NetGalley Review: The Spellbook for New Witches by Ambrosia Hawthorn

While I love reading NetGalley ARCs, and generally like them, this book reminds us that even books that look like a perfect match might not be  five-star reads. 

This book was a bit of a mixed bag.  Some of the spells and content were great, but much was a bit underwhelming.   With the disclaimer that this was geared towards a practice style that just isn’t my personal type of magick, this book would be a good starter for New Age practitioners. 

The background presented was cursory, which may be fitting for a beginner book.  That said, given the depth of spells then shown, more background might have been useful.  As a very basic introduction, it does the job, though readers may be better served by reading the references listed then coming back to this material.  

The spells themselves were pretty good.  Each section has many spells that do the same thing, but I liked how the reader had options to find the rituals that best suited their needs and style.   The spells did require, as a general rule, items and supplies that are easily obtained making the book accessible for anyone just starting out. The spells trended towards meditative/”New Age” ritual which just happens to not be my style (not a bad thing, if this is your style, this will be a great resource). 

Overall, I would say the book is “OK.”  I would recommend that new Witches use this as a companion piece with other resources to first feel out what type of magick most feels natural.  If meditative ritual is your thing, this would be a handy reference.