Tomorrow - Tuesday, July 15 - the second book in Sarah Beth Durst’sSpellshopseries hits bookshelves. TitledThe Enchanted Greenhouse, the second book is a standalone novel like the first one in the series,The Spellshop.The Enchanted Greenhousewill be available at all major retailers in hardcover and digital; info on paperback versions will be coming later.
The Spellshopwas Durst’s first foray into the world of romantasy, and it was a hit. Her debut in the genre landed on theNYTbestseller list, theUSA Todaybestseller list, and was a nominee for Goodreads' Readers' Favorite Romantasy book in 2024. It currently holds a 4.04 rating on Goodreads, and a 4.4 rating on Amazon.
What Spellshop Follow-Up The Enchanted Greenhouse Is About
More Cottagecore Romance Than Spice Like The Spellshop
Romantasy with a lot of death and a lot of sex seems to have BookTok by the throat these days. It’s arguably part of the reason thatThe Spellshopwas so successful: more cottagecore than spice, it offered something sweeter and gentler for those growing weary of the battle-centric romantasy trend.
From its description,The Enchanted Greenhouseappears to be in the same cozy vein asThe Spellshop.While the two books are connected, it’s still a standalone that can be read on its own without reading the previous book:
New York Times bestselling author Sarah Beth Durst invites you to her new standalone novel nestled on a far-away island brimming with singing flowers, honey cakes, and honeyed love. The hardcover edition features beautiful sprayed edges.
Terlu Perna broke the law because she was lonely. She cast a spell and created a magically sentient spider plant. As punishment, she was turned into a wooden statue and tucked away into an alcove in the North Reading Room of the Great Library of Alyssium.
This should have been the end of her story . . . Yet one day, Terlu wakes in the cold of winter on a nearly-deserted island full of hundreds of magical greenhouses. She’s starving and freezing, and the only other human on the island is a grumpy gardener. To her surprise, he offers Terlu a place to sleep, clean clothes, and freshly baked honey cakes—at least until she’s ready to sail home.
But Terlu can’t return home and doesn’t want to—the greenhouses are a dream come true, each more wondrous than the next. When she learns that the magic that sustains them is failing—causing the death of everything within them—Terlu knows she must help. Even if that means breaking the law again.
This time, though, she isn’t alone. Assisted by the gardener and a sentient rose, Terlu must unravel the secrets of a long-dead sorcerer if she wants to save the island—and have a fresh chance at happiness and love.
Funny, kind, and forgiving, The Enchanted Greenhouse is a story about giving second chances—to others and to yourself.
The Enchanted Greenhouse’s Reviews Are Great
Readers Are Loving The Quirky Characters
Currently,The Enchanted Greenhouseholds a 4.35 rating on Goodreads. While that number will certainly drop a bit after release and the reviews from more casual readers (and those demanding spice and danger) pour in, as is always the case, that’s still a fantastically high starting point for a book that already has over 1,000 ratings and 735 reviews before it even hits bookshelves.
At 375 pages,The Enchanted Greenhouseisn’t exactly a short book, but it is a fast read anda romantasy book readers can’t put down. Readers are praising Durst’s writing for the lovely cozy fantasy aspect, with many of the accolades being reserved for the quirky, endearing characters of the magical island upon which the book is set. If it’s anything likeThe Spellshop, it just might be the antidote to the stressors of 2025.
