A review by lanternheart
Weyward by Emilia Hart

mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The family tale of the Weyward women, a lineage gifted with a magical connection to the natural world, is a dark and twisted one — gnarled as a tree root, and knotted with abuse, violence, and their struggle for personal freedom. The book is written in a triple perspective, sharing chapters between the present-day Kate, running from an abusive relationship, the 1940s teenaged years of her brilliant and sheltered great-aunt Violet, and the distant past of their ancestor Altha, tried and acquitted for witchcraft in King James I's England. The perspective shifts and short chapters make the book pass quickly, and I found it hard to put down once the mysteries between its characters deepened.

What pulls me back from a five-star is the magic itself — it's a beautiful, evocative folk magic, but comes into focus at different times in the book in such a way that it's a bit unfocused, a bit hard to tell if it's real or imagined until quite late. I don't mind the vagueness, but did feel that for a central story about inheritance, it could have been woven a bit tighter. The graphic descriptions of
SpoilerViolet's self-induced abortion
and
Spoilerrape by her cousin, Frederick,
aren't for the faint of heart, either. An engaging, at times difficult, enchanting read, but unraveling the mystery is part of its enjoyment in such a way that I'll need to let it sit some time before rereading.
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