Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
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:
Yes
mysterious
fast-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Incest
Minor: Death of parent
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Three women. Three timelines. One very cursed family tree (and I do mean cursed—some of these relationships need holy water).
Silvia Moreno-Garcia delivers another eerie, enchanting triumph with The Bewitching, a tangled gothic mystery dripping with witchy lore, secret love, and just the right amount of horror. We follow Minerva in 1998, a Type-A college student deep in thesis hell; Alba in 1908, charmingly naive and neck-deep in what can only be described as generational trauma with a side of black magic; and Beatrice in 1934, a horror author with a missing muse and a closet full of secrets. All roads lead to the disappearance of Ginny, a white car, and a hell of a lot of unspoken truths.
Highlights include:
💫 Tadeo’s twist—MONSTER reveal had me reeling.
💫 Carolyn: the witch behind it all, giving off major “don’t trust the smiling neighbor” energy.
đź’«The uncle-Alba thing. Ew. Why.
đź’« Valentin. RIP, sweet himbo.
Despite a few narrative lulls, Moreno-Garcia keeps the tension high and the twists relentless. Even if you suspect who the Big Bad is (cough Arturo cough), it still hits like a brick when all is revealed.
Easily SMG’s best work since Mexican Gothic. Haunting, clever, and darkly feminist—The Bewitching casts a spell that lingers.
Silvia Moreno-Garcia delivers another eerie, enchanting triumph with The Bewitching, a tangled gothic mystery dripping with witchy lore, secret love, and just the right amount of horror. We follow Minerva in 1998, a Type-A college student deep in thesis hell; Alba in 1908, charmingly naive and neck-deep in what can only be described as generational trauma with a side of black magic; and Beatrice in 1934, a horror author with a missing muse and a closet full of secrets. All roads lead to the disappearance of Ginny, a white car, and a hell of a lot of unspoken truths.
Highlights include:
💫 Tadeo’s twist—MONSTER reveal had me reeling.
💫 Carolyn: the witch behind it all, giving off major “don’t trust the smiling neighbor” energy.
đź’«The uncle-Alba thing. Ew. Why.
đź’« Valentin. RIP, sweet himbo.
Despite a few narrative lulls, Moreno-Garcia keeps the tension high and the twists relentless. Even if you suspect who the Big Bad is (cough Arturo cough), it still hits like a brick when all is revealed.
Easily SMG’s best work since Mexican Gothic. Haunting, clever, and darkly feminist—The Bewitching casts a spell that lingers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Rape, Murder
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
In The Bewitching we follow the story of three women: Nana Alba in 1908, her great granddaughter Minerva in 1998 and the author Minerva is researching, Beatrice Tremblay in 1934.
This was another excellent book by Silvia Moreno Garcia. (I’m sure no one is surprised).
The three timelines had three distinct voices. Often when a book has multiple timelines or characters to follow, the voice of the character can sound the same as another character. Garcia does an excellent job of making sure all of the characters have their own personality and feel to them. None of the narratives were boring or a slog to get through. I was thoroughly invested in all three stories. Although I can’t pick a favorite timeline, I want to say I really enjoyed seeing university life in the 90s.
One of my favorite things about SMG is the way she writes interesting and flawed characters. Minerva was definitely my favorite character in this.
When I tell you that I was invested in the story, I mean it. I read the last half of this book while sick and it kept me going. That should tell my fellow readers how good this book was. As far as the story goes, I was surprised with the direction things went. Let’s just say I wasn’t expecting certain things to be taken so far. I found certain elements of the story to be disgusting but I’m sure that was intentional by the author.
The only negative, if you can call it that, is that I would have like a longer epilogue. That’s the only “criticism” I have and I only say that because I would have liked to see more of what happened with certain characters in the end.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Truly. The story just pulls you in and doesn’t let go. This will be a fun book to revisit now that I know what was happening to the characters throughout the book. The author also created a playlist and if you’ve read the book I suggest you check it out. I’d recommend this book to any and all readers.
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group and the author for providing me with an ARC copy for review.
This was another excellent book by Silvia Moreno Garcia. (I’m sure no one is surprised).
The three timelines had three distinct voices. Often when a book has multiple timelines or characters to follow, the voice of the character can sound the same as another character. Garcia does an excellent job of making sure all of the characters have their own personality and feel to them. None of the narratives were boring or a slog to get through. I was thoroughly invested in all three stories. Although I can’t pick a favorite timeline, I want to say I really enjoyed seeing university life in the 90s.
One of my favorite things about SMG is the way she writes interesting and flawed characters. Minerva was definitely my favorite character in this.
When I tell you that I was invested in the story, I mean it. I read the last half of this book while sick and it kept me going. That should tell my fellow readers how good this book was. As far as the story goes, I was surprised with the direction things went. Let’s just say I wasn’t expecting certain things to be taken so far. I found certain elements of the story to be disgusting but I’m sure that was intentional by the author.
The only negative, if you can call it that, is that I would have like a longer epilogue. That’s the only “criticism” I have and I only say that because I would have liked to see more of what happened with certain characters in the end.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Truly. The story just pulls you in and doesn’t let go. This will be a fun book to revisit now that I know what was happening to the characters throughout the book. The author also created a playlist and if you’ve read the book I suggest you check it out. I’d recommend this book to any and all readers.
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group and the author for providing me with an ARC copy for review.
dark
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:
No
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No