The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches | Sangu Mandanna | 2022 | Book Review

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches Book Review

There is plenty to like about Nowhere House. It has magic, three unruly young witches, and people who have made a family out of an unlikely arrangement. Spending time there is easy. Deciding how much of the story stays with you afterward is another matter.

Sangu Mandanna’s The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches delivers much of what readers turn to cozy fantasy books for. It is warm, accessible, and undemanding. We enjoyed its company, though we sometimes wanted the story to work a little harder for its happy moments.

What Is the Story About?

Mika Moon knows the rules. Hide your magic. Avoid attracting attention. Most importantly, keep your distance from other witches, because magic becomes difficult to contain when too many of them gather.

She has followed those instructions for most of her life. Mika loses her parents young. Primrose oversees her upbringing and arranges her care, but Mika has little opportunity to form lasting attachments. As an adult, she mostly moves through life alone. Her online videos, in which she pretends to perform magic, offer a small escape from all that caution.

Then an unexpected message arrives. Someone wants her to teach three young witches.

The invitation takes Mika to Nowhere House in Norfolk, where Rosetta, Altamira, and Terracotta are growing up together despite the rules that would normally keep them apart. Their magic is becoming harder to manage. The adults caring for them need someone who understands what the girls can do.

The household is an unusual one. Ian, Ken, and Lucie each have a place in the children’s lives. Their guardian, Lillian Nowhere, is often away, while Jamie, the librarian, takes his responsibility toward them seriously. He sees little reason to trust a stranger simply because everyone else is willing to welcome her.

Mika agrees to stay. Teaching the girls means dealing with mistakes, testing her patience, and learning how to offer the steadiness she missed as a child. Gradually, the work becomes personal. She grows attached to the children and starts to feel at home among their caretakers.

That attachment leaves her vulnerable. Nowhere House has secrets, and Mika must decide how much she is prepared to risk for the people she is beginning to love.

The Appeal of Nowhere House

The novel is easy to settle into. There are no complicated political rivalries to untangle or long histories to memorize before the story gets going. Mandanna introduces enough magic to make the setting interesting, then lets the household take over.

That approach suits the book. The children need teaching, the adults have their own concerns, and Mika has to find a way to fit into an arrangement that existed before she arrived. Spells and potions add to the pleasure of reading without requiring elaborate explanations.

We particularly liked the connection between Mika’s upbringing and her new responsibilities. She understands how lonely childhood can be, even when someone makes sure you have everything you need on a practical level. Her work with the girls gives her an opportunity to offer more than that. Lessons involve trust and patience as well as controlling magical abilities.

The children help keep these scenes lively. They have distinct personalities, and Mika cannot reach all three in exactly the same way. Their mischief gives the household some welcome energy. Alongside the eccentric adults, they make Nowhere House feel like somewhere a lonely person might want to stay.

The appeal for readers of found family books is clear. Mika’s sense of belonging grows as the household draws her into ordinary life. She arrives because the household needs her skills, but her importance gradually extends beyond the job they hired her to do.

This found family is the part of the novel we cared about most. The romance has its charms, but Mika’s connection with the whole household gives her decision to stay its emotional weight. There is something touching about watching her consider the possibility that affection might last.

A Romance with Familiar Pleasures

Jamie’s suspicion gives Mika a little resistance when much of the household is ready to embrace her. His guarded manner and her warmth establish the familiar pattern of a grumpy sunshine romance. Their changing relationship adds interest to the quieter stretches of the story.

The setup is appealing. He wants to protect the children; she understands something about them that he cannot. There is room for attraction, irritation, and a gradual reassessment of first impressions.

We wanted more time for that reassessment, however. Some developments feel quicker than the conversations and shared experiences supporting them. The pairing is likable, but the emotional buildup does not always feel sufficient.

Readers who enjoy witch romance books may still find the combination satisfying. For us, the premise was stronger than the eventual depth of the relationship. A few more scenes showing how trust develops would have helped.

Where the Story Feels Too Light

Our main reservation is that the novel is more enjoyable in the moment than memorable afterward. It moves smoothly, sometimes so smoothly that difficult situations barely have time to become difficult.

Low stakes suit the atmosphere. Even so, we wanted a stronger sense that choices could have uncomfortable consequences. Mandanna introduces some conflicts late and resolves them quickly. The story rarely asks its characters to live with uncertainty for long, which makes certain resolutions feel convenient.

The emotional journeys could also use more space. Mika’s history gives her reasons to be cautious about connection, and the household’s relationships offer plenty to explore. Yet Mandanna sometimes introduces a problem and reassures the reader before she explores it closely enough. We liked these people; we wanted to understand them better.

The familiar ingredients contribute to that feeling. Isolated witches, hidden magic, an eccentric household, and a guarded love interest all have their appeal. Here, they fit together pleasantly without making the story feel particularly fresh. Readers already familiar with this sort of fantasy may recognize much of its direction early on.

The writing is straightforward and fluid, although its sweetness occasionally becomes a little excessive. We appreciated being able to read without effort. Some moments felt too cute for the emotions involved.

There are also shifts in tone worth mentioning. Stronger language and sexual content appear within an otherwise gentle narrative. These belong comfortably enough in adult fiction, but their placement can feel abrupt beside the softer household scenes. Readers should not assume that a cozy presentation rules out mature content.

None of this makes the novel unpleasant. It does explain why its considerable charm was not quite enough to make it a more rewarding read for us.

A Few Lines from the Book

Niceness is all about what we do when other people are looking. Kindness, on the other hand, runs deep. Kindness is what happens when no one’s looking.

It’s not always enough to go looking for the place we belong. Sometimes we need to make that place.

She hadn’t realized just how heavy her mask had been until she’d discovered what it was to live without it.

The last passage captures the novel’s interest in self-acceptance particularly well. Mika has spent years hiding. As the people around her begin to understand her, she notices what that effort has cost her.

About Sangu Mandanna

Sangu Mandanna grew up in Bengaluru, India, and now lives in Norwich, England, with her husband and three children. Her debut novel, The Lost Girl, appeared in 2012.

She writes for adult, young adult, and middle grade audiences. Her Celestial Trilogy combines science fiction with inspiration from the Mahabharata. In 2022, The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches introduced her romantic fantasy to adult readers. Her 2025 novel, A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping, became a New York Times bestseller.

Our Verdict