The Once and Future Witches
- Downloads：3556
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-23 11:52:38
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Alix E. Harrow
- ISBN：0356512479
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
In 1893， there's no such thing as witches。 There used to be， in the wild， dark days before the burnings began， but now witching is nothing but tidy charms and nursery rhymes。 If the modern woman wants any measure of power， she must find it at the ballot box。
But when the Eastwood sisters--James Juniper， Agnes Amaranth， and Beatrice Belladonna--join the suffragists of New Salem， they begin to pursue the forgotten words and ways that might turn the women's movement into the witch's movement。 Stalked by shadows and sickness， hunted by forces who will not suffer a witch to vote-and perhaps not even to live-the sisters will need to delve into the oldest magics， draw new alliances， and heal the bond between them if they want to survive。
There's no such thing as witches。 But there will be。
But when the Eastwood sisters--James Juniper， Agnes Amaranth， and Beatrice Belladonna--join the suffragists of New Salem， they begin to pursue the forgotten words and ways that might turn the women's movement into the witch's movement。 Stalked by shadows and sickness， hunted by forces who will not suffer a witch to vote-and perhaps not even to live-the sisters will need to delve into the oldest magics， draw new alliances， and heal the bond between them if they want to survive。
There's no such thing as witches。 But there will be。
Reviews
Kat
，
This tale of women wanting to be witches starts out slow and preachy， almost maudlin， but damn， does it hit its stride。 I took a few weeks getting through the first 30% and read the rest tonight （it's 4:15am in the UK and it's getting light and the birds are out）。 Would read again。 This tale of women wanting to be witches starts out slow and preachy， almost maudlin， but damn， does it hit its stride。 I took a few weeks getting through the first 30% and read the rest tonight （it's 4:15am in the UK and it's getting light and the birds are out）。 Would read again。 。。。more
serene lim
，
interesting how she made nursery rhymes into spells
Amber
，
A beautifully written feminist fairytale about sisters conquering adversity through community， love， and magic。
Mary Johnson
，
Bewitching and beautiful。 Witches and suffragettes woven together in sisterhood and defiance。
Danielle
，
3。5
Jessika Griffin
，
Compelling intersectional feminist fiction。 Practical Magic vibes with strong fantasy elements。 Despite the rather heavy handed metaphors， this is a light， fast read and I was left wanting to explore a little more in the world Harrow created。 Cant wait to read more by this author。
Nicole
，
3。5 stars if I could。 Magical， lyrical blend of updated fairytale and historical fiction。
Carla
，
Interesting take on a witch story， interweaving magic with familiar fairy tales and children’s rhymes and very much about the struggle of women everywhere， before and now， living in a man’s world。
Keets
，
3。5 stars。 Started out strong but as the story continued， fell back on tropes and familiar storylines。 This was a story that couldn’t decide if it wanted to be big or small。 The last third was a big， prolonged jumble that had me longing for the end。
Sharon
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Three sisters， estranged and distrustful。 Centuries of spells hidden in rhymes and bedtime stories。 A tower in a magical space-time。 A magician taking over the lives of others。 The stories of how they brought magic back for all， and used it as a means of freedom and equality。 With lots of help from other women and the occasional man also striving for their own freedom。 It starts a little slow but picks up the pace as the characterization develops and the action includes everyone。 The setting is Three sisters， estranged and distrustful。 Centuries of spells hidden in rhymes and bedtime stories。 A tower in a magical space-time。 A magician taking over the lives of others。 The stories of how they brought magic back for all， and used it as a means of freedom and equality。 With lots of help from other women and the occasional man also striving for their own freedom。 It starts a little slow but picks up the pace as the characterization develops and the action includes everyone。 The setting is a steampunk Northeastern town， replacing magic with industrial revolution technology。 The powerful are cruel， the powerless are trapped- until magic tips the balance， and leads to a hopeful future。 For who can love anyone else if one knows loved ones can be lost to the cruelty of the powerful？ This book makes the point that love for others requires freedom， and a society of equals。 。。。more
Tara
，
Political stories at their finest！ I always love those stories of people fighting hard for their rights， especially when it features the struggles of women [for obvious reasons]。 There are sadly so many relevant points here that still remain present today。 Fighting for rights is an exhausting endeavor， it takes an army to achieve success and the love and support of many to make ground forward in the right direction。This is the perfect tale for this time in our lives， where we have so many simila Political stories at their finest！ I always love those stories of people fighting hard for their rights， especially when it features the struggles of women [for obvious reasons]。 There are sadly so many relevant points here that still remain present today。 Fighting for rights is an exhausting endeavor， it takes an army to achieve success and the love and support of many to make ground forward in the right direction。This is the perfect tale for this time in our lives， where we have so many similar struggles - in different forms。 I haven't read many witchy books。 They're kind of on the same vein as 'urban fantasy' is for me， where it can be a serious hit or miss， but this one was a treat。 The found family is the trope I love the very most！ But also real family coming together for support [even if they have some serious differences]。 Family doesn't always have to get along to be successful in the end。It was an emotional roller coaster all the way through especially for those familiar with existing as fodder for the abusive sort。 The sort that strive to treat woman as lesser beings。 。。。more
Michaelyn
，
An amazing， beautiful read。 Every time I thought the plot couldn't go further， it kept going in the best way。 An amazing， beautiful read。 Every time I thought the plot couldn't go further， it kept going in the best way。 。。。more
Carolyn Fitzpatrick
，
A really creative blend of fantasy， history， and feminism。 Set in 1893， the story touches on a few actual historic events。 There are references to the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and Eugene Deb's Pullman Strike。 There are also a lot of references to historic people， who have been genderswapped。 We have the Sisters Grimm， Aunt Nancy （Anansi）， Dante， Charlotte Pierrot。。。 That is because in this version of the past， women have been forced to use fairy tales and nursery rhymes to hide the magic A really creative blend of fantasy， history， and feminism。 Set in 1893， the story touches on a few actual historic events。 There are references to the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and Eugene Deb's Pullman Strike。 There are also a lot of references to historic people， who have been genderswapped。 We have the Sisters Grimm， Aunt Nancy （Anansi）， Dante， Charlotte Pierrot。。。 That is because in this version of the past， women have been forced to use fairy tales and nursery rhymes to hide the magic that they once wielded openly。 Each chapter begins with one of these hidden spells， plus the ingredients to release its power。 The protagonists are the Eastwood sisters， who are estranged from one another when the book begins。 We learn the reasons for their suspicions very slowly， over most of the book。 But they find each other again just as an especially dangerous witch-hater is rising to power in New Salem。 In their struggle against him， the sisters ally with women across society， increasing their magical knowledge as they go。 There are characters of diverse races， sexual orientations， and social classes。 Their interactions are hopeful but also realistic， reflecting social divisions then and now。 。。。more
Sheri Young
，
The love story between three sisters， woven through their magic and feminism in a Salem from another timeline。
Bee
，
Very lyrical。 Great book！
Mary
，
It's a nice premise but the author tries way too hard。 I think it was the trans character at the end that really made everything feel too perfectly woke。 It is a fun world though and a fun revolution。 It's a nice premise but the author tries way too hard。 I think it was the trans character at the end that really made everything feel too perfectly woke。 It is a fun world though and a fun revolution。 。。。more
Sarah （gingerb0oks）
，
Good concept， nice writing， interesting characters - no complaints here！ I looked forward to curling up and reading this each evening and it took me a whole week to read。 Alix E Harrow's prose is wonderful， so I didn't mind taking my time with this book。 I enjoyed how magic was found and used here。 I felt like it got more and more "witchy" throughout。 I also really liked how even though it is standalone， by the end of the book I really felt connected to all three sisters and there was something Good concept， nice writing， interesting characters - no complaints here！ I looked forward to curling up and reading this each evening and it took me a whole week to read。 Alix E Harrow's prose is wonderful， so I didn't mind taking my time with this book。 I enjoyed how magic was found and used here。 I felt like it got more and more "witchy" throughout。 I also really liked how even though it is standalone， by the end of the book I really felt connected to all three sisters and there was something different I liked about each one。The story may have started to lull for me in the middle but it soon picked back up。 I liked Beatrice Belladonna Eastwood the most so enjoyed reading her chapters。 I found I saw little parts of myself in the librarian and loved following her journey through this book。 Fiesty James Juniper Eastwood kept me on my toes， and Agnes Amaranth Eastwood kept me grounded。 Family meant everything to these three， they'd all experienced trauma and wrongdoing - and I felt like I owed it to each one to keep reading to find out what had happened and how they could find their way back to each other and a way to stay together。So yeah， witches， power， feminism， all very intriguing and interesting to me。 A bit dark in parts， but I liked that， it made it more real and reminded me what the stakes were （no pun intended） I kinda felt like there was a bit of taste of revenge， or at the very least， taking back what was owed which left me feeling very empowered。 。。。more
Sorcha
，
I went into this book was very high expectations。 Witches and Suffragettes？ My favourite。 On the whole， it didn't live up to that， though parts of it certainly did。 It was much slower paced than I anticipated， which made it difficult to get into; I was 200+ pages in before I felt something was really happening。 But the parts that were fantastic were really fantastic。 I went into this book was very high expectations。 Witches and Suffragettes？ My favourite。 On the whole， it didn't live up to that， though parts of it certainly did。 It was much slower paced than I anticipated， which made it difficult to get into; I was 200+ pages in before I felt something was really happening。 But the parts that were fantastic were really fantastic。 。。。more
Rosa
，
3 1/2 stars for me。 I like stories about witches but， I’m not much of a fantasy reader。 I liked parts of this book and other parts dragged along。 I thought about DNF multiple times but， kept reading to find out the ending。 The story was too unbelievable and there were some glaring historical inaccuracies。 Just not my kind of book。 Take my review with “a grain of salt”。 The right person will probably love this book。
Tarrant Figlio
，
PerfectIf you like your Witchery and fairy tales dark and classic rather than prettified。 If you like some profanity and truth in the craft…then this is the one。
Anu
，
This book was brimming with feminists， witches and suffragettes。 Mind you， that isn't a complaint。 The 1890's backdrop， the New Salem politics in combination with the above themes made for an interesting read with characters that were complicated。 That being said， I had the same problems with this book as I did with the author's previous book that I read。 The plot meanders and the characters while likeable weren't engaging。 The narrative was all over the place which was distracting at times。 The This book was brimming with feminists， witches and suffragettes。 Mind you， that isn't a complaint。 The 1890's backdrop， the New Salem politics in combination with the above themes made for an interesting read with characters that were complicated。 That being said， I had the same problems with this book as I did with the author's previous book that I read。 The plot meanders and the characters while likeable weren't engaging。 The narrative was all over the place which was distracting at times。 The pacing of the plot also left a lot to be desired。 I was disappointed that a book that has all the elements that I would enjoy fell short of my expectations。2。5 on 5。 （Rounding down because I am more disappointed with the book than I thought I would be。 。。。more
Pam Masters
，
Great book！ Wonderful characters！Read my full review over at my blog: https://readbakecreate。com/？p=361 Great book！ Wonderful characters！Read my full review over at my blog: https://readbakecreate。com/？p=361 。。。more
Megan Kiley
，
Really more 4 1/2
Kristy Berry
，
3。5 stars only because it took a looooong time for this book to get interesting。 Three stars for the first half， four for the second。
Denise
，
4。5 stars rounded up。
Jackie
，
Such a unique tale， woven out of well known myths and nursery rhymes。 I love a good witch book and this was superb。 I really like the way each character was so different。 Their qualities well defined and twisted in to the plot。 Very entertaining。
Kate
，
It’s 1893 and the Eastwood sisters， separated by family tragedy， are brought back together in New Salem to reawaken witching among the down trodden women of the city。 This is a story rich in historical detail， myth， folk lore and fairytale。 It’s a magical， emotional and powerful story which works on multiple levels。
Megg Morin
，
LOVED this book。 Waited a long time at the library for it and it was so worth it！
Lauren McDue
，
It was a bit of a slow start for me， but as the sisters grew I found myself more interested in their individual stories and combined goal。 I also just really enjoyed how magic exists in this world。
Noel
，