Grab the Lapels

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

In my hometown where Biscuit still lives there is a book shop that hosts a monthly book club. Because she is trying to get out there and have new experiences, Biscuit joined two months ago, so we incorporate that book club’s pick into our own weekly reading and meeting. I don’t think either of us would have chosen The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna. For me, it’s the cover; this is obviously a meet-cute that will have a Big Misunderstanding, which will lead to happily ever after. But, we gave it a go.

This art style. So hot right now.

Firstly, the book is exactly what I thought it would be (see two sentences ago) — set in England. The main character, Mika Moon, is a 31-year-old witch. In Mandanna’s worldbuilding, witches cannot congregate because they attract too much power, which could lead to a magical disaster that would “out” them as witches, and even though it’s not the 1600’s, they are still leery of witch burning. Mika can’t help herself; she’s drawn to magic like it’s oxygen, and magic wants to be used. Hence, she creates a YouTube channel in which she performs “tricks” that are actually simple spells. It is her online presence that attracts a strange family that desperately need a witch.

The motley crew at Nowhere House include a gay couple in their 80’s, a 50-ish maid, a grumpy (and devastatingly handsome, though for me grumpy and handsome are oxymorons) librarian, and three children who are witches. We learn that there is a curse that results in all witches being orphaned. The wealthy owner of Nowhere House is a patronizing witch who has gathered three girls into her home with the belief that witches need to congregate. The problem is the patron’s work is in archeology, and she’s not in contact with her wards or staff (basically a family). Soon, a solicitor will arrive, and it’s likely these untrained children will do something magical that will tip him off. So, they call Mika to come train these girls, all about age eight, to control their powers.

Strangely, Biscuit and I had a lot to say about this book. Firstly, do we even need the Devastatingly Handsome Grumpy man? We both thought Mandanna’s book would have been far more interesting if the librarian were a woman who didn’t trust Mika but they became friends. Second, there was something this motley crew was not telling Mika, but we did not know what. It felt like the goal of the book was to change English witches’ minds about congregating, so we assumed something like that would happen, but there was still mysterious elements we could not guess. Lastly, and this is important, this book is weirdly about colonialism without mentioning colonialism.

You see, Mika was born in India to Indian parents, who, of course, died from the curse. She was picked up and adopted by a white Englishwoman. Then, there are the children Mika teaches, who were picked up by the patron of Nowhere House — a white woman. They come from London, Vietnam, and Israel (she’s Palestinian). Why are white witches from England going around the world collecting children when they could be raised by witches from their own countries, their own cultures? The author acknowledges there are witches in these countries. This was quite a conversation Biscuit and I had, and in the end, Mandanna, who is Indian herself, seems unaware of the problematic nature of white people adopting children from other countries because it’s “better” for them. Did the author just miss it? Does she not think it’s a big deal, despite the history between India and England, where she lives? Also, those children speak like tiny forty-year-old adults.

Mandanna’s novel is both predictable and perplexing. If you like squishy novels but want something in the spirit of October, The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches is for you.

37 comments

  1. Mellie- Although your witches book review is spot on, I confess I enjoyed this squishy book especially the witches. I don’t care. Fight me. 🤣🤣🤣 ~B ♥️

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  2. In the general way of things, this doesn’t sound at all up my street, but despite all its problems I think I might be just in the mood for a slightly silly, squishy book about witches! I’ll have a look out at the library next time I’m there.

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    • It’s very British, so that should push you over that happy edge! Given your comment, I hope things are going well and that perhaps it’s just that teaching is keeping you busy and not that anything serious has happened.

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    • Thanks for reading! I may be too cynical for romance at this moment, and by “this moment” I mean Halloween, when I could be reading about someone’s eternal damnation caused by a creature that rose up out of a grave, or something like that.

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        • Ha, I left a comment on your blog yesterday letting you know I’m not on there anymore. It dawned on me that I couldn’t figure out the point of it because no one interacts with me. So I let it go.

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          • I was hoping that it wasn’t that I didn’t interact enough with you. I often give people a couple of weeks before I say much because it gives me a chance to kind of see what’s normal for them and what will be okay to comment on. Anyway, I’m wondering about staying on BeReal myself, but I do have a couple of good friends there who make it fun (although we don’t comment a lot).

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    • Absolutely. I think that because we read it in October I was more in the mood for something terrifying, but Biscuit has an in-person book club that meets once per month, so we read that book club’s book together for our “book club” that we do together.

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  5. You have use the word meet-cute a few times now, Melanie. I’ve never heard it before but I love it. Those covers put me off too.

    As soon as I saw the author’s name I was expecting a novel about Indian immigration or something like that. So your comment about colonialism towards the end of your review was interesting. It does seem weird. I guess the author is several generations English and is just not thinking about the colonialism aspect.

    Anyhow, I love Biscuit’s response. I like it when you can see the flaws in the book but still really enjoy it. Has Biscuit had her Bookgroup discussion yet. I’d love to hear how it went and what the mix of people attending was.

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    • I didn’t come up with “meet-cute”; it entered the bookish circles some time ago, though I think it’s also applied to movies? As for Biscuit’s meeting, I’ll let her know about your comment so she can reply.

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    • Yes! My new book club met last Thursday. It was fun. I actually took my notes and read them!Smh! About half enjoyed the book because it was super easy to read and all warm and fuzzy. I loved the diverse cast and the development of their personalities. I asked the group if they were bothered at all how creepy how the old caucasian lady was jetting around the world picking up orphans from other cultures. Another person said the book was way too predictable for her. I added the crusty, tall, handsome Irish fellow could have been left out. He didn’t interest me at all. The romance part of this story bored me. I wanted way more story lines with the witches! One person said he liked the fantasy of it all, including the witches spells! One lady said she couldn’t read it because it was about witches. I reassured her that they’re good witches, that they’re more like hippies (one with nature and all). She thought she would give it a try! Overall, they recommend The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches! I really liked it! It was easy on my brain. In several places I laughed out loud. It’s fun. But then I love a good hex! ~B😁

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      • You do like to hex people, sometimes with the results you wish for. You’re a dangerous lil Biscuit. It’s interesting that one woman said she couldn’t read about witches but came to the book club. Maybe she’s lonely, or maybe she wanted to know what others thought, like, if she could tolerate it. Some people won’t read anything, including Harry Potter, because the characters are witches and the person is religious. Did you learn anyone’s name?

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  6. Yeah, this doesn’t sound or look like a book that I would reach for. And I’m in agreement with you that grumpy characters that the hero has to convince to smile are actually so romantic. There’s a reason I married the funniest guy I know!

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  7. I echo Stefanie’s thoughts in that there’s a book out there for everyone! I gravitate to “squishy” (or “fluffy” as I call them) books more and more as I age. I found it charming. But I can see how certain things might grate especially if you’re not really into romance or the “grumpy/sunshine” thing – or if you’d rather be reading horror!

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  8. Although I’ve never heard you use the word ‘squishy’ to describe a book before, I somehow knew exactly what you meant when you used it 🙂

    Sigh, yes this book sounds problematic re: the colonialism, but I can see why it would an enjoyable read too. Sometimes we just need to look the other way when reading books (unbelievable coincidences, silly assumptions, etc)

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  10. I will admit to sometimes liking a good, squishy novel as you put it. Given how little I have read this year, I haven’t tried any but I don’t think this will make the list. It does have an interesting premise but nothing to hook me. Is it weird that I really dig, what I call, cozy southern murder mysteries when reading squishy stuff?

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  11. I love Biscuit’s book club report and how lovely that you read her book club book together. But the colonial aspect of the book would really bother me, too – how odd!

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