As you may have gathered, I love a good murder mystery or horror story—but sometimes, they can be a little stressful. There are times where I just want to curl up with a lighthearted, cozy read that keeps me invested in the story without requiring a ton of brain power, or contributing to my anxiety with an intense plot.
During one of those times is when I fell in love with The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.
The first chapter introduces us to The Very Secret Society of Witches, a group of, you guessed it, witches, that meets every third Thursday of every third month. As you also probably figured out, it's top secret, so they've never met in the same location twice.
Primrose, the self-appointed head of the society, has two firm rules to ensure their safety: outside of these meetings, none of the witches may have any contact with one another, and no one outside the society may ever know.
"Alone is the only way we survive."
For Mika Moon, who has been orphaned since shortly after birth, this is incredibly depressing. Trying to fit any semblance of friendship and community into these brief meetings once every few months is practically impossible, and often leaves her feeling more lonely than before.
Mika tries to combat this loneliness by contributing to the online magic community (#WitchTok, anyone?), where she posts videos pretending to be a witch, making potions and performing spells—pretending being the key word. There's no real magic involved, so Mika believes she's safe. There's no way anyone would ever figure out she was a real witch.
Until someone does.
“Over the years, Mika had embraced all the things that made her different and had discovered that she liked herself very much. But what was that worth without human connection? How was it possible to live, truly live, without the companionship of other people, without a family formed in any of the thousands of ways families could be formed?”
One morning, Mika wakes up to a mysterious message on one of her social media accounts:
WITCH WANTED
Live-in tutor wanted for three young witches. Must have nerves of steel. Previous teaching experience not necessary. Witchiness essential.
Mika only replies out of sheer amusement, but after a few brief but very polite exchanges, one of which simply read, "Please," her interest is piqued. Paired with the realization that she's been out of work for a few months and her lease is almost up, she finds herself blindly following her GPS through the English countryside in search of a place called Nowhere House.
There, she meets Ian, the eccentric head of the household, his husband, Ken, Lucie, the longtime housekeeper, and Jamie, the annoyingly handsome, grouchy librarian. Most importantly, she is introduced to Rosetta, Terracotta, and Altamira, the three young witches in need of training.
Lillian, the mysterious owner of Nowhere House, is a witch herself, but with constant traveling due to her archaeology career, she isn't able to give the girls the time and education they need.
Maybe it's crazy, but Mika agrees to take the job. For once in her life, could she really fit in? She's always had to hide who she truly is, learning to use her magic and living in constant fear of losing control of it. Maybe now, she could not only have the magical camaraderie she never had, but could help these young girls fall in love with magic and be proud of who they are. Maybe she could finally be part of a family.
“It’s a leap of faith to love people and let yourself be loved. It’s closing your eyes, stepping off a ledge into nothing, and trusting that you’ll fly rather than fall. I can’t step off the ledge for you. It’s something only you can do.”
Mika loads her cauldrons, tea pots, herbs, books, and potions into her yellow hatchback affectionately known as the Broomstick, along with her golden retriever, Circe, and her koi pond, and prepares to move into Nowhere House for good.
Two of the girls warm up to Mika right away, and the third eventually comes around. Mika is teaching them to be strong, confident witches, in control of their magic without fearing it. Even Jamie warms up to her over time, and the two of them develop a slow burning romance that doesn't take over the whole story, but will keep you turning pages with delight.
Not everything is perfect at Nowhere House, though—Lillian's solicitor hasn't heard from her in months, and he is determined to get to the bottom of where she is, shutting down Nowhere House and separating the girls in the process. The true cause of Lillian's constant absence is revealed, and Mika must decide whether to remain on her own, or learn to trust her newfound family and help fight for them.
A quote on the cover by Tasha Suri describes The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches as, "A warm, witchy hug of a book," and that couldn't be more accurate. This is the perfect read for after a stressful day, when you need a pick-me-up, or just a simple reminder that your presence in this world matters.
This story teaches us that we all have unique gifts, and we shouldn't keep them to ourselves. We can all use our talents and passions to make a mark on the world, leaving it a better place for generations to come.
"'I can’t transform the world, Jamie. The world’s too big and too messy and too stubborn.' 'Who said anything about transforming the world? What about just making it a little better? And then a little better? And then a little more, until, one day, maybe long after we’re gone, it has transformed?'"