This was such a fun installment in the new crop of witchy, supernatural romcoms. Cozy, heartfelt, and full of magic—loved it!

Alright, this was really a 1.5 star rounded up. As a fan of Gilmore Girls, Charmed, and witchy romances, I felt like this title was right up my alley. Here’s the thing though— the plot was an interesting idea, but I did not enjoy this book. At all. This needed so much more editing, and the characters themselves needed an overhaul.

There were a lot of points in this book where I literally scratched my head and said “why would you do that?” Or, “now is not the time?!” I think the dialogue was meant to mirror the fast-paced quips in Gilmore Girls, but it did not pass muster. So many conversations were stilted and awkward, or felt out-of-character (looking at you, Mama). There was little to no character growth, and while the side characters could’ve been delightful, they mostly felt like cardboard cutouts.

There were also so many moments when our lead struggled with her reputation, but then went and did a bunch of dumb stuff that really reinforced WHY she had a reputation, and I have very little patience for that in books. Accidents happen, but Scarlett made so many intentionally dumb decisions. Who chases someone through Vegas and stops to play slots and eat at a buffet? Truly nonsensical. Even at the very end, she was so flippant and dismissive of her family. Not a fan.

And finally, I think it’s super weird to take a marginalized group (the magicians), and make them the antagonists? Like, witches already have all the power, they have all these prejudices and speak so dismissively about magicians, and like… I’m supposed to root for the witches? It felt super off-putting.

If this wasn’t a title I’d received an ARC of, I honestly would’ve DNFed it. Never trust a book with a reference to Trump.

P.S. I would not classify this as grumpy/sunshine or a slow burn. If I haven’t convinced you not to read this title, at least know that the book blurb is lying to you.

I would give this a 2.5/5 rating. Overall I think the story was cute and fun, and the characters were cutesy and lovable…..but man was this hard to get through. While the story and the characters worked, the way this was written made it nearly impossible to finish. I have read several reviews saying that the writing is just not it, and I have to agree with it. I wanted so much to be able to give this a 5/5, but the writing was so hard to overlook.

When I think Gilmore Girls, I think of the mom and daughter relationship that conquers everything. Though there was a small town with town meetings and a town selectman, This was not Gilmore Girls unless the relationship was that of Lorelei and Emily.
The story was fairly predictable but not bad. I am a bit tired of the stories where the main character comes back to their home town & their family still treats them like they're the kids they were when they left years before.
The characters were mostly good. & The story was interesting enough to read the full book. It was a cute witchy read, just not everything I was hoping for when compared to Charmed and Gilmore Girls.

Impractical Magic was everything I would want in a cozy read. The second chance romance blended with a slight hint of romance-com was well executed. Seeing the chaos of Scarlett’s magic was very entertaining. Seeing the turmoil between Nate and Scarlett was on par for the traditional romance entanglement.

The political references was not my cup of tea. There were moments where the dialogue was a bit choppy and confusing. With a touch of editing, this would be a great read.

Love a magical read and a great concept but I just found this book quiet hard to read. It didn't grasp my imagination at times as much as it could of and I sadly gave up before the finish. I think I will wait for the book to be released then try again

Far too many clunky and cringe-inducing cultural references. Characters with inconsistent emotional reactions. The romance itself was fine. The best part of this book was the second to last chapter, which was actually beautiful and tender, but everything else felt like it was AI-written.

Cozy, cute, and such a fun read! Perfect for fans of small town cozy magic.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Impractical Magic had the perfect cozy, charming premise for an October read. The story follows Scarlett, who returns home after ten years to find that while her family has barely changed, the magic in the town is off and her childhood friend Nate is now a super hunk.
Despite negative reviews, I didn’t think this book was that bad. It has strong family themes, second-chance romance, magic, and it touches on grief. With its blend of urban fantasy, pop culture references, and small-town charm, it’s the perfect pick for fans of magic and romance.

3.5 stars
A cute witchy story, there are lots of books similar to this one. It was enjoyable but took me a while to really get into.

Impractical Magic by Emily Grimoire is a perfectly playful trip to the cutest magical town, Oak Haven. After 10 years away, Scarlett Melrose is summoned back to Oak Haven by her two sisters who are trying to figure out why there seems to be something messing with the magic in Oak Haven. From there, we get very relatable family drama, messy enchanted mishaps, a little romance, and a small town cast of characters that I immediately fell in love with.

The blurb said this book is perfect for fans of Erin Sterling and Lana Harper, and it couldn't have been more accurate! Highly recommend.

This book was a mix of small town romance and a witchy mystery in a fun way!

Scarlett is returning home (aka the bed and breakfast her family owns) at the request of her eldest sister. Bad things are afoot in her small town that brings back all sorts of traumatic memories for Scarlett, since the last time they were tasked with fishing the town’s magic, her father ended up dead. She also had to abandon her childhood sweetheart, Nate, to run away to the mundane world. This weird witchy world is… definitely odd in an interesting way.

Scarlett and Nate were my favorite part of this book. They didn’t get enough romance time due o the life threatening magic issues they were forced to face, but what we did get was great. Scarlett has to work through buckets of problems in this book - her family issues, unspoken resentment, misunderstandings and blame, and also Scarlett’s magical self-confidence. All of this culminates in the book’s ending, which, while HEA-like, really took you on a journey to get there!

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me, I just couldn’t get into it at all. I’ll try to revisit at another time though.

Thank you so much to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the arc. 🫶🏻

This has potential but was hard to follow. It is advertised as Gilmore Girls with a magical twist and the author did a great job at that, I just felt it was hard to follow the conversations. What makes Gilmore Girls great is all the words they can fit into a sentence quickly, but when reading, it just moves a little slower.

This book just wasn’t for me. Trying to get through it was painful. The writing style, the Donald trump reference, I just couldn’t do it, sorry. Dnf. It’s a shame, I think the story has potential but I would definitely rework some things.

This is a good palette cleanser book for when you need something cosy after a heavy read. It gives you a small town vibe that is perfect for the fall season.

I wished there was more to the storyline as it lost me in places but I loved the family element and the way magic is brought into the book due to something not so good.

great fall read. gives good witch vibes very fun!!!! I really enjoyed reading this in October it helped to get into the spooky season mood.

I was very excited to get my hands on this book because I read the premise and was instantly excited.
Im sad to say that I felt it had tons of potential, but didnt win me over. It was a slow and hard read for me, and I only finished because I do not like to not finish my books. The characters lacked depth, the town was cute, but that was it. For some reason, I also think that reading thru it was hard.

This was.... less good than I hoped. I put in down last fall because I thought I had just overdone it with witchy books, and unfortunately when I picked it back up recently, I just found it to be a little stale. With so many diverse voices and unique scenarios in the genre, this just felt really flat and uninteresting. I'd try other books by the author in the future, but this just didn't land for me.

Anything that is described as being perfect for Gilmore girls. Count me in. It is one of the best tv shows out there so I will Defintely read any book that is likened to it
I can certainly see why it is compared and if you are a fan of Gilmore girls you will Defintely love this book
It is a cosy family drama that I was instantly hooked on frok the first couple of chapters. I really enjoyed the storyline with the bit of mystery in it. I would highly recommend this book