If there was ever a book that was destined for the big screen - it would be The Coven.
It instantly hooks you in from the start, it slowly drip feeds you each character's story and how each character was destined to meet. I loved the vivid imagery in Lizzie Fry's writing - at times I felt I was at Stonehenge witnessing an almighty battle.
The characters were extremely realistic and I loved the connection between Chloe and Adelita.
The story played out one drama after another, I was kept on the edge of my seat wondering if one of the main characters were going to choose to use her powers for good or if she as simply going to obliterate all around her.

The Coven by Lizzie Fry is a dystopian story set in an alternate version of our world, which rather scarily does not feel all that unlikely or different to the world we see so often in the news these days.
In this world, the killing of a US President triggers the rise of a Sentinel agency, their purpose being to root out and capture or kill all witches, but especially those with elemental powers which are considered the most dangerous of all. The new occupant of the Oval Office is a demagogue who whips the population into a frenzy with speeches denouncing the evils of magic and those who wield it, gaining support for kill on sight orders for all Elemental witches, and the forced imprisonment of other witches who rely on crystals etc for their power. This policy is spreading world wide, with a version of the Sentinel force in most countries, so when reports come in of the discovery of a powerful Elemental witch in the UK , the president dispatches his most determined and vicious agent to take care of her. The witch in question is nineteen year old Chloe Su ,and it soon becomes clear that not only is she more powerful than any witch in living memory, but also that she has a strange connection to another witch she has never even met, Adelita, a Crystal witch on the run from Sentinel after breaking out of one of their prisons. The two women become top of a literal global witch hunt, and while on the run they come up with a plan to unite with their fellow witches and end the persecution once and for all.
Fast paced and cleverly plotted , this was a really interesting blend of dystopia and fantasy that still felt very grounded in reality. I loved that it took the reader on a breathless chase around the world, it really helped to make the book a page turner. I thought the characters were well developed and really enjoyed the interactions between them. I think readers who enjoyed books like The Handmaid's Tale, Vox or The Power might well enjoy this one too.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

A book about witchcraft wouldn’t always be my first choice however The Coven really surprised me, I loved it!
The dystopian world gave me Margaret Atwood feels, it didn’t seem impossible to imagine this being real life.
I enjoyed that the story traveled the world, each setting beautifully described, rich in detail.
The characters were likeable even with their flaws, I was rooting for them to prevail.
The twists in the book really left me surprised, I definitely didn’t see them coming.
An absolute success which I loved from start to finish

I was drawn to this book by its catchy title and front cover, and I, really glad my curiosity was found as I really enjoyed reading it. A world wheee witches exist and are locked up, it can be totally relatable due to feminism and I found myself gripped.

At the time of writing, it is not hard at all to imagine the US President as a populist demagogue, but in the hope that this will soon be a distant memory let’s zoom in to Lizzie Fry’s action-packed fizzer of a witch book. The premise of the book is that magic is present to a greater or lesser extent for most women, whether they are a full on elemental, or a practical kitchen witch. This provides the perfect platform for the US President to stir up some fear and create The Sentinel, who deploy unreasonable force in the subjugation of witches.

This is the backdrop to a great deal of vivid action, with details that spark your imagination into creating an epic moviescape of natural and supernatural bursts. From the sticky mud of rural England to the polished gloss of metropolitan America, the scenes really pop out as the story unfolds. For every fantastic element, there is some gritty detail to suck you into Fry’s universe, which is perfectly believable throughout the story.

The book isn’t overtly a platform for justice activism, but it certainly hits some buttons along the way. It’s like The Circle, but replacing privacy as the focus with a shotgun of different social issues.

The big positives in this book include the characters and locations, the excellent descriptions of magic, and the pure adreneline of the fast-pace. For the final chapters, your imagination will certainly be stretched as you try to envision the scale of action that unfolds.

If you want a bit of magic that is solidly earthed, some characters with real-world thoughts, and some explosive skirmishes – there aren’t many grown-up books that can deliver what Lizzie Fry has given us here.

An interesting twist on the witch genre, with a pulsating plot reminiscent of 'The Power' and 'The Handmaid's Tale'. I really enjoyed the thriller element, although at times the world it is set in is uncomfortably similar to our own (aka President Trump). There's a great mix of characters and 'The Coven' is a real page turner, moving between different places and battles. A different dystopia.

I'd love to interview Lizzie Fry for my Thriller Women blog www.thrillerwomen.blogspot.com

A crackling, powerful dystopian debut. Lizzie Fry has created a world full of strong female leads you can get behind. One for fans of Atwood and Alderman.

I loved the premise of this book but it didnt always quite hit the mark for me unfortunately. The story is about female power and witchcraft in particular, which is a subject that always interests me, but I couldnt quite engage with how the storyline developed and got lost from time to time.
Looking at other reviews, I think that's my issue though as most other readers enjoyed it more than i did, so perhaps a case of not the right book for me at the time.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read it

The premise of the book was really intriguing and original.

The book is set in an alternate earth, where some women have witch powers. They face prejudice because of this and are under threat from the government.

The book focuses on a range of characters- all with interesting back stories and motivations. They were engaging and I enjoyed their character arcs and watching them grow.

The combination of Witches and Sexism was very clever as it meant there was more than one fight happening. The challenges were similar to our own world, with well-crafted mirroring.

My only issue was that sometimes there was an information dump and at other times, not enough information was given.

It was an enjoyable read overall, I definitely recommend it.

The Coven

Wow what a book.  What an incredible world Lizzie Fry has built.
An incredibly horrific world but so intricate and vibrant nonetheless.

Loved loved this book.  Its just wonderful.
There has been something going around online that says something along the lines of "The women persecuted and murdered in Salem weren't witches as history always tells us...but innocent women"
This is literally the book that goes with that statement...only it's not one town but the whole world..and its horrifying and unimaginable and terrifying yet...so believable and possible all at the same time.

It is shocking and intense and the characters are rich and feel very real.  Adelita was my favourite character but I loved them all.

They are a great mix of characters and I adored their bonding and their story and how their relationships developed.  It was very nuanced and touching.

The only things I would change are:  having both the names Li and Adelita completely threw me.  I thought everything happening between Adelita and Ethan was a flashback at first as I thought Li and Adelita were the same person. (As in Li short for Adelita)...I'm guessing the reason the names were similar and I get it but it didn't work for me and wasn't necessary and I would have enjoyed the earlier chapters much more if I had been sure about the characters.

I think that was the reason I struggled with the first couple of chapters...and maybe I would have enjoyed them more had that been clearer.  I will definitely be reading this book again so I will be able to see...

The description "rogue sentinel" needs to be reduced from almost every page to once or twice in the whole book.  After a while it didn't make sense to keep using it as a description and the use of it was so repetitive...I found it very frustrating.

I would like to understand this version of spellbinding more.  At one point we are told that you must be open to it to spellbind with someone but then later it is used as a weapon...so would have liked that clarified as it was just really interesting.

Overall....The story is fast paced...intricate and just absolutely brilliant.
Really loved this book.
Read it.  You will love it.
Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

If there was ever a book that was destined for the big screen - it would be The Coven.
It instantly hooks you in from the start, it slowly drip feeds you each character's story and how each character was destined to meet. I loved the vivid imagery in Lizzie Fry's writing - at times I felt I was at Stonehenge witnessing an almighty battle.

The characters were extremely realistic and I loved the connection between Chloe and Adelita.

The story played out one drama after another, I was kept on the edge of my seat wondering if one of the main protagonists were going to choose to use her powers for good or if she as simply going to obliterate all around her.

I absolutely loved it - hands down my best read of 2020.

I was surprised by just how much I enjoyed this book!

On the back of ‘The Handmaids Tale’ I’ve read quite a few dystopian type novels that focus on the subjugation of women. Some of those books had very interesting concepts but fell flat at execution, The Coven is the first one that felt fresh and succeeded in meeting my expectations, mostly because it didn’t attempt to be more serious than it was.

This isn’t quite set in a dystopian world, it’s more of an alternative reality where witches exist, but it never feels too far removed from the real world and indeed it’s easy to see the parallels.

Following a campaign of fear tactics, women practising witchcraft have essentially been outlawed. The all-male sentinels ensure this is enforced, killing the strongest witches, sending others to correctional camps and rounding up women without magic but from strong magical families and imprisoning them. That’s until the arrival of Chloe Su or ‘The One’, a powerful witch that can unite them all.

Having a chosen one is a rather overused trope but the story is mostly told from the point of view of others around her. The usual teenage emotions of discovering immense power and the burden of being a chosen one is there but for the most part we follow it through the eyes of a more mature character. Chloe is joined on her journey by her father, another newly discovered witch in her late 30s and an ex-sentinel. This group makes a welcome change from the usual bunch of teenagers saving the world or the all-knowing mentor and hapless student relationship. Bonus points for quite a diverse range of characters as well!

One character I felt was a little weaker than the rest was the villain. I enjoyed the revelation about them, while it wasn’t completely unexpected it did add another layer. I just would have liked their plan to be slightly clearer and found their dialogue particularly clunky which, apart from one character repeatedly being called ‘cowboy’, was not very in keeping with the rest of the book.

I also would have liked a slightly better defined system of magic. The process of spellbinding played a large part but how exactly it worked and what it meant was a little unclear. I think it’s best not to think too hard about the details when reading this book but it’s still a fun read.

3.5 stars

The age old battle of good vs bad,yet this time you cant really be sure who's who.

The government are waging war on females,mainly as some of them are witches.

It took me a little amount of time to get my head around the different types of witch,apart from the most powerful one,that was clear from the start.

A great book ,packed with tension,and surprises right through to the end.
The central characters,for me,were all good.
I was cheering them on at every move.

This book would make a cracking movie - it felt like the scenes ‘came alive’ and were written to become a film! From the crackling magic of the Elemental witches to the sentinels and their anti-magic Halos. The story jumps from location to location and each is more exciting than the last. I loved The Forge location and the underground river! Such a great read for thinking about feminism and politics also.

I would definitely recommend this to fans of Margaret Atwood and Naomi Alderman. It has all the hallmarks of one of their books with strong female lead characters - but dare I say it: I actually found this book more exciting to read... it moved at a quicker pace (similar to Andy Weirs style of writing in Artemis) and I didn’t want to finish reading it! I wish there could be a sequel!

Reading this book, you enter a world that has outlawed witchcraft, to the point where women are reduced to a place they existed a hundred years ago - Second class citizens with no views or power of their own. However, you can’t keep half the population down totally. There is an underground movement of witches waiting for The One to appear to take back their lives.
This is a really well written, fast paced tale, with historical references to places which are synonymous with witchcraft, particularly Salem, Stonehenge and Boscastle. For me it was a real page turner, with some unexpected characters and events that I really enjoyed, a very good example of this genre.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

If you're a fan of Charmed, Buffy, and that genre of mystical magic, then you are in for a treat with this one! Amongst the magic and power of the outcast witches, there is a thread we see too often in society today in the form of women being silenced by men in power. We follow the story of two witches, one freshly broken out of prison in Texas and a strongly powerful witch in England. Their paths cross and they take us on a journey of love, friendship and battles. The book was very well written and detailed set in the backdrop of Boscastle which has a history of witchcraft. All in all, this isn't my usual genre but I did enjoy this. If you're into fantasty books, you'll lap this up.