Witchlings: a just-right mix of spooky adventure, humour and cosy friendships Hardcover – 2 Jun. 2022

I absolutely love middle grade fantasy — the world building, the characters, the themes!!! And I think Witchlings is the perfect mix of everything I love best.On the night of the coven ceremony, Seven and her best friend Poppy hope to get into the same coven together. But it turns out Seven is a Spare, a witch without a coven. She’s not alone — there are two others, new girl Thorn and Valley, the girl who has been making Seven’s life hell for ages. Spares are stuck as witchlings and risk losing their magic forever. That is, until Seven invokes the rite of the Impossible Task, to prove that they are witches in their own right. The only problem is the task itself: hunt the Nightbeast that’s been stalking their town.This is Ortega’s second middle grade and just proves they are a talent to watch. The world building is intricate, the humour warm and kind, the characters bursting from the page. I was enchanted from page one, and know it’s going to be a book I return to in spooky season. It is the perfect book for young (and old) witches.I started listening to this on audiobook when i felt super ill, and it is *so good* — the audiobook narration is stellar. I definitely recommend it. It’s out now in hardback, ebook and audio!