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Spellbook of the Lost and Found

Moïra Fowley-Doyle (Goodreads Author)

3.74 · Rating details · 4,725 ratings · 1,040 reviews

If you’re not careful, you can spend your whole life looking for what you’ve lost.

One stormy summer in a small Irish town, things begin to disappear. It starts with trivial stuff—hair clips, house keys, socks—but soon it escalates to bigger things: a memory, a heart, a classmate.

Olive can tell that her best friend, Rose, is different all of a sudden. Rose isn’t talking, an ...more

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Hardcover, 357 pages

Published August 8th 2017 by Kathy Dawson Books (first published June 1st 2017)

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· 4,725 ratings · 1,040 reviews

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Aug 04, 2017 destiny ♡⚔♡ [howling libraries] rated it it was amazing

Shelves: queer, ya, mystery-thriller, review-copies, fantasy, owned-p

“What will you let go of? What can you not afford to lose?”

I had heard literally nothing about this book or the author when I requested it from PRH's First to Read program. All I knew, going into it, was what you can read on the GR synopsis, and that it had an intriguing cover.

✘ PLOT
When three young Irish girls find a mysterious spellbook and carry out a spell to return lost items, they don't pay enough attention to the line that warns them items must be sacrificed for those items being brought ...more

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Nov 07, 2017 Elle (ellexamines) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: fans of offbeat, character-driven slow burn

Shelves: author-love, z-2017faves, favorite-relationships, 5-star, gay-genre-fiction, y-2017releases, x-coverporn, favorite-squads, sff-high-fantasy, lgbtq

If you’re not careful, you can spend your whole life looking for what you’ve lost.

Spellbook of the Lost and Found is an exceptionally weird book. Fowley-Doyle's writing has a tone I've never quite seen before. She's not writing magical realism, but it's somewhere close. There's a sense of everyday magic to Spellbook of the Lost and Found. As the book goes on, you're forced to ask: is the magic is even real? And perhaps more importantly, does it matter either way?

Yet despite all the w ...more

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Apr 09, 2018 Melanie rated it liked it

Recommended to Melanie by: destiny ♡⚔♡ [howling libraries]

Shelves: mystery, sapphic, read-in-2018, magic, lgbtqiap, buddy-reads, young-adult

“If you’re not careful you can spend your whole life looking for what you’ve lost.”

This book was equal parts haunting and beautiful. The writing feels so lush and magical and is absolutely transportive. The story was so expertly and intelligently crafted. Seriously, this entire book feels like a work of art. But for some reason, I just couldn’t connect with any of the characters. Instead of it feeling like a treat to read, I really had to force myself to focus. I still really recomme ...more

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Apr 15, 2021 C.G. Drews rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: magical-fantasy, audio-books, read-2021, young-adult, lgbt

Another truly incredible read from this author. I've read all her books now and they hit differently 🥺 that subtle blend of magic and everyday traumas, the way you can get to the end and believe in magic but also wonder, like the characters, if it was just coincidence. It's truly excellently done.

This book also so softly bleeds pain and loss. It is heavily thematic about loss, and I think it had a lot of circular messages that had poignant resolutions. There's also a lot of community in this boo ...more

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Sep 30, 2017 may ➹ rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2017, pretty-cover, rep-lgbtqiap-bi, rep-lgbtqiap, young-adult, pov-female, 3-star, rep-bipoc, rep-lgbtqiap-wlw, urban-fantasy

Spellbook of the Lost and Found is a book I’m really torn over. It is truly a beautiful and magical book, but there were other aspects that made it hard for me to connect to everything.

L I K E S

🌹 That cover is gorgeous. It’s so aesthetic and I can’t lie that that’s a big reason why I picked this up. Actually, the whole atmosphere of this book is so magical and aesthetic.
🌷 Fowley-Doyle’s writing style is absolutely magical! That’s probably why the whole book felt so aesthetic, but I love her lyrical writing style. Everything was so intriguing and brought to life by her writing voice.
🌹 The diversity is so refreshing. I believe there are two bisexual girls and one lesbian. And if I remember correctly, one of the characters was half-Indian? There was also an f/f romance that developed and I love it so much!!
🌷 I loved the setting! I believe it was set in Ireland? It was so great to see another setting than America! Plus, the way that Fowley-Doyle wrote the story made the setting much more magical and mysterious.

D I S L I K E S

🌹 Everything was so confusing. It was really overwhelming at the beginning, with three different POVs (though I love multiple POVs) and a huge cast of characters. I totally get that this book is meant to be twisty and mysterious but I’m really clueless half of the time I’m awake and I need help navigating through life.
🌷 There were so many characters. I had a hard time keeping everyone straight. I don’t even remember one character name?? It also meant that the characters that weren't narrators didn’t get as much development.
🌹 And because there were so many characters and many of them didn’t get a lot of development, I had a really hard time connecting to all of them. I was interested enough in the story, it was just hard to find ways to really care about the characters. (Except for the f/f romance. I was 100% for that.)

Basically, it’s a good book. But it didn’t stand out to me, which is why this review is kinda undetailed—because I don’t really remember anything. It’s not exactly the 3.5 stars I originally rated, but I still think that it’s a good book and I recommend picking it up! It’s absolutely magical, but just beware of some confusion. ...more

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Sep 01, 2018 Chelsea (chelseadolling reads) rated it liked it · review of another edition

I love love loved the characters in this book, but the plot left a lot to be desired for me :c womp. 10/10 do recommend the audiobook though because all the narrators have Irish accents and I’m a BIG FAN.

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Nov 15, 2017 Dannii Elle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: magical-realism-mastery, mysterious-miasmas, young-adult-books-read

I absolutely adored Fowley-Doyle's debut, The Accident Season (full review here), and had been eager to get to her latest release partly for that reason and partly for this absolutely stunning Autumnal-themed cover. I am so pleased that the interior of this book lived up to both its outer-beauty and the author's former prowess of penmanship.

Just like The Accident Season, this had a dark and eerie premise. Things are being lost. From diary pages, charm bracelets, and hair clips, to things of a fa I absolutely adored Fowley-Doyle's debut, The Accident Season (full review here), and had been eager to get to her latest release partly for that reason and partly for this absolutely stunning Autumnal-themed cover. I am so pleased that the interior of this book lived up to both its outer-beauty and the author's former prowess of penmanship.

Just like The Accident Season, this had a dark and eerie premise. Things are being lost. From diary pages, charm bracelets, and hair clips, to things of a far bigger consequence to loose and things far harder to retrieve. But things are also being found, as well: a leather-bound spell book, an insight to the past, a blue-haired elf of a girl, a lost sister, and two boys, one of which might spell trouble. Can what is lost amount to what has been found? And how much can a person stand to misplace before they lose themselves entirely?

This features a hefty cast of characters, all of which have names that reside in nature. Ivy, Olive, Hazel etc. had a tendency to blur into each other, on times, and it was only due to my reading of other reviews, before beginning this book, that had me prepared with notes to differentiate them. I had, thankfully, also been forewarned about the thrice-split perspective, and how all three story-lines do not align. These two elements could have greatly confused and ruined my reading experience of this, so that is perhaps something to be aware of.

Everything else about this novel was to be adored! I especially loved the tone of the piece. This was an almost haunting novel, in some respects. There was a darkness to it that left me unsure what was supernatural, what was magical realism, and what was of my own mind's creation. This darkness also bled into the atmospheric setting. For mood readers, like myself, this is a book that screams of autumn on every page. The book's interior matched the setting I was reading it in, and they combined to deliver a great reading experience. And that was before the equally as foreboding plot came into play.

I was in utter awe of the dark whimsy of this narrative. There was an almost abstract element to it that compelled me from the very first page: nothing is concrete, no one is reliable, and not one thing can be trusted in this story. This is a story that almost seems to shift, as you are reading it, as you never seem on equal footing with the events occurring. The reader becomes as much a part of this tale as the characters, in that respect, so truly are you immersed into this mysterious and puzzling story-line. I did discern one of the greatest plot twists, before the grand reveal, but this did not deter my interest and only made me excited to continue on and see what else awaited to be discovered.

The premise of the novel is something that is really mirrored in the tone and voice of the piece. As one secret is unearthed, clues for another are deposited. This was a true treasure hunt of a novel and I adored the entire journey it took me on. ...more

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Aug 09, 2017 Sofii♡ (A Book. A Thought.) rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, contemporary, romance, read-in-2017, mystery-thriller, magic

I want to thank NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers Group for providing me with this copy in exchange for an honest review

Wow, I ended up being much better than I expected! , I really enjoyed the book and all the time I felt that it reminded me of The Raven Boys since the plot has a lot of mystery, friendship and magical realism. A great book that grows a lot as you read it, it has a very interesting concept, a great diversity of characters and a very catchy writing style

description

4/5 Stars

You can find th ...more

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Jul 29, 2017 Jill McGill rated it really liked it

Shelves: giveaways, fiction, young-adult, fantasy, first-reads

Spellbook of the Lost and Found by Moïra Fowley-Doyle was more than magical, it was filled with mystery, strange happenings, friendship, and love.

In the beginning, it was hard to keep track of all the characters but as you keep reading it all comes together and makes sense - just have patience. I did love how the past and the present collide and how it all ties together in the end. Unfortunately, some questions are left unanswered so maybe there will be another book in the future.

All in all, t ...more

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Jun 21, 2017 Bee rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: standalones, ukya

Review originally on Heart Full of Books

I had seen a lot of hype surrounding this book on twitter – lots of authors and publishers getting ARCS, which were beautiful, by the way. So, it’s one that’s been on my radar for a while, even though I had no idea when it was coming out. Then I went book shopping with Maddie and happened to see Spellbook For The Lost and Found on the table and I NEEDED IT. I picked it up practically as soon as I got home (which hardly ever happens) and I feel like I genui Review originally on Heart Full of Books

I had seen a lot of hype surrounding this book on twitter – lots of authors and publishers getting ARCS, which were beautiful, by the way. So, it’s one that’s been on my radar for a while, even though I had no idea when it was coming out. Then I went book shopping with Maddie and happened to see Spellbook For The Lost and Found on the table and I NEEDED IT. I picked it up practically as soon as I got home (which hardly ever happens) and I feel like I genuinely have some stuff to say about it, so let’s get to it.

There are three perspectives: Olive, who wakes up after a crazy party and starts to lose things. Hazel, a girl who’s living with her brother and best friend in an abandoned house because staying with her parents wasn’t a safe option. And Laurel, whose diary pages go missing and to get them back she casts a spell with her two best friends.

It’s a very self-contained story with lots of characters: Olive, Rose, Hazel, Ivy, Rowan, Laurel, Ash, Holly, Mags. And while I’m all for a majority female cast this was a lot of girls who love to speak in riddles and metaphors to keep track of. When it came to the voices sometimes couldn’t distinguish between them. With context I could always work it out, but all the girls had very similar ways of looking at the world. Olive and Hazel both idolise and comment in detail about their best friend’s traits, meaning I felt like I knew more about Rose because of Olive’s lens, and Rowan because of Hazel’s. I didn’t get to know about Hazel and Olive themselves until they showed up in each other’s POVs. There just wasn’t as much of a change in tone as I would have liked, but it was beautiful writing regardless, so *shrugs*

I also thought the pacing was bit off at time. We’d get to a bit where it felt like things were going somewhere. Like we’d just bitten off a huge chunk of intrigue, but then things would settle down and it would be back to the same pattern of ‘lost-thing and a hang-out session’. THAT BEING SAID. the ending. Similarly to I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson you have to read to the end before you realise how well constructed the story is. I might have had complaints about it being self-contained, but I certainly didn’t see any of the twists coming. I felt like I was always five steps behind the characters, but I was hooked and when ends were being tied I was living for those reveals. There was genuinely a moment, like fifty pages from the end, when my chin was on my chest.

Spellbook For The Lost and Found is a book that will keep you on your toes if you can get through purple prose, and stick with the plot until things all start coming together. It’s full of romance, and pretty great diversity of character too, with Olive being deaf in one ear, Rose being a WOC, the pair of them being bisexual and Hazel being gay. (Though I do have reservations about the pacing of exposition (we were still learning about Olive and Rose’s friendship over 100 pages through…)).

Overall, this book was a bit of self-indulgence. Moria Fowley-Doyle has a knack of creepy-cool atmosphere building, so if you liked her debut The Accident Season then you’ll find all the same things to love in Spellbook. Overall, I gave it 4 stars. I was frustrated at times, but I had a fun time reading it. I might just have found my new favourite addiction: queer witches. ...more

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Sep 23, 2017 theresa rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

this book cover is so autumnal and aesthetically pleasing 🌑🍂

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Aug 12, 2017 Carole (Carole's Random Life) rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2017, magical-realism, reviewed, ya, first-to-read

This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.

I really liked this story. I read most of the book in a single day and captivated by it. I decided to read this book because I was intrigued by the blurb and I am really glad that I did. This was one of those books that made me want to keep reading "just one more chapter" until I had reached the end.

This book is told from multiple points of view and it works very well for this story. Every point of view in this book really added some This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.

I really liked this story. I read most of the book in a single day and captivated by it. I decided to read this book because I was intrigued by the blurb and I am really glad that I did. This was one of those books that made me want to keep reading "just one more chapter" until I had reached the end.

This book is told from multiple points of view and it works very well for this story. Every point of view in this book really added something to the add to the overall story. I really liked each of the points of view equally which was a big plus for this book. I feel like Olive's point of view was the dominant one in the book that really pushed the story forward. Laurel and Hazel's points of view were equally important and usually gave me something to think about.

I enjoyed the way the book was laid out. Some things were lost and some things were found. How did all of this happen and what does it really mean? How do you get back the things you have lost that are important to you? I found myself really thinking about these questions as the characters made their way through this story. I wasn't sure how things would end up connecting and ran into a few surprises during the story.

I liked the writing. This was my first experience reading Moïra Fowley-Doyle's work and I am quite impressed. She was able to create a large cast of characters in this book that really came to life. There was just enough unknown to keep me guessing throughout the story. The descriptions were vibrant and I could really visualize what was happening at any given point.

I would recommend this book to others. I think it is a unique story filled with an interesting group of characters. I plan to read more from this talented author in the future.

I received an advanced reader edition of this book from Kathy Dawson Books via First to Read.

Initial Thoughts
I read most of this book today and did enjoy it. There were a few twists that surprised me and I had a good time trying to figure everything out. ...more

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Aug 12, 2017 Lotte rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017-read, a-young-adult-fiction, 2017-release, ge-magical-realism, t-diverse-reads, o-book-unicorns, t-lgbtqia

++++ // Great depictions of friendships, family bonds and (LGBTQ+!) romance. Teenagers messing around with magic. A setting in the Irish countryside. A wonderful writing style that manages to convey the magical and mysterious atmosphere of it all.
- // Too many characters and too many interconnections between all of them that felt a little construed at times (even though I really liked them all, maybe less characters would've been a wiser choice and less confusing to read about, especially toward ...more

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Dec 14, 2018 Skye Kilaen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 0-genre-ya, bi-pan-characters-yay

This YA = spooky atmosphere + queer gal rep + magic + the good and bad of friendship and attraction. There are a lot of perspectives and a lot of timeline switching, but instead of taking notes like I sometimes do with books like that, I just gave myself over to it and let the what-really-happened?? feelings do their thing. Highly recommended, and I’ll be reading more from this author.

Content warning: discussion of sexual assault.

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Sep 15, 2017 Acqua rated it really liked it

Shelves: db, contemp-sff-mr, boring-li, mystery-th-su, w-ones, yff, unpredictable, ya, love-cover, q

3.5 stars.

Spellbook of the Lost and Found is set in an Irish small town where, after the night of the bonfire, everyone loses something.

It's told in three PoVs:
•Olive. She is a chubby bi girl with a deaf ear. She was at the bonfire the night the lost answered, and she was getting drunk with her friend Rose (also bi, and biracial Indian).

•Hazel. Her and her brother Rowan are new in town. Her PoV wasn't my favorite - the "Dark!Secret I keep mentioning to the reader" is one of my least favorite tro ...more

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Oct 28, 2017 Renee Godding rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: magical-realism

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. 3.5/5 stars

Here is the thing; i read this book twice in a few days. The first time I did not enjoy it; it did not grab my attention, leading to me missing important clues to understanding the story. When I got close to the end I was so confused that I decided to start all over, in order to understand it better. The fact that I even took the time to read it a second time says enough about how much the premise intrigued me, but the fact that I had to read it twice to understand it probably does n 3.5/5 stars

Here is the thing; i read this book twice in a few days. The first time I did not enjoy it; it did not grab my attention, leading to me missing important clues to understanding the story. When I got close to the end I was so confused that I decided to start all over, in order to understand it better. The fact that I even took the time to read it a second time says enough about how much the premise intrigued me, but the fact that I had to read it twice to understand it probably does not speak well for the story itself.

The second time things fell into place and I could appreciate the build up and intertwining that Moira Fowley-Doyle did in this book.
This leaves me torn on the rating to give to this book; the first around I would have given it a 2 star-rating, the second time probably a 4. Middling it out; I think this was a 3 to 3,5 star read for me all in all.

The Highlights;
- the premise! Like I said; i was so intrigued by the premise that I actually took the effort of reading this book twice to get it.
- the atmosphere. This read to me like a "fall-read" (even though it takes place in summer, oops). It is very atmospheric and has a mysterious, witchy vibe to it. The mysterious spellbook, the lists of lost and found items and the characters having their own family stories give this book a very "something-is-boiling-under-the-surface-feel".
- the family-dynamics. Not a lot of YA books include good family dynamics lately. The spellbook absolutely did nail this. This book deals with themes like alcohol-abuse, death, guilt and the bond between sisters.
- the LGBTQ+ representation. This book features straight, lesbian and bisexual relationships in a way that is very natural and non-heavy handed. In my opinion: this is the best way to write LGBTQ+ rep. and I very much appreciate it for this.

The Downsides;
- there are a lot of characters. The story is told from 3 different perspectives, which in my opinion sounded quite alike most of the time. All 3 characters have their own different friendgroup, which makes for a lot of characters, right from the start, that I had trouble distinguishing between.

- the story can be pretty confusing the first time around. It starts of with the three narrative points, seemingly having no overlap with each other. Only about 200 pages in you start to see where these intertwine.
The main point that makes it confusing was the fact that (SPOILER!!) the three storylines don't take place in the same time period. I am usually pretty good at picking up these kind of things in advance, but I was confused by this one.

- You will not get "full closure" with this book.
This story does not wrap itself up in a nice bow and there will be unanswered questions in the end. There is no explanation for the magic (if there actually was magic to begin with) and not all personal questions the characters have are answered. Personally I liked this; in life, not all questions are answered. But I do see how this could be an issue for some people.

All in all, I don't recommend this book to everyone, but if the premise intrigues you and you are willing to put in some effort reading it; definitely go for it! ...more

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Aug 10, 2017 Taylor Knight rated it really liked it

Shelves: arcs

ARC was sent to me by publisher in exchange for an honest review

I really enjoyed The Accident Season so I was super hyped for Spellbook of the Lost and Found.
I love Moïra's writing style so much. It's so unique, creative, and almost poetic in some ways. I fell in love with her writing even more with SotLaF. The plot is so entertaining, there's diverse characters, and the magic is bomb.
The only thing I wasn't really into was how many perspectives there was. I'm not a big fan of multiple perspect ...more

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Oct 18, 2017 TheYALibrarian rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arcs-read

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Rating 3 Stars

Well this book was definitely in the realm of WTF. There's a lot of reasons for my brain to be completely confused:

One is the Spellbook itself. It wasn't truly explained why there was a spellbook that helped the person who casts the spell to find what was lost. It was briefly said that Mags had possibly been the one to write the book but its not certain. Mags remains an enigma and I hope this is not going to stay a stand alone because this is just one loose tie that was never clari Rating 3 Stars

Well this book was definitely in the realm of WTF. There's a lot of reasons for my brain to be completely confused:

One is the Spellbook itself. It wasn't truly explained why there was a spellbook that helped the person who casts the spell to find what was lost. It was briefly said that Mags had possibly been the one to write the book but its not certain. Mags remains an enigma and I hope this is not going to stay a stand alone because this is just one loose tie that was never clarified.

Also I don't understand why the author chose to reveal the puzzle of Laurel, Ash, and Holly at the very end of the book. It would have made it seem less alarming as to why they bound and gagged Jude to the tree and tried to set him on fire. It would have been great to have revealed their true identities sooner too it would have been added a more interesting element that Olive, Rowan, Hazel, and Ivy knew their parent's were the first to cast the spell and tried to get more information out of them about it. Also the brief flashes of Ash and Holly's death was jarring as well with no context and no explanation until the end as well. Fitting the pieces of the puzzle back together so late left me for too long in a state of absolute confusion. Suspense is great for a while but not the whole book. I'm still having trouble even wrapping my head around this book to make a comprehensive review.

I also had trouble keeping all the girls apart. Their voices sounded so similar so I could not remember who was the one with the family and the crazy professor parents, who was the one with a brother named Rowan and pretty much a squatter in a home with Ivy, and who was the one who started it all with finding the spellbook and casting the spell with her friends Ash and Holly.

Despite all this the plot was definitely really different and interesting. No witch's with magic spells and cauldron's just this mysterious book that can help things be found in the cost of losing another. The cost was great since everybody in the town lost something and when the first spell was broken everything was magically returned and the spellbook just vanished. Weird stuff but really fascinating. I also really enjoyed the narration of the audio she did an Irish accent perfectly which helped me even understand what country this was taking place in and I can differentiate Scottish from Irish so there was no confusion there (thank you Outlander). I know the Irish roots should have been obvious since the author's name is very Irish but I failed to notice at the beginning.

I really hope Doyle decides to do a sequel there seems to be so much left unsaid and so much more to be told. Plus the spellbook disappeared so it could reappear and start the madness all over again with another person casting the spell which could be interesting if done well. ...more

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May 08, 2017 Karina rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: female-author, happy-making, strange-and-wonderful, ireland, ya, arc, atmospheric, strong-female-characters, inspired-by-mythology, beautiful

Magical and enchanting, this is a book with dirt beneath its nails...a bit scruffy and unkempt, with whiskey-breath and birds-nest hair, and a charming sideways grin as it sidles in your back door at two in the morning...open your heart to it, and welcome the weirdness and the wonder inside.

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Feb 01, 2020 Howard rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks, fiction

4 Stars for Spellbook of the Lost and Found (audiobook) by Moïra Fowley-Doyle read by Elizabeth Sastre, Marisa Calin and Saskia Maarleveld. Another fun mystery set in Ireland. Great narration.

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Mar 02, 2020 Cortney LaScola Hornyak - The Bookworm Myrtle Beach rated it liked it

I read The Accident Season a few years ago and loved it... The Spellbook of the Lost and Found was good, but not as great as that. I got a little confused at the beginning about what was actually going on. I did like the 3 different POV's, even if I had to stop and think who was who a few times.

I think Moira Fowley-Doyle is a beautiful writer, and I will continue to pick up her books as long as she keeps writing!
...more

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Dec 27, 2017 ambsreads marked it as to-read

ON HOLD @ 14%

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Apr 26, 2019 Chloe rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019

9/10.

The pros: Spellbook of the Lost and Found is a truly captivating, moving story that will surprise you and keep you enthralled with every spellbinding chapter. I didn't know what to expect from this. I picked it up because I read the Proud anthology compiled by Juno Dawson, and this author's story was my favourite in terms of how beautiful I found her writing to be. I got that and so much more from this book. Whimsical, magical and very cleverly plotted, I adored her writing and the atmosph ...more

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Apr 18, 2018 Julie Zantopoulos rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: diverse-read, own-it, read-in-2018

I was so impressed with the writing in this story. From the very beginning, before I had the names of characters, friend groups, and storyline straight, I was already enthralled by the writing. It's lyrical without being too flowery, it's got beautiful quotes sprinkled like gems among the pages. I have so much annotated in this story, so many tabs pointing to passages that I loved. Not only was the writing beautiful but the themes and underlying plot within this book are so poignant.

Discussed i I was so impressed with the writing in this story. From the very beginning, before I had the names of characters, friend groups, and storyline straight, I was already enthralled by the writing. It's lyrical without being too flowery, it's got beautiful quotes sprinkled like gems among the pages. I have so much annotated in this story, so many tabs pointing to passages that I loved. Not only was the writing beautiful but the themes and underlying plot within this book are so poignant.

Discussed in a story of a spell gone wrong, where people are searching for things they've lost only to lose more than they had planned in the process, there are themes of feminism and strong supportive friendships, sibling relationships, parent/child relationships, forgiveness, and so much more. There's a ton of diversity represented in this book with a main character who wears hearing aids, one who is half Indian and half Irish, and more than one character who identify as bisexual as well as another queer lady. The characters are strong, richly written, complex and flawed. Their friendships are built both over time and within a short span under unusual circumstances in totally believable ways.

The vibe of this book is decidedly less witchy than I had anticipated but also incredibly eerie and a little unnerving all at once. It's more contemporary with magical realism or mystical moments. They weave together beautifully. The writer has so many easter eggs for twists and turns, so much attention to detail in a finely crafted story of love, loss, heartache, friendship, and the things we'll do to keep those we love close and safe.

It really was a stunning book and one I'm really glad I finally got around to. The only reason it's missing a star is that it did take a days reading or so to get the hang of the story and characters. I appreciate that the reader was babied but we are introduced to a lot of characters from GO, all with similar names (all trees/plants Hazel, Olive, Rose, Ivy, Holly, Ask, Laurel, Rowan) and sometimes keeping them straight was really difficult as they all belong to different friend groups/chosen families. Even as you read the book there were moments I felt I had missed something, some detail, and had to stop to consider whose chapter I was reading. We do get a few POVs (Hazel, Olive, and Laurel) but I was so invested in this story and the outcome.

A beautiful book that was well worth the read. ...more

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Dec 10, 2017 Amanda Kratz rated it liked it · review of another edition

So I really struggled with this one. It took a while for the plot to emerge and when it did it was so basic. Items are lost, a group of kids cast a spell to get them back. (More or less). There is more character building than plot. Which I typically enjoy but there were just so many characters. I felt it didn’t go deep enough.

I think I’ve decided magical realism just isn’t for me. I’m not sure with the contemporary setting that the characters would have responded to magic/spells as they did. I d ...more

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Oct 31, 2019 Lea | That_Bookdragon added it · review of another edition

1/5 ⭐️ ~ DNF

I have had this book on my TBR since last year. I finally decided to pick it up and I am scared it put me into a reading slump... I don't know what it is but I just couldn't get into it at all. I forced myself to go past the hundred pages mark but was so bored it took me three days to do that when I usually manage to finish at least one book in three days. The characters felt all the same, the pace and the writing were really strange and the ambiance was just nonexistent.

I really ex ...more

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Jun 23, 2020 Eliza ☽ rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: magic, lgbt-plus-rep

Appreciate that it leaned into its pretentiousness, but kinda uncomfortable with the way this author's books consistently seem to have weirdly incesty undertones? And it's never really addressed? Also it was way too try-hard at times.

2.5 stars ...more

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Jul 18, 2018 Enne rated it really liked it

Shelves: genre-mystery-thriller, rep-bipoc, rep-lgbtqiap, z-2018-reads, laugh-out-loud, rep-disability, pov-1st, reviewed, rep-lgbtqiap-main, pov-female

”Embrace the unexplained. Embrace the uncertain. Embrace the magic.”

4 stars
TW: toxic relationship, sexual assault
Rep: f/f relationship, fat side character, bisexual & hard of hearing MC, bi side character, lesbian & indigenous MC
review also available here

This book was recommended to me when I asked for f/f books and this book definitely delivers on that front. But it also delivers on so many other fronts that it's hard to keep track. The writing is atmospheric, the setting is magical, the c ...more

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Apr 08, 2020 paula. rated it really liked it · review of another edition

her smile is seven kinds of sunlight.

tw/cw: sexual assault/harassment (rape?), alcoholism (by teenagers)

this? was? so? weird? i have absolutely no idea what happened in this book, but i think i liked it?

the confusion was a big part of this book. the characters are confused, the reader is confused and maybe the author was confused, as well, who knows?and i've got to be honest, it bothered me. because, obviously, i do not like to be confused while reading, especially if it doesn't get cleared her smile is seven kinds of sunlight.

tw/cw: sexual assault/harassment (rape?), alcoholism (by teenagers)

this? was? so? weird? i have absolutely no idea what happened in this book, but i think i liked it?

the confusion was a big part of this book. the characters are confused, the reader is confused and maybe the author was confused, as well, who knows?and i've got to be honest, it bothered me. because, obviously, i do not like to be confused while reading, especially if it doesn't get cleared up in the end.
i mean, there were a lot (a lot!) of characters and for a pretty short book it took me a long time until i had memorised all the names and remembered who they were when mentioned.

the relationships in this book (1 m/f, 1 f/f) (the bi rep was: great) were so pure. a small warning for non-explicit really well written sexual scenes.

fortunately, this book also had a lot of good things going for it. let's continue with the characters: a few of them have this teen-rebellion thing going on, but to ridiculous extremes that would normally bother me a hell lot (and, yes, i rolled my eyes a lot at them), but i found myself actually enjoying them because there was more to them, they had depth. and maybe i am just very soft for them.
the atmosphere of this book was superb. it was magical and whimsical and mysterious (those are all synonyms for one another). the writing perfectly captured the characters' emotions and the setting.

i really enjoyed the messages in this book concerning sexual assault and feminism. this is not a book about feminism (and if it would be that would just make it better), it's more casual feminism in a way that is true and teaches the reader lessons without them necessarily noticing.

i can just guess that not everyone would like the ending. which i understand because a lot of question are still not answered, and while i would love some answers i also enjoy the mystery because that seems a bit more realistic. what happened to these characters was some weird thing that went on for a week and they'll probably always remember it and wonder what the fuck happened and how it was possible, but then they'll also remember their conversation about embracing the uncertain and that's just nice.
not all endings have to have answers.
~~bur really, what the hell is going on with mags and WHY and HOW???~~ ...more

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Jul 02, 2017 Kirsti rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: owned

Gosh this was a challenge! At times I really enjoyed parts of this, and others it was like slogging through mud in your favorite pair of shoes. There were many elements of this I liked, and yes, I felt the vibe of Moira's other book, the Accident Season. That was why I was so frustrated by the inconsistent pacing, the fact that there are SO many characters and yet they are all the same voice. Ash, Laurel, Holly. Olive and Rose. Rowan, Ivy, Hazel. Yeah, all plant names. They were so confusing.
It ...more

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About Moïra Fowley-Doyle

Moïra Fowley-Doyle

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Moïra Fowley is half-French, half-Irish and made of equal parts feminism, whimsy and Doc Martens. She lives in Dublin where she writes magic realism, reads tarot cards and raises witch babies.