I adored this book and I don't typically like haunted house stories, especially when they're written for the YA audience. Jackson has a different twist on the haunted house trope and her writing honestly scared me at times. She depicted the main character's fears so well and gave the main character flaws that enhanced the spookiness. Perfect for fall since it's also set around Halloween.

Spoilers below.

Spoiler

That ending was the only reason I knocked it down to four stars. I didn't like that the house wasn't actually haunted, but I loved the story. I loved how Jon Jon was trying to help them and sacrificed himself at the end. I also loved the main character's backstory as a plot device, not that I loved it for the main character. It made her unreliable to the family, which added layers to the plot. It was just a great story.

I have zero hesitation in giving this book five stars. It's the perfect whimsical witchy romance for this time of year and I sincerely recommend it. A witch named Mika Moon is invited to tutor three young witches and ends up finding a family to become a part of. Every character is beautiful and dynamic. If you've seen/read Fruits Basket, Ian reminds me so much of Ayame.

The audiobook is incredible! I highly recommend it if you're an audiobook fan. However, when she voices one of the kids, she sounds congested. xD
I love Mika Moon and her curiosity. The way she thinks up recipes for potions and how passionate she is about magic is endearing. Her character has such depth for a whimsical book; the way she wishes that there was a world where she can just be herself and the loneliness that comes along with it... it makes her so human.

Jaime is also a terrific character. I'm a sucker for grumpy-sunshine stories, though. I also really liked Mika's distinction between nice and kind people.

This review was more like a brain dump of all the things I loved about this book. There are more, but I can't think of any of them. Probably one of my favorite reads of the year. Brilliant story and writing.

I found this book extremely difficult to rate because I enjoyed it and it made me cry (which is not an easy feat), but it was boring at times. Don't get me wrong, this book is beautifully written and the story is incredible, but there were large chunks that I had to force myself to read through. I don't typically read general fiction, so maybe that's the problem.

Spoiler

My favorite part (one of the first times I cried) was the chapter where Marx died. Not only was this emotional for obvious reasons, but the way this chapter was written was beautiful! The narrator even changed in the audiobook. I also really liked the Pioneers chapter, where we got to see in game perspectives of the Oregon Trail MMO. I thought this chapter was really creative and beautifully written.