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Memento Mori #1
The Witching Elm
Seventeen-year-old sorcerer Tobias Corvin tumbles through a blizzard and arrives—half frozen and half dead—in another world. Trapped in Boston, he tries to blend in at an old boarding school while secretly plotting to save his home.
But if anything can distract him from his mission, it's the wild-haired and intriguing Fiona. She is determined to learn the truth about his dangerous magic.
When a spectral army from Toby's world begins slaughtering Bostonians, he and Fiona must stop the carnage. They face unspeakable dangers unearthing the dark secrets of New England's past—a past that holds the key to saving both worlds from destruction.
But if anything can distract him from his mission, it's the wild-haired and intriguing Fiona. She is determined to learn the truth about his dangerous magic.
When a spectral army from Toby's world begins slaughtering Bostonians, he and Fiona must stop the carnage. They face unspeakable dangers unearthing the dark secrets of New England's past—a past that holds the key to saving both worlds from destruction.
316 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 2014
663 people are currently reading
6132 people want to read
About the author
C.N. Crawford
74 books8,714 followersTo get sneak peaks at the next book, sales, and news about releases, Sign up here.
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C.N. Crawford are Wall Street Journal bestselling authors of romantasy books, including books with fae, demons, and magical academies.
We write fantasy romance, urban fantasy, and portal romance. Our books often include trials, banter, and enemies to lovers stories.
CN Crawford’s books are perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Jennifer L. Armentrout, K.F. Breene, and Laura Thalassa.
Note: We are actually two people--a former biologist (Nick) and a former school psychologist (Christine).
To join C.N. Crawford's fan group and chat to the authors, Click here.
To stalk on instagram, Click here.
For a free standalone novel, Sign up here.
C.N. Crawford are Wall Street Journal bestselling authors of romantasy books, including books with fae, demons, and magical academies.
We write fantasy romance, urban fantasy, and portal romance. Our books often include trials, banter, and enemies to lovers stories.
CN Crawford’s books are perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Jennifer L. Armentrout, K.F. Breene, and Laura Thalassa.
Note: We are actually two people--a former biologist (Nick) and a former school psychologist (Christine).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews
June 7, 2019
The Witching Elm by C.N. Crawford and narrated by Laurel Schroeder is a fantasy book for teens but adults will enjoy it too! Plenty of drama, suspenseful tension, mysteries, amazing magic and spells, ghosts, Creatures from the dead, shape shifting and so much more! This is a fantasy readers delight! Just about everything is in here and it is done wonderfully! The opening scene had me hooked as the main character changes from a crow to a boy! Yep! That got my attention!
The narration is fabulous! She is able to perform all the voices, emotions, and even the creatures like ghosts to make you feel like they are ghosts! Great job!
The narration is fabulous! She is able to perform all the voices, emotions, and even the creatures like ghosts to make you feel like they are ghosts! Great job!
February 2, 2015
In ‘The Witching Elm’ we meet Toby, a seventeen year old sorcerer. Toby has fled his own world Maremount after a dark and evil men tried to burn down his city. Toby finds himself in Boston where he soon meets new friends. But all Toby really wants to is going back home to his father, friends and girlfriend. But soon evil seems to follow him to Boston and together with his new friends he tries to survive.
‘The Witching Elm’ is a totally different book than I first expected it to be. There are a lot of dark and terrible things happening in this book and it’s definitely not a book for the faint hearted. But I really enjoyed it. This story is from the beginning very original and intriguing. We meet Toby in his world Maremount and soon he needs to run for his life. There is no slow intro in this book. From the very first page there is action and I found myself intrigued with the magic, the powers, the ghosts and the legends. Not only is this book filled with action and magic, it almost feels like you’re getting a history lesson.
The characters are very enjoyable but somehow I feel like they are just a little extra. The powder on a cake! They are nice to read about, but the world and the magic in this book feel somehow way more important to me. I even felt myself hoping that there would be more talk about the history of King Philip and less about what the characters where up to.
Don’t get me wrong, Toby is a nice main character and his relationship with Fiona is really nice to read but the world C.N. Crawford created is just even more interesting.
What I meant in the beginning of this review about this book not being for the faint hearted, was the way this book has a lot of details about terrible deaths and I can imagine people being spooked about reading them. Not for me though. Because this book was not so soft and a little dark I liked it even more. I was definitely fascinated by all the different beings and magic.
I can definitely conclude that I really enjoyed this book. I was a wonderful read and never got boring. And the ending just makes you want to read more and more.
‘The Witching Elm’ is a totally different book than I first expected it to be. There are a lot of dark and terrible things happening in this book and it’s definitely not a book for the faint hearted. But I really enjoyed it. This story is from the beginning very original and intriguing. We meet Toby in his world Maremount and soon he needs to run for his life. There is no slow intro in this book. From the very first page there is action and I found myself intrigued with the magic, the powers, the ghosts and the legends. Not only is this book filled with action and magic, it almost feels like you’re getting a history lesson.
The characters are very enjoyable but somehow I feel like they are just a little extra. The powder on a cake! They are nice to read about, but the world and the magic in this book feel somehow way more important to me. I even felt myself hoping that there would be more talk about the history of King Philip and less about what the characters where up to.
Don’t get me wrong, Toby is a nice main character and his relationship with Fiona is really nice to read but the world C.N. Crawford created is just even more interesting.
What I meant in the beginning of this review about this book not being for the faint hearted, was the way this book has a lot of details about terrible deaths and I can imagine people being spooked about reading them. Not for me though. Because this book was not so soft and a little dark I liked it even more. I was definitely fascinated by all the different beings and magic.
I can definitely conclude that I really enjoyed this book. I was a wonderful read and never got boring. And the ending just makes you want to read more and more.
August 14, 2015
I received this book in exchange for an honest review from LoP
This reminded me alot of the Harry Potter series as the content is about magic, warlocks, wizards or witches. I loved the cover of the book, it's what caught my attention in the first place. You would think looking at the cover its about a guy who is a winged creature that can fly. Nope, not like that at all!
I like to think the front cover is symbolic it does represent Tobias in some way as he is a warlock or 'philosopher' as they call them in the book. But it is so much more than that! The synopsis of the book? Now I don't think that it does justice to the book as it gives very ambiguous meaning in my opinion anyways.
The plot in this book was very interesting, Tobias is trapped in Boston which is another realm and acts as a portal between his world (Maremount) and Boston. See, this is where it becomes interesting. Fiona and her friends want to learn magic and be involved with it so they don't have boring office jobs, comes along Tobias. Along with Alan, Tobias and the girls have a race against time to stop monsters from killing people and save themselves (learn magic too).
A very interesting twist is Jack, I won't divulge on who he is too much. You will have to read the book for that, but you won't regret it.
This book is filled with action, a possible love interest, twists and turns along the way. On the plus side, who doesn't love magic right?
This reminded me alot of the Harry Potter series as the content is about magic, warlocks, wizards or witches. I loved the cover of the book, it's what caught my attention in the first place. You would think looking at the cover its about a guy who is a winged creature that can fly. Nope, not like that at all!
I like to think the front cover is symbolic it does represent Tobias in some way as he is a warlock or 'philosopher' as they call them in the book. But it is so much more than that! The synopsis of the book? Now I don't think that it does justice to the book as it gives very ambiguous meaning in my opinion anyways.
The plot in this book was very interesting, Tobias is trapped in Boston which is another realm and acts as a portal between his world (Maremount) and Boston. See, this is where it becomes interesting. Fiona and her friends want to learn magic and be involved with it so they don't have boring office jobs, comes along Tobias. Along with Alan, Tobias and the girls have a race against time to stop monsters from killing people and save themselves (learn magic too).
A very interesting twist is Jack, I won't divulge on who he is too much. You will have to read the book for that, but you won't regret it.
This book is filled with action, a possible love interest, twists and turns along the way. On the plus side, who doesn't love magic right?
Read
March 3, 2022There are two Bostons. One exists in our world, the other is call Maremount a duplicate city created by Algonquian and English philosophers during an event referred to as the Great Schism. For generations these realities have existed separately, but when the violence of a Maremount civil war bleeds into our realm the people of Boston are forced reckon with these strangers from another place.
The Witching Elm is an incredibly detailed and well researched dark YA academy fantasy. The book follows a group of classmates attending the prestigious Mather Academy who are thrust into the center of the conflict when a mysterious young man suddenly appears at their school overnight.
I appreciated the variety of characters (my favorite is Thomas) and as a history fan I loved the depth and detail given to Boston and New England history. It’s the little particulars that help The Witching Elm shine. With an epic ending, and a lot of surprises along the way, I’m not only a fan, I’m looking forward to the next installment.
The Witching Elm is an incredibly detailed and well researched dark YA academy fantasy. The book follows a group of classmates attending the prestigious Mather Academy who are thrust into the center of the conflict when a mysterious young man suddenly appears at their school overnight.
I appreciated the variety of characters (my favorite is Thomas) and as a history fan I loved the depth and detail given to Boston and New England history. It’s the little particulars that help The Witching Elm shine. With an epic ending, and a lot of surprises along the way, I’m not only a fan, I’m looking forward to the next installment.
February 4, 2015
I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
The Witching Elm was an intriguing read that was nothing like what I expected. It's odd, the characters and voice seemed middle-grade. But take note of the genre-- dark fantasy. The story was dark, haunted by death and torment. I think the best thing about this novel was the blend of historical events with magic, legend, and fantasy. It created a unique story line.
The novel started out with a bang-- an invasion by a powerful army intent on fishing out hidden covens. As the town was burning to the ground, main character Toby's father sent him away to safety. Toby landed in Boston at an elite boarding school. Everything happened in a whirlwind of confusion, and it took a while for the authors to explain how Toby's world and the world he was sent to were connected. I can't go into it because that would entail major spoilers-- just know that if you start out confused, keep reading, all will be explained.
While I thought the plot was intriguing and loved the combination of real history with a fantasy realm, I was never completely pulled into the story. I liked the characters-- even though there were many, they were all interesting and well-developed. Looking back, I think the overall voice of the novel just wasn't a hit for me. The story was so dark, yet the narration seemed young-- a contrast that didn't work for me. When I say dark, I mean everything. There was a pervasive darkness woven throughout that created a rich, yet heavy atmosphere.
That aside, expect action, adventure, and intrigue in this dark YA fantasy. If you like fantasy merged with reality, I think you'll enjoy The Witching Elm.
The Witching Elm was an intriguing read that was nothing like what I expected. It's odd, the characters and voice seemed middle-grade. But take note of the genre-- dark fantasy. The story was dark, haunted by death and torment. I think the best thing about this novel was the blend of historical events with magic, legend, and fantasy. It created a unique story line.
The novel started out with a bang-- an invasion by a powerful army intent on fishing out hidden covens. As the town was burning to the ground, main character Toby's father sent him away to safety. Toby landed in Boston at an elite boarding school. Everything happened in a whirlwind of confusion, and it took a while for the authors to explain how Toby's world and the world he was sent to were connected. I can't go into it because that would entail major spoilers-- just know that if you start out confused, keep reading, all will be explained.
While I thought the plot was intriguing and loved the combination of real history with a fantasy realm, I was never completely pulled into the story. I liked the characters-- even though there were many, they were all interesting and well-developed. Looking back, I think the overall voice of the novel just wasn't a hit for me. The story was so dark, yet the narration seemed young-- a contrast that didn't work for me. When I say dark, I mean everything. There was a pervasive darkness woven throughout that created a rich, yet heavy atmosphere.
That aside, expect action, adventure, and intrigue in this dark YA fantasy. If you like fantasy merged with reality, I think you'll enjoy The Witching Elm.
July 28, 2015
I received a copy of the pdf from the Goodreads group Lovers of Paranormal (LoP) in exchange for an honest review.
The Witching Elm by C. N. Crawford is an original Young Adult fantasy. Tobias immediately draws the reader into his secretive world—Maremount. He must escape his home for his own safety and travels to Boston as a crow where he settles in at a private school. It is a fantastical start to a fast paced story.
The novel is told via three points of view: Tobias, Fiona and Thomas. Their voices are distinct and each character fills in the blanks as necessary. The primary and secondary characters add depth as well. The Witching Elm is imaginative. Unique paranormal characters are introduced, including but not limited to sorcerers, nippexies, philosophers, shape shifters, ragmen and many more. The language is descriptive and paints the setting brilliantly.
Tobias’ story is far from over. Will he ever get back home? Looking forward to A Witch’s Feast (The Witching Elm #2) by C. N. Crawford.
The Witching Elm by C. N. Crawford is an original Young Adult fantasy. Tobias immediately draws the reader into his secretive world—Maremount. He must escape his home for his own safety and travels to Boston as a crow where he settles in at a private school. It is a fantastical start to a fast paced story.
The novel is told via three points of view: Tobias, Fiona and Thomas. Their voices are distinct and each character fills in the blanks as necessary. The primary and secondary characters add depth as well. The Witching Elm is imaginative. Unique paranormal characters are introduced, including but not limited to sorcerers, nippexies, philosophers, shape shifters, ragmen and many more. The language is descriptive and paints the setting brilliantly.
Tobias’ story is far from over. Will he ever get back home? Looking forward to A Witch’s Feast (The Witching Elm #2) by C. N. Crawford.
August 4, 2015
DNF at 65%
I hate not finishing books. There's just something about not knowing how it ends that really, really bugs me. Also I like to add books to my reading challenges, so yeah, there's that too. Not finishing a book when I've bothered reading more than half of it seems like a horrible waste of time to me. There are only two reasons why I might give up on a book: either it's super offensive and I don't want to deal with that shit, or it's the most boring thing on Earth and I'm quite literally falling asleep.
The Witching Elm is one of the boring books.
It's not really bad, in that I didn't feel the need to shake some sense into the characters or yell at the author for being wrong wrong wrong. I just couldn't bring myself to care.
The concept of this book is pretty interesting. I recently read A Darker Shade of Magic, which also takes place in a world where there are... multiple versions of a city? And I loved it. The world (or universe, or whatever the fuck it was) was fleshed-out, even if we never got to see more than London.
With this book, though, I felt like I didn't know anything about the world the story is set in. What exactly is Maremount? How is it set apart from Boston and the world we know? Did it create an entire parallel world, or is it just some kind of invisible enclave? Are there actual, physical limits to it? Like, you reach the end of Maremount and there's... a wall? fog? nothing?
I'm being unfair, I know. I didn't finish the book, and these questions might very well be answered later. Somehow, though, I doubt it. Why would any question be answered in a book where characters don't have any problem believing that magic is real and crazy maybe-ghosts apparently eat people or something?
Because, yeah, that's another of the things I disliked about this book. It takes place in our world, supposedly. Now I don't know about you, but if some crazy kid came up to me and told me that yeah, sorcerers are a thing, and also we can all turn into animals and all we have to do to kill someone is say a few words... I probably wouldn't stick around very long. At the very least I'd think they were joking, until they turned into a crow and shut me up. But no. Alan sees the new kid shut up the school bully, and his only explanation is 'well, duh, magic'. And he's not even the only one! I get it, some people believe in magic. Okay. Great. But not everyone does, and when literally every character is willing to accept the idea that magic is real, well. I grow annoyed.
Which brings me to my next (and last, hopefully) complaint, because of course everyone would believe in the same stuff, in a world where no one has any personality, history or even family.
I'm not joking when I say that the characters don't have any family. Tobias' is stuck in another world, Fiona spends her time basically ignoring her mother and doesn't even know her aunt, Alan's... well I don't even know about his family. Same for Mariana and Celia, and even Jack. People disappear and nothing happens. Fiona's in love with a guy she doesn't even know, but hey, she might love Tobias? And Tobias has 'something like a girlfriend'? Oh but wait! I don't care. I don't care because this isn't even a love triangle. It's not a love anything because Fiona doesn't love anyone. Neither does Tobias. Or Alan. Or Celia. Or basically anyone in this fucking book. Those characters are apparently incapable of human feelings. When by some miracle they supposedly feel something (and it's usually fear), it's so unconvincing I forget about it in maybe two lines. And they seem to forget, too, since they are terrified and the next minute they're drinking hot chocolate or going sailing.
It's made even worse by the fact that they pretend to have personalities. For instance, at one point, Fiona thinks about how she always thought she'd fall for someone like Lord Byron (which, uh, girl, really?) but she kinda likes Tobias. Okay. How is Tobias that different from Lord Byron? I mean, beside the fact that he's possibly the dullest protagonist ever to be created. Fiona seemed to be implying that Tobias is a nice guy or something, but really, he's exactly the same as Alan or Jack. Except he plays the lute and doesn't draw. Nice.
In short, this book bored me to tears. Literally. I couldn't find any reason to care, which is pretty worrying, considering I usually care about at least one character per book because I'm weak and shallow like that.
If I had to describe the feeling I got reading this book, I'd compare it to that time I took a stronger painkiller than what I'm used to, and sure, there wasn't any pain, but my head felt like it was being filled with cotton and everything seemed unreal, like a dream, and when I tried to punch the wall for some reason I fully expected it to have no consequence on my poor little hand.
Don't do drugs, kids. Read boring books instead.
I hate not finishing books. There's just something about not knowing how it ends that really, really bugs me. Also I like to add books to my reading challenges, so yeah, there's that too. Not finishing a book when I've bothered reading more than half of it seems like a horrible waste of time to me. There are only two reasons why I might give up on a book: either it's super offensive and I don't want to deal with that shit, or it's the most boring thing on Earth and I'm quite literally falling asleep.
The Witching Elm is one of the boring books.
It's not really bad, in that I didn't feel the need to shake some sense into the characters or yell at the author for being wrong wrong wrong. I just couldn't bring myself to care.
The concept of this book is pretty interesting. I recently read A Darker Shade of Magic, which also takes place in a world where there are... multiple versions of a city? And I loved it. The world (or universe, or whatever the fuck it was) was fleshed-out, even if we never got to see more than London.
With this book, though, I felt like I didn't know anything about the world the story is set in. What exactly is Maremount? How is it set apart from Boston and the world we know? Did it create an entire parallel world, or is it just some kind of invisible enclave? Are there actual, physical limits to it? Like, you reach the end of Maremount and there's... a wall? fog? nothing?
I'm being unfair, I know. I didn't finish the book, and these questions might very well be answered later. Somehow, though, I doubt it. Why would any question be answered in a book where characters don't have any problem believing that magic is real and crazy maybe-ghosts apparently eat people or something?
Because, yeah, that's another of the things I disliked about this book. It takes place in our world, supposedly. Now I don't know about you, but if some crazy kid came up to me and told me that yeah, sorcerers are a thing, and also we can all turn into animals and all we have to do to kill someone is say a few words... I probably wouldn't stick around very long. At the very least I'd think they were joking, until they turned into a crow and shut me up. But no. Alan sees the new kid shut up the school bully, and his only explanation is 'well, duh, magic'. And he's not even the only one! I get it, some people believe in magic. Okay. Great. But not everyone does, and when literally every character is willing to accept the idea that magic is real, well. I grow annoyed.
Which brings me to my next (and last, hopefully) complaint, because of course everyone would believe in the same stuff, in a world where no one has any personality, history or even family.
I'm not joking when I say that the characters don't have any family. Tobias' is stuck in another world, Fiona spends her time basically ignoring her mother and doesn't even know her aunt, Alan's... well I don't even know about his family. Same for Mariana and Celia, and even Jack. People disappear and nothing happens. Fiona's in love with a guy she doesn't even know, but hey, she might love Tobias? And Tobias has 'something like a girlfriend'? Oh but wait! I don't care. I don't care because this isn't even a love triangle. It's not a love anything because Fiona doesn't love anyone. Neither does Tobias. Or Alan. Or Celia. Or basically anyone in this fucking book. Those characters are apparently incapable of human feelings. When by some miracle they supposedly feel something (and it's usually fear), it's so unconvincing I forget about it in maybe two lines. And they seem to forget, too, since they are terrified and the next minute they're drinking hot chocolate or going sailing.
It's made even worse by the fact that they pretend to have personalities. For instance, at one point, Fiona thinks about how she always thought she'd fall for someone like Lord Byron (which, uh, girl, really?) but she kinda likes Tobias. Okay. How is Tobias that different from Lord Byron? I mean, beside the fact that he's possibly the dullest protagonist ever to be created. Fiona seemed to be implying that Tobias is a nice guy or something, but really, he's exactly the same as Alan or Jack. Except he plays the lute and doesn't draw. Nice.
In short, this book bored me to tears. Literally. I couldn't find any reason to care, which is pretty worrying, considering I usually care about at least one character per book because I'm weak and shallow like that.
If I had to describe the feeling I got reading this book, I'd compare it to that time I took a stronger painkiller than what I'm used to, and sure, there wasn't any pain, but my head felt like it was being filled with cotton and everything seemed unreal, like a dream, and when I tried to punch the wall for some reason I fully expected it to have no consequence on my poor little hand.
Don't do drugs, kids. Read boring books instead.
March 7, 2018
Really liked this book - I thought all the background of the story was so interesting and well thought out, while also having a fast paced plot and great characters. It made me think of Harry Potter at the start with the school setting. Overall a very enjoyable read.
December 30, 2014
The Witching Elm was action packed from the get go. We open with Toby and his fellow coven members being hunted by the monster Rawhed. Magic is only used by the rich and elite, and Toby and the splinter covens practice illegally. But, fortunately for Toby, he reaches his father just in time for him to cast a travelling spell that whisks Toby away from the town of Maremount to safety. Toby (who, during his escape, transforms into a crow!) lands in modern Boston where a place at Mather Academy is waiting for him.
We soon discover that Maremount is a duplicate of Boston that was forged in a separate plane using magic, although I wished Toby’s explanation of this could have appeared sooner after his arrival at Mather Academy. And Toby, who landed in Boston alone and without his friends back in Maremount, gave up his secrets to his new friends more rapidly than I would have expected.
Magic and folklore were effortlessly weaved together with modern Boston and real events (mainly the Salem witch trials and events surrounding the origins of Thanksgiving) in a way that created a wonderfully haunting but believable tale. The use of magic was also very cool. There are so many books out there that talk about magic but then don’t actually show it being used, but The Witching Elm did not disappoint.
Together with his new friends in Boston, Toby dives into a mission to find a way to defeat Rawhed. One of my favourite parts of The Witching Elm is that Toby teaches his friends some magic along the way!
The Witching Elm is an exciting story filled with action and magic. There are a lot of characters, but they are weaved together with enough of their own back stories and motivations to make this work.
The story’s mystery and intrigue keeps you guessing right up to a set of unpredictable twists! And I love a good villain. Rawhed is evil, but then we find out just enough about him to be able to understand his actions in a way that we don’t really want to. A juicy bad guy in a story bounded in magic, action, and rich, well researched history – yum!
4.5/5
Thanks to the author for providing me with a copy to review, although this didn’t influence my review.
This review was originally posted on IndieYAYA, a blog dedicated to reviewing indie and self published YA novels at: http://indieyaya.blogspot.co.uk/2014/...
We soon discover that Maremount is a duplicate of Boston that was forged in a separate plane using magic, although I wished Toby’s explanation of this could have appeared sooner after his arrival at Mather Academy. And Toby, who landed in Boston alone and without his friends back in Maremount, gave up his secrets to his new friends more rapidly than I would have expected.
Magic and folklore were effortlessly weaved together with modern Boston and real events (mainly the Salem witch trials and events surrounding the origins of Thanksgiving) in a way that created a wonderfully haunting but believable tale. The use of magic was also very cool. There are so many books out there that talk about magic but then don’t actually show it being used, but The Witching Elm did not disappoint.
Together with his new friends in Boston, Toby dives into a mission to find a way to defeat Rawhed. One of my favourite parts of The Witching Elm is that Toby teaches his friends some magic along the way!
The Witching Elm is an exciting story filled with action and magic. There are a lot of characters, but they are weaved together with enough of their own back stories and motivations to make this work.
The story’s mystery and intrigue keeps you guessing right up to a set of unpredictable twists! And I love a good villain. Rawhed is evil, but then we find out just enough about him to be able to understand his actions in a way that we don’t really want to. A juicy bad guy in a story bounded in magic, action, and rich, well researched history – yum!
4.5/5
Thanks to the author for providing me with a copy to review, although this didn’t influence my review.
This review was originally posted on IndieYAYA, a blog dedicated to reviewing indie and self published YA novels at: http://indieyaya.blogspot.co.uk/2014/...
February 3, 2015
In the book The Witching Elm by C.N. Crawford, the protagonist Toby Corvin seventeen year old boy, and a a sorcerer in training, goes through thee most life changing events, like going to Boston to a boarding school n his friends not showing up,and now hes trying to get back.I love how he has powers and knows spells, like transforming from a Sorcerer to a Raven and back,and also talking to the ravens,and saying a spell to put the principal in the mind set to make him think Toby is a foreign exchange student, on top of that this book was so detailed it was as If I was there every step of the way.
When he transformed into a raven and soared the seas I could almost feel the snow hitting his face and the cold air below freezing on his skin, it was as if I was soaring with him.
Even when he talked to the ravens it was amazing and new because they are supposed messengers for both our world and the world of magic, which I thought was a pretty cool power.
I really liked how he put the principal under a spell because at one point as a kid or a teen who didn't want to put their principal under a spell, so you could not have school or not get in trouble, in my opinion that's a really cool thing to do.
C.N.Crawford did an outstanding job on this book, great detail which I always look for ,and it was even better because I'm a bit of a magic lover, the authors really know how to make Harry Potter seem boring, I recommend this book to people of all ages especially if you're a magic and mystery lover.
I give this book a two thumbs up and 5 stars.
When he transformed into a raven and soared the seas I could almost feel the snow hitting his face and the cold air below freezing on his skin, it was as if I was soaring with him.
Even when he talked to the ravens it was amazing and new because they are supposed messengers for both our world and the world of magic, which I thought was a pretty cool power.
I really liked how he put the principal under a spell because at one point as a kid or a teen who didn't want to put their principal under a spell, so you could not have school or not get in trouble, in my opinion that's a really cool thing to do.
C.N.Crawford did an outstanding job on this book, great detail which I always look for ,and it was even better because I'm a bit of a magic lover, the authors really know how to make Harry Potter seem boring, I recommend this book to people of all ages especially if you're a magic and mystery lover.
I give this book a two thumbs up and 5 stars.
February 7, 2017
I loved this book, and I am so happy to have taken a chance on a new author!
This book was filled with magic, and creepy history that pulled the story together perfectly. There wasn't anything missing from the book; the world and characters were easy to love, and make you yearn for more.
Not only was this book pulsing with magic, but it also builds to where you follow a friendship, and some of those friendships lead to an unexpected surprise.
Although this is a trilogy there was no huge cliffhanger which I am grateful for, although it easily leaves an opening for the second book, so you know what might be in store next for the characters.
I have to say I read a few chapters of this book, then bought all the books that the author has published at the moment, because I loved this one so much. I look forward to reading a lot more of this authors work for sure. I was not disappointed at all.
This book was filled with magic, and creepy history that pulled the story together perfectly. There wasn't anything missing from the book; the world and characters were easy to love, and make you yearn for more.
Not only was this book pulsing with magic, but it also builds to where you follow a friendship, and some of those friendships lead to an unexpected surprise.
Although this is a trilogy there was no huge cliffhanger which I am grateful for, although it easily leaves an opening for the second book, so you know what might be in store next for the characters.
I have to say I read a few chapters of this book, then bought all the books that the author has published at the moment, because I loved this one so much. I look forward to reading a lot more of this authors work for sure. I was not disappointed at all.
August 20, 2021
3.75☆
In general, this book is creepy and interesting, but at times there's so much information or lectures about history of kings and other witchcraft that bored the hell out of me.
In general, this book is creepy and interesting, but at times there's so much information or lectures about history of kings and other witchcraft that bored the hell out of me.
October 6, 2016
DNF at 40%
It was an interesting concept that was poorly executed. I kept trying to push further but the parallels with Harry Potter just kept getting more and more prevalent. All situations were easily and conveniently resolved and the characters bland.
Overall, it wasn't bad but it definitely wasn't good and there was nothing to keep me going.
It was an interesting concept that was poorly executed. I kept trying to push further but the parallels with Harry Potter just kept getting more and more prevalent. All situations were easily and conveniently resolved and the characters bland.
Overall, it wasn't bad but it definitely wasn't good and there was nothing to keep me going.
February 18, 2015
My full review also available here: https://fangirlsreaditfirst.wordpress...
I received The Witching Elm from author C.N. Crawford for a honest review. I was excited to read this book because it sounded like it fit right in my reading niche. It was well worth the read, I couldn’t put this book down!
Main character Toby is from a duplicate world with magic, shape-shifting, royalty, and evil. He’s sent to today’s Boston to escape the evil Rawhed, intent on killing sorcerers -or philosophers as Toby prefers to be called- like him. Crawford did wonderful world-building, giving readers a glimpse of this universe before bringing Toby over to Boston. It was a terrific blend of Toby’s world, Maremount, and the contemporary one. He ends up at Mather Academy where he tries to blend in, but Toby can’t help doing magic and something follows him from home.
The magic is intense with many spells, rhymes, and poems being featured. I liked that some of the magic hurt to accomplish. Changing shape from a boy to a crow wasn’t an easy or painless process. It was amusing as Toby tried to keep his magic under wraps when people were inviting him to séances and such!
The Witching Elm gives a gothic feel to Boston and the boarding school Toby and his friends attend. However, instead of the usual boarding school trappings – boredom, romances, schoolwork – this book managed to keep focused on the magic and fantasy. It was unique and refreshing.
The history was amazing and well-researched. Many historical events and figures were mentioned, such as the Puritans, Salem Witch Trials, and King Philip. Historical items like hangings, wars, and Native American culture appeared in this book. Some liberties were taken, but they only enhanced the story.
This novel features three Points of View (main characters Toby, Fiona, and Thomas) and stays in each character’s viewpoint for multiple chapters. It was disconcerting at first because each new narrator wasn’t clearly stated, but revealed in the body of the chapter.
Toby is an extremely likeable character. He leaves his world behind and survives in a very different one with only his wits and spells. His backstory is astounding; he was a peasant -or Tatter- not allowed to learn or do magic. Toby’s father taught him to read, even though it could get them all killed. Watching him attempt to blend was entertaining because he claimed to be from England but he didn’t have an accent or knowledge of his supposed homeland. Eventually, his new friends begin to learn the truth about Toby, but evil beings -bone wardens, Harvesters, and Rawhed himself- come after them and they create a coven to learn magic, protect themselves, and try to get Toby home.
Fiona is an interesting, intelligent female lead. She is wicked smart, almost genius at times, remembering things she hears only once and being the first to know anything. She is fiercely loyal to her friends and easily adapts after learning Toby’s identity and that magic exists, and displays courage in times of danger.
Thomas is a college professor with a reputation for researching history and magic. Fiona seeks him out when she suspects Toby isn’t what he seems. It was great getting into Thomas’s head, watching him start to believe in the unimaginable. He turns into a wonderful resource for Toby’s group and transforms from book nerd to brave hero.
Life or death situations start early on until gruesome showdowns happen in both worlds. So even though this is a YA book, I wouldn’t recommend it to very young teens. But the fantasy and history make this book a captivating read and I can’t wait for the next book in this series!
My rating: 4/5 stars.
I received The Witching Elm from author C.N. Crawford for a honest review. I was excited to read this book because it sounded like it fit right in my reading niche. It was well worth the read, I couldn’t put this book down!
Main character Toby is from a duplicate world with magic, shape-shifting, royalty, and evil. He’s sent to today’s Boston to escape the evil Rawhed, intent on killing sorcerers -or philosophers as Toby prefers to be called- like him. Crawford did wonderful world-building, giving readers a glimpse of this universe before bringing Toby over to Boston. It was a terrific blend of Toby’s world, Maremount, and the contemporary one. He ends up at Mather Academy where he tries to blend in, but Toby can’t help doing magic and something follows him from home.
The magic is intense with many spells, rhymes, and poems being featured. I liked that some of the magic hurt to accomplish. Changing shape from a boy to a crow wasn’t an easy or painless process. It was amusing as Toby tried to keep his magic under wraps when people were inviting him to séances and such!
The Witching Elm gives a gothic feel to Boston and the boarding school Toby and his friends attend. However, instead of the usual boarding school trappings – boredom, romances, schoolwork – this book managed to keep focused on the magic and fantasy. It was unique and refreshing.
The history was amazing and well-researched. Many historical events and figures were mentioned, such as the Puritans, Salem Witch Trials, and King Philip. Historical items like hangings, wars, and Native American culture appeared in this book. Some liberties were taken, but they only enhanced the story.
This novel features three Points of View (main characters Toby, Fiona, and Thomas) and stays in each character’s viewpoint for multiple chapters. It was disconcerting at first because each new narrator wasn’t clearly stated, but revealed in the body of the chapter.
Toby is an extremely likeable character. He leaves his world behind and survives in a very different one with only his wits and spells. His backstory is astounding; he was a peasant -or Tatter- not allowed to learn or do magic. Toby’s father taught him to read, even though it could get them all killed. Watching him attempt to blend was entertaining because he claimed to be from England but he didn’t have an accent or knowledge of his supposed homeland. Eventually, his new friends begin to learn the truth about Toby, but evil beings -bone wardens, Harvesters, and Rawhed himself- come after them and they create a coven to learn magic, protect themselves, and try to get Toby home.
Fiona is an interesting, intelligent female lead. She is wicked smart, almost genius at times, remembering things she hears only once and being the first to know anything. She is fiercely loyal to her friends and easily adapts after learning Toby’s identity and that magic exists, and displays courage in times of danger.
Thomas is a college professor with a reputation for researching history and magic. Fiona seeks him out when she suspects Toby isn’t what he seems. It was great getting into Thomas’s head, watching him start to believe in the unimaginable. He turns into a wonderful resource for Toby’s group and transforms from book nerd to brave hero.
Life or death situations start early on until gruesome showdowns happen in both worlds. So even though this is a YA book, I wouldn’t recommend it to very young teens. But the fantasy and history make this book a captivating read and I can’t wait for the next book in this series!
My rating: 4/5 stars.
November 25, 2016
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Why I read it: Well. Really the only word that sank in before I signed up for the book tour was ‘Boston’. I consider Boston my home away from home, and I enjoy reading books set in its familiar surroundings – perhaps because I am not there very often!
Plot: At first I had no idea what was going on (I don’t think you’re meant to); seventeen year old Toby has escaped what seems to be a fear campaign of some sort and ends up in Boston. Well. A parallel version of his city of Maremount, which is Boston in our world. It turns out that he’s a sorcerer (or philosopher, if you will) and while he tries to blend in with unfamiliar surroundings, his world starts to bleed through – causing death, destruction and chaos.
Characters: I liked Toby, his love interest (sort of) Fiona and his room mate, Alan, all as characters. Though the story was about Toby, Fiona was the one that spoke to me the most. She’s curious and pro-active. Though it is obvious they are all still very much teenagers.
Jack was completely unlikeable and I guessed what his purpose was going to be, once we got out of the awkward love triangle of sorts that really didn’t need to be there. Sorry. That’s personal bias speaking. I hate love triangles, though it wasn't really a romance...just an allusion to potential romance? I don't know how to describe it *ponders* it was a bit of a distraction.
Style/Writing: The writing style is quite good. I usually avoid works by multiple authors due to finding in the past that their ‘voices’ can be quite obvious. But with The Witching Elm there wasn’t any of that. It was as if one person had written the book (or they worked very hard to sound similar!)
Pros: The plot was quite interesting and the story flowed nicely, though I think the second half was much better than the first. The ending was super, I must admit. It was totally unexpected! The world that the authors have created is really interesting too, I wanted more of it, to be honest.
And isn't the cover kind of creepy? Actually, the story in itself is a little creepy too, so it all fits!
Cons: I know YA books are meant to move quickly, but I found that I really wanted some of the gaps filled in. Alan and Fiona are both instantly accepting of Toby and his magic. They totally shrugged off what would have otherwise been shocking situations for them. I wanted them to at least freak out a bit, it would have been more realistic if they did.
Because of the gaps the pacing felt a bit off in some places, like we jumped from one thing to the next and it took a couple of paragraphs to get my bearings.
In Brief: A young adult fantasy with an interesting plot and good characters. It felt a bit different from all the run of the mill fantasy out there.
Why I read it: Well. Really the only word that sank in before I signed up for the book tour was ‘Boston’. I consider Boston my home away from home, and I enjoy reading books set in its familiar surroundings – perhaps because I am not there very often!
Plot: At first I had no idea what was going on (I don’t think you’re meant to); seventeen year old Toby has escaped what seems to be a fear campaign of some sort and ends up in Boston. Well. A parallel version of his city of Maremount, which is Boston in our world. It turns out that he’s a sorcerer (or philosopher, if you will) and while he tries to blend in with unfamiliar surroundings, his world starts to bleed through – causing death, destruction and chaos.
Characters: I liked Toby, his love interest (sort of) Fiona and his room mate, Alan, all as characters. Though the story was about Toby, Fiona was the one that spoke to me the most. She’s curious and pro-active. Though it is obvious they are all still very much teenagers.
Jack was completely unlikeable and I guessed what his purpose was going to be, once we got out of the awkward love triangle of sorts that really didn’t need to be there. Sorry. That’s personal bias speaking. I hate love triangles, though it wasn't really a romance...just an allusion to potential romance? I don't know how to describe it *ponders* it was a bit of a distraction.
Style/Writing: The writing style is quite good. I usually avoid works by multiple authors due to finding in the past that their ‘voices’ can be quite obvious. But with The Witching Elm there wasn’t any of that. It was as if one person had written the book (or they worked very hard to sound similar!)
Pros: The plot was quite interesting and the story flowed nicely, though I think the second half was much better than the first. The ending was super, I must admit. It was totally unexpected! The world that the authors have created is really interesting too, I wanted more of it, to be honest.
And isn't the cover kind of creepy? Actually, the story in itself is a little creepy too, so it all fits!
Cons: I know YA books are meant to move quickly, but I found that I really wanted some of the gaps filled in. Alan and Fiona are both instantly accepting of Toby and his magic. They totally shrugged off what would have otherwise been shocking situations for them. I wanted them to at least freak out a bit, it would have been more realistic if they did.
Because of the gaps the pacing felt a bit off in some places, like we jumped from one thing to the next and it took a couple of paragraphs to get my bearings.
In Brief: A young adult fantasy with an interesting plot and good characters. It felt a bit different from all the run of the mill fantasy out there.
February 3, 2015
Quite the dark and gritty YA urban/alternate history fantasy story! I was expecting a leisurely kind of ‘stranger in a new milieu’ story, but instead The Witching Elm throws the reader right into the danger, death and action and barely lets up its pace throughout. Initially, I was a tiny bit confused because many of the secondary characters are introduced in one big lump and it was a bit of challenge keeping them straight for a while, but they grow and develop as the story churns on, until—for the most part—they evolve into fully developed characters. I found the passages on New England’s dark history fascinating and I don’t think it drags on or becomes too boring for the average YA reader to get through. In fact, it adds to the richness of the storyline with layers of mythos and creepiness.
Several of the characters, like the introduced-late researcher and almost professor Thomas Malcolm, were incredibly well-written as vital and interesting secondary characters that I felt deserve whole stories of their own. Although I’m not convinced poor Toby was the best choice for POV character, since the story seemed to move ahead more quickly when he was relegated to teaching spells or giving back story, but I think from a YA perspective Toby puts in a calm and measured storyline as the most ‘relatable’ character.
One of the things I enjoyed the most about The Witching Elm is how much love and attention to detail CN Crawford has placed in research. It’s not often that a brand new indie author (actually two authors in this case) devotes so much energy to adding just the right amount of scary facts and tidbits to their prose to make both the historical New England of the past and current Boston come alive on the page. Even the ghosts have a significant back story!
Several of the characters, like the introduced-late researcher and almost professor Thomas Malcolm, were incredibly well-written as vital and interesting secondary characters that I felt deserve whole stories of their own. Although I’m not convinced poor Toby was the best choice for POV character, since the story seemed to move ahead more quickly when he was relegated to teaching spells or giving back story, but I think from a YA perspective Toby puts in a calm and measured storyline as the most ‘relatable’ character.
One of the things I enjoyed the most about The Witching Elm is how much love and attention to detail CN Crawford has placed in research. It’s not often that a brand new indie author (actually two authors in this case) devotes so much energy to adding just the right amount of scary facts and tidbits to their prose to make both the historical New England of the past and current Boston come alive on the page. Even the ghosts have a significant back story!
February 2, 2015
I really enjoyed this book. It was easy to read and kept me interested. Actually, I found that I couldn't put it down. I loved the relationships developed between the characters especially Toby and Fiona and I am excited to see where it will lead in the second book. This book had a dark and fascinating plot wrapped in historical facts and myth. It was cool to read about the native american history surrounding Boston and how Crawford wove mythical fiction and fact together. I would recommend this book to anyone who like histoircal fiction mixed with dark urban fantasy.
December 27, 2014
The Witching Elm is a fascinating visionary and metaphysical novel of the highest order. Crawford provides an elegant and mysterious exploration of the realms of magick. Reading Crawford's book is like getting equal doses of academia and enlightenment. Her book is a metaphysical fiction that was both beautiful and wondrously haunting. Crawford is certainly a writer of fiction worthy of the highest praise.
September 22, 2020
I'm just glad I didn't waste too much time on this book. It had a lot of potential that just didn't get utilised. It was even necessarily badly written, I don't know what exactly it is. The book was just a constant info dump but about all the wrong things. I don't know anything about the magic system, the magic world, the school, or any of our main characters. I don't even know what anyone looks like! If I'd been able to absorb the boring real-life history lesson amongst all the seances and occasional spell casting, I'm sure I would be very well-informed about the founding of America (I think??), some Native American tribe stuff and a lot of Boston geography. YAWN!
I really don't know what the author(s) was trying to achieve. Tobias is a young rebel magician who gets trapped in our world while escaping from an evil necromancer, leaving behind his family and beloved. He doesn't really seem fazed by it though and blends in pretty easily even though he shouldn't know what electricity or private school is. He completely forgets about his girlfriend and kind of fancies Fiona who's not available or interested. He has a complex about being poor. His "rebel wizard" group sounds completely dull. He's actually not very good at magic and can't even memorise useful spells.
The timeline in the book is really choppy and weird. Scenes jumped for no reason, there were a lot of supernatural goings-on that no one seemed to react to. The city goes on lockdown because people are being regularly slaughtered in the dozens but "lockdown" means sometimes the kids don't leave school grounds but sometimes they go the train station for a day trip. There are an unsurprising number of "magical" people hidden amongst the students but they also don't make any sense even though they know what's going on.
This book was just shit. Sorry. Complete nonsense. No one acted like a real human being, it was a complete snooze fest and the magical side of things was barely touched on. Also it was weirdly insulting to British people. What a waste.
I really don't know what the author(s) was trying to achieve. Tobias is a young rebel magician who gets trapped in our world while escaping from an evil necromancer, leaving behind his family and beloved. He doesn't really seem fazed by it though and blends in pretty easily even though he shouldn't know what electricity or private school is. He completely forgets about his girlfriend and kind of fancies Fiona who's not available or interested. He has a complex about being poor. His "rebel wizard" group sounds completely dull. He's actually not very good at magic and can't even memorise useful spells.
The timeline in the book is really choppy and weird. Scenes jumped for no reason, there were a lot of supernatural goings-on that no one seemed to react to. The city goes on lockdown because people are being regularly slaughtered in the dozens but "lockdown" means sometimes the kids don't leave school grounds but sometimes they go the train station for a day trip. There are an unsurprising number of "magical" people hidden amongst the students but they also don't make any sense even though they know what's going on.
This book was just shit. Sorry. Complete nonsense. No one acted like a real human being, it was a complete snooze fest and the magical side of things was barely touched on. Also it was weirdly insulting to British people. What a waste.
May 24, 2017
Great young character
It would seem that this story happens before the Vampire Mage series. The main character Tobias sure has a lot of challenges. He is in a different world, just starting school, and getting stuck in the middle of a terrorist attack from magical beings. That's a lot to deal with at 17. I like the kids that he befriends and how courageous they all are. The varying perspectives transitioned pretty well and there was enough mystery and twists to keep thigs interesting.
It would seem that this story happens before the Vampire Mage series. The main character Tobias sure has a lot of challenges. He is in a different world, just starting school, and getting stuck in the middle of a terrorist attack from magical beings. That's a lot to deal with at 17. I like the kids that he befriends and how courageous they all are. The varying perspectives transitioned pretty well and there was enough mystery and twists to keep thigs interesting.
November 12, 2018
Really cool world building, lush descriptions, and interesting characters. I just really feel like this book really would have shined had it been written in a more YA or NA tone instead of the middle grade one the authors went with. I was definitely disappointed in that choice since it felt everything was being held back by that limitation. I also looked ahead and saw that a million new character perspectives were being added in the next books and there are already too many in this book. With all of that combined I’ve decided this series isn’t for me.
April 19, 2019
I loved the history in this book. The writing was easy to read and the pages flew by. I’m excited to continue with this series.
March 20, 2016
My mind is reeling after reading The Witching Elm by C.N. Crawford. This novel is jammed packed with creepy supernatural creatures, a mysterious world that sits parallel to Boston and a coven of down-on-their-luck kids trying to save TWO worlds. It's a page turner to say the least! A page-turner that ends on a cliff hanger!
As you can tell, I really enjoyed The Witching Elm. My heart aches for Toby as he is forced to flee his home, Maremount, and make it in Boston, which bears some resemblance to his hometown. He's a true gentleman worrying about his family and his friends (new and old). He has a mission and is determined to save those he can. It's somewhat painful as he realizes that it may not be possible to save everyone.
There's a lot of fantasy and folklore woven into this story. There's a bit of Native American legends, the Salem Witch Trials and the Puritans, some stuff about The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne plus the world of Maremount has its own brand of magic. I often felt a bit overwhelmed trying to keep track of it all. The one character, Thomas, a professor at the local college, that I felt could have explained it all came and went from the story. I wanted the kids to spend more time with him or at least go to history class and learn more! However, an adult spewing information isn't the most exciting thing to read (or listen to) so I can understand why the kids kind of flew by the seat of their pants.
Can I just take a minute and state how creepy Rawhed and his band of supernatural creatures were? Holy smokes, my skin is just crawling thinking about it. Whenever the bone wardens were mentioned, I thought of the Antler Room from season 1 of Hannibal.
And that Redcap Toby and Celia raised from the dead looked nothing like the Redcaps I encountered while fighting crime in City of Heroes. Let's just say the author did a great job of creating some nightmarish creatures that sent shivers up my spine.
In short, I am giving The Witching Elm by C.N. Crawford a thumbs up. The book weaves a known history and known world with a new world in a fashion that compels the reader to keep reading until the end.
This review was originally posted on Second Run Reviews.
As you can tell, I really enjoyed The Witching Elm. My heart aches for Toby as he is forced to flee his home, Maremount, and make it in Boston, which bears some resemblance to his hometown. He's a true gentleman worrying about his family and his friends (new and old). He has a mission and is determined to save those he can. It's somewhat painful as he realizes that it may not be possible to save everyone.
There's a lot of fantasy and folklore woven into this story. There's a bit of Native American legends, the Salem Witch Trials and the Puritans, some stuff about The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne plus the world of Maremount has its own brand of magic. I often felt a bit overwhelmed trying to keep track of it all. The one character, Thomas, a professor at the local college, that I felt could have explained it all came and went from the story. I wanted the kids to spend more time with him or at least go to history class and learn more! However, an adult spewing information isn't the most exciting thing to read (or listen to) so I can understand why the kids kind of flew by the seat of their pants.
Can I just take a minute and state how creepy Rawhed and his band of supernatural creatures were? Holy smokes, my skin is just crawling thinking about it. Whenever the bone wardens were mentioned, I thought of the Antler Room from season 1 of Hannibal.
And that Redcap Toby and Celia raised from the dead looked nothing like the Redcaps I encountered while fighting crime in City of Heroes. Let's just say the author did a great job of creating some nightmarish creatures that sent shivers up my spine.In short, I am giving The Witching Elm by C.N. Crawford a thumbs up. The book weaves a known history and known world with a new world in a fashion that compels the reader to keep reading until the end.
This review was originally posted on Second Run Reviews.
July 17, 2015
Where do I even start? Out of any book I have ever read in my 22 year existence, I don’t think I have ever been as thrown around as this book did to me It picked me up and threw me around like a ragdoll, it chewed me up, spat me out, stomped on me, at one point it coddled me in bubble wrap like a fragile child that made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside and offered me hot chocolate with marshmallows in front of a woodfire, then it put me on a burning triple looped rollercoaster with broken brakes in a thunderstorm and watched while I screamed.
Basically (I say basically like this book was simple – FYI, t’was not simple) it’s about Tobias – a philosopher from a world running parallel to Boston, a world cut off from everything else, but most importantly, a world where magic is the key essence to life. Tobias is sent to Boston for safety from a magical murderer named Rawhed – who is killing up a storm in Maremount. But trouble follows Tobias. He makes friends with some unlikely people, those of which are not as they seem. Tobias knows he has to stop Rawhed before everyone he cares for dies, but the question is how? He and his friends don’t have time on their side as they rush to figure out how to stop him and his band of Harvesters before it’s too late.
I felt bombarded with information that I couldn’t keep up with, don’t get me wrong, I loved the History lessons and they were obviously vital for the story to make sense, but at points I was re-reading sometimes four or five times – even going back a few pages because I hadn’t taken everything in. Can I really fault this? All the information was needed, maybe this author could have spread the story out over more pages? It was that enthralled that reading a few more pages would have been nothing in the scheme of things. And more of this story meant my rise wouldn't be over so fast. Sad face emoji should be inserted here.
There were ups and downs like any other story, there was something completely fresh and exciting about this story that metaphorically gripped the horrified and shocked strings of my heart. For me, this was like a version of Harry Potter, but for adults, who like blood and gore and adult stuff.
I firmly recommend this rollercoaster, I promise once you’re on, you’ll be disappointed when it’s over. I take solace in the fact that there are bigger and better rollercoasters coming in this series and I cant wait.
For a full review, please click this link
Basically (I say basically like this book was simple – FYI, t’was not simple) it’s about Tobias – a philosopher from a world running parallel to Boston, a world cut off from everything else, but most importantly, a world where magic is the key essence to life. Tobias is sent to Boston for safety from a magical murderer named Rawhed – who is killing up a storm in Maremount. But trouble follows Tobias. He makes friends with some unlikely people, those of which are not as they seem. Tobias knows he has to stop Rawhed before everyone he cares for dies, but the question is how? He and his friends don’t have time on their side as they rush to figure out how to stop him and his band of Harvesters before it’s too late.
I felt bombarded with information that I couldn’t keep up with, don’t get me wrong, I loved the History lessons and they were obviously vital for the story to make sense, but at points I was re-reading sometimes four or five times – even going back a few pages because I hadn’t taken everything in. Can I really fault this? All the information was needed, maybe this author could have spread the story out over more pages? It was that enthralled that reading a few more pages would have been nothing in the scheme of things. And more of this story meant my rise wouldn't be over so fast. Sad face emoji should be inserted here.
There were ups and downs like any other story, there was something completely fresh and exciting about this story that metaphorically gripped the horrified and shocked strings of my heart. For me, this was like a version of Harry Potter, but for adults, who like blood and gore and adult stuff.
I firmly recommend this rollercoaster, I promise once you’re on, you’ll be disappointed when it’s over. I take solace in the fact that there are bigger and better rollercoasters coming in this series and I cant wait.
For a full review, please click this link
February 28, 2015
Wow. Just wow. this was a well written, twisty fun fascinating and enthralling tale. I love the stories and legends that are talked about and how Maremount parallels boston. Each plot was well thought out and some eery. Each character created to attract and intrigue you.
all the danger and intrigue keeps you on your toes. Toby comes to Boston to keep his people’s hopes alive. His home is being attacked by Rahmed and his dad has him flee to be safe. He flees to a Academy in boston where he is put into what I think is more danger and the mysteries begin. we have missing princesses mysteries come about, a grad student who is mortal and helps them solve the mystery of King Philip and 4 students who form a coven and try to save their towns. Fiona is a smart shy young woman. She has a crush on the enigmatic Jack. Which let me tell you I didn’t expect his background and stuff that one blindsided me so did Celia wow. We have Fiona, Alan, Toby, Celia and Mariana become a unlikely group of friends and one night they are warned. Next strange things occur. Toby is figured out but instead of his friends turning him in they help him. This is a great group of friends.
We see legends and tales of witchcraft and Kings. A fantastical world is created that parallels ours but affects ours at the same time. Toby and his friends must decipher all the mysteries to save their towns. The ending leaves you with many questions and more wonders. What will happen next? why did we see the betrayal we saw? What about Rahmed? What about toby’s dad? What will happen with toby and his friends? And the grad student?
A wonderfully written tale that will at times have your hair on end as you navigate your way through mystery, danger, murder, witchcraft and teenage hearts. this book will have you on your toes the whole time and you will definitely like it. And the witching elm is where all the mayhem begins in boston what tales that holds.
all the danger and intrigue keeps you on your toes. Toby comes to Boston to keep his people’s hopes alive. His home is being attacked by Rahmed and his dad has him flee to be safe. He flees to a Academy in boston where he is put into what I think is more danger and the mysteries begin. we have missing princesses mysteries come about, a grad student who is mortal and helps them solve the mystery of King Philip and 4 students who form a coven and try to save their towns. Fiona is a smart shy young woman. She has a crush on the enigmatic Jack. Which let me tell you I didn’t expect his background and stuff that one blindsided me so did Celia wow. We have Fiona, Alan, Toby, Celia and Mariana become a unlikely group of friends and one night they are warned. Next strange things occur. Toby is figured out but instead of his friends turning him in they help him. This is a great group of friends.
We see legends and tales of witchcraft and Kings. A fantastical world is created that parallels ours but affects ours at the same time. Toby and his friends must decipher all the mysteries to save their towns. The ending leaves you with many questions and more wonders. What will happen next? why did we see the betrayal we saw? What about Rahmed? What about toby’s dad? What will happen with toby and his friends? And the grad student?
A wonderfully written tale that will at times have your hair on end as you navigate your way through mystery, danger, murder, witchcraft and teenage hearts. this book will have you on your toes the whole time and you will definitely like it. And the witching elm is where all the mayhem begins in boston what tales that holds.
February 10, 2015
I love books about witchcraft, sorcerers, witches, Salem all of it... I love it. I have even since I could remember and this book surely delivers on all of that in a wonderful dark way. I received this book for the blog tour and waited until the last minute to read it, but that was fine because I blew through it. The plot was strong, quick, and interesting. It kept me engaged at every turn and the characters were just as fun.
In this story we meet Toby, who is a teen sorcerer from a world that exists on another plane near Boston, and he has been sent to Boston for protection from an evil sorcerer who is killing just about everyone. This dark magic, demons, and evil sorcerers permeate the book from the first page, making the story almost fly by as you read to keep up with Toby. While in Boston, Toby attends a boarding school and meets a bunch of other teens who learn about who he is and decide to help him on his mission to get home and save the others. This leads to everything you would expect, more danger, more crazy things happening, and more excitement and point of views to read from.
The only thing that I can say in a critical manner is that, Toby is odd. Obviously he is from another world but I think that his point of view is written a little younger than the others in the book - it may be that since he is from elsewhere there is a culture/time barrier or something, but I always felt while reading his sections (although some of the best and most interesting) that the story was about a much younger teen, and he is supposed to be 17.
Despite this, the story is pretty epic, there are secret societies, secret passages in the school, old legends, and the whole this is interspersed with history from the Boston area - it made for a wonderful book. I am a sucker for a dark fantasy I guess, but I really enjoyed this book.
In this story we meet Toby, who is a teen sorcerer from a world that exists on another plane near Boston, and he has been sent to Boston for protection from an evil sorcerer who is killing just about everyone. This dark magic, demons, and evil sorcerers permeate the book from the first page, making the story almost fly by as you read to keep up with Toby. While in Boston, Toby attends a boarding school and meets a bunch of other teens who learn about who he is and decide to help him on his mission to get home and save the others. This leads to everything you would expect, more danger, more crazy things happening, and more excitement and point of views to read from.
The only thing that I can say in a critical manner is that, Toby is odd. Obviously he is from another world but I think that his point of view is written a little younger than the others in the book - it may be that since he is from elsewhere there is a culture/time barrier or something, but I always felt while reading his sections (although some of the best and most interesting) that the story was about a much younger teen, and he is supposed to be 17.
Despite this, the story is pretty epic, there are secret societies, secret passages in the school, old legends, and the whole this is interspersed with history from the Boston area - it made for a wonderful book. I am a sucker for a dark fantasy I guess, but I really enjoyed this book.
July 19, 2015
Oficialmente no lo terminé, pero llegué al 70% del libro así que creo que me gané el derecho a dar mi opinión.
Comienza bien, con personajes más o menos interesantes, un misterio y la posibilidad de un mundo mágico. Hasta acá venía bien. El problema principal para mi es que todo avanza demasiado rápido y con pocas explicaciones y esto hace que el 90% de las reacciones de los personajes sean inverosímiles.
A nadie le cuesta creer que hay un mundo paralelo donde existe la magia, todos lo aceptan sin chistar y después se ponen a leer libros de magia y a practicar hechizos como si siempre hubieran sido parte de la vida.
*****SPOILER*****
Cuando comienzan los ataques en la ciudad y empiezan a colgar gente del árbol te cuentan que la policía trata de intervenir con poco éxito, pero a nadie se le ocurre evacuar la escuela después de que cuelgan a una profesora en la plaza enfrente del colegio? Todos siguen con sus vidas como si nada, los padres no se preocupan? Dejemos que los niños se protejan solos con los hechizos que aprendieron la semana pasada.
Lo recuerdo y me da vergüenza lo mal hecho que está todo.
*****FIN SPOILER*****
Le falta mucho desarrollo y sentido común. Una pena, pero no vale que siga perdiendo mi tiempo leyéndolo.
Comienza bien, con personajes más o menos interesantes, un misterio y la posibilidad de un mundo mágico. Hasta acá venía bien. El problema principal para mi es que todo avanza demasiado rápido y con pocas explicaciones y esto hace que el 90% de las reacciones de los personajes sean inverosímiles.
A nadie le cuesta creer que hay un mundo paralelo donde existe la magia, todos lo aceptan sin chistar y después se ponen a leer libros de magia y a practicar hechizos como si siempre hubieran sido parte de la vida.
*****SPOILER*****
Cuando comienzan los ataques en la ciudad y empiezan a colgar gente del árbol te cuentan que la policía trata de intervenir con poco éxito, pero a nadie se le ocurre evacuar la escuela después de que cuelgan a una profesora en la plaza enfrente del colegio? Todos siguen con sus vidas como si nada, los padres no se preocupan? Dejemos que los niños se protejan solos con los hechizos que aprendieron la semana pasada.
Lo recuerdo y me da vergüenza lo mal hecho que está todo.
*****FIN SPOILER*****
Le falta mucho desarrollo y sentido común. Una pena, pero no vale que siga perdiendo mi tiempo leyéndolo.
January 2, 2015
I was provided a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
The Witching Elm by C.N.Crawford: History is sure to repeat itself, especially now in Boston to the unwilling residents near Mather Academy. Toby Corvin is a new student to the academy and he has a secret that could enlighten his fellow students or condemn them… he is a sorcerer. This Urban Fantasy brings together two very different worlds, those of fantasy and history, and meshes them in a thrilling young adult tale. C.N.Crawford has woven an amusing walk through some of Boston’s more intriguing myths and origins.
Together with Toby; his friends, Alan, Fiona, Celia and Mariana form a coven to battle the forces brought to Boston from Toby’s home of Maremount. Each character has their own personality and identity, their stories are individualized and well thought-out. I’m not too terribly keen on characters that are in their teens, but I think this time it worked. I like the story line and the idea of The Witching Elm, the blending of real historical events and people and a fantasy realm with the element of magic, it kind of has something for everyone.
The Witching Elm by C.N.Crawford: History is sure to repeat itself, especially now in Boston to the unwilling residents near Mather Academy. Toby Corvin is a new student to the academy and he has a secret that could enlighten his fellow students or condemn them… he is a sorcerer. This Urban Fantasy brings together two very different worlds, those of fantasy and history, and meshes them in a thrilling young adult tale. C.N.Crawford has woven an amusing walk through some of Boston’s more intriguing myths and origins.
Together with Toby; his friends, Alan, Fiona, Celia and Mariana form a coven to battle the forces brought to Boston from Toby’s home of Maremount. Each character has their own personality and identity, their stories are individualized and well thought-out. I’m not too terribly keen on characters that are in their teens, but I think this time it worked. I like the story line and the idea of The Witching Elm, the blending of real historical events and people and a fantasy realm with the element of magic, it kind of has something for everyone.
February 4, 2015
I was blown away by The Witching Elm!!! It is dark fantasy but so so good! The writing is tight and the characters almost leap off the page-they are very well done. C. N. Crawford is actually two people (see farther down this page for AUTHOR INFO) writing a book is hard enough but throw in collaborating with another person! This team of Christine & Nick really nail every aspect of the book: setting, characters, plot. It all works together seamlessly so well done on that.
As far as the book itself-the twist is the character of Toby Corvin is only hidden out in our world because he's fleeing from the dangerous magical war in his world. Maremount has evil, spells, talking ravens and a bunch of trouble from various vicious monsters. Toby wants to go home to be with his girlfriend; but the war in Maremount comes to Boston in a big, scary, deadly way. The race is on to save both worlds.
The basic plot of the book is fantastic and never stops. I enjoyed it very much-fans of the Sleepy Hollow TV show and Harry Potter will LOVE this book. 4 stars-obviously I was given a copy of the book but this is my own opinion of the work.
As far as the book itself-the twist is the character of Toby Corvin is only hidden out in our world because he's fleeing from the dangerous magical war in his world. Maremount has evil, spells, talking ravens and a bunch of trouble from various vicious monsters. Toby wants to go home to be with his girlfriend; but the war in Maremount comes to Boston in a big, scary, deadly way. The race is on to save both worlds.
The basic plot of the book is fantastic and never stops. I enjoyed it very much-fans of the Sleepy Hollow TV show and Harry Potter will LOVE this book. 4 stars-obviously I was given a copy of the book but this is my own opinion of the work.
March 31, 2015
The Witching Elm really spoke to me from the vision of the front cover I knew that there was something special awaiting me on the pages inside. This book was a mix of my loved historical elements and the magic of fantasy these two together proved to be a mystical creation. I became submerged into the book hanging on it's every word. I could not get enough of this story. The Witching Elm is a masterfully written book that for me was reminiscent of the like of Sleepy Hallow, The Raven, and a touch of Harry Potter. As I met the characters and became more familiar with who and what they were I knew that this book the first of it's series would find a home on my book shelf so that I can read it over again. My favorite of the characters were Fiona and Toby at this point I feel however that this may change later on. I can not wait to see the direction this series takes the further into it C.N. Crawford takes us. For now I can tell you all this The Witching Elm is well worth the time and money to read.
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