I found this book to be an enjoyable read. The story kept me engaged from start to finish and had some moments that really stood out. Overall, it offered an entertaining reading experience.

3.75 rounded up to a 4

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for providing a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was a good witchy time with a murder mystery, spellcraft, friendships woven in magic, and suspense! Mazzy and Nora are two friends who find themselves in a conundrum when they find a body while on the beach and through their determination through spellcraft and divination help to solve the mystery.

It is a quick read that keeps you engaged from the beginning. I feel that it definitely shines more for its intended audience, which is YA, but anyone can read this and enjoy it, especially during the fall season. The twists were good, though slightly predictable. Definitely give it a try if it intrigues you!

3.5 stars for this one, I think.

Personally, I found the Mazzy/Elliot mutual crush thing to be a little distracting/exhausting especially when it means Nora (the more interesting of our two not-Mazzy main characters, honestly) gets kind of sidelined in the second half despite being literally in grave danger.

But the witchy vibes are solid. This would be a great Halloween read, particularly for people fond of The Craft (I haven’t found many other witchy books that hit that same balance of realistic darkness and accidental ill intent).

I also really liked the disdain with which our mini coven viewed the appropriation of symbols and mythology from across cultures in search of power without respecting the source. And I liked that there were actually adults involved? The kids don’t just magically (no pun intended) save the day

I really enjoyed the book, although it is a YA and I’m in my mid 30s. It still was a great read. I was looking for that dark witchy vibe.

This novel had a strong opening and really hooked me. I enjoyed the aspects around their practicing of witchcraft. Though I do worry that some young adult readers may try these spells for "fun" I did enjoy the mystery of the story that kept me engaged throughout the story. I also enjoyed the will they or won't they between Mazzy and Elliot. Al in all this was a well told tale that had me turning pages late into the night.

the perfect cozy fall read!! murder mystery meets witchy vibes.
mazzy and nora discover a body on the beach and try to solve the murder. they speak with ghosts, research occult societies, all to solve this mystery.
the prose is simplistic, which is a plus in my book, because it’s easier to recommend to a wide variety of readers!

This book blew me away! A Spell to Wake the Dead follows teenage best friends who are interested by witchcraft and the power it can hold. After a spell seems to not go as expected, eerie things start to happen. This YA novel is spooky, eerie, witchy, and moody. It is truly the perfect book for the Halloween season, or if you’re reading this in the summer like me wishing it was October! Although it’s a YA novel, it had me fully immersed and invested into the story. I think it’s appropriately written for the age group, but still an interesting story well written for any age! This is the book I was always looking for as a kid, and I can’t wait to read it again this spooky season once it’s published.

loved it, it's the perfect fall/halloween time of read.
the first 30% kind of dragged but after that i couldn't put this book down.

paranormal ✔️
witchy stuff ✔️
rid or die friendship ✔️ ✔️ ✔️

I didn't see the plot twist coming and also didn't see "spoilers" happening either.

3 1/2 stars, rounded up


After reading The Depths by this author a couple of years ago and really enjoying the eerie and creepy vibe of it, I was excited to read her newest release.

This book follows Mazzy, who finds a dead body with her best friend Nora when the two of them go to the beach to practice a magic spell. They feel a connection to the body and become determined to find out what happened to the dead woman.

Horror and thriller go together really well and this book did an excellent job with the atmosphere. A lot of very creepy things happened and those horror elements made this different from other mysteries and thrillers out there.

I liked Mazzy as a character but I didn’t like Nora much and she really wasn’t much of a friend to Mazzy either. I liked Mazzy’s crush much better. The romance was a little odd since all these weird and creepy things are happening around them, but the romance did add a little levity and kept the story from getting too dark.

The reason I’m not giving this a full 4 stars is because I thought the end reveal got a bit convoluted in terms of the explanation and I wanted a bit more from it overall. But I’m rounding up because this was overall really great!

Overall I liked this one. If you read a lot of mysteries and thrillers and want to broaden your horizons a bit by adding in just a sprinkling of horror, I’d recommend this one. This author is also becoming a go-to for me when it comes to spooky reads. I can’t wait to see what she’ll write next!

I like the vibes of this book!
I thought the plot was there, it moves quickly but gives just the right amount of details without being too much. I’ll say it’s perfect for its intended audience, especially for the ones who love a good witchy vibe. I thought it hit a bit on the thriller side as well as the fictional side of course.
Good little in-between read for me!

A Spell to Wake the Dead had a super cool premise—coastal witchy vibes, dead bodies washing up, creepy occult energy—but the execution just didn’t fully land for me. I was expecting more tension and emotional pull, but it felt like the plot and characters never quite dug deep enough. Don’t get me wrong, the atmosphere was immaculate (foggy beaches, haunted whispers, New England witchcraft?? yes please), and I was intrigued enough to keep reading. But I didn’t feel super connected to Mazzy or Nora, and some of the twists were a little predictable. Still, if you’re into lowkey spooky reads with witchcraft and small-town secrets, this could be your thing—it just wasn’t totally mine.

I really liked this book however it felt too eager to jump into witchcraft (this is coming from a kid who grew up on Buffy, Charmed, etc) and waited to start character development until the main problem started. The teens dabbling in witchcraft reminded me vividly of my friends growing up and the area so familiar.

I want to start off with I loved this book. It is definitely a 4.5 stars for me. The Cape Cod setting was an added bonus for me. The story revolves mostly around two best friends Nora and Mazzy, who have been dabbling in witchcraft and spells, when they find a dead woman who washes up on the shore. Add in Elliott and a haunting spirit and you have the premise of your story. I definitely recommend this book if you like witchy, paranormal vibes with murder set in a beachy location with a cute little friend group with a small romance on the side then this book is for you. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers Group | G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for the ARC.

I love dark and gothic reads and so I wasn't disappointed with this book at all. The book is atmospheric and eerie and at times made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I loved it

A Spell to Wake the Dead weaves an atmosphere that’s gorgeously eerie and dripping with gothic influence. From the very first pages, the tone is haunting and immersive, making it a perfect read for anyone who loves stories of magic, curses, and restless ghosts.

Mazzy is a wonderfully grounded protagonist, the kind of character who feels real even as the world around her tips into the uncanny. The twists, while not entirely surprising, were still satisfying and gave the story a strong sense of momentum.

Overall, this was a beautifully written and thoroughly enjoyable read with just the right amount of chills. I’ll definitely be recommending it to fans of gothic fantasy and moody, magical mysteries.

Mazzy and Nora are best friends and pagan magic users in Cape Cod, along with their mutual friend, Elliot (who Mazzy now has a crush on, in their senior year of high school) Mazzy is the cautious witch, researching everything (which helps her anxiety) and Nora is the risk taker finding spells online, like the one she insists they do at the beach under the full moon, a spell to uncover things.

They uncover a dead woman washed up on the beach. And then another one. It seems like they're now hooked into the Hand of Nepthys a group of magic users twisting Egyptian mythos, working to resurrect the dead (while making many
dead of their own)

Detective Huld of the police seems to think they know more than they're saying. The kids think it's possible she's part of the Hand. Things go bad from worse as the dead woman's spirit attaches herself to Nora both amping up her powers but forcing to continue to find the dead.

Mazzy and Elliot have to solve the mystery of these women if they have any hope of saving Nora.

My biggest issues with this (and they were relatively minor) is we didn't really get to know Nora and Mazzy much before the spell. So as Nora starts changing we haven't even had a chance to connect with her. She just starts out annoying and gets worse. I did however like Mazzy and Elliot. There is some weirdness with the police that was hard to swallow but overall I enjoyed the story. It moved along well. The magic was cool and the red herrings worked. It's worth the read.

This book was exactly what I needed. Fast paced, kept me on my toes! I couldn't put it down. I rarely stay up late reading books but I had to see where this one went. Highly recommend to anyone who loves a thriller!

Great for teens and those who love paranormal, witchcraft and thrills galore! Jazzy and Nora are best friends who dabble with witchcraft. But a spell leads them to a body and more. Rumors abound in their Cape Cod town of a cult being responsible for the murders. A good mystery with horror and lots of suspense. Good characters. I didn't want to put this one down. Thanks #Netgalley and #PenguinGroup for the eARC in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are mine.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

I liked this book a lot. I'm all about a witchy, supernatural book and this fit the bill, but at the heart was a story of feminine friendship and power. Definitely one I'd read again!

A Spell to Wake the Dead is a delightfully campy murder mystery with elements of the paranormal that bring it right to the edge of urban fantasy. When three high schoolers perform a magic ritual on the beach one night under the full moon and a body washes up on shore minutes later, they quickly realize they’re in over their heads. But neither their parents nor the police will listen when they try to tell them about the weird things that started happening shortly after, and it’s up to them to figure out what’s going on.

A more refreshing YA mystery where the kids don’t take it upon themselves to solve an actual crime alone until they absolutely have to.