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A review by motherhorror
The Hag Witch of Tripp Creek by Somer Canon
3.0
Review blurb: "Two stories in one and it's my opinion that the story about The Hag Witch of Tripp Creek is the stronger offering. An unexpected and compelling storyline but with a gentle warning that there are some explicit scenes involving children and animals. I will gladly read more from Somer Canon."
I'm always game for a good story about witches. THE HAG WITCH OF TRIPP CREEK had me at the title and that it was written by Somer Canon. I had previously read a short story of Somer's in an anthology and was eager to read more. I enjoyed this book but it's my opinion that this book is two stories in one and one story is clearly much stronger, making me feel like this would have been better had the focus stayed on Suzanne's story instead of Dawna's.
We meet a couple named Dawna and John who are retreating from a busy lifestyle in the city in order to find some rest for John who is suffering a mental breakdown and needs some care.
They wind up in the woods of West Virginia. Dawna is immediately curious about a neighbor named Suzanne--they learn people think she's a witch.
This transitions over to Suzanne's story when Dawna and Suzanne strike up a friendship and Dawna begins to learn about Suzanne's backstory. Suzanne explains her involvement in a family drama so many years ago. This is where the story takes a pretty dark turn. I do feel obligated to insert some trigger warnings here for some pretty explicit details of child abuse and rape.
It was really startling given that nothing on the back of the book suggests that this will be part of the storyline. I almost quit at this point because I just don't enjoy enduring such graphic violence involving children but Somer Canon is a convincing storyteller and I felt invested enough to see where it was all going to go.
The main character, Suzanne makes some pretty remarkable choices that keep the reader engaged. It's my opinion that when the story returns to the present-day narrative with our protagonist from the beginning, Dawna, the story becomes a little unraveled. I didn't particularly care for the ending and I feel unsatisfied with the way things turned out.
However, this was a very entertaining read and it has done the job of convincing me that I would love to read more of Somer Canon's work. I loved the way she developed her characters, especially the unrelenting, resourceful Suzanne, the Hag Witch of Tripp Creek!
I'm always game for a good story about witches. THE HAG WITCH OF TRIPP CREEK had me at the title and that it was written by Somer Canon. I had previously read a short story of Somer's in an anthology and was eager to read more. I enjoyed this book but it's my opinion that this book is two stories in one and one story is clearly much stronger, making me feel like this would have been better had the focus stayed on Suzanne's story instead of Dawna's.
We meet a couple named Dawna and John who are retreating from a busy lifestyle in the city in order to find some rest for John who is suffering a mental breakdown and needs some care.
They wind up in the woods of West Virginia. Dawna is immediately curious about a neighbor named Suzanne--they learn people think she's a witch.
This transitions over to Suzanne's story when Dawna and Suzanne strike up a friendship and Dawna begins to learn about Suzanne's backstory. Suzanne explains her involvement in a family drama so many years ago. This is where the story takes a pretty dark turn. I do feel obligated to insert some trigger warnings here for some pretty explicit details of child abuse and rape.
It was really startling given that nothing on the back of the book suggests that this will be part of the storyline. I almost quit at this point because I just don't enjoy enduring such graphic violence involving children but Somer Canon is a convincing storyteller and I felt invested enough to see where it was all going to go.
The main character, Suzanne makes some pretty remarkable choices that keep the reader engaged. It's my opinion that when the story returns to the present-day narrative with our protagonist from the beginning, Dawna, the story becomes a little unraveled. I didn't particularly care for the ending and I feel unsatisfied with the way things turned out.
However, this was a very entertaining read and it has done the job of convincing me that I would love to read more of Somer Canon's work. I loved the way she developed her characters, especially the unrelenting, resourceful Suzanne, the Hag Witch of Tripp Creek!