Author: Sasha Peyton Smith
Publication Date: 31 August 2021
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Page Count: 448
Reading Method: Digital ARC [thank you to the publisher!]
Dates Read: August 10 – 12
Synopsis:
In 1911 New York City, seventeen-year-old Frances Hallowell spends her days as a seamstress, mourning the mysterious death of her brother months prior. Everything changes when she’s attacked and a man ends up dead at her feet—her scissors in his neck, and she can’t explain how they got there.
Before she can be condemned as a murderess, two cape-wearing nurses arrive to inform her she is deathly ill and ordered to report to Haxahaven Sanitarium. But Frances finds Haxahaven isn’t a sanitarium at all: it’s a school for witches. Within Haxahaven’s glittering walls, Frances finds the sisterhood she craves, but the headmistress warns Frances that magic is dangerous. Frances has no interest in the small, safe magic of her school, and is instead enchanted by Finn, a boy with magic himself who appears in her dreams and tells her he can teach her all she’s been craving to learn, lessons that may bring her closer to discovering what truly happened to her brother.
Frances’s newfound power attracts the attention of the leader of an ancient order who yearns for magical control of Manhattan. And who will stop at nothing to have Frances by his side. Frances must ultimately choose what matters more, justice for her murdered brother and her growing feelings for Finn, or the safety of her city and fellow witches. What price would she pay for power, and what if the truth is more terrible than she ever imagined?
Review:
Have I got a witchy recommendation for youuuuu! The Witch Haven is coming out right at the beginning of spooky season and it couldn’t be better timing. Add it to your witchy, spoopy tbr my friends because this was quite the story. It’s atmospheric, dark, and filled to the brim with magic.
Frances is whisked away to Haxahaven following a traumatizing incident and introduced to a world of magic she could never have imagined. At Haxahaven she meets a whole school full of witches, like herself, and begins learning to control her magical gift. While the school focuses mainly on little expenditures of magic, like sewing and household chores, Frances is much more interested in the immense power running through her veins and how she can harness it to communicate with her recently departed brother. With the help of Finn (the guy who appears in her dreams and convinces her he can teach her how to contact her brother) and two close friends, Frances embarks on an action packed journey.
I quite enjoyed the characters in The Witch Haven. Frances is a strong MC. She is driven, passionate, curious, and incredibly powerful. She is loyal to her friends and her family – though her obsession with seeing her brother again can be blinding at times. Her friends are absolutely magnificent. Maxine and Lena are supportive and just as fierce as Frances. Maxine was my favorite. She knows what she wants, what she deserves, and what she is worth, and accepts nothing less. Finn, the love interest is incredibly mysterious which makes him all the more intriguing.
The only thing I didn’t love about The Witch Haven is that the middle seemed to slow down and drag in places, mainly in the middle of the story. So much happens in this book, and I loved the overall story. The blend of historical fiction, secret magical societies, and an underlying mystery to be solved – immaculate! The ending didn’t take me completely by surprise, but I thought it was well done and believable.
