This was more than just a witchy how-to. Although it would be excellent for new practitioners, that doesn't mean it can't be useful for those who are more experienced with their craft. This is very much a self-help geared towards personal transformation, with the ultimate goal of unlocking your inner magic. The chapters are broken down well, and easy to read. Each step comes with information and exercises/rituals to help you get more in touch with yourself. A great witchy self-help book overall.

Great guide for people look for a wide range of info on different magical subjects. Not quite comprehensive but a good book for people who are just starting out in the craft.

Well written and easy to read and follow along. I am a beginner and found it had a great amount of information that a beginner or someone with more skill would still enjoy and gain information from. I would recommend to my patrons

Very detailed path of rituals, meditations and introspective work for coming into your own power. Some of the exercises have long written scripts and/or directions, which I'm not sure how to handle if I'm supposed to be sitting in meditation with my eyes closed - that is probably my only criticism. Otherwise, pretty interesting book.

Really informative; I thought it'd be more or less like all the other witchcraft books, but was pleasantly surprised. I loved combining old magic with some new techniques! Loved this book and will likely purchase it!

True Magic by Cyndi Brannen is an initiation into a magical life. Cyndi provides a 7 step process to activating, developing and incorporating your magic into your daily existence. She asks you to commit a daily hour of power (not necessarily a full hour, but a daily block of time you can allot) to work on your practice. Through journaling, meditation, activities and research she prompts in the book you can strengthen and build confidence in your true magic. There are also a larger ritual/journey in each step that solidifying the themes of the chapter. Cyndi's steps are simple enough to follow, you can do them in your own space with relatively easy to access tools/herbs and that allows you to feel more comfortable with the initiation. Even if you don't participate in each activity fully, you can learn a lot about what it means to live magically in a modern way. Cyndi is also a great guide supporting you through your journey, very welcoming not intimidating. I think this is a wonderful resource for those wanting a way to feel more connected in their magic, especially as it can be achieved without seeking out a coven or trying to find in person classes on the subject. This book offers something different than the typical witchcraft text you find today and I thought it was greatly needed!

True Magic is packed full of information and is not for the beginner. It is well written and researched.

I was excited to be able to read this early, however I found myself caught up in a lot of the descriptions of practice. While I do highly recommend this as a book for someone wishing to either begin or even deepen their existing practice, I personally felt that this was a read once and done.

Maybe I'll return to it again at some other point in time but for me, once was enough.

This is a great book for all witches, new and experienced. I loved the depth of material here from the 7 phases
( Healing, Relationships, Sovereignty, Growth, Connections, Abundance, and Wholeness) to the information on the moon phases and how to build your personal magical practice. The author includes many practices, rituals, botanical, crystals and even a section on colors. Included here are also sigils work, shadow work, and how to develop your practice through journaling, studying and practice.
I am a new practicing witch and I found everything here in this one book that I feel I need to better study and put into practice my own personal spells and rituals. I highly recommend this excellent book for all of us who are seeking to improve our magic and become more educated in our craft. This is definitely a book I will purchase in a hard copy to keep and refer to .

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy. My opinions are my own. Review cross posted,

a number of topics/ideas/lists introduced. One thing right after the other - things like journaling, meditation, ancestors, sigil. Some rituals placed in. Seven witches' principles focus.

It was an interesting and helpful book, but I thought not truly aimed at the beginner as it would cost a lot of money for what the author suggests and it’s not aimed towards anyone starting out at all, given it’s about awakening your inner witch I’d expect it to be aimed at novices.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Post on: Flying the Hedge
Published on: 10/25/19
Link: https://bit.ly/2Pj6Xxx
Review: "I am a reader of Cyndi Brannen's blog Keeping Her Keys, so when her latest book, True Magic: Unleashing Your Inner Witch became available on NetGalley, I jumped on the opportunity to review it for the publisher. Unfortunately, I was left disappointed. Overall the book is decent, but if you regularly follow her, it felt like longer versions of some of her blog posts.

In True Magic: Unleashing Your Inner Witch, Brannen discusses seven steps to unleash your inner witch: Healing, Relationships, Sovereignty, Growth, Connecting, Abundance, and Wholeness. In each step, Brannen walks you through a series of rituals specifically designed with each of these steps in mind in an attempt to focus your magical workings and grow as a witch. If you are a new witch, this is a good place to start actually practicing magic, after you have learned some of the basics. If you are a seasoned witch, there are some new approaches that may interest you. However, a little digging will find similar results in other books and online sources. Based on the writing, I believe that this book is designed to go with one of her workshops and maybe even an email course (she mentioned her email list in the book more than once), and the set up is slightly confusing. There were points where the book jumped around too much, or topics were not fully explained, especially how they connected with each other during a ritual. This may be because, as I said, this is designed for a course, or because I was reading an unpublished e-ARC.

There were some things, however, that I really liked. I loved that she made the connection between the Lower Realm, Middle Realm, and Upper Realm with the elements and parts of our bodies. This view of the World Tree grounds the realms in a tangible, human reality, making it easier to visualize and even travel between realms. My favorite piece, however, was her "Witch's Hour of Power." Brannen encourages her readers to set aside just one hour a day for magical workings. She even recognizes that to grow your craft you don't have to practice the Witch's Hour of Power every day, but the consistency of the practice leads to better magical results. I've started trying to intentionally set aside an hour a day for my practice, whether it be working on my blog, connecting with witches on Instagram, reading tarot or bones, hedge riding, meditating, or working on my Grimoire (which is seriously lacking at the moment!). This hour of time, set aside in the evening, is a great time for me to just decompress from the stress of my daily life. Brannen offers a number of suggestions on what you can do during your Witch's Hour of Power, so if you are unsure, she's got you covered. Her spell ideas and rituals are refreshing, and the magical crafts are useful and meaningful.

As I said, the book was decent. It isn't the best witchcraft book I have ever read, but it isn't the worst either. If you are just starting out and looking to grow your powers, this is a good place to start. If you are seasoned, I'd stick with following her blog and Facebook groups, or even attending one of her workshops. I'd give this book 3 stars."

This book wasn't for me, but it is not a bad book if the subject material is what you are looking for. It is very heavy on spells and meditations in the way of rituals, so if someone is looking for mainly those, this would be a great source for them. The rituals were just a little too lengthy and involved for me. The book gives a brief overview of essentials such as setting up an altar and book of shadows to start, and then most of it is comprised of the ritual information, so it has a great variety of those for someone looking for them.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving my honest review.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3

This book takes you over the seven steps to find your inner witch. Power. There is lots of information if witchcraft is your thing. There are rituals, methods for using crystals and some spells

I was asked by the publisher to read and review this book. Although the subject matter is not what I would usually read, I did find parts of it interesting. It's well written and researched. It might be more suited for people just starting out on their journey to becoming a witch.

I would like to thank Netgalley, John Hunt Publishing Ltd and the author Cindi Brennan for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

True Magic is a primer, of sorts, for witches both new and more experienced. It combines elements of witchcraft, self-help, psychology, and emotional healing to provide a path of transformation for anyone interested in empowering themselves and improving their life. Written by Cyndi Brannen, this is both different to and yet a companion of her previous book, Keeping Her Keys — in fact, I could see many of the practices and rituals crossing over from one book to the other, building upon each other in terms of both imparting knowledge and encouraging magical practice.

The core framework running through True Magic is the power of the number seven — seven steps towards personal transformation, aligned with a form of witch’s ladder. These steps are Healing, Relationships, Sovereignty, Growth, Connections, Abundance, and Wholeness. Each step includes information, practices, rituals, botanicals, crystals, colours, and so on. There are seven moon phases featured within the book (new, waxing crescent, half waxing, full, half waning, waning crescent, and dark), each with their distinct energies. The four elements, three selves, and three worlds also feature, as does the liminal realm.

This book contains a variety of magical techniques suitable for the newcomer to witchcraft as well as the more seasoned practitioner. I fall into the latter category, and while there was a lot of information here that I’ve read before, there were elements and tips that I hadn’t previously encountered. There is a lot of the basics here — how to create an altar, a book of shadows, a magical apothecary — but there are deeper aspects too, like sigil work, shadow work, and an ever-progressing journey into energy work. Some of the rituals and visualisations take you incredibly deep, and there’s good self-care advice for after doing this sort of work. The journal prompts and quizzes are well-considered and gently laid out, helping the reader to integrate their practices and experiences. The addition of further reading (books and links) is a nice touch.

True Magic takes the reader on a journey of personal transformation through the blending of witchcraft, emotional healing, and psychology. Much of this work is based around healing the self, but there are options to expand upon this to offer healing and magic to those around you, your community, and the natural world. I liked how Brannen pointed out that all witchcraft should have an element of risk, should push you outside your comfort zone, should facilitate deeper understanding and healing. All of this is true, and learning how to hold all this and progress is just as important as knowing which stones, botanicals, colours (et cetera) one would use in a spell or ritual. As Doreen Valiente once said, “There’s a witch of the head and a witch of the heart…”

I enjoyed reading this book and can see how I would use some of the practices and ideas as a springboard for other magical and healing workings. However, I did feel — being a regular reader of Brannen’s blog — that some of the sections of True Magic were more fleshed out posts that I’d read before, perhaps with some more advice or practical tips. I do mean it when I say that this book would be good for witches both new and more experienced — but if you have some years under your belt, you could argue that a decent browse around the web can provide you with much of the information here, albeit obviously presented differently, and you’d have to build up your own witch’s ladder of transformational steps — not a bad thing in itself, but if you’re looking for a guide through those steps or are pressed for time/energy, then the journey True Magic takes the reader on is not a bad place to start. It’s certainly given me much food for thought and I do recommend this book to all who are interested in healing themselves, taking responsibility for their actions, and manifesting magic in their own lives.

I received an e-ARC from the publisher, Moon Books, through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Furthermore, in the interests of transparency, I know the author via her blog and Facebook.

An interesting and well written book, full of hints and tips that can be useful for beginner and more experienced partitioners.
I loved how the book is organised and the colloquial style of writing.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

3.75 stars

I am always on the lookout for books that can help me get in tune with my inner self. I had high hopes from this blurb. However, this seemed pretty basic and had a lot of things that are either quite common or can be found pretty much anywhere in this gilded age that we live in. However, there are parts of it that are worthwhile for some people, especially, those that are just starting out. There are some good rituals and grounding techniques for beginners complete with requirements, directions, and incantations.

One of the things that I REALLY did like though was the further reading and blog sites that allowed me further places to get more education on the topics. That is invaluable.

"True Magic" is supposed to be a guide of sorts to lead those interested in awakening their inner witch and needless to say I was less than impressed with the findings. The guidance provided with the practical tips and tools can pretty much be found anywhere if you did a quick Google search. I didn't learn new nor relevant to the craft and found my overall time wasted on this book. Probably would be ideal for beginners and novices who are completely lost on where to start.

this book was interesting. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it covered a lot of topics and had a lot of useful information actually!

This book is is very well done. I love that it delves into many aspects of personal magic and how it incorporate it into your daily life. I feel that someone wishing to understand the basics of how magic works and even those that wish to practice magic can find interesting information within this book. I received this book from NetGalley for an honest review. I enjoyed this book.