Name: Courtney Passio's review of Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young
Item: Spells for Forgetting
Rating: 5
Author: Courtney Passio

Adrienne Young

A rural island community steeped in the mystical superstitions of its founders and haunted by an unsolved murder is upended by the return of the suspected killer in this deeply atmospheric novel. Emery Blackwood's life was forever changed on the eve of her high school graduation, when the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her best friend, Lily. Now, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence among the community that fractured her world in two. She'd once longed to run away with August, eager to escape the misty, remote shores of Saiorse Island and chase new dreams; now, she maintains her late mother's tea shop and cares for her ailing father. But just as the island, rooted in folklore and tradition, begins to show signs of strange happenings, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that no one wants to remember. August Salt knows he is not welcome on Saiorse, not after the night that changed everything. 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 the 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 that span generations threatens to reveal the truth behind Lily's death once and for all. Evocative and compelling, Spells for Forgetting is a vivid exploration of lost love and the unraveling of a small town and its many secrets.

A Novel

Spells for Forgetting

Courtney Passio

A rural island community steeped in the mystical superstitions of its founders and haunted by an unsolved murder is upended by the return of the suspected killer in this deeply atmospheric novel. Emery Blackwood's life was forever changed on the eve of her high school graduation, when the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her best friend, Lily. Now, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence among the community that fractured her world in two. She'd once longed to run away with August, eager to escape the misty, remote shores of Saiorse Island and chase new dreams; now, she maintains her late mother's tea shop and cares for her ailing father. But just as the island, rooted in folklore and tradition, begins to show signs of strange happenings, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that no one wants to remember. August Salt knows he is not welcome on Saiorse, not after the night that changed everything. 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 the 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 that span generations threatens to reveal the truth behind Lily's death once and for all. Evocative and compelling, Spells for Forgetting is a vivid exploration of lost love and the unraveling of a small town and its many secrets.

Adrienne Young is so good at creating deeply immersive and evocative settings in her book.This was melancholic yet magical which makes it the perfect Autumnal read in my opinion. 

Mel 

Jennifer Gosnell

Ahhhh!!! Another fantastic Adrienne Young book! I LOVED this story. It was so interesting, and spooky, and complex. As always, I love Young’s writing. The island was so well described… and I am such a sucker for “group of friends with tragic backstory reunites” type plots. Can’t wait to read more from Young!

A good read that picks up speed as you go. I had hoped there would be more magic and witchiness though. 

Michelle Hruby

** spoiler alert **
           if i ever seen one book where i disliked almost all the characters except the main characters which happened to be our main couple, it would be this book. perfect for mystery-thriller and small town romance girlies at once i think.

thank you netgalley for providing me with the e-arc.

A cute mysterious romance with threads of magic

Kendall Lobdell

I think it was a tad repetitive in certain spots but overall a beautiful love story trapped in tragedy & jealousy. I’ve always been a fan of magic and spells and islands so this was a no brainer for me. A good windown after iron 🔥  hahah .

Brianna Hickey 

Nina Verhaaff 

Emery Blackwood’s life changed the night her best friend, Lily, was killed, and the island’s orchard burned. She’s rebuilt her life over fourteen years, and suddenly, August, her first love, reappears. And all at once, questions about that time begin again.

Adrienne Young has crafted an atmospheric, beautiful, and rich novel. I loved it.

Cheri McElroy

Emery Blackwood’s life changed the night her best friend, Lily, was killed, and the island’s orchard burned. She’s rebuilt her life over fourteen years, and suddenly, August, her first love, reappears. And all at once, questions about that time begin again.

Adrienne Young has crafted an atmospheric, beautiful, and rich novel. I loved it.

Would've been closer to 5 stars, but the ending was SO underwhelming. 

Addison Miller

I wasn't sure about this one, but the vibes were immaculate 

. It was giving Midnight Mass meets Practical Magic, and I devoured it.

The ending was entirely too abrupt for me, but it almost made it spooky and made the 'Saoirse is alive' thing even more real. 

I never can guess surprises, and this for real got me until the very end. This is definitely something that I would recommend to others, and it was giving the upcoming fall vibes.

Sarah Campbell

What a surprisingly great read. 

I wasn't sure about this one, but the vibes were immaculate chef's kiss. It was giving Midnight Mass meets Practical Magic, and I devoured it.

The ending was entirely too abrupt for me, but it almost made it spooky and made the 'Saoirse is alive' thing even more real. 

I never can guess surprises, and this for real got me until the very end. This is definitely something that I would recommend to others, and it was giving the upcoming fall vibes.

10/10! 

Adrienne young may have just written my favorite book of all time. Let's start of with this book had witchy vibes, an apple orchard, an island that is basically alive, magic and a tea shop, what more could I ask for. This book felt like rain and autumn and a nice hot cup of tea. I loved the characters, the plot and the overall vibes of this book was immaculate. I loved how Adrienne Young describes everything and the way this book makes you feel like you are in it. I didn't expect the ending and I was pleasantly surprised by it

June

this book definitely sucked me in and made me feel like i was there watching everything happening in front of me. i found my heart & brain screaming while waiting to see what was going to happen more than once 

samantha lias

Adrienne young may have just written my favorite book of all time. Let's start of with this book had witchy vibes, an apple orchard, an island that is basically alive, magic and heck the mc owns a tea shop, what more could I ask for. This book felt like rain and autumn and a nice hot cup of tea. I loved the characters, the plot and the overall vibes of this book was immaculate. I loved how Adrienne Young describes everything and the way this book makes you feel like you are in it. I didn't expect the ending and I was pleasantly surprised by it

Vilandra

This was a great book! The way all the threads of the story weave throughout and then come together and are revealed at the end. And such beautiful prose. Terrific.

Nash

I have read Young’s previous work and it is good, but this? This book is great. I'm not going to lie, I had trouble getting into the first few chapters but once I pass those I was unable to look up until I was done with the book. The island, the community, the people, and the scenery look (in my mind’s eye) like something out of a fairy tale, a spooky one but a fairy tale nonetheless. 

The story is so interesting and the author did an amazing job of keeping the reader entertained and hooked. I did not expect the plot twist. 

And how the book ended? So many questions!!!

Do yourself a favor and read it. That's all I have to say.

Alexa M

"There are spells for breaking and spells for mending. But there are no spells for forgetting." 

This was okay. I would definitely consider myself sucked into the story, but after a certain point I was just waiting for this to end. This was very atmospheric so if that's your thing, this is all for you. However, I don't usually find myself caring too much about the atmosphere of a story. In my opinion this book couldn't decided what to be. It was not magic-y enough for all the magic it had, if that makes sense?? Also some of the stuff the characters said was super corny and I just didn't find myself believing the romance. 

Not bad by any means, the writing is amazing! But I felt just... okay.

Sarah Eliz

what this book mainly had going for it was the cold, fall, witchy, foresty ambience that was so perfect for the time I read it. I loved the experience of reading this book and being in this world for the time being. I also liked our main characters Emery and August. I had this problem with Adrienne Young's other book, Fable, where there were too many side chapters and they weren't fleshed out enough to make me care about them. I was having the same issue with this one, although it didn't take away from my experience as much as it did with Fable because the focus was definitely more on Emery and August. other than that, I thought the plot was good, not mind blowing, but it held my interest well and I really appreciated the witchy elements and island!

I am not sure what to rate this yet. All I know right now is that I upped my audiobook speed to 2.5x because I needed to know the ending and that I now have a stomach ache from the anxiety of not knowing coupled with the over abundance of deceit from all sides. My theory of what happened was mostly right but the payoff of how it all wove together was unexpected and well done. 

Kerry McHugh West

This is without a shadow of a doubt my favorite Adrienne Young book yet. I loved the atmosphere, the characters, the magical realism, the mystery. Everything was so well crafted. I also adored the second chance romance in this one. My heart was aching for Emery and August throughout the entire book. The kind of love and connection they have is so real and powerful that you never doubt the depth of their feelings, even after fourteen years.

I appreciated that the story had me guessing until the very end. Me being me, loving mystery and piecing together clues, I started having my suspicions on what happened to Lily at one point, but the author was really good at creating moments where my theory wavered. As it turns out, I was on the right path, and yet the ending still managed to surprise me because there were more that I didn’t see coming!

The pace is rather slow, so it’s definitely a book you should read when the mood hits. Imagine a cold rainy day, when you want something dark and atmospheric with a dash of magic. This book found me at exactly at the right time, and I count it as one of my all time favorites now.

Maria Elena Vitale Zelaia

This is without a shadow of a doubt my favorite Adrienne Young book yet. I loved the atmosphere, the characters, the magical realism, the mystery. Everything was so well crafted. I also adored the second chance romance in this one. My heart was aching for Emery and August throughout the entire book. The kind of love and connection they have is so real and powerful that you never doubt the depth of their feelings, even after fourteen years.

 

I appreciated that the story had me guessing until the very end. Me being me, loving mystery and piecing together clues, I started having my suspicions on what happened to Lily at one point, but the author was really good at creating moments where my theory wavered. As it turns out, I was on the right path, and yet the ending still managed to surprise me because there were more that I didn’t see coming!

 

The pace is rather slow, so it’s definitely a book you should read when the mood hits. Imagine a cold rainy day, when you want something dark and atmospheric with a dash of magic. This book found me at exactly at the right time, and I count it as one of my all time favorites now.

I really wanted to like this book but just couldn’t get into it, despite it having all the things I usually love! Felt too slow in pacing and frustratingly hard to fall in love with the characters. 

Giulia

It definitely took a lot of build up but it was worth it in the end I did not see that coming

Lizeth Esmeralda

Adult fantasy that reads like a contemporary murder mystery, flipping between past and present. Whispers of magic exist in a way that Can best be described as eerie and looming. 

Minnie Mazuera

Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte press for this eARC in exchange for a review.

Spells for Forgetting is a fully immersive read!  It begins subtle and quiet with a slower pace that rapidly increases in intensity as the story begins to unfold.

The characters are welcoming and flawed, which makes them completely relatable. With this ever present auxiliary character as Saiorse Island itself, constantly making its presence felt with its murmuring, whispering and calling to its residents.

The magic in this story unfolds slowing, creeping up on you and leaving you with a tingling down your spine which takes up residence at the back of you mind for hours after reading.

Victoria Justice

Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte press for this eARC in exchange for a review.

Spells for Forgetting is a fully immersive read!  It begins subtle and quiet with a slower pace that rapidly increases in intensity as the story begins to unfold.

The characters are welcoming and flawed, which makes them completely relatable. With this ever present auxiliary character as Saiorse Island itself, constantly making its presence felt with its murmuring, whispering and calling to its residents.

The magic in this story unfolds slowing, creeping up on you and leaving you with a tingling down your spine which takes up residence at the back of you mind for hours after reading.

Saorise is an island of autumn leaves, apple picking and wild beaches. But for the families who live on these lands, the island wildness runs so much deeper.

This book is deeply atmospheric, it has very similar vibes to Twin Peaks and Haven. An isolated town, a community used to taking care of their own, a land steeped in its own magic, and generations of drama to top it all off.

All of this culminates with Lily, beautiful, wild, and dead on the night of her graduation. An evening marked in everyone's memories as smoke choked and panic stricken. It had always been Emery, August, Lily and Duke. They had all planted memories throughout the island, worn down paths between their houses, midnight plans to rule the world. but as the investigation into Lilys death continues, August comes under suspicion - can Emery believe that her soulmate murdered her bestfriend ? But it doesn’t matter, the island is convinced. Except they can’t prove it. August and his mother flee the island - they disappear without a trace, and the islanders slowly rebuild, well all except Emery, Emery who carries the smoke filled burden of being a walking reminder of that night, of Lily and of August, of the night that almost destroy Saorise.

Fourteen years later and Emery still carries those looks, the suspicions. Fourteen years later and she still wakes screaming from dreams of that night, she still lost nearly everything - and she has no idea why. Fourteen years later August Salt sets foot back on the Island, and everything begins to change again.

I really enjoyed the slower pace of this one, sometimes I feel like with thrillery books like this things tend to be rushed, but i actually got to settle with the characters and setting a bit which is nice. I do wish that there had been more magic, more spells and omens, less all too human drama, and most importantly less miscommunication. The drama and miscommunication that some adult characters chose to make was really my only clue that this book was an Adult debut, otherwise the plot and writing were very enjoyable.

Alice Hyman

Saorise is an island of autumn leaves, apple picking and wild beaches. But for the families who live on these lands, the island wildness runs so much deeper.

This book is deeply atmospheric, it has very similar vibes to Twin Peaks and Haven. An isolated town, a community used to taking care of their own, a land steeped in its own magic, and generations of drama to top it all off.

All of this culminates with Lily, beautiful, wild, and dead on the night of her graduation. An evening marked in everyone's memories as smoke choked and panic stricken. It had always been Emery, August, Lily and Duke. They had all planted memories throughout the island, worn down paths between their houses, midnight plans to rule the world. but as the investigation into Lilys death continues, August comes under suspicion - can Emery believe that her soulmate murdered her bestfriend ? But it doesn’t matter, the island is convinced. Except they can’t prove it. August and his mother flee the island - they disappear without a trace, and the islanders slowly rebuild, well all except Emery, Emery who carries the smoke filled burden of being a walking reminder of that night, of Lily and of August, of the night that almost destroy Saorise.

Fourteen years later and Emery still carries those looks, the suspicions. Fourteen years later and she still wakes screaming from dreams of that night, she still lost nearly everything - and she has no idea why. Fourteen years later August Salt sets foot back on the Island, and everything begins to change again.

I really enjoyed the slower pace of this one, sometimes I feel like with thrillery books like this things tend to be rushed, but i actually got to settle with the characters and setting a bit which is nice. I do wish that there had been more magic, more spells and omens, less all too human drama, and most importantly less miscommunication. The drama and miscommunication that some adult characters chose to make was really my only clue that this book was an Adult debut, otherwise the plot and writing were very enjoyable.

The haunted feeling I’m left with after finishing this book is unmatched. Spells takes place on a small island called Saiorse and like all small towns, everyone knows everything about EVERYONE.. and more then one person is probably harboring a secret or too. Even though that’s the same in all small towns, Saiorse and Spells is anything BUT typical. 

The atmosphere, the vibes and relatable characters, the family ties and stopping at nothing, the LOVE and hurt... ugh, I can go on for forever. Spells is full of mystery and this subtle magic that is unlike anything I’ve ever read before. 

This book is a masterpiece. I always love Young’s work, but her adult debut is one book you won’t want to miss. 

Read if you like:
- A subtle fantasy
- Mystery
- Deep rooted family ties
- An island full of Magic
- Real true love and a tender moment or two 
- Betrayal 
- ATMOSPHERIC 
- Coffee
- Grandmas 


Courtney Passio &
Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young

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Courtney Passio &Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young

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Courtney Passio &
Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young