Reviews - The Bewitching | The StoryGraph

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895 reviews for:

The Bewitching

Silvia Moreno-Garcia

4.21 AVERAGE

jsimms's review

3.75

dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

jsandy's review

4.25

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Really enjoyed this one! Like Mexican Gothic but with witches. Following three different storylines in Mexico and a prestigious private college in New England, our main characters deal with the push/pull of the past, difficult family dynamics, snobby rich people with questionable motives...and witchcraft! As a librarian, I appreciated that research is an important part of the story. I was instantly absorbed by the perfect blend of slow build gothic and sensational pulp. I do think the different timelines could have been woven together better, but that didn't detract from my enjoyment of the book. Thanks to NetGalley and Libro.fm for providing eBook and eAudio copies in exchange for an honest review.

gablerks's review

5.0

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

ctkierst's review

5.0

adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

empressvoodoo72's review

5.0

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

thereadingraccoon's review

4.0

dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

The Bewitching is a historical fiction horror novel told across three different timelines.

Alternating between 1908 farmland in Mexico and a New England college in both 1934 and 1998, The Bewitching tells the story of three different women who fall victim to a witch determined to destroy them.

In 1908, nineteen-year-old Alba’s ranch in Mexico has slowly become cursed, and the answer lies with the witches of Los Pinos. But everyone Alba once relied on is either dying or disappearing, leaving her to turn to her sophisticated Uncle Arturo.

In 1998, Minerva is a grad student at a small Massachusetts college, working on her thesis about Beatrice Tremblay, a horror writer and former student at the same college in the 1930s. When Minerva is given access to Beatrice’s diary and other writings, she uncovers details about an unsolved disappearance that inspired the author’s most famous novel. But eerie, unexplained things begin happening to Minerva as well, and suddenly her grandmother’s old stories about witches start to feel all too real.

I love Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s writing and her skill in creating complex characters and rich settings. From a ranch in early 1900s Mexico to Great Depression-era New England to the late 1990s, she builds three fully realized stories that could stand on their own but come together by the end. Speaking of the end—she absolutely nailed the final ten percent of the book. I especially appreciated how she wrapped up each storyline.

The only part I didn’t enjoy was the incestuous element in one of the timelines, and overall, I felt the book could have been tighter and more fast-paced. Still, for readers who enjoy a slow-burn novel with horror, family drama, the supernatural, and dark academia elements, this one absolutely hits the mark.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Disclosure: A copy of The Bewitching was provided by Del Rey for review purposes. All thoughts and opinions are my own.