✨ ARC Review ✨
Rate: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Stay tuned for my full review coming soon!


https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6392226188

This was decent and the setting was nice. I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction but it was decent.

Marielle Thompson’s The Last Witch in Edinburgh starts strong. With Angus’ shadow hanging over 1824 Edinburgh, every one of the ancient’s city’s closes could be hiding an enemy, a ticking time bomb following every woman working in - and patronising - the Rae Apothecary. Thompson’s writing is atmospheric, building dread into every interaction Nellie has with the wider world - from her abusive father to the witch hunters going door to door, snatching up her neighbours, and the wealthy women choosing the safety of status over sisterhood.

It’s the strength of this first half that makes the second - following Nellie in modern day Edinburgh, her life prolonged by her connection to the Cailleach - much less engaging. The vision is clear - women are never safe from Angus and his patriarchal power - but, perhaps inevitably, the contemporary world lacks much of the magic and mystery of the centuries older one. It’s less that witch narratives should be confined to historical settings, but rather that it's so wholly unexpected - little from the blurb or even the cover would suggest this abrupt shift - and its issues are only compounded by Nellie’s lack of development.

Even after two centuries, she’s still frustratingly incapacitated by her fear, throwing her dedication to the Cailleach to the wayside as she avoids Angus’ dangerous reach. There’s a point to it, of course, but it’s hard not to take Jean’s side as she calls Nellie out for her cowardice time and time again. We know the shift is coming - it has to be - but there’s only so many times we can watch Nellie recede into herself before it becomes repetitive.

When The Last Witch in Edinburgh is good, it’s very good - I positively flew through the first half, and there were, undoubtedly, some wonderful twists in the modern half that worked well - but it’s bogged down by an uninspiring lead and a period shift that can’t quite keep up with its historical predecessor.

In the TikTok tradition of “yes, no, maybe” recommendations, this one is definitely a “maybe”, not quite able to capitalise on the elements that would have made it a resounding ”YES!“

This a lush, atmospheric novel that blends witchcraft, queer love, and Scottish folklore into a hauntingly beautiful tale of resistance and rebirth. Three big factors to make a spooky read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington for this arc!

I really enjoyed this story, it was well researched and the characterization was wonderful. I quickly became invested in the characters and their lives. I did think the plot dragged at times which made it a slow read for me. But the setting was vivid and overall I enjoyed it and would definitely read more by this author in the future!

An interesting book. The world building was most excellent, but I struggled to connect with the characters.

The only thing I knew going into this was that it was a fictional retelling of the Scottish Witch Trials. However I got so much more than that. This was a dual timeline narration which followed Nellie and her life as she finds herself becoming an adult embrolled in the world of witches. We see her fall in love and then lose everything (so she thinks) only to circle round and come back home to all of the things that she was missing. This was an amazing story.

A beautiful atmospheric story that lost its s magic about halfway through. The execution between the two timelines felt disrupted. I really liked Nellie and thought she was strong and independent.
Many thanks to Kensington and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher!
If this novel is any indication, we’ve always been resisting the patriarchy. What a fantastic read!

I was SO EXCITED for this book. The witchy atmosphere, historical timeline, and Edinburgh setting are all exactly up my alley. But, the book has some problems. It felt very preachy in some parts. It does a good job showing how women were kept small and down by men in prior centuries, but it also felt like every man is always bad. There seemed to be no good men. Also the book is slow, and the 2nd half falls flat. Really high potential, but not the best execution unfortunately :(

Dnf unfortunately at 25% 😩 pacing was strange and i really wanted to love this sapphic historical fiction

The Last Witch in Edinburgh is a lush, atmospheric novel that masterfully blends witchcraft, queer love, and Scottish folklore with a vibrant Edinburgh backdrop. The setting feels alive, immersing readers in both the magic and the rich historical layers of the city. At its heart, this story is a powerful exploration of resistance against patriarchy and the journey to finding one's voice.

Thompson weaves a compelling narrative that is not only magical but deeply emotional, with complex characters that feel real and relatable. The romance adds a layer of warmth and connection, making the book even more engaging. For those who enjoy magical and feminist historical fiction, The Last Witch in Edinburgh is an absolute must-read. It’s a captivating, thought-provoking tale that will resonate long after you’ve finished.

I missed my opportunity to review this book but I recently had the chance to read it and wanted to write a brief review.

I seem to be in a bit of a time-travel, sapphic novel binge and this one was definitely an engaging read. The themes of women fighting against accusations of witchcraft across eons really resonated with me. The pacing was a little slow for me at time, especially in the beginning, but overall I felt like the story moved along well in the first half. However, I have to agree with several other readers that the second half of the book really fell flat for me. I understand where the author was coming from trying to draw parallels to modern-day, but the first half of the book's setting was so lush and cozy and mysterious that I honestly didn't want to leave, so that is what brought this down to 3 stars for me.

Loved this book -
Historical fiction 😍 witches & Edinburgh my favourite things! Loved how the Great Fire of Edinburgh tied into the story line. Great descriptions of Edinburgh past & present. Story has stayed with me & think about regularly. Will read more from this author. Thank you net galley.

The last Witch in edinburgh was a captivating read. I really enjoyed Nellie as a character, we start and she's in a perilous point in life. As the responsible adult in her household she finds herself adrift after losing her job. once she meets the women of raes apothecary I was hooked. ethers also a time shift this book is set over 200 years

A sapphic tale that extends across time.

The story is told my our main character, Nellie, a woman who knows the trials of being a beautiful. She receives unwanted attention from men, and struggles with standing up for herself. Nellie begins working at an apothecary run by witches, and learns about magic, love, and herself from them.

LGBTQIA rep and fuck the patriarchy vibes.

It is a powerful story that takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland, which historically burned many woman for being witches, and this story explores that truth.

I loved it!

How can I write out this review without it sounding too negative. There were elements that I really enjoyed and others that just really didn’t.
I found myself rather bored with it and that just hurt because I was really wanting to enjoy it

The main character, Nellie. so afraid of everything that it honestly was getting rather exhausting hearing about her weak and selfish excuses to remain back and hide. Are you going to do anything about it?

I preferred the secondary characters. The second half of the book in modern day times i expected that Nellie would have at least grown as a person but she was the same, no character growth at all. Just cowardice for hundreds of years.

I will admit the second half of this book took me a good while to get through. It did leave me wanting more. But it was also my first historical set fiction in a long time so it could have been lack of attention given in my part.

I did love the characters and found it easy to dive into the setting to immerse myself initially. Would definitely give this another read to give another chance though at a later date.

I sadly had to DNF this one. For some reason, the book couldn't keep my attention and longing to read further even though the start, the themes and setting of the book, the characters, and the concept interested me a lot.

The first quarter or so of the beginning of the book, I was truly immersed in the story. The atmosphere of 19th century Edinburgh and how it was and felt like to be a women back then, the constant fear, terror and violence, really gripped me and I was truly interested in seeing how the main character would navigate through all that, individually and with others as well, while knowing people truly had to go through all that. I always find it special to learn about such events through historical fiction, and grateful I can read about it and experience other's experiences without truly having to go through that myself, if that makes sense? I think the author did a really great job with that and the commentary she gave about womanhood, intersectional feminism, the patriarchy and similarities between the witch trials and misogyny in the modern world. I was highlighting a lot of quotes and scenes because they made me feel a lot of things, and some scenes and quotes even sparked some discussions between me and my boyfriend. I found it beautiful to see romance blossom and unfold between Nellie and Jane. It felt like a little spark of light and happiness shining through all of the dark that was going on. However, after their romance started, I somehow began to lose...not per se... interest, but, the story just couldn't hold my attention anymore. To me, it felt like the story started to become really slow and kept dragging on. To me, the pages started to feel so incredibly heavy. And of course, I understand this isn't a happy book, because...historical fiction. And I wouldn't change that. But, It just felt like the heaviness and repeating of it all was being forced and kind of shoved in my face instead of pacing naturally. What I mean to say is, It kind of felt like this book was written to be feminist and to be its topics/themes/events/history, instead of being its own story with the themes, topics or undertones of them. And that was overshadowing a lot and keeping me from wanting to read further. I think if I didn't feel so forced, and the story would have felt more natural, then I would have felt like I did want to read further. Because I still am interested somehow.

The Last Witch in Edinburgh is a very immersive, atmospheric powerful feminist story of love and empowerment amid the witch trials, representing queer and trans people, written with two timelines. I would advice to check the trigger warnings.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

DNF at 27% - I couldn't seem to get into this book even though it has everything that I normally love. The pacing felt very off and the main character's internal monologue was a bit frustrating to follow. EX: FMC dwelt on asking one character a question for several chapters before finally just asking the question and receiving the answers she was waiting for. I may try to revisit in the future, but for now a DNF.

Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for an E-ARC copy of this book.