I personally think the season of the witch is 365 days a year, but if you're less fanatical, October is a great season to get into the spooky and magical, and discover the joys of witch lit!

Witches are a versatile fantasy figure that pop up across everything from kid's picture books to horror stories, so here are my recommendations to help you find the right place to start, or discover the genre niche that's right for you.

For the classic: a cauldron, a pointy hat and even a warty nose

If you’re looking for a witchy story with all the hallmarks of an off-the-rack Halloween costume (which I mean affectionately), then look no further!

Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett

My first and most vehement recommendation has to be Terry Pratchett’s Equal Rites, a satirical face-off between witches and wizards. Terry Pratchett is an icon of fantasy, whose books are imaginative, thoughtful and laugh out loud funny. A lot of his Discworld novels involve witches and play with all their spooky tropes, so start with Equal Rites and then work your way through the whole Witches collection.

Badjelly the Witch by Spike Milligan

Badjelly the Witch is a childhood classic for many, and has a plot that you’re probably familiar with – namely, a witch in the woods kidnaps lost children. But Spike Milligan’s absurdist humour elevates this from a children’s fairytale to a weird and wonderful story for all ages.

Wicked by Gregory Maguire

Gregory Maguire’s reimaging of the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz is perhaps most famous for the musical it inspired, but don’t let that eclipse the book itself! Maguire’s Wicked is imaginative and full of thoughtful and politically charged world building, which gives new dimension to the land of Oz, as well as the notorious Wicked Witch.

For good witches and good times

If you're looking for cosy fantasy or something more on the tooth-aching side of sweetness, try one of these!

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

If you enjoyed Legends and Lattes or The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, then The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst is for you! It follows Kiela, a witch and librarian who leaves behind her life in the captial's greatest library to try and share magic with the common folk of her isolated hometown. But as well as reinventing and rebuilding her life for this new chapter, Kiela has to contend with a burgeoning revolution and the fact that sharing magic with commoners is technically illegal . . .

Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Howl’s Moving Castle is best known for the (wonderful) Studio Ghibli movie it inspired, but I heartily recommend picking up Diana Wynne Jones' classic book too. It's full of dry humour and playful nods to fantasy tropes, as well as witches both good and bad. Sophie is a wonderful protagonist – a timid young woman who only starts to come out of her shell and speak her mind when she's transformed into a wizend old woman, and who finds community with a vain wizard, his well-meaning apprentice, and the tame demon they cook their food on.

Witch Hat Atelier by Kamome Shirahama

Witch Hat Atelier is an acclaimed manga about a girl chasing her life-long dream to become a real witch. This series has a lush and detailed art style perfect for creating a fantasy world that's equally gripping and cheerful. If you're a fan of any Studio Ghibli movies, you're sure to race through this sweet adventure series!

Magic schools

If you want the drama of adolescent magic users, or to scratch the same itch as a certain series from your childhood.

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

A Deadly Education has a witch school like no other. If you're looking for familiar, well-loved tropes this might not be for you, but it's a five-star read if you're into intricate worldbuilding and nuanced characters! The school in A Deadly Education is in a pocket dimension, designed to protect young witches and wizards from magic-eating monsters while they learn how to wield their powers. You might pick it up for the enemies to lovers romance, but you'll finish the series for its dry humour and fascinating magical politics.

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

If you're a former Harry Potter fan, I highly recommend Carry On! It's the first book in a trilogy, but it follows the final school year of a Harry Potter-esque teen chosen one, Simon Snow. Eight years of magical adventures are coming to a head and soon Simon will have to face down the Big Bad. This is more than a rehashing of a familiar story – Rainbow Rowell creates a totally unique magic system and a much more diverse world of characters, plus there's a truly superb queer enemies-to-lovers romance. JK could never.

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

The Atlas Six is a dark academia romantasy beloved by Tiktok, but if you haven't already heard of it, it follows six students who have a year to prove themselves worthy to join the elite and mysterious Alexandrian Society – or die trying. Magic in this world is almost like science, and has specific disciplines for everything from cosmology to empathy (a.k.a. controlling other people's emotions and desires). There are thriller elements to this fantasy, so it's a great witchy read if you also like an edge of danger.

Sometimes it's hard to tell the good witches from the bad

These books are perfect for those who like to explore the morally grey space between heroes and villains . . .

Circe by Madeline Miller

Circe is a beautiful book that has a become a modern classic since it was first published in 2018. It explores the origins and untold history of Circe – best known as the sinister witch from Homer's Odyssey. Miller's novel is a sensitive and thoughtful exploration of women's place in Ancient Greece, and the cruelty that fills the myths and legends of that time. It's the story of an outsider, finding power in her exile and perhaps changing from a figure that's scorned, to one to be feared.

Her Majesty’s Royal Coven by Juno Dawson

This is one of my favourite books of all time – you should pick it up for nuanced characters, complex friendships and diverse representation. It follows four witches who grew up together but are now struggling to reconcile their entrenched friendship with past hurts and ever growing differences. When a prophecy surfaces, threatening the future of the whole coven, they each need to choose where the real threat lies and how to protect each other.

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

Uprooted is an atmospheric fantasy epic, a loose retelling of Beauty and the Beast and the second Naomi Novik included in this list – what can I say, she's a great writer with a flair for magical worlds! In Uprooted, Agnieszka has to leave her small village behind to serve The Dragon, a terrifying wizard who protects her people from the dark forces at work in the land . . . but at a price. Living alongside The Dragon soon draws Agnieszka into a complex magical battle, and shows her a side to herself, and the wizard she fears, that she never expected.