Quick Synopsis – Zoe Ziakas enjoys a quiet life, working as a librarian in her quaint New England town. When a mysterious black book with an unbreakable latch is delivered to the library, Zoe has a strange feeling the tome is somehow calling to her. She decides to consult the Museum of Literature, home to volumes of indecipherable secrets, some possessing dark magic that must be guarded.

Here, among their most dangerous collection, the Books of Dubious Origin, Zoe discovers that she is the last descendant of a family of witches and this little black book is their grimoire. Zoe knows she must decode the family’s spell book and solve the mystery of what happened to her mother and her grandmother. With assistance from the eccentric staff of the Books of Dubious Origin department—including their annoyingly smart and handsome containment specialist, Jasper Griffin—Zoe must confront her past and the legacy of her family. But as their adventure unfolds, she’ll have to decide whether or not she’s ready to embrace her destiny.

Song This Reminds Me Of – One Foot – Walk the Moon

Publication Date – Oct. 28, 2025

Bookshop Link – Witches of Dubious Origin by Jenn McKinlay

Content Notes – There are three off page deaths and mention of parental abandonment. Necromancy is a main theme in this book, there are dead bodies, some body horror, and desecration of a grave. There is some violence against birds.

Rating – ⭐⭐ out of 5

Review – I didn’t like this book, I tried to, but it truly wasn’t for me. I found the first half of the book to be incredibly repetitive and the central plot was pretty predictable. Normally I wouldn’t have that big of an issue with a book being predictable, but you could see every plot point mapped out for you. Also, the synopsis was misleading. Zoe already knows her family were witches. The book also doesn’t just show up at the library where she works, it’s delivered to her directly. She goes to the Books of Dubious Origin department because Agatha, the woman who raised her and is also a witch, recommends it. So magic isn’t an unknown thing to Zoe, she was raised in it.

Also, Zoe is 36, but some of her actions make her seem so much younger. Like her diet. The author is constantly showing how Zoe hates vegetables and will regularly eat rice crispy treats for breakfast. Zoe is constantly eating sweets, and I think it’s meant to be like a quirky endearing quality, but I thought it was childish. What grown adult only eats sugar and doesn’t have some sort of health problem? She must have so many cavities.

I did like parts of the book, mainly when Zoe was in the museum and learning about magic. I liked the world building here and the scattering of side characters backstories. There could have been more done to beef up these interactions, but I thought Zoe’s interactions with the museum staff were some of the more well written areas of the book. The romantic subplot was fine. It was kind of typical “I’m an ugly troll and the man love interest is a male model” romance. I don’t love a female character with no confidence.

This author seems to have written a lot of novels and if you’re a fan you’ll probably like this book I guess.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing – Ace for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.