A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna – cozy and heartwarming light fantasy

A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping is a whimsical, cozy and heartwarming light fantasy filled with humor, found family, and rich themes of second chances, resilience, and the quiet power of kindness.

Books I Have Read by the Same Author –

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches

Synopsis

A whimsical and heartwarming novel about a witch who has a second chance to get her magical powers—and her life—back on track, from the national bestselling author of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.

Sera Swan used to be one of the most powerful witches in Britain. Then she resurrected her great-aunt Jasmine from the (very recently) dead, lost most of her magic, befriended a semi-villainous talking fox, and was exiled from her Guild. Now she (slightly reluctantly and just a bit grumpily) helps her aunt run an enchanted inn in Lancashire, where she deals with her quirky guests’ shenanigans, tries to keep said talking fox in check, and longs for the future that seems lost to her. But then she finds out about an old spell that could hold the key to restoring her power…

Enter Luke Larsen, handsome and icy magical historian, who arrives on a dark winter evening and might just know how to unlock the spell’s secrets. Luke has absolutely no interest in getting involved in the madcap goings-on of the inn and is definitely not about to let a certain bewitching innkeeper past his walls, so no one is more surprised than he is when he agrees to help Sera with her spell. Worse, he might actually be thawing.

Running an inn, reclaiming lost magic, and staying one step ahead of the watchful Guild is a lot for anyone, but Sera Swan is about to discover that she doesn’t have to do it alone…and that the weird, wonderful family she’s made might be the best magic of all.

Review

For once, I have no idea where to begin. A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping is the equivalent of a cozy blanket I’d wrap myself in and never crawl out of. I didn’t stop to take notes, didn’t pause to breathe—it had me completely hooked and I tore through it in just three sittings.

A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping is a heartwarming, heartfelt, delightfully cozy found family fantasy about Sera Swan, a witch on a journey to reclaim her lost magic while managing the chaos and charm of a magical inn.

Sera once had it all—raw magical talent, the potential to be the most powerful witch in the country, and the weight of expectations. But being a prodigy from a non-lineage magical family, she never truly fit in at the elite British Guild. Under the mentorship of Albert Grey, a pompous, power-hungry, blue-blooded witch who saw her as a threat, she struggled.

Then came a tragedy—her beloved great-aunt Jasmine died. In her desperation, and with the help of Clemmie, a cursed witch in fox form, Sera used an illegal resurrection spell. It cost her everything—her magic reduced from a sea of stars to a handful of constellations. Instead of help, Albert exiled her, ensuring she had no means to regain her power.

Fifteen years later, Sera is the weary yet fiercely capable innkeeper of Batty Hole Inn—a place protected by an old angry spell that scares away troublemakers and lures in the lost, the broken, and the oddballs who need a place to belong. Some of those oddballs became lodgers:

Clemmie – the cursed fox-witch who originally helped resurrect Jasmine.
Matilda – a geriatric Black woman and vegetable-patch-loving aspiring hobbit.
Nicolas – a 23-year-old knight cosplay enthusiast who abandoned his blood-money family fortune.
Theo – Sera’s young cousin, a wild-power witch whose parents feared him.
Jasmine – great aunt who returned from the dead, is now old but in absolute health
Roo-Roo – the zombie rooster Sera accidentally resurrected along with Jasmine. Jasmine was dead for few minutes but rooster was dead a year ago and hence is only skeleton. He crows at all the wrong times.

Life, weirdly enough, was manageable until Theo and Clemmie stole the Ninth Compendium—a forbidden book on resurrection, from the Guild’s archives. That brings Francesca Grey, the Chancellor of the Guild, daughter of Albert, and once Sera’s friend, at her door steps. Francesca lets Sera peek at the spell before reclaiming the book. But the spell is in a rare magical language, and Sera, still exiled, has no access to the help she needs.

But then Luke Larsen, assistant to Guild’s historian arrives at the inn with his 9-year-old autistic sister, Posy. Posy is unruly and her family refused to care for her. Luke, worn out and bitter, just wants to find a safe place for her. Guild’s historian sends him to Batty Hole Inn. Surprise: the inn is perfect for Posy. Even bigger surprise: Luke can read the rare magical language. It was interesting to see if Sera finds the ingredient she needs for spell and if Luke will stay at the inn.

I was rooting for Sera from the very first page. I felt everything she felt—just like the inn did. I was angry and heartbroken on her behalf—at the injustice of her situation, at the Guild’s snobbery, and their archaic, classist discrimination against magical kids who didn’t come from blue-blooded families. Watching her shrink under the weight of lost magic, the burden of caring for a young witch, and the constant demands of running the inn—it hurt. I wanted to step into the pages and give her a hug.

But even in the face of overwhelming problems and quirky, sometimes exasperating lodgers, I admired her tenacity. Her persistent effort, quiet strength, and unwavering kindness stood out. She rose from her lowest point with fierce determination and moved forward with grace. She was caring, observant, and generous—even when others tested her patience. Her instinct to make everyone feel like they belonged turned the inn into a sanctuary. And in return, everyone there became fiercely loyal to her. She earned their love, their support—their magic—simply by being herself.

While she longed for her lost magic—the power that once made her feel big, capable, and in control—the people around her filled that void so beautifully that it made sense why she was content by the end. That final sense of peace didn’t come from getting everything back; it came from knowing she was never truly alone.

Then there’s Luke—grumpy, emotionally frozen, nicknamed the Tin Man back at the Guild. Like Sera, he didn’t come from magical nobility and wasn’t bursting with extraordinary power. With a family who didn’t understand or accept his magic, he learned to hide himself. It was easier to conform than to push back like his younger sister Posy does. He never truly felt like he belonged anywhere.

Luke was self-aware, yes—but guarded. At the inn, with Sera and this wild collection of misfits, he began to feel something different. He kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, holding back emotionally, never fully letting himself get attached. But slowly, inevitably, the place—and the people—got under his skin. I loved watching him help Sera, slowly melt into this unconventional found family, and realize that what he was doing for Posy—loving her unconditionally, letting her be herself—was extraordinary. And in turn, Sera helped him see that he didn’t need to change either.

It was truly lovely watching Sera and Luke fall in love—slowly, naturally, and with all the gentle awkwardness of two people who never expected to find home in each other. The romance isn’t the center of the story, and that’s what makes it work so well. It’s an added layer, subtle but impactful, woven into the main themes of reclaiming magic and building a found family. Their journey from strangers to lodgers, then friends to lovers, felt grounded, tender, and deeply satisfying.

One of the absolute highlights of the book, though, was the inn itself. Batty Hole Inn is practically a character in its own right—ancient, crumbling, and full of heart. When Sera’s parents first bought it, it was in disrepair, but with Jasmine’s presence and Sera’s magic, it slowly became a haven. I loved how her magic breathed life into the place over time—how she poured herself into the walls, the floorboards, the very air.

The protective shield she cast around the inn, the way it evolved, the way the inn felt her moods and responded—utterly magical. And then there’s that moment—when she finds the first ingredient for the spell, and the inn responds with sheer delight:

“HA!” Sera squealed. “It worked! IT WORKED!”
As if the house could sense her delight, wildflowers burst out of the dishwasher, the scent of warm scones drifted out of an oven that wasn’t even turned on, and soft orbs of light sprang to life along the old wood beams in the ceiling.

It was pure joy. I wanted to be there—wanted to move in, get wrapped up in the inn’s warmth, and never, ever leave.

The supporting cast—quirky, chaotic, loveable—formed the best kind of found family. Each of them had pain, regrets, strange habits, and sharp edges, but the way they loved Sera and each other was magic in its purest form. From Nicolas’ chivalrous idiocy to Jasmine’s gentle wisdom, even Clemmie’s selfishness was layered and real. Roo-Roo’s bone-rattling antics? Hilarious.

The climax was fairly predictable—I expected Albert stopping them from taking the second ingredient they needed. And even after that temporary failure and the wave of hopelessness that followed, I loved how Sera pushed forward, found the remaining ingredients on her own. But what came next took me by surprise. I fully expected a final confrontation with Albert—him being the arrogant, power-obsessed fool who’d never be able to handle being outdone by someone he dismissed. Their final face-off was tense, but the way it unfolded wasn’t what I anticipated. It gave the story a bittersweet ending.

Yes, Sera got her happiness. She found love, belonging, and peace with the people who truly saw and cherished her. And while that felt right—true to the heart of the story—I couldn’t help but want a different outcome from that final battle.

Overall, A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping is a whimsical, cozy and heartwarming light fantasy filled with humor, found family, and rich themes of second chances, resilience, and the quiet power of kindness.

Book Links

Goodreads | Amazon.in | Amazpon.com | Amazon.co.uk

Have you read this or other book by the same author?
What are your favorite light fantasy?

Just in case you missed,,,

• A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna – cozy and heartwarming light fantasy
• My simple Annotation System : How I Annotate Books
• Book Lovers by Emily Henry – heartfelt and whip smart romance

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