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The Farewitch of Foxe Holler
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Expected 7 Jul 26Steel Magnolias meets Practical Magic in this charming contemporary fantasy debut in which a thirty-something kitchen witch whose recipes have the power to heal is recruited to help a reclusive warlock and discovers love on the other side of the next bake.
Self-taught chef and baker Honey Frost is Foxe Holler’s resident Farewitch. Proud of her family’s legacy for curing all manner of ailments with the right recipe, Honey is determined to be the Farewitch the Holler can depend on, even if she’s taken on the role twenty years too early.
Honey’s normal routine is disrupted when the reclusive Warlock living at the edge of the Holler appears for the first time in decades with a peculiar request: he needs a Farewitch. It seems the Warlock has been struck with a mysterious curse-born illness.
Initially reluctant to get involved—warlocks and witches do not get along—Honey changes her mind when he offers compensations she can’t refuse— access to his infamous library of old texts and kitchen grimoires. Now Honey is the newest resident of his moody farmhouse, Knight Manor. Which happens to have one gorgeous kitchen. And a lot of secrets. And a Warlock that maybe…isn’t so frightful at all. Or old. Or bad looking.
Curing people should a piece of Hummingbird cake for any Farewitch, but the grumpy farmhouse and even grumpier Warlock aren’t keen to help with their own healing. And that’s not the only trouble. The Widow Witch, century-long scourge of the region, is due to blow into Foxe Holler for her annual visit and this time, she has business with the Warlock.
Self-taught chef and baker Honey Frost is Foxe Holler’s resident Farewitch. Proud of her family’s legacy for curing all manner of ailments with the right recipe, Honey is determined to be the Farewitch the Holler can depend on, even if she’s taken on the role twenty years too early.
Honey’s normal routine is disrupted when the reclusive Warlock living at the edge of the Holler appears for the first time in decades with a peculiar request: he needs a Farewitch. It seems the Warlock has been struck with a mysterious curse-born illness.
Initially reluctant to get involved—warlocks and witches do not get along—Honey changes her mind when he offers compensations she can’t refuse— access to his infamous library of old texts and kitchen grimoires. Now Honey is the newest resident of his moody farmhouse, Knight Manor. Which happens to have one gorgeous kitchen. And a lot of secrets. And a Warlock that maybe…isn’t so frightful at all. Or old. Or bad looking.
Curing people should a piece of Hummingbird cake for any Farewitch, but the grumpy farmhouse and even grumpier Warlock aren’t keen to help with their own healing. And that’s not the only trouble. The Widow Witch, century-long scourge of the region, is due to blow into Foxe Holler for her annual visit and this time, she has business with the Warlock.
480 pages, Paperback
Expected publication July 7, 2026
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May 4, 2026A testy warlock hero, a sunshiny kitchen-witch heroine, a sentient farmhouse, country fantasy charm make up the ingredients to a tale as delicious as downhome cooking. Ellen Goff is a new to me author and this is her debut fantasy novel which drew me in as soon as I saw the title and description.
My full review will post at Caffeinated Reviewer TBA.
My full review will post at Caffeinated Reviewer TBA.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Rating: 4.5 stars
The Farewitch of Foxe Holler is a cozy fantasy novel featuring a witch in a small Kentucky town and the found family she finds along the way. Honey’s magic heals through baked goods, making her Apothekery a vital part of the services of Foxe Holler. When Honey receives a job offer from the mysterious Warlock, asking for help and healing, Honey embarks on a journey that saves her town, her new friends and maybe even herself.
This book really leaned into the cozy elements of the genre, giving extra attention to the flavors of the baked goods and the descriptions of various plants. There is a grief storyline that might be triggering for some readers, but it felt well done without being overwhelming.
The story is set in a small town in Kentucky, and the author did a good job of grounding the story in a specific place and time. The main character is one of the daughters of this small town, with all the history and passive-aggressive condescension that comes with it. She’s also very rooted in the experience of modern millennials, the dream deferred by economic instability. She has a cell phone and uses it for group chats, she installs WiFi, and she makes jokes about the millennial v Gen Z divide. I think I would have liked if the generational differences were more stark (it would have been easy for the older folks to get radicalized on Facebook rather than at church), but I also understand wanting to root your story into something more timeless than the specific 2026 era.
The conflict in the story comes from two sources: a pastor at the local parish who is against magic and rallies the townsfolk against it, and the illness of our Warlock (and other characters) and the mysteries involved. The storyline with the magic feels like an easy stand-in for sexism, racism or homophobia, which could be triggering for some readers, but it wasn’t explicitly sexist enough to be triggering for me. Both conflicts are well done and eventually connect in a variety of interesting ways, allowing the story’s conflicts to escalate well and nearly simultaneously. This helped the pacing feel very well done, which can be a problem in a cozy fantasy novel. The stakes in the story also stayed relatively small, which feels important for cozy fantasy.
This story has a major romantic subplot that dominated the story. The romance was not explicit but did have some kissing. The characters felt into a grumpy/sunshine dynamic. There are a number of well-developed side characters, and I could see some of them potentially becoming leads in their own stories.
Altogether, this was a really fun cozy fantasy novel about baked goods, gardening, love and family. There were a number of good mysteries throughout, and some of the twists were unexpected. I love a good cozy fantasy and I think this book is an excellent example of the genre.
This advanced reader copy was provided by Saga press in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The Farewitch of Foxe Holler is a cozy fantasy novel featuring a witch in a small Kentucky town and the found family she finds along the way. Honey’s magic heals through baked goods, making her Apothekery a vital part of the services of Foxe Holler. When Honey receives a job offer from the mysterious Warlock, asking for help and healing, Honey embarks on a journey that saves her town, her new friends and maybe even herself.
This book really leaned into the cozy elements of the genre, giving extra attention to the flavors of the baked goods and the descriptions of various plants. There is a grief storyline that might be triggering for some readers, but it felt well done without being overwhelming.
The story is set in a small town in Kentucky, and the author did a good job of grounding the story in a specific place and time. The main character is one of the daughters of this small town, with all the history and passive-aggressive condescension that comes with it. She’s also very rooted in the experience of modern millennials, the dream deferred by economic instability. She has a cell phone and uses it for group chats, she installs WiFi, and she makes jokes about the millennial v Gen Z divide. I think I would have liked if the generational differences were more stark (it would have been easy for the older folks to get radicalized on Facebook rather than at church), but I also understand wanting to root your story into something more timeless than the specific 2026 era.
The conflict in the story comes from two sources: a pastor at the local parish who is against magic and rallies the townsfolk against it, and the illness of our Warlock (and other characters) and the mysteries involved. The storyline with the magic feels like an easy stand-in for sexism, racism or homophobia, which could be triggering for some readers, but it wasn’t explicitly sexist enough to be triggering for me. Both conflicts are well done and eventually connect in a variety of interesting ways, allowing the story’s conflicts to escalate well and nearly simultaneously. This helped the pacing feel very well done, which can be a problem in a cozy fantasy novel. The stakes in the story also stayed relatively small, which feels important for cozy fantasy.
This story has a major romantic subplot that dominated the story. The romance was not explicit but did have some kissing. The characters felt into a grumpy/sunshine dynamic. There are a number of well-developed side characters, and I could see some of them potentially becoming leads in their own stories.
Altogether, this was a really fun cozy fantasy novel about baked goods, gardening, love and family. There were a number of good mysteries throughout, and some of the twists were unexpected. I love a good cozy fantasy and I think this book is an excellent example of the genre.
This advanced reader copy was provided by Saga press in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
"The Farewitch of Foxe Holler" is a cute, cozy fantasy that follows a witch and a warlock as they team up to find a magical cure. Honey, the farewitch of Foxe Holler, is just as surprised as anyone when a note appears in her shop via magical means, asking her to come cure the reclusive warlock of Foxe Holler. In desperate need of some funds to pay her ailing mother's hospital bills, Honey accepts, despite the rumors of the Warlock being dangerous. What she finds is a gumpy man, his loving young ward, and their house caretaker. As Honey races to find a cure for both her mother and the Warlock using her magical cooking powers, she starts to find more than she bargained for.
This is a cozy fantasy with high stakes that features magical healing through cooking. There are mouth watering descriptions of the food Honey cooks and bakes to try and cure the people she loves. There's also a found family element, a grumpy sunshine romance, and small town vibes to be found in this standalone novel, all of which I loved.
I did find this book to be a tad too long(almost 500 pages) with a little too many plot lines going on. I think if the author had just narrowed it down a bit and focused on 1-2 plot lines instead of like 4, I would have enjoyed this a tad more. Not to say I didn't enjoy it, I did! There were just a few plot holes and questions I was left with at the end. I also had a bit of a difficult time getting into this novel at the beginning. I originally thought this was going to take place in a magical world, but it takes place in our world in the southern US, in modern times. I was consistently thrown off by the constant mention of wifi and modern technology in the first half of the book, although I got used to it as the book went on.
Overall this was a great read, and I recommend it to readers who like cozy fantasy, but also general fiction, as a lot of this read like a normal fiction novel with a hint of magic.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Saga Press for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is a cozy fantasy with high stakes that features magical healing through cooking. There are mouth watering descriptions of the food Honey cooks and bakes to try and cure the people she loves. There's also a found family element, a grumpy sunshine romance, and small town vibes to be found in this standalone novel, all of which I loved.
I did find this book to be a tad too long(almost 500 pages) with a little too many plot lines going on. I think if the author had just narrowed it down a bit and focused on 1-2 plot lines instead of like 4, I would have enjoyed this a tad more. Not to say I didn't enjoy it, I did! There were just a few plot holes and questions I was left with at the end. I also had a bit of a difficult time getting into this novel at the beginning. I originally thought this was going to take place in a magical world, but it takes place in our world in the southern US, in modern times. I was consistently thrown off by the constant mention of wifi and modern technology in the first half of the book, although I got used to it as the book went on.
Overall this was a great read, and I recommend it to readers who like cozy fantasy, but also general fiction, as a lot of this read like a normal fiction novel with a hint of magic.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Saga Press for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
March 9, 2026
The Farewitch of Foxe Holler by Ellen Pauley Goff
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release date: July 7, 2026
Thank you to Saga Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an eARC of The Farewitch of Foxe Holler by Ellen Pauley Goff. The book follows Honey Frost, a farewitch who uses her magic to make bake goods that heal ailments for her community. After being asked by the local Warlock to help break a curse, Honey learns to lean on her friends for help as magical mayhem ensues.
"Vultures, all of them. Thriving off heresy and wrinkle cream."
I loved this book! Reading it felt like a big warm hug. It made me laugh, cry, and want to bake Christmas cookies with my family in March. The characters and their development really shine in this book. Honey's story of learning that it is okay to do things for herself and ask for help was an important character journey that I think we can all learn from. The Warlock's journey to learning that it is okay to let others in was also very well written. Side characters are an important part of any story set in a small town and the side characters in this book are all well developed and integral to the story.
The romance in the book is fantastic! The banter in all of the interactions between Honey and the Warlock had me giggling through the entire book. I loved all of Honey's baking jokes and puns throughout the book. The mounting tension between them as the book goes on was great and had me so excited for the ending. I really enjoyed how they slowly learned about each other and became friends before anything else.
If you love books about small towns, cozy fantasy, and Assistant to the Villain then this is the perfect book for you!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release date: July 7, 2026
Thank you to Saga Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an eARC of The Farewitch of Foxe Holler by Ellen Pauley Goff. The book follows Honey Frost, a farewitch who uses her magic to make bake goods that heal ailments for her community. After being asked by the local Warlock to help break a curse, Honey learns to lean on her friends for help as magical mayhem ensues.
"Vultures, all of them. Thriving off heresy and wrinkle cream."
I loved this book! Reading it felt like a big warm hug. It made me laugh, cry, and want to bake Christmas cookies with my family in March. The characters and their development really shine in this book. Honey's story of learning that it is okay to do things for herself and ask for help was an important character journey that I think we can all learn from. The Warlock's journey to learning that it is okay to let others in was also very well written. Side characters are an important part of any story set in a small town and the side characters in this book are all well developed and integral to the story.
The romance in the book is fantastic! The banter in all of the interactions between Honey and the Warlock had me giggling through the entire book. I loved all of Honey's baking jokes and puns throughout the book. The mounting tension between them as the book goes on was great and had me so excited for the ending. I really enjoyed how they slowly learned about each other and became friends before anything else.
If you love books about small towns, cozy fantasy, and Assistant to the Villain then this is the perfect book for you!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
🍯🧁 The Farewitch of Foxe Holler 🧁🍯
This was a 6 star read for me. The Farewitch of Foxe Holler is absolutely going on my comfort reads shelf. I can already tell it’s a book I’ll come back to again and again. It felt so cozy and genuinely heartwarming. The kind of book you read curled up in a chair with a cup of tea.
The story is filled with magic, love, and just the right amount of whimsy. I loved watching Honey and the Warlock’s relationship grow. His grumpy personality never stood a chance against her.
I was surprised by the developments towards the end of the book, including the Warlock's identity. The Warlock's name reavel at the end was adorable and very fitting. Some of the other reveals left me tearing up and slightly worried. But the happily ever after was perfect and I wouldn't have changed a thing.
💫What to Expect
• Kitchen witch FMC
• Grumpy warlock MMC
• Found family
• Cozy magical baking
• Spellbooks & grimoires
• Whimsical family magic
• Small town fantasy
_ _ _ _
⭐ Final Score: 6 stars
📅 Pub Date: July 7, 2026
📝 Disclaimer: Thank you to Saga Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.
This was a 6 star read for me. The Farewitch of Foxe Holler is absolutely going on my comfort reads shelf. I can already tell it’s a book I’ll come back to again and again. It felt so cozy and genuinely heartwarming. The kind of book you read curled up in a chair with a cup of tea.
The story is filled with magic, love, and just the right amount of whimsy. I loved watching Honey and the Warlock’s relationship grow. His grumpy personality never stood a chance against her.
I was surprised by the developments towards the end of the book, including the Warlock's identity. The Warlock's name reavel at the end was adorable and very fitting. Some of the other reveals left me tearing up and slightly worried. But the happily ever after was perfect and I wouldn't have changed a thing.
💫What to Expect
• Kitchen witch FMC
• Grumpy warlock MMC
• Found family
• Cozy magical baking
• Spellbooks & grimoires
• Whimsical family magic
• Small town fantasy
_ _ _ _
⭐ Final Score: 6 stars
📅 Pub Date: July 7, 2026
📝 Disclaimer: Thank you to Saga Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
On the one hand -- food magic, small town, very Southern setting, and a main character who needs to learn some self-care. I enjoyed that mental health and balance and community are main themes of the book. The characters are decent, some of the dialogue is fun. There's a certain amount of authentic caring that I found compelling.
On the other hand -- fairly slow moving and there are a lot of plot points that just didn't resolve for me/make sense. Life is messy, why shouldn't this be as well? But it also felt like the author was trying to cram more and more and more in, when one plot (or maybe only 3) at a time might have been more satisfying. It dragged. I got tired of it and wanted to be done. I got annoyed at Honey constantly repeating her farewitch credo. I got annoyed at the Warlock and his constant secrets for no reason. Meh.
Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Edelweiss.
On the other hand -- fairly slow moving and there are a lot of plot points that just didn't resolve for me/make sense. Life is messy, why shouldn't this be as well? But it also felt like the author was trying to cram more and more and more in, when one plot (or maybe only 3) at a time might have been more satisfying. It dragged. I got tired of it and wanted to be done. I got annoyed at Honey constantly repeating her farewitch credo. I got annoyed at the Warlock and his constant secrets for no reason. Meh.
Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Edelweiss.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
This was a really cute and fun book. I enjoyed Honey and the Wizards slow burn romance, watching them and their growing feelings were so cute! I absolutely could have done with less good related puns and analogies though, omg I almost dnf'd there were so many! Like is a chapter is good, not multiple a page. But I liked the story and the characters enough that I powered through it lol, and just began skipping sentences that made unnecessary analogies 😬 I will read another in this world though, if there's more to come. This was a solid adult debut novel and I'm looking forward to where Ellen's writing will go from here!
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
The Farewitch of Foxe Holler was such a fun romantic fantasy, not really romantasy, not cozy. Can it be high stakes cozy? It’s a great story very well written with fun banter that is not trite or irritating or cheesy. I enjoyed all the characters, the bad guy is a straight up bad guy, no wishy washy “ooh, he’s so misunderstood blah blah blah”. One of the charms of this book is that it has such wide-ranging appeal. As I was reading the book I was thinking of all the people I can and will recommend it to, all for very different reasons.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
The Farewitch of Foxe Holler by Ellen Pauley Goff completely won me over. It has such surprising depth, with rich layers of emotion and worldbuilding that make the story feel immersive and substantial. It goes far beyond what you might expect from a typical cozy fantasy, offering something thoughtful and beautifully textured while still delivering heart. I loved every moment of it and was fully swept away from beginning to end.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you NetGalley for this gift.
This was such a cute book. Witches and Warlocks. With just a little (or a lot) of Honey. Will there be a book 2??? Because I still have questions that need answers!
This was such a cute book. Witches and Warlocks. With just a little (or a lot) of Honey. Will there be a book 2??? Because I still have questions that need answers!
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
3.5, rounding up. Cute, cozy fantasy. Just, too long for what it was. It got repetitive.
(Also, not impacting the overall rating, but for all the teasing, a book with this much cooking could have had some spice at the end...)
(Also, not impacting the overall rating, but for all the teasing, a book with this much cooking could have had some spice at the end...)
May 7, 2026
What a great debut novel! I loved Honey and the Warlock and all of Foxe Holler. The author was really great about character development and making you imagine you were in the story. I can’t wait to see what comes next and the series!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
What a great debut novel! I loved Honey and the Warlock and all of Foxe Holler. The author was really great about character development and making you imagine you were in the story. I can’t wait to see what comes next and the series!
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