This was not the typical witch story I thought I was going to be getting when I picked this up. Wanting a story of magic and maybe even some scares, this was nothing like that but still it did not disappoint. This is a fantastic story of mothers and daughters…with a little magic tossed in here and there. If you like Alice Hoffman, you’ll love Louisa Morgan!
The story spans five generations, starting in the 1800’s when the Ochiere witches escaped persecution in their homeland and fled to Britain. The witch line continues through the women of the family, almost always by performing some love magic that leaves the women of Ochiere to their destruction. Mothers teach daughters to use the stone and grimoire’s magic, though each woman in the family uses it for different purposes. The story ends in WWII, though it leaves it open for the line of witches to continue.
I have to admit it was a little hard for me to get into this story, only because I went in expecting more magic and mystery. Once I accepted this wasn’t that kind of story, and read it more as a historical fiction novel with a bit of magic, then I got really into these women and their stories, each one so vastly different from the next. Morwen was my favorite of the five witches, with her love of horses and simple farm life. I related to her the most. After finishing this book, I found the author has written many similar witch stories and I think I’m going to pick them up and give them a read. The only reason I gave this four instead of five stars is because it was a little slow for me and took me a while to get into the story.
If you enjoy a family drama, a story of mothers and daughters, of European witch history, or the works of Alice Hoffman’s Practical Magic series, then “A Secret History of Witches” is right up your alley.
Bestselling Author 