Pawsitively Cursed (Witch of Edgehill #2) by Melissa Erin Jackson

Published: September 10th 2019  

Publisher: Ringtail Press

Length: Kindle Edition, 328 pages

My Rating:

Blurb:

The only thing more twisted than a cursed witch is her family tree.

For the past fourteen years, Edgehill’s resident secret witch, Amber Blackwood, has been haunted by her parents’ deaths. The whole town knows about the tragedy, but the details remain a mystery even to Amber. From her tiny studio apartment above her shop, The Quirky Whisker, Amber can see her partially rebuilt old house out on the edge of town. Although she now has a good life—delighting children with her magically infused toys, concocting healing tinctures for Edgehill’s residents, doting on her cats, Tom and Alley, and sitting on the committee for the town’s annual Here and Meow Festival—she feels stuck in the past.

Amber suspects the fire that killed her parents was set deliberately by a witch from the cursed Penhallow clan, from whom no one has heard even a whisper since the night her parents died. The clan’s sudden disappearance is no coincidence to Amber, but her aunt Gretchen refuses to believe there’s a connection and urges Amber to stop looking for someone to blame. So Amber is shocked when Aunt Gretchen shows up unexpectedly, claiming the Penhallows have resurfaced and that one of them is heading for Edgehill with Amber in his sights.

Aunt Gretchen knows more about the fabled clan than she’s letting on. Amber is determined to find out what her aunt is hiding, and what the Penhallow seeks, before the same treacherous force that took Amber’s parents’ lives claims her own.

My Review:

While this is the second book in the Witch of Edgehill series, it worked well as a standalone novel. The author gives enough of a backstory that the reader isn’t lost. I highly recommend you read the first in the series though because it’s an excellent read.

In a town full of quirky residents Amber stands out as the odd recluse who can’t move on from her painful past. In this book, we see Amber coming out of her shell and growing relationships with those around her, not just her sister and aunt. She also finally gets the answers to the family secrets and her parents’ death. There is also a little hint of a romance starting.

This isn’t just a cosy mystery, it delves deeper than that, into family dynamics, what it’s like to be different, and how greed and power can corrupt. Ultimately it’s a story about redemption and the power of letting go.

This is an entertaining, well-written story with intriguing characters and an incredible plot that is heartwarming, delightful and bittersweet at times. I highly recommend you give this series a look. You won’t be disappointed.

I received an arc of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

*Blurb and cover image via Goodreads.