The title caught my attention. The story seemed fascinating, and as someone who wrote a YA novel set in about the same time period (that actually launched my entire fantasy world, even though I never published it), I was curious how this author would handle the time period of Reconstruction. To that end, the author handled the issues and the concerns with a deft touch. I want to state right from the start that I really enjoyed this book. I strongly recommend it in spite of its flaws. I stayed up to finish it, tears in my eyes at the emotional impact that each of these well written characters had and yet, I couldn’t help but think about this book as being set in an overly enforced gender binary, one that seemed the mirror the racial binary that the characters encounter: white and not white.
My biggest issue with the book is twofold. The first is that the book is heavily steeped in the gender binary with little nuance beyond stereotypical gender roles which were reinforced at the time. The transgender character seems to not articulate much beyond wearing dresses makes her feel like herself, as if dresses and crinolines = womanhood. The cis male character who joins their cause lost a leg in the war, which was a very common occurrence; however, it also contains the ableist trope that disabled individuals are less than, and this character, in spite of his very full-throated support of the women in his family and it is never seen on page where he stands up to the men who want the women removed from the college, mostly because they were jilted by independent women in their lives and would like to stop that nonsense right now, thank you very much. That leads to the second issue, is that the plot all seemed a bit heavy handed and “rah rah girl power” with some fantastical elements thrown in for shock value, as if the reader needs the reason for women’s rights and women’s education pounded in like a railroad spike.
I admit that some of my strong feelings about this may be due to my own history of trauma and not feeling safe in women’s spaces in spite of being AFAB and am willing to admit that. However, the “women are good and righteous and men are hateful and abusive” narrative feeds into the patriarchy and harms non-cis, non-binary individuals and I don’t think that was the author’s intent. Nonetheless the book reinforces those narratives anyway.
Again, I want to reiterate that I really enjoyed this story and it certainly kept me turning the pages, which in the end, is what we want out of our stories. It also made me think, and again, that’s a good thing. The characters, in spite of each chapter being an alternating first person point of view, were easy to follow, the cast was diverse in socioeconomic status, gender expression, sexuality, and race, and the issues of the time, and those that still persist to this day, were illuminated. I encourage you to check out this book for yourself.
Blurb
In this spellbinding Southern Gothic novel, three women weave together old Southern folklore and magic to fight sexism and educational discrimination in post–Civil War Alabama, perfect for fans of Hester Fox and Louisa Morgan.
When Lucille, Catherine, and Victoria are invited to participate in a trial semester for women at Alabama’s most prestigious university, they each have their own reasons for accepting. Lucille wants freedom from both her father’s control and reminders of her traitorous first love. Catherine wants to escape an arranged marriage meant to halt her attraction to women. And Victoria wants to run from the guilt that haunts her after the death of one of her fellow mill girls.
The trial semester will determine whether or not women across the state will be allowed to attend other universities. But the enrolled women quickly learn that success is not guaranteed, and some of their male cohorts are determined to see them fail. When the men’s pranks go too far Lucille, Catherine, and Victoria form a coven under the guise of a sorority and call upon witchcraft steeped in the traditions of Southern folklore to fight back.
As they gather their fellow witches, they discover there is something darker at work at the university, a force that is determined to expel all the women at the university, and they’ll need all the allies they can get if they want to succeed.
For fans of Witchcraft for Wayward Girls and Weyward, this historical speculative novel explores the darker side of human nature and the ways in which women navigate—and survive—oppressive, male-dominated societies.
Release Date: 10/6/2026
Copy received from Netgalley
Would I read more of this author’s work? YES
