Bewitched meets Practical Magic in this sparkling and quirky rom-com with an enchanted twist. When romance problems cause their powers to go berserk, a trio of witches whose family was banned from practicing magic risk getting in serious trouble with the Grand Council. Can they get their magic—and their love lives—in order before it’s too late?
“An enchanting paranormal rom-com…Fans of Practical Magic will be delighted.” —Publishers Weekly
Nearly a century ago, Gwen Engel’s great-great-grandfather cast a spell with catastrophic side-effects. As a result, the Grand Council of Witches forbade his descendants from practicing witchcraft. The Council even planted anonymous snitches called Watchers in the community to report any errant spellcasting…
Yet magic may still be alive and not so well in Zenobia. Gwen and her cousins, Trudy and Milo, receive a letter from Gwen’s adopted sister, Tannith, informing them that she’s bewitched one of their partners and will run away with him at the end of the week. While Gwen frets about whether to trust her scientist boyfriend, currently out of town on a beetle-studying trip, she’s worried that local grad student Jeremy is secretly a Watcher doing his own research.
Cousin Trudy is so stressed that she accidentally enchants her cupcakes, creating havoc among her bakery customers—and in her marriage. Perhaps it’s time the family took back control and figured out how to harness their powers. How else can Gwen decide whether her growing feelings for Jeremy are real—or the result of too many of Trudy’s cupcakes?
A Letter to Three Witches by Elizabeth Bass is a hoot! It’s full of witchcraft gone wrong, toads, magical rabbits, and a host of magical characters. The antics of these three witches (and a few others!) are non-stop and will make you laugh out loud!
Gwen Engle owns and operates the Abracadabra Odd Job Service in her hometown of Zenobia. Her parents own and operate the local cafe, and her cousin Trudy bakes cupcakes for the cafe. Trudy is married to a college professor and has two daughters who recently left home for college. Her other cousin, Milo, owns a landscaping business in town and lives with his boyfriend, Brett a mayoral candidate. Gwen Engle and her cousins, Trudy and Milo, receive a letter from Gwen’s adopted sister (and distant cousin), Tannith, informing them that she’s bewitched one of their partners and will run away with him at the end of the week.
Gwen and her cousin’s great grandfather was a witch who made a huge mistake ( he caused the Dust Bowl in the US) and he and all his descendants for 150 years are forbidden by the witches’ council to ever perform witchcraft. But, trying to find out which partner Tannith is going to run off with, will take some spellcasting.
Gwen, Trudy, and Milo have varying levels of suspicion of their partners. Add in their grumpy Aunt Esme, who still practices witchcraft in her basement, and a mysterious graduate student who is suspicious of everyone, and you end up with a hilarious comedy of errors.
I enjoyed this lighthearted, charming, and magical story. The nonstop action kept the book from dragging and kept me turning the pages until I had finished. This is a story that will require you to just go with it and suspend your disbelief. And when you do, you’ll be rewarded with a light, humorous story. I did not feel especially connected to any of the characters, but I still enjoyed the ride. This book is heavy with humor but very light on romance. I suspect this is the first book in a new series, as I felt there were quite a few threads left hanging, and, if so, I’ll be looking forward to reading more about this zany family of witches.
I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a light paranormal, romance story. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
About Elizabeth Bass
Elizabeth Bass writes women's fiction under her own name, and as Liz Freeland is the author of the Louise Faulk historical mystery series from Kensington Books, beginning with Murder in Greenwich Village (June 2018). She also wrote many romances under the pseudonym Liz Ireland.
Elizabeth grew up outside a very small town in East Texas. The first loves in her life were animals and Humphrey Bogart. Had it not been for a father who kept the house full of books and some tireless elementary school teachers, she could have happily remained an illiterate rabbit caretaker addicted to black-and-white films on the late late show.
She lives in Victoria, British Columbia, where she writes, freelance edits, and still manages to find time for an old movie on most days.
I love when an author mixes magic and another genre that I enjoy. It’s like the best of two worlds for me. This sounds like a fun read ❤️ Excellent review!
Sounds like a fun read. I like the reason for the Dust Bowl…heh
This book sounds like my cup of tea. I might have to pick it up sometime. I love charming and magical stories.
Sounds like a fast paced, fun story! Hope you get in deeper with the characters in the coming books.
Ooo I would totally enjoy this! Going on my list.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
It sounds like a fun story, but I am not big on paranormal romance. Glad you enjoyed it Wendy.
I can’t read a lot of paranormal romance, but once in a while, it’s fun.
I haven’t read many paranormal romances. I may try this one. It has a wonderful cover!
Thank you Joanna, it’s a good one.
This sounds fun and entertaning. it’s been long I read this kind of witch book.
It was a fun book, Yesha!
I love when an author mixes magic and another genre that I enjoy. It’s like the best of two worlds for me. This sounds like a fun read ❤️ Excellent review!
Yes! The mixture of genre’s made it so fun.
Sounds quite a fun read 💕
Thank you Jenny!
A fun family read? I typically enjoy reading that type of book, so maybe I should add this to my TBR!
They sure are a different type of family!
This sounds like a hilarious and super fun magical read! 😀
Thank you Stephanie, it sure was!
This does sound like a fun read. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you Staci!