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Spells for Forgetting: A Novel
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • “Lush with secrets, magic, and a past that won’t stay where it belongs, this novel is (quite fittingly) spellbinding.”—JODI PICOULT, author of Wish You Were Here
A deeply atmospheric story about ancestral magic, an unsolved murder, and a second chance at true love
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: She Reads
Emery Blackwood’s life changed forever the night her best friend was found dead and the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her. Years later, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence on the misty, remote shores of Saoirse Island and running the family’s business, Blackwood’s Tea Shoppe Herbal Tonics & Tea Leaf Readings. But when the island, rooted in folklore and magic, begins to show signs of strange happenings, Emery knows that something is coming. The morning she wakes to find that every single tree on Saoirse has turned color in a single night, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that the town has tried desperately to forget.
August knows he is not welcome on Saiorse, not after the night everything changed. As a fire raged on at the Salt family orchard, Lily Morgan was found dead in the dark woods, shaking the bedrock of their tight-knit community and branding August a murderer. When he returns to bury his mother’s ashes, he must confront the people who turned their backs on him and face the one wound from his past that has never healed—Emery. But the town has more than one reason to want August gone, and the emergence of deep betrayals and hidden promises spanning generations threaten to reveal the truth behind Lily’s mysterious death once and for all.
A deeply atmospheric story about ancestral magic, an unsolved murder, and a second chance at true love
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: She Reads
Emery Blackwood’s life changed forever the night her best friend was found dead and the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her. Years later, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence on the misty, remote shores of Saoirse Island and running the family’s business, Blackwood’s Tea Shoppe Herbal Tonics & Tea Leaf Readings. But when the island, rooted in folklore and magic, begins to show signs of strange happenings, Emery knows that something is coming. The morning she wakes to find that every single tree on Saoirse has turned color in a single night, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that the town has tried desperately to forget.
August knows he is not welcome on Saiorse, not after the night everything changed. As a fire raged on at the Salt family orchard, Lily Morgan was found dead in the dark woods, shaking the bedrock of their tight-knit community and branding August a murderer. When he returns to bury his mother’s ashes, he must confront the people who turned their backs on him and face the one wound from his past that has never healed—Emery. But the town has more than one reason to want August gone, and the emergence of deep betrayals and hidden promises spanning generations threaten to reveal the truth behind Lily’s mysterious death once and for all.
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Readers say *Spells for Forgetting* offers a richly atmospheric and immersive small-island setting with a slow-burning mystery and a touch of ancestra...
Originally reviewed on Cyn's Workshop
Adrienne Young weaves together a fantastical story, a magical mystery that is perfect for fans of Practical Magic, luring in readers with a chilling atmosphere and an unsolved murder that has haunted the shores of this island.
Storytelling
What I loved so much about this novel was the atmosphere. Here we have a small island that is a tight knit community. A community that blames August for the death of one of their own a decade ago, the girl who was one of his friends, one Lily Morgan. And it reunites him with his former love, Lily Morgan’s best friend, Emery.
Young did such an amazing job building up the haunting atmosphere and tension between the characters and the town, going between not only Emery and August, but also building up the mystery with interludes by other characters and segments of what really happened the night Lily Morgan died.
We get to know these characters, their past relationships and how they fit together now. They’ve all changed, and with the mystery, the magic, the spell crafting that slowly unravels within the story, it hooks you in.
Alongside the haunting unraveling of death of Lily and the dark mysteries held by the community on this island, we also have the mounting romantic tension between Emery and August. You want to root for these two, for the years they lost when the community turned on him. But, even so, there are times you as the reader wonder if he really did it.
Final Thoughts
Spells for Forgetting is a wonderful haunting mystery, filled with long lost loves and a dark mystery that threatens both of them.
See more reviews at Cyn's Workshop and follow me on Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Tumblr | Spotify Podcast | YouTube | BookBub | Goodreads+ | LinkedIn
A magical mystery, Spells for Forgetting is as alluring as the tense romance between Emery and August.
Adrienne Young weaves together a fantastical story, a magical mystery that is perfect for fans of Practical Magic, luring in readers with a chilling atmosphere and an unsolved murder that has haunted the shores of this island.
Storytelling
What I loved so much about this novel was the atmosphere. Here we have a small island that is a tight knit community. A community that blames August for the death of one of their own a decade ago, the girl who was one of his friends, one Lily Morgan. And it reunites him with his former love, Lily Morgan’s best friend, Emery.
Young did such an amazing job building up the haunting atmosphere and tension between the characters and the town, going between not only Emery and August, but also building up the mystery with interludes by other characters and segments of what really happened the night Lily Morgan died.
We get to know these characters, their past relationships and how they fit together now. They’ve all changed, and with the mystery, the magic, the spell crafting that slowly unravels within the story, it hooks you in.
Alongside the haunting unraveling of death of Lily and the dark mysteries held by the community on this island, we also have the mounting romantic tension between Emery and August. You want to root for these two, for the years they lost when the community turned on him. But, even so, there are times you as the reader wonder if he really did it.
Final Thoughts
Spells for Forgetting is a wonderful haunting mystery, filled with long lost loves and a dark mystery that threatens both of them.
See more reviews at Cyn's Workshop and follow me on Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Tumblr | Spotify Podcast | YouTube | BookBub | Goodreads+ | LinkedIn
I love mysterious islands. LOST is still one of my all-time favorite television shows. And while Spells for Forgetting is very mysterious, it’s more magical. I couldn’t help comparing it to The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater as I read. The autumn setting, the otherworldly island, the love story. Adrienne Young’s adult debut is the immersive read you won’t want to miss this fall!
From the first sentence, the reader is transported to Saoirse, a mystical island located off the coast of Seattle, Oregon. It’s steeped in folklore, the locals secretive and protective of the island and the orchard that provides the island’s survival. They begrudgingly endure the seasonal tourists who visit, knowing they provide the much-needed income that allows the island to stay as it is.
August left the island he was born on, along with his mother, fourteen years ago after a devastating fire at the orchard and the murder of his classmate and friend, Lily. A murder he was suspected of being involved in. But when he left the island, he left broken hearted, something no amount of time seems to be able to heal. He’s only returning now bearing his mother’s ashes, granting her last wish to be buried on the island.
The morning August arrives on the ferry, Emery knows something has changed on the island even before she lays eyes on him. The trees on the island have changed color overnight and the birds are acting strange. A storm is coming. Emery has lived a half-life since August left the island—and her. They’d had plans to leave together, but for the last fourteen years she’s been doing exactly what she’d said she wouldn’t: living on the island running her mother’s tea shop.
August’s arrival reopens old wounds, old mysteries, and closed hearts.
I didn’t want to put this one down, reading into the wee hours of the night. But, I forced myself to set it aside because it was so good I wanted to be fully awake when I read the ending. I drowned in the atmosphere of this story—the misty wind-strewn beach, the shadowed forest hiding secrets, the tight-lipped townsfolk protecting the island.
It’s beautifully done, told from various points of view, which only creates more mystery. I highly recommend Spells for Forgetting. Pick this one up on a chilly autumn evening, with a crackling fire and a cup of hot tea nearby, and I assure you you’ll be transported into an unforgettable story.
Thank you to Delacorte Press and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.
Check out my reviews and playlists at A Book Wanderer
From the first sentence, the reader is transported to Saoirse, a mystical island located off the coast of Seattle, Oregon. It’s steeped in folklore, the locals secretive and protective of the island and the orchard that provides the island’s survival. They begrudgingly endure the seasonal tourists who visit, knowing they provide the much-needed income that allows the island to stay as it is.
August left the island he was born on, along with his mother, fourteen years ago after a devastating fire at the orchard and the murder of his classmate and friend, Lily. A murder he was suspected of being involved in. But when he left the island, he left broken hearted, something no amount of time seems to be able to heal. He’s only returning now bearing his mother’s ashes, granting her last wish to be buried on the island.
The morning August arrives on the ferry, Emery knows something has changed on the island even before she lays eyes on him. The trees on the island have changed color overnight and the birds are acting strange. A storm is coming. Emery has lived a half-life since August left the island—and her. They’d had plans to leave together, but for the last fourteen years she’s been doing exactly what she’d said she wouldn’t: living on the island running her mother’s tea shop.
August’s arrival reopens old wounds, old mysteries, and closed hearts.
I didn’t want to put this one down, reading into the wee hours of the night. But, I forced myself to set it aside because it was so good I wanted to be fully awake when I read the ending. I drowned in the atmosphere of this story—the misty wind-strewn beach, the shadowed forest hiding secrets, the tight-lipped townsfolk protecting the island.
It’s beautifully done, told from various points of view, which only creates more mystery. I highly recommend Spells for Forgetting. Pick this one up on a chilly autumn evening, with a crackling fire and a cup of hot tea nearby, and I assure you you’ll be transported into an unforgettable story.
Thank you to Delacorte Press and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.
Check out my reviews and playlists at A Book Wanderer
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 4 stars
This is an atmospheric and enchanting read that I didn't want to put down. I love Adrienne Young's writing style as it flows so smoothly, making her books enjoyable for me to read.
I really liked how this book had a little of everything; young love, a mysterious death, and a hauntingly magical island set in the Pacific Northwest.
It's told from multiple POV's and moves between past and present but is easily followed.
This is an atmospheric and enchanting read that I didn't want to put down. I love Adrienne Young's writing style as it flows so smoothly, making her books enjoyable for me to read.
I really liked how this book had a little of everything; young love, a mysterious death, and a hauntingly magical island set in the Pacific Northwest.
It's told from multiple POV's and moves between past and present but is easily followed.
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