A review by jilljemmett
The Gifts That Bind Us by Caroline O'Donoghue

5.0

The four friends in Kilbeg Ireland have magic powers that they use together to get stronger: Roe can pick locks, Fiona can heal any wound, Lily can create sparks, and Maeve can read minds. Roe and Maeve are officially dating too. However, their old enemies are still around. The Children of Brigid cult is infiltrating their school and trying to recruit girls to join. Aaron is still showing up wherever Maeve goes, and there is a new counselor in school who is eager to befriend Maeve. When their gifts begin to get weaker, the friends have to work together to figure out who or what is draining them. 

This was a great second book in the series! It’s been a while since I read the first book, but the events in that one were referenced many times so I remembered what happened. The four friends came up against the extremist Christian cult Children of Brigid. Their beliefs directly attacked Roe’s queer identity. I liked how Roe was still figuring out his identity. So often teens in novels already know their identity or instantly know they’re queer, but two books into this series, Roe is still figuring it out like many kids and adults in the real world. 

The Gifts That Bind Us is a great witchy novel!

Content warnings: homophobia, self-harm, parental abandonment

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