Witch Ball

by Adele Elliott

Truly Moore loves to spend time with her Great Aunt Fleur, a larger than life, quirky old lady who makes a living selling magic charms. The townspeople know Fleur is “different”, a sin in this “Buckle of the Bible Belt”, and many suspect that Aunt Fleur is a witch. The serenity of the town is shattered by the murder of a respected high school track coach, and as the murder becomes more and more difficult to solve, a witch hunt begins. But not all demons have pointy horns and tails, and not all angels have wings.

Witch Ball asks us to be careful who we deify, and who we vilify.

Genres: Young Adult

172 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 7, 2014

About the author

Adele Elliott is a painter and designer of fantasy tiaras. She is a New Orleans native who has been exiled in Mississippi since her home, and most of her sanity, were blown away by an evil wind named Katrina.

Adele writes an opinion column for The Commercial Dispatch.

She has recently finished her second novel, "Witch Ball," published by Open Books Publishers. Her first novel, “Friendship Cemetery,” was published by Crooked Cat Publishing.

She lives in a big purple house with her wonderful husband, Chris Hannon, and three “children”: Charlotte Ruse (the wild dingo dog), Freda Jolie (lady-dog), and Loa, a magical boy-cat.

Reviews

[AJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

While it had an interesting plot, the narration felt more like it was from the point of view of a ten year old then a girl in High School, this made it difficult to be truly immersed in.
The plot was also uneven, bouncing from one thing to the next then wrapping up all lose ends hastily.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Narration: First Person through Truly

Character Development and Plot: In some ways, this story reminds me of To Kill a Mockingbird. It has discrimination, a trial, and a young girl’s view of the events. However, it revolves around a different discrimination – transgender and transvestites. Truly is a fifteen year old girl on summer break in the South. She adores her aunt and seeks advice from her. At the beginning of the book, Truly has a crush on Eric, a college boy who works at the local library. Things turn upside down with a death of a local boy and then the murder of the track coach. Secrets come out not only in the community but also in Truly’s own family.

The book focuses on sexual orientation and discrimination within the South. Truly grows up during the summer. She must learn to stand up and go against the crowd. She forms her own opinions on what is considered right or wrong. She also learns about forgiveness. In today’s world where gay rights are on the news more often, this book focuses on how society is hard to change their views. It lightly brings in religion – specifically Baptists – as well as the law.

The book is written for young adults but adults might enjoy it, too.

Standalone or Part of a Series: Standalone

[Fred Lemle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a real "page-turner" of a book! The more I read, the more immersed I became in the lives of the characters. Soon, I could imagine myself in the library, in the courthouse and at Fleur's house.

To say that it was gripping and suspenseful is an understatement!

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys becoming lost in the book that they are reading!

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really was not a fan of this book. I felt the writing was very poor and found the storyline to be odd. I only finished it because it was such a short book.