Reviews - Motheater | The StoryGraph

477 reviews for:

Motheater

Linda H. Codega

3.52 AVERAGE

lburks28's review against another edition

3.0

I never got hooked into this story and I found parts of it to be boring.

lifewaits4no1's review against another edition

2.5

mysterious slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

2.5 🌟
Bennie stumbles upon a woman washed up in a river, while she is trying to find proof that the company mining in her town is doing nefarious things causing suspicious disappearances. The found woman can't remember anything of her life, but knows people call her Motheater and that she's a witch. This story is about their pursuit in saving the mountain and town from the evils that come with mining.

The pacing was really slow and I ended up not feeling invested in the characters at all. The relationship between Bennie and Motheater felt forced and out of place in the storyline. The bit of magic in the book was "Appalachian witchy" and became kind of confusing. Did the mountain in the end gain limbs and start walking??

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

catburps's review against another edition

2.0

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

readinginbetween's review against another edition

2.5

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I loved the vibes of Appalachian mountain setting and the folky witchcraft. My favorite concept was absorbing moths to receive messages from past souls. I wish we could have gained more insight into Esther’s past before becoming a Neighbour and into her magic and spells. Overall the story in the past was the one I felt more satisfied with. A lot of things have popped up but then just withered (e.g. the anti-mining corporation thriller thread). It often felt inconsistent or confusing. Pacing was a bit slow and characters motivations seems to change very quickly which made me lost. I don’t know, perhaps Benny was supposed to be a person who cannot make up her mind and is all over the place. To me, it could have been more powerful as a shorter story. The ideas were there but the delivery was a tad rough around the edges.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing for providing this ARC for my honest review.

kylewithann's review against another edition

3.5

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

I enjoyed the world building that went into making this story as well as the themes of industry vs. nature and the coexistence of religion and magic.

That said, I felt the

romance between Bennie and Motheater

subplot felt a little too fast burn and forced to me. As the book progressed, a lot of the characters' inner thoughts felt repetitive, so I felt like I was reading the same lines over and over again.