Vixenoire’s Reviews > The Witch of Willow Sound > Status Update

A hurricane tears through the area but the aunt’s house remains in tact. The aunt is found alive. The DNA of the skeleton matches the aunt. Mysterious. I am not sure where the story will go.

Madeline became a witch hermit after talking to a ghost during childhood. The mysterious door leads to a cellar. Burnt remains belong to aunt Madeline. The town nearby hates witches. A visiting historian helps Phaedra (Fade).

“”In their stories, your aunt is powerful,” he says. “And dangerous.” “Really?” “Really. People are afraid of her.” “Why are people afraid of her?” “Because she is the Witch of Willow Sound.””

“Chickadees swoop and dee-dee-dee past my head as I pry burrs from my bootlaces. My soles grind into the soft red humus of the forest floor, releasing whiffs of cedar needles.” So wonderfully descriptive. Maybe crazy to say considering the prologue and premise… but this is cozy.

The prologue is very strong - an old woman burning a body. Almost like a ritual, she pries it from the tree she nailed it to and feeds the remaining flesh to the forest animals. So far enjoying the writing style, and I can appreciate this is a Canadian novel set in Nova Scotia. I see it was inspired by real East Coast witch traditions.