The Magickal Summer of Evie Edelman

by Harriett de Mesquita

People at Synagogue say she is weird. A psychiatrist says she has Asperger’s. But Evie knows she is a witch.

Leeds, England 1982. After the sudden death of her eccentric aunt Mim, Evie Edelman is left with a sizeable fortune, a yellow Alpine Sunbeam and a chihuahua named Peggy. Seizing her chance at independence, she escapes the claustrophobia of her parents’ house and the disapproval of her tight-knit Jewish community and moves to the country to practice her true calling: witchcraft.

But trouble follows Evie in the form of her first-love Alex, and property developer Malcolm who just might be Satan himself. As Evie finds herself increasingly torn between magick and reality, and the past and present, rumours begin flying about what exactly a single young woman is doing in a remote village on her own. Soon, Evie starts to wonder whether she is always destined to be misunderstood – and if she will ever figure out who she truly is.

Genres: Book Club

425 pages, Paperback

Published June 5, 2025

Reviews

[Deb Jacobs · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a bookclub choice and an arc from UCLan Publishing. The protagonist is Evie, a young Jewish woman living at home with her parents in Leeds in 1982. Her aunt dies and leaves her £600k, a chihuahua named Peggy and a yellow Alpine Sunbeam. We can tell that Evie is not like everyone else through her thoughts and actions: the story is told in the first person. We have to rely on her reports of others’ conversations to understand her point of view. For example, she refers to her mother as Lizzie, but it is only when her married brother Joe asks her why, do we discover that she doesn’t feel related to her and sees her as almost as a stranger. Her relationship with her father is better, because he doesn’t interfere with the little things like Lizzie does. Because of Lizzie’s involvement with the Jewish community, they have Evie see a psychiatrist and she is diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. This does feel to be quickly-reached as she only sees him once before the diagnosis is made. While Evie herself knows she is different, she puts it down to being a witch. This did make me think of witches from the era of trials and executions and wonder if many of them were neurodivergent. People don’t like things they don’t understand and often have extreme reactions to them.

The story picks up substantially once Evie has moved to the countryside. It’s like she is two different people: her actions become more independent and even her conversations are more complex and adult. Towards the end of the book, a friend dies making Evie contemplate her own life. She says, “I couldn’t ever go back to Alwoodley without regressing into a teenager again and clipping my own wings,” This perfectly describes the difference between how she is treated by her parents and the Jewish community, and by the residents of Thornlaw. “Thornlaw had judged me, but at least had judged me as an adult”

So, it’s a story of someone growing up, even though the changed circumstances were not always of her choosing. I wish Goodreads gave a ten star rating system - I’d have gone with a 7.

[Emma Brady]

Read 22 pages, maybe try again at Halloween? Just not my vibe at the minute, not feeling it 😑

[Riette Beling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

This was quite a challenge to follow and at stages I struggled to connect with the book. The book is written as the diary of Evie. She is diagnosed with Aspergers and the diary highlights her struggles with everyday life and society's rules and how she experiences it. After receiving a huge inheritance from her Aunt and she moves to the countryside and we are privy to all of this. Obviously this was written with the Asperger's in mind so you constantly jump from one thing or thought to the next which was very distracting but I do understand that it symbolises the struggle of someone with this diagnosis. If you take that into consideration it is a brilliant book that very accurately depicts how it would be to have this condition. Brilliantly wrote and would recommend to any young adult fans, unfortunately this just left me a bit frustrated at the end.

[CR · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I read this for my book Club and as an Arc from UCLan Publishing.

So, when I started reading this, I found it very easy to slip into the voice of Evie and the narrative seemed to be typical for an ASD person.

The story started with Evie feeling stifled in her Jewish life having being told by a Doctor the she has Asperger’s Syndrome ( a condition that was very new and not understood). Evie seemed to not understand this either and she thought that she was different because she was a witch not because of her diagnosis.

After her beloved aunt died and bequeathed her a small fortune, a dog and a car, Evie decided that it was time to gain some independence and buy a cottage in a little village to find her coven.

Evie struggles to find her place and develop relationships with people and is very easily led.

Has Evie struggles to find her place and her coven we follow her through the summer months.

I enjoyed the journal style writing of this book and the language used was easy to read. But I wish we had a little more excitement within the pages.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall I enjoyed this book.

It reminded me of 'Strange Sally Diamond' by Liz Nugent but without the depth.

It was well written and an easy read but it just didn't grip me. I wouldn't read a 2nd book in the series but I would give the author another go in the future.

I liked the fact that the ending wasn't obvious from early on and the fact it didn't have a typical happy ending.

While it was good to read something with a neurodiverse perspective I would classify this as a coming of age book and probably best targeted at someone younger than myself (45)

[Emily Katy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in Leeds in 1982, 21-year-old Evie Edelman is left a sizeable fortune after the death of her aunt Mim, which she uses to kickstart her independence by moving away from her parents. She is told she has Asperger’s but she knows that really she is a witch. This is a quirky and special debut from Harriett de Mesquita with an awesome autistic protagonist.

[Savanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

book club reading - I couldn't really get the point of the story but I feel like that is the point, the main character is diagnosed with Asperger's which is reflected incredibly well, a little too well in some areas...

I liked the ending and the understanding of not being labelled but just accepting you are who you are...

[Adam Donagh · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC Received through Coundon Library Book Club Coventry.

A heartfelt, quietly enchanting coming-of-age story, The Magickal Summer of Evie Edelman blends Jewish heritage, personal healing, and subtle magic into a rich summer narrative. Evie’s journey through grief and self-discovery is tender, reflective, and beautifully written, with a touch of spiritual mysticism that feels authentic rather than fantastical. Perfect for anyone who believes in the magic of memory, ritual, and reclaiming your voice.

[Jacqui Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an intriguing novel, I felt that the story was being used as a vehicle to bring a view of the world, seen by an autistic person, to a wider audience. This really works, well it did for me.
The characters are easily believable, their attitudes and behaviours despised and understood in equal measure, except perhaps for Alex - why did he withhold that letter, was it to protect Evie or was it to preserve her fascination/infatuation for him, that left me wondering.
Jacqui Methley Reading Group

[Katy Wheatley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Evie is in love with Adam Ant but not so in love with a life where she feels out of tune with everything and everyone. Evie thinks she’s a witch but it turns out that she has a diagnosis of Aspergers Syndrome which nobody, including herself knows what to do with. Offered an out by an inheritance she decides to move to the country and embrace her witchiness.

This book is a kind of Lolly Willowes for the Eighties. It’s a coming of age novel that is shot through with domestic tensions and an exploration of neurodiversity.

[Brendon · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Magickal Summer of Evie Edelman is a book that defies description. It is easier to say what the book is not than to say what it is. It is not Bridget Jones’s Diary, nor is it The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, though it contains elements of both. It is not a fantasy, though the protagonist is a self-proclaimed witch. It is not a comedy, though it is humorous in places. It is not a religious book, though Jewishness is an essential part of Evie’s makeup. It is not The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, though Evie’s psychiatrist says she has Asperger’s. It is not an historical novel, though it is set in Britain in 1982 at the time of the Falklands War. It is not a ghost story, even if Evie’s Disneyesque Aunt Mim does continue to appear after her death.

The protagonist, Evie Edelman, is a puzzle. A young woman, struggling with her identity while coming of age in Alwoodley, an affluent Leeds suburb, she starts a diary at the prompting of Dr Gordner, her psychiatrist. It starts a week after the death of Aunt Mim, the family member she feels closest to, perhaps because of a shared eccentricity.

The diary chronicles Evie’s thoughts and the ways in which she struggles to find meanings in words and conversations and people’s faces…how she never appears ‘normal’ to the people around her and so often reacts ‘inappropriately’ in social settings. The diary is often not easy to follow, as Evie’s thoughts go off on different tangents, or descend into loquacious descriptions of places and things that detract from the flow of the story. While this undoubtedly illustrates many of the problems facing people with Asperger’s, it doesn’t make for an easy read.

Aunt Mim’s decision to leave the bulk of her fortune to Evie allows her to escape the confines of her family and attempt to establish her own identity, buying a small cottage in the village of Thornlaw. Her ex-boyfriend Alex Ishkowitz and his new bride Susie coincidentally live close by her new home. Two posters of Adam Ant, 7.7cm apart and her main love interest before Alex, dominate her bedroom. Unencumbered by employment, Evie soon gets to know a number of the local villagers, though misunderstandings abound on all sides.

Evie, who still harbours deep feelings for Alex, mistakenly believes his wife Susie is having an affair with someone called Matthew Field when it is a different Susie altogether, Susie Leverson, her nemesis from the local Jewish community, who is having a fling. ‘Why do you have to make everything so difficult? ‘Alex asks Evie towards the end of the book, a feeling with which the reader can only empathise.

Evie is often confused by other people’s words and actions, aware that ‘something’ is wrong but never sure exactly what or why her responses are often ‘non sequiturs’. This culminates in an emergency village meeting, called to discuss the revelation that the local landowner George Cuthbert has sold one of his fields to a developer who is going to build an estate. The meeting turns into a modern version of the Salem Witch Trials when the villagers discover that Evie already knew about the plans but neglected to inform any of them. Just to further confuse matters, Evie’s thoughts in the middle of this imbroglio meander to her gay friend David Kessel who has decided to relocate to London.

‘Madness, Witchcraft, Asperger’s – sometimes, in my darker moments, I wonder which label fits me best.’ Evie asks herself. Are these all different sides of the same coin, a question of perspective, or just labels attached to people who do not conform to society’s ideas of what is ‘normal’?
Ultimately, this book stands or falls depending on your view of Evie. If you engage with her character and find her interesting and empathetic, because of, or despite, her Asperger’s, then you will enjoy the book. If you are driven to distraction by the twists and turns of Evie’s butterfly like thought processes, then you may struggle to finish the book at all.

[Vero Poljaw · Rating 1 out of 5]

‘So, everything is normal, but now I know that my normal is mine alone.’

Our protagonist is Evie, a young Jewish girl with Asperger’s syndrome, seeking independence from her parents and learning to understand herself as a woman. She was very fortunate to inherit a lot of money from her aunt Mim. Seizing the opportunity, she leaves her parents' home to find her own path.

I couldn’t help myself but to wonder if subject of the book had autobiographical roots, I discovered the following about the author:

Diagnosed with autism as an adult, she (Harriet) explores the neurodiverse experience in her work, particularly in women. She is determined to make autistic protagonists and their adventures a normal feature in the literary world. Coming from a Sephardic Jewish family, her writing also focuses on modern Jewish life and family relationships.

That context added a layer of depth, but it also raised the bar for me. Many authors use personal experiences as inspiration. So, the field is already crowded and competitive.

There were moments I liked and appreciated—daily witchy phrases, Eve’s honest reactions, monthly opening chapters with horoscopes for Leo and quotes from other authors about the month. If “magickal” referred to how Evie sees meaning in life’s smallest details others find ‘regular’, then perhaps the title makes a bit more sense. However, the execution fell short for me.

The book seemed to try to do too much: touching on love, grief, independence, witchcraft, belonging, and neurodiversity—but never really delivering on any of those threads in a deep or satisfying way.

And while the representation of autism is undoubtedly informed by the author’s personal experience, there are books out there that explore this subject with more nuance and emotional resonance.

I really wanted to like this book but in the end, it didn’t work for me.

I want to thank UCLan Publishing for the opportunity to read the book and share my thoughts before its publication.

[Nessa’s Book Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

Witches, whispering villagers, a vintage yellow Sunbeam, and the ghost of a Jewish aunt with more sass than subtlety, what The Magickal Summer of Evie Edelman delivers is not your typical witchy tale.

It’s stranger, sadder, more soulful… and fun.

Evie isn’t just misunderstood, she’s orbiting a completely different emotional solar system. People at synagogue call her weird. Her psychiatrist calls it Asperger’s. But Evie? She knows deep in her bones that she’s a witch. And after the sudden death of her glamorous Aunt Mim (may her memory be as eccentric as her wardrobe), Evie inherits not only a fortune but freedom and takes off for the countryside with her trusty chihuahua Peggy to find herself.

Spoiler: "herself" turns out to be a complicated, heartbreakingly real woman who's navigating grief, identity, community pressure, and the grey, fuzzy border between magick and mental health.

This novel captures the ache of otherness, of being too much and not enough all at once, and wraps it in lavender-scented ritual, heartbreak, and that very ‘80s blend of awkwardly optimistic feminism.

The countryside where Evie flees is full of gossiping neighbours, suspicious glances, and maybe-Satan property developers. But it’s also a place of healing, spell work, and slow self-acceptance. The setting sings with birdsong and burning herbs, and you can practically smell the damp stone and newly opened tarot deck.

And Alex? The first love who keeps reappearing like a badly-timed incantation? He’ll break your heart a little.

The Magickal Summer of Evie Edelman is part magical realism, part spiritual journey, and part neurodivergent Jewish feminist awakening. It’s odd in the best way, like a Barbara Pym novel that’s eaten too many mushrooms.

If you’re looking for something different, enchantingly offbeat, beautifully introspective, and steeped in both literal and metaphorical witchcraft, add this one to your TBR

[Jenny Cooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Magickal Summer of Evie Edelman
Harriett de Mesquita
****


Evie has Asperger’s and struggles to understand the world around her. This book follows a few months of her life as she starts to live independently.

Evie takes centre stage in this book and we, the readers, are inside her head for the whole of her summer’s journey into independence. She can be funny and endearing, she can also be irritating and frustrating – can’t we all? By the end of the book I felt as though I had got to know her very well and had actually become very fond of her. It was an interesting read as it gave me some new insights into what it is like to live with autism/Aspergers and reiterated some existing knowledge which I already had.
Written well, any book featuring somebody with Aspergers is going to have some entertaining moments and this book has plenty. Misunderstandings abound as she interprets the world around her in a different way from the people she is with.

The intimacy of spending so long inside the head of a person who I can’t really relate to is a potential problem - whilst I persevered, I fear that many may not. I must admit that somewhere around the middle of the book I was getting so exasperated with Evie that I nearly terminated our relationship! There is a story of sorts but the main purpose of the book appears to be to educate the reader as to what it is like to have Aspergers Syndrome (known these days as Autism). It may well go some way to succeeding in this aim, but if it loses some readers en route this mitigates the impact of the book and turns the achievement or otherwise into a moot point.

I would whole-heartedly recommend this book to people who have an interest in understanding autism. For a wider readership I would advise you to persevere as Evie really is worth getting to know.

[Pauline Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review The Magickal Summer of Evie Edelman by Harriet de Mesquita

I really enjoyed this novel, written as Evie's diary, set over a brief period in 1982. The book explores how Evie comes to terms with her diagnosis of Aspergers and how she uses the large bequest from her favourite Aunt to live by herself and try being independent from the close Jewish community and protective care of her parents.
The novel is funny and inventive. I liked the way autism is explored in an accessible way . Sometimes Evie’s misunderstanding is funny and others frightening or bewildering. She is always bluntly honest in her diary. She is a likeable character, although young for her age. Her romantic trials are not unusual, although her approach sometimes is!
Evie thinks she is a witch, which I felt nicely encapsulated that feeling of being apart but maybe having special skills to offer. I enjoyed the ‘supernatural ‘ scenes, especially her conversations with her Aunt. A nice, quirky touch.
Clearly Evie’s father is also neuro diverse but seems to have found his niche. I liked that this wasn’t over stated.
This is a very good first novel. The story is entertaining and told with a light touch. I particularly appreciated the Leeds setting!
Definitely recommend this book as an interesting look at autism and an enjoyable read.
Thanks to UCLAN for giving copies to Methley Bookgroup.

[Mrs Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

An exploration into what it is like to experience life with Neurodiversity. Eloquently written and beautifully descriptive. Every now and then a single line beautifully explains how Evie understands the world and how she forms imagery and context of people and places. Her romantic view of the village of Thornlaw born out of her ‘safe place’ of a simple painting at her parents house is shattered as she realises its a mere heap of rubble and she doesn’t quite fit into the culture of the village. Her dream of becoming a witch and helping others with her ‘skills’ as well as escaping her suffocating mum leads Evie to unfortunate circumstances. Evie is an old soul in a young persons body at a time when Neurodiversity is a relatively unknown term and her relationship with her father is quite magickal. Trying to fit into societal expectations, Evie actually starts to find herself, accept who she is and realise her individual characteristics are special. A story of romance, religion, wealth, friendship and family, Evie is a wonderful character who I hope finds her place in London.

[Laura Mace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was our book club book for May. Evie is a 21 year old Jewish woman in the early 1980s, recently diagnosed with Asperger's and grieving the loss of her aunt, who has left her a substantial amount of money. The book is written as her diary entries as she moves to her own place in a small country village, but finds that elements of her past have followed her. I found this book easy and engaging to read. Evie was a very interesting character with a more unusual point of view due to her autism (as it would be diagnosed today) and I did feel like I learnt things about autism and Judaism from her. However, I did feel the book needed a little more plot, as it felt a bit meandering at times. I was left a bit frustrated by the lack of transparency around what had happened between her and Val too, as it feels strange to leave some things out but not others, especially in a diary format. It was also interesting to see how grown up people in their early 20s were in the 80s, compared to how I feel at 35! And being from Leeds myself, I did enjoy the setting.

[Denise Jarrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evie is different- she has asperges (as diagnosed at the time) and she's a witch, (or so she thinks).
She is also Jewish and trying to be independent in a Jewish community. When her Aunt dies and leaves her a sizeable fortune, she buys a cottage in the Yorkshire countryside. Trying to carve herself a future whilst coming to terms with the past means she doesn't always make the right decisions.

Not my usual choice of read this but I actually really enjoyed it. It was quite charming, 'cosy' even and reminiscent of earlier books of manners. All the quirky characters came across as quite likeable in the end, even the more unsavoury ones.

A nice gentle and amusing read I would recommend to many. And I'm pretty sure it will be a hit with our bookgroup.

[Jackie Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gentle read of a rite of passage for a young Jewish girl with Asperger’s Syndrome back in the early 80s when very little was known of autism (as it is now classified) but Evie knows she is really a witch. Harriet’s observations of the confusion both in Evie’s mind and the reactions of those around her are well written and descriptive and reads as a comedy of manners. We all have issues with understanding social cues and embarrassing moments and shyness and not wanting to interact with other people but this is so much more so in those with autism. Evie is a high functioning and intelligent young lady and is unable to find her way in the stifling conformity of her Jewishness, family and friends but is given an escape route when left a considerable sum by her ‘dotty’ Aunt Miriam.

This enables her independence and introduces further social confusions when she moves to a South Yorkshire and meets the local villagers who also have their issues with the early 1980s. Evie’s past love also moves to the village which sets off more upset for Evie but she has another diverting love affair whilst practising her ‘magick’. Things do go wrong but this enables Evie to do some growing up and uses her time in the village to springboard into a new life,

There are no real bad people in the book and all nicely written but I did not gel with any to care much about them and felt the Jewishness somewhat stereotyped and Evie did get annoying but that is the point isn’t it. The social climbing and prejudices of the time also nicely dealt with.

Well worth a read though.
Methley Book Group

[Lesley McLean · Rating 2 out of 5]

Evie is a single young woman from Leed - Jewish, diagnosed with Asperger’s, and mourning the death of her aunt, the person she thought really understood her. Told in diary format over 6-months, we see her struggle to discover who she really is.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get on well with this book. It all felt self-indulgent on the characters’ parts. I found I was only reluctantly picking it up to get through it for book group. The witchcraft and horoscope elements annoyed me, they didn’t feel woven into the story well enough - I can see some people might like that though. It’s a light-ish read and maybe I wanted something else.

Thanks to UCLAN for the proofs for our group to review.

[Kelly Steed · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book club pick I very nearly DNF’d — and honestly, probably should have. I found the story quite disjointed (though maybe that was meant to mirror Evie’s thinking pattern?). It explores themes of identity and self-discovery, but it felt like it was trying to be too many things at once. The concept had potential, but it just didn’t click for me.

[Eleanor Marsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very readable. Interesting characters and I liked the premise. I haven't given 5 stars as I feel that it kind of tailed off towards the end and left me feeling a bit dissatisfied, but overall most enjoyable.

[Words, wit Wisdom · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book. The central character was neurodiverse and the novel is read from her perspective, which was an interesting way to see events and social interactions . It was a different and refreshing read.
Evie gets an inheritance from her grandmother and uses this to move out of her parent's house and set up her own life in a small village. She is fixated on being a helpful witch but misreads people and misses the opportunity to really help a very lonely and friendly woman.
I felt sorry for Evie's mother, who Evie didn't really get along or gel with : her mother tried to understand and get along with Evie but the chemistry just wasn't there, which I think , was quite sad for her mother as it doesn't seem to bother Evie at all.
Evie's relationships with men is difficult for her to navigate, she ends up being used, but doesn't seem to really get hurt just unable to grasp what happens and why.
Evie takes a lot of time to work her way around and through her relationships and social situations, she finally comes to understand them after analysing and rethinking events, she uses conversations with her dead grandmother to help her to do this. Although, as time moves forward this prop disappears and she is able to think more for herself.
Evie does have a friend who lives in the city and invites her to live there.

[Kit Vickery · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a book club pick and I can't decide how I feel about it. I didn't dislike it, I didn't love it, but it wasn't something I desperately needed to finish.

[Elanor Lawrence · Rating 2 out of 5]

You either love Evie or you hate her, and unfortunately I just found her a bit annoying. Not the book for me.

[Jodie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought I would be the perfect target audience (autistic and pagan), but I could not get into this book in the slightest. While I appreciate it's in diary format, it read like a stream of consciousness. It jumped from topic to topic, back and forth from the present to a memory in the past, then another memory, back to the previous memory, then back to present etc. It was giving me reading whiplash.

In terms of Evie's Asperger's, it felt like the author read through a list of stereotypical Asperger's traits and made sure to slap them in quite early, allowing our MC to get the diagnosis within the first 50 pages, and dust their hands of it. We read that they have special interests but don't get if the special interest gives them joy, comfort, a sense of control? They get overwhelmed by noisy environments but nothing on how it manifests; do that they shut down/melt down, do they need to stim, etc? It just feels like ticking boxes with no in depth understanding, which is unfortunate as I later learned the author is autistic themselves.

Had to DNF after 100 pages.

[This review is based on NetGalley ARC provided in exchange for an honest, unbiased opinion]