Review: Spellbook of the Lost and Found - Moïra Fowley-Doyle

Spellbook of the Lost and Found
Moïra Fowley-Doyle
Series: N/A
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Magical Realism
Publisher: Kathy Dawson Books
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

One stormy summer night, Olive and her best friend, Rose, begin to lose things. It starts with simple items like hair clips and jewellery, but soon it’s clear that Rose has lost something bigger; something she won’t talk about.

Then Olive meets three wild, mysterious strangers: Ivy, Hazel and Rowan. Like Rose, they’re mourning losses - and holding tight to secrets.

When they discover the ancient spellbook, full of hand-inked charms to conjure back lost things, they realise it might be their chance to set everything right. Unless it’s leading them towards secrets that were never meant to be found . . .

Olive, Rose, Ivy, Rowan, and Hazel are all searching for things they've lost, both tangible and intangible. But as they hunt for what is missing, things are also found.

"If you don't get lost, you'll never be found."

Fowley-Doyle won me as a fan with The Accident Season, and she delivered more of what won my heart in Spellbook of the Lost and Found. I was once again treated to her beautiful prose with its ethereal quality, that kept me mesmerized from page one. Fowley-Doyle has such a talent for creating atmosphere in her stories with descriptions that are so vivid. I really felt like I was in each and every situation with the characters. This book, much like her last book, puts the reader in a little darker place, which fit perfectly with a story about secrets and losses. And BONUS! There were times it was feeling a little reminiscent of The Craft, which is a plus in my book.

"Be careful what you bargain with; Every lost thing requires a sacrifice -- A new loss for every called thing found."

But it's not just the writing that is great, Fowley-Doyle gives us a great story too. I loved navigating my way through this tale, as she slowly fed me breadcrumbs to follow. I was engrossed in the stories presented by each of the three narrators, one from each group of friends, but I did not see a connection. As the story played on, two groups merge, and then I was really scratching my head about that third group. I did not figure out the connection until about two pages before the reveal. So, Fowly-Doyle deserves quite a pat on the back, for once again delivering a twist I really didn't see coming, and later, hitting me with one I REALLY didn't see coming.

"Maybe we need to lose some things to make room for others."

Every character in this book was interesting and jumped off the page. Fowley-Doyle always does such an incredible job fully realizing her complex characters. This was, by no means, a simple feat in this book, as there were quite a few major players in this story.

"I kiss her neck until I forget everything but this feeling and honestly it's a lot less like losing my heart and more like finally being found."

There is a big overarching theme of loss in this book, and I loved all the different angles Fowley-Doyle chose in her exploration of loss. Loss of tangible things, of self, of friendships, of trust. She also posed the idea, that not all loss is bad. Loss of a bad habit, of addiction, of a heart. But, there was also this idea of things found: physical items, a heart, independence, a friend, a sister, one's self. This book just left me thinking about so many things!

"Be careful what you wish for; Not all lost things should be found."

This book has some diversity, mostly in the sexual orientation realm. Two of main characters, Rose and Olive, are bisexual, and another, Hazel, is a lesbian. In addition to being bisexual, Rose is also half Indian, and it becomes a minor point of discussion with respect to ethnic beauty, which I found interesting. There is also a bit of feminist centered discussions, and a bunch of other important talk, which I will not reveal, because I don't want to spoil anything here.

"I've lost my heart. Not all losses are bad."

Overall: An captivating tale of love, loss, friendship and family filled with an air of mystery and magical realism.

**I would like to thank the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. I also would like to thank GoodReads and the publisher, as I won a physical copy through a GoodReads giveaway. Quotes are from an ARC and may change upon publication.

Do you have a favorite book that features magical realism?

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