Josephine Hemlock is one of the last two witches of her line, the other being her grandmother. For generations, a Curse has killed off many of her family, including her mother, as well as other witches. Her grandmother does everything she can to protect her, but when the Curse starts reappearing, drastic measures will have to be taken or else the Hemlock line will be gone forever.

HOUSE OF IVY & SORROW by Natalie Whipple is an engaging and quick read. Told in first person, Jo's narration does an incredible job of pulling the reader in. It's filled with so much love for her family and friends that you can't help but want to be on Jo's side. I adore the sense of loyalty the entire story holds: loyalty to family, to friends, to history, and even to magic. The story has such a pull to it that you'll have a hard time putting it down.

While I love so many of the secondary characters, from Gwen to Kat to Nana to Levi, I wasn't sold on the love interest, Winn. While he's a really cute character, his and Jo's relationship feels very shallow when their feelings are supposed to be fairly solid. Especially the romance first starts, they feel a lot younger than seventeen, and I just wanted more chemistry and spark between them. It doesn't stop me from loving the book by any means, but it definitely makes me wish for a sequel that might further their dynamic.

Even with Winn, I completely adore THE HOUSE OF IVY & SORROW. Whipple has such a unique and strong writing voice, and I really hope to see more from this author. For any fans of witchy stories, this is a wonderful novel to grab and get lost in the magic.