Melissa Albert just keeps on delivering mind-blowing stories.As a kid who was fascinated with mythology and magic, this read like a cautionary tale about not messing around with powerful magic and it chilled me to the bone.

The story is captivating from the first chapter - who is the strange woman in the woods and why is Ivy’s mother so weird and nervous? Then the action never stops. This is truly a book a could not put down, and in fact stayed up most of the night to finish it.

This will be devoured by Albert’s fans and will certainly appeal to teens and adults alike. Highly recommended.

Firstly, I want to congratulate everyone involved in the cover choice for this book. I absolutely would have selected this for my daughter when she was of high school age based on the cover and description alone.

This novel should hit the target audience of 14-18 perfectly, but I truly enjoyed it myself. The characters were well developed and the story was mesmerizing. I’m hoping for a sequel!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for a digital copy of this wonderful and witchy novel. This is my honest review.

A very suspenseful and strange book, that I thoroughly enjoyed! It is a coming of age tale, where Ivy is the main character. I loved the exploration of all the characters, and the multiple viewpoints and timelines aided in that. It was supernatural and mysterious. Would definitely recommend and will look into other books by this author!

This book was one of those books that I read any chance that I had because I was compelled to discover what had happened in the past and what was going to happen to the protagonist Ivy as a result of those events. What did her mother do to her? Why was she being followed and haunted by this mysterious woman? Where did her mother and Aunt Fee disappear to? Why couldn’t she remember her best friend Billy? If you like mystery, suspense and the supernatural and strange this is the next book to read.

This book drew me in right from the beginning. It was mysterious, dark, and full of magic. The characters worked well together, and I loved the dual timelines.

The only thing I didn’t love was that it was told in first person, as that can get confusing with both dual timelines and multiple points of view. However, the first person was done well and I could keep up and follow along without an issue.

This book would have been a one sitting read for me if I hadn’t started it right before bed. As it was, I read until I could no longer process the sentences I was reading and then promptly picked it up and finished it the next morning.

If you enjoyed The Hazel Wood duology or just gravitate toward darker reads in general, this is a fantastic coming of age story. I loved the grittiness of learned magic along with the flashbacks of defiant youth. Melissa Albert never fails to capture city life with rose colored (albeit bloody) glasses. All of her books plant you firmly into the story and every character is fleshed out with a personality all their own. I've already got a copy on pre-order and if you enjoy witchy fiction, I would highly recommend this book.

Years after it began, Ivy and Dana's shared story will come down to a reckoning among a daughter, a mother, and the dark forces they never should’ve messed with.
If you want a dark, magical book you've found it! I am always looking for dark themed books because I am THAT October baby! This one hits my sweet spot just right. Dual POV from the mom and the 16 yr old daughter. Past and present timelines but not hard following the storyline. I really enjoyed it!

This book has all the right elements! It’s a dark, thrilling read full of magic and intrigue. If I was going to complain about anything it was only that the end wrapped up a little too easily and nicely but I still felt like it was fitting.

I don’t normally love books with alternating timelines but when they’re done well as this one was… it’s magical when they come together and everything just clicks. I would definitely recommend this book to just about anyone.

Thank you to Flatiron Books for providing an e-arc of this fantastic Melissa Albert novel via Netgalley.

Wow.

Our Crooked Hearts is a rollercoaster. Part magic, part thriller, part coming of age.

The book follows Ivy, a teenager who feels there is something... off... in her life. As she unravels the mysteries of her past, she finds more than she bargains for that upends her entire life.

This is a dual timeline book. One part current, Ivy's timeline, one part her mother's timeline when she was a teenager. I loved reading the juxtaposition between Ivy's teenage interpretation of her mother and then reading her mother's teen years and how she became the way she is.

This is a must read for those who love creepy, magical, badass female characters coming into their own.

“Think of it: sixteen and brimming with power, after being told all your life you were powerless.”

I feel like this one started pretty slow, but kept picking up steam until I had a hard time putting it down.

Our Crooked Hearts is told from the perspective of Dana in the past, and her daughter Ivy in the present. I enjoyed Ivy’s narrative the most and wished there was more of it. The book opens with Ivy and her boyfriend driving home from a party when a young woman runs across the road and into the forest. They follow her and Ivy swears she hears the stranger say her name. And then things get weird.

Magic, witchcraft, folklore, this book is an ode to the magic women make. It gave me some Practical Magic vibes but a little darker and more sinister.

This book had me hooked from the first chapter. I loved the dual pov format and clues were slowly revealed to help you piece together the mysteries. All of the characters were deliciously morally gray and played key pieces in the story, so no energy was wasted keeping track of side characters. Albert's writing style is deeply beautiful and delightfully creepy, and the pacing was perfect-there is plenty of action and plot development and intrigue to keep you on the edge of your seat, but making you work your way through the story to solve the mystery. There were many plot twists, betrayals, and revelations. The romantic subplot at the end was unexpectedly beautiful... for as little time as it got in the story, it had me tearing up by the end of the book. I also loved the ending... it ended on a good note, but left just enough mystery to let you fill in the blanks on what the future holds.

This book in 3 words: Fierce. Creepy. Enticing. 

Ivy is seventeen and trying to enjoy summer vacation. With a very bizarre encounter, she starts to uncover things aren't (and never really were) what they seem.

I refuse to give stuff away - this book is so good. A unique fantasy-ish story with a plot unlike any other and defiant and dominant women as our main characters. Told from dual POVs (yessss to the 90s vibes), this is all about making tough decisions, pushing boundaries, and doing what you must. 

When I received an ARC of Our Crooked Hearts, I legitimately screamed. I'd heard about it a month or so prior and was so excited to read it. I was left with a more amazing story than I originally prepared for. The opening chapter of Our Crooked Hearts is 10/10 - it grabbed me and made a lasting mark on my book-loving soul. 

I've not read a book like this in a long time... I 100% recommend. It's perfect for readers up to their eyeballs in fantasy/witchy things as well as the novice. Truly magical goodness for a wide array of readers. 
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read The Hazlewood series, and I have to say this book was a lot more fun!

There have been a lot of good books published lately featuring witches, but this might be my favorite. It was just the right combination of creepy and intriguing with plenty of twists and turns in the plot. I thought the characters in this book really shined when compared to those in the authors previous works.

Anyone who likes books with haunted libraries and spooky mysteries is going to love this book!

This book gave me The Craft vibes but it was somehow creepier. I loved the magic both beautiful and dark. The story is told in two timelines the present focuses on 17 year old Ivy whose summer starts with a bizarre encounter when her boyfriend almost hits a naked woman who dashed in front of their car. The second timeline is the past when Ivy’s mother Dana was a teenager and discovered magic. The story unfolded in a fun way and was filled with dark twists. This is a story of magic and betrayal and revenge and I wish it wasn’t over since I loved it. I personally preferred the Ivy chapters as the story got going - the first couple of Ivy chapters were a little slow.. I struggled to connect with Dana the same way but her story was still super interesting.

Have you ever wondered what happened to the characters of The Craft twenty years after the events of the movie? Then this is the book for you. Dana and her friends get mixed up in some mystical drama as teens, the effects of which reverberate throughout their lives and eventually change the life of Dana’s daughter, Ivy. It’s basically The Craft: Where Are They Now?

What I liked about this: Albert has such a unique and quirky writing style. I’ve not really seen anything like it before and it was refreshing to read. The tone of this story was darker and creepier than I’ve come to expect from most YA, and that is fantastic. Also the magic felt realistic (at least as realistic as magic can be), and the stakes of messing with it were appropriately dire.

What didn’t quite work: I had a hard time connecting with any character other than Ivy. I think my issue was Dana - while not the primary “bad guy” - felt overly villainous. I would have liked more of a balance between “kid that is growing up” and “mom who feels the need to protect her,” whereas the mom here just made all the wrong choices. Additionally the other characters weren’t developed to the point where I felt attached to them at all (which is a shame because I wanted to be!)

My mild critique aside, this was a really interesting, thrilling, spooky (those damn rabbits!), witchy read, and I’m hoping we get more of this universe in the future!

(Thank you to Flatiron Books and Netgalley for an advanced copy)

Our Crooked Hearts is a compelling piece of fiction that I could not stop thinking about in between reading it! The book is written from multiple perspectives, both in the past and in current time. The characters are well developed and you really get an insight into how the flaws of each person are a result of their personal circumstances. Overall the book has a message about love and trust that is important for readers in today’s world.

Such a great book. Its so easy to spoil this book by saying too much. So, I will say very little. This book was a dark but fun ride all the way to the end. Dark academia feels. A must read.

Wow,I loved Our Crooked Hearts and couldn’t put it down. Told in past and present, this is the story of three teenage girls Dana, Fee and Marion, who become witches and love performing magic until something goes horribly wrong. Now in present day one of them is mother to a teenage girl, Ivy, whose magical power far surpasses her mom, and she decide to right a wrong she thinks her mother has committed. Scary, magical, and edge of your seat reading.

One word that defines this book is weird.

This is a witchy YA, with lots of twists, and very disturbing scenes.

BTW, huge disclaimer: there are quite a few scenes with animal abuse. More specifically, bunnies. I had to read quickly and get it over with.

I feel like this is the perfect read for fall, to get ready for the spooky season.

The chapters switch between Ivy and Dana.
Ivy is a seventeen year old girl, and she's going through some changes.
Her mom Dana had some experience with magic and witchcraft when she was young. She decided to leave this life behind after something traumatic happened.

But it feels like Dana’s past is coming back to haunt not only her, but her daughter as well.

This book is definitely unique and it took turns that I could never ever guess. It was pretty amazing!

The only reason why I’m not giving it a higher rating is because I didn't love the writing style.

Loved loved this! This is what I want in a witchy book. The story is told from the point of view of a teenager named Ivy, and that of her mother Dana as a teenager. The two timelines weave back and forth creating their own spell. The story is unsettling and chilling in a perfect way.