This book was perfect for spooky season and so much fun with a creeptastic twist. I loved the illustrations!

I'm obsessed with Slewfoot, so this will definitely not be an unbiased review.. If your favorite triad of fall films is The Witch, Sleepy Hollow, and The Crucible, trust me: you want this book. It's going to hit your right in the New England Witchcraft/Creepy Fall sweet spot. This was my first experience with one of Brom's books, and I though I knew the art was gorgeous I wasn't sure at all what to expect from the text itself. So I was wholly surprised, and delighted, to find myself reading a book that was as much fantasy as it was horror. As much fairy tale as witch's tale.

Everything about Slewfoot is gruesome, gorgeous, magical and terrible (in a the best possible way way); and it all revolves around two central figures, the recently widowed Abitha, and the forest spirit Slewfoot, who has forgotten who he is. The world building! And the heart! Vengeful and honest, brutal and loving. Reading Slewfoot was like being in a dream and a nightmare all rolled into one. I told you I couldn't be unbiased about this book, because for me it was perfection.

Slewfoot is an excellent blend of the magical and historical. Abitha The main character of the story is sent from England to marry a man she has never met, to an early Puritan settlement in colonial America. Set in the time of the witch trials this book is filled with mystery and magic of it’s own. Abitha’s husband is killed in a mysterious accident inside a cave. After his death Abitha is forced to try to survive alone and try to hold onto the home that she and her husband were trying to build. Life was not easy for a widow alone in those times as it is, and it’s also not easy for Abitha. Until she meets Samson a mystical creature from the woods who reminds her of the heritage, of her mothers, and the magic she holds within. Will that magic be her saving or her undoing?

Slewfoot is the perfect tale to finish on a blustery Halloween. Author and artist Brom sets this colonial gothic novel in Connecticut, October 1666. Abitha is born of a long line of cunning women, though beyond bartering simple potions and charms for necessary items, she is yet unpracticed in the cunning arts. That changes when her husband is taken by wild folk and fed to a horned, goat-legged ancient deity. The book has shades of Beauty and the Beast and familiar colonial gothic titles, such as The Scarlet Letter, incorporating --with sympathy-- pagan tradition, ecospirituality, feminism, the Pequot people. Be warned: Women and the Pequot get especially brutal treatment here. The novel is remarkable in its development of its "sympathy for the devil" theme, but its pacing is rough-going until the final third or so. I stand by my recommendation of this book as a seasonal treat, but not to everyone, and with plenty of cautions.

[Thanks to Tor Nightfire and NetGalley for an opportunity to read an e-ARC of this book in exchange for my opinion.]

Wowowowow. You know how sometimes you pick up a book and have no idea it'll become a favorite? I'm hoping this one stands the test of time!

Plot-wise, it's basically old-school Puritans vs. (maybe?) The Devil. And anyone who's read Brom knows that he likes to take his time getting to where he's going. Unlike other authors, though, I never find his stories slow or meandering in the telling. It's more like riding a wave to your destination. You just have to let the tale take you where it's headed.

Abitha was an absolutely wonderful heroine: strong-willed, sure of herself when you meet her, stuck in a bad, bad situation. This is the first story I've read that (successfully) tied together old Pagan beliefs with Puritan Christianity. It was damn-near flawless in that regard.

This will definitely not be for everyone, but if the plot sounds interesting, and you really just want to live in another world for a bit, and you can get through some gore and hardship for a satisfying read, you should definitely check this guy out.

This book was eerily spooky. The whole puritan society is terrifying. And I found them more scary than the scary creatures. Was that the point? Perhaps. Abetha goes from this strong bad ass woman to an even strong badder ass woman. I loved that she wasn’t seen as meek to strong. But always strong in spite of the world she lives in.

The creepiest part for me was when (SPOILERS) the girls and women started to freak out and call Abitha a witch. All at once. Showing how vulnerable their psyches are in the face of the patriarchy and they BS

The Review

This was such a brilliantly written novel. The author did an incredible job of finding a balance between the historical fiction aspect of the narrative by exploring the Puritanical society of that era and the way it mirrors modern-day sexism, and the mythology and culture of the land settled originally by the Native American people, and later taken over by the Puritans. This clash of cultures allowed for the exploration of magic, nature spirits and so much more in this dark fantasy and horror read.

What really stuck out as awe-inspiring though was the character growth of the cast of characters. The strength and evolution of protagonist Abitha were fantastic to read, as she represented the women who were mercilessly targeted in this society for daring to go in any other direction other than “God’s Will”. The villainous townsfolk who target Abitha is complex yet gripping as the protagonist’s foil in this narrative, while the mysterious and powerful being of many names, including Slewfoot, gave a challenging performance that straddled the line between hopeful ally and bloodthirsty demon.

The Verdict

A remarkable, magical, and entertaining read, author Brom’s “Slewfoot” is a perfect horror read this Halloween. The folklore, mythos, and chilling atmosphere and tone will thrust readers into this haunting historical fiction and dark fantasy thriller, and the author’s incredibly chilling artwork will keep readers up at night for sure.

Don't be filled by the lovely cover art or romantic heroine- this story is surprisingly grim. Original and dark, I couldn't put this down!

I must say that I immensely enjoyed this book. It kept me reading all the way to the end and during the Halloween season just made it so much better to read.

As I read the first few chapters I kept saying to myself this is an amazingly special book. The author is an extremely talented writer. The story includes a great spookiness factor and some quotable moments. The only downfall was the length and the slow parts in the middle. The beginning and end were brilliant. Perfect story for Halloween!

Wow. This book.

A tale of witchcraft set in 1666. A tale of Native American folklore. A tale of Mother Earth and the power of nature. A tale of the awful treatment of women in times past. A tale of love and of friendship and of determination and also a tale of magic, primal and wild and beautiful.

The protagonist, Abitha, is a little spitfire of a woman, all flaming red hair and flashing eyes, a thinking, feeling woman in a time when women weren't supposed to do either. I loved her. I loved her ferocity, her absolute inability to conform even when she tried.

The bare bones of the story are something we all know: a woman accused of witchcraft, the horrible injustice of a witch trial, the awful aftermath. But there's so much more here, so much. Abitha is at war within herself and everything she does, she does with a touch of fear and only out of utmost need. The magic she calls upon is shared with her by a forest god, half animal, half man. She names him Samson, and he's every bit as conflicted about who he is as Abitha herself, for he has slept in the darkness for an untold time, and has awoken in confusion, not sure who he is.

The wildfolk are curious little creatures, at once innocent and bloodthirsty. The way Brom writes pulls you right into the forest, into the caves and into the trees, watching as Man destroys nature, as the ghosts of extinct animals run the woodland paths.

The story is beautiful and sad and utterly heartbreaking. There is, sadly, a shortage of really excellent witch stories out there. Most of them paint witches as completely evil or adorably cheeky and romantic. This story does neither, it simply presents a young woman pushed to the limit and offered help through the old magic of the forest. Some terrible things happen, for sure, but only to those who deserve it.

And I cannot finish this review without pointing out the dark beauty of Brom's paintings, which grace a half dozen glossy pages in the middle of the book. Each of the main characters is featured, and I found myself turning back to them as I read to help myself picture the characters as Brom intended.

A beautiful book in every way: beautiful in prose, in illustration, in the message it sends of balance between good and evil, light and dark, and of how we all have both inside us.

Slewfoot is my first book by Brom, and I really enjoyed it. Did it make me furious? Yes. Did I fall in love with Abitha? Also yes. Was I overjoyed when she got her revenge? Absolutely!

Abitha is the kind of character you want to root for, and I loved her friendship with Slewfoot. While I found Abitha a significantly more interesting character, I did like seeing "the devil" portrayed as being both good and evil, depending on which side you're on. Overall, I think this book is a little creepy, a little gory at the end, but so satisfying in the long run. If you're looking for some historical fiction, folk horror, this is the book for you! I will say; however, it got pretty slow in the middle. Stick with it, though, and it picks back up quickly.

I loved this gem of a book. It has everything that a good cup of tea and Autumn 🍂 leaves falling vibes. It was haunting, historic and creepy. Anything that comes remotely to witches during this time of year captures my heart. I reccomend sitting in front of a window while the leaves fall and grab yourself this book. I bought it so that I can reread it every Halloween season. It's a highly recommend book and now I understand why.

Connecticut, 1666. Abitha had planned to spend her life in service, maybe as a ladies’ maid, but after the death of her mother, her alcoholic father sold her into the new world as the wife of a Puritan man. As husbands go, Edward is pretty tame. He’s kind, at least, but when he dies, Abitha is left to save their small farm herself. Meanwhile, an ancient spirit awakens in the woods. He has many names, Father, slayer, protector to the Wildfolk, Slewfoot to the colonists. To Abitha, he is Samson, and he’s not a devil. He’s a misunderstood being, desperate to fight his nature and discover who he really is. With his help, Abitha just might save her farm, but if the colonists find out, she may be hanged as a witch.

I love a good witch story, and though I hate the Puritans with all of my being, this setting is a solid foundation of the question of whether it’s worse, worshiping the “devil” or serving God in as a woman under the oppressively hand of the Puritans in the new world in the 1600s. Usually, the former is preferable.

I really enjoyed the layers of the characters. Abitha is a witch, but is she a devil worshiper? She doesn’t seem like one. She just wants the best for herself (and her husband until he dies). Is Samson the devil? He has a dark side, but he’s trying to fight it, help Abitha, and restore balance and peace with nature. The Puritans are pretty flat, but it’s difficult to make them dynamic when everything all the time is the work of the devil and women are evil temptresses.

The blending of Puritan “values,” Wildfolk lore, traditional devil views, and Indigenous history made for a great story. Even though it was pretty bleak for most of the book, I couldn’t stop reading. I wanted to know more. I wanted to see Abitha succeed and the evil Puritans suffer, particularly her selfish brother-in-law, Wallace. Vengeance is sweet.

It’s a long and sometimes difficult read, but if you’re looking for something to get you in the Halloween mood and that will leave you thinking about it long after you finish, definitely check this one out.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy! This is not a story I would necessarily have picked up, yet I do think it's good to try things that push my comfort level in reading. While it took me some time to get through the first 50 pages, once I did, I was truly intrigued. This ended up being a read that brought up quite a few unexpected feelings and emotions, and it was overall interesting!

I love Brom's ability to create a really atmospheric, tense and creepy vibe. He did an amazing job on Lost Gods and I wasn't surprised when I enjoyed this book.

Mind you, this being more of a witchy tale meant that it had a different pace, and especially being a historical fiction set in an colony

I also realize I quite enjoy the vengeance trope. The MC Abitha is someone you root for the entire time and secondary villainous characters you'll love to hate. The book was a little slow in the middle but picked up near the very end!

The book was well-written. I had some issues with the depictions of Native characters in the book. I'm still unsure how I feel about this as a Native woman. On one hand I feel that the depictions made sense given the POV of the characters, but at the same time, it was hard to read as a Native woman and knowing that people still feel this way about us today. Overall, the book was spooky and good. It felt like a mashup between The Crucible and The Witch.

This story was.....interesting, in the best way. A unique revisit to the witch panic hundreds of years ago, with new mythology and a packed with passion protagonist. I only wish we'd gotten a little more background on 'slewfoot' himself, I'm not sure I totally understood what he and the other creatures were, but it was beautifully told, and a great read.

Big thanks to Netgalley, Brom and Macmillan-Tor/Forge, Tor Nightfire for the eARC in exhange for a review

Abitha is a woman all but sold into the arms of a waiting husband. She moves from England to America into a farm, just outside of a small, puritan town. Their beliefs and customs all different from what she is used to.
Thankfully, her husband is a decent man, if not a bit socially awkward.
Together, they work the land Edward and Abitha are purchasing from Edwards brother, creating a home for the two of them.

That is until Edward falls into a cave while looking for their last billy goat who had wandered off.

Abitha, now on her own in a world ruled by men, she works with what she can to keep the farm she worked for, out of the hands of Edwards greedy brother.

The puritans, wary of everything they can be, accuse Abitha of witchcraft and consorting with the Devil. Slewfoot. But, is the devil really bad? He is nature and freedom. He is life and death. But certainly not the terrible creature the preachers talk about in their sermons.

OMG, this was probably my favourite read this year so far. I loved it! Brom captured the backbreaking expectations men impose on women. Perfection with obedience, submission, objectification, the blame and stigma.
Abitha is a person but she can't be when the patriarchy is stepping on her neck. Her only option was to befriend the creature that the world believed to be the devil. Satan himself. Well maybe ;)

I loved everything about this book. It was so well written, the characters were wonderful and were excellently built. The revenge was delicious and well served.

5 stars, would go higher and I'll be looking into Broms other work

As always, Fu*k the patriarchy. Be a witch.

This sounded promising and it did have some creepy scenes, but overall I didn't love this author's writing style and I ended up being a bit disappointed in the book overall. I thought the strongest part of the book was Abitha's struggle and her conflict with Wallace, and the inner conflict/uncertainty/confusion of Samson was intriguing. However, my overall impression was that the plot was overall a bit too slow for my tastes and probably for the preferences of most of my patrons. My library's patrons tend to go towards thrillers and fast-paced horror as opposed to something that moves along this slowly. I was interested in Abitha's story line but it wasn't quite enough to keep me fully engaged all the way through. And I thought that there were some elements that were meant to be scary but were just silly, like the animals with the children's heads/faces. There was no way for me to picture that that wasn't just kind of funny. Spooky elements were there, but I don't think the writing was particularly creepy or suspenseful. I felt individual scenes were sometimes rushed, while the overall movement of the story was sluggish. It wasn't a home run for me, but an interesting historical horror nonetheless.