Posted: 1 August 2024

Witchy, mystical novels are taking book publishing by storm. Though stories of magic and mystery have always been bestsellers, these books have become so popular in recent years that the terms witch lit and witcherature have been coined by the Guardian to classify them.

From enchanted forests to historical reimaginings, the following lineup of 2024’s most anticipated magical novels awaits you, just in time for pumpkin spice season.

4. The Puzzle Wood by Rosie Andrews

Following the success of her Sunday Times bestselling novel The Leviathan, published in 2022, Rosie Andrews released her new novel The Puzzle Wood in May 2024. Andrews is an acclaimed historical fiction writer who “writes with a finely attuned ear” and “confidently evokes the atmosphere of the age” (Guardian).

In The Puzzle Wood, when Catherine Symonds arrives to take up a position as governess at Locksley Abbey, a beguiling manor house surrounded by ancient woods, she finds the house echoing and empty with only its skeleton staff. Yet the house is not the only thing that is not as it seems. Behind her governess façade, Catherine has in fact applied for the post with a fraudulent identity and travelled to the estate in disguise with a hidden agenda.

“An isolated forest becomes the unsettling, beguiling backdrop to a tale of myths, memory and murder.”

Catherine is determined to investigate the fate of the house’s last governess who took her own life in the woods. For this was in fact Catherine’s own sister, Emily – the very sister Catherine believed had died many years before, back when they were just children.

In this evocative tale of deception and discovery, the journey we take with the protagonist, Catherine, explores poignant themes of loss, isolation and trauma. Andrew’s atmospheric writing style is perfectly suited to capturing the novel’s unsettling, sinister backdrop and exploring the chilling secrets of the Puzzle Wood.

Beguiling and darkly fascinating, Rosie Andrews’ The Puzzle Wood hit the shelves in May 2024. Get your copy now to uncover the mysteries of Locksley Abbey.

3. The Black Bird Oracle by Deborah Harkness

New York Times #1 bestselling author Deborah Harkness recently released the fifth book in her All Souls series, The Black Bird Oracle. Now a major Sky TV series, and described as exuding “enchanting, page-turning panache” (Marie Claire), the success of the All Souls book series is a true testament to Harkness’s incredible skill in weaving fascinating, addicting stories.

In the series’ first novel, A Discovery of Witches, Oxford scholar and witch Diana Bishop and vampire and geneticist Matthew de Clairmont are drawn to each other despite long-standing taboos. The couple find themselves at the centre of a battle for a lost, enchanted manuscript known as Ashmole 782. In subsequent volumes, they fall in love, travel to Elizabethan England, dissolve the Covenant between the three species: demons, vampires and witches, and awaken the dark powers in Diana’s family line.

“A new era begins for Diana: a confrontation with her family’s dark past, and a reckoning for her own desire for even greater power — if she can let go, finally, of her fear of wielding it.”

In The Black Bird Oracle, Diana and Matthew receive a formal demand from the Congregation to test the magic of their seven-year-old twins, Pip and Rebecca. Desperate to avoid the same fate that led her parents to spellbind her, Diana instead chooses to answer a summons from her long-lost great aunt, Gwyneth Proctor, a talented witch grounded in higher magic. Under Gwyneth’s tutelage, on the hallowed ground of Ravenswood, a new era begins for Diana.

Intricately weaved and emotionally evocative, Harkness’ ability to write dimensional characters and intense storylines combines to produce deliciously addictive novels, time and time again. All Souls‘ fifth instalment will surely follow suit, exploring themes of power, passion and family responsibility with Harkness’ signature vigour and panache.

To accompany Diana and Matthew on their next adventure in Ravenswood, dive into Harkness’ latest creation, The Black Bird Oracle.

2. Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

Ava Reid is a well-established Sunday Times bestselling gothic fantasy author. She is best known for A Study in Drowning, her spellbinding and atmospheric third novel. Reid’s latest novel, Lady Macbeth, has been eagerly anticipated and celebrated as a “darkly gorgeous feast of a book, rich with irony and invention” by Freya Marske, bestselling author of the The Last Binding trilogy.

Destined to be wed to Scottish brute Macbeth, the Lady prepares to use all of her wiles and hidden witchcraft to survive his hostile, suspicious court. For not only will the Lady unearth Macbeth’s own concealed occult secrets and protective prophecies, but she will also discover that her own magic is greater, and more dangerous, and that it will threaten the order of the world.

“A reimagining of Lady Macbeth, Shakespeare’s most famous villainess, giving her a voice, a past, and a power that transforms the story men have written for her.”

This long-awaited novel follows the current publishing trend of retelling or reimagining a well-known story from a resolute feminist perspective. An example of this would be Maggie O’Farrell’s prize-winning 2020 novel Hamnet, a bewitching fictional reimagining of Shakespeare’s life and family. Reid’s engrossing writing style will lend perfectly to this ardent genre of historical fiction.

Due for release in August 2024, preorder your copy of Lady Macbeth now to join this once-shrouded villainess in a fraught game of sorcery, sagacity and deceit against none other than Shakespeare’s infamous Scottish tragic hero.

1. Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood

Having signed a book deal with Pan Macmillan last year, promising debut novelist Lucy Jane Wood is due to bring her cosy, autumnal debut novel to shelves very soon. Wood studied English Literature at Queen Mary University of London and has since written for major magazines including Marie Claire and Cosmopolitan.

From carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders to concealing her magic from those around her, bookseller and covert witch Belladonna Blackthorne is burnt out. But when her thirtieth birthday leads to a summons from her coven and a trial to test her worthiness as a witch, Belle must prove her magical merit or risk losing her witchcraft forever.

“Belladonna Blackthorne hasn’t lost her magical spark… but she hasn’t seen it in a while either. It’s time to rediscover her magic.”

Through the month of October, Belle prepares for her trial. Her ensuing journey involves leaning on the women in her life for guidance, fighting to resist the dark forces that appear to be working against her, and attempting to tolerate the frustratingly handsome watchman sworn to protect her.

Wood’s fervent passion for literature and her witty, vibrant social media personality will no doubt shine through in her debut novel. Perfect for lovers of Sangu Mandanna’s The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, we anticipate every page of Rewitched to be filled with warming nostalgia, comedic brilliance and heartfelt sentiments of womanhood and of love in all its forms.

Preorder your copy of Rewitched now ahead of its release in September 2024 to accompany Belle in her emotional journey to prove, against all odds, that she is worthy of her magic.

Immersive and empowering historical fiction has championed the publishing world in recent years. For a taste of the vibrant world of the Ancient Greeks, indulge in our list of Greek Mythology Retellings & Reimaginings.