An Embarrassment of Witches by Sophie Goldstein

Witches seem to be the hot topic this year in young adult and new adult fiction, probably due in large part to the popularity of shows like The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and The Witcher. Well... as someone who is obsessed with witches, I am all for it! I grabbed AN EMBARRASSMENT OF WITCHES on impulse because I loved the cover and the concept seemed really good, too. The best way to describe AEoW is like a cross between Jeph Jacques's Questionable Content webcomic and J.K. Rowlings's Harry Potter.

Rory is a college-age witch living in an AU version of our world where all of the major brands have witchy twists ("Taco Spell"), everyone has a familiar, animals can talk, and people can do magic. She has just broken things off with her boyfriend and is trying to figure things out with a new guy, named... Guy, and her best friend and roommate, Angela.

There isn't really a plot to this comic. It's more like a coming-of-age but with magic. Rory wants to be loved and have adventure, but she's a taker and a bit impulsive, so she's always making mistakes and pushing people around her away. Angela wants to do really well on her new internship but she's a pushover who has trouble saying no and has a lot of anxiety, which revolves around a severe fear of failure.

I loved the turquoise, yellow, and purple color palette. The illustrations are whimsical but never overshadow the text (or vice-versa). Anyone who loves books about magical schools or new adult books that don't sugarcoat real young adult problems will love this, especially if they like Questionable Content, Sabrina, or Harry Potter. It ends on what I felt was a bit of a cliffhanger, though, so I hope there's more books coming out of this universe. I #need closure!

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review!

4 to 4.5 out of 5 stars