Views_She_Writes

Book Review: The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna https://viewsshewrites.wordpress.com/2025/07/03/book-review-the-very-secret-society-of-irregular-witches-by-sangu-mandanna/

What’s This Book About? A warm and uplifting novel about an isolated witch whose opportunity to embrace a quirky new family–and a new love–changes the course of her life.

Literary awards for this book:

Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Fantasy (2022) Swoon Award for PNR/UF Romance (2022) RUSA CODES Reading List Nominee for Relationships (2023)

Let’s Talk About This Book

There is something quietly enchanting about this book that goes beyond spells and potions. The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches is a story of belonging. It’s about being different, being guarded, being tired of shrinking yourself, and then finding the courage to open your heart, even when you are terrified.

As someone who doesn’t often feel like they “fit”, the found family element resonated deeply with me. Mika’s transformation from being a careful outsider, to a beloved part of the chosen family, was both magical and breathtakingly real.

This one line below in this book absolutely undid me:

“No, you absolutely should not,” said Terracotta at once. “You can’t have her. She’s ours.”

There is so much gentleness in this book – gentleness in the way grief is handled, in the way love is shown, in the way characters allow each other to grow and evolve. This book may be labeled as cozy fantasy, but it carries with it a quiet emotional truth and personal resonance, especially for those of us still trying to find our found family.

There are a few more quotes that I would like to share, not only to highlight how beautifully Sangu has written it, but also to emphasize how emotionally Samara MacLaren (the audiobook narrator) has captured it. These tugged straight at my heart.

“But it was more than that. It was peace, the kind Mika was beginning to see she had never known… She hadn’t realized just how heavy her mask had been until she’d discovered what it was to live without it.”

“It’s a leap of faith to love people and let yourself be loved. It’s closing your eyes, stepping off a ledge into nothing, and trusting that you’ll fly rather than fall.”

“We wanted you to know, we want you to stay. Not just for now. Always. So we’re leaving a window open so that if you ever want to come home, you’ll know you’ll always be wanted.”

Would I Recommend It?

Oh gosh yes! Absolutely!

If you enjoy books that are gentle but emotionally grounded, and if you have ever longed for a place or a group of people who accept you completely, The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches is worth reading. It’s the kind of story that leaves you a little softer — and a little more hopeful.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 5 out of 5.

What Did You Think?

Have you read The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches? Do you enjoy cozy fantasy with emotional depth? Share your thoughts in the comments. I’d love to know what stayed with you after reading it.

The wait

https://viewsshewrites.wordpress.com/2019/05/31/the-wait/

It's 5:30 pm. He should be coming home soon. I am waiting for him by the window. I plant myself by the window everyday at this time, waiting for him.

He has recently rented out our basement apartment and moved in a few weeks back. Yes, it has been only a few weeks, but I am already addicted to him. I know 'addicted' is a very strong word, but I cannot think of any other word for him. From the first time I saw him, I felt an instant connection – the sort of connection that does not have any explanation. Since then, over the past few weeks, my feelings for him has only become stronger with every interaction we have had.

I look back to the living room from the window. She is on the couch watching her regular shows on TV. Sometimes I feel I am betraying her. I have been with her for 9 years now. Never have I ever felt the connection that I have with her with anyone else. I know the bond that I have with her is something which lasts a lifetime. I know she is the one for me.

But what is it with him that I want to spend so much time around him everyday? Everyday that he goes to work, I feel terrible. When he comes home, my joy knows no bounds. I rush over to his place as soon as he comes home and spends time with him till bedtime. Of course, by bedtime, I come back to her. But through the day, if he is home, that is where you would find me.

I hear him before I see him walking by the lane towards our home. As soon as my eyes find him, my heart leaps with joy. I give a 'woof' of delight and my tail wags nineteen to a dozen. I cannot stop expressing my joy. She looks at me and smiles – “He has come back from office, isn't it Bucky? Now let him rest a bit before you go off bounding by his door for your walk.” But he hears her when he opens the door. He is happy to see me too. “It's OK, I am not tired. Come on, Bucky boy, let's go for our walk.”

And my day is perfect again!

Thunderstorm

https://viewsshewrites.wordpress.com/2019/05/27/thunderstorm/

It is just noon as per the clock on the wall. But based on the ambient light in the room, it just might as well be night. The sky is clouding up and lighting is striking multiple times. Rain is dashing up my window. How do I know this? My hand is on the window and I can feel the thump of every huge drops of water hitting the window. Huge droplets of water is pouring down from the heavens above. The downpour is so heavy, both in volume and force. I can see every single droplet of water, but at the same time, almost cannot see the house across my street.

At a distance, a lighting strikes a tree and breaks it in half right through  the middle. The weather is mesmerizing me and I cannot seem to keep away from the window. There is electricity in the air because of all the lightning that is happening outside. I can smell the acrid scent of electricity around me. It is charging me from within. The wind is racing outside at a tremendous pace, making the trees bend down to almost touching the ground. Trust wind to teach humbleness to trees. I think wind is the only way a tree will touch the feet of earth while it lives. It is just a Hindu way of thinking.

Leaves separated from branches are dancing around creating a vortex-like circle in space. Empty streets with the dancing leaves makes the neighborhood feel deserted. But no one could possibly get out in this weather. It is very much possible that they just might be swept away by the wind. Clouds are swirling in the sky above, getting darker by the minute. Looking at the grey, almost black clouds above and slowly descending down towards the earth makes the moment feel like it is straight out of an apocalyptic novel. Dark grey clouds clash against black clouds generating the only source of light around in the form of lightning.

The room is getting darker by the minute but I cannot move from my place long enough to turn the lights on. The huge drops of water falling from the heavens above, the heavy winds dashing against my window and rattling the glass panes against my palm, the scent of wet earth and electricity in the air - these look and feel magical to me. I am absorbing everything that I can from the senses I have left in me. You see, I was born deaf. And I love it when thunderstorm strikes. I live my life the most while watching thunderstorm.

Attempted Murder

https://viewsshewrites.wordpress.com/2019/05/24/attempted-murder/

“There is a case of attempted murder happening. All units report immediately”

Alerted, every unit started heading towards the address provided by the dispatcher. Now, the problem these units were facing is that they were not yet assigned their own transport. So, even though it was an emergency, they had to rely on public transport to get to the source. And, as usual, when you are in a hurry, the transport is never reliable.

The units had to wait till they got the right transport. Even then, the route of transit was far from direct. They faced obstacles a lot on the way and they had to wait for a change of transport to be on their way.

It was quite some time before they reached the emergency location and they started rushing to the potential victim before something untoward happens to the victim.

However, they were late. When they arrived at the scene, they saw that the humans were just feeding the plant its first water in over a month. The plant was dehydrated and gulped down every drop of water that landed in the soil. One human was pouring water into the vase and the other was squirting some water on the leaves and flowers.

The first human was saying the second, “I did not know this was a potted plant. I was under the impression it's a bouquet. No wonder it did not wilt away. They should have told us they are giving us a potted plant as our house-warming gift. We would have watered it before. Poor plant! Thank God it didn't die on us. Imagine! Our first pet and we would have killed it. Thank God we did not go ahead with our plan of getting a dog. Maybe we could learn by taking care of this first before progressing towards a dog.”

The pollen police heaved a sigh of relief. If they had found the plant dead, they would have punished the humans with their deadliest weapon in the worst way possible – pollen fever.

Newcomer

https://viewsshewrites.wordpress.com/2019/05/17/newcomer/

John moved to Stoneville town knowing full well that it is a small town and everyone knows everyone's business. That was his requirement. He knew he could not be welcomed with open arms. He would have to earn their trust. And he was prepared for it. He wanted in on the intricacies of small town. He wanted to become a small towner. He had his own reasons for it.

During the initial days of his moving, Stoneville viewed him with suspicious eyes. He was not used to wishing everyone 'Hello' or 'Good Day! How are you?' everytime he stepped out, but he soon got used to it. Even if no one initiated a wish, he made sure he wished everyone he saw whenever he went out, ensured that he helped the old people cross the road or with their groceries and lead a hand every time he saw anyone who needed help.

Gradually, he broke the ice barrier and made some friends. Although he made sure everyone knew he was in town only for a short while, he went out of the way to find out what people