When a librarian discovers she’s descended from a long line of powerful witches, she’ll need all of her bookish knowledge to harness her family’s magic, in this enchanting cozy fantasy from New York Times bestselling author Jenn McKinlay.

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. However, the book’s potential power draws all things magical to it, and Zoe finds herself under the constant watch of a pesky raven, while being chased by undead Vikings, ghost pirates, and assorted ghouls.

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.

 

About the Author

Jenn McKinlay is the award-winning, New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of several mystery and romance series. Her work has been translated into multiple languages in countries all over the world. She lives in sunny Arizona in a house that is overrun with kids, pets, and her husband’s guitars.

Tracy’s Review

Witches of Dubious Origin by Jenn McKinlay

Tracy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars

Series: Standalone Title

Release Date: October 28, 2025

Zoanne “Zoe” Ziakas, a small-town librarian with a major sugar addiction in her late-30s, finds herself at the center of a magical mystery when a family spellbook appears out of nowhere. The story takes her to a curious museum full of odd magical books, where she learns about her witchy heritage and faces supernatural trouble including magical libraries, ghostly pirates, and a raven that won’t leave Zoe alone.

I really wanted to love this book, but the plot moves at a slow pace and the FPN makes it all but impossible to really understand the other characters, but it does pick up speed towards the end. Overall, I came for romantasy and left with a rather vanilla cozy fantasy sans romance.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *