I loved this book and it was a good during the month and do buy this book! I look forward to more book by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced review copy.

I have really loved some of Claire Legrand’s previous books, so I was very excited to see this book was coming out. I was very intrigued by a lot of the elements and themes, such as feminism, religious cults, witches, and a sapphic romance. This sounded like it would be completely up my alley, but unfortunately something about this one just didn’t click for me. I just didn’t really like any of the characters. Everyone from the main character’s village was horrible, and I didn’t like the main character or any of the witches. The romance felt a little forced too, which is sad because what is better than gay witches? It also seemed like there was a lot going on, and it all felt just a bit over the top to me. I am sure there will be people who will enjoy this book, and I will still recommend this to some readers (while also making them aware of content warnings). And I will of course continue to check out anything Claire Legrand writes, but this was a miss for me.

Amity has been chosen to be the next saint of Haven, in response to the string of mysterious ad gruesome deaths of men throughout the small and idyllic community. As a saint, she understands the weight of the responsibility and has prepared herself. Shortly after her initiation, she speaks with the other three saints and learns that all isn't as it seems. She follows them into Extasia, a world between worlds where real witches find refuge and hone their magic. The more time Amity spends in Extasia and with the other saints, the more she realizes that Haven is no haven at all.

I'm not really sure what I expected from this book, but it was a strange read for me. I feel like some of the relationships came out of nowhere, and were not well developed. I wanted more history and background from the town, so I could better understand the dynamics and culture. I liked the book, but I'm not sure I'll pick up the next book in the series.

I received this ARC courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Definitely one of my favorite reads. I love this authors other works and I knew I wanted to read this one as soon as I heard about it. It did not disappoint!

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This book felt like the blues clues x witches crossover I didn’t know I needed😂

The MC has finally achieved her life long dream of becoming a saint, essentially someone who villagers can confess their sins to and treat as a punching bag. To save the people in her village, she joins a group of witches living in the forest. She hopes to harness her witchy powers so that she can locate 6 relics which will bring her closer to meeting and beating the devil.

✨Most of the people in this book are problematic, including the MC but we love her anyways!

✨None of the characters are as they originally seemed. Some are delusional and others have no brain cells left 🥲

✨I did not get The Handmaid’s Tale or bone chilling horror vibes as stated in the synopsis but the overall plot was pretty interesting

✨This book is giving us a bargain, redemption and family betrayal! If you’re looking for a darkish YA sapphic romance then this is the book for you!

If you wanted to see what happened after the ending of The Witch, you need to read Extasia.

Amity has the honor of being chosen as the fourth saint of Haven, a small cultish village kept safe behind a patrolled wall. The people are pious and labor to keep the Devil at bay, but then men start disappearing and coming back brutally murdered, animals begin to act strangely, her sister keeps sneaking out in the middle of the night, and she starts to see tall gray ghosts in the shadows. Amity knows something must be done to protect her community. She has desired to become one of the saints since she was a young woman, watching the previous saints sacrifice their bodies in hopes of relieving her community from sin and putting a stop to the killings. She soon realizes that something more needs to be done. On a whim, she follows a white-eyed raven and watches as two of the other saints embrace, kiss, and disappear into a nearby wall. Amity follows and discovers a parallel community of women who seek the devil in hopes of liberation.

One of the most interesting things about this overtly religious community is that while they spend a lot of time talking about God, there isn’t really a presence of God. While the people talk about pleasing God, most of the rituals that we see are violent, from the sanctifying of saints where they cut a symbol into the chosen saint’s chest to the town’s confession practice, which consists of taking out your sin on the four young saints by throwing them down, hitting them, cursing at them, and spitting on them. Somehow, this flagellation of the saintly body is a practice of redemptive suffering. The more the saints endure silently, the more remittance is received in the community. These scenes are as brutal as you would expect, and many of the townspeople seem to take surprising pleasure in the practice. It is not a duty for them but a release. While God is rarely felt, the devil is everywhere, even in their religious practices.

A bearded man looks above with his hands offered in prayer
“prayer at night” by mrehan is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
There is so much to like here—the beautifully atmospheric descriptions, lyrical prose, and positive relationships between the group of women. The coming of age and coming out plotline. Often with YA books, it’s hard to tell where they will fall on the violence and gore scale, but Extasia fulfills every gorehound’s dreams with creative kills and vivid descriptions. For being a fantasy novel, it also has a nice balance between world-building, character development, and action. The pacing never felt weighed down in details or intricate world lore, which is something that I often struggle with when reading fantasy.

Extasia is a standalone queer YA fantasy folk horror novel that fits into the “Good for Her” subgenre of horror that is best represented by films like Midsommer, The Love Witch, Carrie, and others that often end with the ever-tormented final girl that finally gets to breathe in the sweet ashes of her enemies. This is a story for any queer person who feels compelled to conform to their insular conservative community, and it feels very relatable if you have grown up different in Dallas Fort Worth.

A forest on fire at night under a full moon
“the bird and the moon week” by Luz Adriana Villa A. is licensed under CC BY 2.0
For literary nerds, there are many playful coincidences in the names. “Amity” is the protagonist’s given name when she becomes a saint, a name that means a peaceful, friendly nature. All of the saints’ names feel false, which plays out later in the novel and which is also perhaps the point. Why would you name someone Amity and then beat the crap out of them for the creator? Extasia, which I presume comes from the word extasiado meaning ecstatic in Portuguese or rapt in Spanish, is the name of the devil in this world. Extasia is a shadowy figure who the coven hopes to reach in order to release the hold of the elders on their community. The devil gives little pleasure in this novel because in Haven, the fear of the devil only helps the elders assert their control on the people of the community. In the coven of women, the devil represents freedom from conformity. It becomes apparent fairly quickly to Amity that Extasia means power as she works hard to learn spells in hopes of getting the devil’s attention. The physicality of these spells is impressive and terrifying.

If you are one to judge by a cover, Extasia is absolutely stunning. Amity is depicted as a petite girl in a white dress with a quiet strength behind her eyes. A blood-red moon is perfectly placed behind her head as a saintly halo. The cover features the art of Argentinian digital artist and illustrator, Diego Fernandez, who is best known for his portraiture of saintly-looking women.

Book cover for Extasia

There is some confusion in parts as to who we are supposed to be cheering for in the story—if we are supposed to side with Amity and her quest or if we are supposed to side with Amity and her protection of her town and the archaic standards that they are trying to adhere to. It does become more clear, but there was an instance where I think readers would be unsure of the protagonist’s motivation, which can be slightly frustrating for readers who prefer a likable narrator. There are also a few characters who are grayer in their motivations. They support the community but not in a severely evil way.

Despite being a YA novel, Extasia delivers solid scares within a coming-of-age story that is fresh and beautifully written. Legrand blends genres and bends expectations melding together a story that feels like The Village meets The Craft meets Carrie.

Claire Legrand is a native of Dallas Fort Worth, TX. She was born in Irving and got her degree from the University of North Texas. She now works part-time as a librarian in Princeton, NJ when she isn’t writing full time. Her previous work includes two fantasy trilogies and has been a finalist for the Bram Stoker Award (2018) and Edgar Award (2017). Extasia is one of “Buzzfeed’s Great LGBTQ+ YA novels to Warm Up Your Winter.”

This was my first time reading from Claire Legrand and it did not disappoint! I loved the storytelling elements and how creepy it felt. For an author who has written many books, this was very well done and not to mention unique. Enjoyed every second of reading this book. Looking forward to what the author has in store for the future,
Full review to come on YouTube.

This is a story about a witch amongst Saints.

The good: I liked the setting & this was a really original dystopian. I liked the elements that felt crucible inspired & I felt shaken by the violence the young female characters were forced to endure bases on the implication that they were somehow at fault for the sins of others.

The bad: I didn’t particularly enjoy this. I’m aware that not all reading has to be happy & I don’t have that expectation, but this just didn’t land for me- and after pondering why, I think it was the genre mashup. I think it might be a better fit for readers who enjoy historical fantasy, even though it’s technically set in a hypothetical future.

Thank you so much Netgalley & HarperCollins Children's Books, Katherine Tegen Books for the eArc!

DNF @ 111 pages. Thank you Netgalley for the arc. This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2022 and I was so disappointed. Sawkill Girls is one of my favorite book and I was excited to read from this author again. However, this book did not have a clear voice. It was muddled and seemed like it didn't have a clear plot. The atmosphere was fantastic but was not enough to keep me intrigued. I will definitely give Claire Legrand another chance.

I love Legrand’s writing so this was a no brainer for me. Although a bit longer than I feel it needed to be, I loved the story and the atmosphere Legrand created.

Extasia follows a girl who has grown up in an extremely religious community where sinners take out their sins onto the young woman they choose as saints. Right after our main character is anointed as a saint she learns of the coven called Extasia, a place where witches punish the men who wrong others.

I felt like this book dragged on so much and not a lot of big things were happening, especially in the first half. I’m order to counter that I felt that the author was making small things very dramatic to try to make them big things when it in turn ended up being annoying. Even once things started happening it still felt like it was trying too hard and that unfortunately took a lot away from the story for me. There was also zero character build up or development. You’re not introduced to any of the characters, you are just thrown into the story which lead to me not knowing or caring about any of the characters. The only character who is semi enjoyable to read about, because she is the only one who says some things with sense, is another young woman who our main character clearly dislikes. It was just very hard to connect to anyone in this story.

Unfortunately I think this author just isn’t for me. I’ve tried to read other her books by her and I DNFed one and did not enjoy the other, but I know she is for so many other readers! I really wish I had found her when I was a bit younger, not because she write immature books or anything I just know my tastes were different then and I probably would’ve enjoyed these more.

An interesting look on how you view your world through faith and a distain for your own self. Amity goes on a journey to save her people but has to work with everything she grew up to fear. In doing so, she learns more about herself and the world around her. While the beginning was interesting I felt that this story dropped about halfway through. It was mainly the twist around 80 percent that left me feeling meh.

Let me just start off by saying that I was hooked by the premise of this book. A religious cult, women trying to gain power and sapphics?? What’s not to love?

Unfortunately, I think the idea of this book was better than the execution.
I really liked the absolutely eerie, under your skin atmosphere that was built up. I think the author did a good job of establishing the cult, its working and the sort of disgusted feeling you get as you see everyone being brainwashed about the world and women in general. A lot of things didn’t make sense and I don’t think I can explain this without spoiling the plot. Many points were underwhelming and predictable or just seemed to make things very convenient for the main character. I couldn’t get a sense of Amity, the main character. Amity was just very muddled in her motivations and her narration dragged the whole story. I wish that the characters in the coven and certain other female side characters were more fleshed out. Since this book is inherently about female power and rage, many times it felt like those were the only attributes these female characters had.
I was kind of taken aback but at the same time I enjoyed the pot twist that came towards the end. But once I put the book down I just wished there had been some foreshadowing or crumbs left for this throughout the story because it comes at you from nowhere.

I gave this book my normal 100 pages for an attention grab, but it just did not capture me. I found it rather confusing at points and too religious-laden lingo for my liking. At another point in my reading log this may have been exciting or I may have been more willing to keep going, but I had just finished two spectacular books so it felt rather lackluster in their aftermath.

Claire Legrand's Sawkill Girls was a book that surprised me with its feminist take and commentary - and I have to admit, I really expected to be blown away by <i>Extasia</i>, but I was left disappointed. Overall, I did really enjoy the pseudo-puritan society created for this world. I love discussions of religion in novels and how it affects younger women, so the whole beginning portion for me was super interesting. Learning how Amity believed, what the town does in consequence of this belief, the fact that these younger women take on the roles of "saints" and how they are treated in consequence - amazing look at male dominated, puritan societies. The women were really interesting characters and how they discovered the lies and atrocities being committed by their elders was fascinating. One characters actions and feelings towards the whole situation was realistic and I really reading about her. However, it is once the element of witches comes into play in the novel that I started to drift away from the book. I think the worldbuilding in that aspect was not the most developed and didn't <i>really</i> make sense and <spoiler> I think it really falls apart especially at the end when the more science fictiony dystopian world (which made sense to the puritan, isolated village part but not the witch part????) </spoiler>. I think for many people this will be a hit because it does hit all the notes for witchy, fantasy-horror with feminist rage theme, but I feel as though because I was expecting much, much more it fell very flat to me.

Extasia by Claire Legrand follows a girl who is about to become one of the four saints of Haven. Together, the saints will protect the village from the evil that lives beneath the black mountain. This evil has already taken the lives of four men. The girl is ready to take on this responsibility. She will not tell anyone about the creatures she has seen. The girls she saw kissing. She is determined to rid her family of her mother’s shame. She is determined to save her village.

I seriously could not get enough of this book. I was completely engrossed by the first page. There is so much story packed into this book. Claire Legrand took this story in so many different directions that I truly couldn’t guess what happened next. I love it. I would love a sequel!

Extasia was really quite an interesting story. It contained so many elements that I hadn't necessarily expected to see together, but not in a way that made it feel clunky or overwhelming, but rather in a way that fit well. Impressive, really. We have a cultish religion, a dystopia sort of scene, a really rude patriarchy, witches, magic, sister bonds, great female friendships, great female-female romances. It kind of has it all.

Of course, there is quite a journey to unfurl any of it, as when we first meet main character Amity, she's.... well, she's clearly consumed all the Kool-Aid. Which, of course she has! It's all she's known. The reader is infuriated, obviously, that this young woman's mind has been so warped by the adults who are supposed to have cared for and nurtured her, but isn't that the key to any cult? Brainwash the generations to come? Anyway, it is hard to watch her suffer at the hands of the community she's put her faith in, but I think it's clear to see from the themes of this book that she's not going to blindly accept living like this forever.

I loved her journey, every bit of it. Trying to figure out who was worthy of her trust and her love, versus who was using her for their own gains was a lot. And trying to figure out what the heck was going on in her community was exciting for both reader and character. The atmosphere of this town and the woods surrounding it were incredibly on point. I absolutely felt the sinister vibes lurking in the shadows, the unknown elements hidden behind the façade. Quite impressive that the author was able to do this so well.

Without saying much about the mystery aspect of the plot, I absolutely loved the direction the story went. I was so excited by the twists and turns- many of which I did not see coming, at least in the way they did, that I could not put the book down. Though I will say, one of my disappointments does stem from this, in a sense. Keeping it vague, there was a bit at the end that seemed as though it was lending itself to a setup for a sequel? And I was so bummed to find that this is listed as a standalone.

The only other minor issue I had was that I didn't quite get the witches/magic aspect. I loved the witches as characters, no question. They were morally gray, and I think their presence was so helpful to Amity and her friends in a myriad of ways (again, vague for spoilers), but the magic part went over my head, honestly. Small qualm, but there it is.

My favorite part for sure was the character and world building. I adored learning the girls' stories, and watching them connect and build relationships with one another. They were all flawed, no question, but because of that, more relatable and likable for me. I also found the world so great. Beyond just the atmosphere, I love a good cult, and I loved some of the places we saw later in the book that I can't mention but promise are worth reading for!

Bottom Line: This was a unique story, incredibly atmospheric, with characters who I became really invested in.

I have students that will love this book. I have students mature enough in middle school that could read this book. But I won’t keep a copy in my classroom (I teach 7th grade).

Now, I think the easiest way for me to talk about this story is to put it into likes and dislikes.

What I Liked: unique concept, very Puritan/The Crucible vibes, loved the social horror aspect of women bearing the brunt of everyone’s sins, loved the female empowerment.

What I didn’t like: do you ever just read a book that seems way too long, but also like every little thing needed to be in there? That was this book. I don’t enjoy the way she writes dialogue using modern language, and I found the desire to thoroughly explain everything tedious (but somehow necessary?)

Overall it was a unique perspective on a witchy story, but I felt like the twists/plot choices didn’t live up to the foreshadowing.

This book was absolutely fantastic. I've already added it to our list for order this year and will recommend it to students.

Thank you, Katherine Tegen Books, for allowing me to read Extasia early!

Claire Legrand is a new-to-me author. I know she has a quite a reputation in the literary world and if Extasia is the level of excellence to which I have to judge all her novels, then I think I'll fall head over heels for each and every one of them. Extasia was simply a perfect reading experience. It gave me everything I expected from it and more. If I have to criticize something, then it ended too soon? I'm only saying that because I want more!