Payback's a Witch

By: Lana Harper

Narrated by: Jeremy Carlisle Parker

Length: 10 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina meets The L Word in this fresh, sizzling New York Times best-selling rom-com by Lana Harper.

Emmy Harlow is a witch but not a very powerful one - in part because she hasn't been home to the magical town of Thistle Grove in years. Her self-imposed exile has a lot to do with a complicated family history and a desire to forge her own way in the world, and only the very tiniest bit to do with Gareth Blackmoore, heir to the most powerful magical family in town and casual breaker of hearts and destroyer of dreams.

But when a spellcasting tournament that her family serves as arbiters for approaches, it turns out the pull of tradition (or the truly impressive parental guilt trip that comes with it) is strong enough to bring Emmy back. She's determined to do her familial duty; spend some quality time with her best friend, Linden Thorn; and get back to her real life in Chicago.

On her first night home, Emmy runs into Talia Avramov - an all-around badass adept in the darker magical arts - who is fresh off a bad breakup...with Gareth Blackmoore. Talia had let herself be charmed, only to discover that Gareth was also seeing Linden - unbeknownst to either of them. And now she and Linden want revenge. Only one question stands: Is Emmy in?

But most concerning of all: Why can't she stop thinking about the terrifyingly competent, devastatingly gorgeous, wickedly charming Talia Avramov?

©2021 Lana Harper (P)2021 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Payback’s a Witch is the book I’ve been waiting for all my life. A sexy, funny, charming romp of novel that scratches that witchy, autumnal itch just right. I read this story in one breathless, giggling sitting, and at the first fall nip in the air, I know I’ll be reading it again. One of my favorite reads in years.”—Emily Henry, New York Times bestselling author of Beach Read

“Payback's a Witch is like the first Halloween wind through the corn: brisk, breezy, and altogether refreshing. This is a sweet, charming read, absolutely designed to be enjoyed on a crisp fall evening. I want to go to Thistle Grove. My greatest regret about this book is that it isn't a five-season TV show that I can already sit down and just binge.”—Seanan McGuire, New York Times bestselling author

"A sexy, charming, and completely magical romance full of sparkling dialogue and loveable characters. Emmy’s quest to find out where she belongs is so relatable, with some spells and supernatural elements included to spice things up. And Emmy’s hometown, Thistle Grove, is so enchanting that I found myself wishing I could plan a visit! Reading Payback's a Witch is like curling up with a big mug of cider on a perfect autumn day.\"—Kerry Winfrey, author of Very Sincerely Yours

fantastic

I loved the story, I'm so glad to see it's the first in a series and I loved the narrator too, I'm actually going to look into what else they read on the app because I enjoyed their voice and often find listening to books difficult when the. reader doesn't match up in my mind

Great performance by the narrator

This was such a fun story. The narrator really brought it to life, though. I thought she did a fantastic job.

Awesome! No Super Sexy But…

The sex wasn’t the hottest things I have read lately but still an amazingly good book!

Decent story though lacking in places.

Decent story though lacking in places.
I almost gave up on it, but I really try to finish every book I start. There was a point about 3-4 hours from the end that I seriously had to push through.
The story weirdly jumped in a couple places (enough that I thought I had maybe skipped a chapter or something) that made me say “but what happened in between there!
I definitely think there could have been some parts more fleshed out.
I did enjoy the depictions of the gauntlet particularly the last challenge. Will I read any others in this series? Eh. Undecided at this time.
I’m not downloading the next book right now but I may at some point in the future.

beautifully written!

From start to finish the imagery created by this author is breath-taking. The prose carries the reader into such a whirlwind of plot, emotion, scene, setting and character development (especially of our heroine), it's impossible to put down.. As a new fan, I am relieved to see Book 2 is available for preorder now. Oh, just in case this is selected for your book club, there is a thorough set of discussion questions at the end. I love this book!

Cute AF

it waa really cute. good action that wasnt overly detailed and a main couple that I actually liked together

Cute story with good character development

Nice little story with endearing characters and a well developed story and good world building. I wish the other books in the series kept the primary focus on Emi and her future but I am excited to see how the other story lines unfold.

Quite Enjoyable but Missing Something(s)

This story was highly enjoyable but it's missing a few things for me. It's in need of an outsider's perspective. The way almost all the characters are dismissive of why Emmy left and dismissive of her life outside of the town was frustrating. Even when some of the characters are listening to her about why she left/is hesitant to move back full time, the other characters keep centering themselves in her life and telling her she should move back because she belongs there.

I kept waiting for a found family conversation and it just never arrived. And the way everyone was dismissive of her but trying to convince her to move back to town based on their feelings didn't sit right with me. It felt like a lot of the characters were chanting "one of us, one of us" whenever they were talking to Emmy about her life outside of her hometown. Honestly, if I was friend of Emmy's from Chicago and she told me what was going on, I'd ask her if she wanted me to come get her or come out there as moral support.

The magic system was also missing something but maybe that's explained in the other books. I find it odd that Talia talks about being related to Baba Yaga but somehow Thistlegrove is the only place they're aware magic exists. Was there not magic in Russia too?

Overall, I did enjoy this book especially Jasper and Talia when she wasn't being the most unmovable and stubborn person.

Great storyline!

Love the narrator and the story. The characters and family dynamics are so cozy and perfect for a fall read.

Cozy book

This was easy to read, I’ll give the second book a try but I felt like something was missing. Overall a cute and cozy book though.