A review by ceres_reads_books
The Famine Witch by Stephen Black

adventurous dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

 Everyone who likes dark, historical fantasy seriously needs to go read this book! I loved it so much. This story takes place in Belfast in 1847 and everyone is either dead or dying because of famine and diseases running rampant. Now, in this lovely setting there are evil ghosts and witches running rampant. And of course lots of churchly influences that don’t make the situation better. 

The main characters are absolutely amazing. There is a super powerful oldest sister witch and the most adorable naughty little brother. These two had such an amazing brother sister dynamic and Jinks is just sooooo cute. 

We also get to see a lovely friendship form when two young women take on all the dark and powerful forces in the town. 

Now, it is indeed really dark and there’s lots of gory moments (So check trigger warnings) but I’m not going into too much detail, bc I’m not about to spoil the plot -and fun- for anyone. 

What I will say is that there’s some influences from Irish mythology, which is really cool, because you don’t see that often. 

I really hope I’ve convinced you to go give this book a try. The amazing characters, unique setting and battling ghosts, what more can you want? 
Special thanks to NetGalley and Stephen Black for giving me the opportunity to read an review this book! All opinions are my own.