Bad Witch Burning by Jessica Lewis, hosted by TBRBeyondTours.
This is a darkly compelling, really sad but also thrilling page-turner that you will not be able to out down. Scroll down to read my full review and favourite quotes from this wonderful read!
I received an advanced copy via NetGalley. All opinions are honest and my own.
Click the banner for the Tour Schedule.
MY RATING- 🌟🌟🌟🌟. 🌟 (4.5)
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy Publishing date: August 24th, 2021 Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Content warning ⚠️: minor body horror, threat of harm to animals and animal death. Some animal death is real and some is imagined. Physical abuse, death, gun violence.
Synopsis:
For fans of Us and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina comes a witchy story full of black girl magic as one girl’s dark ability to summon the dead offers her a chance at a new life, while revealing to her an even darker future. Katrell doesn’t mind talking to the dead; she just wishes it made more money. Clients pay her to talk to their deceased loved ones, but it isn’t enough to support her unemployed mother and Mom’s deadbeat boyfriend-of-the-week. Things get worse, when a ghost warns her to stop the summonings or she’ll “burn everything down.” Katrell is willing to call them on their bluff, though. She has no choice. What do ghosts know about eating peanut butter for dinner? However, when her next summoning accidentally raises someone from the dead, Katrell realizes that a live body is worth a lot more than a dead apparition. And, warning or not, she has no intention of letting this lucrative new business go. But magic doesn’t come for free, and soon dark forces are closing in on Katrell. The further she goes, the more she risks the lives of not only herself, but those she loves. Katrell faces a choice: resign herself to poverty, or confront the darkness before it’s too late.
My Review
Bad Witch Burning had been one of my anticipated releases this month, and I am so happy to say that I was not disappointed at all.
This story had everything I was looking for, and exceeded my expectations with the intense emotional impact that it had on me. I was truly unprepared for how deeply I cared for the characters and what they go through, and even the general themes in this book. As you could have seen in the Content Warnings, it does have quite some heavy topics, but they're done well.
I expected this book to be a fun, witchy story about young girl who can commune with the dead, and decides to make some cool cash with her talent, but it was so much more than a fun ride.
Don't be get me wrong..this book wasn't in any way boring and a plain sob story. It was the story of our main character, Katrell, a young girl who is living in a terrible situation, and has to survive and ignorant and irresponsible mother and abusive step-father, and us working thirty hours a week to make ends meet.
But that doesn't define here.
She also has a rare gift that allows her to talk to dead people, and as desperate but also smart that she is, she finds a way to make money out of it. She takes on clients who lay her in exchange for her letting them talk to their relatives or loved ones. Until one day, she manages to completely resurrect a person from their grave. And that's when things take a turn. She starts getting people back from the dead, and being paid by their loved ones just so she can pay her bills and breathe.
But she's strong and stubborn and resilient and doesn't let that define her as well.
Katrell is also a poet. She has a way with making words flow. She could get straight A's in English and creative writing. She is an artist.
I absolutely loved her, if you couldn't tell from my long rant. In one word, she's badass.
But she's not the only one...
Will, Katrell's best friend and Queen #2 in this book, who is amazing and the best friend anyone could have. Will has gone through a terribly tough time herself, but she's a side-character who is complete and still growing.
There were also a couple characters I absolutely despised, but they were meant to be that way.
Overall, I loved everything about this book. I had a fantastic time reading it, with it's plot and magic and setting and characters, and if you like urban fantasy with cute animal companions and unstoppable intrigue, this book is perfect!
Favourite Quotes
“You are at a crossroads...You’ve been burning for a long while. It’s consuming you, but you haven’t noticed yet. But soon, it will be obvious to everyone.[...]Don’t contact me until the burning is over. This is important - don’t write any more letters at all. Be careful, Katrell. If you’re not, you’ll burn down not only yourself, but everyone and everything around you.”
Meet the Author!
Jessica Lewis is a Black author and receptionist from Alabama. She has a degree in English Literature and Animal Science (the veterinarian plan did not work out). She lives with her way-funnier-than-her grandmother, who answers all of her wild questions about ghosts and zombies and werewolves (even if she’s annoyed sometimes haha!). When she isn’t writing or working she enjoys watching cooking shows or HGTV-type home shows. Website | Twitter | Goodreads
Let's Chat!
So that was it for today, and I really hope you enjoyed reading this post. Let me know about some of your favourite reads this year in the comments! Have you read this book yet? Did you like it?
Until then,
I hope everyone stays safe,
Bye!
Comments