The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow

 

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Once and Future Witches
Author: Alix E. Harrow
Release Date: 10.13.20
Publisher: Orbit

Goodreads Summary
In 1893, there's no such thing as witches. There used to be, in the wild, dark days before the burnings began, but now witching is nothing but tidy charms and nursery rhymes. If the modern woman wants any measure of power, she must find it at the ballot box.

But when the Eastwood sisters--James Juniper, Agnes Amaranth, and Beatrice Belladonna--join the suffragists of New Salem, they begin to pursue the forgotten words and ways that might turn the women's movement into the witch's movement. Stalked by shadows and sickness, hunted by forces who will not suffer a witch to vote-and perhaps not even to live-the sisters will need to delve into the oldest magics, draw new alliances, and heal the bond between them if they want to survive.

There's no such thing as witches. But there will be.

My Review:

I really liked Alix E. Harrow's previous release, The Ten Thousand Doors of January. When I saw she had a new novel and it was about witches, I had very high hopes...and I was not let down with The Once and Future Witches! Oh, it was so good. This book about witches is like The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, The Witches of New York, or Wicked--a rarity since most currently published novels featuring witches fall into the YA or "sexy" adult categories. Full of folklore, fairy tales, and multiple methods of storytelling, The Once and Future Witches quickly earned a space as one of my favorite books of the year. Combining the women's movement and worker's rights into an alternative history full of witchcraft and women pushing back against the patriarchy while discovering their true identities, Harrow has indeed woven quite the spell!