Hex Appeal by Kate Johnson

Book Review Sep 22, 2022

My review

4/5 stars

The kids are back to school and the weather has turned chilly, so spooky season is officially upon us; I celebrated by reading this witchy ARC from NetGalley and One More Chapter.

I was a bit unsure about the story at the start, I found it more challenging than I expected to keep track of the various witches living in Beldam House and the direction in which the story was headed. I'm not sure if this was done on purpose by the author to help solidify the idea that the house was always changing and everything was a bit all over the place for the characters, but either way I found it a bit distracting and it took some getting used to.

Once I had settled into it, though, I found that I quite enjoyed the characters underneath the mess. Essie was a quirky female lead - she was strong, vulnerable, witty and funny all at the same time. Josh was a charming male lead, and acted as a great foil for Essie with his determination and suspicion, but I didn't connect to him on the same level as I connected to Essie.

The secondary characters, particularly the "family" of witches living in Beldam House were fantastic fun and gave depth to the story. They provided different perspectives on the magic world and made the story's world feel more multi-dimensional. I'd love to spend more time with all of them in future stories (hint to the author if she ever reads this), particularly Lilith and Avery.

When it comes to the fantasy elements, everything felt really well researched and was executed in a very believable way. I never felt like I had crossed into something that was silly or false.

Despite finding it challenging to get into at first, I enjoyed the story and would like to spend more time with the characters.

*I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book blurb

Essie Winterscale lives in a huge and ever-changing house in the village of Good Winter, in deepest, darkest Essex. She lives with various witches of various ages, one of whom is still a bit salty about having been burned at the stake in 1635, one who keeps accidentally casting fertility spells, and one who knits things that create the future.

All Essie ever wanted was to have a normal life but in the end she found herself drawn back to Beldam House because she just can’t stop her witchiness (although the ability to instantly chill wine is pretty awesome, even she has to admit).

Into this coven of chaos stumbles gorgeous, clueless Josh, their new landlord – and he’s just discovered his tenants haven’t paid rent since the 1700s! As Josh is drawn further into the lives of the inhabitants of Beldam House, Essie is determined to keep him at broomstick’s length. That is, until a family secret, lying hidden for centuries, puts Josh firmly under her spell…