Saved by the Spell

By Tanya Huff

Abbott Elementary, but make it magical: from the beloved Tanya Huff comes a new cozy fantasy novel perfect for fans of The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association

At the High School for Magical Arts, the teachers are dismayed at the rise of a Hero...because it means a Villain isn't far behind

It's September, and the teachers at the High School for Magical Arts are gearing up for another school year, and hoping it will be a quiet one. Teach students some magic, help them learn their craft, and get out in one piece.

Unfortunately, by the end of the first day, it's become obvious that they have a potential Hero. All the signs are there. By the end of fourth period, Bex Olynyk has stood up to a bully, turned out to be more powerful than anticipated, and acquired a smart frenemy and a nerdy, loyal roommate.

The problem? Where there's a Hero, there's bound to be a Villain. And when Heroes and Villains face off, it's going to be anything but a normal school year.

Overworked and underpaid, the teachers at the High School for Magical Arts did not sign up for this, but now it's also their jobs to keep the Hero alive, keep damage to a minimum, keep math scores up to the national level, and find the student who will turn out to be a power-hungry, amoral villain.

Will no one think of the teachers?

Funny, irreverent, and absolutely charming, this cozy fantasy is a gleeful romp through fantasy school tropes--from the other side of the desk.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 075642061X
• ISBN13: 9780756420611
• Release Date: November 2026
• Publisher: Daw Books
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Not my favorite of her books

Was okay. When you start the book it feels like you’re jumping into a story that’s been going for awhile. As if you skipped a few chapters that gave the set up. Was a bit hard to get the dynamic of things for a chapter or two. So much felt unexplained. Because of that it was quite a slow read for awhile a difficult to get drawn into the story and care about the characters. Then there is odd misdirection with characters that are mentioned again and again and seem to be pushed to be important to the story yet are so inconsequential they might as well be omitted all together and then minor characters barely mentioned are suddenly important. Felt forced. I usually love Tanya huff as a writer but this felt more like a story to fill a writing obligation Arc read