I enjoyed the description of the town. It was the perfect vibes for fall. The plot itself was fun. A long lost sister coming back to save her town from magic gone wrong, what’s not to like.

Unfortunately, the execution fell flat. The sentences and dialogue felt choppy/unrealistic. Based on her conversations with family and friends, it seemed like Scarlet was gone a couple years, not ten.

Some things felt over done. For instance having a few pop culture references is ok, but this felt over saturated. Having a few quirky characters is fun and charming, but there were all little too many in this case.

Overall, there’s a good plot here but some more editing could be done to help the book flow better and keep the focus.

This book really is like Gilmore Girls and Charmed had a cute little baby, but that's about where the happiness ended for us. The writing was a little chaotic at times, and it was hard to follow conversations. It was almost like it was trying too hard to speak quickly like Lorelai, but when reading it just doesn't work the same. The plot was cute and the characters were good, it could just use a little fine tuning!

This book has potential. It was a great idea to have the town magic become a disaster, but the main character fell short for me.

The FMC was in her late 20s, but when she came home to help, it was like she was a child. She would argue with almost everyone. The childish attitude made it difficult to pick up and keep reading. She also couldn't make up her mind on what she wanted in life. Should she stay in town or go back to the city?

A cozy read! I think the dialogue was a bit too rambly if that makes sense. Something that translates well into performance (ex in Gilmore Girls show), but a bit awkward to read.

I was really excited to read this book, as it promised fall, witchy, Gilmore girls vibes all over. The cover is stunning and enticing. Does it have those vibes? Yes, but it doesn't really deliver what it promised.
What I liked about it:
- the idea of the magical town, run by witches and protected by a Forgetting Spell (witchy equivalent of the wand thingie in Men in Black)
- the story focusing on sisters
- there's romance
- there's a little mystery

What didn't work for me was how it was developed. The world building with the magical town is fine, but everything is focused around the crazy stuff happening with the magic that the cozy "Stars Hollow" are lost pretty soon. The wacky things happening with the magic are supposed to be funny but they happen so much it gets boring.
There are so many pop culture references in this book that it will probably not age very well. Also, read the room: do we really want to use terms like "muggle" and be associated with that magical franchise these days? Just a thought.
I really dislike the family dynamics here. I understand they might be hurt because Scarlett left and stayed away for ten years but, oh my word, I get why she did! I would too if they treated me that way, being dismissed ALL. THE. TIME.
The romance is supposed to be like this epic, "it's always been you" romance but it's pretty much told and not shown so the beautiful grand gesture at the end fell flat for me.
Plus, the "mystery" was very unsatisfying. We could tell a mile away who was the culprit (and even who they got to help them) responsible for the all the troubles in town, and even too, we're left with quite a few loose ends which don't necessary set things up for a sequel.

I honesty believe that this could have been an amazing book. It just needed a content editor with a firm hand. It's not badly written at all. it is just all over the place.

A very cosy, magical read. Perfect for older Potter fans although I did feel the ending was incredibly rushed.

Th concept of the book is as super appealing to me. I liked the concept of a magical city. I just found myself not wanting to pick up the book. It was hard for me to get into. I think this more YA than I expected and had to DNF the book.

I picked up this book because it was advertised as Gilmore Girls meets Charmed. This has the perfect cozy New England setting just like Gilmore Girls and the hint of magic like Charmed. This is a cute fall read but I wasn’t wowed by it. I loved the town of Oak Haven. The concept of it being a town for witches and everyone else forgets about it when they leave the town borders was so unique and drew me in. It reminded me a little bit of the town in Halloween town. I just could not connect with the main character in this story. She seems to blame herself for everything and I just got tired of it. Her family members also treated her terribly and from a readers perspective I just wanted to shake her. Definitely not the best book I’ve ever read but it was good for the fall season. I think this book would work better for a younger audience.

A great cozy fall read! Perfect for fans of paybacks a witch and the ex hex. Read if your looking for a small-town witchy romance.

Impractical Magic was a sweet and perfectly autumnal story that went perfectly with September. I really enjoyed the setting and the magic. Our FMC held most of my qualms in that she was just too whiny. There could have been a better will-they-won’t-they, imo. I really enjoyed the sibling interactions! I wish that Violet’s story would have been wrapped up better, 3.5 stars!

I am thankful to have gotten the eARC for free from Netgalley and Avon Books UK so I can leave my voluntary review.

The description of this book tells exactly what it is. It like Gilmore Girls, Charmed (the original) and Hallmark Movie had a baby. It’s the last adjective that makes things a little problematic as it gets repetitive and there was a bunch of content that seems like filler that just doesn’t need to be there.

The romance was sweet but It could have been fleshed out a bit more.

But the book is really sweet and a great read for the fall season. If you’re a fan of those two shows it is a great nod to them even if the mentions of Gilmore girls gets a little old after a while. However if you’re looking for a magical palette cleanser this would be a great addition to your TBR!

It comes out October 1st!
My rating system since GoodReads doesn’t have partial stars and I rarely round up.

⭐️ Hated it
⭐️⭐️ Had a lot of trouble, prose issues, really not my cup of tea (potentially DNF’d or thought about it)
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Meh, it was an ok read but nothing special
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed it! Would recommend to others
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Outstanding! Will circle back and read again

I was excited to read this book as I loved the title, cover and blurb. If you love stories about magic this is the book for you,

Scarlett returns home to Oak Haven after 10 years away. She fled to San Francisco after the death of her Father for which Scarlett blamed herself.

Oak Haven is no ordinary place. It’s a magical town that’s not on any maps and anyone who finds it forgets their visit the moment they leave, Scarlett returns home to find magic in trouble and she needs to work with her sisters and Mother to fix it before the magicians take over.

Magicians versus witches as the oak grove is under seized and magic runs amok. Can the witches save the town? Will Spam take over the kitchen? And will the two of them ever get together? A fun ride to find out.

Impractical Magic promises to bring you all the witchy, fall, Gilmore Girls energy, and on that, it definitely delivers. My favorite thing about this book was, without a doubt, the quirky, small town New England setting. It truly felt like a warm fall hug, which was exactly what I was looking for to kick off my fall reading. However, I did have a hard time with some of the other aspects of the book...

Impractical Magic centers around Scarlett, a late twenty-something who left her witchy hometown—and her mom, two sisters, and will-they-won't-they best friend—10 years ago and has not been back since. When strange things start happening and her older sister asks Scarlett to return home, Scarlett of course agrees, and the sisters work together to save the magic in their hometown. This sounds like an interesting premise, and there definitely were moments where I was interested in the story and the overarching magical lore. But those moments were bogged down by, well, a not-so-likeable main character and the other storyline focused on Scarlett reconnecting with her family and with Nate, her childhood almost-boyfriend. I appreciate that the author tried to include some deeper, emotional moments, but the tone just didn't fit with the overall fluffy feel of this book, and Scarlett's constant back and forth with Nate ended up feeling more frustrating than a romantic "will they won't they." (And this definitely wasn't marketed correctly: In my opinion, there's no grumpy x sunshine to be found in their relationship. It's more like basic nice man x slightly sarcastic witch lol.) In the end, I think the author was trying to do too much; this felt a bit like three books in one, but even with that and the fact that some parts in the middle dragged on, it never quite felt like the characters were given enough space to really develop and move past the stereotypes (oldest daughter, middle daughter, etc.) and become well-rounded, interesting characters.

This book also has a looooooooot of real life references. I don't always mind this, but by the end of the book, it did get to be a bit much. We also are led to believe that this book takes place in the same world as Harry Potter, and non-magical people are indeed called "muggles," which felt a bit too silly for me.

Overall, if you have some time to spare and are looking for a fun little read to get you in the fall mood, I would recommend!

I had a fun time reading this. It is very halmark and sometimes that is what you need! I had a great time. The writing style is alittle hard for me to get thought and feels very forced at times but i can look past it for a fun read.

thank you netgalley and publisher for a copy!

This was the perfect read for the start of fall! I loved all the small town Gilmore Girls vibes and am always a fan of a character having to return to a home that they were trying to get away from! The plot was amazing, I was gripped from the start! As for the romance, I LOVE a good second chance and this one did not disappoint! I cannot wait to see what's next for Emily Grimoire!

I feel disappointed writing this because the premise sounded right up my alley, but I didn’t enjoy my time with this book. The writing felt both forced and removed, and I really struggled with the dialogue, which was in issue given that the book is dialogue-heavy. The characters felt a bit flat to me, as well, and I didn’t really feel connected to them. I did love the fall, witchy vibes of the book. It is extremely cozy and entering into fall is the perfect time to read a book with these vibes.

I love a good fall time spooky book, and I really wanted to like this book. Unfortunately I DNF'ed at 40% as I was simply unable to get into and stay in the story. I felt that while it was a good story line and had great potential it read more juvenile than I had hoped, and the use of certain popular terminology that originates in other stories was quite off putting to me. I think this would be a good YA fall read however it wasn't quite what I had personally hoped for,

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for providing an advance ready copy in exchange for my honest review.

Let me start by saying that this book was cute and I enjoyed it. If you’re looking for something lighthearted and cozy, Impractical Magic is a great choice - the imagery used to describe the town and its magic, especially during autumn, is perfect. And so many of the town’s characters are lovely.

That said, the main character is extremely unlikeable, as is her family for the most part. Scarlett’s self-blaming and guilt is too much of a focus and really doesn’t allow her character to develop beyond that. I can’t remember any other descriptors of her, other than this constant self hatred. With that, the family’s resentment toward her is also a bit extreme. These negative feelings seemed out of place in a book where the scenery was so lighthearted and cozy.

This book is also a bit long, in my opinion, and it started very slow. I wanted more details about the history of the struggles with magic, the main conflict and plot line, the magicians, etc. The book really picked up toward the halfway point, but then it felt rushed when things started to get interesting. I found myself thinking that there was a lot of detail in areas that weren’t moving the story along, but when I wanted details about the magicians and the trees, they weren’t there.

Last thing I’ll say is that there were some cringey parts that felt a bit like the author was trying to prove relevance or knowledge of current trends, in a “how do you do fellow kids?” kind of way. Some of the pop culture references just felt really out of place to me.


All in all, I really did enjoy this as a light fall read and I would recommend it to friends, with the caveat that the atmosphere and peripheral characters are what make the story.

I was so on the fence about this second chance magic tale. The author does a pretty good job of world building. Set in a magical New England town, that no one can remember once they leave the town limits. Because magic. The romance focus on Nate and Scarlett. She ran away after a spell went very wrong and he is her non magic (only women are magic here) ex best friend. She left just as their friendship was becoming more. But there is trouble in town, so at the behest of her sister she is back. This is all wonderful and charming. The characters have nice banter. Her mother is kind of emotionally abusive which but not in a plot driven way. And it is ultimately Scarlett’s emotional life is where it broken down for me. There is a “I did something unforgivable” trope, that for me after awhile, I think, you should get some therapy or something. And then the final act becomes a bit fable like. It is a light spooky season read. But not a great one. (I did appreciate the author acknowledging she doesn’t know anything about Mandy Patikin’s life - read it and you will know) I read an ARC.