thank you netgalley and south window press for this opportunity!

this was a wild ride! i loved the fast pacing of the plot and the character arc! i was never bored and i was hooked from the very beginning. highly recommend!

From the opening line, “Welcome to Salem,” I felt like I’d hopped into a cosmic blender full of history, horror, and sarcastic charm. Jake Burnett writes Salem like it’s your slightly-sassy best friend with a dark side—one minute joking about tourist kitschy trinkets, next minute whispering about ancient curses that’ll pet your dog with a vengeance. I giggled, I freaked out, and I questioned my personal safety around any wandering black cat that might be auditioning for a cameo. His voice slings dialogue around like a spell, effortlessly magical but cranked up with total attitude.

But here’s the wild part: under that bravado Brewster Street spotlight, there’s heart. You’ll catch yourself rooting for the misfit characters—each one carrying their own baggage heavier than a hexed trunk from the attic. And just when I thought I could predict where the plot was going, Burnett crashes the party with a curveball twist that made me smack my palm to my forehead and laugh like I’d been punked. The city of witches feels real, messy, and a little dangerous, and I’m damn glad I took this bizarre stroll through its cursed streets.

Sometimes with books I tell myself to not overthink it and just read the words and let myself get lost in the author's writing, especially with books like this one set in an unfamiliar place with a different type of social setting and a main character that I can't necessarily relate to. Once I did that, I was hooked on this read. It is so strange and yet so beautiful. I was trapped in this world trying to escape with the MC and wanting at every single turn to know what was going to happen next.

While this book might not be for everyone, those who like unique reads that will leave you unsure of what is happening, but not wanting to stop reading, then definitely give this one a try.

Urban magic, strong heroine, and great worldbuilding—The Witch and the City truly surprised me! It was gripping and just the right touch of every ingredients

A wild magical ride within the mind of a witch! The heavy gothic themes and references to other literature works and myths were also enjoyable.

Beautiful and dreamy with lovely creeping dread. I loved the disjointed storytelling from a narrator unreliable both to us and to themselves.

Loved that this felt literary and fantasy! Enjoyed that you learn about what’s going on alongside main character. Little but Alice in wonderland but better!

The Witch & The City presents an intriguing premise: "A witch without memories. A city without hope. Can love save them both?" However, despite my enthusiasm, I struggled to connect with the characters, which ultimately affected my enjoyment of the plot. I found it challenging to engage with the story on a deeper level. While this book didn’t resonate with me as I’d hoped, I’m willing to take a step back from the genre and revisit it at a later time. I believe every reading experience is valuable, and I’m hopeful for a better fit in the future.

The storyline is disjointed (take a while to adapt to this), which is a reflection of the protagonists' own lack of memory. which makes it so enjoyable to experience the world as she does.

What a wild ride this book will take you through

I honestly liked the entire premise of the book and really enjoyed the world building where the setting takes place!

What a crazy, cool plot! This was something totally unique to anything else I've read, which I really appreciate as an avid reader. In The Witch & The City, people are not born into being but instead are found after another person dies--like a one-out, one-in idea. These people are believed to be the previous person reincarnated but have none of that person's memories. Until one day, we meet a newly found witch who seems to be retaining some of that past. Can't get any cooler than that!

This was a pretty dense read, but after finding my rhythm with the writing style I got into it. I would say that this is a little bit on the difficult side, especially if you're a new fantasy reader, but it was ultimately so worth it!

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in advance!
Sadly, I don't think the book was really for me. Some people would really enjoy it but I couldn't get into it. I especially did not find the characters very likeable.

It's got an interesting premise: instead of people dying and a new person is born, here a person ‘dies’ and a new person is found. This new person is not born instead it is supposed to the previous person incarnate, they just do not have the previous person’s memories. And everyone is stuck inside this City and stuck in this circle where they have to follow The Lady’s rules otherwise her Wardens will Fade the person to where they no longer exist for good.

This book then follows a newfound witch named Oneirotheria who has some of the memories of her predecessor, giving her the goal to find an escape to the City.
Great plot, but I didn’t enjoy the writing style or the characters.
The language was a touch disjointed to me, didn’t flow well, and some phrases/word choices were a touch odd.
“Here-Now” was said too much.
Overall, the language was whimsical which again, is just not for me. But there are those who would really enjoy the type of writing and I don't want to discourage them from reading it! Just know what you are going into.

This was a really interesting concept, but I don’t think I was the audience for this. The writing style just went over my head at times, and it felt like the author was attempting to be grandiose and lyrical when it wasn’t particularly necessary? The plot twist at the end was interesting.

Cool premise, not enough though to pull me in and make me actually want to read it. Maybe someday. (might actually make an actual plan to read it later this year or next year)

What a wild ride, this was a fantastical read. Once you came to understand the rambling mind of the witch then the story really took off. It was just wonderful.

Trippy, dark and intriguing!!
This was a fascinating book that I would definitely recommend to fantasy leaders! Honestly, I have to reread the end tell makes sense of the rest of the book, but I truly enjoyed this dark twisty thriller!

Thank you so much to Netgalley & the publisher for this review copy! I am so looking forward to this and to writing a full review on my social media when I am able! Thanks again!

This book isn't for the faint of heart. I say that because there is a lot happening within the plot of twists and turns and I almost gave up because I wasn't in the mood for something that I needed to think about. However, I came back to it a couple months later and absolutely loved it. I'm a mood reader, so sometimes things don't hold my interest in the same way. But if you want something dark, fascinating and full of twists and turns around every corner. You would love this book!

An inventive blend of folklore, classic literature, religion, and good ol' fashioned magic, The Witch & The City is an intriguing read, and one I think will benefit from future re-reads. Think 80s fantasy-core meets dystopia and you'd be some of the way there.

Read this if you like: engaging world-building, truly lyrical writing, a strong sense of (dark) whimsy.

"The Witch & The City" by Jake Burnett is a spellbinding journey that I thoroughly enjoyed. Burnett effortlessly transports readers into a world where magic and urban life coalesce in a riveting narrative. The characters are richly developed, each with a distinct charm that adds depth to the story. The urban fantasy setting is vividly depicted, creating a captivating backdrop for the unfolding mystical tale. Burnett's prose is both engaging and atmospheric, seamlessly blending magic and reality. With its compelling plot and well-crafted characters, "The Witch & The City" is a captivating read, leaving me eagerly anticipating more from this author.