The Practical Witch's Spell Book: For Love, Happiness, and Success

by Cerridwen Greenleaf, Mara Penny (Illustrator)

A complete introduction to modern magic and witchcraft with spells and incantations for love, happiness, and success.

The Practical Witch's Spell Book is an enchanting handbook for anyone with a penchant for the magical and who wants to add joy to their daily life. To practice witchcraft is to be purposeful whether it's to help heal, bring about prosperity, imbue your home with positivity, or even to fall in love. To be a practical witch is to tap into an inner place of intention, energy, and magic to bring about positive change in your life and those of your loved ones. With life's increasingly frenetic pace, a magical approach to living is more important now than ever.


In this must-have guide for spell-casters of all levels you will find hundreds of spells, blessings, and incantations for love and romance, contentment and happiness, success and prosperity, health and healing, work and vocation, and money and wealth, all to enrich your mind and spirit, and to improve your life and the world around you. Also included are ritual resources, magical correspondences, lucky colors and numbers, moon spells, and all the essential tools you need for making magic.

Genres: Witchcraft, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Occult, Magick, Magic, Paganism

176 pages, Hardcover

Published September 4, 2018

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of those books you ask yourself why did I buy this, I won't use any of this information or care about it afterwards, and I realized it was because the illustrations are super pretty and I'm a sucker for that.

[gaymoonreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book! This is my favorite Witchy book that I have read thus far. There was so much helpful information within that I am definitely incorporating into my own craft. It may have been mostly geared towards Wiccans, but I think any Witch can modify the spells and rituals to fit your own needs!

I also just absolutely loved the illustrations throughout it. They really added to the book, and made me even more excited to read it! They broke up what could have been a lot of text and really added to my perception of the spells and rituals, and I definitely want to see more spellbooks like this one!

Overall, I really enjoyed this one, and I think it is super helpful and informative. It has so much useful information for both newbie Witches and experienced Wiccans, so I highly recommend this one!

[Katya · Rating 2 out of 5]

The lovely cover of this volume caught my eye at my local library and I picked it up to flip through. Ultimately, I found it not for me - perhaps if I'd been looking for spell 'recipes' and purchases the book to refer to later, it would have come in useful, but as I was simply after some reading material and the book was on loan from the library, I didn't feel the need to finish it.

The book really is beautifully designed. The illustrations are just lovely and the pages are nice and thick. The illustrator and designer did a wonderful job here. However, the content left a lot to be desired. I could see this being a good reference for new practitioners seeking spells who were able to find historical and background information elsewhere. I found some of the spells to be rather hokey - lots of "so mote it be" and "Blessed be!" and such that made the practice feel overly romanticized instead of practical as the title claims. Also, I believe the craft and one's practice to be a deeply personal and individualized thing, so repeating spells found in a mass-published book felt to me disingenuous. It's too bad, because I was really hoping for a fun, informative volume on witchcraft.

[Deanna ✰ ☾ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I am not a Wiccan. I do not believe in witchcraft or polytheism. However, I am drawn to some of the ideas of the religion and enjoy reading about it. I am trying to be as respectful as possible of the tenants of Wicca while also sharing my own opinion about the book in this review.

The Practical Witch's Spell Book is absolutely enchanting. It has gorgeous illustrations on every page, includes spells and chants in most of the chapters, and is all around a very warm and inviting book. Not only is it beautiful to look through, the content on the inside is lovely too. I love reading about the different herbs and flowers that have the power to imbue a sense of magic in my life. It’s refreshing to think about how I can show reverence and gratitude to the world no matter what season it is. And while it may seem superstitious to think that a difference in candle color will change the outcome of a prayer, it feels peaceful to learn about the connection between nature and spirit. There is a feeling of calming serenity in the careful decoration of a space where you pray to a higher power - a meditative sense of awareness when visualizing your intention every day.

This little book by Cerridwen Greenleaf is probably the most beneficial to people who are somewhat new to Wicca, and could be used as a reference point for an overview of the main ideas, celebrations, and rituals of the religion. One of the aspects that I absolutely love about Wicca is that there is an enormous amount of room to be as creative as you desire when it comes to practicing traditional Pagan rituals. It is a very hands-on, make-it-your-own type of journey, and for that reason this book might not have the amount of personal taste that a seasoned Wiccan might be used to. For those who are just beginning to learn about the rituals of the religion or who are simply curious about it, however, I think this could be an appropriate place to start.

[Samantha Puc · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Full review to come!

[Ollie Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️ good information especially for the size of the book.

[Fi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gets one star just because of the beautiful cover and illustrations. The other two are for the content. This is one of those books where I feel like, I can’t really recommend it to complete beginners because it doesn’t really go very in depth into some important things, such as “don’t put certain crystals into water” and “not all witches are Wiccan”. But I feel like a lot of the information is too basic level for someone who’s more of a seasoned witch. There’s no bibliography, which puts me off a bit. It’s a Wiccan book, but doesn’t actually outright state that. Some of the spells and ideas are useful, and are pretty accessible in terms of ingredients, but I feel like I personally would rather customize my own.

I don’t hate this book, I just felt like it wasn’t really my cup of tea. I don’t personally have much of a use for it, aside from looking at the beautiful illustrations.

[Kita · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's definitely a very pretty book, both cover and inside, however I found the information and spells to be disorganized. For example, one chapter is specifically on candle magic, but then in the next chapter you find the different candle colours to be used per day of the week, which I find should have been in the previous section. The most organized, useful, and easy to use part is the Appendix. I imagine this to not be the best book for beginners, as I have read quite a few spell books, and even I was look back between pages thinking "how did we go from this topic to here?"

[Minna · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s a very, very pretty book. I love the design choices.

It only talks about women, so not very happy about that point, to start with.
All in all it’s probably good for a witch who want grand procedures and all (solitary or in a beginner coven), but I’m not much for rhyming and stuff like that.

As a pretty book to look up stuff in, sure, why not. But as a first contact with witch stuff... maybe not.

[nevrstopsmilin · Rating 4 out of 5]

gorgeous illustrations!

as someone who is not a practicing witch (but finds the topic of magic very interesting and fun to read about) i thought this book was easy to follow and understand. would definitely read more by this author.

[Sosanna Olson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Today I'm reviewing The Practical Witch's Spell book for Love, Happiness and Success by Cerridwen Greenleaf.

Generally I like to start out with a disclaimer. I am an atheist witch. I look for the connection between magic and science without the need for a deity. I receive no compensation for these reviews and all my links are standard Amazon links and not affiliate links. I am a practicing photo reader and have spent the last 13 years honing my craft. I offer personal readings by request and have a strong online history that boasts nearly 400,000 views.

As normal I'm going to start out with a review of the physical book. I'm one of those people who enjoy picking up a book and flipping through the pages. E-books such as books in PDF or Kindle books just don't give me the same enjoyment as I get from holding a printed/bound book in my hands. This book is solid. It is a hard cover with vibrant printing on the outside that entices the reader to open the cover. The interior features a lot of illustrative art and is whimsical in nature. It also boasts of two full index pages, front and back allowing the reader to keep this book in hand for reference.

The author also added an appendix in this book which is critical for reference, in my opinion. This includes several tables on correspondences, full moon names and even a section on the Pythangorean system of numbering.

This book is chock full of information that I believe every witch will benefit from. If you are an experienced witch and would like a fresh look at some of our old favorites or if you're a new comer to the craft, this book is for you. It is written very simply in plain English for the novice to understand.

I loved the way the author presented the magical tips in Chapter 6 - House Magic for a Happy Home. There are several spells here for house cleansing as well as house warming. Often I sent rosemary and lavender as house warming gifts to friends and family. I am happy to see these simple spells and chants used in this book. There's even a spell to remove a haunting! By far my favorite is the Bucks of Joy Floor Wash which includes the following spell:

Only joy is welcome here, no feat and doubt.
Spirits ill and energy dark, I cast you out!
sadness, anger, illness and doubt, I cast you out!
Welcome contentment and glee; this home is now happy and free.
Blessing to all who enter here.

Another sections I enjoyed was Chapter 9 - Pagan Parties and Sacred Sabbats. Those of you who follow me regularly will not be surprised by that choice.

Autumn is my favorite time of year and by far one of my favorite chapters in this book is called Lammas Day Feast, Harvesting Your Happiness. The author gives us a look at what Lammas is from a symbolic point of view and then adds some practical witchy tips including this wonderful chant.

O, ancient Lugh of the fields and farms,
We invite you here with open arms.
In this place between worlds, in flowering fields of hay,
You have brought the blessings we receive this Lammas Day.

The author takes us on a journey from a five minute blade blessing to celebrating pagan sabbats. There are rituals and spells as well as a great index with correspondences and tables to make your magical life easier. I think over all this is a great book for your magical library.

So now for the giveaway! This giveaway will run for a week. Beginning October 6th - You are welcome to tweet each day to get extra points for the giveaway. I'll make the drawing at the end of the week and contact the winner via email. The winner will have 24 hours to reply to my email. If they do not reply with in the specified time, I will chose another winner.
You can find my blog at - www.confessionsofamodernwitch.com

[Ophelia Feyre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review: 'The Practical Witch’s Spell Book – for Love, Happiness, and Success'* and 'The Practical Witch’s Spell Deck'* by Cerridwen Greenleaf.
Illustrator: Mara Penny
Publisher: Running Press
Release Date: 11th October, 2018

About the Author

As well as being a best selling author herself, Cerridwen Greenleaf has worked with other notable names in Spirituality; Starhawk, Z.Budapest, John Michael Greer, Christopher Penczak, Raymond Buckland and Luisah Ties to name a few.

Her other books include: Moon Spell Magic, The Book of Kitchen Witchery, The Magic of Crystals and Gems and The Modern Wiccan’s Guide to Living.

Cerridwen lives in San-Francisco, California and teaches herbal, crystal and candle magic workshops throughout North America. You can find lots of spells and rituals on her blog: yourmagicalhome.blogspot.com

About the Book

Book Blurb:

“A Charmed Introduction to Everyday Witchcraft.

What does it mean to be a practical witch? It’s all about tapping into an inner place of intention, energy and empowerment to bring about positive change in your life and those of your loved ones. This enchanted guide is for spell-casters of all levels, with hundreds of spells, blessings, and rituals for love and happiness, success and prosperity, health and healing, money and career and more. Now you can enrich your mind and spirit by bringing an abundance of joy and magic to your daily life.”

Spell Deck Blurb:

“Add joy and magic to your daily life with this pocket-sized spell deck, with spells and incantations to infuse your life with passion, love, wealth, good health, and abundance. This charming collection also includes a 48-page mini book – perfect for anyone with a penchant for he magical.”

My Thoughts

A quick review for you today because this book does exactly what it says on the cover – it’s a spell book!

I did however, find it to be a really lovely spell book. It’s been thoughtfully curated with spells and rituals for a range of intentions. As well as being beautifully illustrated, the spells are simple, easy to follow and don’t require much in terms of tools or ingredients. Usually, with spell books, I find myself using them when I’m looking for something specific, however when reading this one I wanted to try spells I’d never considered before, especially the ones related to the home.

If you’re not confident when it comes to creating your own spells then you’re bound to find one in this book that suits your purpose or one that can be easily adapted to your needs.

It’s worth noting that the book does have a slight Wiccan leaning when it comes to information about starting a magical practice. The ideas around casting a circle, creating an altar and magical tools all stem from Wiccan beliefs. There are occasions where Wiccan and Witch are used interchangeably which could be confusing for beginners. Therefore, I wouldn’t recommend the book to people at the very beginning of their magical journey. It would be, first, worthwhile exploring the type of magical practice you want. Practitioners, who already have a firm foundation, will be able to take what they want from the book and adapt it to suit their personal Craft.

The spells that are included in the book are also featured in 'The Practical Witch’s Spell Deck.' Although there’s not as much detail as in the book, I have enjoyed using the deck. It’s organised into categories: everyday spells, house spells, altar spells, money spells, love spells, healing spells, and moon spells. It makes it easy to flip through the deck and find what you’re looking for, or you can use it similar to an oracle deck and pick one at random. Sometimes the universe shows you something you didn’t know you needed.

I only had one small complaint. The author refers to ‘smudging’ a few times throughout the book. There is no real explanation or context given to the term and I believe what the author is referring to is smoke cleansing rather than the ritual of smudging.

Overall I found this to be a comprehensive and useful spell book and the deck was fun to use. They are both great additions to my witchy bookshelf and I will definitely use them for reference when it comes to my own spell crafting.

*Book and Deck were gifted by the publisher, Running Press, in exchange for a review.

[Cielo · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm starting with the positives because the negatives are coming from a solitary witch and my practices are not open.

Positive: This book is very pretty, the illustrations are absolutely breathtaking and I enjoy Mara Penny's work, it brings life to the book and is how I would love any book too look. The information in here can be really good for those who know what they are looking at, and the centering of the Goddess is a wonderful change for I assume someone who is apart of Wicca practices. And I enjoy that Greenleaf is comfortable with sharing their practice and what they have learned from their family.

Negatives: 4 times mentioning Smudging which is a closed practice and about 10-15 times mentioning using white sage which is also closed. This book was published in 2018 so there are names of folks that haven't caught up. Feels like a womens only practice guide. Greenleaf really forces you to work with or incorporate deity work which for some might not want to, and uses the incorrect deities such as Athena being a moon goddess or a goddess of psychic when she is wisdom and war; any time a deity is mentioned I looked into who they were to add notes because often times they were incorrectly listed or not at all. This isn't beginner friendly because there's little things that could go very wrong, so if you know what you know then it could be good. For the love magic or any binding magic Greenleaf never talks about consent or if the other person should know that you are doing a spell with them which is important.

I don't recommend this book.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’re looking for a book with everyday spells to help you, then this is the book for you. 😉 These spells will shed some light and offer tranquility to all your worries, problems, and questions. In the beginning, it provides all the more common items a witch would need as well as some that I had never heard of. 🤔 It proceeds with teaching you the uses of the items in the spells. The spells themselves are carefully explained so one can better understand them and the intentions the person may want to express. 😌 I learned that it’s not just about saying some words and waving a wand around. There are certain steps and items the person needs to complete the spells. It’s all a process one needs to take the time to learn and perform. Crystals, herbs, candles, including the colors are key ingredients. 🔮🌿🌱🕯 They all have a meaning that will enhance the spell’s power. Even the phases of the moon can help when preparing the spell. Towards the end, the book also provides a list one can use to base themselves on when first starting their practice. Personally, I learned a lot from this book and got so many ideas. 😊

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it a lot. It was a sturdy and pretty book, and it did keep its promise of being easy to use. The spells were simple, and though I haven't gotten a chance to use them yet (seeing as I can't decided where to start!), I did find most of the ingredients were either already in my house or they could be easily bought elsewhere. The chapter on love spells and potions was a "meh" for me, only in that it only referenced how to get a lover, not how to cultivate the relationship or encourage it to grow. The section of Beltane was a little skeevy to me, but only because a. there is more to that high day than the sexy times, and b. not everyone would be able to participate if it were. But that is my feelings on the matter. The charts and references were great, especially for the moons phase and the hours of the day.
All in all, I may be purchasing this book, because it would be a pretty good resource.

[Neko.ta.ta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great resource, would recommend...but...

This book was very knowledgeable and I enjoyed reading it. I shall be buying a physical copy for my collection. I really enjoyed the selection of spells and recipes, included in this book. It jumps straight in and is very clear. Some of the spells look really simple and effective. I have a few I'd likw to try. The only thing I would say is the 'but' for me is the recommendation to drink distilled water. I would research this yourself and make an informed choice on consuming this (as it lacks all minerals and could potentially cause your body to lose some of it's mineral stores to compensate). Also some crystals ending in 'ite' cannot go in water so always check up on these as some crystals could dissolve or leach toxins into water which you do not want to then consume. Other than that it is a fantastic resource and I recommend you reading it.

[Raven Wells · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book isn’t necessarily bad, but it isn’t good either. Concepts are laid out as if for beginners, yet lacks the explanation necessary for this audience. Nothing is explained in more than a paragraph or two. There are some areas of this book to be looked at cautiously such as making your own mead (this can easily become poisonous and shouldn’t be recommended to the average person). Some of the correspondences are utterly strange and do not fit the standard belief (and lack any acknowledgement that it is different). The missing bibliography is a red flag as well. Overall, I’m glad this was at the library so I didn’t waste money on it. The only perk is the artwork. The artist did an amazing job for this project.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a bit disappointing after reading . This wasn't overly Wiccan, but did seem to push the religion & witchcraft combo. Places a lot of emphasis on "tools" which are not needed if you don't want to use them. Also, most of the spells' words/chants are VERY long-winded. However, I will probably only use this for reference when I need or I might cut and past certain things I want into my Grimoire. I'll just have to wait and see.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is heavily influenced by Wiccan. So, if you're new to Wiccan or you are Wiccan in general, then you'll probably like this book. I am not Wiccan, but I am a new witch so I was not happy that this book was heavily influenced by Wiccan because I have no interest in being Wiccan. The book should really tell you either on the front or back cover, or in the blurb about the book that this book is Wiccan. I would not have picked it up if I knew. That being said, I did like a few of the spells and some of the information was interesting, but overall this book is not for me as I am not Wiccan. I rate it 2 stars because I did find some things useful.

[Bradley]

Magick is adaptable. The people that practice magick adapt their rituals to fit their life. I've been around for a long time and I haven't seen anything quite like this book. I'd hate to be a first timer picking up this book because they might put it down and flee.

I'm not saying that the magick within this book is wrong. Well, most of it isn't wrong. The "love" magick, in my opinion, crossed a line and if you're trying to find a love using magick that way I'd warn you about the rule of three.

And, a final thing, your intentions/spells don't have to rhyme to work. I hate that Hollywood and the author make it seem that you need to rhyme before you can do magick. It's bullshit.

[Robin McCann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was sad to find that, although the art is beautiful and pulls me in, the content did not. I wish the book title or information on the back would have expressed more about specific craft the author writes of. I made the assumption that the book was more general and found it did not resonate with me. In addition, a lot of the book covers things you need a group or coven for. I would guess that if the reader had a group or coven this book would not be necessary. It was easy to read and the illustrations drew me in. I finished the book in hopes I would find more information to help me along my path.

[abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely little book with a nice intro into magickal research, especially for beginners like me. The illustrations were simply beautiful. No complaints, but I have to agree with other people that it did jump around a bit. I felt like some of the chapters presented in the beginning of the book contained some things that might have fit better at the end of the book with the rest of the charts and lists and everything. But I loved this book and it's a nice place to start for beginners.

[SA · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a great number of "shoulds" and "musts" that I do not care for -- all magic is subject to the caster, and substitutions are perfectly fine. But Greenleaf assuredly knows her work, and I found myself flagging more pages than I anticipated.

Beautifully illustrated by Mara Penny, as well, and with thick creamy pages that were a joy to turn.

[Marina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am just a beginner when it comes to magic and spells, I really liked how this book provided the basics on diferente ingredients and gave simple spells to do. Although I have a feeling I need to find my own way when it comes to magic, I find it incredibly helpful to learn about other methods so I can build my own.

[Melissa Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book!

I really enjoyed reading this book - it's so easy to read and I like how the chapters are introduced. Some of the suggestions are for groups but there are also plenty that can be carried out solo and easily too. I have bookmarked many ideas and look forward to trying them.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and mostly helpful. The illustrations were gorgeous and probably the best part. Text content was decent but some of it was not very thoroughly explained. I did like the author’s voice when they talked more in depth about their personal preferences and experiences.

[Bode Cauthon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple and straightforward. Perfect for beginners. The author’s tone was very appealing in its simplicity. Sometimes simple is best.

[Teya Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for beginners. At times felt a bit kitschy

[Melody Luna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it! My only issue with this book was how disorganized and random the information felt. Otherwise, it was a really great read and I got some good ideas out of it.

[Hilary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great resources