Tides Wait for No Witch (Spelltide Bay Magical Mystery 1), by Natalie Summers

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So, I will admit, the one thing that pulled me into this book was finding out that it had a sea otter in it. I was already hooked from this alone, but I also loved the fact that a witch (okay, a half witch) was a main character. And look at how gorgeous that cover is! They say don't judge a book by its cover. Well, I say, why not? So based on all of that, I dove into Tides Wait for No Witch, never before having read anything else by Natalie Summers. I'm happy to say, it exceeded my expectations.

Sara Rivers has inherited a house from a great aunt she never met. Her plan was to stay in the house for six months so she could get the inheritance, sell it, then move on to whatever came next. Life had other plans for Sara.

While there, she discovers that the island is magical, she is half undine and half witch, she's inherited a game shop along with the house, and she has a family history of secrets never before uncovered. 

Until now. 

A journal that she found in the house leads Sara to believe that maybe her great aunt's death wasn't due to a heart attack on the beach, as everyone around town has been saying. And then another dead body turns up. Sara realizes she needs to get to the bottom of everything before someone else becomes a victim.

This book was the warm hug I didn't know I needed. The descriptive words about the setting made me feel like I was there soaking in the beauty the way Sara did. It felt refreshing during these hot summer days. 

While the story certainly does revolve around a compelling mystery, found family is at the heart of it. It isn't long before Sara discovers she has family, something she's truly never had before. Not like this anyway. This family is chaotic, but caring. I loved getting to know each and every one of them, and whenever they got together, it made my heart so happy. They made me cry tears of joy, and at times, tears of laughter. The are supportive of Sara every step of the way.

I mentioned earlier that there's a sea otter, one who is prominently shown on the cover of the book. I wondered how this talking sea otter, who also happens to be a kleptomaniac, would be portrayed. How could he possibly mingle with the land characters? Ollie, that's the sea otter's name, is perfectly included in this story. He isn't in as many scenes as I thought he would be, but when he does appear, he really makes a statement. Quite literally, actually. This character could have just been silly, but he wasn't. He was funny, but not over-the-top. He was also quite charming. I couldn't help but love him.

There are quite a few characters who have different magical abilities. There's even a gnome! I love gnomes, so I was delighted to meet this character. He's grumpy, but friendly. He's absolutely perfect. Every character, in fact, was well-crafted.

There's also the subplot of Sara learning the ropes of her magical ability. She's gone from not even knowing magic existed to realizing she is capable of making magic happen. It's complicated being half undine and half witch, so she has someone who teaches her all about it. Her teacher is tough on her, but she's also very likeable. All of the characters are multi-dimensional and Sara's instructor is certainly no exception.

Sometimes in magical cozies, I find the magic to be overwhelming. I did not feel that way while reading this book. The rules of the magic were gradually introduced. We were learning about it at the same time Sara was. It was just the right amount magic that made me curious and left me entertained. While the characters are an eclectic mix of magical beings, they also felt human and relatable. This is important to me. Even in a fantasy world, I want to be able to connect with the characters.

If you like romance in your cozies, there is a budding relationship. It's quite entertaining to see Sara swoon over her love interest. He may or may not be swooning over her as well. You'll have to read to find out how all of that unfolds. I like where it's going.

All that aside, a cozy mystery is not much without...well... a mystery, and we have a solid one in Tides Wait for No Witch. On top of being a "fish out of water" in Spelltide Bay, Sara has a mystery to solve. She makes for a very likeable and intelligent amateur sleuth. There are plenty of suspects to consider, but not too many to overwhelm the reader. There are also lots of unexpected twists and turns along the way. In the end, I did not figure it out. I was surprised at the whodunnit, but it came to a logical conclusion. However, it didn't even end there. There was still lots of suspenseful action even after Sara figured it out.

While going through all of this, Sara finds comfort in crocheting. She finds the repetitive hand motions relaxing and it also helps her to process her thoughts. I have never been a crocheter myself, but I loved these scenes. Just reading about her crocheting made me feel more relaxed. I also appreciated the brief mention of mental health regarding another character. Seeking professional help is okay and often necessary, even when you're not going through all of the events like what are in this book.

This book is mostly free from foul language. There was only one use of it that I noticed and it was close to the end. While I prefer cozies to be completely free from swearing and I did find this one word jarring, I'm glad it only happened once.

There is a cliffhanger at the end and I'm glad to know the next book is set to release later this year. Even before I read the cliffhanger, I knew this was a series I'd want to continue reading. Tides Wait for No Witch was a definite page-turner. At the end of every chapter, I was eager to find out what would happen next. Each chapter ends at a logical point and they were just to right length for my attention span. They were not too long and not too short. Each chapter felt complete, while still leaving me wanting to find out what happened next. 

I already feel like the main characters are my friends and I want to spend more time with them. I am also going to look into other books written by Natalie Summers. If you enjoy magical cozy mysteries, found family, and all of the other aspects I mentioned, I highly recommend picking up Tides Wait for No Witch. I'm confident you'll be glad you did.

Thank you to Booksprout for providing me with an eARC of this book.