Louise Marley (1) (1952–)

2.5. I loved some elements of the worldbuilding, particularly the central idea of medicine being "women's work" and taboo for men, and I cared enough about the characters to keep reading. Alas, I found the story predictable and lacking in nuance. Many of the scenes did a better job telegraphing the political views of the author than telling a good story.

As far as this being a very second-wave feminist, white-lady take on a conservative Muslim-inspired culture, well, it could have been worse. That said, I was very sad not to see any portrayal of female spirituality. Most of the women in this book seem totally alienated from their own religion, and I don't think that's a fair portrayal of conservative Muslim women at all.… (mehr)

I enjoyed certain parts of this book, particular stories of the women involved and, others, not so much. It started with promise, sort of went downhill in the middle then picked up with Morwen's story. Unfortunately, that was about as good as it got.

The final story, to me, seemed disjointed and lost. Almost as if the Author had run out of things these women and their descendants could do. In the final story, she has a tendency to use the same words over and again; did she lose her thesaurus?

Despite this, I will try reading some of her other works in the hopes it was just this story she had difficulty holding together.… (mehr)

Spanning from Brittany in the 1820’s to London during World War II, this is a family saga with a twist.

The book almost reads like a book of 5 short stories. Stories that are connected yet complete in themselves. Told in separate sections starting in 1821, each section focuses on the life of each of the 5 witches in the Orchiéres families descendants and revolves around the relationships between mothers and daughters, each generation’s loves rivalries, and the fight they face to keep their beliefs and craft hidden.

The different women in each story are all distinct characters and not all are very pleasant or likeable! I did find that some stories were better than others with the best being Nanette’s story which takes us through the main storyline and taking us on to the next generation.

The world war 2 part will require you to suspend reality and embrace the magic of the witches and even though it maybe a stretch of the imagination it is a great addition to the book bringing real life history and giving it a whole new magical spin to it.

The only thing i am a bit disappointed in was the ending but perhaps it’s been left open for a sequel. I really hope so!!… (mehr)