"I’m what you might call a seasonal reader—holiday books in the winter, beach reads in the summer, and witchy books in the fall. While I love a page-turning thriller, nothing gets me more in the fall spirit than a magical, spooky story. I’m a sucker for a witchy rom-com, but I also love to get lost in fantasy worlds that are a bit darker yet still have themes like sisterhood and feminism intertwined.
These books are witchy, romantic, magical, and hilarious, and they all feature a strong female character who is more than likely going to save someone from destruction. No matter which of these books you pick up first, you’re going to get lost in the pages. Channel your inner witch and add these 15 witchy books to your TBR this fall.
Imagine being a member of a powerful family of witches, but you don’t have any powers. That’s life for Matilda Sherwood. The whole no-powers thing makes itself known when she accidentally messes up her sister’s spell and puts a curse on her entire family. Now, she has to rely on her (unbelievably hot) archnemesis to help break the spell. All they have to do is get along long enough to save her family, turn everything back to normal, and not fall in love. Easy enough, right?
The most logical thing to do after getting dumped is to cast a spell to erase any trace of the relationship, obviously. Drunk one night after a rough breakup, Gemma kisses her best friend, Dax, and then casts a spell to erase her old relationship. But when she wakes up, it’s like her friendship with Dax never happened either. Gemma must break the spell by convincing Dax to kiss her once again, in spite of the fact that they’re basically strangers now. Gemma needs to figure out if she wants to go back to the way things were before, or if maybe she and Dax are meant to be more than friends.
In the present day, we meet Kate, who flees her toxic relationship and life in London to stay in Weyward Cottage, a property she inherited from a long-lost aunt. In 1619, we meet Altha, who is on trial for murdering a local farmer and is accused of using witchcraft. In 1942, we meet Violet, who is trapped in her family estate throughout World War II. Violet lost her mother, and the only thing she has to remember her is a locket inscribed with the word “Weyward.” The stories of these three women and their magical connection unravel throughout the pages of Weyward.
Aria can’t get her magic to work right, so she decides it’s best just not to use it at all. She won’t even let herself use magic to enter a competition to win a huge fortune or to compete with her hot nemesis, Callan Hawthorne. In an unsurprising yet hilariously fitting turn of events, Aria ends up in that exact situation: using magic to win a competition so she can save her family’s magic shop. And in the midst of the competition, she ends up falling for the one person she swore she never would.
Sadie Revelare has magic powers, but in exchange for her powers, she’s been cursed with four heartbreaks. Her first heartbreak, Jake, returns to town at the same time her grandmother is given only a few weeks to live. On top of that, her estranged twin brother comes back to town and brings a lot of family drama with him. Everything was once going so right for Sadie, and now she must face the last of her heartbreaks—will it be losing magic or losing love?
We all know and love the iconic movie Practical Magic, but did you know it’s based on a book written in 1995? Practical Magic follows the story of the Owens women, modern witches who are constantly blamed for everything going wrong around them. On top of that, all of the Owens women carry a curse: every man they love tragically dies. As the two Owens sisters try to find happiness—even while at constant risk of losing their lovers—they must find a way to break the curse on their family and win the favor of the rest of the town.
In the present, after Caroline Parcewell finds out her husband is cheating on her, she spends her 10th wedding anniversary alone in London. While exploring one day, she comes across an old apothecary vial near the river Thames, which sends her down a rabbit hole of an unsolved crime spree known as the “apothecary murders.”
In 1791, Nella, the owner of an apothecary shop who was once a healer, is now using her skills to support women in killing the horrible men in their lives. When a new customer shows up and turns out to be a child, a friendship is born, and an unsettling chain of events begins. As Caroline digs into the past, she discovers the surprising connections she has to the “apothecary murders.”
The Lies We Conjure is described as “Knives Out meets The Inheritance Games with magic.” Sisters Ruby and Wren are normal teenagers working summer jobs to save up for college. One day, an eccentric older woman asks them to impersonate her grandchildren at a fancy party in exchange for $2,000 each. Of course, they say yes, but when they get there, they realize the night is not at all what they’ve agreed to. It seems they’ve ended up locked in a mansion in a real-life murder mystery, surrounded by 13 witches.
Twin sisters Vittoria and Emilia are witches who secretly live among humans. One night, Vittoria misses family dinner, and later that night, Emilia finds her sister’s body. Emilia is determined to find her sister’s killer and get revenge at any cost—even if it means using forbidden dark magic. On her journey to vengeance, she meets Wrath, one of the princes of Hell who claims to be on her side. Is he really someone she can trust, or does he have ulterior motives?
Kiela is the librarian at The Great Library of Alyssium, joined by her assistant, Caz—a magically sentient spider plant. Their main job is to protect all of the spellbooks to preserve magic for the city. When the revolution begins and the library is burned to the ground, Kiela and Caz take all of the spellbooks they can carry and flee to a remote island where Kiela grew up.
As she’s settling in and looking for a new job, Kiela uses forbidden spells to open the island’s first secret spellshop. On top of her new business venture, her nosy yet handsome neighbor checks in on her every day. Kiela is happy settling into her new home—but will her neighbor find out that she’s been using dark magic?
After a devastating revolution, witches have been diminished from rulers to outcasts. To the public, she’s a socialite, but Rune must keep her true identity a secret. At night, she’s the Crimson Moth, a witch vigilante who rescues other witches from being killed. When a rescue goes wrong, she decides to throw the witch hunters off her scent and court Gideon Sharpe to gain intel. As someone loyal to the revolution, Gideon hates everything Rune stands for. He decides to fake court her right back, and they soon realize they’re falling for one another. Rune and Gideon need to protect themselves, accomplish what they’ve set out to do, and discover if they’re the perfect match or best kept as enemies.
In another version of Edinburgh in 1824, women live in constant fear that they’ll be hanged for witchcraft. At the Rae Women’s Apothecary, the women provide cures and teach others how to aid the winter deity, the Cailleach, to become witches themselves. Nellie, a young witch, finds purpose and romance at the shop. But the Cailleach has an ancient enemy who is set on stripping the power of the deity and her witches, leaving behind patriarchal violence and destruction. When disaster strikes, Nellie must abandon her beloved apothecary and go into hiding.
Belladonna Blackthorn hasn’t exactly lost her magical spark, but she hasn’t seen it in a while either. With a headache-worthy boss who makes the work days drag on and now the mystery of her magic floating above her, Belle is struggling to keep her beloved Lunar Books afloat. So when her 30th birthday brings a summons from her coven and a trial that tests her worthiness as a witch, Belle fears the worst. Belle will need all the help she can get—from the women in her life, an unexpected mentor figure, and even from an infuriating coven watchman who’s sworn to protect her.
Unexplainable occurrences at Wicked Good Apples farm have always caught the gossiping whispers of locals, but only Holly Celeste and her family know the truth: the Celestes are just a little wicked. Despite the magical secret ingredient in their cider, the family business is failing. When Connor Grimm, a charming and nationally beloved paranormal investigator, requests to film an episode of his popular TV show on the mysterious farm, Holly reluctantly accepts. As Connor gets closer to uncovering the truth of Holly’s home, his and Holly’s blooming romance begins to threaten everything they both value.
Mika Moon is one of the few remaining witches in Britain. In order to keep her identity a secret, she keeps a low profile and does everything in her power to not draw attention. She mostly succeeds, save for the silly little online account she uses to post videos of herself pretending to be a witch. It’s just a harmless joke, right? Wrong. Mika receives a mysterious message requesting her presence at the Nowhere House to take over teaching of three young witches. Once there, Mika begins to view her new charges and the other residents of Nowhere House as a family of sorts. If only she could get through to the librarian of the house, Jamie, who can’t find it in himself to trust a newcomer.
Emily Dumas, Contributing Writer
Emily is a Virginia-based content creator with over five years of experience creating content strategies for SaaS companies. Although she spends her days in the tech world, she has spent many years as a lifestyle writer for her personal site, as well as for several publications across the web.