The Year Of Witching.

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CONTAINS SPOILERS

In the lands of Bethel, where the Prophet’s word is law, Immanuelle Moore’s very existence is blasphemy. Her mother’s union with an outsider of a different race cast her once-proud family into disgrace, so Immanuelle does her best to worship the Father, follow Holy Protocol, and lead a life of submission, devotion, and absolute conformity, like all the other women in the settlement. 

But a mishap lures her into the forbidden Darkwood surrounding Bethel, where the first prophet once chased and killed four powerful witches. Their spirits are still lurking there, and they bestow a gift on Immanuelle: the journal of her dead mother, who Immanuelle is shocked to learn once sought sanctuary in the wood. 

Fascinated by the secrets in the diary, Immanuelle finds herself struggling to understand how her mother could have consorted with the witches. But when she begins to learn grim truths about the Church and its history, she realizes the true threat to Bethel is its own darkness. And she starts to understand that if Bethel is to change, it must begin with her. 

 

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  Dark. Mysterious. Magical. 

I love any books that deal with witches, wizards, and witchcraft. I fell in love with those stories when I read Harry Potter in middle school. Since then, I have read a few different books about witches. I have been hearing about THE YEAR OF WITCHING for a while but had to wait for a while because there was a long list of holds. Now that I have read it, I know that this book was worth the wait. THE YEAR OF WITCHING is the type of books that I love. This story was unlike any other book that I read. THE YEAR OF WITCHING had me thinking about the Salem Trials, except this one had unexpected twists. This was one of the books that I wasn’t sure what to expect since I wasn’t familiar with the author. On the other hand, I was curious about this story because so many were talking about it. Now I know why. THE YEAR OF WITCHING was one of the darker witch stories and not the kind of witches that you would want to meet. THE YEAR OF THE WITCHING portrayed the witches the way I always thought of them before reading Harry Potter. 

I was engaged with the story from the first page. From the start, you wonder what is going to happen with Immanuelle. As the story progressed, it got more challenging for me to put the book down. When I was sure that I could put down, something happened that kept me reading for a couple more hours. THE YEAR OF WITCHING was a hard book to put down. I had forced myself to put down, and I knew if I wanted to finish my homework, I had to. It was the book that I was looking forward to reading all day. THE YEAR OF WITCHING had amazing descriptions, and the way that Immanuelle’s emotions were portrayed had me imagining that I was in Bethel, in the Darkwood. I had a feeling that something terrible would happen when Immanuelle went into the Darkwood; I knew that there was a reason that her grandmother told her to stay away. I hoped that she would stop the plaque, but I wasn’t sure if she could stop it. I loved that she kept on going, that not even once did she give up. 

Prophet. He’s not a character you will like. I was not too fond of the way that he treated others, especially girls. There was a part of me that hoped that someone would be able to put a stop to it. I did wonder if maybe that person would end up being Immanuelle. Ezra. What is there to say about him? I had a good feeling about him from the start. I had a hard time believing that he was related to Prophet. It didn’t take long to see how much Ezra cared about her, even if Immanuelle did not at first. He had helped her and looked her out so many times. He even got himself captured, to protect her. If that’s not love, then I don’t know what is. I do wonder what happens with them after. THE YEAR OF WITCHING is a beautiful story, a story that will be hard to describe in a review. I don’t think I can even express all my emotions; there are so many. If you love fantasy, witches, adventure, then I would highly recommend this book. Not a book that you will regret checking out.