"Such Familiar Magic" by Natasha Ngan is a sweet, cozy fantasy following the self-discovery journey of a British-Chinese young witch. It is just the kind of book I love, and I quickly got immersed in its whimsical atmosphere and story.
Laila Chu comes from one of three magical British-Chinese families in the seaside town of Silverwood Cove, each family with their own kind of magic. Her parents immigrated from Malaysia to the UK for a better future. Laila toggles between her work in London and her familial magic duties at home on the weekends, leaving no space for personal relationships and friendship.
When her parents leave for a trip to Malaysia, Laila has to go home for that period to take care of the ancient potion that gives them their power, the family spirits, and their pet turtle. When she accidentally ruins the potion, she has to reconstruct it from scratch. Unfortunately, the only person who can help her is her childhood nemesis, Anthony Lim. The clock is ticking, and she has to gather the ingredients before it is too late. But, hey, no pressure, right??
I enjoyed the book immensely. I loved the family dynamics, the slow-burn romance, and the Chinese mythology. I also enjoyed the little winks to other stories and characters, such as Mulan and Wednesday. The hero compared the heroine to Mulan, and one of the teenage side characters, with her love of the macabre, was a fun wink to Wednesday. I loved the banter between Laila and Anthony and between her and her ancestor spirits. The latter were my favorite side characters. In fact, I loved the whole cast!
Laila is flawed, but that is what makes her human. I appreciated her journey, the way she came to terms with herself and her inheritance and found her place in the community. She compartmentalized herself and almost broke herself in doing so, suffering from panic attacks and burnout. But she grows along the way. Anthony was sweet, strong but vulnerable, kind and soft, and I identified with his loss. I also liked Laila's approach to life and the way she balanced work and life. Laila's mom irritated me at first. She was the stereotypical Asian mother and too strict with her only daughter, but as I got to know her, I understood her more.
The book explores themes of identity, culture, grief, family, community, burnout, and love. I loved the glimpse into the immigrant community, and the message about home, a place where you will always be welcomed no matter what. It also touched on Ehlers-Danlos syndromes (EDS), and had LGBTQ+ representation. There were a couple of sex scenes, so consider yourself warned if that bothers you.
Overall, I loved the book and highly recommend it. I liked the connection between memories and ingredients, the magic, and the writing. The pace was slow at times, but there wasn't a dull moment. In fact, it enabled us to get to know the characters and the culture. I recommend the book to fans of feel-good novels that leave you all warm inside, with great characters you can deeply connect with and care about, and magic.
* Thank you NetGalley and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc. All opinions are my own.
* For more details about the book: "Such Familiar Magic" by Natasha Ngan
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