I loved this! It was dark and silly and fun and serious all at the same time. I loved the world building and the melding of the magical in the mundane, particularly in the notices to parents at the start of each chapter and the details like the challenge of bringing the right snack into a kindergarten classroom...

The exploration of the darker side of women's friendships, as well as the challenges of being the stay-at-home parent of a child who needs more hands-on parenting to manage their own challenges, were heartfelt and presented with empathy and compassion. There were also heavy doses of humor, which are so often necessary to get through each day with small children!

This one was fun from start to finish and I definitely hope to see more from Caitlin Rozakis - including, hopefully, more from this particular universe of characters, who I found absolutely delightful!

I really liked this – taking the idea of a magic school but adding the mundanity of a parent association, parent politics, cliques, competition, the lot – and it works! It’s an interesting way to use the magical school trope. This also deals with mental health and the struggle to cope after a traumatic event and how it affects a couple, which kept the lighter moments from turning it all into a farce. Very good!

This book had such a fun premise—a human family suddenly thrust into a magical world after their daughter Aria is turned into a werewolf. There’s a lot of cleverness in how Rozakis blends everyday parenting challenges with the challenge of navigating a magical community, and I really enjoyed the unique setting.

The parents' WhatsApp group was an absolute highlight—so relatable and genuinely funny. Anyone who's ever tried to keep up with one of those chaotic message threads will definitely feel seen.

That said, the story didn’t quite grip me the way I hoped. It moved a little slowly, and while I appreciated the world-building, I found myself wishing the plot would pick up. As a parent of young kids, I expected to connect more with Vivian, but her constant guilt and self-doubt made it hard. It started to feel a bit repetitive, and I found myself wanting more balance or growth from her character.

I did love the moments where she awkwardly references Harry Potter—it was a great touch and perfectly captured how easy it is to misstep in a totally new culture.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read with a lot of great ideas and some really funny moments. It just didn’t quite land as strongly as I’d hoped. Worth checking out if you like magical realism or domestic fantasy, but be prepared for a slower pace.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy.

This adorable read is everything I’ve come to love from this author! Set in a charming town with a magical school at its heart, the story wraps you up in warmth and whimsy. All of this is bound up with a bit of a mystery, creating an enthralling book that kept me turning pages. I fell in love with Vivian and saw a lot of myself in her while also rooting for Aria.

There are plenty of books about magical schools, the USP here being that this is told from the point of view of the parents. Vivian and Daniel have moved to a new community, to allow their daughter, Aria, to attend a school where being a werewolf is normal, rather than cause for screaming and shunning. The problem is, Vivian and Daniel are completely human – the accident that led to Aria’s ‘condition’ has left them completely out of their depth.

Turns out magic school in this instance has the parents needing to learn just as much if not more than their kindergartener – and issues with homework and bullies aren’t just for the kids!

I was in the mood for something with a bit of gentle fun about it, and I definitely think I got it with this. It’s a ‘cozy’, but there’s also a bit of bite – pun intended – and honestly very mild anxiety around the whole fitting in and doing right by your kids, and dealing with other parents and children, and then all of the social strata and different species-isms. It all made me very glad not to have kids of my own – werewolves, mages, or anything else!

If I have any complaint it would be the well-worn trope of a prophecy – which may or may not refer to Aria, of course. But, while I was a bit ‘meh’ about it being part of the story, the way it’s used is actually done well. I really liked flipping the story to the parents’ point of view, but at the same time it might have been fun to peek inside some of the more esoteric classes that get referenced!

Overall, this is more Mean Girls meets Big Little Lies than anything to do with boy wizards (something that gets referenced more than once – not fawningly, thank goodness, but still hmm) or the Scholomance. It will probably resonate more with parents who are/have dealing/dealt with such school gate and PTA dramas, but it was still a fun and gentle read.

Now excuse me, I really need to go find a copy of Dreadful by the same author…! 🙂

I think this was a solid read overall, just not one that fully resonated with me. The writing was good and the story had its moments, but I had a hard time connecting with the main character, mostly because her experiences as a mother just aren’t something I can personally relate to.

It’s definitely not a flaw in the book, more a matter of perspective. I think readers who are parents, or who enjoy stories centered around motherhood, will probably get more out of it than I did.

Hmm, I didn't dislike this but I didn't really like it either.
There was a lot more emphasis on the fmc's trauma and healing than I was expecting, no problem with that but I found myself wanting more of the fantasy/magic/school aspects instead. It felt a bit juvenile and catty at times that had me wincing. A few of the side characters were good fun though and it did read easily.
Thanks to Titan Books and Netgalley for the arc, all thoughts are my own and left voluntarily.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC!

I love urban fantasy, especially getting to explore how the author meshes magic with our "real world", so this book was a real treat!

Aside from world-building, I greatly enjoyed following our protagonist, Vivian, as she navigates not just a whole new world, but also parenting, in a new school. I am not a parent myself, but I grew up in a deeply competitive education system, I can relate with Vivian's struggle to keep up and fit in. I found Vivian deeply relatable actually, in how she desperately tries to fit in with the "cool" parents, and her anxiety over doing things the "correct" way.

Overall, this book is fun and whimsical, and, regardless of whether or not you are a parent, is deeply relatable.

Adult magic-school story, another great fantasy from Rozakis.

The author's debut was one of my Books of 2024, I just love how she turned fantasy convention on its head to give us the perspective of, basically, Sauron. I saw her name again and had to try this too - almost a Harry Potter, from the point of view of a Muggle parent, caught up in a magical world conspiracy and out of their depth.

It's a bit tragic and awful actually, as a premise - Aria is Vivian's young daughter, only five, and on a hike one nice day was is bitten by a werewolf. No longer welcome in the 'mundane' world, the family is offered a chance by the werewolf's sponsoring family, to attend a school for magical creatures of all kinds, where she will surely fit in better (it just can't stay the same when Daniel tells us: "I'm her dad, I spent five hours last weekend though her a stick.". Aria needs to learn about her powers and how to control them. And of course, this will be somewhere Vivian and Daniel, her parents, will fit right in too. Welcomed with open arms.

But just like Harry Potter, there is a hierarchy and established practices among magical families and species, which Vivian is unaware of. Watching her daughter struggling to fit in with the other kindergartners, she too feels overwhelmed with what should be the usual parental roles - baking cookies, finding uniform, making Mum friends, joining the PTA. She never thought she'd need to pack extra clothes for when Aria 'wolfs out' and rips her favourite top. Or have a vampire teacher to meet at Parents' Evenings.

This is a great story for any parent who's been through those early years of schooling and all the routines, apps, parent message boards, trips and diarised events that now seem a little easier to cope with, when not pitched against a background of magic, prophecy and impending doom... as Vivian and her family soon find is starting to point towards them as interlopers who are threatening the whole town.

All Vivian wants to do is make a friend and help her daughter grow up comfortable in her own furry skin. Possibly see her husband occasionally. And maybe even get back to work again.

You definitely feel for Vivian. Though she blames herself for Aria's accident, she's clearly overworking herself into compensating for this, you don't need magical powers to foresee the effect it will have on her marriage and sanity.

I really loved the idea of such a young child being the focus of the adult attention and narrative, Aria herself at 5 is not the protagonist, though she certainly has a few moments (and talks a little too maturely at times for her age). Putting a 'mudane' family in a magical world is a great tactic to a different fantasy perspective. We meet through Vivian a whole range of pushy, yummy, relaxed, laid-back and other parents from various species, and it's a great delve into their world, just over the horizon of ours.

The school Whatsapp messages were hilarious, the mystery of the prophecy intriguing. And the connections that show the magical world is not so disconnected with the mundane one, very amusing: (wand-shopping) "There was a rose-gold one that screamed 'millennial aesthetic; that had a matching phone case next to it emblazoned with Live Laugh Love." Even some in-jokes about 'Wizard soccer' - "Oh like..." "Nope, don't say it...we don't speak those names", the Rowling references made me laugh.

I love this author, and would happily read her next one without even reading the synopsis. Love how she turns convention on its head.

With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.

Thank you to netgalley for an arc of this book!

This had a really interesting premise and I enjoyed it all the way through. I wish we got a bit more of the magic system explained as I didn’t fully understand it, but I liked seeing this environment for magical creatures and people it gives a fun new perspective seeing them in school trying to control their powers. The ending was good and I didn’t see it coming who was behind it and I liked the twists and turns along the way.

I guess I just felt like it was missing a bit of a spark? I enjoyed it but didn’t love it and it didn’t really excite me. And I feel like it could’ve been a bit shorter and more compact for it to have more of a hit.

“She wasn’t a stupid child for sure. Just not an easy one.”

The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association is another book about a magical school… except it’s nothing like you’ve read before.
I loved the world building, how it was rich but authorized itself to use modern technology, all at once –while tackling another franchise that should not be named. That made it easy to slip onto that world, and to be carried away by the story as we try to understand what is exactly the menace that lingers over this school (and students). That book was all fun, satirical, a bit like a magical Desperate Housewives.
That said, it also felt like a great metaphor about parenting, especially when coming about “special needs children”. Let’s be honest, I don’t have children. But I once was that child. I loved to see the discovery of the magical world –of that toddler’s needs and challenges– from an adult’s (a parent) POV.

That mom does her best, she only thinks about her kid. Yet, she makes mistakes. She gropes for, torn between her unconditional love for her “newly appointed werewolf” daughter, her difficulties to integrate in the community, what everyone says she has to do (no matter if it’s completely contradictory), what she imagines will be the best for her family, especially regarding societal “injunctions”.
Some things can –maybe– feel triggering for the “different adult”, yet I found them interesting here, because that Mom questions her decisions, and isn’t afraid to change, even though clumsily and despite the fact she has everything to learn and is completely overwhelmed. That makes her feel guilty, a lot, and that felt super relatable when it comes to parenting life… even when sprinkled by magic. I also loved the couple’s difficulties as they try to blend, to understand their new life, and the mysteries that happen, and rediscover how to be partners in their life.

Thank you to the author and Titan Books for this eARC via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

4.5/5

Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for a copy provided for an honest review.

This story is told in third person and follows frustrated mother Vivian as she learns to navigate a new community where her daughter, Aria, has just been accepted into the kindergarten class of a magical school after she was bitten by a werewolf. The narrative is interspersed with updates from a school app known as MINDR concerning student activities and other parental notifications. While I don’t have a child, I imagine that some of these updates would be relatable to most parents minus the magical activities from bake sales to PTA politics and volunteer duties. I found it all to be delightfully comical and could empathize with the frustrated parents as they make sure their children have the necessary supplies for their special projects and sports.

Vivian has experience in accounting, which she volunteers for the school board fundraiser, finding something suspicious in the previous recordkeeping. I found Vivian to be a well-rounded character, confident in her intelligence and expertise but also full of self-doubt in social situations as well as feelings guilt of over what happened to her daughter. Vivian becomes obsessed with fitting in, building relationships with the other parents, sometimes to the detriment of her other relationships, especially her marriage. There’s plenty of room for character growth as she makes several mistakes and tries to fix them on her own.

The students must pass a trio of exams/presentations to make it into the next school, which often leads to its own brand of chaos considering the student body is made up of a mixture of paranormal creatures from other werewolves, selkies, banshees and many types of mages. I found the entire story to be fun and cozy, never knowing what would happen next or even if the school will be standing for the next semester.

Recommended for those looking for a fun and cozy fantasy, especially if you enjoy the chaos of young children at a magical school and their frazzled parents just trying to keep it all together.

"Neither wolves nor humans are meant to be on their own."

GENRE: Cozy Fantasy
RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.25/5
FORMAT: physical Arc

Would I recommend to others?: Yes, this is a lovely, wholesome cozy fantasy that delves into what its like to be a parent, the strain of it, emotionally and financially in a magical community with a private elite magical school

Long Review:
This book has been on the top of my list for my 2025 anticipated releases and it definitely will be in the top list of my favourite books in 2025!

This story explores a lot of feelings of what it is like to be a parent, especially of a child who is part of a magical society that you do not understand AND are new to. Not only that, the magical school that Aria needs to go to is an elite private school that is SUPER expensive and placing a financial strain on Vivian and her husband. As someone who is not a parent, I was able to relate to Vivian in so many ways as the feeling is very similar to what you'd feel as an elder sibling or if you are responsible for anyone in your life.

Both Vivian and Daniel are parents who never fitted in their community growing up and do not want their daughter Aria to feel that way, especially after spending a few months feeling that way in the non-magical community. Vivian, as Aria's mom, feels the responsibility of this and tries to make sure that she fits in with the parents in Aria's new school so that her daughter doesnt get casted out again:
"She was going to charm the pants off them (other moms) and make sure no one ever told her daughter she didn't belong somewhere again."

Not only is the pressure to fit in a new community getting to Vivian but also the guilt of letting her daughter get bitten by a werewolf (even though she couldnt logically do anything to prevent this) and this guilt is something that is ingrained in all of us as we try to navigate life by preventing harm from getting to the ones we love:
"She always thought that she would be the kind of mom who lifted the car to save the baby, who grabbed the kid right before they fell off the bridge. Instead, she had frozen at the point where she could have changed the story. Stood there locked in fear and panic."

And Vivian goes through the whole notion of whether Aria would be better off growing up with the werewolf's family (I won't share the details as to exactly why to avoid spoilers) because essentially she will be surrounded by people who understand her and are able to help her navigate her new life. Vivian tries to shoulder through it all and thinks that she was the "cause" of the problem and therefore, she must fix it all on her own. Rozakis addresses another fear that I, as an elder sibling, have felt: letting your kid/younger sibling...etc. experience things in life that did not necessarily work for you or help you at all.

As we progress through the book, we get to see Vivian understand that it truly takes a village to be able to raise and parent your kid, especially if its in a community you do not know anything about. Once we start seeing everyone in her life come together to help her, it is so wholesome to see Vivian accept the help she thinks she doesnt deserve and the lovely think about this book?

We get to see the outcome of the help too! We get to see how each member in their "village" helps Aria in a different way:
"Vivian's eyes prickled. She had felt weird calling on the pack to even give advise; she had never expected them to involve themselves. And for the other parents to rally — she tried to remember a time she'd ever felt like a community had had her back before, and she came up blank."

Essentially, Vivian learns that she needs to address her own insecurities, which we get some backstory throughout the book and how that relates to her own upbringing. Vivian tried to do everything the "right way" rather than what felt authentically right to her and was better for her family and realises that this may not be a sustainable way to live her life:
"She'd made friends with the right people, and it hadn't been enough to keep this from happening.
Because the people who she was supposed to make nice to, the people her mother would have told her to befriend, were jerks. No matter how many favors she'd done them, it wouldn't have kept this from happening.
Because nothing she could have done could have kept this from happening.
Because it wasn't her fault."

She then gains a new community that is supportive of her and likes her for who she truly is through her daughter and their worst event:
"Aria's one of our own," Mrs. Fairhair reminded her. "And by extension, so are you. Neither wolves nor humans are meant to be on their own."

Thank you to the publisher for the physical Arc and the eArc on Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion

I read Dreadful at the beginning of the year so thought I would give this one ago and I really liked it. Not only is it an interesting plot with amusing character but also a modern day rhetoric on modern day parenting and the general situation of the world.

For what I initially took for a whimsical book turned out to be a entertaining story with more serious comments on race, classism and sexism without alienating a reasonable reader. I like the characters and the plot would recommend this book.

The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association by Caitlin Rozakis is a clever, witty romp through the magical underbelly of an exclusive New England society. When Vivian’s young daughter Aria is bitten by a werewolf, their lives are turned upside down as they plunge headfirst into a world filled with arcane secrets, ancient prophecies, and bizarre school politics.

Vivian’s attempts to navigate this new reality—choosing the right sacrificial dagger, managing chew toys, and playing PTA politics with supernatural beings like sirens and chthonic nymphs—are both hilarious and endearing. The story zips along as Vivian dodges hellhounds in corridors and demons at talent shows, all while trying to keep up with magical shops hidden behind portals and survive the brutal school Trials.

The book strikes a perfect balance between supernatural adventure and satirical commentary on parenthood and social cliques, especially the dreaded parents’ WhatsApp group. The looming prophecy about Aria adds a thrilling sense of urgency to this otherwise light-hearted and charming tale.

This is a delightful read for anyone who enjoys fantasy with a humorous twist and a strong dose of family dynamics.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

20% taking the piss out of Harry Potter, 80% mean private school mums. But seriously, this was mostly a fun read, though I think I may not be the target audience for this one. I think parents (of young children) may find it more relatable.

Aria Tanaka - 5 years old - gets bitten by a werewolf and thus becomes one herself, which transports her and her parents - Vivian and Daniel - into a realm of magic and mayhem they didn't previously know existed, when Aria gets enrolled in the Grimoire Grammar School, in Veilport.

Quite quickly after the school year starts, things start to happen which point to an ancient prophecy being fulfilled and which points to Aria being "the bad guy" in said prophecy, so in addition to figuring out the magical world they have to deal with this and all the mistrust it creates.

The story is told from Vivian's point of view. She keeps making missteps and committing faux pas because nobody will tell her the rules of the magical world - which honestly as a neurodivergent is actually quite relatable, just that my mishaps don't usually lead to death.

I had trouble connecting to the characters - even Vivian - because I felt they weren't properly fleshed out. There's references to Vivian's parents and to her previous life, but it's not delved into in any real way. And Daniel is just this kind of absentee figure who pops in now and then to judge Viv for trying to integrate herself and Aria into their new lives. I did start to connect with Viv and her band of misfits towards the end, but I would have liked there to be more grounding of the characters, more personality, earlier on.

All in all a fun but forgettable read, recommended for anyone who knows the frustrations of cliquey parent/private school groups.

A hilariously funny and delightfully quick read, despite its very long title!

What do you do when your child gets bitten and turns into a werewolf, blasting you into a world you don’t even know existed? That’s what Vivian and her husband now need to find out.
Their young daughter Aria was accidentally turned last year, and now she’s enrolled in the Grimoire Grammar School - an elite magical school where she will (hopefully) learn to control her abilities. Unfortunately, if Vivian thought navigating the perils of making parental friendships, keeping her marriage intact, and supporting her daughter was tricky before, that’s nothing to her new reality. When they find out that their kindergartener needs to pass a series of trials in order to keep her place in the first grade, things go from bad to worse, and unfortunately, it’s not going to get better any time soon.

Despite not being a parent I really empathised with Vivian. She’s dealing with her own guilt and anxiety while trying to do what’s best for Aria, and navigating a world she didn’t know existed for most of her life. Her own character development was also lovely to see, and I adored seeing her begin to see herself for the capable and valuable person that she is, rather than losing her identity to the feeling of only being able to be Aria’s mum, and nothing else.
The way the plot developed through the book - from trying to form community bonds to ‘saving the town’ peril was well paced and kept me intrigued.
I always love a world which is hidden within our own, and I really enjoyed the considerations that were put into this reality - how would they hide the shops and parking spaces from non magical people, what skills would any of us need to learn if we were thrust into a magical world tomorrow? - they made it feel very vivid and possible.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association and would read more by this author in the future.

The Grimoire Grammer School Parent Teacher Association by Caitlin Rozakis is a story based around a young girl who gets bitten and changes into a werewolf, all at the age of 5….
Her mother Vivian tries to become familiar and comfortable within this new and strange magical environment. Somewhere she was trying desperately to integrate. This is all while trying to help her daughter get her head around being a young werewolf.. Her father, Daniel, although not around as much, tried also to become familiar with his daughter’s peers.
There were some very complex personalities in some characters that made an atmosphere that made the reader wonder if anything would get better for the family. You’ll have to read it to find out!!
Many thanks to Titan Books for the opportunity to read this arc copy via Netgalley. My opinion is my own.
#Netgalley, #TitanBooks, #Caitlin.Rozakis

I really enjoyed Dreadful so was excited to read another work by Rozakis and I have to say while I did not enjoy this one as much as dreadful it was still a fun and enjoyable read. I loved the idea of ‘normal’ parents dealing with a recently bitten child and entering the world of the supernatural. Mix this with the setting of school and all the drama that comes with it and there are some funny moments for sure.

I do believe that it might not be for everyone but I personally enjoyed it, I feel like if perhaps I was a parent who had real life experiences similar to these such as the PTA I might have enjoyed it even more. Still, it was an interesting and enjoyable read.
As always thank you to Titan Books for the advanced copy to review, my reviews are always honest and freely given.

If you've ever wondered what would happen if a magic school had a bake sale gone wrong, or if PTA meetings were chaired by mages with a flair for passive-aggression, then The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association is for you. This book is equal parts magical mayhem and schoolyard satire, blending the bureaucratic drudgery of elementary school governance with magical shenanigans and disasters.

The story follows Vivian, a mother whose young daughter, Aria, is bitten by a werewolf, thrusting their family into the hidden world of magical schools. As they adjust to their new life, Vivian finds herself entangled in the eccentricities of the magical community, from choosing the appropriate sacrificial dagger for Aria to engaging in PTA politics with beings like sirens and chthonic nymphs. Amidst encounters with hellhounds and demons, Vivian must also contend with a prophecy that threatens her daughter’s future, all while managing the everyday challenges of parenthood.

Caitlin Rozakis does a fantastic job of combining magical elements with very normal aspects of parenthood, including the parent equivalent of the 'mean girls'. The magical world is richly imagined, with its own distinct communities that exist separately from the mundane world. Aria stands out as a compelling character—it’s genuinely heart-warming to watch her persevere in trying to connect with the other magical children. She becomes a beacon of hope and innocence amid the often cutthroat dynamics of the magical parents. I also appreciated the portrayal of her parents, Vivian and Daniel, as they navigate the challenges of their strained relationship while adapting to the strange and often overwhelming realities of being non-magical parents in a magical world.

This book seamlessly blends the realities of modern parenting with the complexities of trying to fit in within a magical community. It's a must-read for fans of cosy fantasy and those seeking a humorous yet heartfelt exploration of family dynamics and social commentary in a fantastical setting.

Thank you to Titan Books and Netgalley for this eARC to review.