October ScaredyKit: Witches, Evil Spirits and Black Magic

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The haunting month of October is upon us and what better way to celebrate than by reading about the iconic symbol of Halloween, the witch and their familiars. Images of witches have appeared in various forms throughout history – visions of evil, wart-nosed women huddling over a cauldron of boiling liquid or hag-faced, cackling beings riding through the sky on brooms, wearing pointy hats. Nowadays, witches are often pictured as young, beautiful sexy women wanting to lure men to their doom. Of course, not all witches are evil, there are plenty of tales about white witches who only do good or women that are natural healers or so-called “wise women” whose ways were often misunderstood.

Whether you want to read about a witch, an evil spirit or black magic, October is the perfect time to do it. Your options are wide open as there are literally hundreds of books that will fit this months theme.

I’ve listed a few and added a link to a list from Goodreads showing the Best Books With Witches for your convenience.

The Witching Hour by Anne Rice
Wicked by Gregory Maguire
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
The Witch's Daughter by Paula Brackston
The Darkest Lullaby by Jonathan Janz
Four and Twenty Blackbirds by Cherie Priest
A Skinful of Shadows by Frances Hardinge
Types of Demons & Evil Spirits by Michael Freze

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/11296.Best_Books_With_Witches

Have fun with your October reads and don’t forget to let us know what you are planning on reading. Also, here is the link to the ScaredyKit Wiki: https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/2022_ScaredyKIT

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I am planning on reading The Thirteen by Susie Moloney and The Dogs by Allan Stratton.

Will probably look at my tbr on the weekend, but I suspect I'll have a book about witches.

Mine is a more tame witch book as I am finally going to read Hocus Pocus for a buddy watch of the two movies.

I've got A Discovery of Witches earmarked for this challenge--I've been meaning to get around to it for ages!

>5 whitewavedarling: I've had that for ages too! I think if I looked through my TBR, I would have probably have a ton of books. I know I have The Lighthouse Witches, Witches of Ash and Ruin, The Nature of Witches, The Once and Future Witches, Truthwitch, The Witch King - and that is just the ones with witch in the title!

I'm going to continue the Essex Witch Museum Mystery series with Strange Tombs by Syd Moore

My latest Early Reviewer book fits this category. I'll be reading something else too.

How to Make Friends With a Ghost by Rebecca Green
A sweet instruction book providing advice on how to make friends with a ghost - and keeping that lifelong friend. Nothing scary, but enough gross stuff to warrant squeals of delighted disgust.

"Ghosts love to play peek-a-BOO"

I read Children's Halloween 1: The Witch Next Door by Dr.Mc. When I asked for a book on witches or ghosts from the grandkids, this is what I got! An okay book for a reader from about 8-12. 32 pages. Cute! I will try to get something more adultish. Have been wanting to reread The Witch of Blackbird Pond for sometime.

>9 Tess_W: I bet the grandkids love picking out books for you, Tess. I remember how much my grandkids enjoyed picking out books for me when they were younger.

>5 whitewavedarling: I really enjoyed that book as well.

And I finished (in September - it's been a while!) The Once and Future Witches and found it absolutely fantastic. It took several months to read - it's one of those that I'd pick up like a good glass of full-bodied red wine, and then have to put down because, well, red wine.

I think I've got a couple of witchy books on my shelves that I've been waiting till October to read. I'll add them here.

I am using Macbeth by Jo Nesbo here. It's not horror exactly but it is a violent and gruesome thriller. And the "drug addled Asians" may not necessarily be witches they do some prophesying so maybe they are.

I will be starting Hocus Pocus next week. I think it will be a fun read.

I read Sinfully Delicious by Amanda M Lee. It is advertised as a witch cozy mystery, although it is more of an introduction to the character and her skills.

I read Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden by M.C. Beaton
It's midwinter and Agatha goes to Wyckhadden, a seaside resort to wait while her hair grows out after a malicious hairstylist used depilatory on it. There she was recommended to consult a local witch to get a hair restorer. She also decided that a bottle of love potion would be a handy thing to have. A typical Agatha Raisin story. When will she ever learn? A light, fun read.

The November ScaredyKit is up.

Hour of the Witch / Chris Bohjalian
3.5 stars

In 17th century Boston, Mary has been married to Thomas for 5 years. He is incredibly abusive toward her, both physically and mentally, but always when there is no one else to notice anything askew. When Mary finally decides she can take it no longer (after he has put a (new-fangled) fork (aka Devil’s tines) through her hand), she is determined to divorce him. In the meantime, though, there have been whisperings of witchcraft. There is a woman in town who dislikes Mary, and Mary and Thomas’ indentured servant also suspects Mary of witchcraft (in part, due to those forks!).

This was good. It felt slow-moving even though we got to Mary’s petition for divorce fairly early on in the book, but of course, this wasn’t the entirety of the story. There were a couple of twists toward the end. I found the bit about the forks interesting – that is, they were a new item and people looked on them suspiciously. I had no idea! I did like the book, but there are others by the author that I’ve liked better.

I don't have many witchy books, but I did read Spooksville: The Witch's Revenge, which has a castle-owning witch trapping a group of kids inside and making them wear cursed necklaces.

I have picked up M is for Magic, short stories by Neil Gaiman.

I read a short novel called Weep, Woman, Weep by Maria DeBlassie. There are two witches in the story: La Llorona, a figure from folk legend who targets women, and the main character, who works positive magic of healing and rebirth. I enjoyed it a lot, and I'd particularly recommend it to those looking to read more diverse authors.

I read The Once and Future Witches, The Factory Witches of Lowell, The Witch's Heart, and Brownies and Broomsticks. The last one I used as a food related mystery for the MysteryKIT also. Still reading Circe for this and the RandomKIT.

I also finished reading Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett this month. I love Granny Weatherwax.

I'm about halfway through Daughters of Witching Hill and read to the halfway point in one sitting. I'm definitely finishing this book this month! It's incredibly engaging and just pulled me right in.

Including this here, as there was one who was definitely considered a witch. Summary at the end actually indicated a few more

Lady Killers: Deadly Women Throughout History / Tori Telfer
4 stars

This book looks at historical women serial killers. There are a number of stories of different women in different places and times, from the 13th century up to the 1950s.

As interesting as I found all of these stories as I read them, they do read like short stories, so (unfortunately) by the end, I have already forgotten details of the earlier stories in the book. Even so, I was certainly very interested and very much “enjoyed” reading the stories.

Many of the women killed via poison, but not all. There were a few very cruel women included (that is, they killed by other cruel ways); the two that immediately come to mind were both nobility in their respective countries and time periods. I really liked the author’s writing style, and she even injected a bit of humour at times. I also liked that the author was also able to find out personal information on these women, not just information about the murders they committed (she talks in the afterword about cutting out a couple of people she wanted to include, but she just couldn’t find enough info on them).

We are planning the 2023 ScaredyKIT here: https://www.librarything.com/topic/345447

I have completed my read of The Thirteen by Susie Moloney.

Finished reading Daughters of the Witching Hill which does a lot to explain the views of folk magic and the evilness associated with witches (thank you, James I!).

In all seriousness, it is a marvelous book that looks back at the change in life for the desperately poor after Thomas Cromwell shuts down the abbeys and monasteries, and England ends its inclusion of Catholic feast days and celebrations. Describing historical events, even taken from the trial transcripts, the voicing of this book lends to its authenticity of the characters.