Thank you Berkley Books, #partner, for the advanced e-copy of Island Witch in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Berkley Books
Pub date: February 20, 2023
Summary:
Inspired by Sri Lankan folklore, award-winning author Amanda Jayatissa turns her feverish, Gothic-tinged talents to late 19th century Sri Lanka where the daughter of a traditional demon-priest—relentlessly bullied by peers and accused of witchcraft herself—tries to solve the mysterious attacks that have been terrorizing her coastal village.
Being the daughter of the village Capuwa, or demon-priest, Amara is used to keeping mostly to herself. Influenced by the new religious practices brought in by the British Colonizers, the villagers who once respected her father’s craft have turned on the family. Yet, they all still seem to call on him whenever supernatural disturbances arise.
Now someone—or something —is viciously seizing upon men in the jungle. But instead of enlisting Amara’s father’s help, the villages have accused him of carrying out the attacks himself.
As she tries to clear her father’s name, Amara finds herself haunted by dreams that eerily predict the dark forces on her island. And she can’t shake the feeling that it’s all connected to the night she was recovering from a strange illness, and woke up, scared and confused, to hear her mother’s frantic No one can find out what happened.
Lush, otherworldly, and recalling horror classics like Carrie and The Exorcist, Island Witch is a deliciously creepy and darkly feminist tale about the horrors of moral panic, the violent space between girlhood and adulthood, and what happens when female rage is finally unleashed.
My thoughts:
I absolutely loved Amanda Jayatissa’s previous two books and so it was a no-brainer that I would continue to read her books. This new one sounded so amazing…and it immediately became one of my most anticipated reads – and I’m so happy to say that it totally delivered!
I was pulled into this book right from the start. The writing is absolutely beautiful and it is so atmospheric! I loved how the author was able to blend the gothic vibes with the Sri Lankan folklore and bits of horror – it had me completely engaged and on edge at the same time. I’m not usually a fan of horror, but when it is mixed in this way, I’m all for it. Added in is just a slight bit of supernatural, which again doesn’t tend to work for me, but here it totally does. The historical fiction aspects, especially the religious conflict that the author portrays here was quite impressive and sent me down quite the rabbit hole of my own research.
This is a very dark story, and it is unsettling and a bit creepy to say the least, but it is a slow-burn! The mystery kept my hooked, and I found myself unable to put the book down as I was totally entranced by the story. Just know it is not fast-paced by any means and the payoff is totally worth it!
Amanda Jayatissa is absolutely a must-read author for me from now on! All three of her books have been great and I cannot wait to see what she writes next!
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