annieb123's Review of The Witches of Bone Hill

by Ava Morgyn

When her older, carefree sister, Eustace - a cannabis grower in Boulder, calls to inform her the great aunt they never met has died and they must travel to a small town in Connecticut to deal with the estate, she sees an opportunity to unload the house and save herself.

But once there, the sisters learn they are getting much more than they bargained for. The Victorian mansion they stand to inherit is bound in a dynasty trust controlled by their late aunt's aging attorney who insists they inhabit the house and retain it but keeps them in the dark about the peculiar rituals of their ancestors. Not to mention a sexy, tattooed groundskeeper with a shrouded past who refuses to leave the carriage house and a crypt full of dead relatives looming at the property line.

As both women grapple with their current predicament, they come face to face with a haunting family secret, the truth of what happened to their mother, and the enemy that's been stalking them from the shadows for generations. In a twisting torrent of terror and blood, the sisters must uncover the power within them to heal their fractured relationship, reverse their mysteriously declining health, and claim the lineage they wanted to escape but now must embrace if they are to survive at Bone Hill.

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

The Witches of Bone Hill is a well written contemporary paranormal/horror novel by Ava Morgyn. Released 26th Sept 2023 by Macmillan on their Griffin imprint, it's 352 pages and will be available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.

There's a palpable sense of dread throughout this story with a number of off kilter very violent scenes which throw readers off balance and unprepared for the next assault. There are some graphic scenes which might possibly make it NSFW/commute.

It's a horror romance which might seem an odd combo, but the author does a good job with the nuts & bolts writing and the central characters are fairly well fleshed out and three dimensional. There are curses galore, and blood debts, and bone knives, and magic, and ghosts, and a huge scary house which figures centrally to the plot.

Three and a half stars. Fans of Deborah Harkness, Paige Crutcher, and Karen Marie Moning will likely enjoy this one.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Reading updates

28 June, 2024: Started reading

28 June, 2024: Finished reading

28 June, 2024: Reviewed