As much as we would love to run away to a magical cottage in an abandoned forest, we are bound by mundane, everyday chores and obligations. Thankfully, books can provide us with the same feeling of sitting by a cozy fireplace, relaxing to the snoring sounds of our pet dragon. Or whichever magical creature you’re ready to snuggle up with as you read to your heart’s content. We’re here to bespell your TBR with the wild magic of cottagecore fantasy. Look no further than this enchanting list filled with mouthwatering bakes, magical spells, and dark forests.
The Honey Witch by Sydney J. Shields
After being whisked away to become the next Honey Witch by her grandmother, Marigold Claude finds she has always preferred the company of the spirits of the meadow. Before long, Lottie Burke arrives — a grumpy skeptic who doesn’t believe in magic. Marigold can’t resist proving to her that magic is real, but she begins caring for Lottie. When dark magic awakens, she must fight for her home and her new love.
These are the wild women who run barefoot through the meadow, who teach new songs to the birds, who howl at the moon together. Wild women are their own kind of magic.
The cottagecore witchy vibes run rampant through a flower meadow in The Honey Witch. The differences between a honey witch and an ash witch were fun concepts to read, making this witchy-themed book feel distinct from so many others. The detailed spells, the magical daily life of Innisfree, and the grumpy/sunshine romance from Sydney J. Shields make this a fantastical read for anyone looking to walk around barefoot, making potions and herbal remedies.
The Good and the Green by Amy Yorke
Struggling to make ends meet, Alison Lennox inherits a cottage and thinks this is the monetary solution she has been looking for. Once she gets to the village, however, she can’t find it in herself to ignore the charming shops, sweet old ladies, and talking cat. Even more, as she renovates the cottage to sell, the irritating neighbor has the gall to save her life from a DIY disaster. But there are bigger problems to solve: The town has a vine spreading through the land, choking out everything in its path.
Nature can be cruel. Nature is a beautiful and wild thing. It cares not for good or evil, for light or darkness.
Like sipping a warm cup of tea on a rainy day, The Good and the Green fulfills all my cozy fantasy dreams. From the heartwarming, clean romance to the magical, mystical village, I loved Amy Yorke’s character building so much. They are whimsical, flawed, and most of all, lovable. Reading this book planted me right in the quaint village filled with gnomes, elves, and dwarves, and I never wanted to leave!
A Fellowship of Bakers & Magic by J. Penner
Human baker Arleta Starstone works twice as hard as her elvish and dwarvish counterparts. Then, her orc neighbor enters her into the Langheim Baking Battle, where her lack of magic will face scrutiny. With the help of a very attractive elf, Arleta makes her way to and competes in the bakery. In this journey of self-discovery and potential romance, Arleta must decide whether winning the baking competition is more important than anything else.
… I’ve found that simplicity doesn’t necessarily equal childishness. I like to be reminded that kindness, patience, and friendship are the things that make this life enjoyable. They are what sometimes save us.
When I say that A Fellowship of Bakers & Magic set a new standard for cozy fantasy for me, I mean it. The baking, the magic, the slow-burn romance; everything came together so beautifully. With vibes of The Great British Bake Off meets The Hobbit, you will definitely want a few snacks on hand while you read this one, because the bakes are described so impeccably. To top it all off, there are recipes in the back matter, which is a really thoughtful addition from J. Penner.
The Grace of Wild Things by Heather Fawcett
An overlooked orphan, Grace has never been good at anything except for magic. When she runs away to find her own home, she offers to be an apprentice to a witch in the nearby woods. Unfortunately for Grace, this witch steals souls for her spellwork. As part of the deal, Grace must learn all 100 ½ spells in the witch’s grimoire or lose her magic for good. While she learns the spells, a monster from the witch’s past resurfaces, threatening Grace’s newfound home.
What she loved were the flashes of beauty in poems, the way the poet chose just the right word for a meadow or a river, one that made her realize there was more to meadows and rivers than she’d thought, that they had whole worlds hidden inside them.
The Grace of Wild Things is a charming and cozy middle-grade story that is touching enough to appeal to all ages. I loved all the creativity that Heather Fawcett poured into crafting the spells and the ingredients. Grace is charming and optimistic, whereas the witch is grumpy at first but warms up to Grace’s presence. The whole time I was reading, I was transported back to a time when I was a child, mixing “potions” in our family bathroom.
Call Forth a Fox by Markelle Grabo
In the western wood, Ro’s father built a garden, taught her how to forage, and told stories of the faeries in the forest. Torn between her living family and her father’s legacy, she must decide if she will move to town or stay at the cottage, which has withered since his passing. Then, one winter night, Ro is on her way home and finds a bear attacking a fox. In order to save the fox, she fights off the bear, only for it to turn into a boy. Now that she’s meddled in the faerie world, she must remember all the stories her father passed down to keep herself and the fox safe.
I used to be certain. I used to be certain of the western wood, of my life and how it fit in the spaces between the trees.
You will find me nestled in a forest cottage with a cup of hot chocolate, sitting by a fire after reading this book. The dark and cozy fantasy vibes were immaculate in Call Forth a Fox. The characters have depth, there is a swoon-worthy romance, and the fae will always entice me into any story. It feels as if Markelle Grabo herself held my hand and took me on an adventure-filled fairy tale that I won’t soon forget.
Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana
Lore Alemeyu lives in a village, trapped in a forested prison, ruled by ruthless Fae. Escaping is impossible, but when her village is threatened, Lore works out a deal with a Fae lord. Fae aren’t allowed inside the enchanted library, to which they send her to catalog the books. In her quest through this hostile world, two Fae males are tasked with protecting her.
She wanted to tell him that it wasn’t that she didn’t see the wonder in magic, but it was that she knew, too well, how beautiful having magic could be.
And how ugly it was that she didn’t.
With its magical forests and seductive elves, who wouldn’t want to take a trip into Lore of the Wilds? The way Analeigh Sbrana weaves plot, character building, and a love triangle to tell such a wonderful story makes for a cozy fantasy you won’t want to put down. Lore is headstrong and compassionate; I fell in love with her character as she grew through the story.
A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross
Ten years after being banished, a young bard named Jack Tamerlaine is summoned back to his island home of Cadence, where girls are mysteriously vanishing. His childhood nemesis, and the island’s future leader, believes Jack’s Bard music is the only way to appease the elemental spirits and bring the girls back. But as they work together, they uncover a darker secret hiding beneath the surface, one that no song may be able to stop.
Could a girl become a wildflower patch, resurrected every spring and summer only to wilt and fade come the sting of frost? Could she become the foam of the sea that rolled over the coast for an eternity, or a flame that danced in a hearth? A winged being of the wind, sighing over the hills?
The mysterious island of Cadence in A River Enchanted is a wonderful world to transport yourself to when you need a quick escape with cozy Scottish vibes. The depth of the four main characters is inspiring. Rebecca Ross takes readers into a well-crafted world with wonderful folklore, an enemies-to-lovers romance, and a unique magic system. I felt like I was wrapped in a warm blanket, enveloped by the Scottish atmosphere, and the plot twists leave readers fully enchanted.
After the Forest by Kell Woods
Twenty years after the witch and the gingerbread house, Hans and Greta are trying to stay afloat. Hans is in debt, and the townspeople are starving — that is, until Greta starts baking gingerbread cookies from the witch’s grimoire that she’s kept a secret for all these years. But when dark magic starts returning to the woods, Greta’s magic might not be enough to save her and the village.
All the trees in all the forests bent to her grace. The rivers flowed through her veins, and the mountains thrummed in her bones.
After the Forest is dark and magical in all the best ways, with its historical 17th-century setting that feels realistic, aside from the witches. Woodsy and foreboding, this telling of what comes after the story of Hansel and Gretel is a great book to sink your teeth into. Kell Woods’ style is paramount for the genre, with sweeping intonation that fits the magical vibes. This one really has it all: slow-burn romance, shifters, magical gingerbread, folklore, and cozy, dark fantasy.
The Ghost of Lilly Pilly Creek by Abbie L. Martin
Jones goes back to her small hometown in South Australia after her sister’s tragic death. But when her sister Autumn’s ghost appears, Jones is sent on a quest to uncover the truth about her demise. The out-of-the-ordinary sibling pair opens up a family stationery and book shop, The Memory Bank. While investigating the mysterious surroundings of her sister’s death, Jones is drawn to Hugo, the owner of a neighboring bar. Yet the closer they come to the truth, the more Jones realizes that her own life is on the line.
As the spring October days were warming, the colours of Lilly Pilly Creek seemed to pulse with purple, grey, light pink and green. Jones ran her hands through lavender flowers as she walked, before smelling the fragrance.
Set in a small town with paranormal mystery afoot, The Ghost of Lilly Pilly Creek is being heralded as Gilmore Girls meets The Ghost Whisperer. This cozy mystery with a touch of fantasy plants you in a world that Abbie L. Martin created with such finesse, it ought to be a crime. Jones and Autumn’s sweet, sisterly bond that transcends the realms between living and dead makes for a fantastic read that you’re going to love.
Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland
Legend tells of a Flores woman offending the old gods, cursing their family with a touch of magic. Sage Flores has been running from her family since the death of her sister, Sky. When she finally returns, Sage takes her place at Cranberry Rose Company to uncover heritage species. What makes this difficult is the relationship between her and her former high school boyfriend, Tennessee Reyes. But Sage has more to worry about than a supercharged romance; she must find rare plants, deal with her dead sister bringing her coffee, and temper another sister whose anger can fill the sky with lightning.
It gets me thinking about the history of this land, of this whole world, even. How someone got it in their head that ripping down thousand-year-old trees was a-okay. How people who grow gardens are crunchy; how people who grow their stock portfolios are sophisticated.
Captivating from the very beginning, Witch of Wild Things had me hooked with its second-chance romance. The magical way Sage can commune with plants and help them grow, along with the relationship between her and her sisters, both dead and alive, makes her an endearing, down-to-earth heroine I loved reading about. Raquel Vasquez Gilliland takes readers on a journey with well-placed flashbacks, memorable characters, and an atmosphere that planted me in my chair until I finished the book.
A Witch’s Guide to Love & Poison by Aamna Qureshi
Bisma, a garden witch who loves potions, fiercely protects her sisters of “Unwanted Girls” by poisoning those who have wronged them. However, the charmingly handsome Xander, son of a neighboring apothecary, keeps making cures. Bisma doesn’t understand why he should care if a little poison ends up in the soup of her enemies. But then, her sisters get poisoned, and Bisma must put her feelings aside to ask Xander for help. They must work together to search for who’s responsible before it’s too late.
Her home was a plethora of connected rooms built on thick tree branches on the biggest tree in the Forest, and from up here, they had the very best view.
A Witch’s Guide to Love & Poison is a delightful garden fantasy filled with a sentient magical forest, Desi representation, and a reverse grumpy/sunshine romance. Aamna Qureshi weaves a wholesomely beautiful story with supreme descriptions and world-building. The cottagecore vibes are everywhere in this YA novel as readers follow Bisma and her quest to save her found family. As an eldest daughter, I feel very seen in this cozy fantasy.
The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst
Kiela has always struggled with talking to other people. That’s why she’s a librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, preserving magical texts for the city’s most elite members. Everything changes when a revolution burns the library to the ground, and she must escape with Caz, a sentient spider plant, and as many spellbooks as she can carry. Taking refuge in her childhood home, Kiela finds a very nosy — and very handsome — neighbor who won’t stop checking in on her to make sure she’s settling into her home. As she uses illegal magic and an old recipe book to make jam for the local bakery, she finds that the island is in need of a secret spellshop.
She remembered the way it looked at sunset, with the island winged cats perched on the rooftops, and the way it smelled at dawn of fresh-baked bread. In spring, wildflowers sprouted everywhere — the roofs, the cliffs, the fields. In winter, snow blanketed everything in thick white fluff.
The Spellshop has everything I want: a sentient plant best friend, a cozy shop with a garden, and a man to build me floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. Sarah Beth Durst delivers the vibes with this romantasy, filled with well-written characters, a small-town feel, and magical creatures. Reading this one was my ideal version of escaping to the cottage, complete with magical recipes, sipping tea, and befriending tree spirits.
Each of these stories grants an escape into the softer side of fantasy, where magical creatures roam, meadows shimmer with magical intent, and enchanted villages exist in peace. Whether you want to feel the raw earth beneath your feet or the comfort sounds of a kettle boiling on your stovetop, grab your favorite blanket and a couple of these cottagecore book recommendations for your next mental escape.
Need more romantasy books in your life? Look no further than Bookstr!
For these books and more, explore our Fantasy Lovers Paradise: Epics, Romances, and More! bookshelf on Bookshop.org
