#1: “The Wicked Deep” by Shea Ernshaw
The specs:
Pages: 308 (Hardcover, US Edition) Pub date: March 6th, 2018 Publisher: Simon Pulse Genre(s)/Themes: Fantasy; Young Adult; Paranormal; Witches; Curses Where to buy: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Audible
Full review under the cut below; spoilers ahead!
“Welcome to the cursed town of Sparrow…
Where, two centuries ago, three sisters were sentenced to death for witchery. Stones were tied to their ankles and they were drowned in the deep waters surrounding the town. Now, for a brief time each summer, the sisters return, stealing the bodies of three weak-hearted girls so that they may seek their revenge, luring boys into the harbor and pulling them under. Like many locals, seventeen-year-old Penny Talbot has accepted the fate of the town. But this year, on the eve of the sisters’ return, a boy named Bo Carter arrives; unaware of the danger he has just stumbled into. Mistrust and lies spread quickly through the salty, rain-soaked streets. The townspeople turn against one another. Penny and Bo suspect each other of hiding secrets. And death comes swiftly to those who cannot resist the call of the sisters. But only Penny sees what others cannot. And she will be forced to choose: save Bo, or save herself.” (via Goodreads)
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A cover to die for
What initially drew me to this book was the cover. There, sitting on my library’s eye-level shelf, was this book, and the cover design is absolutely gorgeous. Digitally, the design is as eerie as the atmosphere of the text itself, and the shimmering silver detail is beautiful. The crow and the pentagram are a bit misleading, but they anchor a pre-conceived notion of what the book is about: supposed witchcraft. Aside from this small detail, the design of the cover is beautiful, and so is the naked copy! Here’s a picture of it, because it’s too nice to gloss over:
Overall, the physical details of the book are stunning and I am a huge fan of both the jacket cover and the naked version.
The Treacherous Trio
The story is set in motion because of three sisters who’ve journeyed to a town in the 1800s they know nothing about. Their unparalleled beauty, irresistible charm, and captivating aura allure all men who cross their paths. It is these overwhelming factors that cause the townspeople to believe the sisters are witches, ensnaring the men of Sparrow, Oregon to fall in love with them and think of nothing else. Wrongfully accused of witchcraft, the three sisters are sentenced to death by the town, sentenced to eternity at the bottom of the ocean with rocks tied to their ankles.
Fast forward two hundred years later, and the legend of the Swan sisters—Marguerite, Aurora, and Hazel—has turned into a curse. Every summer at the start of June since the year of their death, the sisters take over the bodies of three girls who inhabit Sparrow and take revenge on the down that wronged them. They bewitch boys to fall in love with them, drowning them and trapping their souls at the bottom of the ocean for all of time.
This was such a cool concept to me! As sad and horrible as it is, I’m always fascinated by the lore and legends of a place saturated with a dark past. I was a bit hesitant to pick it up with this concept alone, but the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to see what this particular narrative was going to be like, what form it would take from something as widely-known as witch trials. I really loved the sense of magic that came with this curse of the sisters inhabiting the bodies of girls from the town they were so betrayed by. Eventually, we are able to see their perspective, as limited as it might seem; we hear their hatred, their longing for life, their anger at their lives being taken from them when they were only teenagers.
A back-and-forth narrative
One of the most intriguing aspects of the story is the perspective this story is told in. The book is told in first-person present with chapters in between told in third-person omniscient. As the story progresses in first person, we follow the main character Penny (who, spoiler! is inhabited by one of the Swan sisters, Hazel) as she falls in love with the secretive outsider Bo and tries to save her town from the murders to come. While Penny/Hazel’s journey to stop Marguerite and Aurora from killing more boys during the weeks before the summer solstice, we also get glimpses of the past. These third-person break-up chapters coincide with the point of the story Penny/Hazel is telling, letting the reader step back and get the full picture of how the sisters died, how the townspeople were like in the 1800s, and the real story of the Swan sisters.
These two opposing methods of storytelling are insightful and add more layers to the book as a whole. It was thoroughly enjoyable to be in the moment and then pulled back to fit the rest of the puzzle pieces where they were meant to be in the plot as I read on. It lets the reader be caught up in the twists while also taking a breather to really assess the situation and the backstory! Such a nice touch.
Description at length
Another aspect of the book I really enjoyed was the atmosphere Ernshaw created: no detail was too small, too insignificant to mention. Not only did her attention to specifics aid in the wonderful setup of the moods and feelings of each moment, but it really completed the picture of each individual scene and feel of the story. Ernshaw’s writing was immersive and clear; she really paints a picture in your head, it was excellent.
Romance: Wistful yet juvenile
I have a very hard time enjoying romance in YA, mostly because I find the pacing too rushed. In the case of The Wicked Deep, the main romance between Penny/Hazel and Bo was a bit rushed but understandable, as the course of the story is only set within roughly three weeks. It did seem fast-paced to me, but it also seemed genuine. I enjoyed watching Bo’s armor crack and Penny/Hazel’s doubts hold her off for a little while.
The other romance that’s given more depth in this story, and which ultimately leads to the demise of the three sisters, is the original love between Hazel and Owen. The account of the romance between these two when Hazel was still alive was sweet and sad, and the more details you learn about their mutual end tug at the heartstrings. I was more interested to read about their time together than I was about Bo and Penny/Hazel. Even in the end, when (spoilers!) Hazel relinquishes Penny’s body and Penny is allowed to fall in love with Bo (and Bo with the original Penny), it seemed...strange, almost. Bo fell in love with Hazel but then falls in love with actual Penny, only to be still holding onto his love for Hazel. It seemed far-fetched to me, but was otherwise sweet.
The Verdict
Overall I really liked this book! It was a very quick read for me and I loved the concept. In the end, I was more invested in the actual setting and of Sparrow, Oregon and the culture Ernshaw created for the story than the characters themselves, but it is still one I would recommend.
Favorite aspect: The mood and tone, the abundant imagery, the surprises, and the ambience. Least favorite aspect: The romance. Rating: 4/5 stars
If you liked this review or wish to share your thoughts with me on it, please do! You can add me on Goodreads and also find me on Twitter.
Thank you for reading!
Cheers, Dani
