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Spells for Forgetting  By  cover art

Spells for Forgetting

By: Adrienne Young
Narrated by: Emily Rankin, Dan Bittner, Mark Deakins, Kimberly Farr, Ari Fliakos, Dawn Harvey, Carrington MacDuffie, Kirsten Potter, Oliver Wyman
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Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • “Lush with secrets, magic, and a past that won’t stay where it belongs, this novel is (quite fittingly) spellbinding.”—JODI PICOULT, author of Wish You Were Here

A deeply atmospheric story about ancestral magic, an unsolved murder, and a second chance at true love

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: She Reads

Emery Blackwood’s life changed forever the night her best friend was found dead and the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her. Years later, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence on the misty, remote shores of Saoirse Island and running the family’s business, Blackwood’s Tea Shoppe Herbal Tonics & Tea Leaf Readings. But when the island, rooted in folklore and magic, begins to show signs of strange happenings, Emery knows that something is coming. The morning she wakes to find that every single tree on Saoirse has turned color in a single night, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that the town has tried desperately to forget.

August knows he is not welcome on Saiorse, not after the night everything changed. As a fire raged on at the Salt family orchard, Lily Morgan was found dead in the dark woods, shaking the bedrock of their tight-knit community and branding August a murderer. When he returns to bury his mother’s ashes, he must confront the people who turned their backs on him and face the one wound from his past that has never healed—Emery. But the town has more than one reason to want August gone, and the emergence of deep betrayals and hidden promises spanning generations threaten to reveal the truth behind Lily’s mysterious death once and for all.

©2022 Adrienne Young (P)2022 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“With magic, murder, and prose that reads like music, Spells for Forgetting weaves together an immersive tale on the Pacific Coast island of Saoirse, where love and pain both stick to the too.”―Chandler Baker, New York Times bestselling author of The Husbands

“A thrilling, rich mystery with exquisite twists, Adrienne Young’s adult debut will trick you, bewitch you, and leave you begging for more.”―Stephanie Garber, author of the Caraval series

“Tense, lyrical, and wholly romantic, Spells for Forgetting is as immersive a story as you could ask for. I could feel the salt on my skin, I could smell the smoke, and every page felt like a tentative step into a mist concealing all of Saoirse’s darkest secrets.”―Ruth Emmie Lang, Ohioana Book Award finalist

Dear Listener,

What inspired me to write this story?
The first seed of a story always comes to me in pictures, and with Spells for Forgetting, it was the image of August Salt on a ferry, heading home to bury his mother’s ashes on the rural island where he was raised. That moment of inspiration was just the beginning of a winding, surprising journey in discovering what exactly this book is about.
Spells is very much a manifestation of my deep love for the Pacific Northwest, but at its heart, it’s a story about regrets, consequences, and the intricate and sometimes disturbing dynamics of family and community. Saoirse Island is a place I wish I could visit, not just because of its beauty or mysticism, but because of its strange inhabitants and their unique view of the world. I love exploring relationships that can’t be clearly defined or categorized, and I am incredibly intrigued by characters who are morally grey to their core. This audiobook was an opportunity to explore these things through the unsolved murder of a teenage girl, the lore that sprung from it, and the lengths one town will go to in order to preserve the world they believe in. – Adrienne Young, writer of Spells for Forgetting

What listeners say about Spells for Forgetting

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A love story

The book is well written but this is almost entirely a love story. The most magical thing that happens is the leaves changing overnight. Besides that, you get thunder at opportune times and the presence of starlings and other little things that any story would have to set a tone. There’s a couple other magical things, but i found this book in the fantasy genre and that’s definitely not what this is. Similarly, if you’re looking for a thriller as it’s also listed as, this is not for you. Only the last few chapters are suspenseful. The major content of the book is the main characters pining after lost love. Again, the love story was well done, but it took the MC till 3/4 of the book before she started wondering who may have killed her best friend. Before that, it’s sort of hard to be interested in the murder mystery because the MC thinks only about her love interest.
If you’re looking for a love story surrounded by secrets, that builds slowly, you will love this. If you’re looking for a thrilling murder mystery surrounded by magic, this is not for you.

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22 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent narration production & novel!!!

First, wow(!) what a stunning cast of spot on narrators. I typically *really* dislike multiple POV, but this was fantastic. It didn’t detract from the flow of the story at all, and was done really well.

The book itself by the lovely(!) Adrienne Young felt like something quite new and different from her -thrilling, intriguing and suspenseful in a more mature way- that would appeal to a variety of audiences. There were a couple times I may have sighed and thought I had it all figure out, but I definitely didn’t!! The apple orchard and spellbooks were a neat combo, personally I’d have eaten up more of both, but the misty coastal atmosphere and plot was certainly enough for a solid, do-not-hesitate to purchase choice. Enjoy!!!

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16 people found this helpful

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Been waiting for this release…

…since I’m from a rural community, and my, was this worth the wait. Atmospheric, eerie, rustic. I seriously could feel the wind off the sea and hear the whispers through the pines. It’s a story about modern witches, first love, and a murder mystery, all rolled into one. Both the author and the narrators pulled off multiple view points quite adeptly. Some of the “twists” were predictable, but still, watching how the author would specifically unfold them was entertainment enough in and of itself. Highly recommend for a perfect autumn read/listen, but probably for a slightly older audience than Young’s other books.

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9 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars

Slow to get going

Spells for Forgetting is beautifully written and the setting is perfectly creepy. However, the plot is slow to get going. It has interesting characters that draw you in, but most of the action happened long before this particular story begins and they just sit and talk about it for more than half the book. By the end, however, the action picks up and it all comes together. It’s worth pushing through to the end.

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7 people found this helpful

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Okay, predictable

I did struggle to finish this book. Listen to on 1.75 to 2.5 speed mostly. I hate that the entire town got all from August after all he went through from his grandfather....in the end he got beaten by the town as well.

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5 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Oh My Gosh!! So Freaking Good!!

I love Adrienne Young’s writing and this, her first adult novel, is just beyond amazing! You’ll experience all the feels in this atmospheric, second-chance, witchy whodunnit and all the narrators give exceptional performances!!

A perfect autumnal listen/read!

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5 people found this helpful

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Loved this book!

While it may have felt a bit slow, I absolutely ADORED this story, and the pace somehow fit and became part of the narrative.
It was the perfect Fall listen on a foggy day.
A bit of magic, a bit of romance, a bunch of tangled mystery and secrets, and lovely narration by all.
I'm finding myself still thinking about the story and characters many hours after finishing.
A definite thumbs -up!!

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5 people found this helpful

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I paid a lot for almost no magic

This is a drama/thriller with almost no magic at all. Magic takes a complete backseat in the story. It’s about a couple of kids that fall in love. A lot of hype with not much meat.

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4 people found this helpful

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A story that stays with you long after you finish.

I loved this!!! The magic of the island and the unsolved mystery of its inhabitants. Such a great cast of characters, with so much depth and emotion.

The world building and magic of the Island of Saoirse was so intriguing, weaved throughout the mystery.

This is largely a story about the inhabitants of Saoirse Island, and how the magic of the island has affected them and their lives.

This was beautifully written and I enjoyed it immensely!! I love these kinds of stories, they stick with you, and you can’t stop thinking about them.

The full cast narration was incredible!!!

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4 people found this helpful

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Unique

My first audiobook by this author and I throughly enjoyed it. I am glad I discovered this audiobook. All narrators were a joy. I highly recommend this audiobook.

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3 people found this helpful