A "dnf for now," because it's literally been sitting in my "currently reading" for months without much progress. I loved the concept and I honestly liked the writing well enough too, but it's just not scratching whatever mood reader itch that I've had. So I'm going to put it in my "revisit later" shelf and we'll try again some other time.

🫑

This book was marketed as a mashup of Practical Magic and Gilmore Girls. It would have been physically impossible for me to not snatch this one up. It does give off Practical Magic vibes, but I didn’t get Gilmore Girls. Anyways. The romance in this is more of a minor side quest to the main plot line, so don’t go in expecting that to be in the forefront. I honestly rolled my eyes at the FMC because of how ridiculous she acted at points. I did love the pull of Tarot into the plot line, and the cookies. I didn’t see one of the major plot points coming, but the rest was kind of predictable. But it was still enjoyable.

❤️ Tropes ❤️
💋 second chance romance
💋 witchy romance
💋 small town romance

Flair knows magic exists. She just doesn’t want it to. So when she caught her husband sleeping with the nanny, she moved her and her daughter back to the magical little town where her grandma had lived. She inherited both her house and the shop from her, but she’s making changes. No longer a tea shop with a back door open for customers looking for some guidance from a tarot reading, she opens a bakery. Well, she would be if she ever had any customers. When the opportunity comes to design treats for the annual Halloween Trail comes, she can’t afford to say no (even though she avoids all things Halloween) While decorating cookies in a trance, she realizes that she made them look like tarot cards unlike her original plans. And they seem to be moving. She might be done with magic, but it isn’t done with her.

I enjoyed this book. However, it took me two or three chapters to really get into it. After that, the pace of the story seemed to pick up which made it more interesting. If you like tarot cards and witches you will like this.

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

I was excited for this one as it was described as "Gilmore Girls meets Practical Magic." So I was a little disappointed as I never did get a small town *feel* even though it is indeed set in a small town in Kansas. I will agree that it's Practical Magic-esque. I enjoyed the magical tarot card aspect. I think this would best be enjoyed in Fall as a cozy witchy read.

Includes:
complex mother-daughter relationships
witchy small town
magical tarot cards / cookies
enchanted husband
sprinkle of romance

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam, G.P. Putnam's Sons for providing me a digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

this is a simple book to read during fall. the first half of the book was slow but the end made up for it.

This book really just took me for a ride. I loved the build up, the character development, and the writing. I would definitely read more from this author because KJ Dell'Antonia just doesn't miss!

This book was a little frustrating for me. What initially sparked my interest was the description of the main characters being akin to the gilmore girls. I didn't see that at all. What I saw was a mom trying to do her best while probably not always making the best decisions, and a preteen who "hates" her mom for making them move across the country but then telling her nothing about her family history. To be honest I might have hated mily mom too if she dragged me back to where she grew up and then kept secrets about my heritage and where I came from.
The romance was there but it was lack lustre. I don't think the male main character had real emotions. I also couldn't tell what he was thinking about his own family half the time.
The book may have been better if it had a multiple POV instead of just the single mom.
I may have been more empathetic and understanding if I had different perspectives.

As someone who isn't super into Halloween but loves a good witch-y story, this book exceeded my expectations. While, I didn't get to read this during spooky season, the timing didn't impact my overall enjoyment of this book as it focuses on so much more than those fall vibes.

If you go into this wanting solely a romance read, I think this would let you down a bit, but if you go into this wanting a story about love, family, and change/growth (while staying true to yourself) set in a small town with what feels like a Stars Hollow backdrop, you will feel refreshed.

This book surprised me with how much it was focused on motherhood, generational trauma, and healing from wounds. I wasn't expecting it to hit this hard at all, and while I wasn't able to fully empathize with the main character fully, I still thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and found it cathartic in a way. 4.5/5

Thanks to Netgalley, and Putnam Books for this digital ARC. The thoughts expressed below are entirely my own with no outside influence.

Playing the Witch Card has a contemporary setting. The FMC, Flair, decides to proceed with separating from her husband after discovering an affair (with the babysitter, ew). Flair along with her daughter, Lucie, move back to Flair’s hometown in Kansas. Flair struggles with facing the parts of her past that she left behind a long time ago. While considering how much of her life is left to “fate”, Flair must also learn to trust Lucie, even if the result may be frightening and unknown.

Playing the Witch Card was centered on themes of motherhood. While I don’t typically choose books from the perspective of middle-aged women, I found that this book was a welcomed refresh to my reading. Following three generations of women witches, who are each on their own path towards discovering their magics was delightful to follow. The plot wasn’t focused on the magic as much, but more so on the dynamic relationships between these powerful women.

A plot point I particularly enjoyed was the intentional journey toward ending generational trauma. The FMC, Flair, had to learn to trust her daughter, Lucie. Flair allowing Lucie to make her own choices, although they may be scary, was a large challenge to overcome. I felt that introducing Flair’s mother, Cynthia, to the story and working towards healing the past wounds between the two left me with warm fuzzies.

I felt that the second chance romance was a bit too “insta-love” for me. I don’t think there was enough time spent exploring that relationship to arrive at the point they reached by the end of the story.
Another challenge with this story was with the pacing. I found myself struggling to get to the 50% point. Beyond the half-way point though, the story progressed in a satisfactory manner.

Overall, it was a cutesy story, with a mostly predictable plot. So, I would certainly recommend this to someone who is looking for a cozy read to enjoy alongside a warm cup of tea. Readers looking for a story that is more “magical realism” versus “fantasy”, or who typically steer towards Lit Fic will likely appreciate this as well.

Content Warnings:
Infidelity, Divorce, Posession, Death, Murder, Domestic Abuse

I received this book for free for an honest review from netgalley

Fun witchy read perfect for the spooky season. So much fun.

It’s a me problem not the book.
Honestly I did not enjoy this book I couldn’t even get through it, I was excited because it was Halloween based but the mc was not someone I enjoyed reading about and I didn’t enjoy the writing.it just wasn’t for me.

There was a lot going on in this book - a mother/daughter relationship, a romance, a bunch of magic and a whole lot of chaos. I think I wanted more from the romance honestly. Maybe I would have liked/appreciated it more if I actually read around Halloween but I'm not entirely sure? Overall, there were some things I did like (small town vibes & mother/daughter relationship being compared to gilmore girls in the description) - but I think there was just too much going on to really love it.

This book was okay, while it wasn't life changing and I am not sure I would buy it to have a physical copy, I would definitely recommend it to friends who like this genre of books.

The writing was good and flowed well, the cover is really pretty, and the content of the books was a great combination.

Thank you to netgalley and penguin group for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of this book!

Playing the Witch Card is a unique fiction story about Flair who recently moved back to the small town she grew up in after inheriting her grandmothers home and shop. Flair has done everything to avoid the magic in her family line. It's almost Halloween and she's asked to bake for the town's large Halloween event, but when Flair actually starts baking, she surprisingly and unexpectedly makes cookies that look just like the Tarot cards that are the source of her family's powers. They're still just cookies though, right? Hard to tell with the chaos that ensues!

This was a fun a story about family, fate, and love (the romantic AND familial kind!) perfect for reading around Halloween. It had a unique magic system, relateable characters, and just the right amount of toil and trouble.

Though I did feel like the book was trying to do a lot in 350 pages, it kept me on my toes and got me in the spooky mood. Definitely perfect for someone wanting to feel the vibes of small town magic akin to Practical Magic or Hocus Pocus!

I listened to 52% of the book before deciding it’s not for me. I liked the premise, but the story didn’t pan out, I found Flair very selfish and her relationship with her ex husband had terrible communication for having a young daughter. I did enjoy the Gilmore girl small town vibes.

Thank you @putnambooks for the gifted ebook.

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam for the eARC! Yet again another book that promises Practical Magic and Gilmore Girls vibes. I did get some Practical Magic but not so much Gilmore Girls. The beginning of this book was rough to get through but it did grow on me. It’s not my favorite of the authors but was pretty good!

This mix of family history, tradition, and forging your path is interesting. When Flair returns to her hometown to run her Nana's bakery, everyone expects her to keep up the practice: the magical practice, that is. Her grandma could tell fortunes with tarot cards and kept the bakery busy with that side business. Flair refuses to give in to using her magic and has rejected it ever since she left her town. Her teenage daughter is fascinated by it and wants to be magical, while Flair opposes this. When circumstances get out of hand with her ex-husband, her daughter's father, she has to come to terms with her magic and seek a way to put him back to right and save the town.

Fun read about a magical town founded by witches, and the lives of their descendants from one of my favorite authors. Highly recommended!

ARC from publisher via NetGalley, but the opinions are my own.