Review: Autumn, Enchanted: Falling for Everything She Does Is Magic and A Hexcellent Chance to Fall in Love

I built my TBR around what will feel like fall, and these two delivered exactly that vibe: pumpkin-spiced enchantment, small-town magic, and queer love that blooms when the nights get longer. They smell like apple cider and pumpkin spice and sound like laughter echoing down small-town streets, with just enough magic to make you believe the season really can change everything. Everything She Does Is Magic by Bridget Morrissey and A Hexcellent Chance to Fall in Love by Ann Rose both capture that mood perfectly, queer, funny, and full of heart. These are the stories you read under a blanket while the leaves turn, where every spell is really just another way to say “I think I like you.” Check out my thoughts on both below and pick up both, out now!

Everything She Does Is Magic

by Bridget Morrissey
Published by: Delacorte Press
on September 9, 2025
Genres: Contemporary, Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult
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In the charming town of Fableview, every day is Halloween. Get ready to fall under the spell of this bewitching sapphic romance, perfect for fans of Gilmore Girls and Wicked!

Darcy Keller, resident ray of sunshine and town spirit princess, loves every moment of Fableview’s fall festivities. But she’s also really ready to leave for college next year, even though her parents expect her to stay and take over their Halloween empire.

Enter brooding new girl Anya Doyle, a real-life witch and almost a full member of her coven. In order to be initiated, she has to choose a mortal ally to act as her “protector.” But having moved around so much, Anya is completely friendless. So she does what any self-respecting teenage almost-witch would—she lies and tells her coven her secret crush, Darcy, is willing to do the job.

Desperate to solve their personal problems, they agree to help each other out, attending everything from a costume parade to a pumpkin patch party to an apple bobbing contest together. But with Anya’s magical powers and Darcy’s future independence on the line, the last thing they need is the added complication of pesky feelings . . .

Review

Everything She Does Is Magic takes place in Fableview, a town where every day feels like Halloween. Darcy, the upbeat local girl with an empire of fall festivals under her belt, meets Anya, the brooding new witch-in-training who has no friends but a big secret. The fake “protector” alliance they strike evolves into something real, and Morrissey writes it so that you can almost smell the fresh-cut pumpkins and hear the crunch of leaves. The sapphic romance is sweet, steady, and deeply embedded in the characters’ world—not just tacked on.

On the other side, A Hexcellent Chance to Fall in Love leans into haunted store fronts and curses and that feeling of “we only have this one autumn to make our mark.” Pepper, cursed to appear only when the “Dead of Night” Halloween store does, meets Christina and suddenly time feels fragile. Ann Rose spins a sapphic romance with a magical twist and a real emotional anchor: what happens after the spell wears off? The premise is fun and cozy-spooky.

Both books lean into queerness without hesitation. They don’t treat it as a subplot; this is the story. They lean into magic and fall festivals but keep the romance grounded. Everything She Does Is Magic gives you witchcraft, town charm, and the “I might leave for college” tension. A Hexcellent gives you curses, countdowns, and that bittersweet urgency of limited time, perfect for a crisp afternoon read.

What I loved:

• The atmospheres are built well: autumn leaves, costumed parades, hidden magic, little towns where everyone has a role but real change happens.
• The romances feel earned. Neither book trades heart for antics; they balance both.
• The queerness is normalized. You don’t have to wait for a “big reveal” to see characters owning their identities.
• Both feel like the kind of book you can feel reading them: comfort and sparkle, magic and realism dancing together.

Want something light, enchanting, autumnal? Go with Everything She Does Is Magic. Want something with a curse, a ticking clock, and a bit more paranormal suspense? Pick up A Hexcellent Chance to Fall in Love!

A Hexcellent Chance to Fall in Love

by Ann Rose
Published by: Berkley
on September 09, 2025
Genres: Adult, Contemporary Romance, Paranormal
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Goodreads

In this slightly spooky paranormal romance, will two women finally break their curse and get the happily ever after they’ve fought for?

Each year, when no one is paying attention, The Dead of Night Halloween store appears in a new location with its giant sign and great low prices. No one sees them setting up or tearing down—one day it’s just there and then, two days after Halloween, it’s gone.

Pepper White knows exactly how this works. For five years, ever since the last Keeper of the Store tricked her, she has been cursed—appearing when the store does, and disappearing when it goes away. People will remember The Dead of Night, but they’ll completely forget Pepper. That is, until Christina Loring walks in the door. Their chemistry is instantaneous and, for the first time in five years, Pepper finds herself wishing for more time.

But how do you tell the girl you’re falling for that you’re cursed and that you only have ten weeks together before Christina forgets . . . everything? To have a chance at happily ever after, Pepper has to do the one thing she swore she wouldn’t—find the right treat to trick someone else into taking on the curse. But all’s fair in love and spells, and this spooky season, Pepper and Christina are ready to stir up trouble in the name of love.