I thought I would love this, but alas, ‘‘twas not to be.

I was hugely impressed with Harrow’s debut novel, The Ten Thousand Doors of January, and thus expected to be blown away by this book as well.

Unfortunately a combination of a lack of original material, a flat narrative, and uninspiring protagonists left me wanting.

Witches have never been my favorite supernatural beings, so I might be a tougher sell than some in that regard, but the setting and premise felt like enough. And indeed they would have been had we gotten a more dynamic story.

Harrow writes beautifully and knows her way around witty, understated text, but but neither managed to bail out the lackluster plot or the three protagonists who weren’t interesting enough to be so unlikable.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free e-arc in exchange for my review.

I wanted to love this book so much. But something was off the whole time--maybe I read it out of season, maybe my expectations weren't right. I felt like it took half the book before we had a primary conflict, and I felt like the perspectives jumped around too much. I'm also concerned about the language used around race. While I understand the need for historical accuracy, this wasn't a fully historical novel (it took place in an altered version of our world) and not all the language in the text was historical. Representation is good, but not when characters feel almost like tokens. It felt like the story was trying to do too much at once, trying to make too many statements.

I did, however, love the relationship between the sisters, and the writing was absolutely lovely. I think, had I read it in the fall, I might have enjoyed it more. If you're looking for Ten Thousand Doors of January, keep looking. But if you're up for a witchy feminist fairy tale, you'll likely enjoy this book!

The best book I have read in many years! The author’s use of language was amazing. The story made me laugh and it made me cry. I felt like the characters were friends, and I was sad to have to story conclude. A strong group of female characters, who showed grace and strength throughout. I will be buying the hard cover!

I went into this book with a lot of excitement and a little bit of apprehension because Ten Thousand Doors of January was one of my favourite read of 2019. But when I started reading, a little bit of that apprehension went away with the beautiful writing of Alix E Harrow.
We are introduced to the three Eastwood sisters, June, Agnes and Bella who have all been separated but chance to come upon one another in New Salem amidst a Suffragette march. Their meeting precipitates events that lead them to reclaim the lost words and ways of witches while trying to work together and forget old wounds.
I have tried to keep the summary as vague as possible so that people reading it can go in with as little spoilers as possible.
Alix E Harrow manages to set the scene in 1800s within the first few chapters and the writing gives you the perfect atmospheric witchy vibes you go in expecting almost immediately. The author’s love for storytelling evident in the writing and how she weaves in folklore, fairytales and nursery rhymes soo perfectly into the narrative is commendable.
This is mostly a character driven narrative where a distinct voice is created for all three sisters with their own individual but intertwined histories and struggles. The character development you see over the course of the narration is incredible and I was completely emotionally invested in each and very one of the characters by the end.
But the pace of the narration suffered in the meantime as sometimes the plot dragged, especially the first half, to make time for the necessary developments in characters or to set up the relationships between the characters.
But I can hardly complain because the ending made up for all of it! The finale had all the emotional gut wrenching heart soaring excitement and I was sobbing so hard at the end that I couldn’t see through my tears to read.
I would highly recommend this tale of sisterhood in all it’s many forms for its inclusiveness, perfect witchy vibes, the beautiful lyrical writing of Harrow and the incredible female characters it presents to us in all their glory. Do not miss this!!!!! And preorder it right now!!
Rating : 4.5 stars

It’s hard to define the genre of this book, which at first just seems like a fantasy about witches. But it is so much more than that, including historical fiction, magical realism, a story of relationships between family, friends, and lovers, and perhaps most interestingly, a manifesto on feminist sociology and politics.

The central characters are three sisters, Agnes, Bella, and Juniper, who grew up with a cruel abusive father - “a mean drunk with hard knuckles who never loved anything or anyone as much as he loved corn liquor.” Their mother died during Juniper’s birth. Their grandmother, called Mama Mags, was a healer who taught the girls about herbs and spells. Back home, Juniper explained, “every mama teaches her daughters a few little charms to keep the soup-pot from boiling over or make the peonies bloom out of season.”

Mama Megs used to tell the girls fairytales of all kinds, and the girls remembered them (harkening back to Harrow’s first book) as “doors to someplace else, someplace better.” She told them that magic would never be totally eliminated “because it beats like a great red heartbeat on the other side of everything.” She also said that proper witching was “just a conversation with that red heartbeat, which only ever takes three things: the will to listen to it, the words to speak with it, and the way to let it into the world. The will, the words, and the way.”

But the words - how to find them? The sisters discover the words are hidden in plain sight, in places like children’s verses and stories, and in sewing samplers: “power passed in secret from mother to daughter, like swords disguised as sewing needles.”

James Juniper Eastwood was the youngest and wildest of the three sisters. She somehow survived alone with her father for seven years after her older sisters left without a word and with no further communications. It hurt her, the way “they’d just walked off the edge of the page and vanished, a pair of unfinished sentences….”

At least she had Mama Mags. When Mama Mags died in the winter of 1891 though, there was nothing to hold Juniper back from doing what she thought she had to do and leaving town, and heading for New Salem.

Agnes Amaranth Eastwood was the middle sister, five years older than Juniper and the strongest of the three. Agnes worked hard in a New Salem sweatshop where woman were exploited for their labor, tied there by their desperation for money.

Beatrice Belladonna Eastwood was the oldest sister, and the wisest of the three. She had been a librarian in New Salem for the past five years.

With all three sisters in the same place, the older two simultaneously experienced what Juniper did: “an invisible kite-string stretched tight between her and her sisters, thrumming with unsaid things and unfinished business. It feels like a beckoning finger, a hand shoving between her shoulder blades, a voice whispering a witch-tale about three sisters lost and found.”

Thus the sisters were reunited on the the spring equinox of 1893. Juniper, at age 17, having just arrived in New Salem, was nonplussed to see her picture on wanted posters all over the train platform. She was wanted for murder and suspected witchcraft. She thought: “Hell. They must have found him.” She also saw posters for a women’s enfranchisement meeting at St. George’s Square, and was drawn to it.

At the suffrage meeting, Juniper heard the women talk about equality and she understood immediately what they were really asking: <em>Aren’t you tired yet?</em> Of being cast down and cast aside? Of making do with crumbs when once we wore crowns? <em>Aren’t you angry yet?</em> Indeed, Juniper certainly was.

When the three come together, they, along with the rest of the town, have a vision of the tower of the Lost Way of Avalon, fronted by three circles woven together. Beatrice has seen this interlocking shape before. Beatrice knows to whom it belongs: the Last Three Witches of the West.

Beatrice spent her free time in the library searching for “the words and ways to call back the Lost Way of Avalon.” According to Mags, the Lost Way of Avalon was “some great construct of stone and time and magic that preserved the wicked heart of women’s magic like seeds saved after winnowing.” She would whisper to Bella with a wink: <em>what is lost, that can’t be found, Belladonna?”</em>

Those who like Juniper sought the strength they lacked began to meet, calling themselves The Sisters of Avalon, to strategize and bring back the words and ways. They performed little public demonstrations of magic and left “The Sign of the Three” behind - the three interlocking circles. Although Bella formed a relationship with Cleo Quinn, a black woman who also was working for women’s rights, black women had their own society, “The Daughters of Tituba,” out of necessity. [Indeed, there is a historical basis for racist attitudes in the women’s suffrage movement. On one occasion Susan B. Anthony even asked Frederick Douglass not to attend a gathering for women’s suffrage in Atlanta, Georgia because, as she later <a href="http://womensrightsforever319.weebly.com/national-american-women-suffrage-association.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">recalled</a>: “I did not want anything to get in the way of bringing the Southern white women into our suffrage association.” In this book, one of the characters explained, “some worry that the inclusion of colored women might tarnish their respectable reputation; others feel they ought to spend a few more decades being grateful for their freedom before they agitate for anything so radical as rights. Most of them agree it would far more convenient if colored women remained in the Colored Women’s League.”]

Although the women working together managed to do some conjuring, the sisters gradually came to the conclusion that there wasn’t any such thing as “witch-blood,” and that, as Bella posited, “the words and ways are whichever ones a woman has, and that a witch is merely a woman who needs more than she has.” Perhaps, Juniper concludes, they have to bend the rules and make miracles themselves.

Their quest to understand and realize women’s power receives unexpected bolsteringby what many might claim is the greatest miracle and source of strength: love. Love comes to each of them in different ways, conferring “teeth and talons” while also opening them up to an altogether new sort of risk.


Discussion: Women have always needed words and ways to survive in what has for so long been a man’s world, in which men have power not only through physical strength but because of their political social and economic advantages that they have worked hard to maintain. In the author’s creation of a woman’s movement in New Salem, she manages to interweave so many issues relevant to women then (many of which remain problematic), even down to the lack of pockets in women’s clothes and the ideological tyranny behind that convention. She exposes not only the racial divide in the movement, but the way women of all colors challenged the oppressive gender and sexual norms of the time. She tackles the hypocrisy and co-optation (false consciousness, we say now) of those (both men and women) opposed to more freedom for women, and the way language - like the accusation of witchcraft - was and is still used to manipulate the populace to resist any change, particularly in women’s status.

As for the matter of witchcraft and magic, certainly there is at the very least magical realism in the book, but readers might also understand it metaphorically. The labeling of women who want their rights as witches, and the methods by which women try to undermine and overturn that tyrannical suppression, has always been real, and this story just adds depth and color to the conceit.

Evaluation: Alix Harrow is certainly one of our most creative contemporary writers. Her stories give readers so much to think about, and her facility with language is impressive. She isn’t afraid to transgress the boundaries between reality and fantasy while always leaving readers with the option to look pas

I was excited to get a copy of this book from NetGalley because I really enjoyed The Ten Thousand Doors of January. It was still magical, this time about witches in Salem. It started a little bit slow but the pace picked up about a third of the way through. This is one of those books that I'll be thinking about for a while. No spoilers but the ending was well done and the book was enjoyable.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced review copy, all opinions are my own.

This review can also be found on my Goodreads by the link below

[5]
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review. The Once and Future Witches is by far the best book I have had the pleasure of reading this year. A breathtaking novel that follows the three Eastwood sisters Juniper, Bella, and Agnes as they pursue power and agency in a world that feels threatened by women having either. To do so they form bonds with unlikely allies and begin again an age old battle found at the heart of both the women's suffrage and the witches movement.

What really makes this book stand apart from all others is the writing. Every line that graces the page is so magical and devastating in the best way possible. I loved the use of storytelling interwoven with present events and how, at the heart of every story is a grain of truth to the overarching message. That and the epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter representing common sayings used as spells within that section of the story. The sisters themselves were so different and each had their own perspective on the life they lived together and apart. I think the book did an amazing job showing how each sister diverged from the other when it came to life goals and pursuits, but that that didn't supersede the binds to one another. They were able to come back together and strive towards a common goal. The distinction between witchcraft and women's suffrage throughout the story was brilliant. Both are essentially a kind of power that women have taken for themselves that terrifies the men who have been in positions of power for centuries. That was really thought provoking for me as a reader and it really impacted how the story took shape in my eyes. Now that I have reached the end, I am left feeling like this book has changed me in some way. Like the story has taken root and will grow to become something else entirely. Though this book doesn't come out for another few months I recommend keeping an eye out for its release. I know I will be looking out for more from this author in the future.

This story is about the three Eastwood sisters and their many Sisters, joined together to fight for the right of women to be their true selves, to bridge the gap between what they have and what they need, to fight the male-dominated society that tries to keep them small and quiet. I am most like Bella, the thoughtful librarian (who keeps things locked up safe inside.) But Juniper inspires me to embrace my repressed wild child. She had me at “our daddy never taught us sh*t,” and I laughed, gasped, and cried at her bravery, stubbornness, audacity, and willingness to call BS when she saw it. Agnes is the motherly middle sister, who wrestles with expanding the circle of protection around her heart. They are bound together despite (or because of?) their difficult family history. They live in the 1890s in New Salem, in the aftermath of witch burnings in Old Salem. Witching is hidden and underground but is about to become louder and more overt.

On the surface, this is a grand conflict between good and evil, about the light fighting the darkness. There are spells and witching, excitement and suspense, heartache, and misfortune. In that sense, it is a wonderful story written in beautiful, expressive, layered language. But it’s just so much more that I fear I lack the words to properly express. This story made me wish I had sisters and encourages me to hold tight to and further grow the relationships I have with my women friends. I might not be able to whisper some words and use crushed lavender to induce sleep (or can I?!) but I can embrace the power of Sisterhood. This war isn't exclusive to the Eastwood sisters’ time and place -- darkness preys on the unjustly vulnerable today, in our world. Here, there is a gap between what women have and what they need. The patriarchy still tries to keep us small. This story helped me escape into a world of adventure and spells but brought me back to realize that the battle continues, and I have the will to fight until the darkness is truly banished. It is truly a special storyteller that can both entertain and empower.

I am so in love with this book and the world that Alix Harrow created. I want to be an Eastwood. I long to be a Sister. I will forevermore imagine the mundane objects hidden in my feminist pockets as being Ways for witching. I love that the Words for witching are hidden in plain sight, creatively passed down from generation to generation of women who have the Will to work them.

This absolutely goes on my list of favorite books. I look forward to re-reading it and recommending it to everyone I know who enjoys magic, fantasy, powerful women, and beautiful stories with hidden (sort-of) depth.

I just could not get along with this book. 10,000 Doors of January is easily in my top 10 favorite books and I love books about witches - so this book was my dream come true - until it wasn't. First of all I felt confused by the backstories of the sisters through the first parts. I understand wanting to breadcrumb readers into the characters, but this just felt disjointed to me. Secondly, there were so, so many themes - witches, suffragettes, fairy tales, lesbians, POC, transgenders and I am sure I am forgetting a couple. It felt all thrown together just to be inclusive and sadly it forgot being cohesive. Thirdly, I didn't connect to any of the characters. They just felt flat to me. But, on the plus side - Alix Harrow is an amazing author and can spin words and phrases with best of them. Her writing is really a joy to read.

This has been one of my favorite ARC's so far! Original story that's enjoyable to read. Three sisters who happen to be witches fighting the patriarchal system; redefining a movement for women and for magic. How fun is that? Very well written and a fast paced read. I enjoyed it so much that I plan to research other titles from this author. I recommend. Thank you NetGalley for tne opportunity to review this book.

The publisher provided me with the opportunity to read this in exchange for providing feedback. (via NetGalley)

It took me a little bit to get into this but I enjoyed it once I did. I would definitely read more from this author.

“They keep burning us. We keep rising again.”

I loved The Ten Thousand Doors of January but this book rocked my world. It was even better than I could have hoped. This is now in my top favorite books of all time now and I will be rereading it in the future because it was that awesome.

I cannot compare this book to others I have read. I have always loved stories about magic and have struggled to find books that employ magical realism in a satisfying way, so I usually stick to fantasy books when I’m looking for magic. Oftentimes with magical realism there isn’t enough magic for my tastes (Hoffman’s “The Rules of Magic), or sometimes there’s almost TOO much and the lack of rules give make the universe too hazy for me (Harkness’ “All Souls Trilogy” by the end). This book was very magical but the world it took place in was one I fully believed and understood.

We follow the story of three sisters, Juniper, Bella, and Agnes, as they find each other after seven years of separation. They experienced joint trauma at the hands of their abusive father, and separate trauma as they face a world that does not show them kindness. We enter into a world after all of the witches of Old Salem have been burned, a world that is built to subjugate women. A world where witches exist, but in secret.

This novel does not shy away from brutality, it does not shy away from exposing the ways in which men brutalize women and how society is built by these men. Witching is the salvation that women seek to protect themselves.

Romance exists here too as it does in most of our lives but it doesn’t take precedent over the goals of our three heroines. The romance is gorgeous. I don’t want to spoil a moment of it.

Harrow explores what segregation looked like in the north in 1893 and how our early white “feminists” and “suffragists” were often racist to the bone and always safer from the law then Black women.
Harrow also gives us a small glimpse into what stigmas existed for lesbians and trans people during this time.

Alix E. Harrow is a master of world building. I immediately could see smell and hear this land she dropped us into. Her writing is strikingly gorgeous through every page. I probably highlighted about half of this book and I am so grateful to have lived inside this story. There is so much more to say about this beautiful book, it tore me apart and gave me hope. I can’t wait to recommend this to literally everyone I know.

ARC was provided by the publisher Redhook Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. 

Review posted on Goodreads on 7/19/20, review to be published to Instagram @sophies_library on publication date.

Three sisters take on the patriarchy as they fight for the vote and endeavour to restore the age of witchcraft. It’s not an easy thing to be a woman in New Salem in 1893: Witchcraft has been all but wiped out after the last witch uprising, and the men who run the city want to keep it that way. But when the long-estranged Eastwood sisters – bookish Beatrice, maternal Agnes, and firecracker Juniper – are reunited, they discover that together they might have the power to bring witchcraft back. “The Once and Future Witches” is an extremely fun ride, with rich world-building and writing as gorgeous as its cover art. By the end, you too will want to put on a pointy black hat and fly away with the Eastwood sisters.

<b><I>Thank you so much to NetGalley, Redhook Publishing, and Alix E. Harrow for the early ARC in exchange for an honest review</b></I>
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<b>3.5/5</b><br>
<b>I’m honestly heartbroken to write this review. Taking a deep breath here...</b>
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I’ll start by saying Alix E. Harrow is an exceptional author and one of my ‘Top 5’ all-time favorites (<I>The Ten Thousand Doors of January</I>) came out of her brain.
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I’d also like to add, I’m a fellow artist, a musician— I know how daunting it is to follow up such a strong debut. It sucks, honestly. Really fkn sucks. A lot.
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With that said... [I’m so upset to type this]<br>
I did not immerse into this like I had hoped. 🙍🏻
The pacing was really not my thing. Every time I thought I was getting hooked in, it flat-lined for me.<br><br>
There’s <I>a lotttt</I> of exposition. This isn’t always a bad thing, and if Harrow wasn’t such a skilled writer that truly has a knack for developing a unique, visceral tone for her main characters, I might’ve given up at about 40%. <br><br>
I would say that this is fiction, sub genre historical fiction. It’s absolutely necessary to provide a bit of context, but I felt it was overdone at times (and underdone in others????) <br><br>
And now, folks, the most devastating and <I>uncomfortable</I> critique I have—<br>
As I said, this piece has a lot of historical context to it, which I love. Unfortunately, I was disappointed that a story, centering witching, barely spent any time talking about the Black (Egyptian and Haitian) community of witches (The Daughters of Tibuta) who reside in <I>New Cairo</I>. <br><br>
I found it incredibly frustrating that there was so much given regarding our [white] protagonist <i>Sisters of Avalon</i> from <I>New Salem</i>— their history, their family history, their witching history... and yet the section when Cleo finally tells Bella about <i>The Daughters</I> is so lacking, I actually had a hard time finding it again when I wanted to go back before writing this review (Chapter 18).<br><br>
To write a historically accurate book on witching, and to neglect a key part of its history, considering the overarching theme of the novel is “stronger together” in many ways, left me pretty disappointed.<br><br>
Speaking of disappointment, let’s talk about <b>Ms. Cleopatra Quinn</b> some more— oh wait, there’s not much more to tell. 😢 Again, a <I>huge</I> missed opportunity here. I found her character fell into a common trope with “strong, black femxle” characters across pretty much all disciplines of narrative fiction: they’re one-dimensional and pretty much act as a plot device in service of bailing out the white characters from their messes. Harrow barely scratches the surface...throwing us a few crumbs when we finally hear about her bearded marriage to a gay man, and then it’s back to the Eastwood Sisters Show. <br><br> <i>And listen</i>, I’m not unaware of who this story is supposed to be about. I get that. I like the sisters, I really do, but it’s quite possible to create supporting characters that are fully messy, beautiful, piercing ruckuses (which, with Harrow’s previous work, shows she’s fully capable of, by the way!) without taking away from the story’s main protagonists and I just did not feel it happened here. It just... bothered me.<br><br>
Again, I take no joy in sharing this, and maybe had I read this a year ago, I might not have (as a white cis person) thought twice about this, but with racial inequity at the forefront of mine and many other people’s minds, I again found myself pretty frustrated... I mean, Cleo is honestly one of the most interesting characters in this book in my opinion— she deserved better, she really did.<br><br>
Cleo was not the only supporting character to get the shaft— Jennie, the Sisters of Avalon’s first member and record keeper, former suffragette assistant, and as we find out at ~82%, she happens to be trans. Now, I’m all for having trans characters without focusing too much on their identities. I think this is an important evolution that needs to be made in how art tells trans stories and represents that community. To represent them as regular people who are, and need to be known as trans, but it’s not the entirety of who they are. This is necessary, so it’s not the lack of talking about her identity that I take issue with. However, this is revealed so late in the book (like, 82%???) that I actually had to double-back and reread the section again. Similar to Cleo’s small nugget of development, it came and went so fast, I was left feeling really empty from wanting to get to know Jennie better, and not being given that chance.
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<I>Phew.</I> How’s everyone doing? That was rough. I feel tired. <br><br><br><br>
Let’s talk about some great parts of this book, yeah? <br><br>
<I>Again</I>, I can’t overstate enough how skilled I feel Harrow is. Despite feeling like I missed out on so much of who Cleo is, my favorite sections were the dialogue between Bella and Cleo. Their romance is truly beautiful with some of the most elegant intimacy scenes probably ever written. I would 100000% read a spin-off centering them.
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I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention our Sisters Eastwood and their masterfully crafted dynamic. Each of the three are so distinct, not just in personality and quirk, but also in the way that they process (shared and individual) trauma. Really freakin riveting character study. <br><br>
(<I>Not to beat a dead horse, but that’s precisely why I couldn’t let my critiques slide for Cleo, Jennie, hell... I even would’ve taken more on August! It’s not only a disservice to what I know are such fascinating characters living in the author’s brain, it’s a disservice to Harrow as a very capable character author. <b>Just let me in your brain, Alix!</b></I>)
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Okay, so here’s the summarized consensus— I didn’t hate it, how could I? <b>It’s Alix-freakin E. Harrow. </b>It just wasn’t all the way there for me. I told myself after finishing that I’d reread it, I’ll definitely buy a physical copy once it’s officially released, but currently I’m not crazy about this one. <br><br>
And like, that makes me so, so sad. <br><br>
<b>Thank you again to NetGalley, Redhook Publishing, and Alix E. Harrow for allowing me such an early look! (<i>please don’t hate me...</i></b>)

another love letter, another beautiful book from Alix E. Harrow. a timely, scorching-rage tale of magic and women, of love and hate and forgiveness and regret, of the ways and wills and words of people who've had enough, who've been sidelined and beaten down, who want to change their lives and build their own, better futures. it was everything I could have wanted & more. <3

This was a unique book with a great premise. I loved the setting and playfullness with nursery rhymes and fairy tales and history. I like the points that were trying to be mad and the overall story. And while I understand the circular nature of the narrative and how it fits the story, I found it hard to follow and a bit confusing. There were a lot of minor characters to keep track of.

The Once and Future Witches drew me in from the very first sentence. The prose and language were the best I have ever read—so creative and world-changing that each sentence was like magic and honey. The book did an amazing job of interweaving history, fairytales, and of course—WITCHES. The three sisters were distinct and well-developed, each one providing a different approach to the storyline. This feminist, magical-realism novel is a must-read! Alix E. Harrow did not disappoint!
Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this ARC. I can’t wait until I get my hands on this book in October!

I loved The Once and Future Witches. It definitely has some similar aspects to her previous novel, The Ten Thousand Doors of January, but it branches out on its own, with its tale of sisterhood and magic and feminism. This book is about three sisters seeking to bring back magic and power for women in a world where both are shunned. It’s more atmospheric and character driven, and I loved the character development and growth for the three sisters. The romance subplots didn’t feel forced, and the writing is so lyrical and gorgeous.

I feel bad as I just struggled with this book. I just found it slow and everything would distract me because I just couldn’t get into the book. I see it has lots of good reviews though. I need to love a character (good or bad) in a book and I just felt nothing for these sisters. They just did not develop for me. The story line was to slow. Sorry 😐

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with this book in exchange for my honest opinion. This book will be available on October thirteenth.

Do you know how sometimes people get so angry they feel like punching a wall? This book is the literary equivalent of punching a wall. It’s packed with the fury of women oppressed. And it works perfectly.

In Alix E. Harrow’s The Ten Thousand Doors of January, the prose flowed like a stream building into a river. It was beautiful and it took its time. The Once and Future Witches does not have that feel at all. Instead, it is told in staccato bursts of cause and effect. This book rose and fell like a giant wave. I’d take a breath-and get pulled under again.

The story follows three estranged witchy sisters. Juniper is the wild child, the one who starts it all. When she comes across both her sisters in New Salem, they are reunited, past baggage in tow. Never content to sit on the sidelines, Juniper jumps straight into the suffragist movement, from there doing her absolute best to make everyone and their dog mad. Juniper was unpredictable and interesting to read. I never knew what to expect from her character, only that it would cause trouble.

Beatrice is the middle child and the wise one. Books are her refuge (sound familiar, anyone?) and she is the researcher who makes sure the sisters have any knowledge they need. She is often unsure of herself. Really, she is her own worst enemy. Her story arc is quieter, but no less important. When the other sisters break down, she is there to pick up the pieces.

Agnes is a force to be reckoned with. It takes her quite a while for her sense of injustice to boil over and turn into action. Once it does, though – yikes! Don’t make her mad. While I enjoyed her character, she is my least favorite of the three.

The concept is a unique one: take the suffragist movement and chuck in some magic. If it was written by any other author, it might have floundered. However, Alix E. Harrow is a fantastic writer. She could write a novel about paper cuts, and I’d be excited to read it.

If you like books with angry characters, vengeance, and more than a touch of magic, this one is for you.