Enchanted Village by Lily Starling

Tracy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Standalone

Release Date: October 20, 2026

Silas Birchwood comes to the enchanted village of Hex Hollow to teach non-magical science at Emberwind Academy, where his uncle is the headmaster. Unlike his uncle and the students of the academy, Silas is not magical and is in awe of the magic that most residents take for granted. He is in the village when he meets Miss Margaret Nettle, the owner of the Toasty Owl Pub and he is immediately smitten. He hopes to pursue her, but when he visits her pub and attempts to flirt, he is attacked by her dragon and her pub is damaged, and the timing couldn’t be worse, as a new bar is set to open in a few weeks which could threaten her business and break her heart. Silas tries his best to help repair the damage, but as hard as he tries, she seems intent on keeping him at an arm’s length.

Margaret Nettle owns the Toasty Owl pub and is the last of her line. Despite coming from an impressive magical family, Margaret has no magic of her own. She has kept the pub running by leaving everything her mother and grandmother created unchanged—not only to preserve their magical charms, but also to keep their memories alive. Margaret makes both alcoholic and non-alcoholic magical drinks with ingredients from the enchanted garden planted by her grandmother. She fiercely guards the secrets of both the garden and her recipes. She also seems to have a special gift for interacting with magical creatures, which the villagers readily call upon whenever a problem arises. Although Margaret is always willing to help others, she struggles to accept help herself—even from her best friend, Liza, a very talented witch, or from Silas, the handsome professor. When a new bar threatens to drive the Toasty Owl out of business, however, Margaret must learn to rely on others and perhaps even believe that she has had her own magic all along.

This book was exactly what I was hoping for, it is a well-written, charming and magical cozy fantasy with a dash of slow burn romance. Margaret is a sweet young woman who has long carried the shame of not being magical yet has never given up trying to keep her family’s legacy alive, but it has come with a steep price. And Silas is just about perfect, he is intelligent, caring and never gives up on Margaret, even when she seems to be trying to push him away. The book is filled with magic, found family, good friends, secrets, mythical creatures, dragons, warmish love scenes, a little heartache, betrayal and finally a very sweet and happy ending. This is presented as a standalone title, but I certainly hope that Ms. Starling has plans to return to Hex Hollow!

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