What a delightful read!
This story allows for exploration of self-esteem, self-worth, and self-confidence. It demonstrates wonderful character development and growth. The relationships between the characters and their support of each other is wonderful and truly a delight to read about.
It does all of this with the perfect amount of magic and whimsey sprinkled in!
The author describes the picturesque settings within this story in incredible detail.
The love story that's unfolding seems, for the most part, to progress naturally and at a pace that makes sense given the circumstances the main characters find themselves in.
The reason that our main characters find themselves in proximity to each other is fun and exciting and brings so much to the story with regards to character growth, the development of many relationships within the story, and in describing a magical environment with such lovely language that the reader can picture it perfectly and wish they were there.
From the (gorgeous) cover of this book we will continue to explore life within Charming Cove, something I am absolutely looking forward to!
Are you in the mood for a light and cozy fantasy with a bit of romance? If so, this is the perfect book for you!

3 stars

Aria is a bit of a hot mess when it comes to her magical abilities. Her hometown of Charming Cove thinks she's a dud, but when her grandmother asks for her help to save their family shop, she can't say no. Now Aria finds herself back home and in a competition with the man she loathes, Callan Hawthorne. Callan is the sexy, billionare mage who has been intrigued by Aria since he met her. He sees the competition as an opportunity to change her opinion of him.

• enemies(ish) to lovers
• one bed
• romantic comedy

Alright. Before I even get into my review, the biggest complaint I had about this is that when Aria and Callan first meet, she's seventeen, and he's twenty-one. It's obvious from their initial interaction that Callan wanted her, and he even admits that he knows he shouldn't think about her because she's seventeen. I REALLY wish the author would have just aged her up to eighteen so we could avoid this uncomfortable situation to begin with. You can still have an age gap romance where both the characters are adults. Let's not make it weird.

This book was a cozy and lighthearted read. Although this is an adult book, it read a bit more like a YA book. I liked Callan and his determination to win over Aria, he's sweet, and you can tell how much he adores her. Aria has a lot of self-doubt, and watching her become more confident in her abilities was such a fun journey. The plants. Oh man, a witchy book with lots of plants? I didn't know that was something I needed in my life, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading about all the plants.

The pacing was a little on the slow side in the beginning, but then it picked up about halfway through during the competition. The characters felt a bit flat, and I would have loved for them to have more depth.

Overall, it was a fluffy, easy read! I loved the magical fun, and the story was unique enough.

This book was such a fun, light hearted read. That’s not to say it didn’t have its moments eliciting emotion from me, but most were just genuine smiles and laughter. I’d consider this a nice, cozy read for sure. I would absolutely read more stories set in this world.

review posted on good reads on 6/5/23

I love a cozy witchy read, but this book felt a little rushed to me!
The book is set in a dual POV, but it wasn't executed properly. It is cute how Callan is obsessed with Aria and is determined to make her his, but the interactions between them were a bit awkward at times and honestly uncomfortable for me to read.
Initially, I was hooked on the plot of this mysterious billionaire mage and a witch with struggling powers. But there was no buildup whatsoever to any of these. I wish they were both described more, I feel like I dint get to know the FMC or MMC at all.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this e-book for me to review! All opinions are my own <3

This was such a cosy light read, exactly what I needed after more intense fantasy books. Aria was such a strong and interesting character to follow, she has to face her old bullies and try to win a competition for her family. I adored this one and enjoyed it so much. Would recommend so much!

I see witchy.. I read, I see Romcom .. I read , I see light hearted , fluffy witchy fun… I’m all over it! I loved this , I’m a sucker for a witchy romance & this ticked all the boxes for me 😍 such a fab paced book with a sprinkle of humour, magic , plants & love. Couldn’t have wished for a better book to keep me occupied & suck me into a whole new story.

I didn't have any kind of expectations when I started to read this book, but it turned out to be a very cozy and light read. It's a witchy rom-com, with cozy vibes in a modern and beautiful small town by the sea. It tells us the story of Aria, a witch that has problems with her magic, and Callan, a very powerfull and rich mage. They don't get along very well, and Callan doesn't really understand why, but Aria has her reasons. The thing is, this had everything to be perfect and one of the best reads of the year, but I didn't liked that much. Not because of the story itself, but more because of the writing style. It had very little details and it explored almost nothing of the story and the world. I also didn't like Aria! She's a very strong and capeble woman, but by the end of the book she was more annoying than anything else. Despite this I stand by what I say - it's a very light and funny read, but I wanted more and I didn't find it. Nevertheless you should give it a shot! Maybe it will surprise you.

Not a lot of depth and semi predictable storyline but honestly we just need that sometimes! There’s comfort here and I really enjoyed. The cozy, witchy vibes make for a perfect fall book! Aria was super loveable.

This book was a fun, cozy read. If you enjoy magic, enemies to lovers, and feel good, gooey reads, I suggest trying it.

I voluntarily read an early copy.

Aria is a witch who just blows things up any time she tries to use her magic. Bullied for her lack of ability, she escapes her Cornish home town, Charming Cove for London. Eight years later, after losing her home and job because yet again her faulty power got her fired, her grandmother brings her home to participate in a competition to win the Garden of Enchantment, which supplies her family's potion shop. Her competition? Some of the bitchy witches who bullied her, and sexy billionaire and property developer mage Callan Hawthorne, the man who she vowed to hate after he ruined a special spot of hers.

I adored Aria and Callan. I loved how Linsey Hall addressed him being a billionaire and how gross they are. (I know these billionaire trope books are fiction but I detest capitalism and the fact we have them so I can't suspend disbelief even for a book of fiction). Callan was supportive, sensitive and just the best kind of book boyfriend. He believed and could see Aria's power even when she couldn't, and supported her to find it. I also loved the supporting characters, especially Boris, Aria's badger familiar.

This book was cosy, fun and sexy. I couldn't put it down. It was also refreshingly free of the same old tired cliche obstacles that are placed in books that feature a competition. Instead it was a lovely fun character-driven book about a young woman having the confidence to claim her power. I'm really looking forward to what I can see will be a new series, I hope we see her best friend's story next.

ETA: I bought the audiobook of this and I have to say I'm disappointed that the publishers cast someone who clearly isn't English or could do a decent English accent. WHY????!! There's so many amazing English actresses who could've done this!

Thanks to Bonnie Doon Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was just the break from reality I needed. Let's start with our characters, we have Aria a witch who's magic is questionable at best, Callan a man with more money than common sense at times, a town full of magical folk all trying to win, and a badger that just wants to eat everything in sight while spying on Aria for her grandmother.

This competition is complicated though for more than one reason, you see Aria and Callan have a history, one that neither of them can forget but for very different reasons.

Fast forward a few years and they meet again, this time competing for something they both want very much but again for very different reasons.

Through our competition, getting to know each other, and learning more about themselves than we expected these two bloom into one of my favorite couples so far this year.

Did I mention the ending, it is swoon-worthy, downright swoon-worthy and I'm here for it.

Thank you to Bonnie Doon Press and NetGalley for providing a copy of this E-Book, I have voluntarily read and reviewed it and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Modern Girls Guide to Magic had a little bit of everything I love 🌱 plants, 🌙witches,✨magic, competition, 'enemies' to lovers!!

I'm a sucker for a witchy romcom and the balance of magic, romance, and of course laughter was perfect. I will most definitely be recommending this and 🤞hopefully we see more from this (spell)cast 😉 of characters in the future.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for an arc!!

BRB, packing my bags for Charming Cove 🧳

The Modern Girls Guide to Magic by @linseyhallauthor
This was the perfect cozy witchy story that I needed. I loved the feeling of closeness Aria had with her grandmother and other characters in the small town.
I love when a book is well researched and I definitely got that vibe from this book. Such a heartwarming book with perfect characters and development. I can't wait to come back to Charming Cove and visit with these characters again.
5⭐️ & amazing vibes
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What an absolute gem of a book. It is packed full of warmth, charm and wit and with a host of wonderful characters you can't help but root for. This is the perfect summer read.

This is a sweet small-town romance with an enemies to lovers, competition setting. I enjoyed the small coastal witchy village of Charming Cove and all the neighborhood characters. You can imagine the small community clearly. Everyone has an intertwined story. Even the animals can communicate and who wouldn’t want to have a cute familiar they can talk to? This was a light and engaging read. The romance was heartwarming and endearing. Aria grows significantly as a character throughout the story with the help of the community she left behind for so long.

Thank you to Linsey Hall, Quill and Bonnie Doon Press, and NetGalley for a digital copy of The Modern Girl's Guide to Magic.

Thank you to the author and publisher for this book on NetGalley in return for my honest thoughts and review. I love a witchy romance and this ticked all the boxes for me. The characters were so cute and it was such a cosy read. Boris was amazing and a true highlight of the story. He really made me giggle. There was many little elements that made me feel all warm and happy inside: Gran, Boris, the cat in the library. It was wonderful!
It would have been a higher star read for me if it wasn't for the age gap which made me feel a bit icky.

Thank you for granting me an ARC for this book.

This story has enchanting world building, a compelling main character, cute and heartwarming side characters and even an ever hungry talking badger sidekick. There was nothing not to love about Charming Cove and its inhabitants. I liked the magic and the people. I loved Aria too, from the dejected disaster to the journey she braves to find herself. The book plot was solid and stayed away from too many cliches and those it did, it did well.

Unfortunately, where this book dropped the ball in my opinion was the love interest and therefore the romance between the two. Whether accidentally or on purpose, I ended up hating him in his first two POVs because he’s knowingly entitled and condescending, he uses magic to circumvent rules and to get images of people he probably shouldn’t have, he destroys things and thinks he’s improving them and he thinks disparaging thoughts of others without knowing them. This was all just his first POV, in his second he realized he had hurt Aria pretty badly in the past and his first thought isn’t to try to figure out why and apologize, it’s to think how do I convince her she’s wrong to be hurt and I did the right thing! Then he proceded to cap it all off by threatening a man so far beneath him that he really needn’t have bothered. The man in question never makes a come back in the story so it’s not even plot relevant. At this point I consider him a walking red flag parade!

His outward behavior does improve a bit through the story and he does do helpful things for the plot however when in his head after this, everything he’s thinking is about her. We never really sort through the mess that is him. It means that by the time I have to close the book on this couple I think the ‘I love yous’ are premature and that this relationship won’t survive past a few months, not unless he goes to therapy. A man who has somehow made it to adulthood without a single good friend, a man who made his whole young adult life about his father and then immediately latched onto a woman and has now made his life about her isn’t one capable of healthy relationships long term. I need a sequel where this man goes to therapy.

Sorry about the ranting. I may have made you believe the book is bad. That’s not true, we don’t spend enough time with the guy for it to end up bad and it’s mostly about Aria and her journey and that’s told very well through a very interesting plot I don’t want to spoil. I did enjoy the story overall and I would read other stories happening in this world because it’s a beautiful wistful world.

🥰 I saw this book all over bookstagram and really wanted to read it! So I’m so glad and lucky I got an eARC.

🫶🏼 After some intense books (most recently Fourth Wing), I really needed this adorable cute book. It was quick to read, and the lovable cast of characters kept me hooked. Boris the Badger and Catrina were my favourite cheeky little characters 🦡

I would’ve given this 5 stars (who doesn’t love a cute book with magic, plants and competition?) but the typos started to annoy me in their frequency… I don’t know if this was just in the ARC, but eg Tabitha v Tabatha early on caught my eye, and there were a few others that took me out of the magical world of the book.

I will be posting a review on Instagram as well.

Thank you to @netgalley, Bonnie Doon Press and Linsey Hall for a chance to read this E-Arc.

What do you get when you throw together a witch who’s unsure of her magic, a sassy familiar named Boris and a sexy mage love interest?

A cosy, heartwarming read that touched on connection and believing in yourself. I liked that it wasn’t a typical romance story in which boy swoops in and sweeps main character off her feet. We got to watch them work together and grow.

I’m looking forward to more in this series, I need more Boris in my life. ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Thanks to Bonnie Doon Press, Netgalley and the author for an ARC of this book. I am leaving this unbiased review voluntarily.

This was a lovely, quick and easy read. The first book in a series which promises to be a lighthearted, magical read. There's definitely some adult content, but to me it read mostly like a New Adult Supernatural Romance. I really liked both Aria and Callan. Aria's character was well-developed, as was Tabitha and Aria's Grandmother. Callan was less developed as a character but served his purpose as wealthy, hot love interest.

My favourite was Boris the badger - just so funny.

This was a very quick and fun read.