"The Witch Next Door" is a delightful children's book written by Norman Bridwell. It tells the story of a young boy named Norman who discovers that his new neighbor is a witch. At first, Norman is scared and unsure about having a witch living next door. However, as he gets to know her and learns more about her magical abilities, his fears are replaced with curiosity and excitement. The witch, named Miss Cooper, is not your typical scary witch. She is kind, helpful, and always ready to lend a hand.
She is kind, helpful, and always ready to lend a hand. She uses her magical powers to do good for the community, like growing beautiful flowers and helping lost pets find their way home. Miss Cooper also teaches Norman about the importance of friendship, kindness, and acceptance.
Gingerbread Witch
A sweet tooth lures the gingerbread witch’s victims to doom.
Gingerbread Familiar (Ex)
A gingerbread witch concocts her familiar out of gingerbread, sugar, and other confections.
It has the shape of the original animal or vermin, but its type changes to construct. As a construct, it gains 60-foot darkvision and construct immunities, it loses any special abilities the animal or vermin has other than movement speed, and it doesn’t provide the usual familiar benefit (for instance, a gingerbread toad doesn’t provide 3 bonus hit points). With a supply of flour and sugar at hand, the gingerbread witch can spend 8 hours and use her cauldron to restore her familiar to full health at no cost, unless the familiar is destroyed, in which case she must follow the usual rules for replacing her familiar.
A gingerbread witch can never gain an improved familiar.
This ability alters familiar.
Cauldron Cook (Ex)
A gingerbread witch gains the cauldron and child-scent hexes at 1st level. When brewing potions with her cauldron, she can create small candies, pastries, or similar edible items identical in effect and application to normal potions. At 10th level, she gains the Cook People hex.
This ability replaces the hexes gained at 1st and 10th levels.
Tricky Treats Hex (Sp)
At 4th level, a gingerbread witch learns a unique hex that lets her create a piece of candy or a similar sweet as a full-round action. If eaten by the witch or a single creature she designates when she creates it, the sweet functions as goodberry or a polypurpose panacea (as determined at creation).
Anyone else that eats the sweet becomes nauseated (Fort negates); a creature nauseated by the sweet can attempt a new saving throw each round at the end of its turn to end this effect.
A creature that fails its initial save is also affected as per the scar hex for a number of days equal to the witch’s witch level, except that at extended range, the witch can use only harmful hexes on the creature.
She can create a number of sweets each day equal to her Intelligence modifier + her level. These sweets retain their potency for 24 hours and then turn to crumbs.
This ability replaces the hex gained at 4th level.
Confection Conjuring (Sp)
At 8th level, a gingerbread witch can use shadow conjuration as a spell-like ability. Items and creatures she conjures appear to be made of fanciful foodstuffs, and because of this, sentient creatures gain a +2 bonus on Will saves to disbelieve the illusion. However, they otherwise function as described for the shadow conjuration spell. For every 3 witch levels beyond 8th, the gingerbread witch can duplicate conjuration (creation) and conjuration (summoning) spells of 1 level higher, up to a maximum of 7th-level spell effects at 20th level (though they are still only 20% real). The witch can use this ability once per day for every 4 witch levels she has.
This ability replaces the hex gained at 8th level.
Gruesome Gobbler (Ex)
At 12th level, a gingerbread witch gains a bite attack that deals 1d6 points of damage for a Medium witch. As a full-round action, she can make a single bite attack that deals double base damage (2d6 for a Medium witch) and functions as if she had the grab and swallow whole special attacks, allowing her to grab and swallow a creature of her size or smaller. Her stomach doesn’t deal damage to swallowed creatures, but a living creature she swallows must succeed at a Fortitude save (DC = 10 + 1/2 her witch level + Constitution modifier) at the beginning of each of its turns or become nauseated for 1 round.
If a gingerbread witch successfully swallows a creature, her torso distends grotesquely and she is treated as if she were carrying a heavy load if the creature is the same size and a medium load if it’s one size smaller; regardless, she can swallow only one such creature at a time. Creatures two or more sizes smaller do not distend her belly, though every four creatures of a smaller size count as one creature one size category larger (she can swallow 4 Tiny, 16 Diminutive, or 64 Fine creatures). She can regurgitate a swallowed creature of her choice as a move action, leaving it prone in an adjacent open square. If she is struck with a confirmed critical hit while she has a creature swallowed, the swallowed creatures each take half as much damage as the witch does (this doesn’t reduce the damage the gingerbread witch takes).
This ability replaces the hex gained at 12th level.
Horrible Hunger (Sp)
At 16th level, a gingerbread witch can affect a target as if she had cast feast of ashes on it, but with her hex DC instead of the spell’s DC. This hunger is so intense that any creature can offer the target food as a standard action and the target is compelled to eat it, as if the creature offering it had cast beguiling gift (with a DC and caster level equal to that of the witch’s hexes). She can use this ability once per day for every 4 witch levels she has.
This ability replaces the hex gained at 16th level.
Section 15: Copyright NoticePathfinder Roleplaying Game Horror Adventures © 2016, Paizo Inc.; Authors: John Bennett, Clinton J. Boomer, Logan Bonner, Robert Brookes, Jason Bulmahn, Ross Byers, Jim Groves, Steven Helt, Thurston Hillman, Eric Hindley, Brandon Hodge, Mikko Kallio, Jason Nelson, Tom Phillips, Stephen Radney-MacFarland, Alistair Rigg, Alex Riggs, David N. Ross, F. Wesley Schneider, David Schwartz, Mark Seifter, and Linda Zayas-Palmer.
"An enticing fable that celebrates unlikely friendships, unconventional families, and an uncommon hero trying to prove she’s made of more than she appears. The Gingerbread Witch is a magical tale, brimming with heart."
Throughout the book, Norman and Miss Cooper encounter various adventures and challenges together. They learn the value of teamwork and problem-solving as they overcome obstacles using both magic and their own ingenuity. The story is filled with imaginative and whimsical illustrations that bring the characters and their magical world to life. "The Witch Next Door" teaches children important life lessons about acceptance, embracing differences, and not judging others based on appearances. It encourages young readers to look beyond first impressions and stereotypes, emphasizing the importance of getting to know and understand others before passing judgment. The book also promotes the idea of using one's talents and abilities to positively impact the world around them. Overall, "The Witch Next Door" is a charming and heartwarming tale that celebrates friendship, kindness, and the power of imagination. It is a perfect book for young readers to enjoy and learn valuable lessons from..
Reviews for "Unmasking the Witch: The Witch Next Door Book"
1. Melissa - 2/5 - I was really disappointed with "The Witch Next Door" book. The characters were one-dimensional and the story was predictable. I had high hopes for a spooky and thrilling read, but it fell flat. The author tried too hard to make it funny and light-hearted, but it just didn't work for me. Overall, I found the book to be dull and lacking in depth. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone looking for a captivating witch story.
2. John - 1/5 - I found "The Witch Next Door" to be a complete waste of time. The plot was cliché and the writing style was mediocre at best. The characters lacked development and I didn't feel connected to any of them. The attempts at humor fell flat and the supposed spooky moments were laughable. The book had so much potential, but it failed to deliver an engaging and well-crafted story. I would not recommend this book to anyone.
3. Sarah - 2/5 - "The Witch Next Door" was a disappointment for me. The writing felt amateurish and the story was predictable from the start. The characters were stereotypical and lacked depth, making it hard to care about their fates. The humor felt forced and the attempts at creating suspense were underwhelming. I was hoping for a thrilling witch tale, but all I got was a lackluster and forgettable read. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone looking for a captivating and well-written book.