Tag: witches

Reviews

Extasia by Claire Legrand

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*Spoiler free*

Thank you so much to Katherine Tegen Books and Edelweiss for the e-ARC!

My name is unimportant. All you must know is that today I become one of the four saints of Haven. The elders will mark me and place the red hood on my head. They will give me my true name, and with my sisters I will stand against the evil power that lives beneath the black mountain—an evil that has already killed nine of our village’s men. I will tell no one of the white-eyed beasts that follow me. Or the faceless gray women tall as houses. Or the girls I saw kissing in the elm grove. Today I become a saint of Haven. I will rid my family of her mother’s shame at last and save my people from destruction. I am not afraid. Are you? Claire Legrand, author of Sawkill Girls, returns with an emotionally searing and lyrically written novel that beckons readers to follow its fierce heroine into a world filled with secrets and blood—where the truth is buried in lies and a devastating power waits, seething, for someone brave enough to use it.

It’s a Claire Legrand book, so I want to read it. The Furyborn trilogy is one of my favorite series, and I really loved Sawkill Girls as well. So, when I found out that Claire’s next horror book was one about witches, set in a world after an apocalypse, and secrets buried beneath lies and power that lurks close by, I was very much looking forward to reading it. Trigger warnings: physical and emotional abuse, sexual abuse, blood, gore

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Cazadora by Romina Garber

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*Spoiler free, but spoilers for Lobizona*

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Thank you so much to WednesdayBooks and Edelweiss for the e-ARC!

Manu and her friends are on the run from the Cazadores hunters and chasing down leads about the Coven, a mythical resistance manada that might not even exist. When news breaks out that Fierro is about to be arrested and his identity publicly revealed, Manu and her friends step right into a trap to expose her. They escape, but it’s not long before the Cazadores track her down. Just as it looks like Manu and her friends are about to be arrested, they find the Coven, who shows Manu that the Septimus need a revolution as much as she does. The Coven promises to protect Manu, but when Manu and her friends are attacked at the Coven, they must find a new safe space. Manu recognizes the danger she presents to her friends and their families, and she decides to stop running. As terrified as she is to face the tribunal’s judgment, she knows what she wants now—a home and family with Tiago, and a place among the Septimus—and she’s willing to risk everything to earn it. Manu knows she’s risking a death sentence, but she can’t live her life on the run. She’s ready to take a stand. But Manu isn’t giving up—because she plans to change things from the inside, so she and her friends can have the futures they’ve dreamt about.

I absolutely adored Lobizona, so I could not wait to see what the sequel held in store. I was ready to see Manu, Saysa, Cata, and Tiago again, and eager to find out what their direction their stories were going to take.

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Reviews

Sweet And Bitter Magic by Adrienne Tooley

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*Spoiler free*

Thank you so much to Margaret K. McElderry Books and Netgalley for the e-ARC!

Tamsin is the most powerful witch of her generation. But after committing the worst magical sin, she’s exiled by the ruling Coven and cursed with the inability to love. The only way she can get those feelings back—even for just a little while—is to steal love from others. Wren is a source—a rare kind of person who is made of magic, despite being unable to use it herself. Sources are required to train with the Coven as soon as they discover their abilities, but Wren—the only caretaker to her ailing father—has spent her life hiding her secret. When a magical plague ravages the queendom, Wren’s father falls victim. To save him, Wren proposes a bargain: if Tamsin will help her catch the dark witch responsible for creating the plague, then Wren will give Tamsin her love for her father. Of course, love bargains are a tricky thing, and these two have a long, perilous journey ahead of them—that is, if they don’t kill each other first.

Witches, and f/f enemies-to-lovers. Yeah, that was enough for me to be completely invested. Then I found out that it was about a witch who is unable to love traveling with girl who is a source of magic to stop a plague that is ravaging the queendom. I also found out it had a cat, so this book was filled to the brim with things that I wanted to know more about. Trigger warnings: grief

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Reviews

Witches Steeped In Gold by Ciannon Smart

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*Spoiler free*

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Thank you so much to HarperTeen and Edelweiss for the e-ARC!

Iraya has spent her life in a cell, but every day brings her closer to freedom—and vengeance. Jazmyne is the queen’s daughter, but unlike her sister before her, she has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother’s power. Sworn enemies, these two witches enter a precarious alliance to take down a mutual threat. But revenge is a bloody pursuit, and nothing is certain—except the lengths they will go to win this game. Deadly, fierce, magnetically addictive: this Jamaican-inspired fantasy debut is a thrilling journey where dangerous magic reigns supreme and betrayal lurks beneath every word.

 

 

 

When you see a cover like that, it’s hard not to be instantly intrigued. And that’s exactly what I was. Two witches, one a long time prisoner and one a princess. Sworn enemies to each other, but willing to come together to bring down a mutual threat. This book sounded dark, brilliant, and absolutely like something I would want to read. I was very much looking forward to giving it a shot. Trigger warnings: death, torture, blood

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Reviews

The Year Of The Witching by Alexis Henderson

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*Spoiler free*

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Thank you to Ace and Edelweiss for the e-ARC!

In the lands of Bethel, where the Prophet’s word is law, Immanuelle Moore’s very existence is blasphemy. Her mother’s union with an outsider of a different race cast her once-proud family into disgrace, so Immanuelle does her best to worship the Father, follow Holy Protocol, and lead a life of submission, devotion, and absolute conformity, like all the other women in the settlement. But a mishap lures her into the forbidden Darkwood surrounding Bethel, where the first prophet once chased and killed four powerful witches. Their spirits are still lurking there, and they bestow a gift on Immanuelle: the journal of her dead mother, who Immanuelle is shocked to learn once sought sanctuary in the wood. Fascinated by the secrets in the diary, Immanuelle finds herself struggling to understand how her mother could have consorted with the witches. But when she begins to learn grim truths about the Church and its history, she realizes the true threat to Bethel is its own darkness. And she starts to understand that if Bethel is to change, it must begin with her.

When I saw the cover for this book, I knew I wanted to know more. It looked dark and witchey, and that’s right up my alley. Plus, I’d seen a whole lot of gushing online about good it was and how the horror elements were extremely well done. So, I was very much looking forward to reading it! Trigger warnings: blood, gore, sexual assault, body horror

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Reviews

Lobizona by Romina Russell

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*Spoiler free*

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Thank you WednesdayBooks and Edelweiss for the e-ARC!

Manuela Azul has been crammed into an existence that feels too small for her. As an undocumented immigrant who’s on the run from her father’s Argentine crime-family, Manu is confined to a small apartment and a small life in Miami, Florida. Until Manu’s protective bubble is shattered. Her surrogate grandmother is attacked, lifelong lies are exposed, and her mother is arrested by ICE. Without a home, without answers, and finally without shackles, Manu investigates the only clue she has about her past–a mysterious “Z” emblem—which leads her to a secret world buried within our own. A world connected to her dead father and his criminal past. A world straight out of Argentine folklore, where the seventh consecutive daughter is born a bruja and the seventh consecutive son is a lobizón, a werewolf. A world where her unusual eyes allow her to belong. As Manu uncovers her own story and traces her real heritage all the way back to a cursed city in Argentina, she learns it’s not just her U.S. residency that’s illegal. . . .it’s her entire existence.

I’m not quite sure what drew me to this book. I think it was kind of a what the heck, I’ll try it. I actually thought it was an adult book for a bit, because the cover kind of feels like an adult one. But, it is firmly YA! I basically only knew that the main character would discover magic along the way and would learn about a new world. And that was enough for me to give it a try.

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Reviews

Serpent And Dove by Shelby Mahurin

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*Spoiler free*

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Thank you Edelweiss for the e-ARC!

Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned. Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou’s, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony. The war between witches and Church is an ancient one, and Lou’s most dangerous enemies bring a fate worse than fire. Unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, a choice must be made. And love makes fools of us all. 

 

I had heard so many amazing things about this book. People had said it was more upper YA, and I definitely like those types of books, so I wanted to give it a shot. Plus, it was about witches and it sounded dark. I love witch books and a dark one sounded fantastic. And fake dating taken to the next level, kind of fake marriage! Continue reading “Serpent And Dove by Shelby Mahurin” →