Sangu Mandanna is once again the master (mistress?) of the cozy fantasy romance. This book managed to make me laugh and had such a wonderful found family. I loved that the inn found people who needed it and brought them there. That alone would have made this a five star read for me but this book also had some beautiful depression representation that made me consider the struggles of depression in a new light which is saying a lot for someone who had been fighting depression for five years and studying it for over a decade.

A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping will a hundred percent become a new comfort read. One of my favorite things about it was that it was comforting without shying away from things that make life difficult like racism and the dangers of not standing up to oppression. I loved that no one in this story was perfect but we saw that imperfect people can do good, and people who have chosen to do the wrong thing can still contribute to the good.

If you like found family with a bit of magic you need to run and get this one as soon as you can! I would describe it as low fantasy. We get a bit of a magical quest but the romance and self discovery are also a huge part of the story. If you loved A Very Irregular Society of Witches you'll love this one. I will be yelling about how good this book is for months so I apologize in advance.

I adored this. After waiting through so many pushed back release dates and so much anticipation I was briefly concerned - what if I'd hyped it up too much. What if it didn't live up to The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches?

I didn't need to worry.

5/5

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing an ARC for review!

I didn’t really enjoy the first one. It was cute but nothing interesting happened so I ended up putting it down. Therefore, reading the second book doesn’t seem like a good idea.

Although I thought the beginning was a bit slow, it picked up for me about half way through and the rest flew by. Overall, I thought this was super cute, cozy, and solid second adult novel for Mandanna!

Thank you Netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sera is a very powerful. The only other witch in the area as powerful as her is an adult and he is tutoring her, all the while jealous of her power. At the age of 15, Sera has lived with her aunt at an old inn. One morning, her aunt is found dead. Clemmie, the witch turned fox who lives with them convinces her to cast a resurrection spell, which is illegal. Sera casts the spell, Aunt Jasmine is alive, but Sera is a fraction as powerful as she once was.

Fifteen years later, Sera and Jasmine have a charmed inn that brings people who really need a refuge. One day, witch Luke and his younger sister with autism arrive. Like works with a member of the witch’s guild and tends his sister. Their parents have no idea what to do with young Posy but Luke is lost trying find someone who will care for her as much as he does. They find the inn and join in the quest to help Sera find a spell to bring back her magic and transform
Clemmie back into a human. This a cozy story of a family whose members are not related to each either, but they fit together just as well.

I absolutely loved this book! It has all the charm of the very secret society of irregular witches. She has done it again!

I've been eagerly anticipating this book for what feels like AGES and it did not disappoint!! Cozy, full of heart and found family, a magical inn, a zombie rooster, a swoony, bookish, neurodiverse MMC and his autistic younger sister plus a cursed fox and an amazing cast of side characters. Grumpy Sera was easy to root for as she tries to find a way to get her magic back after losing when she cast a resurrection spell to bring her beloved aunt back to life. 10/10 recommend! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Mandanna has really perfected her craft. It's got the same components as The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches but the execution was flawless this time. I was so moved by BIPOC, neurodivergent and physical disability storylines. There were so many good quotes! I loved our FMC and MMC but all the side characters were amazing too. I can't wait to hear about Mandanna's next book, I'm interested if she will make this her niche/signature and how many different spins she can put on the found family, adoptive parent, 30s finding home and love and magic plotlines.

I deeply enjoyed Mandanna's previous book as a cosy and magical escape, and she strikes just the same chord here while bringing us into a different setting and slightly different magical world. While the books are standalones, they complement each other in theme and tone. Fans of her previous work will be thrilled with this new entry.

Mandanna writes a satisfying romance, but what she really lands is the chosen family and finding your place. Sera is a relatable lead character through her struggles and the walls she has put up around herself, but there's also something aspirational to her. While she doesn't see all she means to those around her, others do. And the way that this is brought to her attention is tender and balanced, even reciprocal. She feels defeated by her challenges but is never bested, she is kind but fiery, she works hard and deserves a break but doesn't lose perspective. I also loved the way that the antagonist played into the story here. He never gets more time than he deserves while remaining a subtle threat that the audience wants to see squared away. The ultimate showdown is satisfying and feels true to the story.

Top it all off with a dreamy and cosy magical setting that invites you to stay with a cinnamon bun and a tempting scent of apple blossom tea on the air.

this book was cute, but it wasn’t really for me. it took me forever to get through because i was never “in the mood” to keep going with it. the writing was a little unpolished and almost childish at times. it felt a bit like a debut novel. i do think this will find its place amongst cozy readers for sure and i will be recommending it for purchase at my library.

thank you to the author, the publisher, and netgalley for providing me with an eARC. all opinions are my own.

After reading, and loving, The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, I couldn’t wait for what might be next. I’m so happy to report that I was not disappointed. I love the witchy worlds the author creates.

4 stars - I enjoyed the authors previous “Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches” very, very much, so was quite happy to be an early reader of her latest, “A Witches Guide to Magical Innkeeping”, which I also really enjoyed & highly recommend. As before we have lots of cozy vibes, diversity and found family. There is also a slow-simmering romance, but it is not the primary trope. The real focus of this story are all the very quirky and eccentrically magical residents of the Inn and a stolen spell. The characters are very original and the fantasy here is quite whimsical in nature too. I really enjoyed it and will continue to read these charmers if there are more. Many thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for my advance readers copy - a sincere pleasure to read & review this title!

I loved The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches and this is a worthy follow-up with all the cozy charm and found family goodness! Some cozy fantasy falls flat for me because it's all cozy, no resistance, but Sangu Mandanna's has that core of anger against injustice that makes the coziness feel satisfying instead of empty.

I absolutely loved this book! I felt like Sera’s character was so compelling and relatable, with her grumpy yet determined attitude and longing for the future she thought was out of reach. I admired her resilience in the face of losing her magic and being exiled from her Guild, and I found myself rooting for her as she juggled running the inn and chasing the old spell that could change everything. I thought the enchanted inn setting was delightful and full of charm. I loved the quirky guests and the hilarious antics of the semi-villainous talking fox—it added so much personality and humor to the story. I felt completely immersed in the magical world, and I couldn’t get enough of the madcap chaos that unfolded within the inn’s walls.

I loved every moment of Sera’s journey and found myself smiling, laughing, and feeling inspired along the way. It’s a book that I’ll be recommending to everyone who loves quirky characters and enchanting worlds.

I really wanted to like this book, but I felt like the story dragged too much. I really enjoyed her previous title, The The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, so I had high hopes for this one.

It felt like there wasn't a strong enough purpose to propel the story along. Maybe the side quests for the characters could have been minimalized and more focus could have been built for a true, clear and dynamic storyline. It felt like the author had a lot of good ideas and made them fit, but maybe they should have just held back and possibly revisited the characters again in a sequel.

A big thanks to Netgalley and the Berkley Publishing Group for letting me have early access to an e-galley.

I’ve had Sangu Mandanna on my radar because many of my faves from when Twitter worked loved her A Spark of White Fire, but scifi has always been a struggle for me, so when I learned about her witches I was immediately in for the ride. I adored A Very Secret Society, and could not wait to get my hands on A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping - and it did not disappoint! Mandanna has a particular gift for chosen family and cozy fantasy vibes that just leaves me feeling like a warm hug. I loved all the people living at Batty Hole inn and the way Batty Hole gave them a place where they could be loved and wanted exactly as they are. The romance between Sera and Luke was so sweet full of mutual pining. Even though there’s lots of heavy themes and elements, this still felt like a light read to me and I found it nigh impossible to put down. If you liked Ann Aguirre’s The Only Purple House, this book will hit that same niche and leave you feeling like community and family is what you make it in the best ways.

Emily Wilde meets Sabrina the Teenage Witch. This book was so cute and cozy, it makes me wish there were more books like this out there but sadly there is not. It was uniquely charming and the perfect light read. I would recommend for anyone who loves fantasy, romance, and all things cozy. I even went as far as making my own "cinnamon buns" to celebrate finishing it. I can't wait to read more from this author in the future.

I've been holding onto this one for a bit to read it at the right time and it was perfect!

This book has an incredible cast of side characters and a lot of heart. This is definitely a cozy book, the setting is immersive and you come to care for all the characters. There is some great autistic and queer representation as well.

My only complaint is there was a little too much telling - it made the story feel a bit disjointed.

I'd highly recommend this to cozy lit enjoyers and fans of the first book.

Rated 4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC ebook.

Mandanna has a knack for publishing exactly the perfect book when I need it. This was the perfect mix of complex emotion and cosy fantasy

5.0

Thank you NetGalley and publishers for the ARC!!

If you need a story about hope, growth, family, and the world being with filled with little bits of magic then this is the perfect book!

One of the things I love most about Sangu Mandanna is how incredibly diverse and well-rounded all her characters are. You fall in love with Luke the caring and protective big brother love interest just as much as Nicholas the fumbling want to be knight. Under all the layers of dreaming, romance, and identity, at the heart of this cozy fantasy is a story of growth for our main character Sera from who everyone expected her to be into her true authentic self.

After finishing this book, I think the author really hit home on messages of not only belonging but thriving in the world and family we create for ourselves. I hope there is a third book coming that explores this magical world that Mandanna has created!