This book was better than I expected. There were parts that actually made it hard to read at night because it was creepy. I liked the different twists and trying to figure out how everything fit together. I would recommend this to anyone who likes YA with a supernatural element.

✨𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒓𝒂𝒇𝒕 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐚 𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐢𝐭 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐲✨
Witchcraft, murder, tarot cards, and cults collide in this spooky upper YA supernatural thriller where three friends discover a body—and use magic to unravel a dangerous secret that threatens everything they know.
🌟🌟🌟🌟.5

I really enjoyed this eerie, twist-filled story that follows Mazzy and her best friends, Nora and Elliot, as they dive into a dark mystery rooted in the supernatural.
Mazzy was a standout for me—she’s grounded, likable, and feels like a real teenager. I appreciated how the author balanced her emotional depth and teenage vulnerability with a quiet strength that made her easy to root for. Even though the characters are in high school, their dynamic and the gravity of the situation they're facing brought a surprising level of maturity to the story, while still staying true to that 17-year-old perspective.

The tarot cards were such a fun and mysterious touch, especially with the unique twist of Polaroid-style tarot cards—which I thought was seriously cool 👌. It added an extra layer of visual intrigue and symbolic depth that made the magic feel tactile and modern.

Overall, this book is spooky in the best way—a dark, atmospheric blend of murder mystery and witchy magic that’s both thrilling and heartfelt. If you're into creepy Egyptian cults, spells of the internet, and misfit best friends, this one’s for you. Highly recommend for fans of 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘳𝘢𝘧𝘵, 𝘒𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘖𝘶𝘵, and supernatural thrillers with bite!

🗸Witches
🗸Murder
🗸Mysterious Cults
🗸Spooky Crabs
🗸Ghosts
🗸Possession
🗸Interesting Tarot Cards
🗸Moody Cape Cod Beaches

𝘈 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘞𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘥 by Nicole Lesperance is out on August 26, 2025—just in time for spooky season 🔮🪄

Thank you to Netgalley for the Arc!

This book felt like a fever dream! I read it in one sitting and could not stop thinking about it for days after. I loved the characters and the spooky elements. YA paranormal mystery/thrillers with witches? Yes please!

This is your perfect fall spooky witchy season book. This was an exciting and dark YA mystery/thriller book. I was surprised at how eerie and sinister this book was been targeted to a younger crowd. Only thing I will say two teens, a full moon and a dead body on the beach boy what a ride. Definitely a must read.

Huge thanks to #NetGalley and Penguin Group, and G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers for the chance to read this early!

First 👀 THIS COVER! #perfection

This book was everything I needed — my witchy heart is so fulfilled. The vibes are immaculate: a mysterious island, spells, secrets, and a murder mystery that kept me guessing. I loved the twists (so good!) and the romance was perfectly sprinkled in without overpowering the story.

Nicole Lesperance really knows how to create that cozy-creepy atmosphere. Light some candles, throw on some witchy music, and get ready to be pulled into this magical, eerie world. I devoured it and honestly didn’t want it to end.

Highly recommend if you’re looking for the perfect fall read. 5 stars! 🖤✨🕯️

Do you feel a chill in the air? Do you catch the smell of fallen leaves and pumpkin spice on that cold breeze? Do you sense unfriendly eyes watching you from the forest’s tangled undergrowth?

Me, Too! Isn’t it wonderful?

If, like me, you are a Halloween refugee 364 days of the year, take respite in A Spell to Wake the Dead.

Modern Day. Real World. Two witchlings and their skeptical friend find a dead body on a Cape Cod beach. Think The Craft, only more corpses and less angst. While the main characters are teenagers, the topic is dark. We gothic types love it, but it might be a bit intense for those unaccustomed to dark humor and, well, rotting corpses.
Dabbling in the occult is risky when you don’t know your own power—or weaknesses. When the soul of the murdered woman begins talking to one of the group, the others fear manipulation from beyond the veil.

The situation deteriorates as quickly as –ok, you know where I’m going with this. Let’s just say, things go from creepy to dangerous. The kids track down a murderous coven and find themselves in way over their heads.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The budding romance is nicely done, and the dialogue is believably teenager-ish. Paced well, written well, includes magic. I’m in.

Take a break from summer and dive into Autumn. Magically delicious, seasoned with the essential element of decayed flesh. A Spell to Wake the Dead is a YA paranormal tale, but I—arguably an adult—found it to be lots of fun.

Set against the eerie backdrop of Cape Cod, this twisty occult thriller follows two teen girls who uncover dark secrets, cast spells under moonlight, and discover a dead body washed ashore—followed by supernatural whispers and a second body soon after. With visions, voices, and a string of disappearances, A Spell to Wake the Dead is fast-paced and atmospheric.

The premise is so intriguing—witchy vibes, murder mystery, and a deep supernatural thread. That said, the book moves very quickly. So much happens in such a short amount of time that it’s hard to fully absorb the plot twists or connect with the characters. I would’ve loved more time to develop Mazzy and Nora’s dynamic or dig into the emotional weight of what they’re experiencing.

Still, high school me would’ve devoured this. It’s creepy, gripping, and a great intro to occult thrillers for younger readers.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 (rounded up to 4)

4 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

A Spell to Wake the Dead is unlike most of my usual reads. This is a creepy, twisty take that focuses on two young girls Mazzy and Nora who dabble at baseline in some witchy behaviors, discover a dead body on a beach in Cape Cod.

What ensues is a twisty and haunting tale with their best friend Elliot, piecing together murders without any help from police or adults. The kids in this story are 17, but feel mature for their age. This book is technically YA, based on the ages of the characters — but I found this book enthralling as an adult and even spooky. This is a book that you can easily ingest, especially as the stakes get higher throughout the story. The only thing holding it back from a 5 Star read was the rushed ending— super exciting. I would have liked a bit more explanation on the cult that we were tracking.

All in all, this is a great quick read. It comes out at the end of August 2025, and I think will be a great fall spooky read. This book had me so nervous I had to keep reading to find out what happened!! The small romance is cute, but not the primary focus of the story. It is a page turning thriller, mystery, with dark spooky elements of occult.

Thank you to Penguin, Putnam, NetGalley, and Nicole Lesperance for this Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my honest opinion and review. 👻 🎃

Disclaimer: I received an arc of this book in exchange of an honest review.

First of all, what a gorgeous cover! Really sets the tone and what you're getting into.

I loved the story and characters. Nora, the best friend, was kind of annoying but when you're a teenager I feel like you always have an annoying best friend so it kind of fit, lol. The mystery was intriguing and the story never felt slow or lagging. I wanted to see what was going to happen and as I kept reading, I was more and more hooked! I worried things wouldn't add up or make sense - it felt like there could be a lot of loose ends - but it stuck the landing and was sooo satisfying.

The witch craft in the book also felt super authentic, especially in the modern era with finding things online.

Would recommend!!

Okay, this book?? This book. It absolutely stole my witchy little heart.

From the first page, it wrapped me up in spooky, magical vibes and refused to let go. The murder mystery was SO well done—I was guessing twists and turning pages like a maniac the entire time, and I still didn’t see the ending coming. Add in a romance that actually blended beautifully with the plot (instead of hijacking it), and I was hooked.

The characters were fantastic—complex, interesting, and honestly the kind you want to follow through every haunted corridor. And the writing style? Chef’s kiss. I adored it and immediately added all of Nicole Lesperance’s other books to my TBR. She’s officially on my auto-read list now.

If you love witchy mysteries, moody magic, and characters that feel real, this one is a must-read.

a perfect mix of mystery and spooky with an eerie atmosphere, and writing that will keep you hooked and bingeing the entire 300+ pages. like seriously, when you start pulling out gilmore girls and pumpkin spice drinks this year, pick this book up too.

Nora and Mazzy are best friends who dabble in witchcraft. One day, after performing a spell on the beach, they discover a woman’s body—missing her hands and teeth. Her death is mysterious and unsettling, and soon the girls are drawn into an even darker story involving more bodies, a witchy cult, ghostly voices, rituals, sacrifices, and more.

This was such a fun book!! It’s like a supernatural murder mystery mixed with a creepy secret society story, and it totally pulled me in. The atmosphere was eerie and immersive (definitely a perfect fall read), and the mystery was really well written—I thought I had everything figured out, but the ending still managed to surprise me.

There’s a small bit of romance, which I personally liked—it added a sweet and heartwarming touch to an otherwise pretty chilling story.

The pacing is fast and never really slows down, which I loved. I couldn’t stop turning the pages—I was completely invested from start to finish. Even though it’s technically a YA setting, I think it's spooky and engaging enough to pull in adult readers too (including me).

My only complaint is that I wish there had been more background on the Hand of Nephthys and some of the secondary characters who were important to the mystery. Those parts felt a bit underdeveloped and could’ve used more depth.

Still, I really enjoyed this overall and would definitely recommend it if you're in the mood for something spooky and mysterious.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

From the description, I thought this was going to be a fun YA mystery with some witchy woo tossed in. What I got was a cheeseball YA book that tried to take itself way too seriously in the witchcraft department. I’m in the minority here, but I was highly disappointed.

Maisie and Nora are two highschoolers who are dabbling in magic. It’s all light magic until a spell on the beach one night brings up a body.

Soon Maisie and Nora are pulled in to solving a series of murders in their small Cape Town. 

To set the vibe: this book was extremely YA.

YA is not really my style and I wouldn’t have picked this off the shelf if I was browsing alone. Yet I think for the genre, this is a really well done story. 

The writing style was extremely easy to read. The dialogue felt real. The inner thoughts of the high school level characters felt perfectly done. 

I really enjoyed the mystery and adventure that the two friends went on. I thought it was extremely engaging and entertaining. I found myself wanting to pick up the book and find out what they were up to next. 

Even though the story is set up for two highschoolers to save the day, most unrealistic thing ever. It didn’t feel as corny as a a Disney show. It felt like the story was actually going to end in someway where the two highschoolers leave it up to the adults to solve the murders. 

I will say there were a few aspects of the story in regards to the background and world building that I felt the author should’ve expanded on.

I wish we had the readers knew more about Rosemary. How did she come back? Was it on purpose having the two girls find her body? How was she found? What role did she have? What's really going on with the detective?

When it comes to world building, it was very confusing if magic was real or not in this world. Is it a secret thing? Is it something that all the adults and all non-practicing magicians or witches believe and know about? And then if we all agree and believe in magic, wouldn’t it have a bigger part in the world? Do the police believe that magic exist? If they do, why wouldn't they take advantage of magic? All of that is very fuzzy.

Do the parents know the girls practice magic? Do they believe the girls can actually do magic?

Overall, I still think this is a really excellent YA book. I would recommend this to all fellow reader friends that are fans of the YA genre.

Amazon Link - A Spell to Wake the Dead By: Nicole Lesperance

Stats: 352 pages - Expected publication August 26, 2025

**Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for a copy of the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was an excellent book. It’s been a long time where I’ve read a book involving witchcraft, cults, and magic spells that truly excited me. The characters development and how they overcame their personal struggles while facing things altogether as a whole was also pretty refreshing. I am not the intended age range for this book, but I love me a good YA that’s written to where I can also enjoy it. I appreciate the amount of detail in here as well, especially the mentioning of horseshoe crabs, I grew up with them in my area and I didn’t know as much as I thought until I read this book and started to do some research. I think this book should be added to your TBR immediately because I couldn’t put it down.

This book delivered on creepy coastal vibes and witchy intrigue. I loved the eerie atmosphere, the strong friendship between Mazzy and Nora, and the way spellwork and divination were woven into the mystery. It had some genuinely chilling moments and an original premise.

It kept me curious, but didn’t quite stick the landing. A solid, spooky read.

This book is engrossing from the start. These teens are dabbling in the occult, but their spells are mild and innocent. Mazzy has a deeper connection to the ethereal, while Nora has more passion for it. I really enjoyed that Mazzy used her spells throughout her day, such as the anti-anxiety spell jar that clears the air around her. This type of thing is just cute and fun. I also enjoyed the very realistic way that Mazzy's Mom viewed her spells (nonsense that wastes her vegetables). The characters in the teens' lives are interesting but also suspect enough to keep you guessing about ulterior motives. I found the entire story to be an exciting read with a steady build in regards to the danger facing the teens. And Elliot is a cherry of a character, as he is such a good friend to the girls while completing a love triangle.

The author did a great job of including numerous little snippets that really added to the ambiance of the story, such as the home-made tarot cards. I have to thank NetGalley for the opportunity to ready an ARC of this book because I found the mystery of the murders, the allure of the occult, the unrequited love and the obsession of the girls to be heady mix. The book transported me into the town and onto the beach - it was a tingly and entertaining read!

This was witchy, fall vibes throughout! Mazzy and Nora practice some light witchcraft, which turns out to be not so light after all after they find a dead body on the beach. In trying to find out what happened to her, they find themselves researching an occult group.

I really enjoyed some of the twists and turns of this book. It felt like a natural progression of the story from one scene to another. The supernatural aspects were a good fit with how the author described it and how Mazzy and Nora reacted.

The romance parts, I could have either done without, or leaned into more. I can appreciate it was light and they are in high school. I wish we had more from Elliot though.

Wow! This book was GOOD. I was definitely not expecting this book to be as dark as it was. Starting out with the two mcs finding a body washed up, it had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Absolutely obsessed with this story and it left me needing more. It was incredibly written and fun.

In A Spell to Wake the Dead by Nicole Lesperance, two young witches, Mazzy and Nora, discover the body of a woman washed ashore during a ritual, leading them into a mystery filled with supernatural elements and occult secrets. As they uncover a series of local disappearances and delve into spellwork, they begin to experience ghostly visions and strange occurrences.

The writing is smooth, and the pace quick in this book. The mystery, the suspense, the chemistry between characters was so good! If you like witchy vibes with pretty good mystery, this is one to be read for sure!

Thank you NetGalley for this arc!