Hello Readers!

So, with women’s history month in full effect, I wanted to get my hands on some novels centering on women’s issues. That’s why today I’m sharing my review of Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix.

I know, I know, this isn’t written by a woman. However, the central focus of this recently released book got me interested, especially since I’m not very educated on how pregnant women were treated in the 1970s (in this case, unwed mothers).

I’ve had a bit of a hit or miss relationship with this author, but I dove right in with high hopes. Let’s see how it went!

Blurb

There’s power in a book…

They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to the Wellwood Home in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened.

Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. Under the watchful eye of the stern Miss Wellwood, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. There’s Rose, a hippie who insists she’s going to find a way to keep her baby and escape to a commune. And Zinnia, a budding musician who knows she’s going to go home and marry her baby’s father. And Holly, a wisp of a girl, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who.

Everything the girls eat, every moment of their waking day, and everything they’re allowed to talk about is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what’s best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely. There’s always a price to be paid…and it’s usually paid in blood.

In Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, the author of How to Sell a Haunted House and The Final Girl Support Group delivers another searing, completely original novel and further cements his status as a “horror master” (NPR).

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The Review

I had some mixed feelings on this read.

In a nutshell, this novel is about a young woman Neva. She finds herself pregnant and abandoned by her beau, and when her parents learn of her condition they take her to a home for unwed mothers. There, she and other girls like her learn the brutal truth of their situation, and as they desperately look for a solution, they find witchcraft.

On paper, this book had a lot of things I love. Homage to women’s struggles in the 70s, empowerment, and witchcraft? It sounds like a match made in heaven, but I didn’t connect with this novel as much as I wanted to.

The thing that affected me most was the slow beginning. It takes almost the first third of the book for things to pick up. This was more character-driven, and while I don’t mind that, I prefer a moderately-paced read. Many of the chapters were learning about the other girls in the home, and while I appreciated all the buildup, it felt like it could’ve been cut short a little. Certain parts outside of the beginning dragged a bit for me too and it made it more of a chore to continue this read.

I really liked Neva as an MC. She goes through hell and back with her journey, so there was a ton of progression and all the feels as she struggles to find a way through her predicament. I especially loved Rose and her fiery temper, and Zinnia as the cautious one in the group.

Once the plot does pick up it’s not bad, just not what I expected.

I think if you love Hendrix’s work in general or a character-driven story you’ll adore this one, but if you’re looking for something more fast-paced, you may want to look elsewhere to get your bookish fix.

That’s A Wrap!

Well that’s it for this book review. Like what you see? Leave a tip!

Have you read this book? Are there other similar books you’ve read that you simply have to gush about? Feel free to leave a comment. I’d love to start a conversation!

Have a great day!

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