As a huge fan of Randall’s work, this book exceeded all my expectations and left me craving more! From the very first page, I was drawn into a world filled with magic, music, and unforgettable characters. Randall’s writing is so immersive; I felt like I was right there alongside the protagonist, experiencing every twist and turn of their journey. The blend of whimsical elements and heartfelt moments is simply perfect!

The character development is phenomenal. I loved watching the protagonist grow and navigate the complexities of their magical abilities while dealing with personal challenges. The relationships are beautifully crafted, filled with warmth, humor, and just the right amount of tension. I found myself laughing, crying, and cheering them on throughout the story!

I loved Breanne Randall's first book so I was excited to get this as my first ever ARC from Netgalley and I'm glad I did. I really enjoyed the book a lot and I am looking forward to her future books.

Spells, Strings, and Forgotten Things begins “on a summer day ripe with dreams and mischief,” introducing readers to a trio of magical sisters, Thalia, Eurydice, and Calliope, who have been abandoned by their mother. Ten-year-old Calliope finds a Grimoire that whispers of forbidden magic, and by the time chapter one begins fifteen years later, the Grimoire has become Grim, a sentient friend. The three sisters are Lightcraft Witches who have been warned away from magic for it costs them their memories, but Calliope, steel reeling from the loss of her mother and the breaking of her heart, risks losing memories in order to perform simple spells. When the sisters’ magic begins to fade entirely, Calliope accidentally binds herself to a tall, dark, and handsome Shadowcaster, and together, they must navigate their passionate rivalry as they discover family secrets to protect the town.

This book is a cozy, witchy, romantic escape from everyday life with a sweet look at the relationship between three sisters. The talking Grimoire reminded me of similar objects turned into characters in books like Howl’s Moving Castle and The Spell Shop, lending a particular strain of cozy enchantment to the narrative. Although there is some spice in the budding relationship between the dark and light witches bound to one another, and although the message of the novel is about finding balance in a complicated world, Randall’s prose oozes with comforting details. The sisters own a tea and book shop called Tea and Tome, and the back of the book is filled with recipes for the items they serve: Mnimi Soup with Crusty Cottage Bread and Honey Butter, Sage and Brown Butter Gnocchi, Apple Cinnamon Melomakarona Cookies, and Orange Fairy Tea Cakes. There are even drinks like Witches’ Wisdom Tea and Moonlight Elixir Cocktail. These details help create a comforting atmosphere that can keep the magic flowing once the story is complete.

If you are looking for a lovely distraction from the real world and a sweet exploration of the magic of memory, give Spells, Strings, and Forgotten Things a try.

Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy of the book in exchange for a fair review.

Spells, Strings, and Forgotten Things follows three sisters, Calliope, Eurydice, and Thalia, dealing with the mess left behind by their missing mother.

I honestly did not enjoy this book at all. The romance felt weird and super rushed and kind of came out of nowhere? The story was lacking in both plot and character development. Is it high stakes? Low states? Literally cannot even tell what the stakes are here, it goes from "we don't know what will happen" to "the world is ending" and back again, over and over. The story tries to say something about generational trauma but the message just comes up short. My favorite part was the recipe section at the end that took up 5% of the pages, just because it was less of this story I had to suffer through.

Thanks Netgalley, sorry I won't lie and claim this was better than it was.

PS: calling a character a "shadow daddy" does not make him one.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I adored this book!!
The Petridi sisters are the sole guardians of the Dark Oak, they are charged with protecting their town, however it comes with a heft cost, each sister looses a memory each time they use magic, slowly loosing parts of their mind and spirt. Calliope has freely given up parts of herself each time she practices, she's been on a quest to break this generational curse. One night one of the enchantments breaks and Calliope reaches out for sister's magic to save herself, however instead of her sisters she ends up binding herself to the leader of a rival clan. Little does she know how this moment in time will shape her future and the man next to her has a bigger role then she ever though possible.



Something I loved about this book is that it was a story of self discovery and growth, Calliope never full allowed herself to get close to others for fear of losing them, like she lost her mother to magic. She never allowed herself to heal, and never fully allowed another person to love her. Lucien helped her see how she is enough and that the right people will accept you for who you are the good and the bad. If you love a good enemies to lovers story this one is for you! Lucien, although he might be from a rival clan, his heart is nothing but Light. Calliope learns that the man she was been told to hate is not that different from her and her sisters, they fight the same battles for the same reasons, slowly she starts to see the true colors of her enemy. This gave me Charmed vibes with the "power of three" theme, I am here for it!!!!! I enjoyed the journey the sisters took, this strained bond was easily mended once they figured out how to see past each others faults. It was a beautiful to watch a family come back together, the little surprised that popped up with their aunts was a plus. Truly enjoyed every bit of this book!!!!

Breanne turned up the HEAT on this one. I loved The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic and was SO excited for this release. Definitely giving all the witchy Charmed vibes. I absolutely loved Calliope's personality, the banter, the slow burn, enemies to lovers, sister/family bonds, and the unique world building. 🤌🏼 Obsessed and hoping for a sequel?!

Loved the world building, characters and magic system. This book was clearly well outlined and the pacing was great. I loved how action packed it was while also having a really solid romance that I was rooting for. Highly recommend this release!

I can’t decide which one I liked better. Both books were awesome !! Breanne writing is phenomenal! I loved leaving this crazy world behind to adventure somewhere else! Thank you so much for the ARC!

spooky yet cozy! this was a perfect read around spooky season that was very memorable. i loved the ideas, plot and characters. i will definitely check out more from this author

I enjoyed this story!

Sisters cursed to sacrifice memories to use magic. An untimely, unwanted connection to a rival. Protecting "good" from "evil". Unexpected relationships. Healing of a family's trauma. Twists around every corner.
This story was filled with a span of emotions. A variety of characters and personalities. I also appreciated the representation. The story felt familiar without being redundant. The plot twists were fascinating! Overall, I think this is a fun read!

Thank you, NetGalley and Ballentine Books for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Spells, Strings, and Forgotten Things is a cozy, fantasy romance with elements of Charmed and Pride and Prejudice woven in. I really enjoyed the town, and all the characters, and found the magic to be unique! The relationship between Calliope and Lucien was fun, and I definitely wanted more interactions, but after the ending it seems like that will *hopefully* happen in book 2! Speaking of book 2, I didn't realize when reading this book that it was the first in a series. There was a lot of information introduced that was still unresolved at the end of the novel. But, now knowing that this book was setting up for a series I'm looking forward to reading the next book and seeing where everything goes!

Spells, Strings, and Forgotten Things reads like a modern-day book version of Charmed. It has some of our favorite things, magic, cats, three sisters who are powerful witches, and a bookshop that also sells tea. I'm going to start with the things I didn't love so that I can finish strong with the things I did love. This story has a few tropes and tired cliches such as a dark and broody male love interest, insta love, and a sisterly bond that felt a bit forced at times. Since this book isn't particularly long it feels a little like the characters lacked overall depth and were a bit underdeveloped. All of that said, this was still a delightful and cozy romance. There was wonderful LGBTQ+ representation and a diverse cast of characters. Conflicts between characters were solved maturely and in a reasonable time frame (thank goodness, we need more of this!). There weren't any of the tropes that tend to drive me nuts like the miscommunication trope or a large age gap between the main character and her love interest. This was so well written and tackled themes of discrimination and generational trauma in an elegant and meaningful way.

What a coming of age witchy read! This young feminist and self discovering novel will warm our soul. Magic always takes when it gives and for Calliope, what the magic takes is her memories. Luckily for her, thats is exactly what she wants. To forget her past.

This was a fun read. It took me a while to get into it but once I did I couldn’t put it down. I very much enjoyed this magical read!

I enjoyed this. I thought it was very whimsical, and I always go for these types of books where magic and small towns are concerned.

This one is around 3.75 to 4 stars for me. I love the characters. The magic system was interesting, and the family dynamic in this was beautiful! I felt the beginning, and some of the middle was slower than I would have liked, but I still wanted to see what would happen. I also love the recipes that are included! I know she did it for the Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic, too, and I will forever buy the books just for the recipes alone!

I appreciated the relationship that Lucien and Calliope had. The banter was amazing, and the amount of patience and love they held for one another was a beautiful thing to read!

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House publishing for my advanced copy. I can't wait to read the next book Breanne Randall comes out with!

I was really drawn to the description of “Spells, Strings, and Forgotten Things” by Breanne Randall. I was excited to get this eARC in time for fall. I enjoyed the cozy magic vibes of the town and townsfolk. I agree with other reviewers that this reminded me of Gilmore Girls and Practical Magic.

I enjoyed the dynamics between Calliope and her sisters. I found the magic elements hard to follow. The writing style was very detailed, but I found myself getting lost and having to reread a lot. I felt the set up was both too long, but not detailed in the right way. I can’t really put my finger on it. The ending felt a little abrupt after all that. I am thinking there could be a follow-up to this book considering one major loose-end never ties up.

Thank you for NetGalley for this eARC! Even though this wasn’t my favorite I know many readers will love this one.

The story stars a lightcraft witch, Calliope, and her sisters Thalia and Dissy who are charged with protecting their town and the world from the dark magic that has been contained in a tree in the woods. This duty has been passed down over generations and after their mother suddenly disappeared, the sisters were forced to take it on. The curse of this duty being that every time they used their magic, they were forced to sacrifice a memory.

The sisters live in a “Gilmore Girls” type town and operate a local tea and bookstore. But they have tension on how to deal with their duty. From outright refusal to using magic (Thalia) to sacrificing way too many memories (Calliope). This all comes to a head after a spontaneous decision by Calliope ends up with her binding herself to a shadow crafter (their rivals/enemies) named Lucien. This link sets off a chain of events that tests not only the sisters bonds but their understanding of history, their family and the magic/tree they’re supposed to protect.

The link between Calliope and Lucien forces the two sides to work together, although they have different goals which the reader is aware of, but the characters are not.

This is essentially an enemies to lovers book (though I would have liked to see a bit more of this in the story), with their relationship roots being based on past rivalries of Shadowcraft vs Lightcraft witches.

While I mostly enjoyed this story for the light break and Halloween vibes it had, I will say it was a bit all over the place. There were just way too many story lines, and a lot of them really didn’t need to be included/weren’t addressed enough to add to the story. Some of this may be because this is Book 1 in what appears to be a series, so it is possible that some of these story lines will pop up again and be flushed out more, but in the meantime I am left with a book that had way too many tangents. I really didn’t need much in the form of their past relationships or the sisters current relationships, nor did I need as much regarding their mom and aunts. All of that seemed to be just extra filler and not expanded enough to seem a real part of the story.

In my opinion, the best story lines were about the sisters (and their relationship) as well as Lucien and Calliope’s relationship (which was rushed but still compelling). Even Lucien has a lot of extraneous story lines, some of which are important to his motives, but most which are very predicable and unnecessary. I think if the story was limited more, the characters stories could have been more focused and would have come off more organic.

All in all, I did enjoy the story although I had wished it was just a little bit more. When I went to write this review I see that it is listed as Book 1 and so I am hoping it was just the difficulty in setting up the series and the future books will read better. All in all, I would continue with this series and I thank NetGalley for a copy to review.

I received this book as ARC.

I read so many books that take a minute for me to become engrossed in. I kept reading this book hoping for it to take, but I just don’t think this was my cup of tea.

The story is interesting enough, but I struggled to resonate with any of the characters. I think things could have been condensed to make the story flow a little easier.

Breanne knocked it out of the park again! If you love midnight margaritas, you're going to devour midnight martinis. Family, blood and found, connect to discover the mysteries of a generations old curse. The characters are lovable and complex. I squealed, I cried, I found hope with each of them. I cannot wait to recommend this to everyone I know.