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In English, the Italian word strega means witch, however in Johanne Lykke’s Holm’s novel of the same name it, refers to a fictional town near the Alps. Despite the fact that witches do not feature blantantly, there is a coven like aspect to the novel’s plot.

Rafa is sent to work as a maid at the Olympic Hotel near the village of Strega. There she meets a handful of girls like her from all walks of life, also ready to be trained to be maids. Under the strict matrons this group undergo schedules, rituals and punishments, there’s also moments of fun and mischievousness. There is one problem though.

The hotel is always empty; food is wasted, beds are never slept in and yet Rafa and the gang still have many chores to fulfil.

The only exception is on a day of the dead-like celebration where the hotel holds a party and one of the girls goes missing, presumed murdered. This creates a chain-like series of events which include manic dreams, futile searches and disturbing details.

Although I have not read a lot of horror novels, I am quite acquainted with horror cinema and Strega has a lot of elements from them. Deserted Hotel ( The Shining) , A group of girls bound in some twisted unity (Dario Argento’s Suspiria) , there’s a convent across from the hotel (take your pick but I’m going for Black Narcissus, minus the sex) and due to the excellent translation there is a creeping sense of unease ( I’m going for Hereditary here, a film which ramps tension till the last minute). Like every good horror film, Strega starts innocently enough but the reader knows something bad is going to happen and when it does the payoff is great.

However Strega is not only about creeping paranoia and horror of having someone close in your circle missing. It’s also about gender stereotypes – the cleaning staff are all women – and femicide, as seen by Rafa’s dreams in visions, where she imagines men doing all the evil things.

Over the past few years Lolli have been consistently pushing the boundaries of fiction , the short story and even take experimental fiction to new places and now once again we’ve got an interesting take on horror: this is not a book that is supposed to scare the reader, yet in an obtuse way one feels horror lurking between the lines. Strega is excellent and example at how horror can have a social conscious of sorts.

mcquay123's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

chomiczeq's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Beautifully written. Loved the language, the eerie, uncanny atmoshpere, the sensual descriptions. While reading, I imagined everything like a movie. Maybe there was a bit of depth missing.

chellovestoread's review against another edition

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challenging dark slow-paced

Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.0

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