Okay so I talk about how much it bothers me when teenagers don't sound like teenagers so it feels super hypocritical to say I loved the voice and tone of The Scapegracers because it was decidedly not realistic, but hear me out: this book sounds the way teenagers think they sound. So it gets a pass because Sideways sounds the way I wish I sounded and escapism is fun so there.

I was cautious when starting Scapegracers because generally the books with likeable queer characters don't advertise it and this book is very "LOOK LESBIAN WITCH" in promotions. Before I continue, I'm not saying cis/het authors shouldn't be allowed to write queer protagonists, but you can tell when a queer-led book has a queer author. Loved Sideways. 11/10 oblivious gay. A queen. 

Yeah, so is The Scapegracers a super fantastical story? No. Is it super realistic? Also no. Is it super fun?

Heck. Fricking. Yes.

A big thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for providing this digital ARC. I was really intrigued by the cover and premise of the book. Once I started reading it I couldn't help but feel like I was teleported to a really cheesy horror flick. It reminded me a lot of the movie Ouija. If you like that sort of thing then this is definitely the book for you. No judgement here. There aren't very many things I don't like about a book other than what most people in general don't like; overused cliche's, unnecessary cursing (I don't mind cursing at all, just want to note that), the overuse of the words "like" and "whatever"and this book had all of that. I struggled to get through it. I do see a younger audience liking this book, but it wasn't for me, and dare I say a lot of YA lovers in general. I give it three stars as it isn't a terrible read, but it didn't capture me, nor would I continue if it were a series.

Scapegracers reads almost as if HBO’s Euphoria was all about witches. The book opens with a hyper-vivid high school party hosted by one of West High’s holy trinity complete with DJ. Eloise “Sideways” Pike, our aforementioned lesbian witch protagonist, along with the trinity and a stranger (who Sideways develops an instant crush on) set off a spell that acts like a bass drop for the party. Complications instantaneously arise, as they often do when teenagers and magic mix, and Sideways soon finds herself not only adopted by the trinity, but the magical leader of their burgeoning new coven during a literal witch-hunt. 

At times, the intense descriptions can lead to some confusion of what exactly was happening in the story, but once you get into the flow of the narrative style the action easier for me to follow. I didn’t fully get into the book until I was about a third of the way in; however, once I got there I loved it. I also appreciated that the author took moments to help build the relationships between Sideways and the trinity. Especially since Sideways was clearly struggling with some of those higher-level social skills usually needed in female friendships. Sideways as a character could have easily gone the “not like other girls” or geek-to-popular girl route, but thankfully she keeps her individuality while still admiring the other girls. All this helped the relationships between characters feel more real to me than just jumping straight into the main plot of the book. Though, I will admit that the sometimes sudden shifts away from the main plot could be a bit bewildering.

On top of the positive and intense (in a good way!) female friendships, the book delivers on the diversity promise without falling prey to the usual tropes that can plague books attempting at being “woke” or diverse with their characters. I personally enjoy stories a little more when the antagonists look like the usual protagonists in the majority of fiction and Scapegracers delivered on that count, too. 

Overall, I did really enjoy Scapegracers and I look forward to following the series.

The Scapegracers by Hannah Abigail Clarke begins when outcast queer witch Sideways Pike finds herself at a party thrown by the most popular girls at her school as the night’s entertainment. Ultimately, her powers trigger something in Jing, Yates and Daisy, connecting the four of them in ways that nobody could have anticipated.

	My rating for this book - three out of five stars - ended up being lower than I thought it would be. There were so many things that I loved, things that made me want to rate it so much higher. Like strong girl friendships, girls who would do anything for one another, stereotypes being completely turned on their heads, visceral and raw magic, and the all around intensity of the story. I want to get into these things first before I talk about the things I didn’t enjoy.

	First and foremost, I am a sucker for anything with strong female friendships. They are the most important thing on the face of the earth, in my opinion. The Scapegracers is full to the absolute brim with these, starting from the first chapter when the four main characters experience something that forms an instant and powerful bond between them. Second, worldbuilding! The way we learn about how magic works in this world is so good and interesting. There weren’t overly big monologues explaining it which I both loved and hated. Loved because word dumps are the worst. Hated because it made me feel lost at times which was most likely the whole point of it. The reader learns about magic right along with the girls! And the magic is something else completely. I could talk about it forever but I won’t because it’s something that you need to experience first hand. Then there are the stereotypes. Or rather, the lack of. Because this book takes what we know about the popular/mean girls and says “You know what? Fuck that” - almost violently and without hesitation.

	This brings me to the two things - yes, only two - that I didn’t like about The Scapegracers which ended up bringing my rating down. Although I loved the way the author wrote the bodily reactions to magic, especially with Sideways in the first couple of chapters, there was something about the prose that was off-putting at times. I found myself skipping over chunks of pages because the internal dialogue or description felt pointless and it kind of threw off the pacing of everything. Hopefully, this is something that will be fixed before publishing because it definitely took away from the story at times. The last thing was the big reveal. I called it almost immediately, in the very first chapter. I wasn’t even a little bit surprised by it. I wish it had been a little less obvious from the beginning.

	Overall, I think this book is worth the read. It has everything it promises - badass magic, lesbian witches, and strong female relationships in the shape of a new coven.

I ended up enjoying this book, but I found the beginning quite difficult to get through. I did eventually get invested in the characters, and I enjoyed the ending far more than the beginning.

An outcast witch is bonding with the three most popular girls in high school. They soon discover that magic can be both a good weapon of choice to get revenge on boys. 

It’s hard for me to rate this book because I’ve found the all story and the characters very enjoyable and original, but I couldn’t be totally in line with the writing style. 

I found it very pleasing to have more and more books that deals with the question of sorority between girls. The parallel with the coven is of course an easy way to talk about it, but I’m a 90’s kid so I’m always in for a good witch story. It’s even more interesting when you bring the topic of diversity. As a lesbian, Sideways is dealing with the reject of the society. As a strong and dark witch, she is the incarnation of what the patriarchal society has build during all the centuries to put women in.

Being an outcast is now a weapon. It’s a tale as old as time, when the reject one has decided to get revenge. But it’s getting more interesting when you put witchcraft in it. But unfortunately, I got lost during the book. I was completely hooked at the beginning: it was dark, a bit scary, gloomy but the plot and especially the pacing got lost in a mountain of slow and detailed monologues. 

I enjoyed this book for its characters. Sideways was brilliant, Jin was relatable, and even the side characters such as Sideways’ dad were great. But unfortunately, the writing style was definitely not pleasing for me and it was more and more difficult for me to finish it the last 200 pages (and that’s long). 

As a first novel, it’s not bad but it could have been better. The author tried to put everything she likes and loves about her characters, the magic, the relationships in her book and it was too much.

The Scapegracers
There’s so much to like about this book. You have Sideways, a typical teenage girl trying to navigate high school, lesbianism and witchcraft. She felt she was doing alright until she was hired by the school’s “cool clique” to perform magic at their Halloween party. 

At this party, she enlists Yates, Jing and Daisy and the mysterious stranger Madeline who happened to be at the party to assist with her sigil. 

After their spell works to some extent lots of things become apart: Magic is real, Sideways is going to have a hell of a lot of changes in her life and Jing, Yates and Daisy throw one hell of a party. 

The next day two of the girls find Sideways passed out and unable to remember most things from the night before, causing her to spend the day with them retracing steps and cleaning what damage she did at Jing’s House. This is where the friendship begins. 

The writer did a good job setting this friendship up. I found it interesting that Sideways was able to find out things from each girl that the other two who would have known them way longer didn’t know. It showed a level of trust they developed in that short space of time. They are all in their own right rough around the edges and soft and sensitive in some aspects. This gives each of them layers of personality which you want from characters in a book. 

I liked how accepting they were of Sideways and her magic and the possibility that they, themselves might be magical in their own right. 

I don’t know how I feel about the Chantry Boys. I feel like their short lived storyline took away from the overall story and it’s easy to see that all of it is leading up to something greater for future books which can be annoying because you don’t get to fully enjoy the book you’re currently reading. It would be nice to see conflict with them in the next book. 

I have one word for Madeline Kline...comeuppance. That’s all I’m going to say about that!

I like how open Sideways is with her dads. It felt a bit unrealistic but at the same time I can see a teenager wanting that kind of relationship with their own parents. I would have loved to see a bit more parental figures on the trio’s part. It felt like they just did whatever they wanted without consequences and that cannot end well. 

The Devil truly is in the details and I wish that story line was explored more. It was interesting to see Mr. Scratch try to help out Sideways as much as he did. He’s a funny addition to their little posse. Giving him the last line of the book asking a for clarification on a pumpkin-shaped cupcake reminded of the overall levity of the book. 

All in all I enjoyed this book. Parts of it read like a Faberry fanfic and I at times found myself wanting to know if it was but I couldn’t put it down. I cannot help but think there must be a part two There needs to be a part two. I need more of these girls and their lives. I need it! (Shameless plea to the author to keep up the great work). 


Would and will recommend to a friend.

3.5
LGBTQ book alert!  What's better than a book about witches?  A book about witches of diverse sexualities!  Thank you to NetGalley and Erewhon for sending me a copy to review.  I thought the pacing was a little off on this one some parts were bang on and had me engaged while other parts I had to trudge through to get to the next good part which was a bit disappointing.  I thought about DNFing this one a couple of times at first I had problems with the file on my reader words were just missing from the middle of the sentence, so I ended up having to read it on my computer which is not my favorite.  So really struggled from the beginning to get into the book I think if it hadn't been for all that it might have been a 4 star for me.  I'm probably going to pick up the next one because I'm invested in if a couple I think is going to happen will happen or not, also the ending was really grabbing. Pick it up on September 15th, 2020!
TW/CW explicit language, assault, violence, underage drinking

Will be cross-posted on Instagram

So first. GR description says 400 pages, but my e-arc only have 289 pages? I would curse so much and thats probably the reason why i dislike this book so much. 

The main genre is LGBTQ+ but it just kinda be thr B-Plot for it. All I see is friendship and else. And I expected the romance would be so much in this because Sideways is finding her love interest. BUT NOOOO IT'S KINDA JUST A PINCH OF SALT. 

By the way, one thing that I like is it's about witches and coven. I love that one. And honestly this book can be better than what I thought. 

Oh, and all you see in the synopsis, is probably the entire book. In my opinion, at least. 

Sorry if I sounded so harsh but this book pissed me off. 

Thank you so much NetGalley for the e-arc ❤

The Scapegracers is a messy, deliciously grimy novel about witchcraft and finding your girl gang. For anyone who ever wished that The Craft was queer (and didn’t treat magic like a punishment), this is a book for you.

Teenage outcast Sideways Pike is dragged into the friendship group of three of the most popular girls at her high school – Jing, Daisy and Yates – after she performs magic for them at their house party. Magic is something Sideways has been practising for years, as has meeting pretty girls and trying not to have a nosebleed, but this party changes everything.

She meets a pretty girl, Madeline, who actually seems to like her, she finds herself with three new friends and, rather worryingly, discovers that witchhunters are still very much a thing in the 21st century.

Clarke’s writing is stunning and I wanted to take a bite out of it and let it dissolve on my tongue. I’ll admit that there were times when I felt like the writing got in the way of the story ever so slightly, every now and then there’d be a piece of writing that was beautiful but by the time I’d finished reading it I’d forget what the last character to speak had actually said. For the most part, though, this is a novel I found really easy to get through and Clarke’s writing was a delight.

Their real triumph in this novel is Sideways and her new coven. Sideways is so much fun and a far more realistic depiction of what someone who describes herself as a witch in high school would actually be treated like, compared to some of the other self-proclaimed witches we encounter in contemporary YA. The majority of people at her school think she’s weird and tend to stay far away from her, and I loved getting to know her. She’s built up an ‘I don’t care what you think’ wall but, when she befriends Jing, Daisy and Yates, we realise just how desperate for friends she’s been.

Speaking of friends, I love these three so much. I wasn’t sure what to think of them at first and I was slightly nervous Clarke would go down the route of Sideways realising who her real friends are after these popular girls use her and leave her, but that’s not what this story is at all. The Scapegracers completely ignores that tendency storytellers have to make popular girls the enemy and it’s so refreshing.

Yates is adorable and I love Jing, but I think my favourite of the girls might have to be Daisy. She’s intimidating, even threatening, but she will fight literally anyone for her friends and I love characters who love their friends.

The only real reason this novel didn’t quite end up being a 5 star read for me was because I could see where the plot was going from quite early on in the story. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing at all – if you correctly guess where an author’s going, it proves they’ve written their book in a way that you’ve been able to figure it out with them which is great – but it did mean I kept waiting for Sideways to make a realisation that I couldn’t help feeling she should have made quite a while before she did.

That aside, though, this story is a celebration of friendship which is all I want from my witch stories – especially when so many witch stories focus on romantic love rather than platonic love, which I personally find a little boring. I’ll definitely be picking up the next book in this series and I’m looking forward to seeing more of Sideways and her girls!

Perfectly dark and edgy with superb writing. Clarke brought her characters to life in a way that felt unique enough to grab my attention from the first page. I enjoyed The Scapegracers but started to lose interest halfway through, thankfully I was pulled back in and ended up loving it at the end

The chapters are too long, we get thrown in the middle of the action and nothing gets explained. I tried to tell the side characters apart but I just couldn't, and there were confusing signs as to which of them was queer. I feel like this story could've worked with a stronger base, seeing at least two or three chapters of the MC's family and school life before the magic appeared. 
Also I'm not really sure how normal people see magic? This girl gets invited to a party to do flashy magic (it was said multiple times, in narration and dialogue, that it was ACTUAL DANGEROUS MAGIC and not some party trick) and succeeds, but then when someone confronts her about it the next day she and her friends insist it was just some trick of the light or something.
Overall it just frustrated it. I didn't understand a thing that was going on, and when I did I didn't care because I didn't recognize the characters. Every time I'd read someone's name it'd be as if I was reading it for the first time. And it's sad because the synopsis sounded right up my alley, but it has a pretty confusing beginning that I'm not willing to get through to get to the juicy bits

I received an advanced copy of The Scapegracers from Netgalley so that I could share my review with you!

Sideways Pike has been a bit of an outsider for nearly her whole life, as both a witch and a lesbian, so she isn’t sure what to expect when she gets asked to come to a Halloween party to do magic.  The girls hosting the party are untouchably popular, and have never wanted anything to do with Sideways before now, but they think that she could bring a certain scare factor to their party that will keep people talking for months.  When she gives the party girls a taste of her magic, a bond is formed between them, and soon they become a coven of their own.  Things aren’t always easy for aspiring witches, however, and many forces seem to be out to steal their magic.  The girls will need to stick together to survive the challenges in their path, but with their power and their spell book, the Scapegracers just might conquer the town!

You can get your copy of The Scapegracers on September 15th from Erewhon Books!

Though The Scapegracers is a longer book, I absolutely flew through it, because I couldn’t resist the story or the characters!  This is Hannah Abigail Clarke’s debut novel, and I already am certain that they are an author I will need to watch in the future.  The plot and style of magic left me desperate for more, and I cannot wait to read the follow up to The Scapegracers!  This book is easily one of my top reads for the year, primarily because of the easily flowing writing style, and the irresistible interactions between the characters!

My Recommendation-
If you’ve been searching for a witchy read to spice up your reading, The Scapegracers is my number one recommendation!  If you love books by Rin Chupeco, M K England, or Maggie Stiefvater, The Scapegracers should definitely be on your tbr!

While The Scapegracers has many merits I couldn't quite get into it. The magic was interesting and the characters were unique but the reading experience wasn't great. 

The writing didn't really mesh well with me. It had an odd stuttering rhythm and seemed a bit dense and repetitive. Nothing inherently wrong with that it just wasn't for me. 

Dnf @30%

“Witches are powerful because they help each other, the book had said.”

And i agreed with that. For starters, teenage girs deserve all the rights!  Powerful teenage girls deserve to rule the world!  To be honest when i start this book i really didn’t know what to expect but the more i read the more i enjoyed! I was very pleased with the friendship of the girls. How their relationship give them (and me) strength and power that i really appreciate. I am also absolutely enjoyed all kind of magic in this book! Witchcraft is written very cool! And I definitely in love with all the girls. Daisy, Jing and Yates have very strong friendships and I am love that Sideways was able to build that such a connection with them! They so lovely and funny! Maybe a little bit messy sometimes but i love it. For now I am extremely interested in what will happen next and where the author will take us.  It is very important for me to support queer authors these days so I want to thank you Net Galley for this opportunity to read this book!

Sorry if I wrote something incorrectly. English is not my native language!

This was so good! Like, does it have flaws? Was there repetitive word choice and a loose plot? Yeah, but I couldn't care yes. The characters are vivid and messy and FUN, the magic is painful and mysterious and angry, and it's filled to the brim with queer girls.

I feel like I want to describe this book by riffing on how Maggie Stiefvater describes her Raven Cycle books—Outcast girls! Scared girls! Angry Girls! Powerful girls! Collect them all! Hannah Abigail Clarke said "weird, angry high school girls are cool and valid" and then ran with that!

The writing was sometimes clunky; my one critique is just that it could use more editing, more polishing. But it was also beautiful, funny, relatable, and intense. For me, this book was just crammed full of deep friendship and righteous rage, and I've never read anything like it.

This was incredibly fun, I loved the female friendships, queer representation and everything about this! 
The Scapegracers (the coven) were all so interesting and fun and powerful, and I can’t wait to see where this series goes.

Thankyou Netgalley and Edelweiss for sending me an E-ARC of this book.

I was excepting maybe too much of it. Especially because of the lesbian witchy thing. But I didn't really enjoy the writing overall. I didn't connect with the characters, who were so womanly powerful and 100% queer. I didn't really understand the plot neither. It was ... something. This book was not for me but I'm happy to have given it a try. Unfortunately, I DNF'ed it.

I thought this book was super cute. It really pulled me in right away and kept me hooked until the last page. My main issue was the fact that there seemed to be so much build up but very little action. I think it was a good first book in the series as it brought in a lot of different elements and sequences that need to be resolved. I just felt like there was still something missing for me. 

Overall, if you like magic, covens of badass witches, a mysterious witch-hunting group, and all the gay teen angst you could possibly want, this book is for you.

Eloise “Sideways” Pike is her small town’s resident outcast lesbian who dabbles in witchcraft; she’s worked hard to cultivate her reputation of “don’t bother—this one bites.” When Jing, Daisy and Yates—the three most popular girls at their school—invite Sideways to their Halloween party, Sideways is adopted into their tight-knit clique and finds herself with genuine friends for maybe the first time ever. Over the course of a week, the four girls uncover perilous tensions and strengthen their bond, all the while cursing boys who don’t treat women right.

The Scapegracers is a novel that aims and succeeds in subverting high school stereotypes, especially in “mean girls” versus “outcasts.” It explores the dynamic of intense female friendships, featuring a group of friends who would do anything for each other, regardless of their differences in experiences and identities. Sideways is unapologetically herself—she’s prickly, she’s feral, she’s self-proclaimed nasty—and her newfound group of friends love her for it, just as she loves them for who they are. The fact that there’s a healthy dose of queer characters and representation presented in the characters is the cherry on top of this witchy, atmospheric novel. I absolutely look forward to seeing what Clarke does in the next two books of this series.