Review: The Book of Magic (Practical Magic #4) by Alice Hoffman

I first fell in love with Alice Hoffman's stories after watching the 90s film Practical Magic - which, ironically, is nothing like the book!

Since writing Practical Magic, over twenty-five years ago, Alice Hoffman has written two prequels and now this sequel. You could probably read The Book of Magic without reading the other three, or only after watching the film, but you'd be missing out on a wonderful series.

Thanks to falling in love with the wrong man, Maria Owens ends up on a scaffold accused of witchcraft and curses any man who falls in love with an Owens woman ('broken, body and soul'). Four hundred years later and her family are still feeling the tragic effects of this curse. After witnessing her mother's suffering, teenager Kylie Owens has no intention of risking the life of the boy she has fallen in love with and is determined to do anything to break the curse, once and for all. Even if that means abandoning her family and heading back to England (where it all began), and risking her own life by using a dark magic book that was once owned by Maria's daughter...

I loved this story! Although it starts with several shocks - have a box of tissues handy! - it is a wonderful finale to the series. The different branches of the family are finally reunited and they travel to England to walk in the footsteps of their ancestor, Maria. They make friends with other witches, see ghosts, and work together to try to break the curse. It is a lovely, heart-warming story; a kind of family saga but with witches! I adored the references to the previous books, the reappearance of the aunts, and the rules of magic: no walking in the moonlight, no red shoes, no wearing black, and absolutely no books about magic... Utterly fabulous!

Thank you to Alice Hoffman and Simon & Schuster for my copy of this book, which I requested via NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

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Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman

Review: Magic Lessons (A Prequel to Practical Magic) by Alice Hoffman

I love Alice Hoffman's books. I discovered her after watching the film Practical Magic (starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman) and gradually worked my way through her backlist. Since Practical Magic was originally published she has written two prequels: The Rules of Magic (a story about the aunts from Practical Magic) and now Magic Lessons, which explains the origin of the family curse - that any man who ever loves an Owens woman will be broken in body and soul.

The story starts in 1664 when a baby girl is found abandoned in a snowy field close to the cottage of Hannah Owens, a herbalist and healer who has taught herself magic. When Hannah unwraps the baby's blanket she recognises an unusual birthmark shaped like a star - the mark of a bloodline witch. Is this why baby Maria has been abandoned? The story spans a 30 year period, following Maria as she finally meets her disreputable parents, is forced to flee England, becomes an indentured servant in Curacao, makes a living for herself in the fledgling city of New York, before ending up in Salem - and we all know what happened there...

If you do think you know what's going to happen, you're in for a surprise. Alice Hoffman ingeniously re-tells Maria's story as it appears in her earlier book but with some very clever twists. As Maria moves from place to place she makes a note in her grimoire of the plants that are grown locally and the uses they can be put to (both recipes and spells) and these notes are cleverly woven into the story. The amount of historical detail about England in the 17th century, life in the Caribbean and early New York is amazing. I wasn't sure I'd learn anything new about Salem but the author concentrates on the people who lived there and what motivated them to begin accusing their neighbours of witchcraft.

The writing is beautiful, with a dreamy fairy tale quality that pulled me right into the world the author has created. I loved the characters despite their flaws - it turns out that even a witch who can read every 'sign' is capable of walking straight into disaster! I especially loved Samuel and Cadin - both of whom had a lot to put up with! The story is also about women supporting women, mother-daughter relationships, women surviving in a man's world and life's harsh lessons.

Magic Lessons is the perfect story to read as the nights begin drawing in, for anyone who wants to lose themselves in a really good book, who loves historical novels or magic realism, or anything 'witchy'. Fans of Practical Magic will not be disappointed. One of my favourite reads this year.

Thank you to Alice Hoffman and Scribner/Simon & Schuster UK for my copy of this book, which I requested from NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.