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 ⭐️

Paige Crutcher is becoming one of my go to authors. She has a way with weaving a story that is so whimsical, complicated, and intense you just can’t help but get lost in the pages.
Bridgid is as complex as they come and her many facets were beautifully written. Waking up a hundred years in the future with no recollection of anything she has to piece together her memories while saving the land she loves. Knightly is a fun character and while I found him frustrating at first the more memories Bridgid recovered the more I understood his motives. I loved how much action and family ties were woven into this. The magic system was lovingly pieced together, and I adored the setting. Perfect for fans of Crutchers first book, witchy tales, and action packed fantasy.

Rating: 4.5/5
I received an eARC of this book for my honest opinion

This book did take me a minute to get into it, but only because I found myself a little confused at some parts but once I got through, I couldn’t put the book down.

The book starts off with one of the MC Brigid Heron in the past and we get to learn her story a little. However, you will then be zoomed into the future with Brigid, and you come to find out that she had no memories of anything in her past and you get to go on an adventure to figure out exactly what happened and to help her find a piece of her that is missing.

I really enjoyed every single character in this book. I loved getting to know Brigid, Luc Knightly and of course Ophelia & Finola. Ophelia & Finola are my favorite characters in this book, I loved how hilarious they’re to each other and others and on top of that they just want to help the village out and save everyone that they can. I can admit that I hated Luc at first, I thought he was just an ass but the more and more you get to know him, you come to understand his ways and how sweet he really can be. I loved Brigid a lot, I found her strength and determination to find the answers to her lost memories something I could connect with. Even her flaws when he came to that sexy trickster god Luc Knightly. Wow they really had some sexual tension/chemistry in this book.

I didn’t know how this book was going to end, if it was going to be a dud or if it was going to have a twist ending that left me saying WHAT! To my luck it was not, and Paige wrapped everything up into an amazing ending that left me saying AW!

The attention to details in Crutcher writing really helped to bring this little piece of heaven in Ireland, together for me. If you love books about loss, found family, magic and demons you should pick up this book and read it.

I want to thank Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me the chance to read and review this book for my honest opinion.

This was one of my favorite reads of 2022. The writing was beautiful, I loved the characters, I just wanted more when it was over 😭

This book was okay, but the plot was a little hard to follow at points. I couldn't get into this immediately, but I did end up finishing and enjoyed it.

The Lost Witch begins in 1922 with a focus on Brigid Heron, a witch who serves her goddess on the magical island of Evermore. However, after Brigid betrays her goddess, she finds herself lost in 2022, and the island is cursed and overrun by dark magic.

I found the story confusing to start. It took a while to find my way in this story world which also meant it took a while for me to be engrossed by the story. But at the same time, I found it intriguing throughout, as I tried to determine who was good and what needed to be done to restore the world.

The writing took a neat format with excerpts from newspaper articles, a spellbook, and legends of gods and goddesses. For me, the writing was the stand out best part. However, I would not call it a romance. For me, this fell strongly in the fantasy category only.

Thank you to @stmartinspress and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

3.5 stars rounded up

The Lost Witch by Paige Crutcher combines paranormal romance and suspense with heartbreak, magic, and hope in an evocative good versus evil story line. While the first chapter takes place in 1922, the rest of the story occurs in 2022. Both timelines take place in Evermore on an island off the coast of Ireland.

Brigid Heron is a powerful witch and healer in Evermore in 1922. She longs for a child and allows herself to be seduced by Luc Knightly, head of the Knightly coven. However, when her child becomes ill, she is willing to do anything to heal her. In 2022, Evermore is under siege from the witches of Knight who have been using their chaos magic to bring creatures to the island to prey on the villagers. Brigid awakens in this new world with memory gaps of what happened and where she’s been. She must work with her descendants, Ophelia and Finola, to stop the witches of Knight.

Brigid, Ophelia, Finola, and Luc are well-defined characters with depth. Their personalities shine throughout the book. While Ophelia was somewhat serious, Finola provided some lightness and humor. Brigid and Luc show significant growth over the course of the novel. As Brigid tries to understand the repercussions from what occurred in 1922 and attempts to recover her memories, it was enjoyable to watch her personality take on added dimensions. The antagonist witches known as East, West, North, and South, keep the tension high and provide some surprises.

The author did a great job of transporting me to this community in both timelines. The imagery was extraordinary. However, the pacing in the middle section of the book was slow. I believe this was partially due to Brigid’s memory gaps. The readers were struggling along with her to determine what had happened. My other quibble is that there were times when the writing was more telling than showing. This also affected the novel’s pacing.

The author weaves a story of light versus darkness that highlights mythology, folktales, monsters, family, love, heartbreak, power, kindness, and helping others. The plot has some unexpected twists and the antagonist’s psychosis was memorable.

Overall, this was an entertaining story that kept me engaged. The rich storyline with its layered plot, several interesting characters, and plenty of action made this a pleasurable read. Those that enjoy good versus evil stories with some romance and action may want to consider this book as their next read.

I thought this was a fun read. A little slow, but I didn't mind that! I liked the slow, relaxed pace. I thought the characters were fascinating.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a free copy to review.
This book is to be published on December 27, 2022

In an attempt to save her daughter, Brigid accidentally gets pulled into a lough and loses all her memory, washing up 100 years later. Set in the magical town of Evermore, she along with two people now living in her house (Ophelia and Finola) must work together to try and close the lough Brigid opened before terrifying creatures kill everyone.

This book was a real miss for me. The concept is awesome, but in execution, it was boring and quite confusing. I don't know if it was the flashbacks or the writing style, but I just did not find myself immersed in this story as much as I would have liked.

The side characters, Ophelia, Finola, and Luc were very different and interesting (and for some reason I really liked the little podcast episodes between Ophelia and Finola-- it helped me stay on track with th story...kinda). And they were by far my favorite characters. Brigid seemed too stiff and flat for me as an MC. I wanted to root for her! I just... didn't really care about the outcome.

Overall, if you love quirky witchy books with magic and evil demons with some good side characters, this would be a good one to try out!

No 'sophomore slump' with The Lost Witch! I have as hooked from the get-go and couldn't put it down until I finished. Can't wait to read more from Paige Crutcher!

Ratings 3.5 stars

*I received an ARC from NetGalley for my voluntary and honest review

Brigid Heron is a witch and healer in the town of Evermore. Desperate to save her daughter she uses forbidden water from the lough. She wakes 100 years in the future with some of her memories lost. She finds her descendents spend their days fighting monsters called the Damned coming from the lough. Brigid learns the monster started appearing the day she disappeared 100 years ago, that somehow her disappearance caused a crack in the seal of the lough. A coven of witches is trying to pull the lough’s power into themselves and it's up to Brigid and her descendants to reseal the lough, restore her lost memories, and find and save her daughter.

The beginning of this story was a little hard to get into. With all the character introductions and two timelines along with the world building it felt like there was little room for plot. But once you got through that it was an intriguing story. Ophelia and Finola, and their podcast, was probably the best part for me. Don't get me wrong I liked the romance between Brigid and Luc, but it felt like so much missing because of the lost memories you felt like an outsider viewing their love instead of someone being pulled into and feeling the romance. I did like the mythology aspects of the story. I also appreciated the fact that the Fae creatures were closer to how they are in mythology than the romanticized view people tend to have of them today.

All that being said I did enjoy the book and will probably read other books by the author, time permitting (which is hard with a crazy toddler around lol)

3.5/5 Stars

A story of a witch pulled through time, losing her memories and ending up in a cursed version of her beloved town.

This story had so much promise, the characters are lovable and charming and the pieces are there but I found threads hard to follow and loose. The story jumps timelines, drops in random podcast transcripts, switches narratives on top of just have things not tie off.

For example theres a main plot point about how the MC doesn’t want to have a child with a man but then there’s stories of her randomly sleeping with men that didn’t really add to the plot. Thats one of many just random disconnected bits.

Book provided by Net Galley for an honest review.

3.5 out of 5 stars

I like that Brigid eventually remembers what happened to her and is able to solve the mystery and help the town. I was confused at times about the timeline and where we were in the story but by the end of the book I had it all figured out. I look forward to reading more books from Paige Crutcher in the future.