A strong female line-up of authors bring a multitude a witchy narratives to life in the timely anthology, Hex Life: Wicked New Tales of Witchery. Edited by Christopher Golden and Rachel Deering, it is out on October 1st from Titan Books. And it is the perfect Halloween read.
Genres don’t just hit on the obvious horror and fantasy. Instead they range from alternative history to apocalyptic. Additionally, authors fearlessly tackle topics like LGBTQ bullying and racial oppression.
The editors do a fantastic job of arranging the stories in such a way that there is a smoothness in transition but yet there is enough difference in style as to not become repetitive or slow, either.
Thank You Titan Books for an arc of Hex Life in exchange for an honest review
The Memory of Trees by Mary SanGiovanni is one of the stand-outs that loops time by setting the revitalization of witch trials in a future, apocalyptic setting. Pay mind to the forest, though they whisper and hold secrets that you might want to hear.
Gold Among The Black by Alma Katsu provides one of the most unique plot twists in the anthology with a homeless castle maid and her companion – a shapeshifting dog. Ultimately she must choose between two different paths and worlds.
Bless Your Heart by Hillary Monahan features a town of so-called Christians that take to bullying gay boy. However, they pick the wrong boy in this town. As his mom becomes more angered with their despicable behavior, she decides to serve up revenge. And coming from a long line of swamp-witches? That can be a perilous fate for the townspeople, indeed.
Hex Life is a rare anthology where I truly enjoyed each and every story. Usually, while there are some that hit the reader well and some that leave you wanting more, this anthology goes above and beyond that expectation. Anyone looking for a Halloween treat of witch stories in a variety of genres, styles and a narratives will take delight in immersing themselves in Hex Life.
I’m adding this one right away to my TBR. I love witch books
That’s so amazing!
OMG, I think this might be the perfect October read!
Coven (american horror story) got me hooked on witches and this is pretty fantastic… and I’m not a cover person but oh my.
That season was terrifying in a way I did NOT expect! I love how the writer of AHS serves out justice, but..yikes. I had nightmares and dreams for days on end about Coven, and that’s not normal for me!
I’m cautious about what witch stories I pick, but there are so many good ones. Since I loved the Toil and Trouble anthology last year, this one has my stomach in lovely knots already.
Coven was the best season! The least gory too, which is odd that so many people would find it to be the best one. I don’t think any of AHS has given me nightmares but my nightmares tend to be more real life oriented these days (which makes them much more terrifying), unfortunately.
If you liked Toil and Trouble, I would think you would very much like Hex
Oh wow, it’s the least gory? It was the first season I ever saw, so I had no idea what to expect going in and what gore there was seemed to come so abruptly. Kathy Bates’s based-on-life, horrific character was the cause of most nightmares for me (I have since watched a true crime show that outlined her deeds and Coven did not exaggerate much). But the story’s darkest magic and the hell stuff, combined with gore, also added terror and disturbia I didn’t anticipate. Yet as with almost every season, Murphy also added amazing, unique food for thought with characters’ story lines.
Thanks for the info on Hex Life, I am officially thrilled!
No problem! And yes that is by far the least gory and least disturbing season..proceed with caution.
Please tell me, what does the swamp witch do? That one looks like I may dislike it; all depends on what she does and what they did first.
Other than that, this one excites me. I love historical and modern YA both. Any other stories you loved that you could offer a few more details on?
Well what if that spoils it for everyone else lol. Email me and I will tell you. Or DM me on twitter! Plus that is only one story. 🙂
Yeah, that makes the most sense lol. In every anthology I expect to like a couple stories less, but sometimes my anxiety and OCD need to know gets worked up anyway. I’ll drop you an email; thanks!
Stop reading so many great sounding anthologies so that I can stop wanting to read them, please and thank you
Yes ma’am and I say that emphatically as this is the last one on my list unless I can get a hold of Vampires Don’t Grow Old but that isn’t till winter!????