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Sanctuary
Spells trouble
Release Out now
Writer VV James
Publisher Gollancz
Price £14.99
Everyone knows that a murder in a small
town only means one thing: uncontrollable
escalating chaos. Old friendships will fall apart,
gossip will spread like wildfi re, and frankly the
body count can’t stop at just one.
These things have a habit of escalating, and the
fact that VV James takes increasingly unhinged
grieving parents, shocking buried secrets and a
media frenzy and stirs in the fact that the prime
suspect is the daughter of a well-loved witch... well,
it’s ludicrously entertaining.
James follows her superb Dark Gifts trilogy with
this blend of Big Little Lies-esque murder mystery
and supernatural thriller. It all starts when beloved
high school football star Dan Whitman is killed at
a party, but when a video is released that makes it
look like local witch Sarah Fenn’s daughter Harper
cast a killer spell on him, things all start to unravel
very quickly.
You see, in James’ America, witchcraft is widely
accepted, and Sarah is the head of a local coven that
includes Bridget, Dan’s mother. As she begins to
think that Sarah could be covering for her daughter,
the bereaved mother puts centuries of buried
prejudice and suspicion to work to fi nd justice for
her boy. It’s not long before sideways glances turn
to threats about a good old fashioned burning. Can
detective Maggie Knight fi nd the truth about what’s
happened before slurs turn to violence?
It’s a testament to James’ skill and confi dence
that there’s really never any wobbles when it
comes to establishing this alternate reality’s
magical system. For all intents and purposes, this
is America right now with one crucial difference.
Witchcraft is woven so seamlessly into the crime
thriller, with exposition coming as and when
needed to advance the story. We see how useful it’s
been, how welcomed it’s been, and how easy it is to
violently scapegoat once things go wrong.
When it comes to the investigation and the
unfolding mystery, it’s clear that the author is
having a tremendous amount of fun and without
wanting to use a phrase as cliched as ‘page-turner’,
that’s really what Sanctuary is.
Character developments are shocking but
plausible, big twists are as surprising as they
should be, and are always seen through rather
than dumped in for the sake of having a twist,
and the growing sense of dangerous chaos is
managed beautifully.
And, as the story progresses, the real-world
parallels become increasingly apparent. If you
weren’t reminded of the casual overuse of the
phrase ‘witch-hunt’ before the use of Presidential
Tweets late in the story, the ease with which
accusations can be made without consequence
and the willingness to believe certain people
over others cuts like a knife. While there’s afrantic horror to Sarah and Abigail’s point of view
chapters, watching Maggie try to maintain rational
objectivity in the face of escalating insanity is
arguably more affecting and dread-inducing.
As a ‘fi nished it in one night!’ summer binge
read, Sanctuary is a perfect fi t, but there’s more
than enough bite here to make sure the ideas linger
with you after the fi nal revelation.
Jonathan Hatfull
Tell us what you’re reading on Twitter or FacebookYOUR 5... FAVOURITE WITCH NOVELS
HEX
“HEX by Thomas
Olde Heuvelt is a
modern masterpiece.
#BookClub”
@bloodyfl icksThe Witch Saga
“The Witch Saga
by Phyllis Reynolds
Naylor. I probably
love it because of
nostalgia. Haven’t read it since
I was a kid. #BookClub”
@TK06h45m089173JThe Wee
Free Men
“...or any of
Pratchett’s Witch
books. They’re funny,
intelligent, well crafted and
full of heart. Miss him lots.
#BookClub” @TomWookieeWhich Witch?
“I read a book called
Which Witch? when
I was a teen, can’t
remember the author,
but I read that book many
many times! #BookClub”
@TheJediMumWyrd Sisters
“Wyrd Sisters - my
fi rst encounter with
Nanny Ogg and
friends. #BookClub”
@andyangel44BOOK CLUB
Sanctuary