A review by occultivatedbooks
Bell, Book, and Murder: The Bast Mysteries by Rosemary Edghill
3.0
I have mixed feelings about these books (there are 3 in one).
On one hand it was an intriguing look into 90s Wiccan culture and reminder of how much things have changed since then. On the other, it was 90s culture and some of the language and attitudes really sit wrong from a 2020-21 perspective.
In book 1 Speak Daggers to Her, it was hard to look Bast (the protagonist) for most of the novel.
In book 2 Book of Moons, the story was more compelling and I’d gotten used to Bast so I was more sympathetic to her. The at said, the Queen Mary of Scots plot line was hard to follow and felt disjointed. If anything book 2 really cemented my feelings about how oddly structured Edghl’s narrative style is. I enjoyed the story but Edghill’s vagueness in narration often drove me a little crazy.
In book 3, Bowl of Night, I found a story that was more compelling to read but the ending was so obvious that it was a bit painful to follow Bast till she got there. Bast’s relationships are painful to watch throughout all 3 novels but this one once again made you scratch your head and wonder why she was part of this community at all.
What I did really appreciate in the novels, aside from the snapshot of 90s Wiccan culture, was Bast’s own growing disenchantment with the Wicca she was immersed in. She was looking for something more that she wasn’t finding in her community and even though that is never reconciled (which is frustrating but life like), I appreciated how the book took on these questions. I wonder though, if a reader unfamiliar with 90s subculture, would appreciate the books as Edghill’s writing style really does leave so much out to be filled in by the reader.
On one hand it was an intriguing look into 90s Wiccan culture and reminder of how much things have changed since then. On the other, it was 90s culture and some of the language and attitudes really sit wrong from a 2020-21 perspective.
In book 1 Speak Daggers to Her, it was hard to look Bast (the protagonist) for most of the novel.
In book 2 Book of Moons, the story was more compelling and I’d gotten used to Bast so I was more sympathetic to her. The at said, the Queen Mary of Scots plot line was hard to follow and felt disjointed. If anything book 2 really cemented my feelings about how oddly structured Edghl’s narrative style is. I enjoyed the story but Edghill’s vagueness in narration often drove me a little crazy.
In book 3, Bowl of Night, I found a story that was more compelling to read but the ending was so obvious that it was a bit painful to follow Bast till she got there. Bast’s relationships are painful to watch throughout all 3 novels but this one once again made you scratch your head and wonder why she was part of this community at all.
What I did really appreciate in the novels, aside from the snapshot of 90s Wiccan culture, was Bast’s own growing disenchantment with the Wicca she was immersed in. She was looking for something more that she wasn’t finding in her community and even though that is never reconciled (which is frustrating but life like), I appreciated how the book took on these questions. I wonder though, if a reader unfamiliar with 90s subculture, would appreciate the books as Edghill’s writing style really does leave so much out to be filled in by the reader.