A review by whatsbridiereading
Root and Bone by Jessica Raney

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Root and Bone follows the Spencer Sisters, Leona and Jewel, as their usually quiet town is rocked by a seemingly unsolvable murder that only the Spencers can get to the bottom of. Expect witchcraft, supernatural creatures, a very 1950s setting and punchy dialogue as the two witches try to manage their family lives, conceal the extent of their powers and avoid the gaze of some heavily religious villagers.
I really enjoyed the dialogue in this book, and I found it a very fast paced read as the mystery unravelled. I very much hope we see a bit more from Jewel's perspective in the series- I love how she used her magic to her advantage unapologetically, compared to Leona's more cautious approach. The plot developed very naturally without over- or under- explanation, and the side characters were just as full of personality as the main characters.
One key selling point of this book is definitely the colloquial writing style- overall I think this was definitely a positive, however some of the phrases and words used didn't work for me ('carrot' being one of them). I also think that while the witchcraft and supernatural aspects of the plot were well developed
aside from the 'dark voice' thing
, the family side of things felt a bit like it was pushed to the side for convenience. A lot of the more serious topics were glossed over and some of the fairly central characters were just missing for a good part of the book, perhaps to make it easier for the sisters to do their thing.
I feel like Granny Kay should have been a lot more helpful, and Bob just conveniently disappeared after telling her about the gambling debt? Also Leona just kind of gave Peggy to her sister and left it at that, which felt a bit too casual to me.

Overall I'd rate this a 3.5 stars, it was an enjoyable read, and I will definitely be reading the next in the series.
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