By Jenna Evans Welch

“Willow has never felt like she belonged anywhere and is convinced that the only way to find a true home is to travel the world. But her plans to act on her dream are put on hold when her aloof and often absent mother drags Willow to Salem, Massachusetts, to wrap up the affairs of an aunt Willow didn’t even know she had. An aunt who may or may not have been a witch. There, she meets Mason, a loner who’s always felt out of place and has been in and out of foster homes his entire life. He’s been classified as one of the runaways, constantly searching for ways to make it back to his mom; even if she can’t take care of him, it’s his job to try and take care of her. Isn’t it? Naturally pulled to one another, Willow and Mason set out across Salem to discover the secret past of Willow’s mother, her aunt, and the ambiguous history of her family. During all of this, the two can’t help but act on their natural connection. But with the amount of baggage between them—and Willow’s growing conviction her family might be cursed—can they manage to hold onto each other?” (Goodreads).

This standalone novel was a very sweet look at two young people’s relationships with themselves, their families, and each other. It made a moving statement about what families look like and how generational history can have such a big impact on the present. While it wasn’t a unique breakthrough of a story, it was definitely a heartwarming and cozy read.

Spells for Lost Things was very focused on the emotions of the characters and the unfolding of the past, and as such, not a lot of stuff actually happened. Characters mostly walked around Salem, ran into each other, and tried to figure out the truth about each other’s family histories – but there wasn’t much action. The pacing ended up kind of slow because of that, but the underlying mystery of who Willow’s mom really is and what happened to estrange her from the family kept me going nonetheless.

I really enjoyed the cozy, slow atmosphere of the book. Salem itself was a picturesque, quiet location, perfect for watching the characters get to know each other and fall in love. The chapters take on a dual POV between Willow and Mason, interrupted every once in a while by “letters” unfolding Willow’s family history bit by bit. Jenna Welch is very much a no-nonsense writer – there’s not a lot of fluff or extra words, which keeps the focus on the characters and their conflicts.

The two main characters were very sweet and easy to root for. Willow had big dreams and a fearless personality – though I do wish her conflicts with her mother and the “boldness” and “stubbornness she supposedly had could’ve been seen more as actions than just other characters describing her. Mason was fixed on a singular goal: to be with his mother and study the stars. I think that goal was very well developed and explored throughout the book until he eventually discovered that there’s more to life than just those two things. They are a great match for each other – except for the one main problem I had with this book. Mason and Willow seemed too young and immature to pursue this mystery and each other. The thoughts that went through their heads and the way they dealt with their pain seemed to belong to much younger teenagers, and it made the scenes where they described their attraction towards the other person kind of weird.

As for the side characters, I loved Mason’s foster family. They seemed to be doing their best to welcome him and care about him. Willow’s aunts were definitely my favorite characters; quirky old women who don’t care what others think are one of the best tropes. Willow’s mom left me confused. Willow did not seem to really care at the beginning of the book that she didn’t have a great relationship with her mom until the end, when the mom opens up. And the mom is not a very strongly developed character until her entire backstory is revealed, which made it hard to understand her throughout the rest of the book.

Spells for Lost Things was an entertaining and sweet novel dealing with themes of family, acceptance, love, and grief of a relationship – but it also shows how those relationships can be mended or moved on from. I would recommend this one to realistic fiction lovers who like a little bit of magic spiciness mixed in.