I wanted to like this book, and it was an easy enough read, but what could have been an exciting and thought provoking exploration of Salem witches was very much let down by its narrator, who was by turns patronising and doltish. Her revelations as she delves deeper into her family's history were forehead-slappingly obvious: "She's written witch-bottel - perhaps she means bottle!" and any kind of dramatic tensions was lost as as result. Of course authors base their work to an extent on their own experience, but after reading the dust jacket bio it became clear that Constance was a very thinly-disguised Mary Sue, and the whole book reads as one long exercise in self-indulgence. There were some evocative descriptions, and the sections set in the past were much more vivid, but the modern-day narrator and her heavy-handed "realisations" simply detracted from what was good. Deborah Harkness' Discovery of Witches trilogy, despite being more in the realms of fantasy, was far more literate and far more enjoyable, despite this book's basis in historical fact. I liked this book. Whenever I'm reading a book, I love to think of myself as the heroine (or the hero, as the case maybe, if there aren't any ass-kicking, too-smart-for-my-good femme fatales around). But Connie just didn't do it for me. I wanted to be her, don't get me wrong. But not because she was amazing or cool or smart or even funny. I thought she was a bit dense, actually. I wanted to be her because of all the wonderful things that kept happening to her! I absolutely adored everybody else though. I loved Grace, adored Liz and wanted to be Connie simply to be with Sam. I even liked Manning as a villain.But this is one of the first books I've read about witches (but shall, by no means, be my last) and it made me want to be there every time she tried a new spell, hold Sam's hand in the hospital and kicked Manning's ass.If there's a sequel, I would definitely read it. I would also like to add that I'm definitely a cat person, but I LOVE Arlo.
What do You think about The Lost Book Of Salem (2009)?
Il libro si legge piacevolmente, anche se la storia è un po' scontata.
—Ryan
Total fluff, perfect seasonal read for Halloween. Enjoyed it!
—brianna
