The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna [Review]

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
Format: ebook
Source: purchased
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: August 13, 2023

Purchase Links: Paperback | Kindle

Sangu Mandanna
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

As one of the few witches in Britain, Mika Moon knows she has to hide her magic, keep her head down, and stay away from other witches so their powers don't mingle and draw attention. And as an orphan who lost her parents at a young age and was raised by strangers, she's used to being alone and she follows the rules...with one exception: an online account, where she posts videos pretending to be a witch. She thinks no one will take it seriously.

But someone does. An unexpected message arrives, begging her to travel to the remote and mysterious Nowhere House to teach three young witches how to control their magic. It breaks all of the rules, but Mika goes anyway, and is immediately tangled up in the lives and secrets of not only her three charges, but also an absent archaeologist, a retired actor, two long-suffering caretakers, and...Jamie. The handsome and prickly librarian of Nowhere House would do anything to protect the children, and as far as he's concerned, a stranger like Mika is a threat. An irritatingly appealing threat.

As Mika begins to find her place at Nowhere House, the thought of belonging somewhere begins to feel like a real possibility. But magic isn't the only danger in the world, and when a threat comes knocking at their door, Mika will need to decide whether to risk everything to protect a found family she didn't know she was looking for....

Thoughts on The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches: This is one of those books that I didn't realize I needed until I picked it up. Then I read about found family and magic that wants to be used and finding a place where you belong and it hit the spot. It SO hit the spot. From Mika and her wary wistfulness and way with magic and Jamie and his attractive scowls and the children (magical) and the others (feisty) who make up Nowhere House.

Besides magic, Nowhere House also has secrets. Their main one being they need to keep the children secret. Mika breaks all the rules she was taught growing up as a young witch to make sure the children's secret stays a secret. And along the way she fell in love with the place that allows her to be herself and the people who care about her just because she's there and the children who remind her so much of herself.

She also starts to fall for Jamie. Or maybe Jamie began to fall for her (although he was determined to keep his distance). But secrets have a way of bubbling up and sometimes good intentions can hurt the people one cares about the most.

In other words, Mika has a bit of a rocky road figuring out where she belongs. Or maybe its more figuring out if she's brave enough to jump when the right place (or person) comes along.

So, yeah. This is one of those books I didn't see coming and BOY did I like it.