Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC!

4.5 stars. Minerva is a graduate student working on a thesis about a little-known woman horror author, Beatrice Tremblay, who was one of Lovecraft's contemporaries. Her search for source materials leads her to Caroyln, one of Beatrice's friends and a very rich benefactor of Minerva's college. As she continues her research, she often flashes back to her grandmother Alba's stories of witches. These three timelines twist around one another, leading to a satisfying, if predictable, conclusion. Despite the predictability of the antagonists, I found this book hard to put down and completely absorbing. I loved nerding out over the horror history Easter eggs, and each of the three timelines were fully fleshed out, all with a solid sense of place and nuanced characters. I loved Alba's complicated relationship with her uncle. The depiction of spiritualism in the 1930s and discussions of classism were poignant. Minerva's 1998 setting really took me back and made me nostalgic. Themes of classism were present throughout the entire novel, not just the 1930s timeline, as was an undercurrent of racism. I deeply appreciated the queer representation (sapphic - specifically lesbian, and the unnamed ace rep). Moreno-Garcia's craft was really on point in this novel, it was my favorite of her work since Mexican Gothic. The narrative frame reminded me of Plain Bad Heroines which I also loved. I suggest this for fans of historical horror, queer horror, and readers who enjoy multiple POV/timelines.

This multi-generational, multi-timeline witchy historical horror was amazing! We follow three women in three timelines, all connected to witchy happenings and disappearances, from Minerva in 1998 Massachusetts, her grandma in 1908 Mexico and Betty in 1934 Massachusetts. I loved the college setting, the shades of dark academia, the inspiration of Mexican traditional tales, the mention of writers such as Lovecraft, M. R. James and Shirley Jackson, and the overall spooky 90s feel. One I highly recommend! Four stars as the plot/whodunnit was quite obvious but the vibes were 5 stars. So 4.5 stars overall!

I've always been a huge fan of Silvia Moreno-Garcia but, in my opinion, I think this is her best work yet. This book hooked me from the very beginning and I could barely put it down.

The book is divided into three separate yet intertwined stories: 1998 (Minerva), 1934 (Beatrice), and 1908 (Alba). Minerva (1998) is an international student from Mexico enrolled as a graduate student at Stoneridge College on the North Shore of Boston (based on Endicott! iykyk) and working on her thesis about the little known horror author, Beatrice Tremblay. Beatrice Tremblay (1934) is a Stoneridge Alumni who kept records of her roommate and friend, Virginia Somerset's, slow decline into "madness" and mysterious disappearance - then went on to become one of the few female horror writers of her time. Alba (1908) is Minerva's great grandmother who educated Minerva on the existence of witches by telling of her own personal experience, which turns out to be an exceptionally helpful resource for Minerva later on.

As only Silvia Moreno-Garcia can do, she beautifully fleshes out each character and intertwines the three stories as if they cannot exist without each other. This is a book about bewitchment ("Witches may toy with a person, sour a day or two of their life, then move on to other matters. Their magic is often slight... But a bewitchment, that is a different tale. Not just a campaign, a siege."), multigenerational horror, and touches on the collective unconscious/ancestral memory shared by all humankind. The variation between the time periods helped keep things interesting and I enjoyed seeing the stories slowly piece together. I loved that Minerva was able to draw on the syncretic and tales told to her by great grandmother to outwit a predator existing among her.

I also give this book a lot of credit because it was CHOCK FULL of the dark, gas-lighty, paranoia, type of horror without being confusing or frustrating - which is a difficult feat to pull off, IMO. I think it helps that the characters in this book, like most of Silvia Moreno-Garcia's books, are intelligent, strong, individuals. These characters are not looking to make friends or find a boyfriend/girlfriend, and that is so refreshing to me. The writing is smart and well researched - there are often tidbits of factual information - which always appeals to me. Possibly an unpopular opinion, but I am always genuinely pleased when I come away from reading a book with a fun new bit of information.

Extra points for adding a cat/ghost cat (even if he had a questionable fate), and for the shout out to Stephen Graham Jones in one of the 1998 chapters!!

Anyway- go read this book!!! :D

This book is the perfect one day read if you want some horror and fantasy vibes. The author does a great job at tying three women’s lives and building their story around their connections to each other. While some aspect of the book left me feeling a bit weird and the romance did not hit the mark for me, I still feel like it’s an interesting showcasing of witches and add to the myths around them.

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again,Mexican Gothic is one of the best contemporary gothic novels of all time. Silvia Moreno-Garcia is an exquisite writer and has written in so many genres and I applaud her for that. Unfortunately, this one just did not work for me. I’m not really a horror reader and this as pretty heavy on the horror, if I’m being honest I barely finished this book. It just wasn’t for me, the writing is still great though.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

If a dead rat ever shows up on your bed— just basically run for your life I guess?

This got off to a slow start for me. It took until about 1/3 in for me to start to feel like real emotion and tension while reading. I felt mostly invested in seeing where the story ended by the halfway mark. By 2/3 I was locked TF in. I say this because the pacing is intentional, but you gotta get to the end for the payoff.

This is momentum building spooky witch book with wonderfully nuanced characters, genuine tension, and dark academia vibes that set the tone. Spanning three different eras and three different women this book explored themes of depression, heritage and legacy, and connections to the divine.

Stuff I liked:
-Characters felt nuanced and solid. No complaints there.
-this was definitely horror but it felt like horror-lite. Most of the intense stuff happens towards the end. This was perfect for me as I’m not a horror girlie so this was within my comfort zone for freak.
-some open ended stuff which I liked cause it means I can imagine a happy romantic ending haha
-witchy magic vibes are immaculate. This was horror yes but also some wonderful magical surrealism.

Stuff I didn’t like:
-I’ve read every review on this book so far and only one person has eluded to the incest. You guys????? Am I dumb??? That was her biological uncle????? Genuinely what am I missing???? I truly get how the motivations play out due to the uncle/niece dynamic and I can see how the author is moving those pieces but I have a hard time believing it was necessary but I am open to being wrong here? I kinda draw the line at incest typically.


Okay that being said. Loved the book. 5 stars other than the incest lol.

The Bewitching kept me sitting on the edge of my seat throughout the whole book. I love Silvia's way of writing from the tone to the language. She paints such a vivid picture of her story it feels like I am watching a movie!

I always love reading Moreno-Garcia’s books, this one was no different. I thought there would be more action than there ended up being, but overall I cared about the characters and loved seeing how each of their stories unraveled throughout the book. The gradual increase in the feeling of being haunted was great and left me a little scared myself when I would read too late at night. The eventual reveal of the mystery was slightly predictable but the way the story progressed didn’t make it disappointing to me. Overall, another wonderful book from a wonderful author I will continue to support.

I could not put this book down. I fell in love with this book and all the characters, even those who were a little mysterious and strange. I loved the twists and how all the stories twined together so smoothly. This book feels well thought out and the plot was exceptional. I highly recommend this book!

First, I'd like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy.
Overall, I enjoyed the book, but I found it lacking in some aspects. The writing is good, but the pacing is a bit slow, and it took me some time to feel connected to the characters and the story. I think I was expecting a bit more suspense—I wanted to be on the edge of my seat, biting my nails—but that never happened. I also found it somewhat predictable, as I guessed who the villains were pretty early on.
Aside from that, I had a good time. This is my second book by the author, and I would read more from her.
It's worth noting that at position 2701, the names Betty and Ginny are switched. The phrase "Ginny, whatever happens, you must believe me. Promise me, please." should instead be "Betty, whatever happens...".

It happens by chance, or as Silvia Moreno-Garcia may place it, by a portent knowing. You happen across a book that your very soul had always been yearning to read. Once you open its pages, you are already caught in the bewitching. You sink into a world of dark academia and magic that challenges convention with the first breath it takes. Getting lost in archives of texts, old books on magic, conversations that treat Lovecraft and Shirley Jackson as old friends and a tenacious main character with a penchant for 90s rock music, you become as much a part of the mystery as everything else. Then, you follow, deeper into the thicket. Through groves and witches trails, Mexican folktales and gothic horrors, strung along by the cunningness of a creator who knows her plays. The Bewitching unsettles and awakens. It does not go down quietly. The spell only ends when you read the last word, and even then, you are left still thinking of it. The bewitchery, the horror; the tenderness, survival and the utter defiance of magic.

📖 Book Review 📖 Something beautifully witchy comes our way in Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s latest novel. The Bewitching magically weaves together the history of three women in three very different eras, connected through an invisible string of a sisterhood that transcends time. Across cultures and generations, powerful women have been accused of witchcraft from fearful men, including my husband's many times removed grandmother (her name was Rebecca Nurse and her memorial can be found in Salem, Massachusetts), but a darker story with layers of intrigue and horror lies beneath the surface. Silvia Moreno-Garcia once again delivers an absolutely chillingly resplendent tale in The Bewitching.

The Bewitching is a suspenseful story covering three separate timelines, and in each timeline there are mysterious happenings. The more modern timeline is in 1998, where a college student is investigating the true story behind a disappearance. This character’s grandmother encountered witches in Mexico in 1908, which is another storyline.

The book switches between storylines, interweaving the mysterious occurrences and deeds done by witches throughout time.

I thought this was a really good book, I liked how the plot lines all connected. The relationship between the uncle and niece was…problematic, but I think that’s the point. I enjoyed the air of suspense, as I think we’ve all had those moments where you feel like you’re being watched, but turn around and find no one.

This was an amazingly atmospheric book. The three time frames were well established and felt fleshed out. While it was easy to determine the villain of each era early on, it did not ruin my enjoyment of the novel. In fact, it was incredibly hard to put down

Three disappearances steeped in dark magic will haunt readers long after they have solved the mystery.

Silvia Moreno Garcia skillfully weaves Mexican culture into the world of witches and dark enchantments. In 1998, English Graduate Student Minerva unravels a decades-old missing-person case while researching her thesis. Uncovering her favorite author's manuscripts and reflecting on her great-grandmother's stories lead Minerva down a treacherous path.

Brilliant pacing and distinct narrative voices make each era in this story engaging. Readers will be eager to unravel the mysteries alongside Minerva and her great-grandmother Alba, and the chapters by fictional author Beatrice Tremblay will leave them wishing they could read her novels. When you think the story will zig, it opts to zag, keeping it engaging even at its most predictable. Centering Mexican culture and folklore and in the classic New England horror tradition, The Bewitching cements Moreno-Garcia alongside horror greats like Shirley Jackson and Stephen King.

A highly readable and delightfully chilling intergenerational tale that satisfies horror, mystery, and fantasy fans alike.

I absolutely loved this book! The way Moreno-Garcia weaves together three different timelines is masterful—each one seamlessly blending into the next without ever feeling confusing. The story was so captivating that I didn’t want to put it down! The theme was beautifully executed, and everything tied together perfectly in the end. If you love immersive storytelling with a touch of magic, this one’s a must-read! 🌙✨ #TheBewitching #BookReview #SilviaMorenoGarcia #MustRead

I know The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is not being published until later in the year, but Moreno-Garcia is one of those authors where I will read everything they write as soon as I can get my hands on it. I actually started reading her books with Gods of Jade and Shadow and then read Mexican Gothic. I've been hooked ever since. I see there will be a special edition of The Bewitching through Goldsboro when it's published... and I'm really tempted.

As you'll read in the synopsis, the book follows three separate women over three timelines. If you're a fan of the supernatural and witches, this book is a book for you. Throughout the years, there have been several disappearances that impact the women the story follows, and as Minerva is researching her thesis Minerva starts to feel a darkness around her.

The book is captivating, and I was riveted right from the start. In typical fashion, Moreno-Garcia does a great job (in my opinion) of fleshing out all three main protagonists and manages to create a beautiful interplay of their three stories. Just because something is a horror or suspense novel, does not mean there is no beauty in it, and I found with this book there was such strength in the women and they were all really well written. The story itself is one that grabs the reader and doesn't let them go. Once the reader starts... it's very difficult to put the book down. I don't think there has been a book I've read of Moreno-Garcia's that I didn't like, and this book continues that trend. Definitely get your hands on this book as soon as it's available to you.

Please be advised I received an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book follows three different women in three different timelines, but each woman still stands on her own with a unique backstory and personality. The woman the story follows aren’t your typical potion and cauldron witches either, but rather the magic is based around Mexican folklore which is an interesting and refreshing change. The only gripe I had with the book is that the pacing felt slow and the beginning but slowly picked up towards the end.

This book is the epitome of being launched straight into a gothic, suspenseful and atmospheric book that consistently kept me on my toes. Once I got about 20% of the way through, I found that I couldn't put it down.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia writes so enchantingly, her atmospheres are my favourite things about her stories. Initially, I felt that jumping between timelines would feel jarring, but the stories flow felt incredibly intentional and natural and amplified the suspenseful and gothic nature of the stories. The twists felt obvious to me about 40% of the way through the book, but that didn't take away from my enjoyment of the novel and kept bringing me back to find out what was going to happen next.

As a horror novel fan, I loved the intertextuality weaved throughout the novel. Nods and references to other famous horror writers and novelists throughout the story. I was convinced that Beatrice Tremblay was a real author and spent atleast 10 minutes after reading the first few chapters prior to reading Tremblay's perspectives scouring the internet trying to find her novels.

Overall, this story is magic in and of itself. Moreno-Garcia is masterclass in prose, and I cannot wait for this title to release to talk about it with my customers.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARC copy of this book.

This book has three different stories told in different times. In 1998, Minerva is researching an obscure horror writer that had connections to a disappearance at the same university that she is now attending. Her great grandmother, Alba, had always told her ghost stories and taught her about witchcraft and portents. Minerva starts to learn that these lessons may be vital to her survival as she uncovers what happened in the 1930s disappearance after reading the manuscripts of the author she is researching.

I enjoyed this book a lot. I like Silvia Moreno-Garcia's work. For people who really like scary books, I don't think I would recommend on that front. It has some creepy parts and suspense, but it wasn't really very scary. However, seeing how the mystery unfolded was fun.