Book Review: The Reimagining of Thornwood House by Jaleigh Johnson

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The Details

Media Type: Ebook
Title: Carry The Reimagining of Thornwood House
Author(s): Jaleigh Johnson
Publisher: Ace
Pages/Length: Hardcover; 391
Release Date: June 9, 2026
Source: Netgalley

Add it on: Amazon | Bookshop | Storygraph | Pagebound

A witch and her young ward discover a magical, walking house and learn the true meaning of home in this cozy, enchanting novel from New York Times bestselling author Jaleigh Johnson.

Evelyn Sharpe is accustomed to dealing with natural disasters as a land witch, but she longs for a life with a little less danger for her and her adopted daughter, Ruby. So when the opportunity to take over as Caretaker of Thornwood House–a sentient home that acts as the magical heart of the village of Iskendra–arises, it seems almost fated. 

When they arrive in sunny Iskendra, Evie and Ruby find the house is nothing like what they expected: First of all, it has walked away from the address. Thornwood House is also grumpy, guarded, and extremely hesitant to allow the two witches through its doors. 

Armed with gentle hearts and wild magic, Evie and Ruby begin to form tentative bonds with the house and the citizens of the small town. But there’s something deeply damaged about the building seeping into the forests surrounding Iskendra, and Evie will have to use all her power to protect the roots she’s started to grow.

The Review

I’ll admit that what initially drew me to this book was the idea of a magical, sentient house. I absolutely adore a story where the house is one of the main characters, and I was not let down at all by the one in this book. Evelyn and Ruby come to Iskendra to become the caretakers of Thornwood house, a beautiful home that really just needs some love and attention. See, Thornwood House’s last caretaker passed away. The house has been mourning her loss, and no one has been able to stay long enough to bring it back to its former beauty. What a lovely premise, don’t you think?

That’s just the start of the things this enchanting book has inside of it though. There’s a story about found family, and finding where you fit in society. There’s a bit of a love story, full of sweetness and silly moments. My favorite part though, is the message about how we heal from our hurts, and how that healing looks different for everyone. As someone who still deals with a fair bit of grief, it was this storyline that really hit me the hardest. For this book to be so cozy, and yet so poignant made it a lovely read.

You don’t renovate a house that’s been through what it has, that can feel what it does, any more than you’d renovate a life that’s suffered a great loss. You nurture it, allow it to grieve, and, when it’s ready, help it to reimagine itself and what it’s going to be moving forward. It won’t be the same as it was, but it can still be something amazing.

If I’m being honest, the only reason that I didn’t give this a full five star rating was simply that the book wasn’t long enough to really get to know the characters and the beautiful village. Evelyn and Ruby’s story had to go quickly, so that there was space to unravel the mysteries of Iskendra and Thornwood House. Perfectly understandable, I’m just a very character driven reader. Plus it looks like this is going to be a series and so that makes me very very excited.

Ah, what a charming book The Reimaging of Thornwood House was. Friends if you are also super burnt out and in need some something with whimsy and fabulous relationships, this is a book you need to pick up. It was cozy, there was just enough drama to keep things interesting without feeling overwhelming, and the characters were simply lovely. Highly recommend this as an escape.