The Spellshop is a Delightful Summer Treat | Review

Sarah Beth Durst’s The Spellshop is the perfect cozy romance pick me up to cure your summertime sadness!

Set in a magical world where only the elite are permitted to wield magic, The Spellshop is a heartwarming tale of social justice, found family, grief, and community. Durst delivers beautiful landscapes, colorful characters, and an emotional journey many will relate to. Reading this book felt like taking the first bite of a freshly baked cookie. It is warm, sweet, and leaves you wishing there were more. 

The story follows a surly librarian named Kiela. When a revolution breaks out in the capital city of Alyssium, Kiela is forced to flee with a stockpile of forbidden magical tomes before she and the books burn in the chaos. Kiela and her library assistant, a talking, sentient plant named Caz find their way to Kiela’s remote childhood home on the remote island of Caltrey. There, she cleverly disguises the stolen texts in a seaside cottage left to her by her dearly departed parents.

Soon after arriving on Caltrey, Kiela realizes she’ll need to forge relationships with the islanders in order to survive. With little knowledge on how to live in a world outside of the library, she must rely on the kindness of her neighbors to survive and thrive on the island. All while hiding from the unrest in the capital. One of those neighbors is a handsome merhorse herder named Larran who has a tragic past of his own.

While Kiela may have escaped the death and destruction in the capital, it was only a matter of time before it would make its way to Caltrey and test the bonds of her new relationships and threaten the safety of the entire Island.

Hurst does a fantastic job of keeping heavy topics such as grief, loss, and social unrest relevant without bogging the reader down. The Spellshop is an enjoyable read that tugs just enough at your heartstrings while leaving you feeling fulfilled by the end. Kiela is such a relatable character for any introverted book nerd. You can’t help but root for her. When Kiela’s secret is threatened to be exposed she delivers one of my favorite quotes of the book: “Whoever cast this spell clearly cared more for what was right than what was the law.”

Another aspect of the book I thoroughly enjoyed was all of the personalities of the neighbors. While they have fur, antlers, blue skin, and even some with wings, they distinctly represent people we might find in our own neighborhoods. The elderly woman who knows everything there is to know about the town, the welcoming rebel who befriends you without asking, the grumpy old man who hates change and wants you to stay off their lawn, they’re all in this book.

If I could change anything about the book, I would have liked to see a bit more context for the revolution. The hoarding of resources is something I think we can all understand, but I think a little more background information on how the imperial family came into power, how the laws for the use of magic were written, and how the rebel cause came to power would have given the book more depth. 

I would have also liked a little spice when it comes to Kiela and Larran’s love story. Maybe I’ve been reading too much smut, but the lack of spice was a tiny bit disappointing and made the ending seem rushed. Overall, I still find the emotional growth they share to redeem the lack of spice. 

Overall, I really enjoyed The Spellshop! It’s the perfect book to take on a summer roadtrip, to sit by the pool or beach and soak up some sunshine, or anytime you need a literary hug. I think the book is great as a standalone, but I wouldn’t mind returning to Caltrey for more adventures with Kiela and Caz.