The Bookstore Sisters and 9 Magical Book Recommendations from Author Alice Hoffman

The Practical Magic trilogy, The Dovekeepers, The Marriage of Opposites, and The World That We Knew are just a few of the many works by author Alice Hoffman. She therefore has some knowledge of both magic and the magic of reading.

In her upcoming short tale The Bookstore Sisters, she combines those two ideas. The release of this new novella on November 1st is free for Prime members and Kindle Unlimited users.

The Bookstore Sisters is all about the power of books and how they can improve and enrich your life in unexpected ways. Two sisters who are estranged are brought back together on the island in Maine where they grew up, and books serve as a reminder of the time when magic still seemed attainable to them as children.

Since many of our first stories—whether they were fairy tales, myths, ghost stories, or folk tales—were based on actual life mixed with magic, according to Alice, she has always appreciated stories that do the same. The unexpected, the strange, and the wonderful frequently have an impact on lives, especially when love is involved.

Hoffman suggests a few more books with a hint—or more—of magic in honor of this new masterpiece. All of the books on this list are her favorites and some of them are made of magic in some manner. Some of the novels she has read several times are from when she was a little kid, while others are by very contemporary authors who have infused enchantment into their works. So let us prepare ourselves to be transported to mythological realms, dark fairy tales, soulmate, spirits, heartaches, and fantasies.

1. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Few love stories are as compelling and unsentimental as Wuthering Heights. This is the tale of a troubled orphan who develops feelings for the daughter of his benefactor, and the violence and suffering that follow their unfulfilled love.

Hoffman claims that this is the best psychological novel ever written, in addition to being a ghost story, love story, mystery, and historical account. The central question of this play, which is set amid the dark English moors, is who haunts us and who we, in turn, haunt. We will either fall in love with Heathcliff or hate him, but we won't stop reading it.

2. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

In the narrative, there is a library that stands between life and death, and inside of the library, the shelves never end. Every book offers the possibility to experience a different life you may have had. To see how things would have turned out if you had made different decisions. . . If you could go back and change your mistakes, what would you change?

A parable describing the magic of the decisions we make and the possible lives we may have had. This bold book about dying is full of life; it is a heartwarming read about a lady who laments her decisions until magic helps her to glimpse what may have been. It provides a tremendous take during these trying moments.

3. The Island Child by Molly Aitken

The Island Child is a mesmerizing debut book about identity and motherhood, freedom and fate, and the therapeutic value of storytelling. It is rich, haunting, and based in Irish tradition. A fairy tale about love and grief that merges Irish mythology and contemporary life, this magnificent and enthralling debut book is just exquisite. The book's central theme is motherhood, and the writing is powerful. It is set in a world of waves and storms.

4. Circe by Madeline Miller

A daughter is born at the house of Helios, the sun god and most powerful of the Titans. Circe, however, is an odd child who is neither as strong as her father nor as seductively vile as her mother. She seeks out the company of people and learns that she does have power—the power of witchcraft, which may turn enemies into monsters and endanger the gods. This book's masterful reworking of a Greek myth brings a witch to life and makes an old tale into a page-turner. This is the epitome of "once upon a time."

5. Grimm’s Complete Fairytales by Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm

The Complete Grimm's Fairy Tales, formerly known as Children's and Household Tales, has for more than 200 years provided children all over the world with the timeless bedtime tales. The Grimm brothers took credit for compiling all of our great-great-grandmothers' stories, but we will always be appreciative to them for ensuring that they did so. The most effective fairy tales portray humanity as it really is. It's beneficial to read them sometimes to serve as a reminder that magic exists all around us. They're dark, twisted tales about grace and survival.

6. The Changeling by Victor LaValle

From the bestselling author of The Devil in Silver and Big Machine, a man's exhilarating quest to recover his wife, who has vanished after allegedly committed an unforgivable act of violence. This frightening and unique dark fairy tale is a singular magical tour de force. The pages are jam-packed with adventures, lunacy, and mysteries. The writing style of the book is excellent for a thriller. The plot eventually revolves around family and the mysterious secrets of the people we care about.

7. The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George

The Little Paris Bookshop is a love letter to books for anybody who believes in the ability of tales to influence people's lives. It is an international bestseller that is warm and exciting. Floating on a barge in France is a fantasy, a kind of enchantment that could truly be attainable. This story about books and shattered hearts, according to Hoffman, will make us fall in love.

8. Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

New Haven is transformed into pure enchantment in this book about Yale's underground societies. intellectual, eerie magic. One of Hoffman's favorite fairytale concepts is used by Bardugo: a girl who must protect herself from both the realities of life and the spirits who haunt her.

9. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

Something Wicked This Way Comes, one of Ray Bradbury's best-known and most widely read books, now has a new preface and information about its extensive cultural and genre impact. The literary masterwork Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury has lasted in the mind and heart like few other books have. It is a timeless masterpiece in the American canon, one that is spooky and thrilling.

One of the magic master's books, and one of Hoffman's favorites. When a shadow show comes to town, Halloween comes early, and two boys grow up in a perilous world while discovering the truth about good and evil. Hoffman discovered her passion for writing about magic after reading this novel when she was twelve.