WOW – it was not the book I was expecting!
The Year of the Witching is DARK. It is addictive and it is CREEPY. I loved it – although I’m not sure that’s quite true – I devoured it. I found it utterly gripping. It is a HORROR story.
Will there be more!?!?! I want a sequel…
Born on the fringes of Bethel, Immanuelle does her best to obey the Church and follow Holy Protocol. For it was in Bethel that the first Prophet pursued and killed four powerful witches, and so cleansed the land.
And then a chance encounter lures her into the Darkwood that surrounds Bethel.
It is a forbidden place, haunted by the spirits of the witches who bestow an extraordinary gift on Immanuelle. The diary of her dead mother . . .
Fascinated by and fearful of the secrets the diary reveals, Immanuelle begins to understand why her mother once consorted with witches. And as the truth about the Prophets, the Church and their history is revealed, so Immanuelle understands what must be done. For the real threat to Bethel is its own darkness.
Bethel must change. And that change will begin with her . . .
Interesting blurb, right?!?! But it was really the cover design that caught my attention and the tag line ‘Four witches. Four warnings. Four plagues.’
I have written and the deleted my review several times because I kept on including spoilers – and I don’t do that. I don’t like to be spoiled and I don’t want to be a spoily spoiler for anyone reading this… But I was surprised by how relevant some of the themes and topics of the book were. The story was DARK and BLEAK and definitely BRUTAL – it won’t be a book for everyone.
The writing was great – Alexis Henderson grabbed my attention from page 1, I loved the prologue as it really set the tone of the book. I thought the pacing worked well and I loved how her description added a sinister aspect to even the simplest of things. And the characters – were memorable. I did have a few questions about some of the world building and I felt parts of it was a little problematic, but I thought The Year of the Witching was an intriguing read and a welcome edition to dark/horror fantasy genre – a genre I don’t think I read enough of.
PLUS witches seem to be making a comeback! YAY! I want MORE. I very much hope it is a trend that sticks around.
If you are looking for a Halloween/creepy read to see you through the darkening nights of Autumn – then I recommend The Year of The Witching by Alexis Henderson. It was atmospheric. It was wickedly dark and creepy. It had me spellbound. But, READ IT WITH THE LIGHTS ON!
Have you read it? Do you want to? I would love some more DARK and CREEPY fantasy/horror recommendations?
I received a copy of the book for review from the publisher, which was all arranged by the blog tour organiser – Thank you!
One More Word 
Thanks so much for the blog tour support xx
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As always thank you for the invite, Anne š
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Excellent review. š I have wanting to read this book so much. Many book bloggers share the same enthusiasm about the book as you do. Thanks for sharing.
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Thank you, I hope you enjoy it when you get round to it š
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Excellent review, Jules! I was on the fence about this one, you’ve made up my mind for me: I’ll definitely be reading this one next month!
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Yay! I can’t wait to read what you think – I’m sure it wont be a book for everyone but I was totally hooked.
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I’ve been seeing this title around a fair bit lately and I knew it was going to be a dark read but I had no idea it was going to be that full of horror and scary! Now I’m not sure if I can handle it because I’m really the ultimate chicken š I am really intrigued by it though so maybe I’ll keep it around for when I’m feeling brave coz it sounds like one I don’t want to miss!
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