Book Review: The Witches of Cambridge by Alice Hoffman

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Canada, September 8, 2026

Format: ebook

Pages: 416

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Summary (From Goodreads):

Two brilliant young women in 1950s Cambridge, Massachusetts become immersed in a mysterious secret group of witches at Radcliffe College known as the Lilith Society.

By the 1950s, Cambridge, Massachusetts feels far removed from the legendary witch trials that marked its early days as a colony. Ava, a bright young woman from a small town in Maine, arrives for her first year at Radcliffe College. There she meets Lauren, her opposite in every way—the wild and brazen daughter of a wealthy and well-established Cambridge family. But the two have more in common than they think. Both are recruited by the Lilith Society, a secret organization of witches at Radcliffe dating back to colonial times. As they learn more about their legacy, Ava and Lauren form a close bond that is put to the test as they learn to navigate their new power, friendship, and love.

While Radcliffe seems like a haven, the shadow of McCarthyism looms large as an ever-present threat to the flourishing creative and intellectual life in Cambridge. And as women from the Lilith Society begin to go missing, Ava and Lauren realize the witch trials of the past may not be as deeply buried as they once believed.

My Review:

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for the copy of this book.

Read if you like: witches, female empowerment stories

The book follows Ava and Lauren, who during their first year at Radcliffe are recruited by the Lilith Society, a society of witches. There the two are thrust into the world of magic and female persecution and must work together to save each other.

This is a perfect book for fall. I loved the witchy vibes, the flashbacks to the first witch of Cambridge, and the discussions around the persecution of women, not just as witches but because they are women. I might have even loved this more than Practical Magic!

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