The Lost Witch
⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Lost Witch was unlike anything I’ve ever read before. The author’s writing style was something I definitely had to adapt to, and at times I felt like I would get confused. However, I did go into this book pretty blind, so that may have contributed to that. However, once I continued on, I found myself engaged in the story being told.

In 1902, our witch Brigid, has only ever wanted a child. After meeting Knighlty, head of the Knightly coven, he is able to help her have a child. Brigid proves she will do whatever it takes to keep her daughter healthy, even if it leads to her disappearance. Brigid then appears in 2022, without any recollection of her past. Brigid helps save the town of Evermore, while putting the pieces of her lost memory back together.

Here are some things I enjoyed:

✨this book shows the love a mother has for their child, and the sacrifices they are willing to make
✨I loved the commentary/bickering between Brigid, Knightly, Ophelia, and Finola
✨I could feel the magnetic pull between Brigid and Knightly

Like I mentioned, the writing style was confusing at times. This book also mentions a lot of different monsters. I was hoping for more clear descriptions of them to have a better visual.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book released December 27, 2022.

This book centers around the Lough of Brionglóid, it's magic had once been sealed by the goddess Brighid, but a series of events broke that seal and sent the main character Brigid one hundred years into the future without any memories. Her daughter is gone with no one knowing what happened to either of them.

She meets her cousins Ophelia and Fiona who have taken up residence in her home. They are doing their best to protect the villagers from the monsters that come out of the lough.

Another constant is Knightly, he is a demi-god whose coven is responsible for the monsters plaguing the village. A coven he no longer has control over.

Brigid with the help of Knightly, Ophelia and Fiona must reseal the lough and above all, Brigid needs to bring her daughter home.

This is a unique tale with many twists, revelations, surprises. A truly enjoyable read.

I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

A satisfying story of magic, love, heartbreak,and fantasy.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Loved the witchy aspect of this one, but that was about it. The cover is super nice though. Love a good purple book!

The Lost Witch is a page-turning adventure of love, loss, and everything in between. It was a pleasure to read, and I thoroughly enjoyed Brigid’s journey through grief and bargaining.

✨ Review ✨ The Lost Witch by Paige Crutcher; Narrated by Aoife McMahon

Brigid is a witch in the town of Evermore (Ireland) in 1922, and we jump quickly into her magical dealings with her goddess as well as Evermore's competing god Luc Knightly, both who are battling over access to the Lough (the lake of dreams). Suddenly Brigid is transported 100 years into the future and the town of Evermore is facing demon creatures invading the town constantly. She wakes up without her memories, but surrounded by her ancestors Ophelia and Finola, as well as Luc, but who's side is Luc really on?

This was a really delightful magical story with gods and goddesses, fairies and demon creatures, and witches from different centuries. The audio narration and accent were so much fun and had me hooked into this book (and the competing group of witches have an amazing creepy voice - LOVED them). The book mixed humor and fantasy and romance and family and friendship, and it was a great listen.

It did stretch on a little long in places and my mind wandered a little, but overall this was a delight of a book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: fantasy/magic in a real-ish place
Location: island / small town in Ireland
Reminds me of: Luc/Bridig were giving me Addie LaRue vibes in places, but definitely different
Pub Date: out now

Read this if you like:
⭕️ magic and witches
⭕️ Irish mythology
⭕️ time travel

Thanks to St. Martin's Press, Macmillian Audio and #netgalley for an advanced audio and e-copies of this book!

3.5/5

The Prologue for this book was amazing! I found the plot to be lacking at times but as a whole it was a wonderful read. I loved the premise of her waking up after 100 years in the future with out her memories and she has to work together with a god and her two descendents, Ophelia and Finola. I wish it went more in depth into this plot. While it was covered i feel like it could have been done better.
While I mostly enjoyed the plot the characters were disappointing. They were very one dimensional and I wish she had given the characters more of a voice. All in all I wish they had been stronger and that she showed us more instead of telling us as much as she did.

The setting was wonderfully written and the author did a wonderful job transporting us there in both time lines. I loved the imagery that she included that really helped transport you into the book.

Thank you Netgalley for gifting me a copy of this book in return for my honest review.

The Lost Witch
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Genre: Fantasy
Format: Kindle eBook and Audiobook
Date Published: 12/27/22
Author: Paige Crutcher
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

My Thoughts: This story combines fantasy, paranormal, romance, and time travel with witches with magic and sprinkling in heartbreak. I had both the kindle version and audiobook. There are two timelines, 1922 and 2022, mainly narrated by Brigid. At times the novel was a little slow but I believe this was due to Brigid’s memory gaps. I preferred the audio over the kindle for this novel, it was easier to follow along with the audio. My favorite characters were probably Ophelia and Finola. There was good chemistry between Luc and Brigid. The characters were well developed with depth, wittiness, chemistry, had magical flare, and creative. The author’s writing style was complex, magical, good world building, and kept me engaged. I would recommend trying out the audiobook version.

Rating : 3 out of 5
Blurbs :
1922. Brigid Heron is a powerful witch and healer in the seemingly lost, but charming small town of Evermore on a forgotten isle in Ireland. However, there is one thing that she longs for above all else: a child of her own. She is even willing to be seduced by the mysterious Luc Knightly, head of the Knightly coven, whose pull is potent and impossible to resist. When their child is born and falls ill, Brigid will risk anything to save her daughter–even tap into the forbidden magic of the Lough of Brionglóid. But when the wild magic takes her daughter from her, Brigid is swept away as well.

2022. Evermore is under siege. The witches of Knight have been using their chaos magic to widen the rift between the island and the Otherworld. Creatures from folklore prey on the villagers, consuming their very humanity.

Brigid awakens in this world with no memory of how she traveled into the future, but she learns that she helped unleash this curse on Evermore. To seal the lough and stop the witches of Knight, she must work with her magical descendants, Ophelia and Finola. But the knowledge she seeks lies with Luc Knightly himself—mysterious, handsome, and powerful. To save Evermore, Brigid may have to lose everything once again.

Thoughts : Thank you Netgalley for the early copy. Time travel is a very very difficult trope to be written and it can be a hit or a miss. It did happen in Licanius Trilogy by James Islington...and some people hate it. Sadly, I can't get into this book, don't care for the characters and so glad that this is over.

The Lost Witch had potential for 4.5 to 5 stars. The storyline was there, the characters made sense and were witty, which I loved. Unfortunately, the first fifty percent of the book seemed to drag on and, while it definitely helped in the build of the story. I felt it could have been about half the length and readers would have received a better experience.

I am someone who is quick to DNF a book, usually around twenty percent, and I almost did with The Lost Witch. I’m glad I didn’t because I did wind up liking the book. What I didn’t like about the beginning was all the unnecessary hopping around and events that required me to reread sections to fully understand. I struggled significantly with the pacing because I found it difficult to connect with the characters. At around 38%, I did start to enjoy the perspectives, timeline and voice.

As I said, I am glad I stuck with the book, as I enjoyed it immensely. The last half was straight forward, the hopping around was minimal and easier to follow, fast-paced, and even have a nice little dabble of love.

The Lost Witch by Paige Crutcher was an enjoyable Halloween read. There was some romance as well as some adventure and suspense. The story was both happy and sad. In this book, Brigid wakes up at a time in the future and has no recollection of her memories. This book did have a slow start, but then the plot really picked up. All of the characters were very lovable especially Finola who made the book comedic. Although this book had a slow start, I was satisfied with how it ended.

While I enjoyed this read, I found myself frequently setting it aside to read other titles.
I think there was a dissonance between the characters and the plot because of the time-jumping and the ambiguous explanations of the nature of the conflict.
A more thorough effort at world-building, especially the incorporation of certain aspects of Celtic mythology and Druidic lore, would have added both dimension and depth.

I don't know how to describe this book any other way besides it's like walking through a forest that was painted by an impressionist but that forest is real life? It feels tangible but vague.
The stroll through this forest is lovely but something's not quite right, you feel like there's danger but it feels like it can't hurt you because it's all muddled and blurred and the enemy is just nonsense lost in the messy scenery.

It's still a good book, very prettily written but it's left me feeling a bit bored, wanting, and confused.

I think this had great potential. The premise was interesting, and I enjoyed the worldbuilding and the main characters. However, there was so much going on that it was hard to keep up. I also think the story would have worked better without a modern timeline. The pacing was also off, I struggled through the middle section. 

I listened to the audio and read the ebook at the same time, and once I got used to the narrator, I found she did a great job. 

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of the ebook and audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

So I liked the time travel aspect, the mystery aspect, and the magic system. It took a second for me to get into the story...I had to push through (I am not a DNFer). I'm glad I did but it was quite an effort.

I read and enjoyed The Orphan Witch by Paige Crutcher, so when I saw The Lost Witch, I didn’t hesitate to read it.

This is the story of Brigid, a powerful witch who has lost her Goddess. Not only has she lost her Goddess, but she wakes up 100 years in the future, in her home. Her home, which is now occupied by Finola and Ophelia, also witches and descendents of hers. Her beloved city of Evermoore is under siege from the damned who have been set free from the Lake of Dreams.

Brigid has lost her memory, but with the help of the handsome demi-god Luc Knightly, she starts piercing back her memory and realizing what she needs to do to save the town.

A love story, with good witches and bad witches and fairy rings. Yes, please.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I received an ARC of the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Summary: It's 1922 in the beautiful hills of Ireland. Brigid Heron, a known witch with the gift of healing, loves to be alone, but hates being lonely. Not having a supportive family growing up, she decides to devote her life to serving the Goddess and perfecting her craft. Even though the Goddess becomes her one true friend and she spends much of her time offering her skills to the townspeople, the loneliness becomes unbearable. In a desperate plea, Brigid asks the Goddess for a gift, one that would provide her unconditional love and happiness, something she didn't get as a child. When the Goddess says no, Brigid turns to Lucy Knightly, the God of Mischief, and makes a deal with him in order to get what she wants. Things however aren't as they seem in Ireland. Chaos is brewing, putting Brigid and everything she holds dear in danger. In an effort to curb this evil, Brigid casts a spell and it goes horribly wrong. She wakes up 100 years in the future in the basement of her own home having absolutely no memories of her past. As she navigates this new world of 2022, she finds that two women have moved into her home claiming they've been waiting for her to return, that she is the key to lifting the curse that has been plaguing the town for the last 100 years. To matters even more confusing, when Brigid meets the mayor, she feels an instant connection with him that she doesn't understand especially since she's never met him before. Brigid realizes the only way to figure out how to break the curse is to get her memory back, and she'll need the help of her three new acquaintances the most.

Review: The Lost Witch is definitely for readers who love magical realism and love stories. As those are two of my favorite themes, I truly loved this book. Being set in Ireland, I could easily imagine the scenery and the little bits of magic Paige Crutcher sprinkled in there. I'm an incredibly visual person, so every time I read I always hope the author gives enough detail for me to imagine the setting, characters, and other important things, and Paige does an amazing job at that. The magical elements of The Lost Witch were totally believable. The Witches of Knight remind me of the girls from The Craft once they go all crazy with power. The creatures that comes out of the lough are terrifying and creeped me out. Those things are from nightmares, I swear. Also, the fact that Paige included actual pagan holidays like Samhain and Imbolic made me really happy. I bet most people don't know that she didn't make those names up. Paige also did an amazing job at making each character have their own personality and backstory. They weren't bland or static, which I really enjoyed.

The journey Brigid goes through is absolutely incredible and heartwarming. There is something about watching a character discover their true selves that always makes me happy. Brigid I feel has a lot of generational trauma in the sense that her mother surely didn't make Brigid feel like she was loved and her father was just a horrible man. That translates into her feelings about herself, and about family and why she never wanted one of her own. There comes a time for her though when she feels like she needs to prove to herself that she is lovable and that she can love, so she asks the Goddess for help.

This is where Lucy Knightly comes in. I am HERE for an attractive/hot villain. Knightly has "Mr. Steal Yo Girl" energy to me. He carries himself in a certain way that totally fits a god of mischief and he flaunts it. It's the fact that Knightly cares for Brigid with his whole being that gets me. My heart flew into the sky every time they interacted because I could tell something was going on there and I was just waiting for something big to happen. When it did, I literally screamed "WHAT?!" Totally mind blown. I know he's the bad guy in everyone's eyes, but I was with him the whole time and I'm glad that everything works out for him in the end.

Ophelia and Finola are also one of the best dynamic duos I've read. Finola is hysterical and doesn't give a s***. I also like that she's a lesbian. Her comment about women having the softest skin made me laugh. Ophelia is so sweet and gentle, and cares a lot about everything. The fact that these two are practically complete opposites makes their friendship so much better. Also, I loved how quickly they grasped onto Brigid and would in no way let her go. Ophelia and Finola are a huge part of Brigid's journey of accepting and loving herself, and it's amazing that they both also learned so much about themselves as well. Also, their podcast cracked me up.

All of that to say that I would 100% recommend this book. I plan to buy a physical copy as soon as possible.

1922 - Before
“The town of Evermore floated outside the ring of Kerry, off the coast of Ireland” and is mostly invisible to outsiders. There is a white stone house with a slate roof and a bright blue door just a wee bit from the Lake of Dreams. A witch lives there - Brigid Heron is her name and she is the everything in this story. She is a healer. She has a daughter, her name is Dove, and she is the result of a deal gone bad. She is lost to Brigid - lost to the Lake of Dreams. A man was involved but not just any man. There is a lost memory reminding there is always a hidden cost to magic, especially the magic of a god.

2022 - Now
Brigid is facing her fear, awakening in her cellar not remembering anything, exploring what is her house but not hers, calling upon her Goddess for help, receiving no answer. It is now inhabited by Ophelia Gallagher, a descendant of Brigid Heron, and her roommate and best friend Finola McEntire. They are modern day women with cell phones but they are also women of magic who are trying to protect their village from the Lake of Dreams.

Nightmare fairies, goblins, pookas, banshees, monsters, the damned and other things that go bump in the night are hungry in their search for victims. The circle is closing. The clash is going to be monumental and catastrophic as Brigid, Ophelia, Finola and The Man join forces to combat the witches of the Lake while trying to find and save Dove.

I loved the characters - Brigid who likes to argue and The Man who likes to listen, Ophelia and Finola for their irreverent thoughts, chatter and pop culture references. The Ever More Podcast was close to being hysterical and so happy to hear that the sheep are once more thriving. I enjoyed the inclusion of just enough Gaelic and Celtic traditions, terms, expressions, festivals so there was no mistaking that this was a tale of Ireland and it’s many mysteries. I loved that this was a love story on so many levels. It was all a bit of magic.

Thank you St. Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley for a copy.

The Lost Witch by Paige Crutcher takes place in present day, and one hundred years before. Brigid Heron was a powerful witch and healer in 1922, in the town of Evermore in Ireland. Brigid wants a child more than anything, and when she finds a mate in the opposing Knightly coven, Luc Knightly is an unlikely match, but Brigid can’t resist this mysterious head of the coven. When Brigid gives birth to a daughter, and her daughter falls ill, Brigid will prove that a mother’s love trumps all and she will do anything to save her. Even if that means immersing herself into the forbidden Louth of Briongloid, which only takes her to the year 2022, without her daughter by her side.

When Brigid awakens, she has no memory of how she got there, but she soon understands she has released a curse on Evermore, where the witches of Knightly use their magic to widen the rift between the island and the Otherworld. Brigid is greeted by her descendants, Ophelia and Finola, and with the magic of the three witches, they must find a way to right the wrongs by sealing the lough once and for all.

Unfortunately, the plot of this story was as convoluted as Brigid’s thrust into the next century. Her lack of memories was more of a stalemate, than suspenseful. The writing itself had a whimsical flair, which only made me more confused, lost and frustrated. In simple terms, I was bored. The characters were bland, Luc may have been a hot coven headmaster, but there wasn’t any depth into his, or any , of the characters. I was skipping ahead at points, just to give the story the benefit of the doubt, but still…nothing.

I would like to thank Netgalley, St Martin’s Griffin Paperback, and the author for an advanced reader edition of this novel in exchange for an honest review. 2 ⭐️