I really like Silvia’s writing style and even though I guessed the twists pretty early on, it didn’t stop me from enjoying the story.

The way that the three timelines wove together kept me engaged throughout.

Overall it was a good witchy book and I’ll definitely be reading more from Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

I really loved this! I found it didn’t lean quite as far into the horror and supernatural elements as some of her other work, but it was still an engrossing book.

Told in three timelines, it’s the story of Alba in Mexico, torn between two potential lovers and facing down a bewitchment that has taken her brother, and of Betty in the 50s, a scholar and a secret lesbian who’s crush is about to go missing, and Minerva, moved internationally to attend school and studying Betty’s legacy in the late 90s but potentially being drawn into a mysterious witch curse.

Great character development, super true to the times of each timeline and just fantastic writing as always. The twist I did NOT see coming and it’s lovely how it wraps every up. It’s not necessarily a happy ending, but I was very satisfied by it.

4.5 Stars
I adored this book. I loved how the three timelines wove together to tell not only their individual stories but their combined stories as well. I did find that I had to take my time reading this book to not miss anything whereas usually I’m a speed reader but this didn’t affect my enjoyment of it. I’ve yet to read a book by Moreno-Garcia that I haven’t liked yet. I throughly recommend this book.

This is my True and Honest review my opinions are my own.
An abbreviated version of this review can be found on my Instagram .
3 timelines, 3 young women, 3 haunting experiences.
Minerva, a levelheaded university student studying in New England. Preferring to spend what little free time she has, emersed in her academic studies. Particularly with her favorite author Beatrice Tremblay, a former student of the same university from a different era and author of The Vanishing, Minerva's chosen thesis subject. Perhaps her love of mystery and the uncanny comes from the time spent with her great grandmother. Her stories of witches and spells of protection to guard against them are just that, stories!?
Beatrice Tremblay an author with a story to tell. A mystery that haunts her from her university days, a true story. Strange occurrences leading to a loss that will echo through the years, compels her to write The Vanishing.
Alba, a young Mexican woman dreaming of life beyond the family farm. When tragedy strikes and the bad omens persist. What must she do to protect her family. What legacy can she impart to future generations to keep them safe.
After all, Witches are just superstitious nonsense, aren't they?
I really enjoyed this book, the sense of eerie foreboding building throughout was perfectly paced. 3 timeline can be difficult to manage, while building character connection with the reader. I found that not to be the case here. Each character was given enough page time to express and react to their experiences within the plot and the nuances of the time setting.
The ominous feeling grew as the story progressed and the character experiences become dark and strange. The question of, How does a rational mind believe in folklore and stories of strange specters and witches. Or perhaps, the question should be: Is it irrational to not believe and not have the knowledge to protect yourself against evil things.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys mystery with an element of horror and the supernatural . I will be purchasing this book on its release date, as this will make a perfect Autumn re-read.
Thank you to Netgalley for the Arc
If you like reading:
• Cultural folklore
• Spells & Charms
• A ‘smidge’ of historical fiction
• Eerie, tension building, Atmospheric stories.
This book is for you!

Silvia MG has a lovely writing style. I read Mexican Gothic and loved it, and I found the writing style in this book just as engaging. I also liked the concept and initial setup.

However, and spoiler / trigger warning alert, I just personally don't like reading about incest and from very early in the book it plays a factor. If I'd known it was going to be so prominent, I would have skipped this one.

I'll read something by this author again, but will look up the trigger warnings next time.

Three women across a century are preyed upon by a witch in the latest novel from Silvia Moreno-Garcia, bestselling author of Mexican Gothic. Well written and atmospheric but far too long, full of filler and entirely predictable. It lacks any sort tension and would have been much better off being entirely focused on Betty, who has the most suspenseful and engaging story. Not one for me.

Thank you to the author and publishers for allowing me an e-ARC via NetGalley! That has in no way influenced this review and all opinions are my own.

Let me start off by saying that I expected this to be good, as all of Silvia’s books are, but this blew my expectations out of the water.

The premise of the book is one of the main reasons I wanted to read this. Having practiced some form of witchcraft/wiccan practices before, I felt drawn to this book as I really enjoy ‘unconventional’ books that will add to my knowledge. It’s glaringly obvious that Silvia has conducted extensive research prior to completing the book, or maybe she had this knowledge anyway, but either way it felt very genuine and it was informative (which I didn’t expect from a non-fiction book). The link between this book and previous titles such as Mexican Gothic is clear as day, and I really love that Silvia incorporates her heritage into her books. You can really tell that Silvia poured her heart and soul into this book.

The plot line was consistently interesting. There were no ‘slow parts’ during the book, and everything came together towards in end in a hugely satisfying way. I could not put this book down and every time I finished a chapter I was eager to read more, so I’m actually sad that I’ve finished this now!

The links between the characters are so cleverly done and I’m just in awe at how intricately things fit together like a puzzle. There were plot twists that weren’t predictable and I love that there’s a hint of the morally grey characters and the potential unreliable narrators. The character development was really satisfying, and I think the differences and similarities between the different characters are really interesting.

This may be THE best gothic horror book of 2025, and if you’re looking for a sign to read this book, this is it!!
I absolutely will be buying a copy of this in July.

Rating: 5/5 stars (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

Thank you Netgalley for the arc 🫶🏻

This is a 3.5/3.75 star read for me. The book is comprised of a multi-generational historical fiction told from three POVs, with a running theme of witchcraft and an ongoing mystery to be solved. On the tin, this is a perfect book for me.

I really enjoyed the writing style and found it easy to read and never found myself bored. I did however find the plot lacking sometimes and sometimes wish for a little more depth. Though it did tie up nicely at the end, it did feel like a slow build up for a reasonably quick resolution.

This is my second read by Moreno-Garcia and she certainly has a talent for writing a peculiar type of horror that will make your skin crawl and leave you feeling uncomfortable at times. If you enjoy historical fiction, light horror and weird vibes, I'd recommend giving this book a read.

Thank you Queercus Books and NetGalley!
I finished this a few days ago and still can’t get over it! An absolute masterpiece. This was medium paced yet suspenseful the whole way through, and the three timelines were woven together so seamlessly and beautifully I absolutely couldn’t put it down. I found myself loving every characters even the evil ones cause they were so interesting and complex. Silvia Moreno-Garcia is slowly becoming one of my favourite authors - very few write horror and intrigue like she does. No notes. Chefs kiss.

The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is an evocative and chilling tale that weaves witchcraft, literary obsession and generational trauma into a richly layered horror experience.

Spanning three timelines, the book follows Minerva, a 1990s graduate student who becomes fixated on Beatrice Tremblay, a little-known horror writer whose most famous book, The Vanishing, appears to be based on real, sinister events. As Minerva delves into her research, she discovers disturbing parallels between Tremblay’s life, the mysterious disappearance of a university roommate during the Great Depression, and her own great-grandmother’s tales of witches in early 1900s Mexico.

As the threads of past and present converge, a malign presence seems to awaken, casting its shadow once again. Moreno-Garcia expertly conjures a creeping dread while exploring the cultural and personal costs of power, fear and the stories women tell each other to survive.

Haunting and immersive, The Bewitching is a masterful meditation on memory, myth and the darkness passed down through generations.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

Unfortunately I realised quite early on that The Bewitching was going the same way as Bury Our Bones In The Midnight Soil did with me recently, and for pretty much all the same reasons. So if you loved that book, I would recommend this one as well - but it just wasn't personally for me. I think for a lot of people this would be a slow burn, atmospheric read but to get into this, I either needed one of the three main characters to be likeable and to grab my attention, or for there to be an instant hook into one of the POV characters' storylines. And while Alma's incestuous relationship with her uncle was surprising (and uncomfortable), her story didn't hook me any more than Minerva's did, so I'd already sort of checked out by the time the third character's chapters started.

The Bewitching definitely wasn't for me but I can see it going down well with fans of Bury Our Bones In The Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab

Disclaimer: I received an Advance Reader Copy from NetGalley, but this is my voluntary and honest review.

Note: As requested on the publisher information section, I will publish this review on Goodreads, Fable and Storygraph no more than 3 weeks before release. I will update this review page at that point with the links to the three reviews on those sites.

Hauntingly addictive, the bewitching had its claws deep within me from start to finish. Set across three generations within the US and Mexico, each generation is scarily interconnected which makes for a gripping story.

Our main charachter is a student Minerva, the olderst generation we see is her great grandmother Alba and her own haunting young adulthood. The third generation while not related, sits between the two and has history intersecting with Minerva - having attended the same university and having personally known the author of whom Minerva's thesis focuses on. I loved how diverse the representation was within this, we had characters of varied classes and ethnicities as well as queer rep and even brief jewish representation.

Witchcraft was rooted in this from start to finish, from folktale's to horror books, but sometimes the impossible becomes real. From receiving portents/ visions like the tales her alba told her tales of, to a series of eerily familiar drawings, the oddities continue to intertwine and may be more relevant to Minervas thesis than she'd ever considered.

Ultimately, this had me hooked from start to finish and finding out it held inspiration from Silvia's own family history and lived experiences made it even more gripping. My first foray into Silvias books despite having many in my want to buy list, it's safe to say I'll be diving into Silvias back log as soon as possible.

I wanted to love this and there was plenty that I did enjoy, but I found both timelines too predictable by far. The slow build atmosphere was done really well and I enjoyed the Minerva timeline but I was less sold on the 1908 timeline, although the atmosphere in that one was great. Overall, it was a bit too much style over substance for me but it was an entertaining read nonetheless.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Amazing as always from this author. She can write well in every genre and always has such memorable characters and stories. I love everything witchy and this hit the spot perfectly
Evenly paced and plotted with an interesting storyline and realistic characters this would be great for spooky season.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc

The Bewitching follows three women across three timelines, spanning nearly a century.

Minerva, a student researching the history of horror literature, sets out to study Tremblay’s novel The Vanishing in the context of the Great Depression. But her academic pursuit shifts as she tries to uncover whether the story hits closer to home than she ever expected. The University in Massachusetts casts a dark cloud over the characters, and with bated breath, I followed Minerva as she descended into the mystery surrounding the disappearance of “Ginny,” Tremblay’s former roommate. As a dark academia lover, I appreciated how the university setting created an ideal setting for suspense — a place where people live in forced proximity, where boundaries exist yet are easily crossed, and where intense feelings can flourish.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia introduces us to the Quiroga family with a mix of warmth and tragedy. It is here the book also transports us to early 1900s Mexico, where Minerva’s great-grandmother recounts her tragic life — one touched by witches. Throughout the chapters set in the 1900s, I could feel the characters’ growing desperation as their situation worsened. Nana Alba, in particular, stood out to me as the most memorable of the three women. Her character captures the raw confusion of youth. It was fascinating to watch her wrestle with her perception of her uncle Arturo — her curiosity about his secretive life added depth to her character. Moreno-Garcia does a wonderful job developing Alba as someone torn between a deep-rooted bond with her land and family and an insatiable yearning for something beyond.

As the story progresses, the timelines begin to blur. Shared experiences ripple across generations, and an eerie sense of dread builds. The deeper you get, the more the novel feels like being put under a spell.

Themes of sin, love, witchcraft, supernatural, academia, friendship, and evil are intricately woven through the novel. If you enjoy multi-generational stories brimming with mystery then this book is the one for you!

Thank you to Quercus books for an early copy.

The Bewitching takes place in 1908, 1934 and 1998. It follows three women, one of them being Alba in 1908 who has a terrifying encounter with a witch. 1998 follows Minerva who is Alba’s great-granddaughter as she investigates a manuscript by Beatrice Tremblay who wrote macabre tales. Tremblay’s most famous novel called The Vanishing was inspired by a true story where her friend went missing. Minerva suspects events are somehow connected and aims to find out what is really going on but it’s dangerous when witchcraft is involved.

I’m giving this 4.5 stars rounded up to a 5. This was really good. I loved how atmospheric this was and I loved the vibes this gave me. I really liked every timeline but my favourite was Minerva in 1998. The story was intriguing and whilst the witchcraft was the main part of the story there was some interesting character development too. It feels more historical than fantasy. I would recommend this for fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s other works, the vibes were similar but the story completely different and I just had a great reading experience.

This book had me enthralled from the first page until the last. Spanning three different timelines, the story follows three women and their encounters with witchcraft and the supernatural. Eerie, suspenseful and thrilling, I enjoyed the pace and the seamless transition between the storylines.

I have read Silver Nitrate and the Seventh Veil of Salome by this author so I knew how good she was by reading these novels. I was not disappointed in this novel either. The characters, particularly Minerva, were well drawn and the story was excellent.
I recommend this book highly, and thank you to netgalley and the publishers for giving me a copy of the book.

Three women in three different eras encounter danger and witchcraft in this eerie multigenerational horror saga. This story weaves class and history where every uncovered secret is fraught with intrigue and creeping horror. An academic career can be a punishing pursuit, but it might turn outright deadly when witchcraft is involved.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 | 𝐀𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐲 𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐨-𝐆𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐢𝐚

Feisty women, witchy occult, disturbing creatures,
1998: Minerva is a graduate student at Stoneridge College focused on the history of horror literature, researching the life of Beatrice Tremblay, an obscure author of writing witch tales.

1908: Tells the story of Minerva’s Nana Alba, an eldest daughter living on a farm desperately trying to keep afloat as soemthing starts haunting her family.

1934: Betty reveals her own student days at the college Minerva attends, telling the mystery disappearance of her friend which inspired one of her stories.

Moreno-Garcia excels at interweaving generation stories that connect in eerie ways, delivering a satisfying finale that normally carries a gut-punching message.

<b>“Maybe they felt they had to tell them. That it would be dangerous if they were forgotten,” she said.
</b>
Admittedly, I saw the twist for every single one of the timelines which took away some of the momentum.

Moreno-Garcia keeps the pace tense, the occult haunting, and the idea of telling stories at the forefront.

Arc gifted by Del Rey.