I can honestly say this one caught my off guard. I told people about this book because of the ending alone lol

I wanted more from the fantasy side tho. The magic was on point, but because it was Magical Realism and they didn’t actually know how to use their powers yet, it was mostly filled with them doing spells on accident or learning. I found this to be charming and endearing. And I wish we got to see more of the Sphere. We get one look at the ending, but I wanted way more than that little glimpse. Also, I found it so weird that they were so powerful but they barely knew how to use their specific powers? It seemed like they were using them on accident. Hopefully there’s more on them using their powers anf their powers together in the next one. IF there’s going to be a next one.

This was a very interesting read. I don’t think I would have picked this up if I hadn’t known it was by a Black author lol Although it was long and a bit confusing, it was still very fun. I need some more people to read this so we can talk about it. I need to know which of the girl’s powers you’d want lol