Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me access to the free advanced digital copy of this book.

I’ve been a fan of Jenna Evans Welch since Love & Gelato, so I was so excited to see what she could accomplish outside of that series—especially with a touch of magic added in.
This is a story of first love, sure, but it’s really a story of family, as are the rest of Welch’s books. Told in dual POVs, it addresses foster care and found family, as well as healing in a fractured, distanced family.
I love Jenna Evans Welch’s writing. Her characters have distinct voices. The narration is easy to fall into, while still giving a distinct and unique sense of self and character for both Willow and Mason. She dives into the complexities of families, and it is an emotional, even heartbreaking experience at times, but the book still manages to be a fun, heartwarming, and relatively light read.
I think the book does give a little bit of a glamorized view of the foster care system. It mentions issues in the vaguest of senses, but there’s no exploration of it, leading to a bit of an underdeveloped narrative for Mason and his background. Generally, I think Mason’s development is a bit less than it could be, especially when compared to Willow, but that didn’t stop me from connecting with him and caring about him.
I actually read this right after a reread of Love and Gelato (while I was in Italy!), and it was fun to see how much Welch’s craft has improved. Though I loved Love and Gelato more, personally, this is definitely a stronger book on the technical level. I can’t wait to see what comes next!

I would love to interview Nikki for my podcast, Raise Your Words. I love Jenna’s writing style and it’s such a good contemporary YA!!!

This was cute and perfect for spooky season. This is something I’d highly recommend anyone add to there fall reading list.

I really enjoyed the characters in this book. It was a great coming of age story with a great plot. I have loved all of the books written by this author!

An utterly charming story. The characters are beautifully written. It's about finding your way home.

I am so glad I received a copy of this book from Netgalley. This is my brief but honest review.

While not my favorite Jenna Evans Welch book I did enjoy this one. I loved following Willow and Mason through their adventures in Salem and liked that we got chapters from both Willow's and Mason's point of view. The only thing that would have made it better if it had taken place during the fall not summer.

I really loved this one by the author of the Love and Gelato series! I cannot wait to share this with my middle school romance readers!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC.

2.5/5 stars. I received an eARC from Simon & Shuster via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. It can be read by clicking the link included below.

What a fun, fall-ish read! This one ticked a lot of YA boxes for me, with two characters that were easy to root for, identity things to work through and some endearing mentors. I enjoyed the witchy connections even more than I thought I might, fearing it might feel contrived or over the top, but instead felt endearing and sweet. My favorite part was the light shed on the foster care system & inner world of a teen in it. Lots to love here.

What an adorable read! If you're going into this thinking there's a bunch of magic, you'd be disappointed. However, the magic that happens between Willow and Mason is nothing short of beautiful. Both troubled kids in their own ways. Willow feels estranged from her mom after the divorce, even though she lives with her. Mason is close to his mom, but through her addiction she loses him to the foster system. These heavy hitting subject were done gracefully, and I think Jenna shed the light on exactly how teens would feel in those situations. I loved the great-great-aunties - they kind of reminded me of Magical Golden Girls. I enjoyed the whole book and absolutely loved the ending. I would love to see a sequel just to spend more time with the characters and see where the long road ends up.

This book was so delightful. I've loved every book by this author so far, so this one was very highly anticipated. I loved the witchy element, as well as a YA version of found family.

I thought the foster care and parental situation was very endearing, though heartbreaking.
I loved the YA love story.
I loved the aunts, the house, the 3s.

This is just a delight.

I have read all of Jenna Evans Welch's books, and "Spells for Lost Things" is by far my favorite. Welch crafted fully-rounded characters that came to life on the page. Willow and Mason's relationship developed in a realistic and believable path that made me want to keep reading. The setting was well-developed and added a layer of nuance to the book. Also, the resolution was satisfying while being realistic. I truly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

To say this book blew me away would be a sore understatement. As book two of my spooky reads for the season, I’m so glad I chose it next! It is one of several ARCS on my list and this one had the soonest publish date.

Spells for Lost Things by Jenna Evans Welch truly exceeded my expectations as it explores two different angles that I have never experienced myself.

On one end, we follow Willow — a teen girl yearning to see the world and trying to find her purpose after her parents divorce. On the other is Mason — a teen boy who has grown up largely in the foster system but still idolizes his drug-addicted biological mother, even after she disappears.

The two’s lives collide when they wind up in Salem, Massachusetts for totally different, but just as mysterious, reasons. Willow’s mother inherits her long lost twin sister’s estate & Mason moves in with a new foster family with ties to his mother. Together they work to solve each other’s mysteries.

This incredible storyline is only enhanced by the beautiful setting of Salem, a dash of witchcraft and stargazing and a wonderful cast of side characters.

This was an easy five stars and I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who loves a wholesome mystery and characters who truly come to life. I cannot wait to read more from Welch! Love & Gelato is already waiting on my shelf!

I’ve read every Jenna Evans Welch book and this one seemed like all the others. Teen goes to a new place, learns new things about herself, and finds love at the same time. But even still, this one was also differemnt. This time it’s set in the states and she puts both the MCs through the ringer. If this hadn’t been about a subject I’m not fond of, I think it would have been my favorite.

Willow has been bitten by the travel bug for as long as she could remember. She’s even been to Paris already and that wasn’t enough. She’s been trying to get her mother to let her do her senior year abroad, but all her plans are thrown off when her mother reveals a secret that sends them both to Salem, Massachusetts. There she meets Mason who’s been in foster homes his entire life, who’s been looking for his mom since he knew where to look. Willow’s mom keeps all details of her secret wrapped tight, so they go across Salem looking for details and trying fit the pieces together for Willow. And little does he know it, but Mason too.

When I read the synopsis and it mentioned Mason being in foster care, I didn’t stop to think what that might mean. Many of my old followers know this, but my newer ones might not, so I’ll repeat it again. I have an uncle who battled addiction most of his life. At one point his daughter went to stay with other people in her life because of it. He got help after he was in his 60’s. It was almost too late. Because of this, I really think this could have done with a trigger/content warning page. I had a pretty hard time reading this because of the mention of Mason’s mom. I had to reach out to Twitter and see if someone had read this to see how far into her addiction it went. I don’t want to read anout something like that in my fiction. It’s my way to escape he world, and this brings a bit of my trauma right into it. So please, I’m begging you, please put a warning on things like this next time.

The romance itself was cute tho. I loved the way they worked together to try and solve that mystery. It was a fun little romp through Salem. Definitely not what I was expecting. BUt I live the scavenger hunt/ National Treasure feel. It was intersting to see all the places they would find things too. The first clue was pretty cool. But I can’t lie, when it got to the end I was in tears. I knew how it ended, but I still wasn’t prepared. I think finally learning the journey was a little much for me. Add on to the fact that I was still sad from what Mason was going through, and yeah. You should be able to see why I was in tears lol

The characters were ok, but I really hated Willow’s mom lol But as it turns iut, she wasn’t that bad. Yes her excuse was still dumb (imho. Because why wouldn’t you cherish what you have now? I digress) but I know there were good intentions behind it. Mason was a good kid, but he had some things to work through. And that wasn’t his fault. None of the adu;ts in his life were truthful with him and I didn’t like that. Someone should have told him what was going on. I don’t think it was right letting him find out that way. Willow was my favorite. I really enjoyed her character. She seemed moody, but she was a teen. But when she started finiding out more about herself and her family, she truned into a different person. Growth. I enjoyed reading her. She still had some growing up to do, but again, she was a teen. That’s how they all are.

This could have absolutely done with some content warnings and I wouldn’t have had to skim some of the scenes, but for what I did read, I enjoyed it. Otherwise this is another solid book of Welch’s that I enjoyed. Same sort of formula that works for her, but sill different enough from her others that it didn’t feel like I was reading any of her previous works.

I am always a sucker for this author. I throughly enjoyed the story and can’t wait for more from her.

This is a great book for those looking for a fall book just in time for Halloween without it being heavily witchy. It is set in Salem and is a dual POV book. Like the author’s previous books, there are strong themes of family, self growth and a heaping dose of a sweet romance. YA readers would enjoy it!


🥰really liked

🤟Salem setting, backstories, family

📚 Emma Lord

🎶Sidelines by Phoebe Bridgers

Okay, this is the perfect read for October that takes place in Salem. Spells for Lost Things is a really great YA story written by the author of Love & Gelato. What I love is that this book is so different from the Love & series, yet it still has Jenna’s charm, sense of adventure, and understanding of teenage emotions. Mason and Willow come from two very different backgrounds and are dealing with family issues but in completely different ways. Somehow, magically, they find each other and realize just how much the other’s perspective can help them in their own situation. Mason’s story is really heartbreaking and I just wanted to hug him. The aunts (aka witches) in this story are hilarious and adorable. The book has mystery, romance, and of course, personal growth for these two teens trying to figure out their future. It was really a fun story about family, love, and destiny.

Review will be posted on 10/19/22

Willow and Mason both find themselves at Salem, Massachusetts, but for very different reasons. Mason is at a new foster home, but deep down inside he hopes to one day be reunited with his mother. Willow is visiting Salem, because her mom is dealing with an unexpected family inheritance. This surprises Willow as she didn't know about her family from Salem and her mother isn't giving too much away about her mysterious past. When Willow and Mason meet, there is an instant connection between the two. Willow relies on Mason to help her navigate things with her family including a possible family curse. Jenna Evans Welch's Spells for Lost Things is a cute YA magical romance with a strong focus on family.

Willow is an interesting character in Spells for Lost Things. Unlike Mason, her mother is present in her life, she isn't exactly presenting a clear picture. She is hiding things from Willow, especially when it comes to her past in Salem. Once Willow tags along to help her mother with the inheritance, she meets family members she didn't know about and in turn learns about her ancestry and her mother's past. There's a possible family curse, there's hidden letters, and more!

Mason, on the other hand, is dealing with harder issues than Willow in Spells for Lost Things. He is in foster care and while he appreciates his new foster placement, he maintains hope that he will one day be reunited with his mother. He looks at the stars and the signs--always hoping they will point to her. His mother is an addict, so it's extremely heartbreaking. I appreciate that Welch included such serious issues of addiction and foster care in her novel as I think it's important. Another theme throughout is the relationship with your mother as both Willow and Mason have challenging relationships with their own mother. I think many teens can appreciate this part of the novel and how the navigate it.

The romance in Spells for Lost Things was cute and the magical aspect of the novel makes it a perfect YA read for fall, especially if you are looking for something witchy, but not necessarily spooky. While it wasn't my favorite of Welch's novels, it was a solid read that I think many readers will enjoy this fall season.

So, are you a fan of Welch? Have you read Spells for Lost Things? Let me know in the comments below.

Looking for a YA book with some magic for October? Look no further! Jenna Evans Welch is back with an adorable YA romance set in Salem, MA. I was hooked from the first lines and you will be too.

“Fernweh (noun): a German word that means ‘farsickness’, best understood as the opposite of homesickness….See also: an excellent way to ignore the fact that although I definitely have a place to live, I most definitely do not have a place where I belong. It turns out that home and belonging aren’t necessarily the same thing.”

Willow has never felt like she belongs anywhere and dreams of traveling the world in search of home, away from her mostly absent mother. Mason has bounced from foster home to foster home and also feels like he has no home, but dreams of reuniting with his mother who can’t care for him. They find themselves in Salem for the summer, drawn to one another and working together to untangle a set of clues left by Willow’s aunt related to her family’s secretive past.

I loved that this story tackled difficult family dynamics and showed how Willow and Mason were approaching issues with their families from opposite viewpoints. I was enchanted by the story and their search to find a place to belong and what home and family mean to different people. There’s even a bit of a scavenger hunt to uncover clues that fill in the history of Willow’s family’s past.

In 3 words, this book was heartwarming, charming, magical.