Magic Lessons

Hoffman does it again!

Magic Lessons is the origin story to the famous Practical Magic (which was made into a movie starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman, a favorite of mine!). It takes place in the late 17th Century and follows Maria Owens, the original Owens Witch who casts the deadly curse that plagues the Owens family for centuries to come. Magic Lessons definitely has a darker, more violent tone than do Practical Magic and Rules of Magic - perhaps indicative of the setting of the novel (Salem Witch Trials), or maybe Hoffman just wanted to try something new! Either way, I felt this darker tone to be very refreshing; Hoffman does not however stray from her themes of sisterhood/womanhood, magic, and family. It might sound like a weird combo (motherly love in the times of unprecedented and mind-boggling persecution of innocent women), but it really really works!

The book takes us around the world, from England to Curacao to Salem, with each location having a completely different tone and energy. The stark differences in description between each location highlights Maria's journey from abandoned orphan to powerful witch. Along the way, she falls in love (of course!) and masters her Craft.

One (small) thing I didn't love about this one was, well, Maria. Don't get me wrong, I completely understand why Maria needed to be the protagonist (original mother witch, duh), but I didn't find myself completely enthralled by her story or her motivations. She was obviously a brilliant and powerful character, but for some reason (probably me), every decision she made was “meh” to me. I'm having a lot of trouble explaining this right now, but it just didn't feel like she had a ton of personality - To me, Maria's personality and decisions just felt like a product of everyone else around her (perhaps until the end). Ok, I'm realizing now that maybe that's the whole point of Maria's story arc... nevertheless, I think Maria was exactly the narrator we needed to set the foundation for the iconic Owen's women to come!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an e-ARC for Magic Lessons - it's a must read for Hoffman lovers!