Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic

by Michelle Hebert

A darkly humorous family saga set in Nova Scotia about a young woman coming of age in a family that believes it's cursed, for fans of Emma Straub and Lesley Crewe. Kitten Love's family is haunted by the memory of her teenaged aunt, Nerida, who died just days before Kitten's birth in 1970. Her mother, Queena, believes the family is cursed, and she's determined not to let disaster strike again. She won't let Kitten out of her sight ― especially to visit the beaches that surround the town. She's built a bomb shelter to protect against Soviet attack, and she's desperate to protect her husband, Stubby, from the fatal and mysterious Love Heart. Kitten thinks she knows how to defeat their magic. But when protection spells and clues from tarot cards aren't enough to save Stubby, Kitten turns her back on the things that make her life magical, and Queena turns her back on reality. She preserves everything as it was the day Stubby died in 1987 ― from the gold shag rug in the bathroom to the Duran Duran posters in Kitten's room. Kitten, herself, is forbidden to change. Kitten tastes freedom when she falls in love and moves to British Columbia, but reinventing herself without the curse is harder than she expects. Tragedy and her own reliance on magical thinking eventually lead her back home to Queena, her brother Thom, and Aunt Bunny, who are equally stuck in their pasts. When tarot cards begin mysteriously showing up in her room, warning of a betrayal and encouraging an unlikely romance, she's certain someone is watching her. Could the heartbreak that almost destroyed Kitten's family be the very thing that helps them move on? A darkly humorous family saga woven around tarot cards and a mixtape of '80s songs, Every Little Thing She Does is Magic is a heady mix of music, ghosts, love, and nostalgia.

Genres: Canada, Fiction

344 pages, Paperback

Published May 7, 2024

About the author

Michelle Hébert grew up on the beaches and marshes of Cumberland County, Nova Scotia. She has an MFA in Creative Nonfiction, degrees in journalism and social work, and she studies tarot on the side. Her writing about mental health, social justice, and finding joy where it seems there’s none to be had has appeared in Writerly magazine and in audio essays and short documentaries for CBC Radio. Her first book, Enriched by Catastrophe: Social Work and Social Conflict After the Halifax Explosion, was published in 2009. Michelle has lived across Canada but makes her home in Halifax, Nova Scotia (Mi’kma’ki), with her two adult children, several cats, and a dog who thinks she's a cat.

Reviews

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 rounded up

There’s something so satisfying about a messy woman finding herself, even more so if it’s a whole family of women fighting against their flaws, beliefs and life-long regrets to really embrace the one life we’re given. What a darkly fun, gallows humour type of read this was.

Every Little Thing She Does is Magic is about Kitten Love—she’s just arrived back home to rural Nova Scotia after a complicated fight with her live-in boyfriend. Back in her teenage attic bedroom full of the detritus of a traumatic upbringing along with sundry teen witchcraft supplies she tries to grapple with the life that’s led her here, back home with her overbearing Doomsday prepping mother, and shitty recently divorced brother. The whole family is cursed, see, and all this was inevitable. There’s no escaping a family’s bad luck tragedy.

Through interconnecting flashbacks and letters from her vibrant dead aunt from beyond the grave, we come to understand what’s shaped Kitten Love and the huge weight she’s flailing under.

There’s a lot that’s heavy about this book, but much like Emily Austin’s Interesting Facts About Space, it’s handled in such a bright, endearing and comedic way that it never feels that weighty. Like accidentally laughing at a funeral or blurting exactly the wrong thing at the wrong time, Michelle Hébert handles mental health crisis, grief and that staring into the abyss in such a hopeful and bittersweet way. I laughed inappropriately and often reading this book, and I absolutely love it for that. It wasn’t NECESSARILY lighthearted, but reading this story and knowing this family FELT like the process of heart-lightening. Barreling through a storm, and making it out the other side, humour intact. This is what I do too—sometimes things are so bone-wearying hard that all you can do is laugh.

Truly such a vibrant read, my only qualm was I didn’t love how neat and tidy things cleaned up in the end. But I can see how that would be super satisfying for other readers. I’d like things to stay a bit ruffled, myself.

Excellent read, highly recommend for fans of Emily Austin, people who tend to laugh through their tears, & fans of complicated women.

Also, side note, the cover was changed bc a lot of ppl didn’t think the original matched the tone of the book but I felt it really did! This book is vibrant and neon glowing in the dark. New cover is lovely too, but I felt the flickering neon sign energy like Nerida signalling from the other side.

Thanks to @nimbuspub for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[mars · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book isn’t at all what I was expecting. I almost feel like the cover does it a disservice. This story is beautiful and heart wrenching at every turn.

We follow Kitten Love as she returns home after 6 years away to a house filled with dysfunctional family and a ghost hell bent on piecing her family back together amid the rumors of a curse.

This story covers topics of grief, mental health, generational trauma, and so much more but it almost never felt too heavy. The pacing and humor kept me smiling through the tears.

I loved Kitten and Nerida so much. They felt alive (lol) and just jumped off the page for me. I was rooting for Kitten from the very start to work through her traumas and find happiness. I’ll be thinking about this book for awhile 🖤

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book!

[Stephanie (aka WW) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book to fill a reading challenge prompt – song lyrics in the title. Not only is the title definitively song lyrics, but it is my favorite song lyrics of all time. And, not only is the title song lyrics, but the chapter headings are all 80’s song lyrics, like “Tempted”, “Our Lips Are Sealed”, “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper”. So, for me, this book exceeded my expectations before I read the first paragraph.

This is the story of the Love family…Kitten Love and her family, in particular (yes, that’s her real name and, worse, her unofficial nickname is Pussy). As the book opens, Kitten has returned to her childhood home in Nova Scotia with her baby, Pixie, after leaving her partner in British Columbia. Her home, where her mother lives with her grown brother (he has returned following a divorce) and Aunt Bunny, has been preserved in every way from the day (in 1987) when her father died early of a heart attack, fulfilling a curse the family calls the Love Heart. In addition to the Love Heart, the family is also said to be cursed with regard to water, the curse having claimed Kitten’s Aunt Nerida by drowning just days before Kitten’s birth. Kitten’s mother, Queena, is determined to save the Love family from further curse by keeping everything the same in the house – including shag carpeting in the bathroom and 80’s band posters on the walls, not to mention the avocado green kitchen – and to save the family from nuclear war by building a bomb shelter in the basement. Kitten takes up reading tarot cards when she finds a deck in Nerida’s bedroom drawer and the cards begin to “speak” to her. As pieces from the past and present are fitted together, Kitten will not only figure out what to do regarding her situation with her partner, but will determine how her mother and family can come to terms with the curses they (imagine) they have been under and start to move forward instead of being stuck.

This book deserves a better cover than the simple neon-light-based sign for tarot cards that it has been given. I found this a nuanced and compelling tale of magical realism, one that hooked me from the start. It didn’t hurt that the Love family was stuck in the 80’s, my favorite decade, and that all the cultural references were so “magical”. Recommended for fans of The Police, as well as for everyone else who likes a little magic with their fiction.

Thanks to Edelweiss and Vagrant Press for allowing me to read this e-ARC. The book will be published in late May.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being from NS everyone felt so familiar. The family secrets, the small town life and even the ghosts were heartfelt.

[Laurie Burns · Rating 4 out of 5]

So good!
Full review to come.
Deep and wonderful.

[Cara McDermott · Rating 4 out of 5]

“But what if I found the treasure and let it go, what if I’ve made all the wrong decisions?” “My darling girl, what if the treasure is you?”

This book packed a far harder punch than anticipated. Covering themes like love, loss, grief, family dynamics, mental health and intergenerational trauma, the cover design really didn’t prepare me for such a story. Admittedly my expectations were low, but they were easily exceeded, and by quite a lot. One I’d recommend.

[Alanah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not an easy read, but a good one! Despite a few issues I had, I enjoyed reading about women working through generational trauma, mental health crises, grief, and growing and loving each other through it all. Though to be honest, I don't think I could have forgiven Queena as quickly as Kit did. I liked that it was written like an ongoing tarot reading - very unique and really interesting.

[Deborah Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fun and at times hilarious and heartbreaking tale of a young woman’s coming-of-age, with a touch of magic and “spirit” encounters. Very colourful characters, each with their own types of challenges and how they tried to work through them over a period of time. With tragedy comes various types of trauma responses. Michelle adeptly showed how each person has their own recovery and what works for one person won’t be the same for someone else. Humour was sprinkled throughout to help keep this novel from feeling too heavy. Loved the 70’s and 80’s song titles at the beginning of each chapter which spoke to what was coming in the chapter. An enjoyable read.

[Raya P Morrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute book about growing up and family bonds that mixes fun 80s nostalgia with some darker topics with magical underpinnings. I wanted a bit more about some of the secondary characters! They seemed fun to hang with, and I'm obsessed with the house stuck in 1987!
If you like this book, I think you'd also like Amanda Crewe's Of Peat Moss + Prayers for themes of rediscovering the beauty of small-town Nova Scotia.

[Christine Hicks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book a couple of times.
I went to school with the Author. Maybe I’m a bit biased but I loved this book. It has a dark side but it’s funny in its own way so you are not caught up in the dark.
The book i have has the new cover and i believe if you are going to judge a book by its cover the new cover is magical.

[Sue Slade · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Every Little Thing She Does is Magic, Michelle Hebert mixes some realities of life; mental illness, death, and grief, with some mystical, magical, and ghostie elements, add an overprotective Mother, a pain in the ass brother, a bomb shelter and a fun little bookstore and creates a great summer page-turner.

[Violet Nam · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Every Little Thing She Does is Magic” by Michelle Hébert was written with a hint of magic in the atmosphere. It was captivating with a blend of romance, character development, a sense of grief, and self-discovery that pulls readers into an enchanting world of the author’s imagination.

The story follows Kitty, who bears a lifelong curse passed on throughout her family’s generation. She grew up young and naive, always protected and never allowed out of her mother’s sight. As she grows up, bad luck seems to follow her everywhere she goes, leaving her no choice but to believe that the curse is real. Throughout Kitty’s life, she never had to make a decision for herself, because she allowed her surroundings to decide for her. Her fear of making the wrong decision had kept her distant from the blessings that life had to offer. She experienced many tragedies of loss, grief, betrayal, suffering, and challenges throughout her life. All these times, she blamed the curse, not knowing that it was simply the way life was.

I loved Kitty’s character and how much I resonated and understood everything she was going through. I enjoyed learning from reading about her life and her experiences that changed her perception of her identity.

Hebert’s writing is evocative, filled with vivid descriptions that bring the settings and emotions to life. The dialogue is authentic, further enhancing the connection readers have with the characters. The way she weaved together the different narratives of Kitty and Nerida’s letters was both clever and engaging. The pacing is well-balanced, with moments of tension, charming humor, and emotional scenes in the novel.
I recommend this book to whoever lives in fear of what could go wrong, when it could bring joy and satisfaction. This book is definitely written for people who could use a little bit of magic.

[Kiersten · Rating 5 out of 5]

'The fuck are you doing here?'

The words I say to myself whenever I read a book about home. I don't dig that struggle bus, man. But Kitten Love turned that around for me. Michelle, what sorcery is this?

This book felt like home. The familiarity drew me in from the first page. The ease, the vernacular, how salt water is in our veins, the longing to escape the suffocation of small.town life, and the music. I think all of Gen X misses the 80s so much it hurts. It was so damn good to live there again for a little
while

Grief is a force to be reckoned with. It can take such different forms, it can obliterate you and set you free. There is a magic in the transformative power it holds. Every character was in its grip, each one navigating their own stormy sea. The manifestations surprised me and I love that. I love a novel that makes me go, 'Wait....WHAT?'

It was a beautiful book. I adored the Love Family and was a little sad to say goodbye. I look forward to seeing what magic you conjure next, Michelle.

[Mike Hunter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story on several levels. I currently have an interest in witches (in preparation for some thing I plan to write), and I doo look for Atlantic region books. "Every Little Thing" is unabashedly Atlantic. Though the story's locale is fitionalized, many placenames are not.

The idea of a family curse, mixed with the vagaries of intra-familial relationships (including the weirdly off-balanace but entirely plausible) are enjoyable. One can recognize some of the embarrasingly family traits.

Admittedly, it does run on a bit to resolution, which is a bit "Hallmarky," but I understand that all needs to be resolved (to a degree).

[Em Coates · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW. What a masterpiece. I read this in one day. I laughed and cried. I think it was so brilliant. The best thing I’ve read in a long time. Beautiful weaving together of the characters’ lives and of past and present. And a local author from Nova Scotia wrote it so I can’t help but feel a sense of pride because of this. I picked this book up randomly at Indigo because it caught my eye and I am so thankful it did. I will be thinking about this story for years to come.

[Adele · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely read, with many twists and turns. It lost a star for telegraphing, a bit too much, a few of the twists. Otherwise, the characters are kooky and interesting while still believable. And there are a few lessons to be learned without being preachy about it. I found it quite charming - I’d say this is a great vacation read. It’s easy to read and chaptered nicely to be able to pick up and put down so you can read it in fits and spurts, or all in one big go.

[Alyssa McKnight · Rating 5 out of 5]

It genuinely depresses me that this book only has 27 shelves. This book needs to be on billboards and going viral on social media. If I have to scream it from the rooftops I will. What a joy of a story and I loved every minute of it. I didn’t want it to end.

[Katie Lo · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up. Unexpected twist in the middle that gave its main character even more depth. The book wasn’t what I expected… but it was a cool surprise. Addressed grief and love and the complexities of being alive, all with a bit of magic.

[Hmross · Rating 5 out of 5]

I judge novels by how I feel when I finish it. I didn’t want “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic” to end. I didn’t want the characters to leave. There’s magic in the pages, along with laughter, sadness, surprises, and so many great 80s references.

[Mandi McInnis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was skeptical when I started this book but I absolutely loved it. I especially loved that the book took place primarily in Nova Scotia. All of the characters were sweet and I loved the mix of “magic” involved in the book.

[Nancy Taber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t remember the last time I read a novel in a day. Beautifully heartrending and immersive, with musical nostalgia and just the right touch of magic. These characters will live on for me. And The Seahorse! I’m just the right age to remember Halifax as Kit experiences it.

[Cheryl Flemming · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this novel. Very witty and creative. Kudos to the author for a unique story, great characters and excellent writing. Highly recommend it.

[Heather Gass · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved every moment. Wonderful characters. Felt like I was on an adventure. Enjoyed the 80s music tie-in’s.

[Jackie Gould · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read. Twists and turns. Just when you thought you knew, you didn't. Right to the end the outcome was in question. Lots of family drama.
I liked it.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. Totally resonated with 80s vibe.

[SR · Rating 2 out of 5]

A cute YA novel but not for me. I did like the familiar N.S. setting. I thought the whole Love family was odd with weird names…..teenagers would love it.

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5!!

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was lovely.

[Sarah Butland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set primarily in Nova Scotia, Canada, through tarot and magic, I was mystified. Not being familiar with Tarot cards, I didn't feel left out or overwhelmed by their ability to tell a story.

[Kiara Grant]

3.5