Overall Take:
This is a well done light horror with a dash of witchcraft
Star Rating:
4 Stars
Genre:
Light Horror
Synopsis
Fern is 15 and finds herself at a home for unwed, pregnant girls. She and a dozen other girls are under the care of Miss Wellwood. Miss Wellwood is the housemother to all the wayward girls, which she renames after garden plants.
The adults in the home, including Miss Wellwood, control everything the girls do down to the minute. But one day Fern meets a librarian, and she shows Fern a very magical book on the occult and witchcraft. The girls must be careful, because power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely – there’s always a price to pay.
Thoughts:
This was quite the book; I’ll tell you that. A little bit of magic, and a whole lot of trauma was contained within the pages of this book. Fern was an interesting character. I felt for her, and had to remind myself multiple times that she was a young teenager, so might not make fully rational decisions. This book was also a hard read because what the girls went through was quite traumatic. Being forced to have their babies and then the babies being taken, all while having no one to love them. It was so sad in that regard. The witchcraft and magic elements were fairly minimal, I felt this book was more of a character exploration than anything else. It was a lovely story, but I was just expecting more witchcraft. This one is also very vivid, which I feel is just how this author writes. I love it and continue to read them and enjoy. Of all the books by this author, this one is probably my favorite to date. I really enjoyed the topic and just how well done it was.
Be mindful of reading this one if you have any triggers surrounding child birth as there are some very vivid scenes.
Publication Date:
January 14, 2025
Author:
Grady Hendrix
Page Length:
496
Thank you too:
Thank you to @berkleypub and @netgalley for this e-arc. All thoughts are my own.
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