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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
My grandmother‘s time-worn voice, recounted the oldest of Saoirse’s legends: that if you left the island, it would always call you back.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Adrienne Young has easily become one of my favourite others, her writing paints beautiful pictures in my head and I love how there is a touch of magic in each of her books I have read thus far. The romance between Emery and August was chefs kiss and I loved the story of it rebuilding while the truth of that night was simultaneously unraveling.
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.75 ⭐
Adrienne Young’s writing is as atmospheric as ever—moody, witchy, and steeped in that blurred line between magic and folklore. Spells for Forgetting delivers small-town secrets, generational legacies, and a love story rooted in childhood friendship, all wrapped in a mystery that lingers long after the last page.
What I liked:
The setting is incredible—so vivid you can feel the mist, smell the tea leaves, and hear the creak of the docks. I loved the way the mystery intertwined with the island’s folklore, keeping me questioning what was real. The love story felt tender and believable, and the ending was exactly my kind of perfect: beautiful, satisfying, and just eerie enough to stick with me.
What I didn’t like:
The characters felt on the younger side, and I didn’t connect with them as much as I did in The Unmaking of June Farrow. Emery, in particular, could have been developed more deeply. The pacing is slow, which worked for the mood but may not suit every reader.
Overall, a beautifully eerie, immersive read that I highly recommend for anyone who enjoys mystery with a touch of magic. And I’m already looking for my next Adrienne Young—if you’ve got a rec that feels like this or The Unmaking of June Farrow, send it my way.
Adrienne Young’s writing is as atmospheric as ever—moody, witchy, and steeped in that blurred line between magic and folklore. Spells for Forgetting delivers small-town secrets, generational legacies, and a love story rooted in childhood friendship, all wrapped in a mystery that lingers long after the last page.
What I liked:
The setting is incredible—so vivid you can feel the mist, smell the tea leaves, and hear the creak of the docks. I loved the way the mystery intertwined with the island’s folklore, keeping me questioning what was real. The love story felt tender and believable, and the ending was exactly my kind of perfect: beautiful, satisfying, and just eerie enough to stick with me.
What I didn’t like:
The characters felt on the younger side, and I didn’t connect with them as much as I did in The Unmaking of June Farrow. Emery, in particular, could have been developed more deeply. The pacing is slow, which worked for the mood but may not suit every reader.
Overall, a beautifully eerie, immersive read that I highly recommend for anyone who enjoys mystery with a touch of magic. And I’m already looking for my next Adrienne Young—if you’ve got a rec that feels like this or The Unmaking of June Farrow, send it my way.
Adrienne Young captured me again. The island of Saiorse was haunting, captivating and full of secrets. I think I could tell where the book was going to go pretty early but I still wanted to see it through, the middle got a bit dull but the end ramps back up.
Quotes written down, “there are spells for breaking and there are spells for mending, but there are no spells for forgetting.” - I originally heard this as forgiving and that sat with me so much that I had to go back. Maybe my mind is on forgiving and forgetting?
Quotes written down, “there are spells for breaking and there are spells for mending, but there are no spells for forgetting.” - I originally heard this as forgiving and that sat with me so much that I had to go back. Maybe my mind is on forgiving and forgetting?
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5 I liked it, but it felt more like YA than adult fic. The witchcraft-on-an-island-with-lots-of-secrets theme was fun.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Way too slow to build up interest, no spoilers but by the time they started trying to figure out who did the bad thing, I truly didn't even care who did it anymore
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense