What do you think?
Rate this book
The Forgotten Witch
Helen Kent never dares to step outside her comfort zone. She lives a lonely, mundane life in the city, grinding through her uninspiring marketing job. That is, until a spontaneous online purchase brings her to the little bay town of Oban, Scotland, where a 500-year-old cottage full of secrets and stories awaits her. After Helen unearths the local legend of a 16th century witch, she discovers a set of mysterious journals in the cottage’s library. Thrust into a world of magic she doesn’t understand, she soon realizes there are both light and dark forces at work beyond her control. With the help of a dashing Scottish neighbor and his wise grandfather, Helen discovers the link that connects her to the mysterious events unfolding at the cottage. But when the past collides with the present, she must face her fears and fight for what she believes in—that is if she hopes to unravel the mystery of Fernbeg cottage before darkness descends, again.
410 pages, Paperback
Published September 14, 2022
2976 people are currently reading
7813 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 605 reviews
February 3, 2023
Oh, Jessica. Jess. Can I call you Jess? I have some feedback, friend.
I'm going to start with the narrative style itself–the tone of the writing. You have a visual eye, I can tell. You see it all in your head and you lay it out for us. There is a lot of focus on setting the scene, giving a clear picture. You describe the lighting and the colors. But in a very detached sort of way. We don't feel where we are. We may as well be looking at a painting most of the time. A pretty Scottish painting, but a still image nonetheless.
One thing I would try out to help with this is asking yourself WHY? Why is this description important? How does it affect the characters (is Helen shivering from the chill, does she feel the dampness of the misty morning) and also how does it affect the plot? Is this something we need to know? Is the description adding anything significant to your overall story? Or is it just fluffing it all out to make up for the fact that there's no real substance beneath it all?
When you tell us what your characters are doing, you do it in the same sort of clinical, detached narrative style. "Helen sat and watched the stillness," "she propped herself up and grabbed her phone." "A feeling of utter excitement raced through her." You're telling us every move this woman makes, but we need to know why. Why are these actions important? Who is she? Let's not even go into the unimportant prologue about her parents. Who is Helen, and why do we care about her? What makes her wake up one morning and make a rash decision to buy a Scottish cottage? I read an entire book about her and have no idea what her personality is, what her friendship with Kevin was really like, what kind of secrets desires she was burying. There is no depth. I'm just watching her go through motions for the entire book. And the motions she goes through are illogical at best–utterly stupid at worst.
Before we move on to all of Helen's really frustrating decisions and my complaints about the plot let me make one note about your dialogue. Jess, my friend. I mean this in the most constructive way, but no one talks like that. Not a single line of dialogue felt even remotely natural in this book. Do some exercises where you go out in a coffee shop and write down what people say, maybe. Take some writing workshops online with a dialogue focus. Research more about dialect during specific time periods or regions.
Now the plot. Ohhh man. The plot. I need to organize my thoughts here, so bear with me. There will be spoilers ahead, but if you've read this far you deserve them. They're my gift to you.
So a "powerful" young witch (Freya) from 1597 is hanged for witchcraft because an evil witch (Margaret) testified against her, but Freya casts a reincarnation spell so she'll come back and get justice in her next life.
She is reincarnated as Clara, Elizabeth and Abigail between 1597 and 1947, though apparently all she accomplished in those lifetimes was to watch as Margaret (now immortal) and the demon she made a deal with kill a bunch of people in greater and greater numbers. She was responsible for The Great Storm of 1703 that killed 8,000 people and–oh, right–the mass genocide during WW2. Plus "everything from The Great Famine of 1695 in Scotland and the Spanish flu outbreak in 1918." Was also "involved with powerful and evil people such as the Duke of Cumberland, Maximilian Robespierre, King Leopold, and even Jack the Ripper." Yeah, those are direct quotes from the text. And all of that information was given in the span of 3 pages. Just DUMPED in there all at once because Helen, who didn't have any memory of who she was, kissed a Scottish manly man and found out she's actually that witch from 1597 and gets all her memories.
But what good is having your memories when you're a totally useless character throughout the ages? What does Freya manage to do over the years to combat this pure evil unleashed on the world? Mostly just research, I guess. She collected a bunch of spells and information, which she then made sure to do absolutely nothing with and let her future self worry about.
The way the magic is described, the actual spells and items that do cool things, that's one thing I will give you credit for, Jessica. You don't shy away from making things flashy and truly supernatural. I like that. But Freya/Helen use the magic in the STUPIDEST ways you can possibly imagine. Why does Margaret even care about her? She could easily get away with all the evil if she just ignored Helen entirely.
Helen is SUPPOSEDLY powerful, but uses old herbs to do spells and has to be conveniently given every little thing by the side characters (Mary doing all the hard work, then Artemas, then random witch in Glasgow, plus Henry and Seamus even coming through). They all have so much faith in this Helen chick who goes around like a ditzy fool and has no idea what she wants besides Connor's hunky masculine manhood. Which I wouldn't even be that upset about if there was any romantic tension there at all! But there isn't.
The ending. Let's go there. Big face off, spellcasting and hand waving witchcraft. Margaret murders everyone, despite literal GODDESS magic coursing through Helen's veins. Give that power to literally ANYONE else, Goddess. Margaret could have just not come by and would have gotten away with her supposed plans to let loose an evil bio-weapon that kills everyone. Honestly I expected better of her than to show up at the farm and let Helen fumble through an exorcism. She seemed better than that.
Anyway, despite being murdered, Connor and the wolf are fine. They're brought back to life well before the readers can grieve any loss. Stakes? What stakes. You can just bring wolves back from the dead, NO BIG. Willy nilly resurrection lol.
OH YEAH, THE WOLF. There's a wolf, who ONE-HUNDRED percent acts like a dog and makes no sense in this story (do some research, Jess! Please!) and despite him being a magical familiar he's leashed often and fed dog food and mostly just there as emotional support. Good lil doggo.
And here is the main plot problem: none of the plot I just laid out happens until halfway through the book. Margaret was only ever in the story for like 15 pages.
I cannot stress this enough: 97% of this book is fluff. The kind of filler one falls asleep to on bad cable TV. They're in Scotland, they eat food, they exchange stilted lines of dialogue, magic is discussed, stakes are declared and ignored. No sense of urgency, no momentum. A whole box full of packing peanuts when you're hoping for a present. Bland nothing.
Jessica, I wish you all the best. But please–give yourself some more time to hone your craft before putting something out in the world. Do better.
I'm going to start with the narrative style itself–the tone of the writing. You have a visual eye, I can tell. You see it all in your head and you lay it out for us. There is a lot of focus on setting the scene, giving a clear picture. You describe the lighting and the colors. But in a very detached sort of way. We don't feel where we are. We may as well be looking at a painting most of the time. A pretty Scottish painting, but a still image nonetheless.
One thing I would try out to help with this is asking yourself WHY? Why is this description important? How does it affect the characters (is Helen shivering from the chill, does she feel the dampness of the misty morning) and also how does it affect the plot? Is this something we need to know? Is the description adding anything significant to your overall story? Or is it just fluffing it all out to make up for the fact that there's no real substance beneath it all?
When you tell us what your characters are doing, you do it in the same sort of clinical, detached narrative style. "Helen sat and watched the stillness," "she propped herself up and grabbed her phone." "A feeling of utter excitement raced through her." You're telling us every move this woman makes, but we need to know why. Why are these actions important? Who is she? Let's not even go into the unimportant prologue about her parents. Who is Helen, and why do we care about her? What makes her wake up one morning and make a rash decision to buy a Scottish cottage? I read an entire book about her and have no idea what her personality is, what her friendship with Kevin was really like, what kind of secrets desires she was burying. There is no depth. I'm just watching her go through motions for the entire book. And the motions she goes through are illogical at best–utterly stupid at worst.
Before we move on to all of Helen's really frustrating decisions and my complaints about the plot let me make one note about your dialogue. Jess, my friend. I mean this in the most constructive way, but no one talks like that. Not a single line of dialogue felt even remotely natural in this book. Do some exercises where you go out in a coffee shop and write down what people say, maybe. Take some writing workshops online with a dialogue focus. Research more about dialect during specific time periods or regions.
Now the plot. Ohhh man. The plot. I need to organize my thoughts here, so bear with me. There will be spoilers ahead, but if you've read this far you deserve them. They're my gift to you.
So a "powerful" young witch (Freya) from 1597 is hanged for witchcraft because an evil witch (Margaret) testified against her, but Freya casts a reincarnation spell so she'll come back and get justice in her next life.
She is reincarnated as Clara, Elizabeth and Abigail between 1597 and 1947, though apparently all she accomplished in those lifetimes was to watch as Margaret (now immortal) and the demon she made a deal with kill a bunch of people in greater and greater numbers. She was responsible for The Great Storm of 1703 that killed 8,000 people and–oh, right–the mass genocide during WW2. Plus "everything from The Great Famine of 1695 in Scotland and the Spanish flu outbreak in 1918." Was also "involved with powerful and evil people such as the Duke of Cumberland, Maximilian Robespierre, King Leopold, and even Jack the Ripper." Yeah, those are direct quotes from the text. And all of that information was given in the span of 3 pages. Just DUMPED in there all at once because Helen, who didn't have any memory of who she was, kissed a Scottish manly man and found out she's actually that witch from 1597 and gets all her memories.
But what good is having your memories when you're a totally useless character throughout the ages? What does Freya manage to do over the years to combat this pure evil unleashed on the world? Mostly just research, I guess. She collected a bunch of spells and information, which she then made sure to do absolutely nothing with and let her future self worry about.
The way the magic is described, the actual spells and items that do cool things, that's one thing I will give you credit for, Jessica. You don't shy away from making things flashy and truly supernatural. I like that. But Freya/Helen use the magic in the STUPIDEST ways you can possibly imagine. Why does Margaret even care about her? She could easily get away with all the evil if she just ignored Helen entirely.
Helen is SUPPOSEDLY powerful, but uses old herbs to do spells and has to be conveniently given every little thing by the side characters (Mary doing all the hard work, then Artemas, then random witch in Glasgow, plus Henry and Seamus even coming through). They all have so much faith in this Helen chick who goes around like a ditzy fool and has no idea what she wants besides Connor's hunky masculine manhood. Which I wouldn't even be that upset about if there was any romantic tension there at all! But there isn't.
The ending. Let's go there. Big face off, spellcasting and hand waving witchcraft. Margaret murders everyone, despite literal GODDESS magic coursing through Helen's veins. Give that power to literally ANYONE else, Goddess. Margaret could have just not come by and would have gotten away with her supposed plans to let loose an evil bio-weapon that kills everyone. Honestly I expected better of her than to show up at the farm and let Helen fumble through an exorcism. She seemed better than that.
Anyway, despite being murdered, Connor and the wolf are fine. They're brought back to life well before the readers can grieve any loss. Stakes? What stakes. You can just bring wolves back from the dead, NO BIG. Willy nilly resurrection lol.
OH YEAH, THE WOLF. There's a wolf, who ONE-HUNDRED percent acts like a dog and makes no sense in this story (do some research, Jess! Please!) and despite him being a magical familiar he's leashed often and fed dog food and mostly just there as emotional support. Good lil doggo.
And here is the main plot problem: none of the plot I just laid out happens until halfway through the book. Margaret was only ever in the story for like 15 pages.
I cannot stress this enough: 97% of this book is fluff. The kind of filler one falls asleep to on bad cable TV. They're in Scotland, they eat food, they exchange stilted lines of dialogue, magic is discussed, stakes are declared and ignored. No sense of urgency, no momentum. A whole box full of packing peanuts when you're hoping for a present. Bland nothing.
Jessica, I wish you all the best. But please–give yourself some more time to hone your craft before putting something out in the world. Do better.
November 8, 2023
"The Forgotten Witch" has been an amazing surprise and a lovely and cozy read.
Helen has her life in the US, but when she finds an ancient Scottish cottage for a bargain price on a bidding website, she doesn't doubt it and buys it without thinking, spending all her money on it. With many doubts, she embarks on a journey to visit her new property in Oban, a tiny town in the depths of Scotland, with no more money in her pocket. She falls in love with the place, so different from where she belongs, but when she finds a 500-year-old journal in the cottage library and a wolf pup, her life changes even more abruptly, connecting her to the past in an unexpected way.
The style and prose of the book are beautiful for such an urban fantasy story that seamlessly moves between 500 years in the past and the present. The book contains over 400 pages that you will devour quickly from the beginning to the end. You will fall in love with the characters and even the drama and suspense that the story gradually produces.
It's a great and enjoyable read.
Helen has her life in the US, but when she finds an ancient Scottish cottage for a bargain price on a bidding website, she doesn't doubt it and buys it without thinking, spending all her money on it. With many doubts, she embarks on a journey to visit her new property in Oban, a tiny town in the depths of Scotland, with no more money in her pocket. She falls in love with the place, so different from where she belongs, but when she finds a 500-year-old journal in the cottage library and a wolf pup, her life changes even more abruptly, connecting her to the past in an unexpected way.
The style and prose of the book are beautiful for such an urban fantasy story that seamlessly moves between 500 years in the past and the present. The book contains over 400 pages that you will devour quickly from the beginning to the end. You will fall in love with the characters and even the drama and suspense that the story gradually produces.
It's a great and enjoyable read.
February 3, 2023
The Forgotten Witch read like it was written, edited, and published within a week. I really struggled with getting through this entire book and If I could give this negative stars, I would.
From what I understand this was this author's debut novel and this book desperately needed an editor, or at least a better one. It was entirely too long and the plot was so dry that I found it almost undetectable within the writing. I also think the book would have benefited from a sensitivity reader so that someone could tell the author that an evil witch should not be used as a reason for real-world mass genocide.
From what I understand this was this author's debut novel and this book desperately needed an editor, or at least a better one. It was entirely too long and the plot was so dry that I found it almost undetectable within the writing. I also think the book would have benefited from a sensitivity reader so that someone could tell the author that an evil witch should not be used as a reason for real-world mass genocide.
October 26, 2022
A very good story with twists and turns and plenty of in depth realistic spell casting. So really it's a 4 star book. But I've taken a star off because of all the typos, the poor grammar, the Americanisation of Scotland and the endless usage of the word "grab".
Everyone in the book seems very grabby. "She grabbed the kettle" - actually you'd scald yourself if you did that. The same as "she grabbed her coffee" - ditto the scalding. He grabbed this, she grabbed that etc etc. I found myself rolling my eyes at every mention of grabbing, and believe me there's a lot.
This book could do with a good editing because simple spelling mistakes such as "she began to wretch" instead of "retch", and you really don't "ring" out a wet garment. This spoils the flow of the story.
Also just to note, towns and cities in the US may have "blocks" but small Scottish villages do not.
Everyone in the book seems very grabby. "She grabbed the kettle" - actually you'd scald yourself if you did that. The same as "she grabbed her coffee" - ditto the scalding. He grabbed this, she grabbed that etc etc. I found myself rolling my eyes at every mention of grabbing, and believe me there's a lot.
This book could do with a good editing because simple spelling mistakes such as "she began to wretch" instead of "retch", and you really don't "ring" out a wet garment. This spoils the flow of the story.
Also just to note, towns and cities in the US may have "blocks" but small Scottish villages do not.
September 21, 2023
Oh boy. I used to think all books have a bit of a soul to them, some magic, but this book certainly proved that thought wrong.
I started reading this book with my book club - and can I just say right now, a 4.17 star rating on this is HIGHLY suspicious - and we were intrigued by the premise and chose it over 3 other books. I was particularly keen to read this as I’ve immigrated to Scotland 5 years ago and first lived not far from Oban. I wanted to see if what I loved about the West Coast and Scotland was captured by the author, but I was left frustrated with the inaccuracies that took me out of the book.
The author has moments of lovely descriptive writing, usually about a location or during some flashbacks, but much of this book is incredibly stunted and soulless, while also lasting forever with no real conflict - the main character pretty much has everything handed to her. Every conversation felt robotic and unfeeling, which made sense once I found out the author used AI to help with sections of the book. The tone and vernacular used by the characters didn’t fit and led to the lifeless nature of the dialogue making it frustratingly painful to read. I can’t count the number of confused voicenotes I sent my friend of me just saying “What the fuckkkk?!”
The premise of this book is there. The bones are there, albeit very, very, deep, and it was in desperate need of editor(s) to save this. There are redeeming qualities to this book, but they’re so heavily overshadowed that it's hard to pick them out once you’ve somehow managed to finish the book.
I started reading this book with my book club - and can I just say right now, a 4.17 star rating on this is HIGHLY suspicious - and we were intrigued by the premise and chose it over 3 other books. I was particularly keen to read this as I’ve immigrated to Scotland 5 years ago and first lived not far from Oban. I wanted to see if what I loved about the West Coast and Scotland was captured by the author, but I was left frustrated with the inaccuracies that took me out of the book.
The author has moments of lovely descriptive writing, usually about a location or during some flashbacks, but much of this book is incredibly stunted and soulless, while also lasting forever with no real conflict - the main character pretty much has everything handed to her. Every conversation felt robotic and unfeeling, which made sense once I found out the author used AI to help with sections of the book. The tone and vernacular used by the characters didn’t fit and led to the lifeless nature of the dialogue making it frustratingly painful to read. I can’t count the number of confused voicenotes I sent my friend of me just saying “What the fuckkkk?!”
The premise of this book is there. The bones are there, albeit very, very, deep, and it was in desperate need of editor(s) to save this. There are redeeming qualities to this book, but they’re so heavily overshadowed that it's hard to pick them out once you’ve somehow managed to finish the book.
August 26, 2022
I don't always enjoy books that do present and past time chapters as they are often confusing to me but this was done incredibly well!
The world building is rich and vibrant making you feel like you are also living your cottagecore dreams in a magical Scottish cottage! I thoroughly enjoyed this take on witches and witchcraft as it combines the more real witchcraft of spell crafting and the use of herbs as well as the more fantastic way of incantations and and lighting on fingertips!
The world building is rich and vibrant making you feel like you are also living your cottagecore dreams in a magical Scottish cottage! I thoroughly enjoyed this take on witches and witchcraft as it combines the more real witchcraft of spell crafting and the use of herbs as well as the more fantastic way of incantations and and lighting on fingertips!
June 30, 2023
Hmm this was an odd book.
Some parts were okay, other parts were remedial in nature and writing. The characters were disappointingly flat. The concept of witch, wolf and fairy time travel was interesting but I had a difficult time buying it or truly understanding it.
I’m stretching it by giving this a three star only because there were a few parts that I did enjoy.
Some parts were okay, other parts were remedial in nature and writing. The characters were disappointingly flat. The concept of witch, wolf and fairy time travel was interesting but I had a difficult time buying it or truly understanding it.
I’m stretching it by giving this a three star only because there were a few parts that I did enjoy.
June 13, 2023
Pulls you in and then drops you from a skyscraper flat on your behind. Ridiculous timeline and 90 degree turn about half way through. A good editor could have saved this book.
January 1, 2025
I rarely write out actual reviews. However, I was unable to get through this book at all. By 1/3 of the way through, I knew the “spoiler”. The dialogue was terrible. The author tells everything with an immense amount of description, but you feel nothing.
Normally, I don’t mind stories where I can tell where it’s going, but this just felt like a person who’s in creative writing class and has great ideas, but hasn’t learned to express them yet.
I just don’t recommend this at all.
Normally, I don’t mind stories where I can tell where it’s going, but this just felt like a person who’s in creative writing class and has great ideas, but hasn’t learned to express them yet.
I just don’t recommend this at all.
August 28, 2022
I absolutely loved this book. It was a quick read for me as I immediately got sucked into the story of Helen Kent. Beautiful imagery and depiction of Fernberg and Scotland. A sweet love story light on the spice. The wolf was my favorite side character.
100 recommend to those who love witchy books with a taste of historical romance, revenge and mystery.
100 recommend to those who love witchy books with a taste of historical romance, revenge and mystery.
February 24, 2024
It’s as if a teenager, obsessed with the Hallmark movies you can only tolerate as background noise, decided to write a book.
March 22, 2023
Needs revision and edits
While I think the general story could be great, this book suffers from not having edits, or any revisions. The entire book feels rushed. The characters are flat, the writing is flat, and even having Scotland as a backdrop wasn't enough to help. With some expansion of the characters, plot, dialogue and descriptions of each this book would be far better.
The entire book almost reads like young adult or fan fiction. It is just bland....and that says something when you are talking about witches, spells and Scotland.
While I think the general story could be great, this book suffers from not having edits, or any revisions. The entire book feels rushed. The characters are flat, the writing is flat, and even having Scotland as a backdrop wasn't enough to help. With some expansion of the characters, plot, dialogue and descriptions of each this book would be far better.
The entire book almost reads like young adult or fan fiction. It is just bland....and that says something when you are talking about witches, spells and Scotland.
June 18, 2023
I don't know if I've finished a book and disliked it as much as this one. It seems obvious the author is a person of a religious faith trying to write about Paganism.
The main character lacked any sort of drawn to empathize with her. There was no heat between her and Connor. The idea of reincarnation in this instance was just eye rolling.
The ending couldn't get there fast enough. It was predictable in every way.
And the writing style was just very flat and technical.
The main character lacked any sort of drawn to empathize with her. There was no heat between her and Connor. The idea of reincarnation in this instance was just eye rolling.
The ending couldn't get there fast enough. It was predictable in every way.
And the writing style was just very flat and technical.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 13, 2023
DNF
The premise of this book was so interesting and seemed like a great cozy fall read. I was massively disappointed though.
I made it to about the halfway point before giving up on it. Almost two hundred pages of next to nothing happening. The characters were dry and uninteresting and gave no reason to root for them.
The dialogue was literally the worst I’ve ever read. It was so oddly formal and stilted.
This needed major editing and suffered without it.
The premise of this book was so interesting and seemed like a great cozy fall read. I was massively disappointed though.
I made it to about the halfway point before giving up on it. Almost two hundred pages of next to nothing happening. The characters were dry and uninteresting and gave no reason to root for them.
The dialogue was literally the worst I’ve ever read. It was so oddly formal and stilted.
This needed major editing and suffered without it.
February 5, 2024
I really enjoyed the story of Helen and the forgotten witch. What a wonderful read. I enjoyed the twist in the story.
January 14, 2023
Helen Kent, a seemingly ordinary woman bids on a cottage in Scotland on a whim and wins. She spends her life savings on a spontaneous decision. She leaves her life behind and ventures to the beautiful landscape of Oban, Scotland.
Freya, a healer from the 1500s is hung for being a witch when a friend turned on her. Margaret is the epitome of the darkest black magic & will plague the world for centuries to come.
Jessica Dodge melds the past and present with character development & a gripping plot. Full of magic, curses, demons, & spells this is an absolute must read for spooky season!
Freya, a healer from the 1500s is hung for being a witch when a friend turned on her. Margaret is the epitome of the darkest black magic & will plague the world for centuries to come.
Jessica Dodge melds the past and present with character development & a gripping plot. Full of magic, curses, demons, & spells this is an absolute must read for spooky season!
December 21, 2024
well now i want to live in scotland.
my italian heart will have to get used to the rain
my italian heart will have to get used to the rain
October 19, 2023
Either this book was written using AI or the author needs several brush up courses on grammar, mechanics, narrative structure, character development, and history. If I could give it NO STARS, I would.
I wanted to like this book, but I had difficulty making it past the prologue given the flat prose and numerous grammatical and mechanical errors. The premise of the novel was interesting; however, the execution is horrific. The characters lack depth and development, and the author's portrayal of Scotland is, as others have pointed out, some bizarre ideation that borrows too heavily from stereotypes about IRELAND. Her grasp of simple historical fact is also highly problematic, suggesting that she failed to do any form of basic research.
Further, the prose lacks even the smallest spark of humanity, which makes me suspect that the author relied on AI to write this awful book. For example, every paragraph is riddled with run-on sentences and comma splices, while much of the description is propelled through near-cliche. Either the author is a poor mimic of what she thinks is good writing, or the computer program she's using is incapable of crafting something worthwhile and interesting.
Books like this one indicate that the publishing world has gone the same way as the "maker" industry, where everyone thinks they're so good they'll be the next Etsy or self-publishing superstar, where people lacking talent and the skill to properly execute a quality product pat themselves on the back to validate some half-baked concept of creativity. Even the author's professional social media accounts and website reek of this kind of empty posing that lacks true substance. How in the world this book has been rated highly by others and is billed as a "best seller" is beyond me given the author's seriously flawed writing. I have serious concerns about the literary acumen of anyone who rated this book with more than a star or two.
I cannot even give this book away given how awful it is. Perhaps the only good it may do is if it becomes compost for the garden.
I wanted to like this book, but I had difficulty making it past the prologue given the flat prose and numerous grammatical and mechanical errors. The premise of the novel was interesting; however, the execution is horrific. The characters lack depth and development, and the author's portrayal of Scotland is, as others have pointed out, some bizarre ideation that borrows too heavily from stereotypes about IRELAND. Her grasp of simple historical fact is also highly problematic, suggesting that she failed to do any form of basic research.
Further, the prose lacks even the smallest spark of humanity, which makes me suspect that the author relied on AI to write this awful book. For example, every paragraph is riddled with run-on sentences and comma splices, while much of the description is propelled through near-cliche. Either the author is a poor mimic of what she thinks is good writing, or the computer program she's using is incapable of crafting something worthwhile and interesting.
Books like this one indicate that the publishing world has gone the same way as the "maker" industry, where everyone thinks they're so good they'll be the next Etsy or self-publishing superstar, where people lacking talent and the skill to properly execute a quality product pat themselves on the back to validate some half-baked concept of creativity. Even the author's professional social media accounts and website reek of this kind of empty posing that lacks true substance. How in the world this book has been rated highly by others and is billed as a "best seller" is beyond me given the author's seriously flawed writing. I have serious concerns about the literary acumen of anyone who rated this book with more than a star or two.
I cannot even give this book away given how awful it is. Perhaps the only good it may do is if it becomes compost for the garden.
August 29, 2022
Sweet, magical and wistful - the perfect Autumnal read.
If you like these then this book is for you!
Fantasy/Romance/Mystery
Witches
Scottish Highlands
Strong Female MC
The Forgotten Witch is one of the best books I’ve read this year. I fell in love instantly with Fernbeg cottage and the characters. Dodge’s description of the Highlands and Oban were so detailed I really felt that I was there and it made me long for cozy autumn evenings by a log fire. It was all very cottagecore - a mood in itself.
Helen Kent is a wonderfully real character and her romance was sweetly sprinkled throughout in a way that didn’t detract from the plot but instead served to enhance it. Who wouldn’t want a handsome Scottish handyman helping them renovate a cottage?
Dodge’s take on witchcraft really fit the whole cozy aesthetic of the book: nature, herbs, animals. (Moment of appreciation for Storm cause sometimes all you need is a loyal animal sidekick to make you feel better.)
It really was a magical read and I adored how every aspect of it was developed and expanded upon as the mystery and plot unfolded with the dual timeline.
A truly beautiful story inside and out - I mean really, how could I not acknowledge the stunning cover!
Disclaimer: I received a copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily. All opinions expressed are my own.
If you like these then this book is for you!
Fantasy/Romance/Mystery
Witches
Scottish Highlands
Strong Female MC
The Forgotten Witch is one of the best books I’ve read this year. I fell in love instantly with Fernbeg cottage and the characters. Dodge’s description of the Highlands and Oban were so detailed I really felt that I was there and it made me long for cozy autumn evenings by a log fire. It was all very cottagecore - a mood in itself.
Helen Kent is a wonderfully real character and her romance was sweetly sprinkled throughout in a way that didn’t detract from the plot but instead served to enhance it. Who wouldn’t want a handsome Scottish handyman helping them renovate a cottage?
Dodge’s take on witchcraft really fit the whole cozy aesthetic of the book: nature, herbs, animals. (Moment of appreciation for Storm cause sometimes all you need is a loyal animal sidekick to make you feel better.)
It really was a magical read and I adored how every aspect of it was developed and expanded upon as the mystery and plot unfolded with the dual timeline.
A truly beautiful story inside and out - I mean really, how could I not acknowledge the stunning cover!
Disclaimer: I received a copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily. All opinions expressed are my own.
October 31, 2022
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
When I first started The Forgotten Witch by Jessica Dodge, I had my doubts. It seemed a bit slow and simple. But as I read further into the book, I found it to be (pardon the expression) spellbinding. A young American girl wakes in the middle of the night and goes surfing on the internet finding a rundown cottage in Scotland selling for a little over $10,000 and she bids on it for fun. Helen’s impulsive offer results in the purchase of said cottage in the highlands of Scotland where she travels to fix it up and resell. Helen Kent’s Scottish cottage purchase turns into so much more. She meets a special man, Connor, and grows to love the life offered to her in Scotland and it also introduces her to a heritage of which she was unaware. It’s actually a complex story and for a good Baptist girl who loves a witch story, this one was pretty darn interesting. Growing up, I was not exactly encouraged to read about witches, but I have to say…here in my mid 60’s, I love a good magical story and The Forgotten Witch checks off a lot of fun boxes. This is a kindle unlimited story for those of you who have Amazon Prime and I really liked it. #witch #spells #mystery #thriller #Scotland #love #future #faith #light #growinginLove #forcesofevil #HalloweenTime #wolf #TheForgottenWitch @amazonprime #AmazonPrime #kindleunlimited @jessicadodgeauthor @kindle_unlimited #beautifulcover
When I first started The Forgotten Witch by Jessica Dodge, I had my doubts. It seemed a bit slow and simple. But as I read further into the book, I found it to be (pardon the expression) spellbinding. A young American girl wakes in the middle of the night and goes surfing on the internet finding a rundown cottage in Scotland selling for a little over $10,000 and she bids on it for fun. Helen’s impulsive offer results in the purchase of said cottage in the highlands of Scotland where she travels to fix it up and resell. Helen Kent’s Scottish cottage purchase turns into so much more. She meets a special man, Connor, and grows to love the life offered to her in Scotland and it also introduces her to a heritage of which she was unaware. It’s actually a complex story and for a good Baptist girl who loves a witch story, this one was pretty darn interesting. Growing up, I was not exactly encouraged to read about witches, but I have to say…here in my mid 60’s, I love a good magical story and The Forgotten Witch checks off a lot of fun boxes. This is a kindle unlimited story for those of you who have Amazon Prime and I really liked it. #witch #spells #mystery #thriller #Scotland #love #future #faith #light #growinginLove #forcesofevil #HalloweenTime #wolf #TheForgottenWitch @amazonprime #AmazonPrime #kindleunlimited @jessicadodgeauthor @kindle_unlimited #beautifulcover
September 24, 2022
Everything about this book is absolutely magical! I loved this witchy read! Each turn of the page had you trying to figure out the mystery of Fernberg Cottage and why Helen was so drawn to it! Reading this book was like doing a puzzle. You had to find all the missing pieces before you could see the whole picture. I loved the way the story was told in a dual timeline with the help of journals. The magical elements in this story are amazing! The characters are endearing and there is a sweet romance with a swoon worthy scot. If you love witchy reads and stories steeped with magic then I highly recommend The Forgotten Witch! It’s one of my favourite books for the year and the cover is gorgeous!
I received an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
I received an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
May 4, 2024
Was this written by a 14 year old American girl full of fantasy-Ireland who’s watched an episode of Outlander ? At least look up a book of actual Scottish names. Oh, and we don’t have paperboy/newsboy hats here either. Try Google.
So many issues with the Americanisms and unreal ‘real’ parts. Wish I could paint cold cottage walls and all the skirting and window gloss in a few hours and have it all dry enough to replace the window glass immediately. Now that is magic !
So many issues with the Americanisms and unreal ‘real’ parts. Wish I could paint cold cottage walls and all the skirting and window gloss in a few hours and have it all dry enough to replace the window glass immediately. Now that is magic !
February 6, 2023
I finished this beauty in a day and I absolutely loved it! It had me laughing and crying, it sparked my inner magic, and made me home sick for a place I’ve only ever dreamed of visiting. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I’m excited for what Jessica Dodge has in store next!
November 10, 2024
Oh gawd, yet another loser. The opening modern-day storyline is okay, although the writing is never deft, but the 16th century narrative is so full of historical inaccuracies, anachronisms, absurdities and "ridiculisms" that I had to abandon the book a third of the way through.
October 26, 2025
It had been a minute since I read my last witchy book, and this one didn't disappoint at all! Great characters, fantastic setting (if you've paid attention to the books I love, you know I'm a sucker for anything set in Scotland), and a highly compelling story that had me reading late into the night.
Ms. Dodge just landed herself a spot on my author watch list. I'm looking forward to reading more of her books in the future.
Highly recommended for people who love stories involving witches, magic, and a terrible evil that must be overcome, for the good of all.
Ms. Dodge just landed herself a spot on my author watch list. I'm looking forward to reading more of her books in the future.
Highly recommended for people who love stories involving witches, magic, and a terrible evil that must be overcome, for the good of all.
September 5, 2023
Perfect read for fall! Cozy and atmospheric story about Scottish witches with a sweet, slow burn romance and lots of intriguing time-slip elements featuring old journals and spell-books. If you enjoyed The Witch of Tin Mountain or A Secret History of Witches, you will love this magical and romantic story. A great book to curl up with as autumn closes in.
September 11, 2022
✔️ Historical Fantasy
✔️ Strong FMC
✔️ Cozy Witch Vibes
“It felt as if she was the earth, with the power of all the elements pulsating through her.”
The story tells of Helen, who lives an ordinary life in Chicago. She surprises everyone - mostly herself - when she decides to spend her life savings on a run down cottage in the Scottish Highlands. With the initial intent to spruce up and resell, her plans are completely upended with the discovery of a connection to her past that no one could ever have expected.
This was the *perfect* book to bring in the start of spooky season. The story itself isn’t necessarily spooky but it gives those cozy witch vibes that come with the changing of the seasons. The descriptions of everything are wonderfully detailed; I have no real life frame of reference for what Scotland is like but felt like I could picture everything perfectly in my mind- the landscape, the cottage, the characters, everything.
There are time jumps between past and present which can often be hit or miss but in this case really round out the story and bring everything full circle. Highly, highly recommend - Excited to see what comes in the next book!
*I received an arc in exchange for an honest review*
✔️ Strong FMC
✔️ Cozy Witch Vibes
“It felt as if she was the earth, with the power of all the elements pulsating through her.”
The story tells of Helen, who lives an ordinary life in Chicago. She surprises everyone - mostly herself - when she decides to spend her life savings on a run down cottage in the Scottish Highlands. With the initial intent to spruce up and resell, her plans are completely upended with the discovery of a connection to her past that no one could ever have expected.
This was the *perfect* book to bring in the start of spooky season. The story itself isn’t necessarily spooky but it gives those cozy witch vibes that come with the changing of the seasons. The descriptions of everything are wonderfully detailed; I have no real life frame of reference for what Scotland is like but felt like I could picture everything perfectly in my mind- the landscape, the cottage, the characters, everything.
There are time jumps between past and present which can often be hit or miss but in this case really round out the story and bring everything full circle. Highly, highly recommend - Excited to see what comes in the next book!
*I received an arc in exchange for an honest review*
September 19, 2022
This book is out with perfect timing for the “witching” season that is fast approaching. I absolutely adored this book which felt like a cozy historical fantasy romance. It couldn’t take place in a lovelier place than a magical cottage set in Scotland. Helen spontaneously purchases a cottage in Scotland and takes the journey from the US with the intention of fixing it up and flipping it but soon discovers the cottage has a whole lot of secrets that have been waiting for just her to uncover them. She is thrust into a magical world of fae, witches, and demons. She discovers love while also accepting her fate to be the light that fights the dark. What is not to love about this book. The dual timeline is a perfect blend of the past joining the present. It was a magical and heartwarming read. I know I say this all the time but seriously somebody make this a movie!
December 30, 2022
Spectacular debut!
The Forgotten Witch is perfect for fans of magic, Scotland and Scottish history, time travel, cozy cottages, strong female characters, dual timelines, and sweet and clean romance.
Jessica Dodge did a fabulous job creating a magical Scottish setting.
I enjoyed the descriptions of the little house and town and all its history; and I loved the tension of light and dark magic, and past and present magical forces.
Favorite scene was the “Speak the truth and tell no lie dinner.” Well done!
Beautiful illustrations throughout the novel enhanced its whimsical, magical feel – like holding your own grimoire.
Delightful read!
Looking forward to the next installment
The Forgotten Witch is perfect for fans of magic, Scotland and Scottish history, time travel, cozy cottages, strong female characters, dual timelines, and sweet and clean romance.
Jessica Dodge did a fabulous job creating a magical Scottish setting.
I enjoyed the descriptions of the little house and town and all its history; and I loved the tension of light and dark magic, and past and present magical forces.
Favorite scene was the “Speak the truth and tell no lie dinner.” Well done!
Beautiful illustrations throughout the novel enhanced its whimsical, magical feel – like holding your own grimoire.
Delightful read!
Looking forward to the next installment
October 1, 2022
This book is just an absolute delight from start to finish. Jessica Dodge has a wonderful style of writing that just completely draws you in. I could not put this book down and I loved learning about Helen Kent and it made me want to start looking at online house auctions. I could do with an escape to Scotland right about now! This book is an easy five stars for me, I loved it right from the beginning and I will be looking out for Jessica Dodge’s future novels.
I received a free ARC of this novel. This review is my honest opinion and is written voluntarily.
I received a free ARC of this novel. This review is my honest opinion and is written voluntarily.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 605 reviews