Reviews with content warning for Violence - The Year of the Witching

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson

77 reviews

r_a_bell's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

I liked the premise of the book, however, I was expecting it’s characterization of the witches to be different. I was disappointed that it didn’t subvert the traditional role of the witch as a villain. I do think it did what it was trying to do, but nothing more than that. The story itself was intriguing and tense, making it difficult to put down. I also really appreciated the dark gothic vibes which made it a perfect fall read!

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faerie123's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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satanstan's review

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adventurous dark fast-paced

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

1.0

Handmaidens Tale meets The VVitch meets cliche YA fantasy. The characters are part of a puritan religion that mirrors fundamentalist Mormonism. The folk horror atmosphere at the beginning drew me in but I ended up so disappointed by the plot. I thought this was developing into a story about female rage and a reckoning for religious abusers. I was sorely mistaken

In the end the witches, the feminine embodiment of god, are the enemy? What about the male god? The witches, who were trying to protect and avenge the tortured women in the community, are murdered by the hero? The prophet is shown mercy? Ezra, the prophets heir, becomes the new leader instead of Imanuelle, the woman who saved everybody? Are you fucking kidding me? Misogynistic trash.

I haven’t been this mad at a book since I read The Midnight Library. Not to mention, the writing is simple, redundant, and occasionally erroneous. Definitely reads like a YA with potholes to boot.

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lite_academic's review against another edition

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dark hopeful inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

The Year of Witching has everything that an engrossing novel should have: a relatable protagonist, a sweet and selfless best friend, a charming love interest, a power-hungry villain, and a haunting (and haunted) deep dark forest. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the audiobook, not the least because of a wonderful narrator, Brianna Colette, who did a fantastic job.

I also genuinely appreciated the difficult themes that the book touched on. The Year of Witching explores religious cults both from the standpoint of their isolationism and of violence, especially violence against women, that’s perpetrated behind the barred walls of their compounds. Race, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and otherness get explored in a way that is very relatable and personal. Despite addressing these difficult subjects, The Year of Witching never stoops to gratuitous portrayal of abuse—the unspeakable is more often than not a fade-to-black scene where the reader is left to imagine the atrocities committed against the powerless and disenfranchised.

Unfortunately, the book is not perfect. First, the world feels hastily built. The backstories of characters are left unexplored. Supernatural gifts are unexplained. The mythology is far from fleshed out. Similarly, the motivations of many characters, especially historical characters, are left unexplored. The narrative itself presents ample opportunities for worldbuilding and inexplicably chooses to pass them up. Why were the witches slaughtered by the first prophet? Does the story truly require their transformation from victims of unspeakable violence to animal-like agents of terror? What happens to “extra” boys in this polygamous community where nearly every man takes more than one wife? What is the relationship between the two gods? How do they choose when to bestow power and when to take it away? So much more could have been done to flesh out this parallel universe and to answer these questions, especially because both the writing and the characters are compelling enough to easily carry 100 to 200 more pages of much-needed context.

To me, this was a sold three-and-a-half star read: enjoyable, compulsively readable, but missing that thoroughness and depth that could take it to the next level. With that said, I am absolutely a fan of Alexis Henderson and I look forward to see where she goes next.

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